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[Blue Submarine No. 6]

Not shocked that theyd take an lcbo style approach. I mean id rather go to a bright, clean lcbo style store than Bills Weed Shop in a run down convenience store setting/the terrible state of most Beer Stores. I mean, they could evetually open it up in the future, just like they have with beer and wine recently. Mot bothered by this approach at all.

Agreed... I personally prefer this approach to a "lets just let anybody buy a license and sell pot and LET THE MARKET DECIDE" set up... we don't need a "wild west" approach for the sale of drugs and alcohol, imo. Keep it clearly regulated and controlled, and have the stores staffed by persons who are paid more than minimum wage by a disinterested franchisee... No need to prevent access to persons who have the right to use the substances, but it doesn't need to be dispensed in vending machines either...

 

[bonesmccoy]

I'd expect one of the provincial Greens to step into May's riding once she retires. They've done really well on the South Island. Though I suppose all that can change if the Horgan gov struggles.

& I'm in absolute support of the idea to roll marijuana sales into the liquor control boards. Not a fan of the 'mom&pop' dispensaries.

 

[Sean C]

I'd expect one of the provincial Greens to step into May's riding once she retires. They've done really well on the South Island. Though I suppose all that can change if the Horgan gov struggles.

Yeah, I think the Green presence on Vancouver Island is here to stay. They're building up a bit of a bench now.

 

[maharg]

Agreed... I personally prefer this approach to a "lets just let anybody buy a license and sell pot and LET THE MARKET DECIDE" set up... we don't need a "wild west" approach for the sale of drugs and alcohol, imo. Keep it clearly regulated and controlled, and have the stores staffed by persons who are paid more than minimum wage by a disinterested franchisee... No need to prevent access to persons who have the right to use the substances, but it doesn't need to be dispensed in vending machines either...

There's kind of a whole range of possibility between these two options...

 

[Vibranium]

Pick her seat back up? Have you ever looked at the history of Saanich-Gulf Islands? The NDP hasn't been competitive in that riding in 30 years. I'd say that when May finally goes, it's more likely that the riding flips Conservative than anything else.

Yeah sorry, my mind completely slipped when I said that, I completely forgot about Gary Lunn, who was very well-liked, and the history of the riding. And yes, you are probably depressingly right that fhe Conservatives will nab the seat again eventually. Thank you for the correction.

 

[SRG01]

This is amazing: Andrew Scheer has lowest approval among federal party leaders

So not only did Scheer get pretty much zero bump from being a new leader, he's less liked than the guy who's out of a job in a few weeks (Mulcair), the woman who got her job because no one else wanted it (the Bloc leader), and the woman who's been "building" her party for a decade and still only has one seat to show for it (May). I know that voting preferences are, to some extent, locked-in when it comes to the Conservatives -- you either like them or you don't -- but it's pretty incredible that Scheer's negatives became apparent so quickly.



Aww, you had my hopes up -- I was hoping you were quoting the headline.

Wait, when did the Bloc choose their new leader? Did I miss their leadership race or something?

 

[Kinitari]

Agreed... I personally prefer this approach to a "lets just let anybody buy a license and sell pot and LET THE MARKET DECIDE" set up... we don't need a "wild west" approach for the sale of drugs and alcohol, imo. Keep it clearly regulated and controlled, and have the stores staffed by persons who are paid more than minimum wage by a disinterested franchisee... No need to prevent access to persons who have the right to use the substances, but it doesn't need to be dispensed in vending machines either...

I think I generally agree - but I'm thinking more about the political ramifications of 'overeagerness'. As in, if we start off with a more laissez-faire approach, I worry about the barrage of news stories about this dispensary or that dispensary selling to kids or whatever, and how that would have opposition parties on the 'ban marijuana!!' political messaging platform. I'd rather the messaging was 'this is too strict! Let's loosen it up a bit!'.

I think the biggest challenge would be having the CCBO or whomever actually incentivize purchase through legal channels. Low prices and convenience of purchase are of paramount importance.

I wonder, will conceirge be able to sign for weed deliveries?

 

[gutter_trash]

Wait, when did the Bloc choose their new leader? Did I miss their leadership race or something?

It was an unenthusiastic low-key coronation.

And nobody cares

 

[Fuzzy]

I wonder, will conceirge be able to sign for weed deliveries?

Wasn't one of the rules suggested by the Feds be that only the person who ordered it online could accept it?

 

[KernelPanic]

I wouldn't be surprised if his ties to Rebel/his weak disapproval of them following Charlottesville contributed to the lower approval ratings, coupled with the fact that most people don't know anything about Harper Jr. other than he's leader of the CPC.

I hope that's the reason because it means there is consequences for associating with a garbage site like the Rebel and he can't just sweep it under the carpet.

 

[Kinitari]

Wasn't one of the rules suggested by the Feds be that only the person who ordered it online could accept it?

Well this probably wouldn't be a big deal, I imagine that plenty of shops will open up within walking distance of condo dwellers in Toronto.

 

[matthewwhatever]

Pot hearings at the Health committee start today, so if anyone wants a good round-up of how it's going to go and all the issues they'll have to address, Kady O'Malley has a really good explainer on Vice.

Also, if anyone is looking for info on the money aspect, last year the Parliamentary Budget Office produced a costing estimate. It's worth noting that it's not going to be a huge cash crop (pardon the pun) -- margins are going to be really low at first, since the black market will still be competition, and pricing it too high will make legalization pointless.

Wait, when did the Bloc choose their new leader? Did I miss their leadership race or something?

Gutter calling it a "unenthusiastic low-key coronation" actually overstates things. There was precisely one candidate, Martine Ouelllet, a Quebec MNA who had run for leadership of the PQ twice before, and finished third both times. After she was acclaimed as leader (because the only other person who wanted the job couldn't get enough signatures) she declared that she wouldn't be quitting her job in the provincial legislature, which should tell you how committed she is to the federal party. Officially, she said it's because she wants to keep one foot in Quebec City and one foot in Ottawa, but a) she must realize she's only holding onto her seat by the skin of her teeth (after being elected with nearly 60% of the vote in a by-election in 2010, her share of the vote fell to 40% in 2012, and then to 33% in 2014, where she won by about 180 votes), and b) the BQ doesn't have the money to pay a leader right now, which means it's basically a volunteer position.

 

[SRG01]

Gutter calling it a "unenthusiastic low-key coronation" actually overstates things. There was precisely one candidate, Martine Ouelllet, a Quebec MNA who had run for leadership of the PQ twice before, and finished third both times. After she was acclaimed as leader (because the only other person who wanted the job couldn't get enough signatures) she declared that she wouldn't be quitting her job in the provincial legislature, which should tell you how committed she is to the federal party. Officially, she said it's because she wants to keep one foot in Quebec City and one foot in Ottawa, but a) she must realize she's only holding onto her seat by the skin of her teeth (after being elected with nearly 60% of the vote in a by-election in 2010, her share of the vote fell to 40% in 2012, and then to 33% in 2014, where she won by about 180 votes), and b) the BQ doesn't have the money to pay a leader right now, which means it's basically a volunteer position.

The Bloc doesn't have enough cash to pay for its own leader? Their fundraising must be absolutely terrible right now...

 

[matthewwhatever]

The Bloc doesn't have enough cash to pay for its own leader? Their fundraising must be absolutely terrible right now...

$91k last quarter, from 1,100 people.

According to their filing with Elections Canada, they ony had $800k in assets at the end of 2016. That's compared to $5m (!!!) for the Conservatives and $2.1m for the Liberals. Admittedly, the Bloc don't have the same level of expenses as those parties, and they only need to have a warchest to fight 78 elections in 2019 rather than 338, but I still don't think they're in a position to pay a salary to Ouellet that would equal the approximately $100k/year she makes sitting in the legislature. Harper ending the subsidy really killed their finances, and they've never figured out a way to become self-sustaining.

(Side note: I knew the NDP wasn't in great financial shape, but I had no idea that they were so far in debt -- they owed $2.8m at the end of 2016! And that's with them owning a well-located building in downtown Ottawa! Suddenly I understand why why they're taking a 25% cut from all leadership donations.)

 

[gutter_trash]

The Bloc doesn't have enough cash to pay for its own leader? Their fundraising must be absolutely terrible right now...

the funny part is that she (Martine Oullet) is still a sitting provincial MNA paid by Quebec tax payers while leading a federal party (but is not yet elected an MP).

This is what Jean Lapierre would call double dipping.

 

[matthewwhatever]

the funny part is that she (Martine Oullet) is still a sitting provincial MNA paid by Quebec tax payers while leading a federal party (but is not yet elected an MP).

This is what Jean Lapierre would call double dipping.

To double-dip would require she's being paid by both, and as I said, I'm skeptical the BQ can afford to pay anyone. I may be wrong, but given the state of their fundraising and their financials, they'd have to be crazy to be paying Ouellet anything. Remember that they're not a recognized party in the House, so they don't get any extra money for a research bureau or anything -- what they have is entirely what they've raised, and what they've raised is pitiful.

 

[DJKhaled]

My only problem with the Cannabis laws is charging young people is dumb. Confiscate and warn them, no need to fuck them over with a charge. Plus I still don't get why theres no guidelines for selling edibles. It's stupid. California has so many varieties of edibles including sodas and tea. I don't get why canada can't have that.

 

[firehawk12]

Got my NDP ballot today... I'm still not sure who I want to vote for though, even after watching the last debate. Singh's "politician mode" is beginning to turn me off, and all I'm left with are four people who at least after four debates that I've sat through, seem fairly similar and are basically united in their hatred of the Liberal party.

No Corbyn or Sanders for us, I guess. lol

My only problem with the Cannabis laws is charging young people is dumb. Confiscate and warn them, no need to fuck them over with a charge. Plus I still don't get why theres no guidelines for selling edibles. It's stupid. California has so many varieties of edibles including sodas and tea. I don't get why canada can't have that.

I have to assume the LCBO at least will start getting into edibles soon enough.
I also have to assume that cops will start treating underaged smoking like they do with underaged binge drinking - ignore it and call the parents. Hell, at least one doesn't lead people to vomit and piss all over the streets at night.

 

[Mr.Mike]

I'm pretty sure the new laws are just going to confiscate weed and warn kids? At least that's the impression I got from the wording.

---

Get real. Jagmeet Singh has been dealing with racist hecklers for months.

 

[Tiktaalik]

Got my NDP ballot today... I'm still not sure who I want to vote for though, even after watching the last debate. Singh's "politician mode" is beginning to turn me off, and all I'm left with are four people who at least after four debates that I've sat through, seem fairly similar and are basically united in their hatred of the Liberal party.

No Corbyn or Sanders for us, I guess. lol

The most significant thing to come out of that debate was that on a question about the fentanyl crisis, Singh came out strongly in favour of decriminalizing possession of all drugs while on the same question all the other candidates kept with status quo answers around the importance of harm reduction.

I'll probably mark Singh first and leave the rest blank.

More so than any of the others Singh reminds me of Jack Layton. Both are urbanites and are focused on urban affordability issues that I think are both really important and a path to success for the party.

All the NDP candidates are doing a good enough job of ticking off all the standard policy checkboxes and being appropriately ideologically pure, but in the next election I am skeptical anyone other than Singh will have the ability to excite enough new voters to grow the party beyond where it's at now. This is recognizable by the fact that Singh has signed up 38% of the NDP membership during this leadership campaign.

 

[oneils]

We're getting way beyond the scope of this discussion, but there's no way to test what the market can bear in our current physician labour market.

As for the second point, I'm actually not sure what you're saying and think you may be confused. These tax benefits were around before doctors were able to incorporate. The ability to incorporate was offered to physicians in lieu of a pension. If you still see some cognitive dissonance here, you'll have to spell it out more clearly.

As far as I can tell, the ability to incorporate was not an offer by the Feds in lieu of a pension. Instead, provincial governments figured out how to show doctors that they could incorporate, sprinkle income, and save taxes. And that let them off the hook for higher Ohip rates and/or a pension. The Feds are now stepping in and closing that avenue. That was never the intent of incorporation as far as the Feds were concerned.

 

[firehawk12]

The most significant thing to come out of that debate was that on a question about the fentanyl crisis, Singh came out strongly in favour of decriminalizing possession of all drugs while on the same question all the other candidates kept with status quo answers around the importance of harm reduction.

I'll probably mark Singh first and leave the rest blank.

More so than any of the others Singh reminds me of Jack Layton. Both are urbanites and are focused on urban affordability issues that I think are both really important and a path to success for the party.

All the NDP candidates are doing a good enough job of ticking off all the standard policy checkboxes and being appropriately ideologically pure, but in the next election I am skeptical anyone other than Singh will have the ability to excite enough new voters to grow the party beyond where it's at now. This is recognizable by the fact that Singh has signed up 38% of the NDP membership during this leadership campaign.

The hardcore lefties don't like Singh, and the fact that he still had a "we don't have a plan yet" response in the final debate is like chum to these people who think Singh is a Liberal plant. lol

For me, they all sort of become interchangeable. I suppose Singh is exciting because he apparently has an energized base, and I guess there's still the final leadership showcase to see if there's something someone says that's exciting.

I still don't think there's an electoral path. They seem to know that they need Quebec, but what does that even mean? Be like the Alberta vs BC thing and have a Quebec only set of policies (including soft-sovereignty since all the left parties are also separatists)?

Singh could only offer platitudes about engaging Quebec voters and whatnot.

 

[Mr.Mike]

I like the idea of decriminalizing drugs and hope it starts to gain some traction.

---

FAO: Assessing the Economic Impact of Ontario's Proposed Minimum Wage Increase

 

[Fuzzy]

I have to assume the LCBO at least will start getting into edibles soon enough.

IIRC edibles aren't part of the proposed federal bill yet.

 

[maharg]

IIRC edibles aren't part of the proposed federal bill yet.

Wait, what? We're only legalizing the kind of pot that's bad for your lungs? (note: I don't care if it's still better than cigarettes, that's a low bar)

 

[Fuzzy]

Wait, what? We're only legalizing the kind of pot that's bad for your lungs? (note: I don't care if it's still better than cigarettes, that's a low bar)

Cannabis oil would also be legal. Everything about legalization is half baked.

 

[CazTGG]

Wait, what? We're only legalizing the kind of pot that's bad for your lungs? (note: I don't care if it's still better than cigarettes, that's a low bar)

The key word is "yet". They outlined a plan that involved legalizing edibles after other regulation is in place since one of the Liberals' main reasons for supporting legalization was to hit the black market. If they don't legalize marijuana edibles, that will just result in people continuing turning to the black market and won't resolve any of the issues with its current status.

 

[cryptosporidium]

Elizabeth May came to my small University. Good speech, very informal. One of my profs gave a passionate speech about how environmentalism is a foundational component of Conservatism, good speech. maybe one day his dream of a red tory party will come..

Anyways May talked about a lot of things, she reccomended some books and thinkers, talked about her relationship with BC Greens, the pointlessness of Site C, and that a referendum for electoral reform in BC is coming next year... Dear god i hope we dont fuck it up..

 

[Sapiens]

Elizabeth May came to my small University. Good speech, very informal. One of my profs gave a passionate speech about how environmentalism is a foundational component of Conservatism, good speech. maybe one day his dream of a red tory party will come..

Anyways May talked about a lot of things, she reccomended some books and thinkers, talked about her relationship with BC Greens, the pointlessness of Site C, and that a referendum for electoral reform in BC is coming next year... Dear god i hope we dont fuck it up..

Did the wifi have to be turned off?

Anyways, weed question.

Will this formalize where you can smoke weed? Can you smoke it outside?

 

[Zombie James]

Wait, what? We're only legalizing the kind of pot that's bad for your lungs? (note: I don't care if it's still better than cigarettes, that's a low bar)

Invest in a vaporizer.

 

[yanipheonu]

The key word is "yet". They outlined a plan that involved legalizing edibles after other regulation is in place since one of the Liberals' main reasons for supporting legalization was to hit the black market. If they don't legalize marijuana edibles, that will just result in people continuing turning to the black market and won't resolve any of the issues with its current status.

Also worth mentioning that, with the actual weed being legal, nothing is stopping you from making your own edibles and tinctures. Its actually quite easy, even fun.

😓 I sorta hope Ontario will allow independent edible creators.

 

[Fuzzy]

😓 I sorta hope Ontario will allow independent edible creators.

Yeah, that sounds like something the OLP will allow. :lol

 

[CazTGG]

Also worth mentioning that, with the actual weed being legal, nothing is stopping you from making your own edibles and tinctures. Its actually quite easy, even fun.

😓 I sorta hope Ontario will allow independent edible creators.

Also also: We know the LPC plans on allowing growing marijuana plants of your very own so you could make consumables if you have the skills and knowledge to do so yourself. What will likely happen to this, at least in Ontario, is that the LCBO will sell you the plants, seeds, etc. and keep a record of who bought from where, how many and where they're located to ensure no one is going over the household limit and so they don't get an unexpected visit from the cops who noticed an increase in their household's temperature.

 

[gutter_trash]

CAQ stated that they will campaign on prohibiting Marijuana consumption in parks, on streets, in appartement buildings and in condos.

journos asked them, "where would you be allowed to smoke?":. CAQ goes "??????"

http://www.lapresse.ca/actualites/p...-veut-limiter-la-consommation-de-cannabis.php

 

[mo60]

CAQ stated that they will campaign on prohibiting Marijuana consumption in parks, on streets, in appartement buildings and in condos.

journos asked them, "where would you be allowed to smoke?":. CAQ goes "??????"

http://www.lapresse.ca/actualites/p...-veut-limiter-la-consommation-de-cannabis.php

I bet you the CAQ is going to lose the youth vote heavily now in 2018 because of their position on marijuana.

 

[gutter_trash]

I bet you the CAQ is going to lose their youth vote heavily now in 2018 because of their position on marijuana.

so they are finally shaping what brand of Right Wing they are adopting.
More the authoritarian brand and less the Libertarian brand.

since its founding, the party has been unclear on its ideological leaning on the Right-Left scale on multiple issues aside from identity nationalism.

Today, we learn that they are War-On-Drugs Conservatives with added Authoritarian Interventionism

 

[Sean C]

RIP Allan MacEachen (1921-2017), the most significant Atlantic Canadian federal politician of the postwar era.

My mother's family is from Cape Breton, and he's a deserved legend there. No Cape Bretoner was ever more significant on the national stage.

 

[Terrell]

This is amazing: Andrew Scheer has lowest approval among federal party leaders

So not only did Scheer get pretty much zero bump from being a new leader, he's less liked than the guy who's out of a job in a few weeks (Mulcair), the woman who got her job because no one else wanted it (the Bloc leader), and the woman who's been "building" her party for a decade and still only has one seat to show for it (May). I know that voting preferences are, to some extent, locked-in when it comes to the Conservatives -- you either like them or you don't -- but it's pretty incredible that Scheer's negatives became apparent so quickly.

It's not that big of a surprise. When he was elected as leader, people collectively went "WHO?" Google searches and the media digging into his beliefs and policies really was a sobering experience for many people.

lol, honestly don't even know who he is, seems kind of out of nowhere.

He's a Conservative MP who was named speaker of the house and he comes from Saskatchewan, home to the worst of the worst backbencher Tories, like the known dirtbags Brad Trost and Maurice Vellacott (seriously, look at Saskatchewan Tory MPs and their track records, Kelly Block is probably the only decent human among all of them). That's really all that needs to be said or known to have the complete picture.

 

[Mr.Mike]

Gay Chechen refugee physically threatened in Toronto

Persecuted gay men from Chechnya who sought refuge in Canada now fear for their safety after a disturbing incident in which one of them was physically threatened.

The Liberal government is worried about the security of the men taken from safe houses in Russia and brought to Canada as refugees under a secret program that Ottawa has still not officially acknowledged.

Although the victim refused to report the incident out of fear of retribution, Toronto police are investigating. The question now is how serious the risk to the men might be, and what can be done to deter people who might wish to harm them.

...

In August, a young Chechen male who came to Canada via the underground railroad talked with another man on a dating app and the two agreed to meet at a certain time and place in Toronto. When he arrived for the rendezvous, two men confronted him. They placed him in the back seat of a car and began swearing at and berating him in Chechen, saying his homosexual lifestyle had brought disgrace to Chechnya. He was released physically unharmed.

...

The Chechen-Canadian diaspora is small, and largely concentrated in Toronto. It is not known whether any of the members of that diaspora would truly wish to harm homosexual members of their community who were brought to Canada as refugees from their homeland.

However, government and other officials agree that the best protection for the men is to get them settled and integrated into Canadian society as quickly as possible. This involves finding each of them appropriate housing, enrolling them in language training, providing mental-health counselling as required and helping them to find work.

It's a terrible shame. Diaspora's can be pretty conservative in my experience.

 

[Dr.Guru of Peru]

As far as I can tell, the ability to incorporate was not an offer by the Feds in lieu of a pension. Instead, provincial governments figured out how to show doctors that they could incorporate, sprinkle income, and save taxes. And that let them off the hook for higher Ohip rates and/or a pension. The Feds are now stepping in and closing that avenue. That was never the intent of incorporation as far as the Feds were concerned.

I never claimed it was s federal offer. Allowing physicians to incorporate is under the jurisdiction of provincial governments, who are also the ones that negotiate with health associations re: billing schedules.

 

[BigJonsson]

Did the wifi have to be turned off?

Anyways, weed question.

Will this formalize where you can smoke weed? Can you smoke it outside?

Probably only smoke it at home since you can't drink in parks

Probably also won't be allowed to go to bars or restaurants if high

 

[matthewwhatever]

Vice has a really good explainer about the proposed tax loophole changes:

Generally speaking, thanks to Canadian tax law, individuals who pass their income through a private corporation and pay themselves, either through salary or dividends, won’t be taxed twice; they’ll only face their personal income rate, as opposed to personal and corporate taxes.

But some particularly crafty individuals in Canada have been converting their dividends into capital gains — an amount that, at least on paper, is the result of a sale of a capital asset, and which is only half taxable.

...

The thing about this scheme is that there’s already rules in the tax code about not turning revenue into capital gains in order to avoid taxation. The courts, however, are not clear on whether this applies to the situation Morneau and Trudeau are targeting — so their plan is to make it crystal clear.

The reality is, however, the tax loopholes currently being enjoyed by those with private corporations were never intended to be used to dodge personal income. They have, increasingly, become domestic tax shelters by rich professionals to lessen their tax burden.

That sort of aggressive tax planning is a huge driver for income inequality. And it blunts the effectiveness of the Trudeau government’s effort to cut taxes for the middle class while hiking them for the rich.

I've been arguing about this with one of my profs. He thinks that it's going to sink Trudeau; I think that if your big message is that you're the defender of the Middle Class, then getting into a fight with the 1% (almost literally in this case!) is a good way of reinforcing your message. The fact that it makes the CPC explicitly defend the rich and takes away ground from the NDP is a bonus, too.

It's not that big of a surprise. When he was elected as leader, people collectively went "WHO?" Google searches and the media digging into his beliefs and policies really was a sobering experience for many people.

Fair enough, but I don't think there are any other recent cases of a brand new leader having his favourability ratings underwater within 3-4 months of being chosen -- and that includes people like Dion and Ignatieff, who were subject to vicious negative campaigns almost immediately after being picked. Usually there's a bit of a honeymoon period. Considering that Scheer has no track record (since he got to stay relatively above the fray as Speaker) and wasn't on the receiving end of an attack ad campaign, I still say it's remarkable that it happened so quickly.

I think Coyne has a better explanation than people have been digging into his past: Scheer's 'positive message' lost in all the negativity

All through the Conservative leadership race, Andrew Scheer kept talking about the “positive message” he was promoting. Since becoming leader, he has carried on in much the same vein. Positive tone, positive approach, positive alternative, “positive Conservative solutions to get Canada back on track” — the air is fairly thick with positivity. “We have such a great, aspirational, positive message,” Scheer says. “I love looking forward.”

Yet as Parliament resumes, we’ve yet to see much of that vaunted positivity from Scheer. He has let it be known his party will be focused on three things in the fall sitting: the settlement of Omar Khadr’s lawsuit against the government, at a cost of $10.5 million; the recent influx of asylum-seekers from the United States, primarily in Quebec; and proposed changes to the taxation of private corporations, the subject of so much recent vitriol.

It's the trap every opposition leader has to avoid -- not coming off as relentlessly negative. Scheer is failing miserably at doing that, and he's doing so it a way that, as the article notes, sounds like it's doubling down on all the worst aspects of the Harper years.

 

[matthewwhatever]

Sorry for the double-post, but this is sad news: Liberal MP Arnold Chan died.

He spoke in the House in the spring about his battle with cancer. He was only 50.

 

[diaspora]

Sorry for the double-post, but this is sad news: Liberal MP Arnold Chan died.

He spoke in the House in the spring about his battle with cancer. He was only 50.

Was going to make a thread for this but yeah. He seemed like a great guy the few times I've met him.

 

[Terrell]

Fair enough, but I don't think there are any other recent cases of a brand new leader having his favourability ratings underwater within 3-4 months of being chosen -- and that includes people like Dion and Ignatieff, who were subject to vicious negative campaigns almost immediately after being picked. Usually there's a bit of a honeymoon period. Considering that Scheer has no track record (since he got to stay relatively above the fray as Speaker) and wasn't on the receiving end of an attack ad campaign, I still say it's remarkable that it happened so quickly.

I think Coyne has a better explanation than people have been digging into his past: Scheer's 'positive message' lost in all the negativity



It's the trap every opposition leader has to avoid -- not coming off as relentlessly negative. Scheer is failing miserably at doing that, and he's doing so it a way that, as the article notes, sounds like it's doubling down on all the worst aspects of the Harper years.

That's kinda my point: if you started paying attention to what Scheer was doing while Speaker, this behaviour doesn't come off as a surprise. Non-Conservative voters immediately disliked him and Conservatives who liked Harper's position of not rocking the boat by giving into social conservatism wish that the rest of the party had voted for Bernier almost immediately after. Combine the widening of that divide in among the Tories with nothing to win over swing voters, him having the charisma of a wet towel and his support of The Rebel Media (a news organization that level-headed Tories find an embarrassment), a support that his retroactive disapproval (which only happened when they became too toxic to be associated with) can't wash away, and you get an unsurprising result. He was doomed to be a massively unpopular candidate from the get-go.

 

[gutter_trash]

interesting piece from Coyne.

highlighting the fact the Sheer only won the leadership by making a coalition with a couple of dairy lords against Bernier. It is a very weak leadership win IMO.
Anybody but Bernier because derp Dairy Lords is not much of a pan-Canadian coalition.

Most Quebecers hate the Dairy Cartel for their artificially high price of local dairy in comparaison with Europe and the US. Fuck the Dairy Lords.

-------

today in "Thomas Mulcair's chickens coming home to roost" news:

Longueuil-Saint-Hubert MP Pierre Nantel (one of Mulcair's genius recruits) is threatening to quit the NDP if they Guy Caron doesn't win the Leadership.

This nationalist rocket-scientist is Trumpetting nationalist talking points in his disagreement with Angus, Singh and Asthon's stance on multi-culturalism.

https://www.thestar.com/news/canada...of-life-to-a-moribund-bloc-qubcois-hbert.html

On Tuesday, Longueuil-Saint-Hubert MP Pierre Nantel told le Devoir that he and possibly others might prefer to sit as independents than to serve in the House of Commons under any of the non-Quebec candidates vying for the NDP leadership.

In an open letter published Thursday, Nantel — who currently serves as the party's heritage critic — writes that it was Jack Layton's promise of a party respectful of Quebec's national character that drew him along with many of the province's voters to the NDP in 2011.

*sigh* Mulcair's NDP recruits.. big ass *sigh*

another MP Claude Patry switching parties.

This is why you should never recruit "Nationalistess " as candidats for a Federalist Party

 

[Dr.Guru of Peru]

An unintentionally ironic comment by Trudeau re: the new small business tax changes:

“wealthy folks are really fighting to keep those benefits that they have, and they’re making a lot of noise.”

http://nationalpost.com/news/politi...rmation-coming-out-about-proposed-tax-changes

With both Morneau and Trudeau owning incorporated businesses with holdings that will be grandfathered under the new proposed Liberal law, this is not a good look.

Again: these new business laws will not harm the wealthy. Those who already have their wealth have the least to lose. These laws are targeting the working middle and upper class who have yet to build their wealth.

I like Trudeau, but his persistence on this issue is extremely disappointing.

 

[matthewwhatever]

today in "Thomas Mulcair's chickens coming home to roost" news:

Longueuil-Saint-Hubert MP Pierre Nantel (one of Mulcair's genius recruits) is threatening to quit the NDP if they Guy Caron doesn't win the Leadership.

This nationalist rocket-scientist is Trumpetting nationalist talking points in his disagreement with Angus, Singh and Asthon's stance on multi-culturalism.

https://www.thestar.com/news/canada...of-life-to-a-moribund-bloc-qubcois-hbert.html


*sigh* Mulcair's NDP recruits.. big ass *sigh*

another MP Claude Patry switching parties.

This is why you should never recruit "Nationalistess " as candidats for a Federalist Party

When I saw this story pop up in French media, my very first thought was: "Gutter is definitely going to post this as soon as he sees it."

I think at this point, barring a shocking win by Guy Caron, the only question for the NDP in Quebec the next election is about whether they'll lose all their seats in the province, or just most of them.

Again: these new business laws will not harm the wealthy. Those who already have their wealth have the least to lose. These laws are targeting the working middle and upper class who have yet to build their wealth.

Again: this is a lie. The only people who'll be impacted by closing the tax loophole are in the top 1-2% of all income earners in Canada.

Unless you're in a position where a) you're making so much money that you've incorporated yourself and b) you're avoiding taxes by saying the salary you pay yourself is actually capital gains -- see the Vice explainer posted upthread -- it won't have any impact. Seeing as the average small business owner in Canada makes just under $33k/year -- from the Canadian Federation of Independent Business' own numbers! -- the number of people who'll be affected by the changes is minimal. If you want to argue that very rich people deserve to keep more of their money through tax shelters, go ahead, but at least be up front with what you're arguing for.

 

[Random Human]

Man, the Orange Wave is going to be in rough shape next election.

 

[CazTGG]

I don't remember who, but someone posted an article about how the 2015 election would spell a decline for one of the two left-leaning parties in Canada. Between the NDP's current decline and the Bloc Quebecois being close to a non-factor at this point, it seems that we may be headed into a U.S.-style two-party system where your only options are to vote against the party you don't want in power rather than the one who most closely share your beliefs (or vote swapping with someone in a competitive riding where someone belonging to a given party holds those views). That's a dreadful proposition should it come to pass (which I hope it doesn't).