Harper Moves On Election Reforms

Great idea... city states. I guess that worked for Greece for awhile... why did they abandon that again? Oh yeah. Nobody could get the cities to all agree on any one thing, which led to them being overrun.

AND, I would add to that. They are unpaid volunteers.

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"And those who were seen dancing were thought to be insane by those who could not hear the music." Friedrich Nietzsche

The above is pretty much similar to your municipal government. Depending where you live in Canada, there aren't that many people in a ward, unless you live in a large city.
However, you can extend that easily and do away with those representatives in local matters in favour of referenda-or at least seriously limit their workload, as is done in many US states and swiss cities.

The problem is that provincial governments, and then federal governments, are completely separate entities. So how do you change that? That's even supposing that canadians actually want that, and that isn't certain.

I am doing something about this lack of democracy, I am moving to the Free State. 
 
<a href="http://www.freestateproject.org/">http://www.freestateproject.org/</a> 
 
 
I am not sitting on my ass like so many people who post on this board are, most of whom seem to be big government Liberal loving idiots from Ontario. New Hampshire does not have more problems than the other NE states, it does have a lot more freedom (I have been there 8 times in the past two years, have numerous friends living there and have a cousin living in Manchester.). The socialist morons from MA are not causing a lot of concern and a lot of them are getting pissed off that they cannot push through their stupid socialised utopia where nobody pays for anything and nobody works, like to see how that economic reality works. The "reality" is that government does not need to control society for our own good, how people can be stupid enough to think that government could spend their money better than they can astounds me, talk about being an idiot. 
 
If you are not willing to hold a gun to my head to take my money to pay for every little problem or difficulty that pops up in your life don't make the government do it for you. Just because you don't see the guns don't think the violence is not there. What happens if you don't pay your taxes? Your house gets taken away. What happens if you resist your house being taken away? You will get shot if you actively resist, nice, thank you so much. I can't help but think of the idiots we are getting out in Calgary, I think a few hundred of them moved from some shit hole called TO. 
 
 
--- My freedom is more important than your great idea. 
– Anonymous

People are now being put into jail in Alberta because they have not cut their lawn or cleared the sidewalk of snow in the winter or paid to get the governments permission to own an animal, what? You see, too many people out there think they know what is best for everyone else and they make laws to prove that point. Sure, a rapist or child humper will get out of jail early to make room for the person who did not pay the cities costs of cutting their own grass hence they end up going to court and being sentenced to jail time, how nice of the morality police to protect me from a lawn gone wild. This is why I am moving to New Hampshire: 
 
"A lady who didn't have a dog licence didn't pay for her fine. She was on the floor with somebody who hacked up her lover and put her in boxes," said the guard. 
 
<a href="http://www.canada.com/calgaryherald/news/city/story.html?id=705fad5e-cccc-45b9-80cd-516c403286d2">http://www.canada.com/calgaryherald/news/city/story.html?id=705fad5e-cccc-45b9-80cd-516c403286d2</a> 
 
Are you people truly this stupid? Good luck. Think public health care is so great? Okay then, time to put up or shut up. If universal public health care is so great then say to all Canadians: 
 
"From now on you will not have to pay taxes into the public health care system, you will no longer have those taxes taken off your pay, you will be able to pick one of three options, you can pay x amount of dollars to become part of the public system, you can find a private insurance plan and spend your money on that or you can decide not to spend your money at all." 
 
If the public health care system in Canada is so fucking fantastic then we won't have to worry about people deciding not to pay into it do we? Do we? Whats wrong? Are you scared? Put up or shut up. This goes for every single publically funded program. Canada Post, don't make me laugh. cancon, crtc, etc. If a program is so great then people will want it and will pay for it, simple, anything else means you are a commie dictator who wants to tell people what is best for them, really? You don't know me, you don't own me, and I am sick and tired of you telling me that something is for my own good. 
 
Do you want the idiocy in this world to stop? How about starting with trusting people to make their own decisions, trusting people to have the ability to make choices for themselves. Of course a lot of people in Canada do not want this to happen as they would be out of a cushy government job. I would gladly continue to pay into public health care, but not via force, and I do not believe in using force to make my neigbour pay into a program they may not want. 
 
Local decisions means locals prosper, as for city states, make a checklist of what you use everyday, the majority of services comes from the municipality, so why are you paying tax to a federal government? Plus this is 2006 not the bronze age. I don't know about you but I do not need someone in Ottawa or Edmonton making decisions about how I can or cannot live in Calgary, I am an adult and can take care of myself. I know that is hard for some people to understand, but they need to get used to now or get used to it at the point of my gun the next time they try to take something from me for the "good of the public." 
 
 
"I am sorry sir, but it is for the good of the public that we take your daughter so the king has yet another whore to fuck in his castle." 
 
 
It must be nice to have enough time to run others lives instead of fixing your own problems. 
 
I just want to be left alone and am sick of others initiating force upon my person because they think something is for my best interest. I cannot wait until martial law and the police state start up, I will laugh when all the big government morons are carted off to some camp, hopefully they will die a long slow death from starvation so they can understand that the more power you give to others the more they will take, as for me, I will be fighting and more than likely dying, in defense of the free state. But at least I will be free and not cower to the publics good. 
 
--- My freedom is more important than your great idea. 
– Anonymous

Another comment in regards to New Hampshire relying on Federal money. It has the lowest state and local tax burden in the continental U.S., the second-lowest level of dependence on federal spending in the U.S., a citizen legislature where state house representatives have not raised their $100 per year salary since 1889, the lowest crime levels in the U.S., a dynamic economy with plenty of jobs and investment, and a culture of individual responsibility indicated by, for example, an absence of seatbelt and helmet requirements for adults. Imagine that, adults being able to make decisions for themselves.

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My freedom is more important than your great idea.
– Anonymous

My question is this, what if any riders are attached to this plan?

And if there are riders, are they constitutional or merely legistlative?

Also, what is the purpose behind them?

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"and the knowledge they fear is a weapon to be used against them"

"The Weapon" - Rush

Wasjod,

A few things. First the majority of posters to this site I think are westerners? I haven't actually done a poll but it seems that way just from my long-term participation and observation.

Second, I agree with many things you are pissed about and would love to have less "laws" telling us how to live. Some of which I think (the yard concerns) will have to be let go as water and pesticides and herbicides become more and more of a concern to our health and safey. Some laws are just plain stupid and become law because some small group has dedicated themselves to lobbying for their cause and some wanton MP is looking for meaning.

I think most stupid laws are there however because (like the war on terror), a few irresponsible people have made a few other irresponsible people mad and voila, irresponsible laws for irresponsible people because the majority of irresponsible people aren't paying attention to how laws are being made.

It's all fine and dandy to not want laws and in my ideal world everyone would be so responsible for themselves that it would be impossible to offend anyone else so that laws become the yardstick that beat the rest of us up. Fat chance of that every happening anytime soon. It's easier to blame the other guy.

Third does everyone in New Hampshire get to leave their yards au naturel and if not, do they know you are coming?

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"And those who were seen dancing were thought to be insane by those who could not hear the music." Friedrich Nietzsche

Wasjod

First of all. Good riddance. Secoundly you assume that if we got rid of our social safety net that you would get to KEEP this huge windfall of cash. Wrong! What would happen is the employers would look on that as an opportunity to pay you less and through a series of belt tightenings you would end up making less with no safety net. Greed is a factor that business proves time and time again with outsourcing of expences and cost cutting. You should get the idea that WE are the government and we can get rid of them if they piss us off. Big business is here to stay and without a strong government they can control us. And when you pick the U.S. police state as your demon proctologist lover and fight for it with the other nazis the true freedom fighters will be there to fight against you and prevail. So go to the states and immerse yourself in the drum beating stupifying media and be told daily how good the U.S. is and how kind George is to his dog Jeb. Then you can tell us (I told you so)... As long as its not to load.

Mallus, you obviously did not read my comment as you think I am a Bush supporter, are you literate?

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My freedom is more important than your great idea.
– Anonymous

Sorry for the rant. Yes, there are to many laws but the area I want to move to in NH (Berlin rural) is pretty free, I can put up a 30 foot wind generator on my land if I want to (that ain't going to happen in cowtown). As far as I am concenred your land, your home is yours to do with as you please, you do get the occasional slob but if you don't like that you can move to a deed restricted neighbourhood. I recently helped a friend install some solar panals on his house in Calgary, an Enmax goon came round and started giving him shit, he went in and got his shotgun, Enmax goon runs off, filth show up, situation explained, Enmax now getting sued, they don't like people going totally off grid and cutting them out of money, can't wait until they try to charge us for using sunlight. I agree with you onthe few screwing it up for the many. Everytime I hear someone say "there outta be a law," I want to flog them.

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My freedom is more important than your great idea.
– Anonymous

Thank you, Brother Jonathan. Interesting stuff that James Madison wrote, but I am not sure if the US still operates that way. It seems to be a historical difference between Canada (plus many other countries) and the US (plus a number of countries(?))

In Canada (Federal and Provincial/Territorial), governments (which means the party governing at the time) can be "voted out" - which then forces a general election. I am not sure if this would be possible in the US (federal and State) or has ever happened.

Moving Canada into the direction of fixed election dates for federal elections would somehow tend to move us away from the privilege to "vote out" the current scoundrels. (Whether we replace them with other scoundrels is beside the point but unfortunately true.)

A governing party should at all times be prepared to "meet the public" in an election - to verify their mandate. Time and again, we have seen that they lose touch - and are then defeated. Think of John Turner, think of Kim Campbell, think of Paul Martin...... And on a provincial level, examples abound.

An Upper House or Senate (the chamber of second sober thoughts) is very important. In Canada, it cannot initiate legislation but it only reviews legislation already passed by the Lower House (what we call Parliament although in fact, Parliament contains two houses.)

Look how this is different in the US (just to explain how Canada should value its Senate):

In the US, the Senate can initiate legislation. Right now, on the crucial situation of Illegal Immigrants, there is an approved House Bill (HB) and an approved Senate Bill (SB). The contents of these bills are totally different and in fact irreconcilable and contradicting themselves. Now the "horse trading" has started, with the purpose to come to some kind of commion ground. When that will be done (and it may take a lot of time, and nobody yet knows what will be the end result) the document is sent to the President to sign, and he has the right to refuse or veto it. Then the whole thing becomes an exercise in futility.

In Canada, legislation is first passed by "Parliament", then passed by the Senate (with or without amendments) and then signed by the Governor General (who may not veto it). The last time the Governor General vetoed legislation was in the 1920's (if I am not mistaken) and this caused quite an uproar. This is not possible any more.

I am far from saying that the Canadian Senate is perfect. I know that it is stacked by the governing party prior to a general election (with the purpose to keep control of it) and I know about the concept of en elected Senate.

But to say that we should eleminate it, is not constructive.

"Here in New Hampshire, the legislature reduced the two-thirds requirement for passing a bond in those towns that have adopted the SB2 referendum requirement for their town meetings. For those towns where enough people were finally allowed a voice in municipal spending, it was found inconvenient to require more than a three-fifths majority.

Since the towns that adopted the SB2 process were generally those that had been overrun with well-heeled newcomers, that reduction has given the transient population an even handier edge over the poorer permanent residents who now abide in the minority. Since its passage the SB2 towns have had less trouble than ever passing bonds, including some real boondoggles, and as a result the citizens of marginal income have been pushed out of their communities in alarming numbers."

As said, Vermont gets far fewer federal dollars, of every $1000 of state generated personal income, NH supplies the least in the nation at only $116. It's easy to have lower taxes when you get more money from the feds. Vermont is far higher at $151, and Maine is even higher at $169. So, yeah, its easier to be libertarian when the feds are sending money your way.

Including all fees as well as taxes, Vermont is still only $750 more expensive. For taxes, the southern states are your best bet, which come in lower including taxes and fees.

New Hampshire's largest employer is Wal Mart, which says it all, the company has been fined over a dozen times for labour violations, including child labour and safety regulations. However, if you don't give a rat's ass about anyone else, I guess that doesn't matter. For that, I'd suggest a South Pacific island where you won't have to worry about ANY bureaucracy.

There's no explaining why the richest province is also the most miserly in almost everything. However, I checked, and there are mandatory dog licenses in New Hampshire as well. What they do with people who breaks their laws I don't know. While the story from Alberta is truly horrific, a good out is simply to buy a ten dollar license for your dog.

But as they say 'live free or die', so you better hope they don't actually give you an 'either or'.

As for the 'overbureaucratization of Canada', there are lots of ways around it. No doubt Alberta is anal about their land now, but come east and that's not a problem. Live off the grid in New Brunswick, for $120 grand you can have over 100 acres of beautiful land by the ocean, property tax of $35 a year. Sure 'stuff' costs more, but there are lots of home brew supply places, unlike Ontario, and you could grow most of your own food.

Your thinking is flawed if you think the U.S. is not becoming the garden of the Bushies. Little of the proud idea that was america long ago remains. Just the hollow jingoism and selling of death on a world scale. If (Your) people do not rise up and defeat the monster others will.