I must admit that at times during the nightmare year of 2019 I wondered whether I would be able to make it, even on all fours, to the year 2020.
The burning planet, Donald Trump, Boris Johnson, the rise of grubby right-wing populists all over the place, like Jason Kenney and Doug Ford. The monstrous sight of the ghastly Republican style Cons and their Ugly American leader Andrew Scheer bombarding us with attack ads 24/7, while their media stooges clapped like penguins.
Let's face it, it was bad, really bad.
But for me all of that ugly stuff was more than compensated for by this really great night.
The night Justin Trudeau defeated Andrew Scheer.
For Scheer and so many other Cons were so sure they were going to win, it was a devastating blow.
And Scheer hasn't been the same since...
Which is just as well, for if Scheer had won we could have ended up with a Con prime minister like Australia's Scott Morrison.
Who not only took a vacation in Hawaii while his country burned.
But is also a grotesque climate change denier
Prime Minister Scott Morrison, a conservative, has made it clear that Australia’s economic prosperity comes first. Even as his country burned, he has said repeatedly that it is not the time to discuss climate policy.
Mr. Morrison has gone so far as to suggest that the government should outlaw efforts by environmental groups to pressure businesses with rallies and boycotts.
And as if that wasn't bad enough, Morrison is also a religious fanatic who has drafted a religious discrimination bill that some are calling a license to hate.
The second draft religious discrimination bill will have wide-ranging effects on many areas of public life including access to medical services, schooling, employment, social media, aged care, hospitals and even some commercial services.
And is exactly the same kind of war on the planet, and the same kind of religious bigotry, that Andrew Scheer would have imposed on us with some help from his fellow fanatic Jason Kenney, and their idiot stooge Doug Ford.
And the good news?
We won, the Cons lost. Doug Ford is leaking popularity out of every orifice.
Jason Kenney is already on his way down.
Donald Trump is heading for his spectacular downfall...
In a straitjacket or a pair of shiny handcuffs.
And by keeping the Ugly American around, the Cons are reminding us of his ghastly record.
And burying their own future...
So 2019 may have been a nightmare year, but it had a much happier ending.
And all progressives should give themselves a pat on the back.
And that of course includes all my readers who followed my blogging adventures this year, and went through the same ups and downs as I did. For which they deserve at least TWO pats on the back.
Let 2019 be just a warm up for the battles that lie ahead.
Let's bury the Cons once and for all...
And let them know how much decent Canadians won't miss them.
Happy New Year Everybody !!
And hooray for us...
22 comments:
Happy New Year (and Decade) Simon. The fight isn't finished by a long shot, but I'm glad the good guys are battle-tested and well-rested after a really awful year. As they say, 2020 is hindsight, which to me means the likes of DoFo, BoJo, ScoMo and other Con bozos have a self-inflicted vision impairment caused by craniorectal inversion syndrome. Mad kings with tiny emperor syndrome, lighting their farts on fire and fiddling with themselves as the world burns. Not so of Trudeau, who damn well has earned a vacation after the brutal beating he took from his most vicious opponents, particularly in the form of backstabbers emerging from within. Bless him and keep him for as long as you can, and may the Force be with you, to infinity and beyond. It's a Justin Trudeau kinda party! 🥳
Hooray indeed! Like you, I am profoundly grateful that we still have PMJT instead of ScheerDisaster. Still, I do fear we have been backsliding politically, instead of making progress. Maybe its a "two steps forward, one step back" kind of world, and right now we in the "step back" part. Or maybe now that we are moving into a new decade, it will give us a chance to consolidate gains and move forward again. Certainly the "conservative" brand is tarnished worldwide - USA, Britain, Australia, Turkey, etc etc, not to mention Kenney and Ford, are all imploding.
Not sure if you saw the new Abacus survey hitting the rounds, but the "brand" is so repulsive that they enlisted an actual advertising guy to come up with sloganeering. "That's not a Buick" "Not your father's Oldsmobile" No, it's a defective Ford. I suppose they figure "rebranding" or should I say "think different" has worked so well for the logo room of Kenney's Used Car Party that they can count on similar success at the federal level. They're more like New Coke if you ask me. Or just a lemon. Either way, they suck.
I don't think most libertarian politicians who pander to theocons, and as often as not to the precious B&R segment as well, are necessarily religious fanatics or right wing cultural warriors. They go to them simply for electoral support and more recently for advantage related to a complimentary propaganda effort that these segments provide through social and fake media. They don't generally believe in anything at all besides doing what it takes to be close to the interests that wield economic power. Take away a Scheer, a Morrison. a Kenney or a Harper and what have they got? Another lying libertarian maggot minus a little slice of the sanctimony. And where else are the stranded morons of social conservative extremism going to park their votes?
.. Best Wishes Simon, to you & yours ! Keep on keepin on.. !
Really Simon, I am sure that you are being too hard on Scott Morrison. The last trip to Hawaii was only his second overseas vacation in 2019.
As for the religious bill, I am sure that John Calvin would have loved it.
A new Abacus poll shows the certain or likely CPC voters just want more of the same that Sheer-nonsense delivered. They are not very interested in protecting human rights or fighting climate change. Soon they will get a new leaderè someone comfortable with the reformatories base values ; anti women, anti LGBTQ , anti furrinerer.
Sorry about your next election guys.
Great post, Simon and a Happy New Year to you. Your post reinforces the fact that throughout this overheating planet, the political right are its worst enemies. They deny, they agree then dont comply or concoct their schemes that dont do anything other than compound the situation. IMO, the only way climate change can be reversed is by ensuring these self-serving right-wing political assholes are voted out and as such, are the first and hopefully last to go in any global extinction event.
JD
Enzo DiMatteo: The race to replace Andrew Scheer is turning into a dog-and-pony show
https://nowtoronto.com/news/conservative-party-andrew-scheer-rona-ambrose-peter-mackay/
I'm glad to see DiMatteo bring up Drona's unconscionable vote on Motion 312, and particularly her appalling environment record now that climate has become the most salient issue in Canadian politics. Airshow is a craven sellout who just wants his thirty pieces of silver. His entire legacy is Stephen Harper, full circle, full stop.
But of greater note IMHO is that former Ontario PC staffer Mike Gibbs has some very important things to say about "Harper's attack dog," and I don't mean Skippy the poodle. The Saudis' favorite minister probably deserves to be the Baird Man of Alcatraz.
In Frank Graves' poll, some respondents listed Cookie Monster and Hitler as write-ins. Cookie Monster is sweet, so that disqualifies him from the nasty party. He might as well sit in the independents' nosebleed section with Michael Chong, in the land of misfit toys. But speaking of independents, "Judy" Wilson-Raybould's name also came up in the Ekos survey, a fitting moniker for a female version of Judas. That leaves Hologram Hitler, who would stand a good chance of winning a skewed contest of 14 out of 88 ballots. Filth Moldy would be, er, proud of her boy.
But in the interest of fairness -- and bigly yuge ratings -- I say let Vincenzo Guzzo drop out and instead hold the contest as his own version of "The Apprentice." Yerrrr fired.
Without a ministry of religious freedom, how will we know we are free?
Morrison's religious discrimination bill would turn Australia into a theocracy. How did Australians ever elect a man like that, and will the country have to burn to the ground before Australians rise up against him? But you're right Simon, Scheer would have done exactly the same thing. What a mess we would have been in.
Hi Jackie...Thanks and Happy New Year to you too. The fight isn't finished, but I just got back to Canada and it's looking pretty good. The Cons are in disarray and a well timed election should finish them off. We will have to fight, but the future looks bright....
Hi Cathie....Canada is a two steps forward one step back country, but slow but steady progress is in my opinion a good thing. We do have to step up the fight against climate change, but as you point out the Cons are imploding all over the world and I am confident that in another few years they will be just a bad memory....
Hi John...You may be right, Many Cons are just low life opportunists. But Scheer managed to recruit enough hardline religious fanatics, that they cannot be dismissed and will influence whatever direction the Cons will go after him....
Hi salamander, thank you and Happy New Year to you too!!! As I said in my post I found 2019 to be unusually stressful so 2020 has to be better. I hope. 😉
Hi jrkrideau....I read a story on Morrison's latest vacation, and it reminded me of one of those National Lampoon holiday movies, just more horrifying than funny. As for that religious bill I'm sure Calvin would have loved it, but so would the fascists....
Hi rumleyfips....I honestly believe that the Cons have gone too far down the wrong road to turn back now. Their contingent of religious fanatics and climate change deniers are too strong to be ignored, so I agree with you the Cons will get the new leader they deserve....
Hi JD....thank you and Happy New Year to you too!! What I find fascinating is that religious fanaticism and climate change denial seem to go together. Which is just fine with me, the bigger the target the more easily we will bring it down. The Cons just just have a death wish for the planet they have one for themselves. Throw another shrimp, I mean Con, on the Barbie and let's party!!! 😎
Hi Steve....Fredom for the religious fanatics usually means oppression for others. I know there are some good religious people, but I'm glad I'm an atheist...
Hi anon...I've always admired the exuberant spirit of the Australians and once even considered moving there. But any country that could elect a monstrous Con like Morrison isn't even worth visiting....
Actually like a broken clock, you're right twice a day. Don't let it go to your head though. Scheer drove me to park my vote elsewhere, but rest assured not with your boy.
As a moderate conservative, I either love, support or at least find tolerance for social points of view, not 100% in alignment with mine.
Go on, call an election. The CPC will retain it's base of support, but can Trudeau count on splitting Ontario votes twice. You know they don't respect him, just abhorred Scheer more.
I didn't vote for him, but folks don't really care for Kenney here in AB, but really, I mean really despise the 2nd coming of Trudeau
The Near Death Party are flat broke, and Ontario is turning into California. Doug slaughtered the brand with help from Steve and Andy, and demographic changes are steadily pushing the Cons out.
https://leantossup.ca/the-tories-cant-win-the-next-election/
What used to be marginal seats in the GTA are now safe Liberal seats ... the path to a Conservative majority running through Ontario is not happening, so let’s look at Quebec. For most of the time prior to the 2019 election, the Tories were polling well above their 2015 levels in Quebec – and at plenty of moments looked poised to make gains in both seats and votes. In 2019, they went backwards in both.
None of the leadership candidates, declared or looming, can win back either Liberal strongholds in the GTA or Bloc strongholds in the regions of Quebec. Without that, the Tories cannot win the next election, or even credibly govern out of the mess of another hung parliament with less clarity from the results. Andrew Scheer’s final gift to the party wasn’t just the stolen money and internal turmoil – it was an electoral map so devoid of any prospects for success he lost not only the 2019 election for the Tory party, but the next one as well.
Now, I want to caution my fellow Liberal/anti-Con supporters not to become complacent. But at the same time, I want to inform the semi-regular Cons who drive by here that like their inbred Republican cousins, they're on borrowed time, regardless of what kind of "rebranding" they attempt in hopes of bringing back that new car smell.
Lean Tossup were pretty spot-on with their calls, so evidently, whatever disappointments or disagreements they might have with him, most people outside of the irrational Con (and/or hardcore Dipper) bubble do not "really, really despise" Justin Trudeau the way the deplorable drillbillies do. Twitter is not real life. Alberta even less so.
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