I watched that ad of two old privileged white guys golfing, and my first reaction was, "you had the money to give your daughter a down payment on her first home?" Wow! There aren't too many of us that can do that. Where did you get that money? From working in the broken down country you live in, run by clowns?
The whole ad just doesn't make any sense. If I was on the fence, I think it would push me right over into voting for the policies of the government that got me to the point where I can go golfing at a country club, with enough spare retirement funds to help my kids buy a home, all while having the freedom to moan about how hard done by I am.
What demographic were they going for? Pale brainless people with money?
Many of the retired CAF members seem to have forgotten the pay freeze of the early 90s, it seems. (I wonder if their spouses have? I know a few of us haven't, at least.) They still believe the "fiscally responsible" label of the Conservatives, despite history proving that label inaccurate.
I can date my disquiet to September 2021, when hundreds of antivaxxers and convoy types blockaded the entrance to our local hospital and screamed insults at healthcare workers, including my wife, trying to get to work.
The Conservatives have been insulting many Canadians for so long that I was a decided voter before the writ dropped, in that I had decided I would never vote for this batch of Conservatives. With the campaign, their platform, and that ad (along with the one featuring Harper) I am now hoping to hit the trifecta...
1. They lose the election.
2. They end uo with fewer seats than before the election (particularly losing the ones held by Jivani and Ferrari), and..
3. Poilievre loses his seat.
I'll settle for just the first one but c'mon... go big or go home.
With any luck they'll also lose Elgin-StThomas-SLondon. It's been a safe conservative seat with Karen Vecchio for years and they've parachuted in the odious, misogynistic, racist, homophobic, Islamophobic freedumb convoy supporting Andrew Lawton
There’s polling that suggests older people are more likely to vote Liberal, defying stereotypes, and that younger people lean Conservative. Maybe that’s it?
The Conservatives have a weird fetishization for the military that does not extend to concern for the welfare of the troops or veterans, or a desire to improve the procurement process. It is unfortunate so many CAF members instinctively vote Conservative, as they definitely don't earn it.
Interesting comment by a blogger who randomly came across my feed. He said one of the ways you can see trump’s support for PP is in his recent silence on Canada. As long as he was bloviating his 51st state bs, Carney stood out. With trump’s silence, PP has time to remind people of the Trudeau failures. I think he’s correct, and I’m so worried.
Please correct me if I am wrong, but didn't Trudeau raise defence spending from 1% under Harper 1.37% last year? Considering the that GDP per capita went from 43,549 in 2015 to 53,371 last year and considering how much our population has grown, that's a fair chunk of change.
I believe you are correct. But we have issues even spending the monies budgeted because of a stupid 3 bureaucratic silo system (Defence, Procurement, and Treasury) and each having input on any project. It is a recipe for failure by over thinking, over planning and over meeting. We need a speedy mouse and they wind up getting a white elephant. (Arriba! Arriba! Andele! Andele!)
The best the Conservatives have ever done with having serious Defence spending was way back under Joe Clark, and we know how that turned out.
If Carney is serious about taking on one of these Herculean labours, stream lining the procurement process is the best place to start. Pick one item, and see how fast they can make the simplified process can go. Refine the process and spread it to another larger project. Rinse and Repeat.
As for getting out the vote, if you know anyone who needs a ride, some encouragement or just a swift kick the pants, now’s your chance to remind them of the oaths they have sworn, and that they ought to be setting a better example.
100% agree on the procurement shortcomings and have already commented to that effect but I'm hoping the Carney rapid procurement promise incorporates direct spending at least for major capital projects.
I think the DND and Procurement are afraid of making a mistake that could wreck their careers, so they diddle around until someone else takes responsibility.
A friend worked in government, and it is a ‘work to rule’ environment where everyone records meetings and does only what they are asked to do, nothing more, and nothing less. No initiative allowed.
If this is how our government bureaucracy is managed, we need to rebuild it to include some competent middle management. All it has right now are clerks and executive level people, the former having all the responsibility and no authority, while the later has all the authority, but takes no responsibility. And that is in almost all departments.
The middle managers used to have some authority and some responsibility, and they have been gone for over 30 years, due to government cut backs.
The problem is to rebuild it to be able to do stuff again. Who is willing to spend their political capital to make the changes needed? Hopefully Carney has the stones for it, and won’t get hung up on the hog line.
Classic: authority to go with responsibility and risk recognition and reasonable tolerance. Also But, there's something to be said about instilling this culture from the top down.
I always vote NDP but follow the other parties’ internal politics. The conservatives have suffered from a lack of talent for a long time. Their last quality leader opportunity was Peter McKay but they blew him off entirely and decided republican insult politics was their forward strategy.
I think most of the generalized dislike foisted upon Trudeau was Covid restriction/vaccine related. By the time we got past masking some of the population had become bitter reactionaries.
eterans are also voting conservative. I can understand some of the complaints about recent liberal treatment of the CAF and vets but how quickly they've forgotten about past conservative policies and I don't see an honest plan from PPs party either. More importantly, Nat'l Defense aside, there are way too many other policies from PP that give me real pause. I know character, and PP has none.
Thx BCS. I thought I may have missed how you positioned yourself to voting for the Liberals. It’s good to hear you consider yourself a centrist. I consider myself just a little further to the right than you. I haven’t been following the Conservative ads which sound very disappointing. I think the Liberals will win. I want the election over, Parliament back in session, wise decisions to be made, and I want Canadians to stop being so divided. When I read so many articles and comments, I don’t recognize the harsh way so many of us are communicating with each other.
Sadly, the CPC is really the Reform of Alliance party with a new name. In the past, prior to the creation of the CPC, the Progressive Conservatives were characterized by two characteristics: fiscal responsibility and social responsibility. The current Conservative party does want to reduce spending, but it appears to have been polluted with the same toxic hostility to social change that permeates the current MAGA regime. This is not an improvement.
I was speaking to that same subject today. That the “conservative” party used to be called the Progressive Conservative party. In those days the feeling in the country was that no matter whether the “ruling party” was PC or Liberal, Canada was in safe hands. It’s a real tragedy that we the citizens of Canada can no longer feel that way. The election is tomorrow, and I’m on edge.
I watched that ad of two old privileged white guys golfing, and my first reaction was, "you had the money to give your daughter a down payment on her first home?" Wow! There aren't too many of us that can do that. Where did you get that money? From working in the broken down country you live in, run by clowns?
The whole ad just doesn't make any sense. If I was on the fence, I think it would push me right over into voting for the policies of the government that got me to the point where I can go golfing at a country club, with enough spare retirement funds to help my kids buy a home, all while having the freedom to moan about how hard done by I am.
What demographic were they going for? Pale brainless people with money?
That's a great point Biff!
Many of the retired CAF members seem to have forgotten the pay freeze of the early 90s, it seems. (I wonder if their spouses have? I know a few of us haven't, at least.) They still believe the "fiscally responsible" label of the Conservatives, despite history proving that label inaccurate.
Defence spending hit an all-time post war low in 2014 under Harper. 0.98% of GDP.
We needed authority from the Minister to buy donuts for meetings.
Already voted. I’m a veteran, but unlike your veteran friends, I voted Liberal. 😁
I agree completely. Every PC ad is the same, ad hominem attacks without substance.
I can date my disquiet to September 2021, when hundreds of antivaxxers and convoy types blockaded the entrance to our local hospital and screamed insults at healthcare workers, including my wife, trying to get to work.
I found Poilievre’s support for them sickening.
The Conservatives have been insulting many Canadians for so long that I was a decided voter before the writ dropped, in that I had decided I would never vote for this batch of Conservatives. With the campaign, their platform, and that ad (along with the one featuring Harper) I am now hoping to hit the trifecta...
1. They lose the election.
2. They end uo with fewer seats than before the election (particularly losing the ones held by Jivani and Ferrari), and..
3. Poilievre loses his seat.
I'll settle for just the first one but c'mon... go big or go home.
With any luck they'll also lose Elgin-StThomas-SLondon. It's been a safe conservative seat with Karen Vecchio for years and they've parachuted in the odious, misogynistic, racist, homophobic, Islamophobic freedumb convoy supporting Andrew Lawton
I was door-knocking yesterday with a 40-year CAF vet who is definitely voting Liberal (already voted). He is happy with Carney’s platform.
I will also say I have had several conversations with people about how Carney changed the calculus of who to vote for, in the Liberal’s favour.
My husband and I could do nothing but laugh at the tone deafness of that ad.
I know, right? Who were they trying to appeal to?
There’s polling that suggests older people are more likely to vote Liberal, defying stereotypes, and that younger people lean Conservative. Maybe that’s it?
Their campaign has been brutally bad.
The Conservatives have a weird fetishization for the military that does not extend to concern for the welfare of the troops or veterans, or a desire to improve the procurement process. It is unfortunate so many CAF members instinctively vote Conservative, as they definitely don't earn it.
Interesting comment by a blogger who randomly came across my feed. He said one of the ways you can see trump’s support for PP is in his recent silence on Canada. As long as he was bloviating his 51st state bs, Carney stood out. With trump’s silence, PP has time to remind people of the Trudeau failures. I think he’s correct, and I’m so worried.
Please correct me if I am wrong, but didn't Trudeau raise defence spending from 1% under Harper 1.37% last year? Considering the that GDP per capita went from 43,549 in 2015 to 53,371 last year and considering how much our population has grown, that's a fair chunk of change.
I believe you are correct. But we have issues even spending the monies budgeted because of a stupid 3 bureaucratic silo system (Defence, Procurement, and Treasury) and each having input on any project. It is a recipe for failure by over thinking, over planning and over meeting. We need a speedy mouse and they wind up getting a white elephant. (Arriba! Arriba! Andele! Andele!)
The best the Conservatives have ever done with having serious Defence spending was way back under Joe Clark, and we know how that turned out.
If Carney is serious about taking on one of these Herculean labours, stream lining the procurement process is the best place to start. Pick one item, and see how fast they can make the simplified process can go. Refine the process and spread it to another larger project. Rinse and Repeat.
As for getting out the vote, if you know anyone who needs a ride, some encouragement or just a swift kick the pants, now’s your chance to remind them of the oaths they have sworn, and that they ought to be setting a better example.
Nous nous souviendrons.
We are Canadian.
100% agree on the procurement shortcomings and have already commented to that effect but I'm hoping the Carney rapid procurement promise incorporates direct spending at least for major capital projects.
I think the DND and Procurement are afraid of making a mistake that could wreck their careers, so they diddle around until someone else takes responsibility.
A friend worked in government, and it is a ‘work to rule’ environment where everyone records meetings and does only what they are asked to do, nothing more, and nothing less. No initiative allowed.
If this is how our government bureaucracy is managed, we need to rebuild it to include some competent middle management. All it has right now are clerks and executive level people, the former having all the responsibility and no authority, while the later has all the authority, but takes no responsibility. And that is in almost all departments.
The middle managers used to have some authority and some responsibility, and they have been gone for over 30 years, due to government cut backs.
The problem is to rebuild it to be able to do stuff again. Who is willing to spend their political capital to make the changes needed? Hopefully Carney has the stones for it, and won’t get hung up on the hog line.
Classic: authority to go with responsibility and risk recognition and reasonable tolerance. Also But, there's something to be said about instilling this culture from the top down.
I always vote NDP but follow the other parties’ internal politics. The conservatives have suffered from a lack of talent for a long time. Their last quality leader opportunity was Peter McKay but they blew him off entirely and decided republican insult politics was their forward strategy.
I think most of the generalized dislike foisted upon Trudeau was Covid restriction/vaccine related. By the time we got past masking some of the population had become bitter reactionaries.
(and restacked...) thanks bc6
Many of my serving friends and v
eterans are also voting conservative. I can understand some of the complaints about recent liberal treatment of the CAF and vets but how quickly they've forgotten about past conservative policies and I don't see an honest plan from PPs party either. More importantly, Nat'l Defense aside, there are way too many other policies from PP that give me real pause. I know character, and PP has none.
Thx BCS. I thought I may have missed how you positioned yourself to voting for the Liberals. It’s good to hear you consider yourself a centrist. I consider myself just a little further to the right than you. I haven’t been following the Conservative ads which sound very disappointing. I think the Liberals will win. I want the election over, Parliament back in session, wise decisions to be made, and I want Canadians to stop being so divided. When I read so many articles and comments, I don’t recognize the harsh way so many of us are communicating with each other.
Sadly, the CPC is really the Reform of Alliance party with a new name. In the past, prior to the creation of the CPC, the Progressive Conservatives were characterized by two characteristics: fiscal responsibility and social responsibility. The current Conservative party does want to reduce spending, but it appears to have been polluted with the same toxic hostility to social change that permeates the current MAGA regime. This is not an improvement.
I was speaking to that same subject today. That the “conservative” party used to be called the Progressive Conservative party. In those days the feeling in the country was that no matter whether the “ruling party” was PC or Liberal, Canada was in safe hands. It’s a real tragedy that we the citizens of Canada can no longer feel that way. The election is tomorrow, and I’m on edge.
Mark Carney is the only choice
Agree with your final statement. We voted for Canada strong right now, we’ll debate policy when Parliament sits.