3 Party System Rocks

Many Canadians are concerned about the recent Conservative Party victory which gave them a Majority. There are fears that the Conservatives will move Canada from a country that governs from the center to the right. Clearly a majority government will allow this shift in policy, but how hard will the shift be? It is a question that many of us in Canada ponder on a regular basis.The minority governments have pulled the reigns on Steven Harper and forced the politicians to compromise on policy, is this compromise dead? I think not.

The Conservative Party has a rare political opportunity over the next 5 years. It can govern and guarantee Conservative domination for the next 20 years or it can create a backlash that will bring the Liberal Party back to life. Here is the crux of the political environment. If the Conservative govern to far to the right, Canadians will resurrect the Liberal party in 5 years. The Harper government has a crucial political decision to ponder – what do we need to do to keep the Liberal irrelevant. The 3rd party plays a large role in how a government can operate.

If Canadians needed to make a decision between Conservative policy and NDP policy, then we would be drawn into the polarizing political arena that exist with our neighbours to the south. Don’t like to vote for extreme right or left political parties, what chose do you have. I feel for many voters in the US – Republicans or Democrat? Republicans are the rich kids who bully the poor kids into voting for a system that benefits a minority of people – that would be the rich kids. Democrats are the middle class that have all of the principled and honourable policy but lack the courage and conviction to actually do anything. Good Luck with that.

In Canada, The NDP has traditionally been the weakest of the 3 parties, but they had great influence in how the ruling party governed. Now, it is the Liberals who will have great influence in how the Conservative govern. The Conservative will be responsible for the resurrection of the Liberal party based on whether or not they govern to the center.

Canadian Coup!

The government of Canada may get the boot not through an  election but rather a democratic parliamentary system. Huh? At first glance one would thing that a democratic parliamentary system sounds democratic, so why does the current political turmoil insert an annoying ringing tone in my ears? It may be because a high school law teacher once taught me that some laws are not just. Canada voted for a Conservative government. They were the elected choice as a minority government. Three other political parties made up the rest of the government – Liberals, NDP, and BLOC.  So, after a controversial move in Parliament by the Conservatives the three parties have decided that they were going to join forces and take over government. This is of course completely  legal in our system in Canada, but is it just. This conflict should start a national conversation on the merits of our political system. Any process that takes away from the power an individuals vote should be denied.

Beyond the stink of government take over, one has to ask what the hell is the Liberal Party thinking? I believe that the Liberal party should fire all of their political strategists. Here are my three reasons:

1) The BLOC is a separatist party. Joining forces with a party that wants to destroy the concept of Canada is political suicide. A separatist (or as PM Harper stated in French “Sovereignist”) party will sit on the government of the country that they want to separate from. Now I know why our national anthem starts with “Oh Canada”

2) The leader of the Coalition, Stephane Dion, is getting fired from the Liberal party. What does he get as severance, how about Prime Minister of Canada. Great. If the coalition was a hockey team, it means that the General Manager would fire the coach and then hire him as the President.

3) Most importantly. Why would they want to own the current economic crisis? If the Liberal party had some leadership or intelligence, they would let the Conservatives take on this challenge because it was the Conservatives that started this problem. Taking power now would allow people to attach the downturn in the economy to the new coalition.

So, here is what I predict. If the Liberal Party go ahead with this Coalition, they will not receive a majority for a long long time.

Finally, all of the parties are equally responsible for putting into motion the destruction of Canada. The Conservatives has alienated Quebec pushing them into a corner. The Liberals, in an attempt to appeal to Ontario, will alienate the west. Canada will become the west versus Ontario versus Quebec versus the Maritimes. The political parties are wedging this country apart. It is a serous time. I almost would prefer a military coup instead of this parliamentary coup.

Oil Companies off the hook?

As I drive and see gas prices drop, I can’t help but think what the hell? This summer a barrel of oil was a buck and a half, it is half of that now. What the hell? I am not an economist, nor an expert in any areas of the economy. But, why are we letting the oil companies off the hook for this economic down turn.

Many people lost their homes in part because banks gave them loans that they could not afford and the nail in the coffin was the cost of gas.  Think about the people whose gas bill doubled and the spin off effect of this price increase.  The “Joe the Plummers”  of the world began to get squeezed causing many to not have a hope in hell of keeping their homes. The cost of food went up, actually the cost of everything that included transportation costs went up. For too long the world has been held hostage by oil companies greed. Even now in times of trouble, oil companies are taking in enormous profits.

Don’t let the oil companies off the hook. Watch how over the next 2 months, the gas prices will dramatically drop. Oil companies know that they will need to make gas more affordable so that the US and other countries will delay the movement towards green automobiles. It is time to make them pay. The greed of oil companies will come back to bite them in the ass.  By gauging consumers and crippling industries (airline), the oil companies has provided the political capital to a move away from oil based energies. It could have happened to a better group of peronas.

Obama and McCain should do the following ad …

Leadership is needed in times of crisis. McCain and Obama should get together and do a TV ad together that goes something like this:

McCain: ” Don’t vote for me because of the colour of my skin”

Obama: ” Don’t vote for me because of the colour of my skin”

Together: ” I want your vote. I want your vote because you believe in me. I want your vote because I can make a difference. I don’t want your vote if you are looking at my differences”

Leadership is bigger than a political position. Racism is happening on both sides. White people should not vote for McCain because Obama is black and black people should not vote for Obama because McCain is white. It is time to move the world forward not backwards.

Is America ready for this century?

The election in the states if fast approaching and I can’t help to wonder if America is ready for this century. Many pundits and observers understand that Obama is the candidate for the future and McCain is the candidate of the 20th century. This is not to pass judgment on either. The truth is that McCain is not a real Republican and I believe that if he wins he will abandon the right-wing of the party and govern more to the center.  It is a bit troubling to see McCain sell his soul (pander to right wing of party, select Palin, use Bush campaigners) for a higher office.  Obama is trying to fight back but must not lose his ethics in the process. What is becoming clear is the voters in the US will have to ask themselves two fundamental questions: Are you okay with an African America president? Which century do you want your country to reside in?

The African American thing first. Take a look at how the Republicans have destroyed the US economy and mismanaged the war on terror. The democrats should be up in polls by double digits. One of the major reasons the democratic nominee is not is that he is black. The race issue in the US is deep and hundreds of years old. There are many Americans who will not vote for him because of his skin colour.  Sad but true. It is fear that keeps McCain in this. The Republicans has carried great majorities based on this sense of fear – be afraid of a soft leader in a scary world, the democrats will socialize everything, taxes will be higher, and most important they are not like us.

They are not like us is the political weapon of the Republicans. The party that governs for the rich convince the poor and middle class that they  are like them. It is the biggest scam in political science history. Ask John McCain how many houses he owns? George Bush and his oil buddies making billions. Ask Donald Trump who he is supporting? The people in the US start believing that the Republicans are the Clampett family from the “The Beverly Hillbillies” when in fact the are nothing more than the land owners in the south during slavery. That is harsh you say. Really? Who benefits from Republican rule? How much upward mobility do you see in the States these days? Ask rich people who they want to vote for? The party that protects the rich is the Republican party end of story. If you are voter in this states and believe that the Republicans are just like you an me than take a look at the Republican convention and tell me how that is representative of the melting pot that is America.

Beyond the race issue, Americans need to decide which century they want to participate in. If you want to rule with 20th century thought, negotiation techniques, and economic policies than vote McCain. It is appalling that the next president may have very little experience in the area of technology. The move from industrial to digital economic system is upon us not behind. But more importantly is how the next president is going to negotiate with other countries. The confrontational cold war talk is a thing of the past. The rest of the world is beyond this. Europe has torn down traditional divides of the 20th century to create a common union that negotiates in a diplomatic and respectful manner. China, India, Russia and other countries are moving beyond the need for US good will. In fact, there will come a time when the US will need the good will of China. Obama is not the perfect candidate, he has flaws. However, he does represent the future. His style is more reflective of a generation that is tired of old politics. His use of technology clearly indicates that he understands technology. And make no mistake about this, if it wasn’t for digital technology than the US would be irrelevant in a global economy. They would be the big fat kid who takes money from other kids not because he is smarter but because he is physically stronger (we call them bullies). The choice is quite clear. Obama is the future, but is America interested in moving there.