Yes, I’m scared of Stephen Harper!

>>> How do you feel knowing that your party, in its current form, has been/is being bankrolled by the US Neocon Apparatus?<<

LOL!

Canadian McCarthyism.. "I have in my hand an envelope that contains the names of 190 Americans and American sympathizers…"

It is not “bankrolled” by the “US Neocon Apparatus.”

>>These last two comments made me decide to stick with Vive.<<<

We can all rest easy now Mary.

I agree that Stephen Harper's philosophy frightens me. His "democracy" is a phoney because he distrusts elected institutions.

Harper and his Conservatives believe in the polarization of society between the haves and have-nots. The haves are entitled to all the benefits of wealth while the ordinary workers are expected to work harder and harder to keep the haves in the style to which they have become accustomed and receive less and less for their hard work.

I would argue that Harper's philososphy is anti-democratic in the sense that it opposes our system of representative democracy. Instead, it advocates that the control of society be placed in the hands of the more powerful economic elites who are entitled to control society by the power of their wealth. He believes that government interferes with the "natural" order. He defines social order as "personal self-restraint reinforced by moral and legal sanctions on behavior" and as such seeks "the preservation of the ancient moral traditions of humaniity." He does not bother to remind us that these traditions include a social order which is ingrained by class. It shows a disrespect for "the rabble" which it believes should be indoctrinated through religion to a pre-ordained poverty and disempowerment.

Law it determined by strict moral codes that rewards the ability to accumulate wealth (capital) and punishes those who cannot. In other words, if you are not sufficiently greedy or ruthless then you must become the servant/slave of those who are. According to Harper the application of this theory will "turn individual selfishness into useful social outcomes."

The irony is that under such a regime, most of those who are so sure of their own ability to survive will fail unless they already have significant capital or control over capital or capital networks. The reason is that Conservative policies are designed to ensure current inequalities are entrenched and that wealth is further concentrated. Social mobility will be arrested and the ability to access opportunity will be limited to those with either access to capital or the networks determined by birth.

According to the theory insecurity and stress will force people to work harder and harder. It requires constant growth and exploitation of resources. It places enormous confidence in rapid technological change and the economic elite to continue to push growth in order to accumulate more and more.

ok whatever, rotflmao
yer funny

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Your mantra has been your opinions are stifled due to their contrary nature, when they are actually stifled for being without perceivable foundation

As for supposed American funding, show the proof, I don't think they care enough about Canada to get that involved. You must have missed this then. It is in the post above. <blockquote>The late Tony Fisher presided over our efforts in spirit. We opened our doors on the strength of [a] $15,000 cheque from the Atlas Economic Research Foundation that he helped to found. That was soon followed by a major grant of nearly a half million dollars, then the largest single grant ever given by the Donner Canadian Foundation, one of this country’s largest charitable foundations, and we had the financial resources to get going. $5,525,000 in 10 years!</blockquote> Should you care to re-read the post, I suggest you take a tour of the Atlas Economic Research Foundation. There is a link above. You might very well like what you encounter there. I did not. As well, I have provided a link, as a footnote, to a previous post that I did on the Donner Foundation in Canada, that links to very interesting material from various sources. If you truly love our country, I think you might be quite shocked by what you will learn.

To the above, Canada HAS no history of 'representative democracy', we have a system of RESPONSIBLE GOVERNMENT. As for the other remarks, I don't know where you are living but the liberals have created that have/have not barrier on their own with over a decade in social cuts.

The conservatives at least have their basis in the middle class populism which means they are less likely to benefit the upper 1% of Paul Martins friends who benefit from liberal policy.

We KNOW how damaging the liberals are, that the conservatives have no platform for making it better is the real point. Notice how there is no effort to get the feds out of tax collecting and get rid of some of the many federal departments? In fact they VOTED for the creation of several new ones. You can SAY what you want, but votes in parliament don't lie, just go to 'howdtheyvote.ca', it's all right there. If there was ANY kind of difference between the parties you'd see it in the legislation presented. No surprise, all the tory 'hot button' topics were released the day before the election was called, they knew damn well they would never get to them.

Democratically the conservatives are leaps and bounds ahead of liberals, who have never even sponsored a referendum (except in BC where they also ignored its findings). The conservatives aren't monolithic particularly when discussing free votes. Here in Ontario our candidate is a Sikh immigrant, hardly a guy to cast a free vote against immigration. Scott Reid in the Ottawa riding has held referenda on four key parliamentary votes, something no liberal has ever even thought of.

I wouldn't vote for the conservatives simply because of their gutless sucking up to the states and desire to whole heartedly join the warrior society. I'll take a 'Mr. Dithers' over that absolutism any day of the week. Martin is by all means not much better, but not much is still 'some'. However, there WERE some moves the tories made that liberals didn't, like presenting intervenor status in a court case in Montana on a beef processing bill. This was something the liberals should have done.

I'd also vote NDP if they had a shot. Here the liberal guy won by over 20,000 votes, which makes voting at all pretty much a waste of time.

What's wrong with an ethical business approach? Yes the Greens are focusing on business, but not like the mainline three. Green business is good for our health, our environment and our bottom line over the long term. In the short term, converting to a Green economy will give our economy a huge shot in the arm.

The Europeans are going to leave us behind when it comes to making business Green. With that will go knowledge through increased science and discovery, and the profits that can come from being early innovators. If we jump on late, we will have to spend more to catch up, or purchase technology. I prefer to lead, not to follow.

Being a former CAPer I am still in agreement with their business solutions as well, as they nearly echo ours save for some environmental and tax shifting proposals.

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If there was ever a time for Canadians to become pushy - now is the time - for time is running out on this nation called Canada.

when the nukes start flying from the americans and Israelies, unto Iran, you can count on some things that our canadian politicians will do to the canadian people

does anyone really believe once the nukes start flying that business will continue as usual ????

some possible actions by our so call elected politicians

* they will not fullfill any of their domestic promises that was yapped out during election time
* all monies will go into security and military, nothing or very little for domestic issues
* they will round up all arab speaking peoples
* Bill C-36 will be put into practice on a grand aggresive scale ( canadian version of the patriot act )
* they will round up anybody that critizises government policies
* concentration camps will be built in the Pairies
* our canadian politicians will swear allegiance to the american flag
* military draft boards will appear, ( the rich children will be exempt from military duties just as it is in the USA )
* anyone who has registered their weapons with government will be notifified by local police to hand over their guns, or else be jailed in a concentration camp
* fuel prices at the pump will soar to $7 or $8 a liter
* the poor will be rounded up
* bottom line martial law

not only should you be scared of Harper but also be scared of the liberals and their corruption, especially Paul Martin

here is what Martin and gang were doing to the canadian people, not paying their taxes, and the conservatives are also part of this scam, including Harper...can you really say these politicians are true canadians, or sellers of our country to the americans...THINK ABOUT IT.........

some facts

liberals hide $30 billion offshore
The neoliberal consensus holds that the best way to fund development is through foreign direct investment. As for me, I m not quite ready to tremble with excitement every time United Fruit deigns to gift a poor country with a new plantation. In any case, it s a bit strange that the government of Canada is as hungry for inward FDI as a developing country. Doubly strange, since Canada has exported more capital abroad than it imports since 1997, indicating there is no shortage of domestic capital.Looking at where exactly Canada exports all its capital, I found this astonishing chart. Barbados, Bahamas, Bermuda were all in the top six destinations for Canadian outward FDI in 2001. Further studying the numbers, Canadians sent more FDI in 2004 to Barbados and Bermuda than to all of Asia put together, and more to the Cayman Islands than to Germany. One obvious question turned up:

Why did Canadians send over $30 billion dollars in FDI to Barbados in 2004?

This fact makes no intuitive sense. According to government figures, Canadian trade with Barbados totalled less than $60 million in 2004. Our largest export is pork and our largest import is rum. Barbados has a mere 271,800 citizens, with a GDP of $3.6 billion. So we re sending over $100,000 in FDI per citizen of Barbados, and about nine times the size of their entire economy. You would think every Barbadian citizen is getting their own Bombardier jet.

Not quite. As of 2000, the OECD classified thirty-three jurisdictions as tax havens. Most of these tax havens do not have trustworthy, reliable, and transparent financial sectors. Barbados is not only a tax haven but also quite reputable. And critically, Canada has a tax treaty with Barbados. This permits Canadian corporations to pay Barbadian, not Canadian tax rates, on income declared through their Barbados operations. In effect, Canadian corporations get legal use of a tax haven.

As far back as 1992, the Auditor General was able to conclude that it is reasonable to conclude that hundreds of millions of dollars in tax revenue have already been lost and will continue to be at risk. Canadian FDI in Barbados has risen from just $496 million in 1987 to over $30 billion in 2004. That is an approximately 6000% increase. In 2002, the Auditor General noted that tax arrangements for foreign affiliates continue to erode Canadian tax revenue.

You would think that if hundreds of millions, if not billions, of dollars were being lost, the Ministry of Finance would have taken action, especially given its constant calls for belt-tightening in the 1990s. Far from it. Paul Martin s own company, Canada Steamship Lines International, set up offices in Barbados and replaced the Canadian flag with the Liberian flag on its maritime fleet. While at Finance, Paul Martin managed to do the following things at once: slash social spending dramatically; stop flying the Canadian flag on his ships; personally profit from a known tax loophole he refused to close; and see his company receive $161 million in government contracts. This is an embarrassment, not leadership.

Here s the kicker. In September of 2003, the Bloc submitted a motion that in order to ensure tax equity, the government should terminate Canada s tax convention with Barbados, a tax haven, which enables wealthy Canadian taxpayers and companies to avoid their tax obligations, and should play a leadership role at the international level in activities to eliminate tax havens. Despite both NDP and Conservative support, the Liberals voted the motion down.

It is scandalous the Liberal Prime Minister continues to knowingly allow his own enterprise and those of his corporate friends evade taxes. The Canada-Barbados tax agreement can be ended without sanction. It should be torn up. It may be good for a lucky clutch of wealthy men, but it s bad for Canada, and it seriously calls into question the supposed virtues of FDI

This election is a no-win for Canadians.

Liberals have proven themselves to be thieves over most of Confederation. You know that when they get elected to another minority government this time around, they'll continue to rob you blind.

The NDP epitomize big government. At least they're up front about it. Just what I need - government in even more aspects of my life, like there were any they had left behind.

Then there's the Conservatives. When America invaded Iraq, I wrote to my MP, Mr. Harper as he had spoken out against the Liberals for having refused to join "our friends" in this enterprise. I pointed out to him that the invasion was contrary to International Law (not to mention morality and civility, but those are more subjective than Internalional Law is). He doesn't care. He'd sell us to the Americans if they were willing to give a dime for us.

So, get ripped off, have government grow more, or be sold out. Sounds like great options.

yep , nothing to choose from, basically the canadian people are f *cked..............and these politicians know it, lauging all the way to the bank.................

May I suggest the money will give us the presence in the artic; Defense is out of the question.

"Don't try to play the morally superior card with me"

Wherever you got that idea ... take it back for a refund..Ya wuz robbed!

I have no superiority over another, moral or otherwise.
I will however, play and best you at the game behind the game.
You may take it as a Pompous brag if you wish as i really don't care,
Before you get offended though, I strongly urge you to acquaint yourself with the mechanics of fiat money, and who owns it.
I believe your heart may be in the right place.
I also believe you are operating from the knowledge you have, so before this turns in to a p***ing contest please consider we all do not share the same knowledge base.

Your level of ignorance does not make me a 'wacko' any more than my level of ignorance makes you a ‘wacko’. It only indicates we may lack the knowledge of the other.
One remedy for ignorance is study.

Hey, good post above, I just wrote an article on that, you can see it at my <a href="http://www.vivenewbrunswick.com">www.vivenewbrunswick.com</a> website. I'd be interested to know about that motion that the bloc introduced, do you know what the bill number is? 
 
Some further statistics though, total tax haven funds are estimated by statistics canada to be $88 billion in corporate taxes, and $44 billion in wealthy canadian funds. Another of the fastest growing tax havens is Ireland, which could give lessons on economic development. In Ireland, it is a tax haven but one with a catch-you have to actually engage in production there to benefit. There is another catch, selective taxation isn't allowed under the EU charter, but Ireland was given concessions way back when it was an economic basket case. It had to make lots of social concessions for the luxury of that tax haven status, ones which prompt more than one Irishman to emigrate. 
 
Microsoft and big pharma are some corporations set up there, they pay big tax, because they don't have to pay it in the US and it provides an entry to european markets. In Ireland the biggest benefit is tax free profits on patent income, which is how Dell Research Inc., made $96 million last year-all tax free. So the kicker is that the irish get JOBS at these places and pay taxes on those. 
 
The other issue is that the Irish government has now gone full speed ahead on prosecutions on irish who have money in tax havens. While it's tax free for corporations, it isn't for the irish, they had a 'grace period' where they could willingly cough up the dough, or else face litigation. In Canada, they ENDORSE people sending their money away. 
 
I know its off topic, but it's a good point people should know about. The next time you hear deficits, belt tightening, 'can only afford this much for health care', or other rubbish, just remember: 120 billion in canadian wealth sits nice and safe away from our hands! 
 
And one other reply to the poster above-I must admit that I don't nearly mind 'big government' when it provides SERVICES. I'd kill for the prairies public car insurance program.

A link to a related post from CathiefromCanada: <a href="http://cathiefromcanada.blogspot.com/2006_01_01_cathiefromcanada_archive.html#113642793106692624">Rove of the North </a>. A snippet: " 'Voting for Stephen Harper is like voting for George Bush,' Kaplan writes. 'The two are just too similar in their campaigns and their beliefs for it to be a coincidence.' "

I recently came upon a book that provides some insight in what may be in store for us as well. To those who draw comfort from the belief that Harper and his group won't be able to do much harm as a minority government, I say: think again! <blockquote>The Republicans who run American government today have defied the normal laws of political gravity. They have ruled with the slimmest of majorities, yet transformed the nation’s governing priorities. They have strayed dramatically from the moderate middle of public opinion, yet faced little public backlash. Again and again, they have sided with the affluent and the ultraconservative, while paying little heed to the broad majority of Americans. And more often than not, they have come out on top <a href="http://www.hackerpierson.com/">Link</a>..</blockquote>