21 Days Later...

Jack Layton actually shows up in his own riding! The MP for Air Canada finally touched down close to home. Three weeks. That's how long it took him to talk to voters in his own riding. Will he be back? We don't know. There is an all candidates debate scheduled in Toronto-Danforth for October 7th. Jack didn't think it worth his time to come to the last one. We'll see about this one. To track Jack's travels, please visit www.wheresjack.ca. It's time to remind Jack Layton that local matters.

Tyler Banham for Hamilton Mountain

This is brilliant.

Oh, The Joys of a Low Profile Blog

Cherniak has the Layton/9-11 Truth video I posted about a month and half ago. Now apparently, they are news. I'm glad the videos are making the rounds even if it is a month and half late.

Markets Bounce

Whenever I see a dead cat bounce like this I am reminded of the words of the American poet Ogden Nash:

"Man is a victim of dope/in the incurable form of hope."

In Other News...

We're all screwed. I know that most politically minded folk north of the 49th are consumed by the election. However, even I have noticed in between canvasses that the world's economy is circling the drain. Liberal, Conservative, NDP, Green or Bloc this economy is going south and fast. The US government's completely inconsistent policy on bailouts isn't helping either.

Take Heart

I know that there are a lot of Liberals out there who are pulling their hair out right now. They see the poll numbers and they start to panic. Let's all take a deep breath. Remember the national campaign for 99% of us, is beyond our control. We have to have faith that they will start turning things around. We need to stop panicking, stop complaining, and start working our butts off. I encourage everyone to go into your local candidates office in the coming days and help out. The Liberal Party is as strong as we make it. Go out and win this election. You can make a difference.

If any of you are in Toronto and are looking for a campaign to help out on. Look no further. Jack Layton is ignoring his home riding of Toronto-Danforth. Andrew Lang and the Liberal team in Toronto-Danforth are working hard to make Jack pay for this mistake. If you want to help please send us an e-mail at andrew@andrewlang.ca, give us a call at (416) 463-8378 or drop by our office at 746 Danforth Avenue, just east of Pape Station. Together we can paint the Danforth red.

Lang Slams Layton Over Debate Decision

From the Andrew Lang for Toronto-Danforth Campaign:

LAYTON’S OPPOSITION SHUTS GREEN PARTY OUT OF DEBATE
Toronto-Danforth Liberal Candidate Andrew Lang calls 
Layton’s decision disappointing

September 8, 2008 – Toronto-Danforth Member of Parliament Jack Layton denied Elizabeth May and the Green Party the opportunity to participate in the televised leader’s debate today, according to local Liberal candidate Andrew Lang.

“Jack Layton spends a lot of time talking about giving a voice to people who don’t have one,” said Lang. “And so I find his decision to silence Elizabeth May disappointing, although not altogether surprising. Jack Layton showed the same disregard for debate and dialogue when he refused to participate in a local debate in this riding in the last election.”

Recent polls put Green Party support across the country around 10%, and in by-elections held in early 2008, the Green Party finished neck-and-neck with the NDP in several ridings, including Willowdale, where the Greens finished ahead of the New Democratic candidate.

The NDP, along with the Conservatives and the Bloc, opposed May’s inclusion in the October 2 debate, announced today. The Liberal Party supported her participation.

- 30 -

For more information:
Andrew Lang Campaign
media@andrewlang.ca

The Message Track We're Not On

As Campaign 2008 kicks off, I expect my blogging to be light. My time will be spent helping to elect Andrew Lang as the next Member of Parliament for the great riding of Toronto-Danforth. However, I do want to throw an idea out into the blogosphere. Stephane Dion is saying that he wants the opportunity during this campaign to define himself after enduring two years of Conservative attacks. His tactic seems to be to portray himself as a lean green fighting machine. All well and good, but I think we can do better. Stephane Dion is a Canadian hero and we should not be afraid to remind voters of his heroism.

Stephen Harper rightly says that we are facing turbulent times ahead. I would argue that if you want an example of leadership in crisis, look no further than Stephane Dion. When our country faced, perhaps, its greatest crisis during the 1995 Referendum and its aftermath, M. Dion showed extraordinary courage and heroism. During the referendum, M. Dion went toe to toe with Lucien Bouchard and held his own. Something all the pundits said couldn't be done. After the referendum, Stephane Dion ensured that our country would never again face the issue of national unity without clear rules and regulations. M. Dion is a hero. He put his personal reputation, his name, on the line for his country. It is that Stephane Dion that will be a great Prime Minister. We can talk policy until we're hoarse and get nowhere. Or we can talk about the character of the man who we believe should be Prime Minister.

The Front Bench Empties

The Conservatives are facing a slew of retirements as we enter into a federal election. I get Emerson and Hearn. They're older and they've got battles for re-election. Well a battle for Hearn with Harper's unpopularity on the Rock, an impossible dream for Emerson. However, Solberg is a bit of a head scratcher. Apparently, he's got a job offer he just couldn't turn down, which was my suspicion when I heard the news. I mean the man is turning fifty in a couple of weeks making him a spring chicken by parliamentary standards. He's in one of the safest ridings in the country where he is personally extraordinarily popular. I have to think that Solberg has decided to cash in and make some money. Frankly, I don't blame him. The man got elected at 35, he's served his country for fifteen years, he's entitled to want to make a little more money and spend some time at home. The only reason it surprises me is that I would have put him on a short list to replace Stephen Harper. Then again, maybe he's going into the private sector to build up a war chest for a future leadership race, who knows. I do know that Harper just lost two of the better members of his "team" in Solberg and Emerson.

Palin Problems

McCain's VP picks increasingly looks to be the 2008 answer to Dan Quayle. There are a growing list of problems for Gov. Palin. First and foremost, her 17 year old daughter is five months pregnant. Why is this a problem? Well, if the goal is to appeal to working class women, particularly mothers, how is this story going to play. How many mothers would think it appropriate to throw their 17 year old pregnant daughter into the national spotlight? How many mothers would think it appropriate to be moving halfway across the planet (check out the distance from Washington to Alaska) at this time of personal upheaval? This is the kind of thing that politicians (of any gender) might leave politics to deal with, not try to climb the ladder. Obama is right to say that the Palin family is not up for political discussion. However, if Gov. Palin is being picked in large measure for her values, for her personal qualities as a human being, it is entirely fair to question a potential vice-president's judgment in a time of personal crisis. Further muddying Palin's judgment is the trooper-gate affair. Once again, the central actors in the story are almost irrelevant. Whether or not Palin's former brother-in-law is an abusive husband and father is almost irrelevant. No matter how dispicable her brother-in-law is, the Governor was in a clear conflict of interest and should have recused herself and her office from any involvement in the case. The fact that she may have taken steps to have her brother-in-law fired and subsequently fired a bureaucrat who defied her wishes is at issue. The allegations, if true, would further cast doubt on Palin's judgment. Even if we throw Palin's experience or lack thereof out the window, her lack of judgment should disqualify her from the office that she seeks.

Tick, Tick, Tick

So, we all know when the election is going to be. We all know how its going to happen. Can we just get this show on the road?

Disgraceful

Scott and David have the details. The news out of Guelph today is that some asshole or assholes (pardon my french but I call a spade, a spade) have vandalized property and gone so far as to cut break lines at cars parked in front of homes with Frank Valeriote signs. Kudos to all four candidates in Guelph for decrying this kind of criminal behaviour (Scott's got the press release). This is a direct assault on our democracy and I hope these criminals are caught and punished to the full extent of the law. This kind of shit makes me sick.

McCain-Palin... Odd Couple 08

To the shock of the chattering classes, John McCain has chosen Gov. Sarah Palin (R-AK) to be his running mate. Quick run down of the positives and negatives:

Positives: She is in lock step with his base on almost every issue. That's something McCain desperately needed. She's a woman. This fits with McCain's overt attempt to lure Hillary supporters. Note that the two democrats she mentioned in her remarks were Geraldine Ferraro and Hillary Clinton not Barack Obama and Joe Biden. She's not from Washington. She has some maverick credentials. She probably takes Alaska off the map. She might help in Montana, the Dakotas and Colorado with her NRA membership. Working class roots.

Negatives: She has less than two years experience in even state-wide elected office. Yes, she has more executive experience than Obama-Biden, but she also has more than McCain. For a 72 year old candidate with a medical history longer than my arm to be choosing someone this green is a little worrisome. What exactly are her foreign policy credentials aside from having a son shipping off to war? She's under investigation for firing a bureaucrat for failing to fire her brother-in-law who was divorcing her sister. It may have been a staffer acting without her knowledge but it smells to high heaven. In a year where the Alaska Republican party is disentegrating before our eyes (Sen. Stevens (R-AK), Rep. Young (R-AK)), do you really want to be reminding people about bridges to nowhere? Based on today's introduction she's not going to wow anyone with her speaking skills which makes both halves of the Republican ticket.

I get what McCain was thinking with this pick. However, I would have gone with Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchinson (R-TX) if the criteria were conservative and female. What really would concern me if I were John McCain is it makes this election at least partially about the Republican ticket. McCain has made some progress in the polls making this election about the Democratic ticket. I don't think the Republicans necessarily want the spotlight.

I Can Use History Too!

"We bless your simplicity but do not envy your folly"
- Thucydides

Tom Flanagan has decided that Stephen Harper is channeling Scipio Africanus in his fight against Stephane Dion. While Mr. Flanagan's comparison seems apt, let me use another historical battle to show how easy it is to get history on your side. My story takes place in Greece and it is a war between a rich and expanding power and an old out-dated army. My historical narrative is the Peloponnesian War. Athens, having rallied much of Greece to its banner through the Delian league, was rich and had the most powerful navy in the world (read the Conservative Party of Canada). They were led by highly regarded leaders who were thought to be far smarter than their opponents like Pericles (read Stephen Harper). Sparta was an isolated city-state that relied on its powerful army for its defense (read the Liberal Party of Canada). The Athenians, in their arrogance, decided to attack the Peloponnesus (read Toronto, Vancouver and Montreal) in the hopes of defeating Sparta once and for all. Starting to sound like someone you know? The Athenians thought that they would rout the Spartans and indeed early naval battles went distinctly their way (by-elections anyone?). However, that's when the Athenians got greedy. They decided that waging war with Sparta wasn't enough, they decided to attack their long time adversaries in Syracuse as well (read the Bloc Quebecois). With their navy (or advertising dollars) tied up in Syracuse (Quebec) the Athenians began losing battle after battle in Greece (Ontario and the rest of Canada). Eventually, the Spartans were able to rout the Athenians in spite of all the advantages that Athens seemed to have at the beginning of the war. So you see boys and girls, history tells us that the arrogant Tories are destined to fail miserably in this election. Isn't classical history fun?

Right Wing Misses Symbolism

Well, it shouldn't be surprising that people who hate arts and culture wouldn't understand the idea of symbolism. The right wing blogosphere is up in arms because they think Barack Obama is giving his speech in front of a mock-up of a Greek temple. That isn't quite the imagery he's going for. If you were, you know, thinking and not just angrily reacting you would realize that Barack Obama is delivering his speech on the 45th anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have A Dream" speech. Logically, they aren't a constructing a temple to their new god, they are reconstructing a temple to a REPUBLICAN president, namely Abraham Lincoln. The Lincoln Memorial, of course, being the site of Dr. King's famous speech. It doesn't matter whether or not the pillars are in a straight line or not. They're on an angle because its a stage, not an actual building. Greek temples had their pillars in a straight line too. The image they are going for is at left. It is wholly appropriate for the first African-American nominee of a major political party to honour Dr. King on the anniversary of his famous speech. It is also wholly appropriate to honour the president who ended slavery in the United States. Apparently, the right wing can't see this. Yes folks, the Republicans now see fit to attack the Lincoln Memorial.

A Nuclear Power In Crisis And Nobody Cares

It never ceases to amaze me what is deemed newsworthy and what isn't. Pakistan has been in full crisis mode ever since its Gen. Pervez Musharraf resigned. Is it getting any press in North America? I understand not covering the delightful dismemberment of Belgium. After all, who cares about Belgium? Pakistan is not so easily ignored. Lest we forget, Pakistan is a full fledged member of then nuclear club. It is also a critical ally in the war on terror. The direction which the country takes following its presidential elections are crucial not only in southern and central Asia but around the world. But who cares about that when we can spend hours dissecting Hillary's speech for any hint of bitterness. God help us all.

On Your Mark...

I am back from Guelph where I spent the weekend working on the Frank Valeriote by-election campaign. Or what we all believed to be a by-election campaign. It is becoming increasingly clear that a fall election is in the cards and the writ could very well be dropped in the next couple of weeks. I can only guess that Harper is not hearing good things from his by-election campaigns. I would have thought that Harper would have wanted to use any positive by-election result, even a close second, as momentum going into a general election. If, as is generally being discussed by the chattering classes, Harper is prepared to go before the three by-election results on September 8th, it means that Harper sees no benefit (I don't think he's looking to save some money here) to having those votes go ahead as planned.

Quick Thoughts

Having to get up before God to prepare for the first visit of a Liberal leader to Toronto-Danforth in God knows how long, I'm just going to ramble a bit tonight.

• First and foremost, by the time this is actually posted, Stephane Dion will be speaking at Cinespace Studios in Toronto. It's great to have the leader in the riding and I'm sure it will be a resounding success.
• I was at the Rob Oliphant event today in Don Valley West. I didn't actually hear the speeches (I was at the back in order to go out with Rob and M. Dion on Bayview afterwards), so I won't comment on that. It was a good crowd. Good energy. With the number of experience hands stearing the Oliphant ship, I am cautiously optimistic.
  
• Are we ready to start placing bets as to the start of the general election yet?
• Great to see Eric Lamaze win the gold today.
• Whenever we go to the polls, it's going to be economic policy front and centre.
• Hebron is finally all set to start up. More money us mainlanders will never see a penny of.
• I was visiting relatives in Don Valley West and picked up a piece put out by the Tory by-election campaign. Traditionally, first pieces tend to introduce your candidate. This piece barely mentioned the candidate. If it wasn't for the small print indicating who paid for the thing, John Carmichael's name would not have appeared once on the piece. The piece did talk about all the nice things Harper's done for Toronto. Included in the list was talk about spending on the arts... in the week Harper cut the arts budget by $44.5 million. The rest of the list was pennies here and there. Mostly stuff that previous governments had committed to.

Blogging will in all likelihood be slow this weekend as I head off to Guelph again to campaign for Frank Valeriotte.

Con-ned!

With apologies to Keith Olbermann a quick update into the government's fifty running scandals... Con-ned!

Number 3: What do Doctors Know About Medicine-Gate

Tony "landslide" Clement has been one of Harper's better cabinet ministers. Yes, the pool is that weak folks. Well, that was until he started arguing medical facts... with doctors! Mr. Clement you're not a doctor, you don't even play one on TV!

Number 2: And By Fixed He Means Completely Unfixed-Gate

Stephen Harper as I've already noted called a by-election in Don Valley West for September 22nd. This of course forces Elections Canada to run at tax-payers expense a returning office for the period of the by-election writ. Well, with Harper openly speculating about pulling the plug on the government before the by-election, Elections Canada may be running a returning office, printing ballots and accepting votes for NOTHING. It it were to happen, no amount of electoral reform would get the wasted votes back.

Number 1: China Totally Won't Be Important-Gate

As Jean Chretien has rightly pointed out, Stephen Harper's decision to avoid the opening ceremonies in Beijing may cause irreparable damage to what has been a strong relationship between Canada and China. Harper really can't say he was too busy. Heck, Putin made it and he was busy starting a war! China's coming out party and our Prime Minister stays home. I have no problem sending Emerson. He might even be the right man for the job. Still, the optics dictate that the PM make an appearance. I hope the economy can be supported as well on the moral high ground as it could by having a robust trading relationship with one of the world's largest economies.

And On the Seventh Day...

The Prime Minister called a by-election? Anyone know if this has been done before? I've heard of burying a bad news story on a Friday afternoon but Sunday? Apparently, this couldn't wait until Monday Morning. Anyone know the schedule for the vote on the throne speech/opposition days when the house returns? Maybe the PM wanted to make sure the election day was before the house fell? I'm just flummoxed by this one. With a fall election imminent and with the ink barely dry on Mr. Godfrey's resignation was it really necessary to spend taxpayers' money on a by-election? Loyal readers will know that I am big on local representation but Mr. Harper waited the maximum to call elections in Toronto-Centre and Willowdale, what makes DVW so different? Is he trying to take resources away from the Liberals and the NDP in Guelph? At any rate, I look forward to helping elect Rob Oliphant as the next member for Don Valley West. Just a reminder, we still have three by-elections going on in Guelph, Westmount-Ville-Marie and Saint-Lambert. Election day for the first three is September 8th. Election day in Don Valley West is September 22nd.