All entries by this author

Now that John Ibbitson’s next Canada is here at last, where is it going to take us?

May 22nd, 2011 | By | Category: In Brief

On this May 24 holiday weekend there can be no doubt that the early 21st century has launched some kind of new Canada. Or, more aptly perhaps, in the wake of the May 2, 2011 Canadian federal election the “next Canada” that John Ibbitson was saying “will not be denied forever,” in the wake of […]



A historic unnecessary election .. probably .. and now there’s only one party responsible for the next four years

May 3rd, 2011 | By | Category: In Brief

Anyone who has been paying even a little attention to this site over the past five weeks will know that we are disappointed by the final results of the Canadian federal election of 2011. Our opinion of Mr. Harper and his abilities and liabilities remains the same. And we think it is still worth noting […]



Nothing dead certain about end of surprising and unsettling Canadian federal election campaign of 2011

May 1st, 2011 | By | Category: In Brief

[UPDATED FOR SOME FINAL POLLS, MAY 1, AND FINAL RESULT MAY 3]. With just one day to go (and not quite that right now, to be very exact), Eric Grenier at ThreeHundredEight.com says “all indications are Stephen Harper’s Conservatives will likely win their third consecutive election Monday night. But whether the next government will be […]



Is there any chance April 25 EKOS poll is straw in the wind we’ve been waiting for (well some of us anyway)?

Apr 26th, 2011 | By | Category: In Brief

[UPDATED MAY 1]. Monday, April 25, 2011 was a strange day in the history of the Canadian federal election campaign that will end with the actual vote one week hence, on Monday, May 2. The day began, like almost every other in this campaign (there was a time out for Good Friday) with the results […]



Will Canada be in a black hole no matter what happens on May 2?

Apr 20th, 2011 | By | Category: In Brief

The Canadian federal election of 2011 started with a lot of wild talk about reckless coalitions. And with a mere 11 days to go now, it’s starting to seem as if that’s how it may end too. It may or may not be a good sign that the imagery has developed somewhat over the past […]



Will AG’s G8 spending report be the straw that at least breaks the Harper Conservative lead a little?

Apr 11th, 2011 | By | Category: In Brief

[UPDATED APRIL 12]. On January 2, 2006 an article on this site wondered whether the Mounties’ strange announcement of a “criminal investigation into the possibility that Ottawa’s plans for income trusts were leaked” would finally be “the straw that breaks the Liberals’ back?”Â  And it quite arguably was, more or less – close enough for […]



One side of Mountie culture does look pro “Harper Government” .. and other noise along the campaign trail

Apr 7th, 2011 | By | Category: In Brief

Almost exactly three years ago now, it was reported that: “Former RCMP commissioner Giuliano Zaccardelli’s decision to name then-Liberal finance minister Ralph Goodale in a criminal investigation likely influenced the 2006 federal election, the chair of the RCMP public complaints commission says.” Mr. Zaccardelli’s action did seem to correlate remarkably closely with the ultimate shift […]



Fear and hatred on the campaign trail in Canada .. is this Unknown Country about to become still more unknown?

Apr 4th, 2011 | By | Category: In Brief

At our regular Monday morning editorial meeting today one of the most senior editors drearily opined that bumping into the latest daily Nanos poll on the Canadian federal election of 2011 (“Tories enter second week with commanding 14-point lead”) called forth this distressing (and depressing) thought: “If this poll is to be believed, the Harper […]



There is an alternative to a Harper majority and it isn’t a “coalition” (or yet another Harper minority)

Mar 27th, 2011 | By | Category: In Brief

This morning John Ibbitson wrote on the Globe and Mail website: “Stephen Harper continues to insist that if he doesn’t obtain a majority government, a coalition will replace him. ‘Nobody is going to be fooled,’ he declared Saturday. But in fact he is the one who is trying to fool us.” A few hours later […]



Is there any hope for a PM Ignatieff “supported either formally or informally by the NDP”?

Mar 23rd, 2011 | By | Category: In Brief

According to the Postmedia News report in the Vancouver Sun: “Election on the way … budget rejected by opposition … The Harper government is refusing to consider any amendments to its federal budget, which was rejected by all three opposition parties Tuesday, setting the stage for a spring election.” (Or, as Mark Kennedy observed in […]