There have been 21 federal by-elections since Stephen Harper became Prime Minister of Canada.* Of those 21, the Conservatives held 4 (Labrador, Durham, Calgary Centre and Dauphin—Swan River—Marquette.) Of those 4 by-elections 3 took place since the 2011 federal election. Even without a permanent leader the Liberals made big gains
Continue readingAuthor: Joseph Uranowski
The Equivocator: Thomas Mulcair: Conspiracy Theorist
Back in 2011 when he was deputy-leader of the NDP, Thomas Mulcair questioned whether or not the United States government had photographs of Osama bin Laden’s body after the famous Seal Team 6 raid that lead to his death. The National Posted quoted Mulcair saying “He also hinted there may be
Continue readingThe Equivocator: Hard Work + Hope = Why I voted for Justin Trudeau
The leadership results are coming in the next hour. I am so proud of my party. Over 104, 000 people voted for Liberal leader which is more than voted in the last Conservative Party and NDP leadership races! So here is a quick post on why I voted for Justin Trudeau
Continue readingThe Equivocator: Stop reading this and go watch Borgen.
Seriously. Click here to purchase the first 2 seasons. Need more convincing? Here is why I enjoy”Borgen” so thoroughly: I am a political nerd. Like most political nerds I am able to quote (and subconsciously merge with reality) all 7 seasons of “The West Wing.” For a few months one of
Continue readingThe Equivocator: Thank you Minister Bentley
Just under a year ago I was co-presenting with Theresa Lubowitz at the LPC(O) AGM. Our presentation was on social media and politics but we put a large emphasis on how both of us actually got involved in politics. After one of our panels finished I was approached by a
Continue readingThe Equivocator: Kathleen Wynne’s Speech & Some Thoughts on the 2013 OLP Leadership Convention
“I want to put something on the table: Is Ontario ready for a gay premier? You’ve heard that question. You’ve all heard that question but let’s say what that actually means: Can a gay woman win? That’s what it means. So, not surprisingly, I have an answer to that question.
Continue readingThe Equivocator: The 2012 “You Go Girl!” Awards. Presented by: The Equivocator
Context: I don’t like to think of this blog as existing in a vacuum. You may not be aware of it but I am also an avid user of the twitter and the facebook (my twitter feed is there on the right side of my blog btw.) On twitter (you can
Continue readingThe Equivocator: 12 Words I (Re)Discovered in 2012
Defenestrate: To eject or throw (someone or something) from a window. Kludge: an improvised device, usually crudely constructed. Typically used to test the validity of a principle before doing a finished design. Portmanteau: Made by combining two (or more) words, stories, etc., in the manner of a linguistic portmanteau. Tmesis:
Continue readingThe Equivocator: Uranowski’s First Law of Involuntary Suspension of Disbelief
Uranowski’s First Law of Involuntary Suspension of Disbelief Even if you didn’t know that the 1999 masterpiece “Deep Blue Sea” was about super-intelligent sharks before hand, Saffron Burrows’s character (Dr. Susan McCallister) interacts with a 3D computer model 14 minutes into the movie showing us all that the sharks mentioned in
Continue readingThe Equivocator: Sasha Issenberg (author of “The Victory Lab: The secret science of winning campaigns”) speaks to the Samara Institute.
I have been a fan of Sasha Issenberg for a while now, reading his articles on Slate.com, enjoying him on the Slate Political Gabfest podcast and then devouring his fantastic book “The Victory Lab: The secret science of winning campaigns.” So when I heard that he was going to speak
Continue readingThe Equivocator: Conservatives call Justin Trudeau to testify at the House Un-Canadian Activities Committee
Blaine Calkins (CPC – Wetaskiwin) and the 5 other government MPs have called for David McGuinty and Justin Trudeau to answer questions at the the House Natural Resources Committee. They want David McGuinty to speak because of a poorly phrased statement he made about politicians prioritizing the national interest about all
Continue readingThe Equivocator: The Scorpion and the Tortoise.
Based on the story from Aesop’s fables. Told by David Rakoff on “This American Life.” The scorpion was hamstrung, his tail all aquiver, just how would he manage to get cross the river? The water’s so deep, he observed with a sigh, which pricked at the ears of the tortoise nearby.
Continue readingThe Equivocator: Lessons for the Liberals from the Calgary-Centre by-election
Harvey Locke ran a great campaign in Calgary-Centre taking a strong second place. and keeping the Conservatives under 40% in the so-called “Conservative heartland” is nothing to sneeze at. I am proud of the campaign the Liberals ran in all … Continue reading →
The Equivocator: Giving the Devil the benefit of the law
A Man for All Seasons (1960) —————————————————————————————————- Roper: So now you’d give the Devil benefit of law! More: Yes. What would you do? Cut a great road through the law to get after the Devil? Roper: I’d cut down every law in England … Continue reading →
The Equivocator: Canadian Values in 2012
From the Globe and Mail: I find it interesting that the Charter is so high but at the same time the Patriation of the Constitution is so low. Filed under: Canadian Politics, Conservative Party of Canada, Liberal Party of Canada, … Continue reading →
The Equivocator: Vote Harvey Locke: The Progressive Choice for Calgary-Centre
Today (November 26th) is by-election day in the great riding of Calgary-Centre! The Liberal campaign has been as exciting as it has been improbably and for the first time since 1968, Calgary-Centre might such send a Liberal to Ottawa. Though … Continue reading →
The Equivocator: The PHP Liberals are hosting an Oxford Style Debate on Electoral Reform on November 15th
When?: Thursday, November 15th, 2012. 7pm – 9pm Where?: Bishop Marrocco-Thomas Merton (1515 Bloor St W, Toronto) Who?: Hosted by the Parkdale–High Park Federal Liberal Riding Association and Fair Vote Canada. The motion: “Be It Resolved That Canada Should Adopt … Continue reading →
The Equivocator: 10 Ballot measures to Watch in Tonight’s U.S. election
Tonight President Barack Obama will be re-elected, Democrats will keep the Senate and for no apparent reason the Republicans will keep the House of Representatives for another 2 years. More awesomely, Wisconsin is going to elect America’s first openly gay … Continue reading →
The Equivocator: Joyce Murray Will Be A Formidable Liberal Leadership Candidate
The cutoff date for candidates to enter the Federal Liberal Leadership race is in mid-November. So far, only 2 candidates are officially in the race (Justin Trudeau and Deborah Coyne.) The media coverage has been almost completely about Trudeau since he announced on October 2nd. The Liberal Party needs a
Continue readingThe Equivocator: Paul Donofrio: NDP Candidate. Rob Ford Supporter. Social Media Cautionary Tale.
Yesterday, I wrote about how the PC candidate in Kitchener-Waterloo, Tracey Weiler, has been running away from the PC leader Tim Hudak. In the riding of Vaughan, the ONDP and their leader Andrea Horwath, the opposite has been the case. Paul Donofrio, the ONDP candidate, has been completely ignored by
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