Ipsos-Reid was the only pollster last month that showed the three federal parties in a three way tie and the NDP at the 30% mark. This of course was immediately seized upon by my NDP colleagues – I can’t say I blame them really; though the fact they ignored every
Continue readingTag: Canadian Politics
Scott's DiaTribes: Can someone pay a pollster other then Forum to re-poll the Mayor Ford approval rating?
I’m rather skeptical of those numbers – or any numbers – that Forum polls after last night. The Manitoba ridings were way off, as you might have seen. The Ontario #’s were slightly better; they can claim to be within the MOE at least in those races, though not as
Continue readingAlberta Diary: He haunts us still: ‘Welcome to the 1980s’
Welcome to the 1980s, everybody. Above, Pierre Trudeau, saying just that. Below: Justin Trudeau, embracing victorious Liberal candidate Emmanuel Douburg last night in Montreal’s Bourassa riding. (Montreal Gazette photo.) “Well, welcome to the 1980s!” He haunts us still. I don’t know about you, but I could almost hear Pierre Trudeau’s
Continue readingScott's DiaTribes: Forum Polling Updated (in 2 ridings) for the byelections on Monday
Consider this a continuation of last blogpost, where I said I’d update the post if Forum came out with 1 last quickie update. I figured it just was better to post the new numbers here: In brief: Toronto-Centre and Brandon were re-polled today. Bourassa and Provencher were not – their
Continue readingScott's DiaTribes: Another Test For Forum Research & Its Polling Methods (in byelections anyhow)
For a minute, let’s forget what partisan side of the fence we’re all on, and turn into poll analysts. Forum Research is the only pollster doing any poll tracking of the four byelections, which are to commence tomorrow. Forum’s probably last poll of the cycle before Monday lists the following
Continue readingProgressive Proselytizing: A Scandal in Two Institutions: The Senate Half
What has become known as the Senate Scandal is really a scandal in two institutions: the Senate, of course, but also the PMO. The PMO half of this scandal was written here. What follows is the Senate half of the scandal: One of the advantages of living in a (relatively)
Continue readingScott's DiaTribes: Byelection observations: Keep an eye on Brandon later today.
I say that because PM Harper is in Winnipeg this (last) evening at the Jets game. It will be extremely interesting to see whether he pops in to Brandon-Souris tomorrow to personally campaign or not for the local Conservative candidate. The fact a personalized brochure was mailed out from the
Continue readingScott's DiaTribes: Amazing how the news cycle works.
The RCMP releases their investigation notes on the Mike Duffy Senate Scandal from an officer explaining his thoughts on what he thinks so far of the investigation…. and 2 days later, you’d never even known anything was going on in Toronto with Rob Ford. He’s almost completely disappeared from the
Continue readingScott's DiaTribes: A prediction wrapped in a question
Is it too early/too bold to predict that because of today’s RCMP revelations/allegations that multiple members of the Prime Minister’s Office and top Conservative Senators conspired to whitewash the Mike Duffy report, it may have assured the Liberal Party wins the Brandon-Souris byelection on Monday – a riding it has
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: What If
….everything you thought you knew about our democracy was an illusion? The following video, made before the last U.S. election and directed toward an American audience, will doubtlessly resonate with Canadians who despair of our current state: Recommend this Post
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: On The Perils Of Retirement
As a retiree, I occasionally think that maybe I have too much time on my hands – too much time to follow politics, especially its more sordid aspects which, sadly, seem to define almost all politics today. National, provincial and municipal affairs appear beset with a kind of self-indulgence and
Continue readingBlevkog: I Got Nuthin’
I want to post something about Mayor Guy They Let Wear The Big Gold Chain Rob Ford. Something concise and insightful perhaps, with an underpinning of satire. I can’t because I’ve been reading the latest news on the Rob Ford front. It’s all gone past that now and the best
Continue readingScott's DiaTribes: A further note to Premier Wynne: Why the foot-dragging on Ranked Ballot for Toronto?
As an aside to this blogpost’s main point, this would also be a good time to ask Premier @Kathleen_Wynne (her twitter address, if you were wondering) to allow Toronto to use ranked ballot for electing mayors in elections, as was passed by council and which they they requested, and which
Continue readingScott's DiaTribes: Please Premier Wynne… remove Rob Ford now..
..or give Toronto City Council the tools to do it themselves, before he embarrasses Toronto and Canada any further or hurts someone: An unprecedented council meeting descended temporarily into chaos on Monday, when Mayor Rob Ford and Councillor Doug Ford got into a screaming match with spectators..Councillor Pam McConnell, who
Continue readingThe Ranting Canadian: It’s not really about the crack, or at least it’s…
It’s not really about the crack, or at least it’s not all about the crack. The crack-centred Rob Ford jokes, skits, songs and Internet memes certainly have been entertaining, but Ford’s recent crack use is but one of the many reasons he is hopelessly unqualified to be mayor of the
Continue readingScott's DiaTribes: You know ratings must be bad at SunTV when..
You may have heard of the saying, “the left hand doesn’t know what the right hand is doing”. That saying may be too charitable for what has just occurred at QMI media, better knows as the organization that runs the Sun Media Chain and Sun TV. Their editorial board came
Continue readingAlberta Diary: Repeat after me: Justin Trudeau is making rookie mistakes… have you got that?
Justin Trudeau at left, with some boring white guy in a tie that’s too wide. Don’t ever underrate the power of pixie dust! Below: The same boring guy with Toronto Mayor Rob Ford and with well-known cage fighter Patrick Brazeau. Weirdly, everyone in these pictures appears exactly as illustrated! Repeat
Continue readingScott's DiaTribes: Potential Policy Priorities for a Potential New Liberal Government
I found this interesting; one of the Toronto LPC riding associations put forth a list of policy resolutions over the weekend and sounds like it asked their member what should be top priority for a new LPC government to implement. I have a copy of the preliminary paper which lists
Continue readingwmtc: 11.11: lest we forget, let’s not forget: there is no glory in war.
For Canadians who fear and distrust the steadily growing militarism suffusing the culture of our country, two recent books are indispensable: What We Talk About When We Talk About War, by Noah Richler, and Warrior Nation: Rebranding Canada in an Age of Anxiety by Ian McKay and Jamie Swift. Richler’s
Continue readingIn This Corner: Why I feel sorry for Rob Ford.
I now officially feel sorry for Rob Ford. Oh, I’m not saying that he should stay on as mayor of Toronto. I am in no way supporting this morbidly obese, alcoholic, drug sampling, gansta-friendly mayor of North America’s fourth largest (and most image obsessed) city. Oh, no, he’s gotta go
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