Friday, July 10, 2015

Stephen Harper and the Great Con Debate Fiasco



As we all know Stephen Harper was hoping to torpedo the political leaders's debates, by boycotting the ones organized by the big three tv networks. The ones that millions of Canadians watch.

And replacing them with a series of smaller debates, with friendlier moderators, on channels that hardly anyone watches.

And hoping that the big three networks would cancel their debates, because he wouldn't be there.

But sadly for him his bluff has been called. 

Canada's largest broadcasters have announced the dates for this fall's federal election debates despite an ongoing boycott by the Conservative Party. The group of networks known as the broadcast consortium, including CBC News, has set the English-language debate for Thursday, Oct. 8, from 6 to 7:30 p.m. ET, and the French-language debate for Wednesday, Oct. 7, from 8 to 10 p.m. ET.

And although the timing couldn't be worse.

Negative reactions on social media were swift, with people pointing out the English-language debate is not happening in prime time in Ontario and Quebec, and is during the afternoon — and normal business hours — in Alberta and British Columbia.

And making Canadians in the West watch it in the middle of the afternoon couldn't be more outrageous. 

The good news is that the debates will be rebroadcast, millions of people will get to see the three progressive leaders.

And Stephen Harper's absence will be noticed...



So now Great Shrunken Leader must decide whether to change his mind and join them in person. And that won't be easy.

Because that would make him look weak and wobbly, or just plain desperate.

And of course the main reason Harper doesn't want to debate the progressive leaders is because he's terrified of them...



He's afraid what they might do to him and his record of incompetence and corruption.

And let's face it, who can blame him?

It's all going so horribly wrong.

His polls are tanking, and so is the economy.

Neither him nor his senile servant Joe Oliver can put lipstick on this pig...



Not when the IMF is now on our case.

As uncertainty in Greece and China's stock market crash wallop global confidence, and more economists here in Canada predict a recession, the IMF is cutting its outlook for the world economy and taking an axe to its Canadian forecast.

And Harperland is Greece.
 
Not when despite his best efforts to provoke the ISIS crazies, with his big mouth, they still haven't attacked us.

And not when his Great War on Terror is also looking so shrunken.

Three months after a contentious vote to expand Canada’s combat mission against Islamic State into Syria, Canadian fighter jets have attacked targets there just three times.

And the only question now is is whether to deploy Jason Kenney to Syria, so he can incinerate the ISIS hordes with blasts of hot air from every orifice...



Or whether he should be filled with water, or some foamy fluid, and used as a water bomber to fight the fires in the west.

And then there are the scandals. The big tv debates will take place less than a month after Nigel Wright starts testifying at the Duffy trial. 

So Stephen Harper will not look his best, not with the spectre of Dean Del Mastro haunting his dreams...



So it doesn't really matter whether Harper turns up at the big tv debates. 

If he doesn't he'll look like a coward with something to hide.

And if he does he'll look worse...



It's all going horribly wrong.

He has been around for too long.

He's decomposing before our eyes.

And he'll soon be just a bad memory...

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20 comments:

Northern PoV said...

Cameron pulled this same trick in the recent UK election.
He skipped one of the main debates - and it (apparently) helped him establish his narrative: me or chaos.
He then "won" a majority gov't with just 37% of the vote.

Just sayin'

Anonymous said...

This was last weekend.July 3rd.The Belgians seem to think it's a waste of time and money.The complete story is interesting.“Belgium has now come to personify European countries’ dissatisfaction over the coalition’s actions.Surely Kenney knows this.Way to much money being spent on this.harper and kenney and the military brass gotta know this.

On Friday, Belgian media announced that their country’s contribution to the anti-ISIL coalition mission has been suspended.
Friday’s announcement came after Belgium’s six F-16 fighter bombers had already returned from their base in Jordan, where they had spent the last nine months participating in the US-led bombing campaign against ISIL in Iraq. Brussels has declared that it could no longer afford to continue funding the air operation

https://ca.search.yahoo.com/search?p=Belgian+media+announced+that+their+country%E2%80%99s+contribution+to+the+anti-ISIL+&fr=yfp-t-917

Noah Patterson said...

The only party in the UK that offered real competition was the Scottish National Party and only Scottish people could vote for them. That would be akin to the Bloc being the only competitive party here in Canada.
In the UK, Labour is unpopular and the Liberal Democrats are being punished for their failure to curtail Cameron so the anti-Con vote was a mess.

Fortunately in Canada the NDP have pulled ahead and the Liberals aren't out of the running either, both against a plummeting Conservative party.

The situations between Canada and the UK are completely different. Thankfully.

Northern PoV said...

"The situations between Canada and the UK are completely different. Thankfully."
You (and me) wish. Yes different in details but similar too in the dynamics: United right, divided left/center. Almost total Media control by the right. $$ on the right.

Hey, Harper "won" his majority in 2011 with 38% of the vote - just enough scaredy-kat blue-Libs voted for him to stop the Orange wave.

I'd like to believe otherwise but given
* another convenient "terrorist attack",
* new versions of in-and-out, robocalls, Del Maestro etc,
* Fair Elections Act voter suppression (+-500k votes)

I'd say there is a very good chance we'll have a permanent CON gov't here.

e.a.f. said...

well Brussels made the right decision for their country, citing costs. Now it most likely isn't costs but Belgium does see how futile all of this fighting is. time to take care of its own citizens and stop fighting where they ought not to be. it might be more helpful to allocate resources to refugees sitting in Jordan.

Canada could head the way of Greece if harper and his herd keep defunding the government. No taxes no way to pay for anything. that is what happened in Greece and it will be happening in Canada. Harper plans to defund our health care system by $38 BILLION in 2017. See how well the country works after that.

Canada is in a recession. it the rich who just haven't noticed.

Of course Steve is in a bit of trouble with the U.N. and how Canadian mining companies violate the game rules in other countries. One of them is the U.S.. Some senators have made arrangments for sacred First nations lands to be given to Rio Tinto so they can mine it. Canada's treatment of First Nations is being played out at the U.N. it would be nice to see Steve and his herd being arrested and transported to The Hague and placed on trial for crimes against humanity. Not funding First Nations children at the same rate as other children in the country could be considered genocide. then not reigning in Rio Tinto as it goes around the world ruining the environment in other countries. Ah all on good old steve's watch.

Let the "debates" begin. Each of the other leaders can take the time to go over the sins of harper and his herd and put forward their plans. In this manner they won't attack each other. it will give voters an idea of what the other parties have for us and what of steve's "legacy" they will disband, repeal, etc.

In the meantime please make sure you, your friends, and family all have I.D. so they can vote.

Anonymous said...

Oh cool. Let the left eat its own tail! Best gift to Harper that Mulcair et al. could possibly give.

Can you say vote-splitting...?

Anonymous said...

Oh my goodness. They're going to have the French debate during the Hab's season opener... against Toronot?! How tone-deaf and stupid do you have to be... when even the CBC is suggesting that this is a terrible idea?

http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/election-debate-dates-set-by-broadcasters-without-conservatives-1.3145190

"The French-language debate is set for the same time as the NHL's Montreal Canadiens season-opener against the Toronto Maple Leafs, which could be a factor in how many people watch that debate in real time.

The French-language debate will run an additional half-hour because it will include the Bloc Québécois, which has been excluded from the English-language debate."

So lemme get this straight... The most controversial PM in recent memory by far decides to snub the consortium because they are a constant charlie-foxtrot of failure. And then... they make a charlie-foxtrot of this debate as well.

What happened to Trudeau's demand that the debates be of equal length in both French and English...? Looks like the substitute drama-teacher can't help himself.

And here I was actually starting to worry about Mulcair in power...

David said...

Simon, this is one of your best posts ever! Your graphics are soooo funny! Do you have a name for the little skull with the cig?

Simon said...

hi Norrthern PoV...the situation in Britain may be different in some respects, but you're quite right the dynamics of what's happening there are fundamentally the same. The Eton bully boys can now reveal their true face, and what George Osborne the bestial finance guy is doing is almost beyond belief. They are wrecking the NHS and going after the poor like a pack of savage animals. And if Harper should ever get another majority, the same thing will happen here...

Simon said...

hi anon...unfortunately nothing we're doing in Syria and Iraq is for proper military reasons, it's all just politics and show. If I felt our mission was succeeding I would support it because I loathe the ISIS crazies. But as I said it's all for show, and all hot air...

Simon said...

hi e.a.f...yes the Harper Cons are unravelling, they are running out of options, and must be desperately hoping for a terrorist attack. When a government is rotten to the core NOTHING can save it...

Simon said...

hi anon...while vote-splitting is a definite hazard, I wouldn't celebrate too soon. Because if you look at the trend lines, the NDP and the Liberals are moving in opposite directions. And the bigger the gap between them the less chance that they will split the vote. Sorry....

Simon said...

hi anon...yes as a Habs fan I was going to mention that. I can't believe how the consortium has scheduled those debates. It's outrageous enough that people in the West have to watch the live version in the middle of the afternoon on a work day, but scheduling the French debate on the Hab's season opener is simply insane. You'd think they didn't want a big audience either. And as for their argument that it's during there launch season I don't buy it. There';s nothing on TV these days that can't be pre-empted...

Simon said...

hi David...thank you, I enjoyed writing it, and was a bit surprised that the other posts were more popular. I thought my sense of humour was failing me. But maybe people are so fed up with the Cons they can't laugh at them anymore. I'm afraid I can't change. Not only do I enjoy mocking them, if I couldn't laugh at them I would have gone bonkers long ago. Of course it is possible that like Harper I have gone crazy and don't even know it... ;)

Anonymous said...

I almost never agree with you, but this I agree with. Signs of the end times.

I suppose our point of departure would be for me to point out that Stephen Harper is right to snub them, given the sheer failure to appreciate the fact that they live in Canada, where hockey is tantamount to meriting religious fervor.

Now regardless of your feelings on the preceding, I would hope that you'd agree that whoever is in charge of the debates has got to do a better job. Independent commission maybe? Sure. I could live with that. But no more consortium BS, PLEASE, I think on this, we should all agree.

Anonymous said...

That's true. Are you hoping therefore that Mulcair knocks out Trudeau in the debate? That'd be interesting. How many fiscally conservative Liberals would be wedged to Harper in that situation?

Interesting. Most interesting.

David said...

As I wrote before...

John Cleese told Peter Manbridge in Part 2 of "Mansbridge: One on One" (broadcast Nov. 29/30):

"I think it's [humour] immensely powerful. Whether it changes things very much, I'm not sure. But what I *do* know is the one thing that people in power can't abide is being made fun of. And I think the wonderful thing about humour is that it punctures pomposity. If people are very self important, they love to have a slightly solemn atmosphere around them, because they know that any kind of humour is gonna deflate that pomposity."

http://www.cbc.ca/player/News/TV+Shows/Mansbridge+One+on+One/ID/2623052205/

David said...

I wonder what Harper Girl is up to these days?

From 2008:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Dg5QhC6JaU

The HARPedo of Truth
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uQ5QmWnGI0o

HarperGirl
https://www.facebook.com/pages/HarperGirl/29698316844

http://rabble.ca/news/2009/07/harper-girl-hits-fringe

David said...

http://www.HarperGirl.com/HarperGirl.com/HarperGirl.html

David said...

Twitter.com/MissRubyJones

http://www.HarperGirl.com/HarperGirl.com/Videos.html