Gordo05

A member since December 07, 2007 14:57

Message

Comment History

Nanos National Poll - Election speculation fuels Tories (Completed September 2nd) (2009-09-09)

• Exactly. Also, if you look at the Liberal numbers, they have hardly budged - down just 0.4%. The Conservative gains appear to be from the NDP and Greens. ...
• I don't know where you get the notion that the Green/NDP vote is moving to the Liberals - the Liberal number is down (ever so slightly). I was just looking ...
• I think the Conservatives will be very hard-pressed to win a seat on the Rock, with or without Danny's ABC. People down here just don't like Harper, and they...

Strengths and weaknesses of Conservative government (2009-06-13)

• I have never thrown a flame on this - or any other - site, but this is the height of the ridiculous. Why can't you even take the time to check what you writ...
• So who do you see as his replacement? Will the CPC go into a leadership convention in the fall? How will that influence what has now become a very distinc...
• As much as I have some serious reservations about Stephen Harper, I don't believe that he is a quitter. I've watched him closely enough to suggest that he w...
• Bernie: Yes, I think sincerity - like beauty - is in the eye (and ear) of the beholder. I loved the line from Harper during his news conference immediat...
• Re: your comment "The Libs will match him dirt for dirt." It's really too bad, eh? It's unfortunate that in order to get on Harper's radar you have to sin...
• Larryl: Good points there. I agree that there is no obvious successor to Harper, and despite Jack's mantra of "New leader, new winning CPC" there doesn't...
• I fully intend to continue to ignore him. If he is reading this, my comment to him would be very similar to what John Baird told the City of Toronto to do.

New poll on effectiveness and impact of Ignatieff attack ads (2009-06-08)

• Tom: Good post - your last statement really sums it all up doesn't it? "Possibly the Conservatives should focus on Conservative strong points, assuming th...
• Some good points and an interesting argument - but does it really answer the question? Just think for a second - does the unfairness in the electoral proces...
• Jack - Not only does it appear that the Harperites paid for the legal interjections, it is now known that little Miss Congeniality offered Chronicle Herald R...
• Good political science there, for sure. Given the "protestations" of the west, do you think there's chance the Liberal Party of Canada could ever make any i...
• I didn't write this, I saw it on the comments section below a story in today's Toronto Star which was about John Baird's comment that Toronto should just "f....
• I laughed out loud when I read your line: "Somehow we have two levels of government, provincial and federal, that do not seem to talk to each other very much...
• I don't watch very much television - I'm a bit of a social media junkie, and get most of my news from internet sites and blogs - and I also spend way too muc...
• Nova Scotians have flirted with the NDP for some time now and it's an interesting turn of events to see the NDP come into power in the bluenose province. As...
• Tom: I just saw the results of the latest Harris-Decima poll, and I believe the results clearly speak to the "skewing" of national results by the overwhel...

Nanos poll shows Canadians think Oliphant Inquiry poor use of tax dollars - mixed on necessity (2009-05-11)

• Ronnie: Interesting commentary about Hugh Segal. I too admire him greatly, although I am about as far away from the Harper version of the Conservative Pa...

Liberals and Conservatives still close - Trend favours the Liberals at the expense of the NDP (2009-03-21)

• Tom: I don't see the Liberals making any inroads in the West, but solidifying their support in Quebec and Ontario. I'm reminded once again of the three p...
• Good points - especially on the issue of the peripheral regions. I was reading that the Conservatives are going to target BC in preparation for the coming e...
• The comment was made on Fox News at 3:00 a.m. Who watches television at 3:00 a.m.??? Total wingnuts... If it wasn't for some guy putting the segment up on ...
• Tom: For an interesting take on your position on the inaction of provincial premiers, see: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/LAC.20090207.MACGR...

Nanos-Policy Options Poll - Canadians see recession lasting into 2010; Support deficits and Infrastructure spending (2009-01-25)

• I agree. However, sometimes the posts on most news sites in response to legitimate news stories remind me of a public stoning; especially when most everyone...
• I believe if you follow the money trail in the news stories, the Conservatives were actually trying to discredit Casey DURING the last election campaign. Th...
• $1.6 Billion worth.
• My take is Harper has to go. I am a former "Progressive" Conservative who has seen the once great party reduced to an ideological shell of its former self. ...
• One question - when you wrote "when we had national conventions, can you guess what group I went dining with?" Did they invite you to go with them, or did y...

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

• It's nice to read an honest assessment from someone who I had written off as a Conservative hack. Although I've always read your posts because they have bee...
• Maybe all the MPs could break out into a rousing chorus of Alouette. It is - after all - a song about plucking the feathers off a bird. Perhaps not a chic...
• There's no doubt that we are in the midst of an historic political event in Canada. Your post should remind us all of just how fractured Canada has become. ...
• Lex: I'm not sure if you were commenting on my post or something Hollinm said. At any point, the reason I raised the question of the legitimacy of the Bl...
• I love your "power" words - junta, sock puppets, coup d'etat. All right out of the Conservative playbook. I think the point that the coalition is making i...
• I was just watching Question Period on CPAC. The Minister of Natural Resources just stood in the House in reply to a question from the Member for Labrador a...
• I think you'll have to change your name to mis-informed1... Actually that would work well if you are an unmarried young woman. Please, spare me the neo-con...
• I am suggesting that the Conservatives have already started an all-out public relations campaign -- actually more like a smear campaign -- to discredit the c...
• Man you have serious problems. This ends my portion of any further discussion with you. If you get a chance, read Roy MacGregor's column in today's Globe a...
• I think the Prime Minister recognizes that it is a matter of trust... Why else would he say during his brief comments to the media today: ""Obviously we have...
• Yes you are right. I think the coalition will not make it through the next six or seven weeks and the end result will be a good one for the PM. He will sur...
• Yes, we are all talking about the Dion disaster as well. As for whether the Liberal Party executive can flick him out - I have seen references to that scena...
• You suggest that "Stephen Harper is pragmatic in his thinking, is a student of history and thinks about issues very carefully before deciding what direction ...
• Sensible comments -- here is another "fly in the ointment" which I came across in the Vancouver Province. This may help explain the PM's comment that he wou...
• I'm not sure what to believe these days. Jeffrey Simpson has suggested that the only way Harper operates is his way. He has very few confidantes around him...

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

• Ronnie: As we say here in Eastern Canada - the arse is outta 'er. Let's hear the neo-cons explain this one. Where's Foxer and Hollinm? A coalition g...
• An interesting post. Thanks. I sort of cringed when I read the words "coalition of the willing" - noting the obvious reference to George W. I hear thi...

CPAC-Nanos Daily Election Tracking CP 33, LP 29, NDP 20, BQ 10, GP 7 (ending October 8) (2008-10-09)

• I think you are right. I was intrigued with Nik's suggestion that the overwhelming support for the CPC in Western Canada may ignite a new brand of western a...
• I agree to a point, Darryl. But I was intrigued by Nik's suggestion that the polarization of the CPC's support in Western Canada might just lead to a new ki...

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

• What were the two critical mistakes from your perspective? The two I can think of are his mis-speak during the debate [as soon as the words came out of his ...
• I'm waiting for the CPC election platform - it'll be interesting to see if there's anything in there that can stop the downward spiral. I can't agree with y...
• The plot thickens... Nanos Daily Election Tracking CP 34, LP 31, NDP 18, BQ 11, GP 6 (ending October 6)

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

• Foxer: The rolling polls that Nik does are my true litmus test. I was waiting for these latest numbers since Friday to see what the fall-out would be fro...
• You obviously have no idea what youy are talking about. The new numbers are CPC 35, Lib 30. The CPC and the Libs have both dropped one percentage point, an...

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

• These numbers are truly amazing. One has to ask what Harper thinks he is doing - if these numbers hold, he will be committing political suicide. Look at th...
• I'm sorry, but I don't follow your logic. No one purposefully loses an election campaign. It's just not in a politician's DNA to want to lose. Besides, if ...
• Sorry, man - I can't follow you line of thinking on this at all. To all you other posters on this site: Anybody else out there getting this? By the ...
• Yes, I agree on the trade issues - New Brunswick and Nova Scotia are particularly hit hard - PEI's tourism numbers have been way down as well this year. We'...
• You hit the nail on the head when you asked: "would you want to be in power?" The answer is YES. The other things don't matter (stuff hitting fans and so f...
• Foxer - your assessment of the fate of both Harper and Dion are right on, and something I've stated here before. While there's been much discussion of who ...
• I'm trying to follow your reasoning. Are you suggesting that the result of this election (assuming it is, indeed, called) the Liberals get in with a minorit...
• There's a political science theory that describes how there are "three pillars" within Canada that form the basis for power in the country. A political part...
• Interesting points of view - and I think you are right about the usefulness of the three pillars theory in today's Canada. We are very divided, aren't we.....
• Ah, Carol of the various "let's turf the leader" movements. With friends like her, who needs enemies? I had forgotten about her. Don't 'spose she's worki...
• I agree. Dion is gone if the Liberals lose. Hey, that rhymes. Dion is gone. Hope it doesn't catch on. If so, you heard it here first! (not likely)...

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

• Barack Obama has tipped. Read Malcolm Gladwell's book The Tipping Point. He's everywhere, on the cover of every major news magazine in the US. He's on ever...
• Nik: As always, your post is once again thought-provoking. I think the federal Conservatives have been playing some rather naughty games in the most recen...
• Who does he think he's kidding? Good question. I wonder if he thinks he's kidding you and me, and every other Canadian voter? Perhaps he does. The Kool-A...
• I think Nik was using a bit of a meaningless cliché with his spanking analogy - a news director at a newsroom where I worked many, many years ago, used to p...
• You present an interesting thesis -- that we have multiple political parties to represent the different "tastes" of all Canadians. It sounds like we are bec...
• Hey, while we have not seen beheadings in the literal sense, we have seen them in the political sense. Look at Rona Ambrose, Linda Kean, Maxime Bernier, Bi...
• I suppose we're examples of the "typical Canadian" - we may lean one way to the left or the right, but while we do have leanings, we spend most of our ideolo...
• I haven't been reading any of the other threads... Just yours. Someone named TPQ made silly comment about beheadings that I replied to, but otherwise I eith...
• Yes, sorry, I didn't mean to imply that your were silly, or that your remark wasn't worth replying to - I did reply with some non-literal beheadings. I do ...
• I think you're right on. See James Travers column in today's Toronto Star: http://www.thestar.com/comment/article/482559
• Good call - and a safe call. However, I'm thinking it may be earlier than that. There are three byelections called for September 8 (Westmount-Ville Marie a...
• Very interesting commentary. You should consider writing for a career (or maybe you already do that and posting here is just a diversion!). Anyway, I am to...
• Re your comment: "If he wins by a small margin, that will be almost as concerning to him as a defeat." See Paul Wells column in Mcleans - Dion and the orac...
• Talk about a skewering, eh. Some of the comments between you two on the polls need some clarification from an independent third party. Enter me. The most ...
• Not sure how you can suggest Harper is a stronger campaigner than Dion when Dion hasn't actually had a chance to lead a campaign yet. However, I think I kno...
• Couldn't agree more with your final statement - we're going to wind up right about back where we were. There was an interesting article in Mclean's that ...
• CTV News is reporting this morning that Prime Minister Stephen Harper may go to the Governor General as early as Sept. 5 to ask for a general election, accor...
• Interesting commentary. Not sure I understand your reference in the last line: "You are not the first to think your main contact on this blog might be a pro...

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

• This just in from CBC Alerts: The RCMP said it is raiding the Conservative party headquarters in Ottawa Tuesday to assist Elections Canada with an investi...
• "There must be some way out of here," said the joker to the thief, "There's too much confusion, I can't get no relief. Businessmen, they drink my wine, p...

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

• NIk: Interesting observations, as usual. However, rather than use the term "speaks to a strategy of diversion" - I would use the term "speaks to a strat...
• There's a story this morning in the national media that the finance department's fiscal monitor released over the weekend shows revenue growth came to a sudd...

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

• Hollinm: I was interested in your comments in light of the editorial in the Toronto Star (hardly a Conservative bastion) on why Dion still refuses to vote...
• Tom: Lots of "loaded" words and phrases in there. As a point of clarification, most of my post was a paraphrase of the editorial in the Toronto Star. I ...
• I am finding it much more difficult to find any way through the political mess in which we find ourselves here in Canada. It just makes logical sense that t...
• I never said anything about your own religious affiliation, and I wasn't suggesting that simply because you openly profess to be a member of the Conservative...
• As Tom Good said in an earlier post: "One cannot have a reasonable debate with these people because their minds are made up/closed to opinions other than the...
• Tom: I have been engaged in a "debate" with Hollinm in this site - but I'm afraid the discussion has degenerated into name calling, so I've stopped respon...
• Actually, I printed it (Greg Weston's column) verbatim. I work as a policy analyst and I actually get paid to surf news sites and report interesting things ...
• JBG: Read Greg Weston's column from Tuesday's Ottawa Sun: The $1-Million Question Greg Weston Ottawa Sun March 11, 2008 As the fate of the former...

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

• Nik: Ever since you mentioned in your interview with Mike Duffy on Wednesday night that Nanos Research has new numbers, I have been eagerly awaiting their...
• Hollinm: I had to shake my head a few times to ensure that it was really you who had written the post above - until I came to the last paragraph... I thi...
• Hmmmm... So the PM has the GG on notice... OK. Well, I'm going to go home now, open a nice bottle of red wine and enjoy my weekend.
• There's a great column in today's Montreal Gazette by commentator L. Ian MacDonald entitled "Harper should be careful what he wishes for: Recent polls indica...
• Blossom: I spent the evening in front of the TV watching Mike Duffy Live - CPAC and NewsWorld. All were bopping back and forth with various political spo...
• Blossom: I'm not really sure why I joined. Perhaps it is because I wanted to have the ability to contribute to a renewed Canada. Perhaps it is because I...
• Blossom: Had a busy day yesterday, so I didn't get a chance to pull together a reply. I did do some thinking about a number of your points, and I'll have...
• So the question is: are the Liberals prepared to risk an election over the budget? There doesn't seem to be much of an appetite for an election over the Afg...
• Blossom: I hear that Jean Chretien is now counselling Dion to pull the plug over the budget. Things just keep getting curiouser and curiouser.
• Blossom: Finally have a little time to reflect on your post and provide some feedback of a more substantive nature. I was interested in reading about Jim...
• Blossom: I don't know how intelligent I am - I was once a "card-carrying" member of the Progressive Conservative Party. But that was another time and ano...
• Calmecam: You've been away for awhile. Missed your posts. I saw Maxim Bernier interviewed on NewsWorld the other evening. I didn't know too much abou...
• Calmecam --- I was truly disheartened when I saw the national media stories yesterday that suggested Dion is rethinking the idea of pulling the plug on the C...
• Then again, there's another train of thought that strongly recommends that the Liberals back-off completely on their threats to bring down the government - c...
• Re your comment: Were I Dion, the fact he says "jump" is something I'd take to the bank! I can only echo that. I think the reason for my two posts with vas...
• I was wondering where everyone went. There have been very few posts here for quite some time. I'm also wondering why Nik hasn't started a new discussion a...
• Bernie: It is so tempting to give up on the Liberals - even before you get a chance to support them. Somehow, that strikes me as politically stupid - on...
• The Strategic Counsel survey released, Tuesday, March 18 and done for the Globe and Mail and CTV put support for the Conservatives at 38 percent, down one pe...
• You must have misunderstood the reason for my question. I was not implying that the Strategic Counsel was part of any kind of great right wing conspiracy, a...

Too many election risks (2008-01-22)

• Hollinm, let me make a number of suggestions in the spirit of providing you with what I consider to be a rational rebuttal to your comments - first, you sugg...
• Excellent commentary, Cam. Couldn't have said it better myself - although I tried in a recent post in response to Hollinm...
• Hollinm - I think you're the one guilty of spinning here. And for your information, I am not a Liberal partisan - whatever the heck that is supposed to mea...
• Hate must be a Conservative word. I don't hate anyone. I think you are the one who needs to look in the mirror. Also, I don't think I ever made any comme...
• Good post Calmecam... You may be interested in reading Chantel Hebert's comments in The Toronto Star over the weekend - part of which contains this nugget: ...
• A number of posts back - in a reply to Hollinm, I made the comment that I couldn't understand why the Conservative's were trying to paint Linda Keen as a Li...
• Calmecam. I get the impression that you, too, are getting fed up with the Conservatives finding boogeymen under every rock. You are so right. Why is it th...
• I was watching Puffy as well last night - when he suddenly revealed the results of a new poll which suggests the Liberals have pulled ahead of the Conservati...
• One has to wonder how many lies the Conservatives will continue to tell. They lied to income trust holders. They lied to Newfoundland and Labrador and Nova...
• Blossom: Very nice of you to mention Mr. Casey's medical issue - for those of you who may not know, he was recently diagnosed with prostate cancer. From t...
• Blossom... It's refreshing to see that there is still a measure of civility here on this site, and your post certainly is a shining example of that. I am ...
• Bernie: I'm becoming more convinced that the fate of the Conservative government now lies firmly with Dion and the Liberals. Will they pull the plug on t...
• Bernie: Good points there. I'm a bit of a policy wonk myself, actually, and I've always had a very keen interest in politics at every level. I don't thi...
• Bernie: I'd be interested in your "armchair" opinion of why the Toronto area ridings seem to vote Liberal on a fairly consistent basis. Any ideas? I ass...
• Blossom: I was wondering what, if anything, I would write in response to your post, particularly the comment that M. Dion has always been surprisingly ing...
• Bernie: That's as good (or better) an explanation that I've ever heard before (and I have an MA in political science!)... I think your assessment of the ...
• Blossom: Some days I don't know what to think. I am so turned off by this mean-spirited government that I am lucky if I can just keep my head down, not ma...
• Bernie: I agree somewhat with what you've written here, but in your rant (and I use the word 'rant' in a positive way - much like Rick Mercer rants) abou...
• Not sure if you people caught Mike Duffy last night - Nik was on and mentioned that Nanos Research has just completed its latest poll and the numbers are st...
• Blossom: See my comments to Nik's new numbers, where I address some of the issues you've raised here. I was sorry to see you write that you need a break ...

Federal Political Year in Review - Challenges and Opportunities for 2008 (2007-12-27)

• While I, like so many others who have responded to this post, agree with your assessment of the past year and most of the political prognostication for 2008,...
• I have to take issue with your comment that Harper is taking a balanced approach to the environment. The approach he is taking - and had Rona Ambrose try - a...
• Your thread has been well-thought out and well-argued, but I fear Hollinm that you are showing your Conservative bias just a little too much here. Like Parne...
• Parnel. Yes, I think the jury is still out on Dion. I was sincerely hoping he would be the one the Liberals need to bring them back, but I'm not sure - yet...
• Interesting comments here from Tom and Digby. It would appear that neither has drunk the Kool-Aid of partisanship that is evident in some of the other posts...
• Good points, Bernie. The purpose of my post wasn't necessarily to dissuade individuals from joining in the conversations, but to simply point out that many ...

Latest Nanos Poll - Federal Deadlock - Tories 35, Grits 34, NDP 17, Bloc 9, Green 6 (2007-11-14)

• There has been another poll (Ipsos-Reid) released today (Jan 3, '08) which supports your own observations -- three-quarters (73%) of Canadians believe that t...
• Bernie. I agree with your comments from a number of perspectives. It is interesting to read about how you - as an individual voter - make choices about who...
• As they say here on the Rock - right on!.