Stéphane Dion to stay on as Liberal Leader until Liberal Leadership Convention

Liberal leader Stéphane Dion will stay on as Liberal party leader until a leadership convention is held. He then will step down to become the 2nd Liberal leader in history not to become prime minister. Edward Blake, who held the party's top job from 1880-87, previously left the post without ever serving as prime minister.

Obvious potential leadership candidates are: Bob Rae, Michael Ignatieff, Frank McKenna, John Manley, Brian Tobin, and for an outside chance coming up the rail brushing his hair - Justin Trudeau.

My picks for Liberal leader include: Céline Dion, William Lyon Mackenzie King, Edward Blake, John Turner, Sheila Copps, Elizabeth May, or Hedy Fry.

Calgary Premiere of Passchendaele

I attended the Calgary premiere of the Canadian-made war movie Passchendaele on the evening of Wednesday, October 15th.

The Jack Singer Concert Hall in Calgary was transformed into a grande movie theatre with attendees ranging from dignitaries, crew members, the general public, and a large military presence from the Canadian Forces.

The movie was shot in various locales around the Calgary area including Heritage Park and the T'suu Tina Reserve. Entirely produced with Canadian funds, Passchendaele features all-Canadian actors, and a Canadian film crew with mostly local workers.

Paul Gross co-produced, wrote, and starred in this love story with the backdrop of the Great War. He named his movie persona after his maternal grandfather, Michael Joseph Dunne (reg#447977), whose stories of his involvement in World War One - and Passchendaele in particular - inspired Gross to tell this story. Gross also dedicated the film to his relative as well.

Our Canadian actors put in good performances especially the female lead Caroline Dhavernas. The battle scenes compare well with any high budget Hollywood movie effects. Some reviewers have put the realistic nature of the war scenes on a par with Saving Private Ryan. But if you are expecting just action, you will be disappointed.

The film opens with Canadian Sargent Michael Dunne in close combat with the Germans. He returns to Canada recovering from his injuries and falls for his military nurse Sarah Mann. Circumstances force him to return to the Western front to protect Sarah's brother. They are both thrown into the hell known as Passchendaele.

Spoiler Alerts!
The appearance of his love Sarah in the medical hospital at Passchendaele before the battle and the subsequent love scene reeks with incredulity. The love scene itself seems lifted from the 2001 WWII movie Enemy at the Gates.

Although it had been foreshadowed earlier in the film, I found the symbolism in the final scenes to be a little over the top with an injured Dunne carrying Sarah's near-to-death brother to safety across the battlefield on a cross-like pole.

Overall, I enjoyed the film and the fact that it is bringing Canadian war history to the masses is a positive.

My great grandfather Robert A. Malcolm (reg#709485) also served in the Great War. I have to request documents from the DOD for his service record. Exposure to mustard gas did not kill him on the battlefield, but severely damaged his lungs making life very difficult as he never fully recovered. I hope that Passchendaele will help bring more stories to today's youth. I want my daughter to realise the sacrifices that were made on our behalf.

At the reception after the screening guests mingled with actors and crew. I saw Paul Gross picking his teeth and lamented that I was too far away to come to the rescue with my spare dental floss. Perhaps next time.....

Reviews of the film:
Bruce Kirkland, Calgary Sun

Peter Howell, Toronto Star

Canadian Press

Eye Weekly, Jason Anderson

Tribute Magazine Online Public Reviews

Chris Knight, National Post

2008 Canadian Election Results

Total number of seats in the New Canadian Parliament

143	76	50	37	2	0
				Ind

Two Votes Done

My wife and I voted this morning before work at about 7:45am MDT.

The election workers seemed surprised that everyone seemed to understand that
if you read the directions on the elector card, the populous will know what to do.

I walked into the poll station (no line at 7:45am!!), glanced at my card, then saw the polling
table number where I should go. I handed the card to the worker and pulled out my driver's license.

I received my ballot, then went behind the protective cardboard screen to mark it. I returned to the polling table, where the worker prepped the ballot for me to put in the ballot box. I dropped it in.

Done.
The entire procedure lasted about two minutes.
Get out and vote people.

Too Many Darn Polls

Half of voters are sick of hearing about new poll results, the results of a new poll suggest.

A national survey by Strategic Communications found almost half of respondents, 49 per cent, said there was “too much polling reported in the media.” Only 6.1 per cent said there was not enough.

See full report from Irwin Loy at: Too many darn polls.

Maybe we should have a poll about the results of this poll.

You want this man to be Canada's Prime Minister?

Is Liberal leader Stéphane Dion acting more and more like a character on "the Simpsons"? There have been two less-than-stellar examples of the Liberal "leader" gaffes in the last few days.

The first was the CTV interview where Stéphane Dion shows that he truly does not have a clear understanding of English. He could not formulate a good answer after three tries. He should have three strikes and he is out! Imagine this happening on a world stage? Canada would be the laughing stock of the globe. The Liberals are claiming a hearing impairment, but this does not pan out. He heard the question just fine three times, but just did not understand. Dion was so focussed on his thirty day "plan", he could not think of the hypothetical situation of being in the Prime Minister's shoes during this financial crisis.

The second occurred in Halifax at Stephane Dion's speech to the chamber of commerce. The teleprompter malfunctioned and Dion proved to be helpless.

"Thank you very much, um ... Thank you. Uh, and thank you also. Thank you, Valerie. I think exactly like ... I will speak with my heart, okay?"
"Thank you Valerie. Thank you so much because what you have as an agenda is at the core of a plan that Scotch, um, Scott has shown, a plan that want development and for the next generations as well, build on the economy and environment together."

Full article from Greg Weston of the Ottawa Sun appears here.

Stephen Harper is looking more and more like a Prime Minister. One can only hope that the country gives him the majority he deserves.

Major Political Parties Website Search Statistics

Performing an online search on the major parties websites resulted in some interesting results. Websites were searched using the built-in search option at each of the following sites: www.liberal.ca (Liberal Party of Canada), www.ndp.ca (New Democratic Party of Canada), and www.greenparty.ca (Green Party of Canada). The only site that did not have a search option was www.conservative.ca (Conservative Party of Canada), so I have no statistics to analyze. I have sent an email to the conservative webmasters to ask why no search option was available.

A simple text search was performed and a count of the hits on each of the websites was noted for several different election issues. The total hits for each issue is summed to obtain a total issue value. Using this total value and the numbers of each issue hit a percentage can be calculated. This is displayed in pie chart format. I chose from the following list as important election issues: environment, leadership, crime, economy, integrity, corruption, taxes, health care, sovereignty, accountability, child care, and seniors. I figure if a party considers an issue important, it should rank fairly high in the percentage of issues.

Click image to view the raw statistics in a new window or tab:



Here are the pie charts and some commentary:


Is the Liberal Party attempting to compensate for something that it is lacking?
A quick analysis of the Liberal numbers:

• 51% of platform issue pages has leadership mentioned. Is this due to a lack of Liberal leadership, or is it just criticism of other parties? Leadership envy???
  
• For a party that brought out the "Green Shift", it is surprising to see only 5% of platform issue pages with environment in the text.
  
• I see a sliver of platform issue pages at 1% dedicated to the topic of crime. For me, this is disconcerting, seeing how gun crime and other violent offences seem to be perpetrated by repeat offenders. Locally in Calgary, there have been many incidences involving violent crime related to gangs and drugs. This should be a major political issue.
  
• Child Care - a topic seemingly near and dear to Liberals - is a puny 7%.
  
• Health Care - a topic seemingly nearer and dearer to Liberals - is an even punier percentage: 2%. Does this indicate the Liberals do not care?
  
• The other major component of the platform issue pages mention the economy at 26%. This is somewhat surprising since Dion only announced during the French language debate that his plan would be to spend thirty days in meetings to formulate a plan for the economy. I surmise most of the links refer to the new "green economy"?
  

It seems Jack Layton is attempting to cover every man's (and woman's) issues based on the political correctness colours on the pie chart. By far this is the most balanced platform based on pure statistics. But this also indicates an unfocused platform.
A quick analysis of the NDP numbers:

• Environment and Leadership are basically tied at the top of the platform issue pages for the NDP at 17% each.
  
• Health Care is a healthy 13% of platform issues. Nothing really new here. I still do not understand the NDP's reluctance to endorse private clinics that get would be paid by medicare.
  
• Another sliver of platform issue pages dedicated to the topic of Crime at a slightly larger value than the Liberals of 4%. This is a little surprising as Jack's Toronto ridings have seen "The Year of the Gun" and bodies dropped on the 401.
  
• Child Care - 9%.
  
• The economy at 12%
  
• Taxes are only mentioned about 5% in the platform issues pages. I am amazed this percentage is so low since every second phrase out of Jack's mouth is either a derogatory "sweater" comment or "I will remove corporate tax cuts."
  

Not surprisingly, the Green Party staple of the environment dominated at 30% of platform issue pages, but was not as large as I would have thought. The Leadership numbers of 51% of the Liberals is more or less what I expected from the Green's environmental base.
A quick analysis of the Green numbers:

• As stated, Environment dominated at 30% of platform issue pages. I expected much higher numbers.
  
• Second is the Economy at 16%. Many of these pages relate to the "New Green Economy."
  
• Leadership - 14%. Many of these numbers are from the Green's own internal leadership race and "Canada taking a leadership role...."
  
• Health Care 9%
  
• Taxes 9% in the platform issues pages. Interesting, since one of May's major platform pieces is to raise the GST one point. This is a tax increase....
  

I wish that the Conservatives had a search option on the website for a more thorough comparison of the major national parties.

A few comments about the Left-leaning parties website statistics:

• Sovereignty barely made a blip on the radar: LIB <1%, NDP 4%, GRN 3%
  
• Taxes not main platforms: LIB 3%, NDP 5%, GRN 9%
  
• Crime must not be important: LIB 1%, NDP 4%, GRN 4%
  
• The Liberals are focused on Leadership or the lack thereof.
  

Get out and vote on Tuesday, October 14, 2008. See link at bottom of page.....

UPDATE: Darren Barefoot has done some more analysis than I have done using similar techniques. A counting and searching brute force method resulted in getting the top 100 to 250 words used on the sites. So this does not bias the results by having to choose the tags as I have done. He even displays the results in an artistic type of display called a "Tag Cloud." Check out his article at Darren Barefoot

His graphical image results for the major parties are displayed below:

Problems with conservative.ca

Are the Conservatives updating their website - www.conservative.ca - to include their new platform? Is the site being stalled be a DNS-type attack? Is the media trying to download the entire platform at the same time? Did the Conservatives buy second hand servers? Did Windows crash?

These are questions for which I do not have the answer. I only know that I cannot access the Conservative website as of 12:26MDT October 07, 2008 - and could not from about noon. I did not have any problems with www.liberal.ca , nor www.ndp.ca . I cannot bring myself to even test the green site.....

Update:
12:36 - Conservative site seems to be up and running......I still do not know the cause.

Economists yell fire in economic theatre!

Some of the recent comments made by Canada's economists are akin to yelling "Fire" in a movie theatre. These types of reports create panic and may result in a self fulfilling prophesy.

See link: CTV Link

W

I do not know how many times the gang-up-on-Harper crew in the Canadian election debate thought that George W. Bush was debating with them.
I wish Stephen Harper had said something like:
"I am not George W. Bush. Nor am I George H.W. Bush. I do not resemble Reggie Bush. I am not as funny as George Carlin."

Liberal official apologizes for removing political signs put up by Conservatives

The executive director of the Liberal Party of Prince Edward Island is apologizing after he was caught on camera removing political signs put in place by local Conservatives.
See full report here at: PEI Guardian Newspaper

New Speech for Stephen Harper?

Fourscore and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent a new Parliament, conceived in liberty and dedicated to the proposition that all men, women, and others are created equal. On that day, I had a dream - a dream that one day on the red hills of Prince Edward Island, the sons and daughters of former Conservatives and the sons and daughters of current Conservatives will be able to sit down together at a table of brother-daughterhood. Yesterday, September 30th, 2008 - a date which will live in infamy - the Conservative Party of Canada was suddenly and deliberately attacked by rival forces of the Liberal Party of Canada. To that I respond, my fellow Canadians: ask not what your country can do for you - ask what you can do for your country.

We choose to go to the polls in this year and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard, because that goal will serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and skills, because that challenge is one that we are willing to accept, one we are unwilling to postpone, and one which we intend to win, and the others, too.

For the unelected, we will never forget them, nor the last time we will see them, as they were preparing for their election but instead waved goodbye, and "slipped the surly bonds of earth" to "touch the face of God." For when in the course of Canadian events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to vote with their conscience, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

You ask, what is our aim? I can answer in one word. It is victory. Victory at all costs - Victory in spite of all Liberal, NDP, Bloc, and Green terrors - Victory, however long and hard the road may be, for without victory there is no survival.

Almighty God! I know not what course others may take; but as for me, give me liberty or give me death! So I close in saying that I might have been given a bad break saddled with a minority government, but I've got an awful lot to live for. Thank you.

- Owen Lippert (no not really...... more like Abraham, Martin, Franklin, John, Ronald, Thomas, Winston, Patrick, and Lou - or their speechwriters)

Gilles Duceppe thinks Springfield is in Quebec

Stephen Harper strolls Springfield

Jack Layton poses as Springfield Resident

Stéphane Dion guests on the Simpsons!

Elizabeth May's Guest Spot on the Simpsons

Canadian Federal Election Information

Click the above image for election information from Elections Canada.

Stéphane Dion in Calgary "Green" Hotel

CALGARY - September 28, 2008: Stéphane Dion entered enemy territory today at a stop in Calgary. Appropriately, the rally was held inside the Evergreen Ballroom at the Greenwood Inn. Greenwood-Green Shift-Evergreen ---- coincidence? It also seems appropriate that the Liberals chose an establishment with less than stellar ratings - kind of like the Liberals. The following is a smattering of the comments left at http://www.tripadvisor.com. The headings may also to applied to voters reactions to the Liberal Party in general as well....... I especially like "Never again!"

Stephane Dion waves to supporters at a campaign rally in Calgary September 28 at the Greenwood Inn. (Ryan Remiorz, The Canadian Press)

“Extremely HORRIBLE experience!!!!!”

We had left for the day, when we came back a locked container had been broken into. We later discovered that it was a housekeeper. When we went to the staff they said that they would cover the cost of the night, but later charged it to a credit card.

“Awful”
I found the desk staff to be unhelpful and abrupt.Our room was poorly cleaned(floor was dirty/we found food all along our bed).Bathroom was in rough shape,toilet did not flush properly.Huge crack in wall...Drapes had a 18 inch rip in it.But by far the largest problem was the noise!We were kept up well into the night by a wedding reception.The hotel wouldn't do a thing about this.I thought hotels were a place you go to sleep?

“So insulted”
I travel four times a month for work, so I've seen my share of the best and worst. The Greenwood has really nailed it on this stay though. When my colleague and I checked in we were told that the rooms had been cancelled and they were now full. My one colleague had in fact cancelled HIS room not all three. Something I confirmed simply by reading their own copy of the fax. The hotel's on-duty manager walked out of her office and just stared at us. When I politely asked to speak to her she said, "Ya." and remained a good 20 feet away. She found us two rooms while only speaking to her staff. Not to my colleague and I. Our keys didn't work. Room service took THREE tries to bring us our meals. One extra trip for the forgotten cutlery. Another for the forgotten ketchup for fries. When it DID arrive the salsa had gone bad! lol. I don't say this to be malicious, it was just a really disappointing night for a seasoned traveller. If you wanna see what it feels like to sleep on a bag of rocks, and shower under the water pressure of a garden gnome, be sure to check out the greenwood inn airport.

“Never Again”
I live in hotels 9 months of the year for work, so I think I am qualified to write a review. The rooms definitely are not first class. The lobby is very nice, but the rest of the hotel is very much a budget super8. I would be comfortable paying $80/night no more. There was a wedding the night of my stay. Music was supposed to be over by 11:00. I was on the third floor and still my pictures and lamps were vibrating. I could hear a car start and people talking from the far end of the parking lot. There is no sound proofing at all. I phone 4 times to the front desk after 11:00 for them to shut the music down. The night manager claimed he could not control the wedding party, they would not listen to him, so there was nothing he could do. The music carried on until around 2:00am. I made it clear at this time I was not paying for the room. I checked out at 4:00am with 2hrs sleep. I made it clear to the same night manager I was not paying for the room until I spoke with the hotel manager. It took me 2 days to get a hold of the hotel manager. She said they had already charged my card with out my consent so there was nothing she could do. I argued for 1/2hr with her. After she told me it was my own fault for staying in the room and not leaving, she finally refunded my card $20, which I have not seen. Nice service!!

Seventy Billion Dollar Man

(from www.liberal.ca)
TORONTO – A new Liberal government will commit more than $70 billion over the next 10 years to improve the critical infrastructure that supports Canada’s competitiveness and quality of life and will divert unanticipated annual budget surpluses to infrastructure projects, Liberal Leader Stéphane Dion announced today.

Stéphane Dion, politician. A man who can barely speak English. Gentlemen, we can rebrand him as a competent Liberal leader. We have the technology. We have the capability to build the world's first Canadian resurrected political head cheese. Stéphane Dion will be that man - or maybe Bob Rae or perhaps Michael Ignatieff. Better than he was before. Better, stronger, faster, Liberaler, understandable.

Where is this $70 billion of government money (aka taxpayer's money) coming from - brown paper bags?