Gerard Kennedy Rocks The YLC Biennial Meeting

Today has been fantastic at the convention. Braeden Caley, Gerard Kennedy BC Youth Co-chair was honoured with Young Liberal of the Year. Politics aside, well leadership politics aside, there is no other Young Liberal more deserving of this award. Braeden has spent years campaigning harder then some candidates. Congratulations Braeden.

Back into the Convention, today began with the theatre we all know as the Leadership Race on the stage of the YLC Biennial Meeting. It began with each campaign sneaking off from the meeting to get prepared to escort their candidate in with the standard hype.

With each candidate on stage, they went into two minute speeches, followed by questions by the youth. The first question concerned immigration; but it was the second that really differentiated the candidates.

Braeden Caley asked, with a camara in his face, "Do you support continueing the mission in Afghanistan up until 2009 and beyond? Yes or No?" Bob Rae was the first respondent, his answer was that he was not obligated because he never voted on it. My question would be, "Is that a yes or a no?" Rae continued that Canada must not forget one of the three "D's," that is development.

Michael Ignatieff answered that we must utilize the three D's, emphasizing development, as he had forgotten what the other two stand for. Overall though Michael showed leniancy in his position, and hinted that 2009 is not written in stone.

Stephane Dion was not clear, he referenced imposing a Marshall Plan-like system on Afghanistan. My question to this is, "How can such a plan be implemented when the country is on the brink of civil war?" But again, Dion had pluses, as he too was hinting at some form of early withdrawal, once a strong civil society has been formed.

The next candidate was Gerard Kennedy. As soon as Gerard began talking, the atmosphere in the room changed. Previous candidates had been speaking as if they were having a conversation with a fellow Liberal; Gerard Kennedy spoke as if he really wants to be leader, he's hungry for it.

His voice booming in the full convention hall, his answer was direct, a simple response stating he was not in favour of remaining in Afghanistan unless NATO reassess's and changes towards a far more effective mandate. Attacking Stephen Harper, and his ignoring of social development, the whole room burst into applause and cheers. Up until tat moment, applause for candidates during speeches was along partisan lines; Gerard was the candidate that inspired crossing over those imaginary borders, and united the room in a common sentiment.

It was in this regard, today was a great day. Braeden Caley, of the blog of the same name and a prominent Young Liberal, was awarded Young Liberal of the Year and Gerard Kennedy garnered YLC excitement unlike any other candidate.

It's More Than A Majority, It's A Clear Majority That Canadians Oppose Quebeckers As A Nation

The most recent poll has come out, and it is more than obvious that non-francophone Quebeckers, francophones outside of Quebec, and Liberal Party supporters reject the idea of Quebeckers having a nationality other than Canadian.

The poll question was, "Currently, there is a political debate on recognizing Quebec as a nation. Do you personally consider that Quebecers form a nation or not?" And in each category the overwhelming answer was "No."

Non-Francophone Quebeckers responded with 62% saying No.

Francophones outside of Quebec responded with 77% saying No.

Liberal Party supporters 72%

It was the French speaking Quebeckers who were the lone language and regional supporters of the motion at 71%. This is significant, but in regards to the Federal Government as with the Liberal Party supporting such a resolution is unrepresentative and unjust.

I wonder how can any candidate justify supporting the motion that passed?

Especially in consideration of this testimony:

Jean Johnson, president of the French-Canadian Association of Alberta, said the concept of a Quebec nation was settled within Quebec decades ago.
"Taking this dialogue to the federal level creates an isolation between the two francophone communities, the community in Quebec and outside," he said.
"It's not a useful situation in creating a united country."
When the federal government recognizes Quebecois and ignores the rest of French Canada "we're really persona non grata," he said. "We're second-class citizens. It's very emotional, and it's a feeling of being rejected."

First Convention Post

Today I got to work. I found the Palais De Congres, and went out immediatly to the campaign tables. Ignatieff and Kennedy were the first set up, for a good while a head of the others. Bob Rae's team I heard had been waiting on red and black posters of him, that one Young Liberal mentioned made Rae look like Hitler. I won't comment, I'll let you be the judge.

I then went into Kennedy HQ, which has to be the closest office to the Registration and soon voting room, as the HQ is on the same floor but a 100 meters away. It was great finally meeting the voices you've talked strategy with.

The overall atmosphere of the Convention is comadery, everyone I met was genuinely nice. There was politicking, but that was to be expected.

The day began with Michael Ignatieff registering. It was given quite the extravagance, with people announcing his arrival. Then as he walked into the enormous room a few chanted his name. Talking with a Young liberal after, this Dion supporter thought it was pretty contrived.

I continued the day in the Registration room, guarenteeing rules were being followed. Today, Tuesday, roughly 600 delegates registered. That is 600 elected, Ex-Officio, and Alternates registering. This may seem like a lot, but with a total nearing 6000 solely elected delegates, tomorrow is predicted to be mayham. I hope everyone gets there early.

Some Ex-Officio's I scrutineered over were the MP Denis Coderre, Senator Grant Mitchell, MP Pablo Rodriguez, and some Riding Presidents. Of note, it seemed the ex-officio were having the most problems. Their badges seemed to be missing data, or they weren't fully in the system.

Overall registration for today was extremely smooth, only one report of a woman crying, and that was only because she couldn't be a volunteer. That was resolved with her becoming one. There were a few delegates who hit rough patches but our Liberal registrators were amazing. I did not see one problem they did not reconcile, and I was there for over 5 hours.

There were delegates from all over. Of notice though was only the top four candidates' supporters were clearly wearing their pins today. I only say one Scott Brison delegate wear his pin. After registration I did see a few Martha supporters but that's it.

Gerard Kennedy will be registering tomorrow morning so register early and meet Gerard.

Kennedy For Prime Minister

Quebecois Have A Nationality, Canadian. Gerard Kennedy Leads.

Gerard Kennedy has taken the position that the Quebecois are not a nation. Whether you agree with him or not, this is leadership. This is being bold and standing up for what is right.

This announcement is the largest announcement thus far in this leadership race. One only has to gaze at the newspapers to see this.


Winnipeg Sun
London Free Press
Globe And Mail
Toronto Sun
Montreal Gazette
The Vancouver Sun
CBC

These are but a few of the articles on Gerard Kennedys innovative and revolutionary decision.

This announcement has already meant many new endorsements for Gerard. Tom Axworthy, who headed the renewal commission has endorsed Kennedy, as well as a riding president in an Ignatieff's MPs riding. Vicky Dhillon, president of the Brampton-Springdale Federal Liberal Riding Association and a recently elected Brampton city councillor today announced she was endorsing Gerard Kennedy for the Liberal Party of Canada leadership.

Don't Support The Quebecois Motion, Because Your Candidate Is

I was scanning the Liblogs and I saw a few supporters, one noticably was a Dion supporter. Instead of giving her reasons for supporting the motion she quotes Dion. Gerard Kennedy hasn't made it clear where he will stand. And if he comes out tomorrow announcing he's for the motion, I'll still disagree with him.

Quebecois shouldn't be recognized. Yes it would serve as a symbolic gesture to the Quebecois, but it would not only marginalize more legitimate nations such as the First Nations and the Acadians, but it would lead to growing seperatist sentiment to harbour within Quebec.

You can distinguish nation in a sociological sense, but you know what? You shouldn't put anything in a constitution where you have to specify in what sense the word shall be defined. Ambiguity leads to misinterpretations, and misinterpretations lead to seperation. What the Constitution needs is clarity, any candidate for this Quebec motion is against clarity.

If one thinks their candidate is right in their consideration, how about providing your own reasons, or justifying your candidates?

One thing is for sure, in BC and Alberta referendums on the subject, it would not pass. So alienate the west or piss off the sovereigntists, your call.

In Kennedy I Trust

I am destroyed by this Quebecois as a nation proposition. Doesn't anybody grasp the implications? Seeing the Quebecois as a nation, is a confusing proposal at best. In the end it will divide Canadians.

Of all the leadership candidates, and I note Ignatieff has fallen in my books yet again. A brieef explanation is needed. First Ignatieff, Dion, Kennedy were my top three. Then Dion and Kennedy, then Dion began giving mixed messages as Ignatieff was making strong decisions, even if they were in error. Then Ignatieff takes credit for this current disaster and he is off my radar, in fact he's buried in my backyard next to Professor wiggle-pants my dead pet gerbil. Gerard Kennedy said it best about Ignatieff's modesty.

"Kennedy said it's "an interesting strategy if (Ignatieff) is saying this has gone according to plan."

That is quoted from this article. The article that is giving me hope for the future of the Liberal Party and Canada. Gerard is leaning towards opposing this nation motion.

Kennedy has stated in reference to this resolution:

"I'm not sure it's the crowning achievement of the Liberal party in recent times,"

Also the article states:

Before making a decision, Kennedy said he wants to know whether recognition of Quebecers as a nation "will influence future domestic or international court judgments."

All I can say is, since all the other candidates are supporting it (Iggy and Dion) or going to support it (Rae) if Kennedy opposes this resolution I will support him to his dying day.

Dion Copies Kennedy, AGAIN

This morning this story 'broke,' Stephane Dion wants to pull out our troops before 2009, and he wants to do it by also engaging with other NATO countries on our withdrawal. For anyone who has kept current of this Leadership Race you'll find Gerard Kennedy came out with this idea not just a week ago, but months ago. Before Stephane Dion, before any Layton idea, Simply put, Gerard Kennedy was the first to call Afghanistan like it is and say the mission is not being effective.

Kennedy's Afghanistan Position can be found on his website in multiple places, Here, a Forum on Afghanistan, and here.

Dion's Afghanistan Position can be found here, the one lone article he just did an interview on.

Kennedy's Afghanistan Position:

"Liberal leadership candidate Gerard Kennedy today called for Canada to push NATO to re-evaluate what amounts to a losing strategy in Afghanistan and for Prime Minister Harper to address the shortfall in aid development.

"If NATO fails to change their strategy, Canada should pull out of the war in Afghanistan," Kennedy told Ontario Young Liberals as part of the Young Liberal Summer Speakers Series at Ryerson University last night."

Dion's Afghanistan Position:

"Liberal leadership contender Stephane Dion says Canada should withdraw its troops ''with honour'' from Afghanistan before 2009 because their current mission is ill-conceived and misguided."

Kennedy's Afghanistan Position:

"In August, I called for a re-evaluation of what amounts to a long term losing strategy in Afghanistan, changing into one that would be a proper mandate for our armed services, the Afghani people and Canadian principles. If NATO fails to change the strategy, Canada should pull out of the war in Afghanistan...."The only way we can justify staying in Afghanistan is if we can create a mandate for real success.""

Dion's Afghanistan Position:

"In an interview with CanWest News Service, Dion said the current military mission is not making progress. But he quickly added any pull-out of troops would only occur after discussions with the other NATO countries involved in the military mission."

Kennedy's Afghanistan Position:

"In August, I called for a re-evaluation of what amounts to a long term losing strategy in Afghanistan, changing into one that would be a proper mandate for our armed services, the Afghani people and Canadian principles. If NATO fails to change the strategy, Canada should pull out of the war in Afghanistan."

"Kennedy noted that Canada has a role to play in marshalling other NATO countries to call for a winning plan in Afghanistan. "Sustainable peace cannot be achieved by military operations alone. The international coalition should focus on the immediate and long-term economic needs of the local communities, and any use of force should be balanced with extensive, visible and effective development efforts," he said."

Dion's Afghanistan Position:

''Canada must say: 'Look, we are very willing to work with you, to design something that makes sense, because I don't want to risk the life of our soldiers if we are not making progress','' said Dion.

Kennedy's Afghanistan Position:

Loss of life, lack of progress and no end in sight weigh heavily on our national conscience. By focusing solely on the military objectives in Afghanistan, Prime Minister Harper is making the same mistakes that the Bush administration made in Iraq and it will lead to similar long-term failure.

Dion's Afghanistan Position:

''We need to involve the other nations much more. It is really sad what happened because Mr. harper last spring played the macho the one who will be able to carry us out of Afghanistan. He copied the speeches of Mr. Bush, I think President Bush should request copyright from these speeches,'' said Dion.

Kennedy's Afghanistan Position:

It is now clear, Afghanistan faces three interlinked crises: an opium crisis, a development crisis and a security crisis. The international community and the Afghani people must deal with the opium and development crises before lasting security can become reality.

Last year's crop was worth $2.7 billion at export, or 52 per cent of the GDP, representing a 20 per cent increase in poppy planting and a record for the biggest crop in Afghanistan's history, according to the United Nations.
Revenues from opium crops fund the Taliban's operations against international forces. Additionally, without economic alternatives the allegiance of local populations shifts support away from the international community and towards Taliban insurgent factions that capitalize on growing economic desperation.
The biggest failure in Afghanistan to date has been the way the international community has alienated the Afghani people.

Dion's Afghanistan Position:

''You have the Taliban, you have warlords, it is a complex situation. E and we need to work with the other nations to see if we can create a type of Marshall Plan like the one for Europe after the Second World War to be sure that the poppy can be used for licit activities. Otherwise I think it is very very difficult to make progress,'' said Dion.

Now perhaps Kennedy should request copyright from Dion's speeches. Not only that but Dion's position is but a shallow pool compared to the ocean of facts and evidence supporting Gerard Kennedy's position. I advise all to read Gerard Kennedy's website for further details.

Prior to this copying of Kennedy Dion has done it before. In regards to the Canadian Wheat Board, Stephane Dion copied Gerard's stance identically as noted in a previous post here, about nine posts down.

Someone Has A Lot Of Time On Their Hands . . .

This clip is funny, but some lengths people go to for a laugh.

Stephane Dion, Saying It Like It Is . . . Or Isn't

Stephane Dion has recently twice taken two sides on different issues. This may seem like double-speak on my part but it's all on how Dion tests the political waters before making any commitments. I have two examples to showcase this quality.

First, this article it clearly says Dion supports Nuclear Energy. In this article, however, it seems Dion adds alot of stipulations. It is in reference to both that it is unclear if Dion is for Nuclear Energy or not. So contradictory that even some Dion supporters think he is for it while others don't. One Dion supporter claims Dion says he supports Nuclear Energy but added those stipulations knowing it would never happen; thus Dion would get the best of both worlds. In all of this, and if one is to give into some Dion supporters claiming he does not support Nuclear Energy, then on one side Dion doesn't support Nuclear Energy, and then on the other he does.

The difference in News stories is most likely a test of the waters by Dion. The taking of for and against Nuclear Energy is troubling.

Another example, this is the most awe-inspiring of Double-speak, it involves Dion's compromise on the Quebec Nation issue. You can read an article concerning the story
here, here, and here. With Ignatieff's quagmire a solution was thought to be needed, so Dion stepped up and drafted a compromise resolution. Let it be clear Dion drafted the resolution (see articles).

An interesting feature of the article is Dion responding to Ignatieff's gaffe:

"Don't go there if you are unable to say how many nations you want to recognize ... Don't pretend that it's necessary and symbolic, second point, because it's a contradiction."

Keeping that in mind, look at what Dion said about the resolution, he himself drafted:

"It's a draft. I'm even not sure myself I would say I support it. But it's better than the current resolution."

Dion wrote a draft and he does not know if he would support it. His thoughts written down on paper concerning the best way to resolve the issue, and he does not know if he would support his own ideas.

Again Dion is testing the water's, he wants to gauge the reaction of those involved before making a commitment. This is an adequate method, for a follower of polls, and not a leader of them.

Herbert Implies Kennedy To Win Leadership

This Article by Chantal Herbert argues that Liberals will choose Gerard Kennedy as the next leader of the Liberal Party of Canada. They will make that decision by determining which candidate will not only hold the same Liberal seats but gain new ones.

While all the other candidates have their positives. Michael Ignatieff his policy towards Afghanistan and his nation proposal for Quebec. However as we are all aware these pluses are easily translateable into negatives by just going to a different region within Canada.

Bob Rae has the ability to draw NDP support. But he can also lose support be his history as Premier of Ontario.

Stephane Dion, well Chantal is not too friendly. She says he's alienated Quebeckers on one front but has maintained some support from his federalist position. Overall however he doesn't hold more support than Kennedy in the province she even adds that he has the less among the top four.

Gerard Kennedy, however has positives that aren't outweighed by his negative. His negative being his showing in Quebec.

Of the four, Kennedy is probably the best placed to hang onto the Ontario base of the party. His strong showing in the delegate selection process speaks to that advantage. He also is likely to do well in the parts of Western Canada where the NDP is the main opposition to the Liberals.

Despite his shortcomings in French, Kennedy, like Dion, would likely hang onto the Quebec seats the party currently has. If the Liberals did not lose those ridings last January, the party probably will keep them under any leadership scenario.

By Chantal Herbert, a noted Quebec journalist, as well as Justin Trudeau, a noted French Speaking Canadian have all said Kennedy has the best chances, it all but eradicates any misgivings towards Gerard Kennedys future support in Quebec.

Kennedy Will Win Liberal Leadership' - Chantal Herbert, Toronto Star

This Article by Chantal Herbert argues that Liberals will choose Gerard Kennedy as the next leader of the Liberal Party of Canada. They will make that decision by determining which candidate will not only hold the same Liberal seats but gain new ones.

While all the other candidates have their positives. Michael Ignatieff his policy towards Afghanistan and his nation proposal for Quebec. However as we are all aware these pluses are easily translateable into negatives by just going to a different region within Canada.

Bob Rae has the ability to draw NDP support. But he can also lose support be his history as Premier of Ontario.

Stephane Dion, well Chantal is not too friendly. She says he's alienated Quebeckers on one front but has maintained some support from his federalist position. Overall however he doesn't hold more support than Kennedy in the province she even adds that he has the less among the top four.

Gerard Kennedy, however has positives that aren't outweighed by his negative. His negative being his showing in Quebec.

Of the four, Kennedy is probably the best placed to hang onto the Ontario base of the party. His strong showing in the delegate selection process speaks to that advantage. He also is likely to do well in the parts of Western Canada where the NDP is the main opposition to the Liberals.

Despite his shortcomings in French, Kennedy, like Dion, would likely hang onto the Quebec seats the party currently has. If the Liberals did not lose those ridings last January, the party probably will keep them under any leadership scenario.

By Chantal Herbert, a noted Quebec journalist, as well as Justin Trudeau, a noted French Speaking Canadian have all said Kennedy has the best chances, it all but eradicates any misgivings towards Gerard Kennedys future support in Quebec.

Why Justin Trudeau's Opinion Matters: To Cherniak, and others

First let me state I address this specifically to Cherniak because everyone knows he his a prominent Liberal blogger, thus his opinion holds slightly more sway than an average bloggers none.

Jason Cherniak gives his sarcastic remark, that since Justin Trudeau is not a delegate then his opinion should not be considered. This is a remarkable position to take. Just looking at this broadly without any deeper inspection, Justin is a Canadian. Therefore his opinion matters as does all Canadians. Liberals would not select a leader if 75% of the population was against him, no matter the support within the Party. This I accept is a mere supportive argument.

My stronger argument is, Justin Trudeau is an icon, it may be inhereited (which by listening to him talk, the future will prove it to by self-made), but he is an icon nonetheless. Jason Cherniak cannot deny that under Trudeau the Liberal Party had a high point; a high point in appeal to non-Liberals and a high point in polls and a high point in membership. Thus Trudeau, the name, is not only remembered within the Liberal Party but outside as well.

Thus when Justin Trudeau takes a position when it comes to politics, the media listens and so does Canadians. Of all the people who have endorsed a candidate (exluding other candidates) none have had the media attention that Justin Trudeau has had within this Liberal Leadership race. If anyone is to doubt this, look at CTV which has done multiple television interviews with Justin, posted multiple articles, not to mention CBC and newspapers. One only has to scan the blogs to see bloggers picking up on Justin Trudeau's latest speculation on the race and he hasn't even endorsed anyone as of yet.

So my main point to all those who question or downplay Justin Trudeau's opinion, I accuse them of not caring what non-Liberals think of the Liberal Party and of Canadians even if it is just one, Justin trudeau.

Justin may have inhereited his icon status and thus no real physical accomplishments, but what he holds, is his non-;iberals, and a wider range of Canadians, attention then the Liberal Party does. Thus in this regard, his opinion is more important then mine, more important then Cherniaks, more important then just an MPs; it is important because he speaks to all those Canadians who were Liberals long ago under Trudeau, he speaks to those that remember how great Trudeau was. The media knows this, why doesn't Cherniak?

Dion Is For Nuclear Energy? What The Fu#$?

You know I am amazed at Stephane Dion. I am amazed at through this leadership race the real person is slowly exposed. When I was first trying to decide which candidate to support, it was only between Kennedy and Dion. Rae and Ignatieff did not appear Liberal for me. Kennedy was focused on the human side of Liberalism while Dion was focused on the environmental side of Liberalism, thus I chose Gerard Kennedy.

However, things have changed. More evidently, Stephane Dion has changed.

Stephane Dion, and I have posted on this before, pretty much created Kyoto, then he went and missed the vote on it. A former environment minister missing the vote on his own initiative is surprising.

Now it has come out, here, here, and here; that Stephane Dion wants to use Nuclear Energy. Nuclear Energy; a method that not only generates incalcuable risks associated with that generation of energy but creates waste that too has the potential to destroy life.

Nuclear energy may offer decreased emissions in the short term but creates stockpiles of radioactive waste that it is yet unseen when exactly it would be safe.

I cannot believe Stephane Dion is for Nuclear Energy. Nuclear energy is a hazard to, not only the environment, but all life on this planet. The Sierra Club has already rebuked Nuclear power here. It states:

The Interim Policy of the Sierra Club hasn't changed in regard to the use of nuclear power. Nuclear power is considered to be the least safe alternative to fossil fuels as well as the most expensive alternative....

Safe storage of nuclear waste is a fairy tale. For you or me to believe that we can find a safe storage solution for radioactive waste for millennia is immoral.

New nuclear plants are not a transitional energy source since plants such as Callaway and Watts Bar are licensed for 40 years. A new nuclear power plant is an economic boondoggle. It requires federal grants, loan guarantees, and risk insurance, so will be heavily subsidized by the public.

Our way of life is threatened by the way we produce and consume energy. Our resources should be spent on alternatives to our use of fossil fuel for transportation and alternatives to our use of coal for creation of electricity. We should not spend our economic resources, natural resources, and technological resources to create future problems for humanity with nuclear power."

A Conservative MP is for Nuclear Energy, and as we all know, Conservatives are fantastic when it comes to the environment. So missing a vote on Kyoto and now proposing Nuclear Energy, how many more pages is Stephane Dion going to take from the Conservatives.

Seriously, how can Stephane Dion change so much?

I Hope This Isn't The Beginning Of A Closed Minded Liberal Party

One cannot help notice how the debate over the LPCQ Resolution of recognizing Quebec as a nation has dominated every forum in the Country. In the media, in the blogs, and in youtube (see previous post). The sentiment within Canada is mixed; outside of Quebec, no one is pretty much for it, and in Quebec, it's unclear.

Within the Liberal Party the spectrum is fuzzy. Which candidates are for recognizing Quebec as a nation and which aren't. They've all said yes to a degree but then the difference of degrees is what makes a mountain different from a hill.

But one thing to notice from all of this, is that everyone has made up their mind. I have came to a position, but I am open to change it. I don't want to change it, to have Quebec recognized as a nation, but if someone was to argue and win against me, for such a proposal, then alas, I would have no other choice. But others are not as open, actually, a lot of Liberals are closed minded.

Close minded because they fear Canada would break up, or that the provinces would have so much power their idea of Canada would no longer hold. Perhaps they want to keep the identity of a united Canada or perhaps they love Quebec. Or more simply they think Quebec is nothing special. Another possible option is, Liberals are so focused on this leadership they'll pick up on anything if it smells of blood; in particular, Michael Ignatieff's.

The latter option, I disagree. I think most Liberals are blinded with patriotism that they cannot conceive of even having a rational debate with other about such a Quebec notion.

In all the multitudes of blogs, newspapers, Television panels, and etc. I've seen or read, not one, not one, offered a chance of debate; not one talked as if it was a debate. Not one positing anything unique to the conversation other than their own opinion of yes or no. Well, I shouldn't say no one, Michael Ignatieff did.

I am not supporting Michael Ignatieff, I am supporting Gerard Kennedy; but I like ideas, whether they be positive or negative. Ideas inspire thoughts, thoughts inspire long trains of processes that arrive at conclusions I would have never conceived. For doing something that all the bloggers, all the pundits haven't, Michael Ignatieff stands out.

Gerard Kennedy has always shined and he continues to do so. In every speech of his he makes me feel more human, more in touch with Liberalism. I am honest and I think that Gerard has not brought a new idea to this debate; in his defense, he does so wishing not to bring Canada into Constitutional ruin, which brings in the component of theory versus practice. So Kennedy is still my favorite, but as Ignatieff has fallen in the eyes of those Liberals who never bothered to open them, he has risen in mine.

LPCQ Resolution And The Liberal Party

Fact Is The Conservatives Are Detached From Canadians

While the Conservatives coldly base policy on theory and ignore the most important factor, people; their latest move has hurt Canadians unnecessarily hard. Yesterday the Conservatives attempted to fix income trusts; their maneuver however impacted working Canadians, middle-class Canadians to a greater extent then the upper-classes.

Gerard Kennedy has devoted himself to showing the faults with this government, while others advertise themselves, Gerard sees the priority in attacking Stephen Harper. Kennedy doesn't attack the Conservatives because of partisanship, he attacks them because their wrong. As with this situation, the Conservatives first lied about their intentions. At gerardkennedy.ca it is clear Harper misled Canadians:

In a 2005 National Post editorial, Harper wrote," As my party's finance critic, Monte Solberg, says, the success of income trusts represents a rare triumph for investors over the tax man. Let's not be so naive as to assume that the Liberals will do the right thing to protect taxpayers. We'll need to fight hard to keep what we have, and even harder to gain ground."

Canadians relied on the Conservatives word to their financial detriment. They broke a key election promise and are serving up the same old game of over- promising and under-delivering. Canadians deserve better.

Now as the government, the Conservatives did a 180 degree turn and devastated income trusts.

This change has hurt Canadians, something the Conservatives either ignored or didn't comprehend in their planning.

he Harper government's income trust cure falls disproportionately and unfairly on fixed income Canadians. Today, thousands of individuals suffered a large, permanent loss in their hard-earned savings as a reward for following the rules of the day and after a commitment from the Conservatives that no changes would be made.

Not only does the Conservatives strategy hurt Canadians directly but it also could have an impact on investor confidence; the impacts of this policy are yet to be fully realized.

One thing is for sure though, and that is this damage could have been lessened by an implementation of a gradual system of introducing reforms to the income trust operations. A gradual introduction would have minimalized any pain felt by middle-class investors and aided Canadians in adapting to the change.

Appearantly Stephen Harper thinks Canadians should just deal with it. I think we should deal with Stephen harper first.