When the very prinicpled, honest and honorable Mr Dion stated emphatically that there would be no coalition with the NDP, he said Jack already had a coalition with pot smokers and nudists. Are these nudists and pot smokers that caused poor little Sephane to ridicule Jumpin Jack during the campaign in Vancouver going to be let in as well?

These pathetic losers want power and entitlements at any cost, including their integrety, principles and honor. They disgrace the country, but why would poor littile Stphane care? He has another country, and Gilles doesn’t, but his should ensure he gets one.
Jack is the one to feel sorry for. He waves the flag, and then does what he can to destroy the economy and reputation of this country. They will all cash their pension cheques in the end, be sure of that.

They are nauseating.

ttp://www.62percentmajority.ca/photos?photo=3

Hon. Chuck Strahl: The picture that I saw and the picture that I had — actually saw, somebody gave it off the Liberal Party website, shows that there is no flags there.

there IS no flagS there….. a real rocket surgeon of English

So what was the point of all this anyways?

I have a much tamer answer. Some pictures were taken of the three leaders at a table. Others, like the Reuters one, were taken of them standing up away from the table, and away from the flags.

Flags for some.
No flags for others.

Everybody wins.

I never claimed the photo was altered in any way. Harper was talking about an entirely different ceremony/event than the photo Kady has above and the Lib war room people know that. Too bad other people don’t.

I think don’t Harper’s point was all that important but it’s accurate statement. Both the CBC and CTV showed footage of what ceremony Harper was talking about and, surprisingly enough, it was an entirely different photo than the one the Lib war room sent to Kady to publish for them.

Kady knows that war room press releases are suspect, she did entire posts fisking Con pr’s during election campaign about how they lack context, but doesn’t seem to have the same kind of objectivity when it comes presenting Lib propaganda.

“(NDP Leader Jack) Layton and Dion won’t change. They’re federalists and I’m a sovereigntist,” he said. “I think every gain we’re making here is good for Quebec, and what’s good for Quebec is good for a sovereign Quebec.”

Stephen Harper is NOT a leader.

It’s all about him, and about his elected MPs who would never deign nor dare send their children to fight in Canada’s name, but would sit on the sidelines while their leader runs down Canadians of every sort but their own.

Despicable.

Will Stephen Harper give Canadians a merry ho ho from Afghanistan this time?

Stephen Harper will likely have to be sandblasted from 24 Sussex and damn the asbestos flying!

Doesn’t matter. Stephen Harper picks up ignorant and misrepresented votes and money like a feral dog picks up fleas. As long as they think they’ve got a dog in the fight, they’re in. It’s like on-line gambling to them: you don’t really have to be there to think you might win. And, as long as you aren’t really there, you can’t collect. Win-win for Harper, just the same as any snake oil-salesman.

There’s a sucker born every minute, and two to take them.

And nice try James Munroe: Prentice, Strahl and any other talking-Harper-head said and did what s/he was told to say or do by Stephen Harper. I also noticed that as soon as ordinary Canadians noticed who was and who was not acting in unison, Harper must have lowered the boom because today all the minority of them were singing from his playbook.

Maybe Clement was off-side, but then he gets his cues from angels.

Frankly, even if they ever became ‘independent’ I wouldn’t trust them as far as I could throw them from the HoC buffet.

I think you should look at the confidence votes in the last Parliament. It was the Liberals that supported the government by either voting in favour or not showing up to vote. To blame the NDP is completely false, they did not support them on confidence measures.

It is very hard to see the flag in this picture, which is from Reuters and was widely spread about (because its Reuters). Harper obviously wasn’t at the signing himself, so he couldn’t have seen that there were flags.

http://www.reuters.com/resources/r/?m=02&d=20081202&t=2&i=7041338&w=450&r=2008-12-02T150304Z_01_BTRE4B115TC00_RTROPTP_0_CANADA-POLITICS

Others did a closeup shot on the leaders that did not show flags:
http://a123.g.akamai.net/f/123/12465/1d/www.calgaryherald.com/duceppe+dion+layton+form+coalition/1017065/1020828.bin?size=620×400

When a thread like this gets over 100 comments, it is no surprise we have such a horrible government. People would rather argue about the presence or absence of a flag (a minor point if true or false) than, you know, look for compromises or structural solutions. I suppose we can’t turn off our inner partisan robots (I will admit, my inner partisan wants to shout the f-word at every one of your talking points. If I listen to him, as most of you have, then frankly we are getting the government we deserve).

I vote no confidence in Harper, the coalition AND the Canadian people!

http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20081202/coalition_govts_081202/20081202?hub=CTVNewsAt11

Maybe we should shake the tunnel vision on Quebec and separatism ( they’ll never leave all our $ behind…. the squeeky wheel gets the grease) and look in the other direction. The West will put up with a banana republic only so long. And if they decide to leave, they won’t dink around….

SJ–that’s a joke, right?
Stephane Dion: The NDP would destroy the economy.
Jack Layton: The Liberals would give $50bn to Big Banks and Big Oil.

But no, nobody is giving very much…

You guys are losing, bad. And the Macleans.ca comments are going to be the Coalition’s Last Stand….”

Hmmmm, maybe you missed the cooperation bit? The part where they make compromises and work together? I know it isn’t the con way, but it does have a way of working. You must have selective reading. And for that fact alone I guess u can(t) be forgiven.

And I couldn’t be more serious if my left big toe were caught in a vice grip. Has it not yet occurred to anybody that if the rhetoric gets hot enough it could swing the Quebec election back to the PQ?

By keying on this alleged separatist threat the Conservatives are misleading Canadians about Quebecers’ real intentions in backing a coalition. 76% of Quebecers – English, French, federalist, separatist – want Parliament to work.

I would add that the Conservatives’ strategy is not only dangerous, it is stunningly hurtful to the hundreds of thousands of Quebecers who are passionate about their heritage/history/nation/however they define it within themselves, but who nevertheless want Canada to succeed as a united country, and who want this Parliament to work.

Bob Dylan

As for being a Harper Hater- your damn straight I am! I he is lier and a bully and I am sickened by the fact that I must exist in the same universe as him let alone have him as PM!

Erin Weary- First, any realistic assesment would suggest that, like it or lump it the Tories are losing this one (at least for now). If that weren’t the case Harper and co. wouldn’t have done all that backpeddling and there would be no talk of proroging parliament (ie. running from a fight he knows he CAN’T win).

Second, if you think that the Macleans.ca comments are where any political movement would make their last stand…ummmm…wow…I like the site and all but that is just absurd! Really, that kind of bluster just comes off as desperate.

Is there anything these Conservatives aren’t blind to?

But no, nobody is giving very much…

You guys are losing, bad. And the Macleans.ca comments are going to be the Coalition’s Last Stand….

I suppose none of you have ever complained about someone getting elected as a member of one party and then crossing the floor without a by-election, right? After all, it’s all perfectly within the rules, we elect MPs not parties, so it’s perfectly legitimate, yadda yadda…

Don’t you see how disingenuous and unrealistic an argument that is? Christ, it’s like you people have never voted in an election, only read about elections in books. What a joke.”

Ahhhhh, no, thats not right. See, none of the parties are switching sides. No one is crossing the floor. The parties are coming to a compromise for the good (as they see it) of Canada (which I agree with). No one is taking a HUGE shift in policy change. Going from con – Lib, or Lib – con is going from black to white for the most part. At least with a coalition, there is some flexibility and you can pull each party into the grey…. The grey where MOST Canadians fit.

Compromise. Common ground. I know these are foreign words to us when it comes to our Canadian government, but you know what? I LIKE THEM. And with this coalition, it adds value to your vote. It means more of Canadians voices will be heard.

Bring on the Coalition of Cooperation!

Typically my political views ARE about the country and what I think is best for it, that is kind of the point…

Erin Weary- “I suppose none of you have ever complained about someone getting elected as a member of one party and then crossing the floor without a by-election, right? After all, it’s all perfectly within the rules, we elect MPs not parties, so it’s perfectly legitimate, yadda yadda… ”

Quite right, lets just scrap the rules and go with whatever “feels right.” The rule of gut instinct is far better than the rule of law!

Comparing floor crossing MP’s (who are, in some cases, completely reversing themselves and doing the opposite of what their constituents asked) with a governing coalition that is trying to reflect the wishes of their constituents in the best way possible is what is truely disingenuous. As for it being “unrealistic” don’t look now but it’s all looking pretty real to me (whether you like it or not).

Problem is, there is no separatist threat – except for the own they themselves are creating.

Only 37% of Quebecers support soverereignty today; however, 76% support a coalition. Moreover, in the recent election the Bloc Québecois did not ask for a mandate to advance the cause of sovereignty. Most trends point to a majority Charest government on December 8, which would confirm the disappearance of any realistic separatist threat from the political landscape for at least the next four years. Duceppe has to know all of this, and he has to know that any attempt by to take advantage of the situation and hold Stéphane Dion and Jack Layton for ransom would be political suicide.

Meanwhile, by getting Gilles Duceppe’s signature on a deal to support a coalition government for the next 18 months, Stéphane Dion has – in his official position as “lame-duck-loser-desperately-seeking-power” – managed to split the separatist movement right down the middle.

And what are the Conservatives doing in response? They’re giving the Bloc and the PQ a five-year supply of video footage of spastic anti-Quebec rants, not-very-cleverly disguised as appeals to save Canada from “the separatists.”

I am Quebec born and bred, bilingual, as proud of my francophone heritage as I am of my country, and I am furious that the Conservatives would dare put the future of my country in play to save their own skins.

Actually, it was Harper, most emphatically, during QP in the House, in a desperate attempt to deflect attention from the real issue of coming to terms with his situation.

Don’t you see how disingenuous and unrealistic an argument that is? Christ, it’s like you people have never voted in an election, only read about elections in books. What a joke.

People can diss Bourque as a source if they like, but consider this — there is a very prominent Liberal known to all who maintains a well-read blog, is a newly minted supporter of Ignatieff, and who is generally not shy about expressing his views. This blog has been curiously silent about the coalition issue over the last 24 hours. He has taken a run at Stephen Harper just to keep up appearances, but on the raging issue of the day, not a word. Ignatieff could kill this thing tomorrow with one statement to the press, although I suspect he might be waiting for Harper to prorogue, thus giving all queasy Liberals an easy exit ramp. (If you thought they were queasy already, just wait until the Parizeau endorsement goes through a full news cycle.)

So what we have here are 4 Neros while Rome is burning. How can this end well for Canadians? I

If the opposition gain control, they run the real risk of throwing Canada into another election within a few months and showing they were not fit to be in power. Giving the Conservatives all the ammo they need to get a majority and the opposition will have no power. If Harper manages to hang on he will put the opposition through the ringer forcing their hand at every turn.
To my humble opinion, the opposition has the Conservatives on the run, they should now force the PM to sit down and involve them in any plan of action to help keep Canada’s economy running. This will show Canadians that:
1. Parliament works
2. they have real ideas and solutions that can be leveraged in future elections
3. that the Conservatives are weak and should not be given a majority, or even better removed from power.