Thoughts on BC Politics and More

Alberta Premier, Danielle Smith, the darling of billionaire Texas oil men, recently told far-right media voice Breitbart that the US should pause its tariffs against Canada because it is benefiting the Liberals. Trump should want the CPC to win because "the perspective that Pierre would bring would be very much in sync with, I think…the new direction in America." Premier Smith is now the darling of the American far-right, addressing gatherings of American oil interests, speaking on popular right wing media, and appearing as a guest at a high profile fund raiser event with a noted MAGA mouthpiece. Meanwhile, she's been refusing to support Team Canada, actively promoting Poilievre, attacking Prime Minister Carney and trying to threaten and extort the federal government with a host of political demands that she claims must be met in 6 months to "avoid an unprecedented nation unity crisis." That's right, she's using this critical moment in Canada's histo...

                      The most-recent update to the Nanos four-week rolling poll certainly got some attention. It placed the Liberals just two pointsNDP, Conservatives up on the NDP — for third place . Memories of Michael Ignatieff came rushing back. But, as usual, people might just be overreacting to a shocking poll ... CLICK HERE for the full story

The Conservative Party's moment has come to sell Canadians on its "common sense" plan, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre told his caucus on Thursday, as they gathered in Quebec City for the federal party's three-day policy convention where controversial policy pitches risk impacting the party's broadening appeal.   To start the day, Poilievre rallied his MPs with a speech filled with the anti-Justin Trudeau messaging that would be familiar to anyone who had attended one of his rallies this summer: the prime minister and his nearly eight years in power are to blame for the rising cost of living, housing costs and the "crime, chaos, drugs and disorder" that are "common on our streets."   "Justin Trudeau of course, would like us to erase our past and cancel our future, and replace it with the dystopia that now exists in this country," Poilievre said, listing off proposals for how he'd govern differently, to ap...

Conventional wisdom has it that Conservative Party of Canada forms a majority government when there is a vote-split between Liberal Party of Canada and the NDP.    But it is likely that, as the cliché goes, “This time it’s different”   CLICK HERE for the full commentary

  A number of MPs say Canada's democracy is under pressure on a number of fronts, thanks in part to the impacts of social media and extreme partisanship.   But the eight MPs who took part in a series of one-on-one interviews with CBC's The House over the summer also expressed a hope that changes to the Canadian system, and a deeper understanding of one another, could lead to better politics.   MPs from across the country sat down with CBC reporters for conversations in their home ridings. They aired as a special summer series on The House  called "Backbenchers Backyards" ...    CLICK HERE for the full story

The spirited exchanges we see in question period might be good for us in media scrums   ... I have seen reporters get extremely heated with politicians and other public figures, sometimes to a degree that I considered unprofessional or excessive. I’ve also seen flashes of ire behind a politician’s eyes in response to my questions, but it always subsides into a calm and measured response.   Until Pierre Poilievre came along, anyway.   When Poilievre cut a reporter off mid-sentence last week to clarify an accusation that he was “dog-whistling to the far Right,” it brought me back to that day in journalism class ...   CLICK HERE for the full story

In an online poll this week, Village Media readers overwhelmingly thought that the Liberals would be better off if they went into the next election with a new leader   The polls are surely causing the federal Liberals some sleepless nights. The Conservatives have been consistently in the lead since October of last year. 338Canada, a poll aggregator, predicts  a 50 per cent chance of a Conservative minority, and a 40 per cent chance of a Conservative majority.  Now, there are structural factors in Canadian politics that make Liberal votes more efficiently distributed than Conservative ones, but there are also trends that will worry them, like eroding support in Atlantic Canada, which has long been both a reliable bulwark of support for the party and has a disproportionate number of seats in relation to its population.  It isn't as if Canadian party leaders haven't won four consecutive elections in the past, but it isn't common ... CLICK HERE to read the...

It’s Day Seven ... time to look back at the most read commentaries and stories of the week -- today also marks the 848 th post on this blog. The first, regarding democratic reform of our political system was from May 25 th , 2015 – it was entitled, “ Political reform does not need to wait until the next parliament; reform is an ongoing process ” It’s a theme that I have often been vocal on ... and other writers who have kindly consented to contribute their thoughts to this blog have occasionally done so as well. Democratic reform of our political system shouldn’t just be a string of buzz words that get drug out occasionally -- especially when so type of scandal or controversy takes place.   It’s something we should be demanding, it’s something our elected officials should be thinking of at all times when new laws are being considered and brought before the House of Commons, our Legislature, or municipal council tables. Is this something that wi...

USED WITH PERMISSION : This week, the newly updated Canada Food Guide was released.   The previous guide had been unchanged for 12 years, and so the new food guide takes a very different approach than the previous versions did. Foods are no longer categorized into groups such as ‘dairy’ or ‘meat’ and terms such as ‘beef’ have been replaced by the term ‘protein’. Suggested serving sizes have also been eliminated and instead the guide advises “ notice when you are hungry and when you are full .”   The new guide also recommends more plant based food consumption including an effort to avoid saturated fat, sugars and sodium where possible. Although some disagree with the approach, overall I believe this promotes healthier eating habits. What is new is that guide also makes recommendations on how you should eat and provides some other interesting suggestions. “ Grow, harvest, fish, hunt and prepare food in traditional ways ”, is one such recommendation that may b...