So US President Obama recently suggested that making voting mandatory. There are multiple reasons for this, one being that the people who don’t vote are more likely to be low income and democrat so it would favour his party. But he also suggested it would reduce the influence of money
Continue readingTag: Electoral Reform
Je suis Charlie: All NL parties agree to anti-democratic, regressive cuts to legislature #nlpoli
Whenever the provincial government gets into financial trouble, someone will suggest that one great way to save money would be to cut the number of members in the House of Assembly. Some people make the suggestion because they think members of the House doing nothing anyway. Others suggest that cutting
Continue readingCuriosityCat: Michael Den Tandt is wrong: Mulcair knows what a mess of pottage is
Den Tandt: Muclair cannot count So, what will our next federal government look like? Today is the last day of the year 2014, and most commentators have hidden their heads in the sand rather than venture a public guess. Michael Den Tandt is one of the braver ones. In an
Continue readingCuriosityCat: Mulcair leads the way to a more democratic Canada
Mulcair: The man who would bring democracy to Canada Thomas Mulcair, that very capable MP who is leader of the NDP, has publicly committed himself to remedy our democratic deficit, as this post indicates. Mulcair is to be commended for two things. First, for signing the Fair Vote Canada declaration
Continue readingDemocracy Under Fire: An Open Letter to Tom Mulcair.
Dear Sir I am in receipt of you self congratulatory email boasting of how you have just signed the Fair Vote Canada’s Politicians’ Pledge,I congratulate you on doing so and would hope that many other MPs from all parties join you in doing so but have a number of concerns
Continue readingCuriosityCat: 2015 election: Coalition gains favour
Which one, or two, of these men will lead Canada? The end of the Harper government is clear from this latest poll, which shows that the Harper scare tactics of the past have run their course: Liberal and NDP supporters, meanwhile, have expressed a tepid willingness to consider each other,
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: New column day
Here, taking a quick look at Canada’s options for electoral reform while arguing that an MMP system would create far better incentives for our political leaders than the alternatives. For further reading…– Alison wrote about our options in advance of yesterday’s vote on the NDP’s electoral reform proposal. – Eric
Continue readingParliamANT Hill: Electoral reform: Which party would benefit most?
Satire inspired by this headline: http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/electoral-reform-which-party-would-benefit-most-1.2857321
Continue readingParliamANT Hill: Electoral reform: Which party would benefit most?
Satire inspired by this headline: http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/electoral-reform-which-party-would-benefit-most-1.2857321
Continue readingParliamANT Hill: Electoral reform: Which party would benefit most?
Satire inspired by this headline: http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/electoral-reform-which-party-would-benefit-most-1.2857321
Continue readingSong of the Watermelon: On the Benevolence of Slippery Slopes: Women Taking the Lead
I had the pleasure last week of attending a public talk called “Women’s Voices: What Difference Do They Make?” featuring Canada’s first and only female prime minister, Kim Campbell. Appearing at Vancouver’s Harbour Centre campus of Simon Fraser University, the former PM sat down with Shari Graydon of Informed Opinions
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: On Encouraging Political Participation
The other day I wrote a post on John Cruickshank’s TED Talk about the low level of political participation among young citizens. His thesis was that as a society, we are losing our news-reading and news-watching habits thanks to the myriad options offered by our current technologies. Asserting that news
Continue readingThe Progressive Right: I Support Mandatory Voting ( #cdnpoli #onpoli )
I went on a bit of a tear today on Twitter in support of mandatory voting, spurred somewhat by the discussion happening at the Canada 2020 conference in Ottawa. Voter participation in Canadian elections is abysmal and with municipal elections happening across Ontario, it’s time to revisit mandatory voting. If
Continue readingThe Progressive Right: I Support Mandatory Voting ( #cdnpoli #onpoli )
I went on a bit of a tear today on Twitter in support of mandatory voting, spurred somewhat by the discussion happening at the Canada 2020 conference in Ottawa. Voter participation in Canadian elections is abysmal and with municipal elections happening across Ontario, it’s time to revisit mandatory voting. If
Continue readingThe Progressive Right: I Support Mandatory Voting ( #cdnpoli #onpoli )
I went on a bit of a tear today on Twitter in support of mandatory voting, spurred somewhat by the discussion happening at the Canada 2020 conference in Ottawa.Voter participation in Canadian elections is abysmal and with municipal elections happening …
Continue readingThe Cracked Crystal Ball II: Harper’s Gambit
With his numbers sinking in the most recent polls, Harper appears to be moving to bring out his rear guard actions to sustain his grip on power. There are several pieces to this discussion: (1) Foreign Affairs Between fomenting a shooting war with Russia in the Ukraine, a stance on
Continue readingThe Progressive Right: Return to the Ward System in #Oshawa ( #oshpoli )
In the upcoming municipal election, the city of Oshawa will have a ballot question asking voters whether the city should return to the ward system – that is, electing councillors based upon neighbourhoods rather than the current “councillor-at-large” method. Click to see full size PDF Oshawa previously had a ward
Continue readingThe Progressive Right: Return to the Ward System in #Oshawa ( #oshpoli )
In the upcoming municipal election, the city of Oshawa will have a ballot question asking voters whether the city should return to the ward system – that is, electing councillors based upon neighbourhoods rather than the current “councillor-at-large” m…
Continue readingThe Progressive Right: Return to the Ward System in #Oshawa ( #oshpoli )
In the upcoming municipal election, the city of Oshawa will have a ballot question asking voters whether the city should return to the ward system – that is, electing councillors based upon neighbourhoods rather than the current “councillor-at-large” method. Click to see full size PDF Oshawa previously had a ward
Continue readingDemocracy Under Fire: Electoral Reform – Personal Perspective
After more than 5 years of writing about our declining democracy and having several times reviewed the options open to us should we ever get a government in power willing to put the issue of voting reform before the people I am now going to try and spell out my
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