I thought we had a plan. The plan was that we were going to give the NDP a crack at the levers of power because the other two parties have both repeatedly demonstrated their commitment to Neo-liberalism and the destruction of the rights of Canadians.
But look at the polls as of October 11th, there be the NDP in their usual third place because the segment of the population that votes has decided that more of the same is going to be frakking awesome.
It looks like the Liberals are going to get in as the minority government. The same ones that voted for the disenfranchisement and removal of personal liberties of all Canadians; you remember that bill Law C-51?
Hey, whatever right? Let’s see if we can do a Trudeau-mania part 2 and relive those heady days of the 70’s. Woohaa.
bleatmop
Mystro
The Arbourist
Dead Wild Roses 
17 comments
October 13, 2015 at 6:09 am
carmen
I see exactly what you are saying and I agree. However, in speaking with most other people, the term I hear is ‘Strategic Voting’ – in this case meaning, ‘whatever it takes to get rid of Harper’. It seems that the majority of people I talk to feel that a Liberal vote is the way to do it. I have the same concerns as you, and here in NS the only ones who voted ‘No’ to Bill C-51 were the NDP’s.
Believe me, I have been in some heated conversations about this. . . also, I’d like to think that the NDP would be the most likely party to consider the Leap Manifesto. .
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October 13, 2015 at 8:02 am
liamyoung2323
Our riding shows the greatest likelihood of getting a Liberal in charge, so I will not vote NDP, despite my desire to do so. Call me a chump or a putz, but the NDP are going to have to wait their turn until we’ve got a lock on electoral reform. Also, I might have gone with Mulcair had he not tried to be such a Thatcherite.
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October 13, 2015 at 8:13 am
MoS
What the hell? That sums it up nicely. Maybe Canadians realized Canada doesn’t need another liberal party. Maybe the fact that the NDP, in moving to the center, created a vulnerability to the abandoned left.
For decades I was a leftwing Liberal even if that meant sometimes holding my nose to vote. When Ignatieff arrived I realized “my” party had moved on and left me behind. When I looked to the New Dems I realized that Layton had set them on the path to Blairification, opportunism trumping principle. I watched as the NDP aided and abetted Harper in his ascent first to power and then to majority in its blind quest to displace the Liberals. What might befall Canada under such an unscrupulous prime minister wasn’t even an afterthought.
Canada, like every other nation, is facing a challenging future of an unprecedented scale. We’ll need social cohesion as never before and that’s built from the ground up through the realignment of the balance between labour and capital, the dismemberment of the forces of inequality in all its guises, and the rehabilitation of our social safety net. That means getting out from under the boot of neoliberalism, something to which all three mainstream parties have too easily succumbed.
Now, more than ever, we need a party of the Left and, if the NDP no longer wants that job, then we must find a new party, new leadership, and a clear vision of the Canada we’ll need for the next generations to follow us.
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October 13, 2015 at 8:50 am
thnkfryrslf
Thomas Mulcair’s NDP is just a Neoliberal as the other 2 parties. He’s made that pretty clear.
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October 13, 2015 at 9:00 am
Steve Ruis
Possibly the disease affecting voters south of your border is contagious?
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October 13, 2015 at 10:21 am
The Arbourist
@Steven Ruis
I don’t think so. I feels more like a symptom of our zany First Past the Post system – people are prioritizing getting a party out of power and by any means necessary.
Except of course here in Alberta were the Conservatives are projected to take 50% of the vote. *sigh*
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October 13, 2015 at 10:22 am
The Arbourist
@Liamyoung2323
One cannot be faulted for voting ABC.
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October 13, 2015 at 10:23 am
The Arbourist
@MoS
Well said, and persuasively so.
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October 13, 2015 at 10:28 am
The Arbourist
@thnkfryrself
The deference to Neo-Lib goes part in parcel with our system at the moment. I just have this wacky idea that once, if in power, the NDP would have started changing things around (hopefully for the better) to better serve the people of Canada. The moneyed interests would have to start from scratch again, as they had to do in Alberta, to get their ‘power people’ back into the halls of governmental power.
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October 13, 2015 at 10:30 am
The Arbourist
@Carmen
I live in the small island of orange that exists in Alberta, and I do my part to keep that small sliver alive. My MP is active in parliament and has enough time to answer my concerns when I write to her. I hope, for Canada’s sake that the ABC voting works out.
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October 13, 2015 at 10:36 am
bleatmop
I’ll tell you what the hell happened. Tom Fucking Mulcair happened. I know he’s not new, as he’s been the party leader since after Jack died but for most people in this country who only pay attention during the hustings this is when they are getting introduced to him. He comes off as a smug and smarmy jackass that couldn’t inspire a morbidly obese person to consider McDonalds for supper. Hell, he couldn’t even get the most popular NDP Premier (Notley) to endorse his climate change program.
If I had to describe how Mulcair has handled this campaign in one word it would Bungled. They literally took a 10 point lead and super-majority polling status into a run to set the record for most seats lost in one election cycle by simply showing Mulcair’s face. I might add that that near 40% polling rate was mostly on the back of Alberta voting in the NDP and the rest of the country perking up and saying WTF maybe I’ll give them a chance if Alberta did.
And seriously, what has been with this campaign. It’s like he’s been racing to be more conservative than the Conservatives. “I won’t run a deficit!” “I’ll tax corporations far below the average the Conservatives did” “Margaret Thatcher was a great leader”. That and they have completely let the Conservatives control the narrative during the entire time of their slide. I understand their position on the Nijab and I support it, but when 80% of Canadians agree with the Conservatives perhaps you should start to change the topic? Perhaps start to attack the conservative misinformation. Start repeating this at every news conference “Harper has the worst economic record of any Prime Minister ever!” Seriously, it’s a demonstrable fact. You can back that statement up. But noooooo… let’s not got negative. Let’s let Harper lie and let all the Conservative supporters believe only the Conservatives will protect the economy.
Bah.
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October 13, 2015 at 10:41 am
carmen
Well, I’ll tell you, Arb, that I have much respect for the NDP MP’s here – they are all well-known and, even though they don’t represent the riding I’m in, have responded to me (two of them) the times I have written with concerns.
Which means that I am still ‘on the fence’ as to who to vote for… Sigh… The only firm conviction I have is the person I definitely won’t be voting for.
Any comments about the Leap Manifesto?
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October 13, 2015 at 11:09 am
The Arbourist
@Carmen
This is the first time I’ve heard of the Leap Manifesto(linking here for convenience). I just went and read it and for the most part agree I with the goals and vision it lays out.
Here lies my problem – I have been advocating for polices of this nature against a fortress of disdain, ignorance, and dismissal for pretty much my adult life (waa, poor ole lefty me, right? :) ). I’m 41 now and the sort of change that needs to happen in society for shit to get better sometimes seems like the pipedream my debate opponents frame it as.
The change necessary in society requires a huge divestment in the status-quo. The small strides we have taken toward a more equitable, sustainable, and just society seem like epic victories. But these small victories are almost always overshadowed by the giant steps backward implemented by the dominant political paradigm.
(small)Yaaay! Effective Carbon Taxing in BC / (gutpunch)Oooof! The expansion of the Tar Sands in Alberta that double or treble the level of emmisions in the province and have the zesty side benefits of scorching the earth for square kilometers around the site, and poisoning waters and…
(small) Yaaay! NDP provincial government / (gutpunch) Oooof! The federal NDP committing slow motion seppuku on the national stage…
It’s not all doom and gloom, but sometimes it certainly feels that way. :/
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October 13, 2015 at 11:29 am
The Arbourist
@bleatmop
Tell me how you really feel. :)
Well, hope the NDP doesn’t get completely decimated and that they learn to trust their base and the policies that got them to where they are in the first place.
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October 13, 2015 at 11:32 am
carmen
Well! I thought you were older but only because of your wisdom. You’re closer to our eldest’s age (she’s 38) and she’s a big fan of Naomi Klein. (you probably know that Naomi Klein’s mother did ‘Not a Love Story’ – the anti-pornography film). We’ve been talking about environmental concerns for some time. Couple that with the fact that our son was in the oil exploration business and knows the devastation that can wreak on the landscape, and you can see why we are so taken with the LM. Something drastic has to happen. Also, I am still rather miffed with the Liberals for supporting Bill C-51. But I also don’t think it’s all gloom and doom, as long as we can get rid of our Republican Prime Minister. ;)
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October 13, 2015 at 12:08 pm
The Arbourist
@Carmen
Thank you. :) – I’ll have to show TIO and Mystro this quote, as both think I’m full of things other than wisdom. :)
Absolutely.
It is the judicious optimism of progressive politics that keeps one going in the long-run
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October 14, 2015 at 5:22 am
jasonjshaw
Yeah, I’m scratching my head on this as well. I suspect it’s because people buy in to drama much too easily rather than rational thought.
I really want to see Proportional Representation brought in, so this is a rather disappointing tun of events. I’m thinking Mulcair did himself a disservice by softening his “angry Tom” image. The majority of Canadians ARE angry about our current government.
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