I have to admit that I grow increasingly tired of and bored with young Tim Hudak, the boy who would be Ontario’s next premier. Yet because his duplicitous tactics and rhetoric provide such a window into the sordid world of Conservative politics, sometimes I just hold my nose and plod
Continue readingTag: Ontario Progressive Conservatives
Politics and its Discontents: Like A Scab: Tim Hudak
Like a scab (not the metaphorical kind so beloved of the extreme right) that I can’t resist picking away at, once more Ontario Progressive Conservative Leader Tim Hudak looms large. Although I wrote about him again very recently, the magnitude of either his ineptitude or his arrogance, depending on one’s
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: Good Tim, Bad Tim
Tim’s Contemplative Face Anyone who reads this blog regularly is probably aware that I am no fan of Ontario’s Progressive Conservative leader Tim Hudak. A callow lad at best, a duplicitous mini-demagogue at worst, the lad who would be premier has always struck me as one with limited imagination and
Continue readingProgressive Proselytizing: The Great Conservative Lie
Virtually all incidences of modern Conservatism – Canada and the US, federally, state/provincially and municipally, from politician to politician – has a consistent central theme. Campaign planks comes and go, but this is the frame of the Conservative movement. It is also a lie, known by all who say it
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: Tim Hudak’s Vacuous Vision
Young Tim’s Mad Face Readers of this blog will know that I have no use for Ontario Progressive Conservative leader Tim Hudak, an acolyte of Mike Harris who learned the essence of that hated leader’s philosophy when he served in his cabinet in the 1990s: divide, conquer, sow dissension, lambaste
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: Oh Tim, Why Don’t You Stop Bothering Us?
When considering the political motivations of Ontario Progressive Conservative Leader Tim Hudak, the boy who would be premier, there seem to be only two possibilities: he is either an indefatigable demagogue appealing to the same kind of folks (a.k.a. Ford nation) who blindly support Toronto mayor Rob Ford, or he
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: On The Minimum Wage And Tim Hudak’s ‘Bold’ Plan For Ontario
Continuing on with the theme of the minimum wage, which groups in both Canada and the United States are demonstrating to significantly increase, The Star had a good letter in yeterday’s edition that points out the hidden costs of having so many working for poverty-level remuneration. Fight poverty, boost wages,
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: Young Tim’s ‘Transparency’
In a political landscape littered at all levels with lies, deception and expedience, it is hardly surprising that young Tim Hudak, the beleaguered ‘leader’ of Ontario’s Progressive Conservative Party, has hung former Finance critic Peter Shurman out to dry. Those who follow Ontario politics will likely be aware that Shurman,
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: This Is The Best They’ve Got?
Many Ontario residents of a certain age will be aware of the fact that the Ontario Progressive Conservative Party ruled the province for forty-two years, from 1943 to 1985, a time during which the term ‘progressive conservative’ did not constitute an oxymoron. That was then. This is now. A headline
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: Guest Commentary: Why Tim Hudak Has Failed To Catch Fire
Yesterday I wrote an entry offering my opinion on why Ontarians are not embracing Progressive Conservative Leader Tim Hudak as the economic messiah he purports to be. Fellow blogger ThinkingManNeil offered a concise and insightful comment on Hudak’s problem, which I am posting as a separate entry here: I think
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: Why Tim Hudak Is Such A Failure As A Political Leader
I realize that the subject of Ontario politics is likely of little interest to those residing outside of the province. Yet I can’t help but think that the dynamics at work here are not much different than anywhere else in the country, especially when one is talking about the qualities
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: Tim Speaketh Yet Again
I doubt that Ontario Progressive Conservative Leader Tim Hudak has ever met a neoconservative nostrum that he doesn’t like. The latest pontification from the lad who would be Premier comes from his ‘bold’ assertion that Ontario must subsidize electricity costs for manufacturing if the province is to keep and attract
Continue readingDriving The Porcelain Bus: Ontario Liberals On The Verge of Forcing An Election
- Close corporate tax loopholes (while running a deficit, it makes no sense to allow so much potential income to escape)
- Reduce car insurance rates by 15 per cent (Ontario has the highest rates in Canada)
- Introduce new measures to help reduce youth unemployment
- Strengthen health care
- Improve Welfare rules
- Improve support for home care for seniors
- Generally make life more affordable for Ontarians
Driving The Porcelain Bus: Ontario Liberals On The Verge of Forcing An Election
To make a minority government work, the party in power needs the support of enough members of parliament to pass confidence-vote legislation like the budget. This can be done on an issue by issue basis, or, by coming to an on-going agreement with one or more opposition parties to form
Continue readingDriving The Porcelain Bus: Ontario Liberals On The Verge of Forcing An Election
To make a minority government work, the party in power needs the support of enough members of parliament to pass confidence-vote legislation like the budget. This can be done on an issue by issue basis, or, by coming to an on-going agreement with one or more opposition parties to form
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: More Reflections on Leadership
The other day, in my post on political leadership, I chose Toronto Mayor Rob Ford as the figure to contrast what I consider to be the much more mature and thoughtful approach of Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne. My exclusion of the more obvious figure of comparison, Progressive Conservative Leader Tim
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: Two Messages For Tim Hudak
I have a bit of a busy morning ahead, so just a brief post for now. I have written many times about young Tim Hudak, the lad who aspires to become Premier of Ontario through rhetoric that demonizes the public sector, public sector pensions, and unions. Apparently, constructive policy and
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: Pining For A Non-Existent Past
It occurs to me that perhaps the limited appeal of young Tim Hudak, the increasingly out-of-touch leader of the Ontario Progressive Conservatives, might be related to the retro mentality that periodically pops up in North America. You know, that nostalgic pining for a non-existent past where everyone lived harmoniously in
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: Some Thoughts on ‘Tea Party Tim’
I wish I could take credit for the title sobriquet describing Ontario Progressive Conservative Leader Tim Hudak, but that distinction lies with Val Patrick of Hamilton whose letter, along with several others that appear in today’s Star, I am taking the liberty of reproducing below. Enjoy! Tea Party Tim Hudak
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: ‘Master of the Universe’ Tim Speaks Again
And, as usual, has nothing to say to anyone with the capacity to think. H/t Kev Recommend this Post
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