Stephen Harper and the Great Dumb Majority

In my last post I wrote about how Stephen Harper had managed to dumb down Canada by killing the mandatory long-form census.

So we're stumbling around in the dark, cities can't make any plans, and we don't even know what diseases are on the rise.

But now it appears that the problem is even worse than I thought eh?

There are apparently so many dumb people in Canada that Harper might even be able to win another bloody majority.

With help from a surprising surge in Quebec, the Conservatives have taken a three- point lead over the Liberals nationally and are again flirting with a majority, according to a new poll from EKOS Research. 

Conducted from January 28 to February 3, the poll — which reached 2,974 Canadian adults and has a margin of error 1.8 percent, 19 times out of 20 — found 35 per cent support for the Conservative party. The Liberals were in second, with 32.2 per cent, while the NDP were in third with 17.9. The Green Party and the Bloc garnered 8.0 per cent and 3.8 per cent respectively.

The ground has apparently shifted, and Frank Graves believes the Great War on Terror  
has everything to do with it.

“The Conservatives have erased a 12-point Liberal lead and now enjoy a modest but stable and apparently growing lead of three points. The 35-point level is their best poll since 2011 and it is higher than where we had them in the final stages of the 2011 election campaign, which resulted in a majority victory.”

“As for the driver of this big shift in the political landscape, look no further than the role of security and ‘terror’ issues as the trigger,” Graves writes.

Which suggests that Stephen Harper has managed to convince enough dumb Canadians that only he can save them from the terrorist menace...



As ridiculous as that may seem...



And the only consolation is that another poll still shows the Liberals ahead. 



By the same margin that Graves has the Cons ahead. And Leger's poll has the Harperites at 16 per cent in Quebec, which seems more realistic to me than the EKOS number of almost 26 per cent.

But still it is depressing to see that even after all the ghastly things Harper has done he might be in a position to win another majority.

And it's enough to make even an optimist like me take a walk in the snow...



And wonder what kind of country I'm living in eh? Whether it's still Canada and whether I should leave it.

And the good news? Even Graves thinks that Harper's surge will not last all the way to the next election. 

The other serious question is whether or not the factors driving their political redemption will persist to October. Frankly, the likelihood of that is not high given the salience of other more important factors such as the economy and regime fatigue. Therefore, the issue of an early election, which has been dismissed out of hand by Mr. Harper, is very much a real prospect.

Although it does make the prospect of an early election even more likely.

And the even better news? I am leaving Canada.

I'm heading down to the Caribbean to move my uncle's boat from one port to another. 

And rest up for the coming battle on this beach...



Which I'm sure will give me a much sunnier outlook. Because I have to admit that I could do with a break from this crazy Harperland.

And since Sébastien will be coming with me, it should be a lot of fun. Since we'll have the big yacht to ourselves, can play pirates of the Caribbean, and I get to play the Captain, for a change. While Seb swabs the decks and squeezes lemons for my lemonade.

And as a bonus I will be out of range of the internet for most of that time.

So I won't be able to read about what the Cons are doing to my country.

And all we'll have to worry about are the nasty Con pirates...



Sorry about that, I just couldn't resist. But I think we all agree that we do deserve better than we have, and a better leader than Stephen Harper.

So please hold the fort while I'm gone. And should we Seb hit a reef and the sea swallow us up, remember what I always said:

Never give up hope. There aren't THAT many dumb people in Canada. Except in Alberta.

The Cons WILL be defeated.

And their monster leader WILL walk the plank...



Have a great week everybody, and I'll see you all soon!!!

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