Non-aligned in Toronto

A member since May 16, 2007 14:27

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Comment History

Harper has "poisoned the well" in parliament - path forward is uncertain (2008-12-01)

• Nik, I agree with your assessment. Harper totally misread the temper of the opposition. The Liberals in particular have been stung by the reaction to their l...
• Why call yourself "made in Canada." Why not "made in the West"? Regionalist separatism, whether from the West of from Quebec, is the biggest single factor ho...
• In a minority government, (no matter whose). The opposition parties are very wise to be prepared to govern if called upon. You will recall that Mr. Harper tr...
• The economy of Canada and it's regions have their ups and downs. At the moment, the West id flying high, and Ontario is hurting. This has not always been the...
• Hi Hollinm, interestingly enough, most of the "billions that have been thrown at the problem" have been thrown by the right wing American Bush regime. Th...

New Nanos National Poll - CP, 32%, LP 30%, NDP 20%, GP 10%, BQ 9% (2008-11-19)

• Certainly some of the Liberal rebound will be as a result of the Dion resignation, although I think voters may well find Rae and Ignatieff equally unpalatabl...

CPAC-Nanos Election Tracking CP 34.2, LP 26.7, NDP 21.4, BQ 9.5, GP 8.2 (ending October 12) (2008-10-13)

• I still find the number of undecided voters unusually large. This could play out a number of ways: Most likely; undecided won't vote. Other possibilities: Ma...

CPAC-Nanos Daily Election Tracking CP 33, LP 27, NDP 22, BQ 10, GP 8 (ending October 9) (2008-10-10)

• Since I am supporting the NDP in this election, I can only say that let the Libs and Cons attack each other to their heart's content. I was quite amazed at t...

CPAC-Nanos Daily Election Tracking CP 34, LP 29, NDP 20, BQ 11, GP 6 (ending October 5) (2008-10-06)

• Hi Nik, On Saturday I made this fearless prognostication: I'll try my hand at prognostication and predict that by Monday (Sunday nights numbers counted) ...
• Gohabs and Westerner, you are both predicting that the NDP vote is going somewhere, and you are right. It is going up.
• Darryl, you said the same thing last week, didn't you.
• Gohabs, that is a lying slur. Jack rented a unit in a mixed use rental development, and paid market rent, not subsidized. On top of that, it gave him a l...
• Yeah but after this election I'll be non-aligned again. I decided to support the NDP this time in August, and when the election is over, I'll go back to crit...

CPAC-Nanos Daily Election Tracking CP 35, LP 28, NDP 19, BQ 10, GP 8 (ending October 3) (2008-10-04)

• Hi Reg, after reading your comments, I went outside and sure enough saw this long line of cars driving by with their lights on. At first I took this as a sig...

CPAC-Nanos Daily Election Tracking CP 35, LP 30, NDP 18, BQ 10, GP 9 (ending October 2) (2008-10-03)

• Hi Nik, I am guessing you are a little premature in your conjecture as only the French language debates have been factored into the equation, and even those ...
• I partly agree. All MSM have their peculiar bias, some pro Lib some pro Con none pro NDP. Even so there is a modicum of fairness if you read between the line...
• Michael Fox: Exxon isn't a Canadian company. I think that's Jack's point! They were just given a huge chunk of the tar sands and their development permit was...

CPAC-Nanos Tracking CP 36, LP 26, NDP 20, BQ 10, GP 9 (ending September 30) (2008-10-01)

• What looming nightmare? Harper says "the Fundamentals are Strong!"
• I think it is possible, but would note that the Liberals are basically down to the core support who would vote for a Fire Hydrant if it were painted red. Wha...
• Not all of the posts are excessively partisan (though many are) and I have managed to drown out the background noise enough to have some interesting debates....
• Regina Beach, if the nightmare is only looming "next Door", why should we be discussing them here where "the Fundamentals are strong" as you suggest in your ...
• So now you are agreeing with my original premise. Thanks, Regina Beach, I knew you could be a co-operative collegialist.
• You are right. For this election (and this election only) I am no longer non-aligned. I am not trying to mislead anyone, I just haven't got around to changin...

CPAC-Nanos Tracking CP 40, LP 25, NDP 19, BQ 9, GP 8 (ending September 24) (2008-09-25)

• I think that the culture thing as well as the young offender thing will definitely hurt the Conservatives outside Montreal, and it won't help them inside mon...
• The Liberals appear to be collapsing in Quebec to the point where even their base is disappearing. That qualifies as a paradigm shift from which they may nev...
• Duceppe has been attacking Harper (successfully, if the polls are right) on this issue. See his fresh meat comments. So there is no question it is playing po...

CPAC-Nanos Tracking CP 35, LP 30, NDP 22, BQ 7, GP 6 (ending September 21) (2008-09-22)

• Follow the trends follow the momentum my friend. Neither supports your assumptions. We'll see if the Liberals get a bump from the platform release. If not, ...
• Are you REALLY that dumb TPQ? The only one squealing here, like the fat guy on Deliverence, is you. BTW I am a supporter of the NDP, not the Cons.You make an...
• Nope. In August in this forum I made a committment to support the NDP in this election. I need to change my moniker to newly aligned. Many of the regular con...
• That is so preposterous as to make any response unnessesary.
• Not at all. There are more than two choices in Canada. I can't and won't consider voting for any party that supported the extension of the Canadian mission i...
• Elf, Clearly you have not read the NDP position on Afghanistan. What Layton proposes is ending the Military part of our mission ASAP, and to re-focus on lead...
• Of course Karzai wants the Canadians and all the other foreign troops he can get, to stay as long as possible. It's the only thing that keeps his head secure...

CPAC-Nanos Tracking CP 36, LP 31, NDP 20, BQ 7, GP 7 (ending September 20) (2008-09-21)

• Even more interesting than the national numbers are the regional numbers. With the dippers now over 21% in Ontario, and trending higher, many close Liberal s...
• If that's the way it turns out, the NDP will do it's job and oppose Harper on principle as it did last parliament, unlike the Liberals who abstained, walked ...
• With the Liberal leadership turning internecine in the middle of the campaign (witness the unseemly manner in which Ignatieff grabbed the mike from Dion's ha...
• Have you even looked at Nik's tracking numbers? Observed the trends? You are whistling past the graveyard my friend.
• These days, I've come to despise the opportunists in the Liberal Party, who feel so entitled to my vote. Why don't you vote strategically for the NDP?
• I am looking at the TRENDS, not daily gyrations which are inevitable in small sample polls. Look at the trends since the beginning of the campaign, when the ...
• I keep looking at the numbers, and every day it looks much more likely that Layton will form a government than Dion. Follow the trends, look at the momentum.
• Based on momentum, one is not remotely as possible as the other, though not mathematically impossible and as someone once said, "a week in politics is a long...
• I agree that the debates will have an impact, though if past performance is any guage, it will only impact on those who have the patience to sit through two ...

CPAC-Nanos Tracking CP 37, LP 31, NDP 18, GP 9, BQ 6 (ending September 14) (2008-09-15)

• I see a small retrenchment of the Conservative vote but no real gains for the Libs. Dions leadership numbers remain stagnant and well below Layton's. So how ...
• I am no longer unaligned (at least for this election,) and am throwing my support behind the NDP. Contrary to what you say, the more the Libs and Cons hamme...
• So Larryl, I assume from your post that you feel that voting for the NDP is somehow immoral because it means I'm not voting for the Liberals. I am not vot...
• Nonpart: Last election the dippers won 17.6% of the vote, not 14%. See my response to larryls previous post as to why I and many others on the Centre lef...
• Larryl, I didn't even mention corruption. I know there are a lot of honest people who support all parties (yes, even the Cons) for their own reasons. I th...
• Hi Nonpartisan. Whether the NDP will make gains or not is very dependant on the vote split. If the Liberal vote continues to soften, some NDP gains will be m...
• Carbon markets are already being set up all over the world. In addition you can't take the environmental question in a vacuum. Carbon taxes are consumer base...

CPAC-Nanos Tracking CP 38, LP 30, NDP 15, BQ 9, GP 8 (ending September 12) (2008-09-13)

• Looks like Layton is recovering from the mistake he made in opposing Green participating in the leaders debate. If he would have been magnanimous and said "...

CPAC-Nanos Tracking CP 38, LP 31, NDP 14, BQ 9, GP 9 (ending September 11) (2008-09-12)

• It' clearly seems to be having an effect. Layton was there last week and got a good response, and Harper will be there soon. It will be interesting to see wh...

CPAC-Nanos Tracking CP 37, LP 32, NDP 13, BQ 9, GP 9 (ending September 10) (2008-09-11)

• I would caution everyone that this is the first of a nightly rolling poll with a small sample size (400) and a large margin of error. I'd wait to see the fir...

LP 35, CP 33, NDP 17, BQ 8, GP 7 - Harper leads as best PM (New Nanos Poll) (2008-08-29)

• Extremely interesting numbers, Particularly in the battleground provinces of Quebec and Ontario. I'm quite impressed with the NDP numbers which in Quebec, ha...
• Ndp support is largely concentrated in the Island of Montral. Don't be so sure that they wont translate into two or three seats. Mulcair will hold Outremont,...
• Could be some of both.
• A bit of Liberal whistling past the Graveyard, I suspect.
• Larryl, perhaps my monicker is a bit outdated. I have recently moved out of the unaligned category, and will now be supporting the NDP, at least for this ele...
• What connection with Mulroney????? Your post makes no sense. Clarify please
• I don't vote for "winners" or "losers". Politics is not a horse race. I vote according to my beliefs, for the party that comes closest to matching those core...
• Regardless of who or what his father was, that does not translate to the son. Get real!
• The BQ is a nationalist phenomenon which brought together both left and right wing Quebecers. As the Bolc dissolves, the left is moving to the NDP and the ri...

Time for federal politicians to refocus (Nanos Sun Media Column) (2008-08-18)

• All I can say Nik is Bring it on.

Both Harper and Dion face greater risks than their rhetoric suggests (Nanos Sun Column) (2008-07-21)

• So far the general malaise with the two major parties has not translated into any sustained move to a third. The Greens enjoyed a brief burst of double digit...
• Hi Westerner, It is pretty clear to me that The Green Shift is more of a wealth distribution tool than an environmental one. I don't necessarily have a probl...

Who Canadians trust on the issues (New Nanos National Poll) (2008-07-07)

• Hi Tom, Take heart! The most interesting element in this poll is that the undecideds and not sures out perform the support for any party right now. This is ...

Democracy Online - Pushing the limits or creating a new frontier (Video Blog Post) (2008-07-04)

• Good Day Nik and all bloggers. The internet as it applies to politics has positives and negatives, but I agree that the jury is out. The positive is that it ...

Liberal Green Shift - High Risk and Potentially High Reward (Video Blog Post) (2008-06-23)

• Hi All, Nik, Dion challenged Harper to a debate about this issue. I think that would be a very good thing, but all options and players need to be at the t...
• Sorry larryl, I disagree. The Government of Canada represents the organized will of the Canadian people. What governments do on our behalf reflects on our va...
• Hollinm, This issue is too important to let Partisan Politics rule the day. Both Dion, with his refusal to include the NDP (whose Cap and Trade proposal is s...
• So Calmecam, should the NDP just roll over so your beloved Liberal party can get back in the Driver's seat? Based on the previous 13 years of Liberal Majorit...
• I have clearly stated why I won't support the Liberals. The Conservatives are diametrically opposed to everything I believe in. Our country has a multi-party...
• And yours aren't? Lets face it we all have opinions. I may criticize the party you support, but I don't criticize you for holding your opinions. I was former...
• Well stated, and thank you.

Nanos-Policy Options Poll - Immigration as Nation-building (Video Blog Post) (2008-06-06)

• Hi Nik, In your piece you say that "only" 2 out of three consider being a refugee a good reason to admit someone into Canada. That is still 67% in favour wh...
• Hi Tom, while I have reservations about parts of your comment, I wholeheartedly agree about making post secondary education more affordable in Canada. The gr...
• Hi Deejay, I think we also have to consider "payback". I believe about 95% of immigrants, including refugees, provide enough economic stimulus in the form of...
• Hi MRM: I agree with most of what you say. The only tim I wouls be willing to put refugees ahead of Immigration to fill Canadian economic needs would be in t...
• Why? Millions of Canadians don't have a family doctor. It takes about 12 years after high school to produce a fully qualified Doctor domestically. As far as ...

The Bernier Resignation - Is it more than political "eye candy"? (Video Blog Post) (2008-05-30)

• Unlike many of "les scandales du jour" over the last year, this one has caught the public attention for many of the reasons you described. Most of the others...
• Maybe the public does the comparison with Dion. The perception of Dion's incometance (not necessarily the reality) doesn't make Harper look good, just less bad.
• Depth the Liberals have, but that's a dual edged sword. Ignatieff and Rae can barely stomach each other and Dion, as the "compromise Candidate" who came up t...
• Times Change.
• Parnel, if you believe the "hatchet is buried" I disagree. Put aside for the moment perhaps, but kept very convenient to hand. It is patently obvious that Di...
• Parnel Writes: They are not stuck on idealogy. Very true Parnel. In fact in the now famous words of Thomas Mulcair on the occasion of his verbal dismember...
• Clearly, partisanship leads to memory loss. Come back with me through the annals of time to the last three years of the Leadership of Mr. Jean Chretien. The ...
• Parnel, as I said in my last post, Partisanship causes Memory Loss! Mulcair was not turfed. Rather, he resigned over a question of principle. Rather than acc...
• I agree with all of the above. Alexa, in addition to many other things, made the NDP a force to be reckoned with in Nova Scotia, and quite possibly saved tha...
• Parnel Writes: He was clashing with just about everyone in Quebec and was detested by all including those his own party Which explains how he completely h...
• Parnel, If you've checked the latest Crop poll you'll know that it is the Liberals who are in Serious trouble in Quebec. Not only are they runnning on empty ...
• Parnel, I agree that there are some inconsistancies in CROP, as there are in all polls, (even yours Nik!) but I haven't seen any poll that contradicts the ba...

The Economy - Political Opportunity and Minefield (2008-05-26)

• Ther Conservatives have done little to earn any "good Stewardship" merit badges. I think the current economic concerns are justified, and may well be exacerb...
• I certainly don't wish for a recession although I think one is inevitable. In fact if not for the resource and energy sectors we would already be in one. I r...
• It is a decade or so too early to start depending on China and India to provide a market stable enough to displace the US market as the prime mover of the Ca...
• Interesting that the Liberals are turning their biggest guns on Jack Layton for his characterization of the Carbon tax as a business friendly ruse that essen...
• Having extensively researched the NDP position, I find that they do provide a balance. A good mix of incentives for good performers and penalties for poor pe...

Leadership Tracking - Harper personal image untouched by controversy (Analysis with video) (2008-05-09)

• Darn! I wish I was the leader of the "None of the Above Party"
• Parnel; why do you think there is such a disconnect between a third of Canadians, and the leadership of parties of all stripes. Lack of vision? Lack of Passi...
• I have seen dribs and drabs of policy coming out of the LPC but very little of substance. Recognizing that the Libs may want to play things close to the vest...
• I find it interesting that despite all of the photo ops and free publicity that attends being PM, that Harper is stalled at or close to the core Conservative...

The House Returns - Ethics, Accountability and the Big Picture (Nanos Sun Column) (2008-04-28)

• Interesting take on things as always. The question I have is: how engaged are the electorate in these accountability issues? They certainly should be, but I ...
• Hi Hollinm, I certainly disagree with your characterization of the Scandales du jour as being "Faux" scandals. The cumulative effect is the picture (and it's...
• Westerner; the impact of the US crisis in Ontario and Quebec has squat to do with them being "socialistic". Your ideology driven comment is fatuous. It has t...
• Spin away little Tory. Your desperation is showing.
• I agree that most Canadians will wait to make their final decision on the CPC until some closure is reached. But you can be assured that these issues are hav...
• Ronmack, thanks for your comments, and I agree. The CPC has done a number of things to be proud of in their tenure as the minority government of Canada. If t...
• Hi Hollinm, The trouble is that the CPC is falling into the trap of defensiveness. By continually "circling the wagons" and especially with their transparent...
• "The issues will be the environment, immigration and Afghanistan." Indeed. And have you had a look at how the CPC fares when rated on these issues? Especiall...
• Hi Parnel, I suspect that you call this move dumb ONLY because it was done by a Conservative government. (I am no Con lover but will give credit where due) Y...
• Agreed that the Libs are seen as gutless wonders based on their unwillingness to oppose. However, Harper's degree in economics has never been applied in the ...
• Tom, I agree that the NDP are not taking advantage of their positioning to make gains on the Liberals in any big way except possibly in NS and BC to a small ...
• Yadda yadda yadda.... So what has all that to do with the downturn in the economy in Ontario, which was just as "socialistic" when the manufacturing sector w...
• Your grasp of the economic realities is breathtaking. Your answer(Flibberty-gibbet Flaherty's answer) to everything? Cut taxes. Worked real well for the Harr...
• Hi Westerner; the Libs all think I'm a Conservative. The Conservatives are all sure I'm a Liberal or Dipper. What I am is a socially progressive, fiscally co...
• For a change, we agree Westerner. The promised elimination of the GST was just another fine example of LPC hypocrisy. I would, however, preferred to see rais...
• I'm surprised at you Parnel. For one who passes himself off as a progressive, surely you realize that Value Added taxes and consumption taxes are regressive?
• Westerner, I have rather clearly outlined what I believe in. No Political Party covers the bases that well for me. So I vote for individual candidates and p...
• Yes Westerner, the Liberals talk the talk in order to attract the vote of progressive Canadians, and then govern like Conservatives. Like Thomas Mulcair said...
• Hi MRM, Unbiased? Never claimed that I was. Merely Non-aligned. The difference is more than semantic. I have not hesitated to give credit to the Harper Gover...
• Hi MRM, Unbiased? Never claimed that I was. Merely Non-aligned. The difference is more than semantic. I have not hesitated to give credit to the Harper Gover...

Federal Tories and Grits Tied - Are NDP voters in Ontario strategically parking with the Grits? (Nanos Poll completed April 9) (2008-04-11)

• With the recently resurfaced In and Out scandal dogging the Conservatives and new charges against Liberals from activities around Adscam, one would think tha...

Last week should have been a good week for the PM - he was sideswiped (Video Blog Post) (2008-04-07)

• Lukiwski apologised wholeheartedly. I watched the segment several times, and at no time did I sense any hesitance or prevarication. Very tellingly, Bill Sisk...

The Federal Tories - Poking Ontario with a sharp stick (Sun Media Column) (2008-03-31)

• I don't fully agree with your comments Nik. In my opinion, most Ontarians are taking Flaherty's attacks as aimed at the province as opposed to the Liberal Go...
• Hi Regina Beach: If Flaherty and Harper have only given up on Toronto, then why are they attacking the whole province? Actually it is outside of Toronto that...
• The "exodus from Toronto" is a "rural myth" as opposed to an urban myth. Tens of thousands of Condos and houses are under construction as we speak and they a...
• What a fatuous comment. It's called a Democracy Coop. Folks elect who they elect and that's how it works. I have no love for the Liberals ( or the Cons for t...
• G'day Hollinm. You stated, in part, " The feds know that Ontario needs to be prosperous for the country to be prosperous. So they are challenging McGuint...
• Hi Westerner; Some areas of the economy are booming, and some sectors are not. Manufacturing, Forestry and Financials are all in a tailspin. These sectors ar...
• Only because I'm hitting your guy this time. You should see me go after the sad sack Liberals! I enjoy politics but I'm an equal opportunity attack dog. :-)
• Western Separation is no more an option than is Quebec separation. Only a tiny group of malcontents seriously support Western separation and for the most par...
• hollinm, obviously I did not say that people who disagree with me should emigrate (wouldn't be much of a population left!) What I did say is that people who ...
• Actually you'd be surprised at who is moving to the Suburbs, as Markham and Richmond Hill now have a high density of Chinese Canadians, and Brampton is the n...
• How about Neither! Dion and Harper are in bed on all five of the issues you noted. Want proof? Check the HOC votes. War and Peace? Motion to extend passe...
• Non-aligned means simply what it says. I do not unquestioningly support any party, left, right or centre. If I were to define myself, it would be as a social...

Afghanistan Vote and the Issue Environment (Video Blog Post) (2008-03-14)

• I think Afghanistan is a sub-current issue. It may not be top of mind, but when a conversation turns to politics it always comes up. I have found Canadians u...
• The Liberals don't hold the "high Road" on the environment issue unless they can talk GHG emissions to death. No action, no realistic plan, 13 years of incre...
• Yes Mike, it will take a sea change in the way Canadians approach politics. I think it will take a real breakthrough by the Greens (possible) and a whole lot...
• Hollinm and Blossom, Since Mr. Harper and Mr. Dion are now co-habiting in a coalition of convenience and have given Canada the CLAP (Conservative Liberal All...
• Compete in the global economy you say, by gutting our already laughable environmental laws and adopting the labour practices of Bangladesh. And to who's adva...
• In this issue, Nato is not representing the United Nations, but rather is acting as an expeditionary force for the American Empire (as are we)
• Hi Parnel, from a strictly electoralpoint of view, you are correct. Why run if you can't win? But at some point the LPC is going to have to bite the bullet a...
• I think you are putting the best spin on this that you can. Both Quadra and Churchill River should be taken as huge red flags for the LPC. I don't think that...
• Very well put, sir. I agree that voters are at an impasse, unable to support with confidence, an majority government led by either the LPC or CPC at this poi...
• Yes this is a beauty. I don't see how the LPC can avoid biting the bullet on this one, without alienating a core support. The Afghanistan vote at least had a...
• By non-aligned, I mean I don't support any particular party on all issues. On the issue of Afghanistan I support ending Canadian participation in the combat ...

What will be the impact of the Cadman affair? (Video Blog Post) (2008-03-09)

• Does the Cadman have legs? Taken in isolation, it probably wouldn't have. In concert with Chalk River, the Ottawa Civic Election affair, Naftagate, Flaherty'...
• Hi Hollinm, If the Cadman affair was an isolated incident, you would be correct. However in the context of a "mini-scandel" a week there is a cumulative eff...
• If you go back to my original comment, you will see that I agree with you vis a vis the Lib. lack of effective leadership, and their decision to form a de fa...
• Once the public become convinced that a government is scandal ridden they do react. That is what brought down the Liberals in '06, and also the Mulroney era ...
• Hi Hollinm, I wish folks would stop referring to the Liberal Party as a left wing party. In many cases they are not even left of the Conservatives. They talk...
• Yes, Mr Dion talks "left", but he doesn't control his own party, despite having won the leadership. You can see the results every day that any issue of subst...
• I agree that the Liberals are baically committing political suicide if they continue to prop up the cons and concede the Real opposition to the NDP. I guess ...

Election fraught with risks - Nanos Ballot - Lib 33, Con 31, NDP 19, BQ 10, GP 8 (2008-02-08)

• Hi Nik, I saw your interview on Question Period (CTV) and noted that the interviewer studiously avoided bringing up the most important aspect of the poll; ie...

Too many election risks (2008-01-22)

• Hi Nik, I agree that an election soon is unlikely, despite the readiness of Layton and Duceppe to pull the plug. The fly in the ointment remains the Liberal ...
• You were going along nicely (albeit with a predictable partisan twist) until you praised Harper's tax cuts as helpful to industry. NOT! In particular the lar...
• I see that at least you agree that the GST cut was not the best way to put six billion to work in the economy. As to your assertion that our resourse base...
• Since we're on Nik's Blog maybe we should use his polling numbers Cons 35% Libs 34% NDP, 17%. Given the margin of error it's a tie. I'd really be interested ...

Canadians are remarkably optimistic (Nanos Mood of Canada Poll) (2007-12-12)

• I am not confident about Canada's short term outlook economically or politically. I have been expecting a downturn ever since Canadian exposure to ABCP and t...