Chi_Nook

To clarify (although I've posted most of this already). I support the Conservatives on the following main points:

1) Their immigration policy (we need skilled workers to be a priority coming to this country, not unskilled immigrants ).

2) Their economic programs eg: GST and personal and corporate tax cuts. Reduction of the fuel tax on diesel (to be cut by 50%); that effects everything from travel to food. Extending Maternity and Employment Insurance benefits to small independent business owners. Their overall support of free enterprise and political culture of supporting people who take personal risk to create employment and grow our economy. Their position on a made in Canada environmental solution (and not Kyoto and I don't mean Stéphane Dion's dog either!).

3) Their position on the constitution, that is still not ratified by the province of Quebec (approximately 25% of the population of Canada). Namely that in a country as diverse as Canada, the original framers of the British North America (BNA) act understood that certain powers should be the exclusive jurisdiction of the Provincial government and not centralized in Ottawa. The Conservatives wish to include that in our current constitution which currently is only approved by 75% of the population and get the support of Quebec to be a full partner in Canada, without feeling the only way they'll get fair treatment from the rest of us, is to separate and form their own country. The Conservatives are now closely tied for support in Quebec with the Bloc, exactly because of their position on the separation of federal and provincial powers.

4) The building of our military so as not to rely exclusively on the USA to protect us or guard our northern territories.

5) Their belief that once given, we should live up to our NATO commitments.

I could go on and on but these are the main issues on why I will vote Conservative on October 14th.

However, that said, I fully respect that everybody needs make their own minds on how they vote, but this needs to be based on the policies of the political parties. Not asinine statements like if your an immigrant you should only vote Liberal; if you do that you certainly don't need a brain.

Chi_Nook

Originally Posted by Chi_Nook
This link is for everybody, including all you gay immigrants, who I'm told apparently form the majority on this board





If you'd at all bothered to read the previous posts, you would see that I'm sarcastically repeating something that someone else posted...

Souvenir

I can't be arsed, as it were.

Incidentally, a 75% approval rating would make most political parties in the democratic world dribble with excitement.

dbd33

This isn't a significant differentiator. Most unskilled migrants will continue to be sponsored by their families in Canada. People who have found jobs in Canada will continue to arrive in short order. People who have skills the government thinks are in demand but, in fact are not in demand, will continue to drive taxis. The Conservative policy is advantageous to people who have applications in the queue, skills the Conservatives value and no ability to find a job; it's a big deal to those people but of little import to anyone else.

Everyone loves a tax cut. If only it were something for nothing. What services do you think would be cut to fund the tax cut?

Good for my tractor I suppose. Short sighted though, we don't need to be encouraging road transport but trying to get loads switched to other methods, such as rail.

This is a bit pointless. It seems to be a program whereby the self-employed can choose to pay more taxes and get more benefits. I would have thought the self-employed were that specifically because they don't want to pay more tax and get more benefits. The very idea sounds socialistic to me.

That's so much hot air. In twenty years of taking personal risk to create employment and grow the Canadian economy I haven't found the various federal governments have made any difference at all. If anything I'd expect worsening foreign relations under a Conservative government to be harmful to our export business but the difference is marginal.

That is to say, no environmental solution. Head in sand policies but with tax cuts.

Lord knows Canada needs another few years of constitutional wrangling.

If there's anything that differentiates Canada from the US, and I think that idea arguable, it is that Canada has a history of peace keeping. I should not like to see Canada engaged in any more foreign wars; keeping the country out of Iraq was one of the Liberals greater achievements and so a policy of a stronger military and sabre rattling in the Artic repels me.

Chi_Nook

How eloquently you use the english language.

I'm sorry but your statement shows that you know very little about the ongoing constitutional issues between Quebec, which has the right to become a sovereign nation, if the people of Quebec choose, and the rest of Canada. It's not about percentage of the votes my friend, it's about the relationship between Anglophones and Francophones and the jurisdictional rights and boundaries of the Provinces and those of Ottawa. Just because the rest of Canada agreed to a "new" constitution, this has little impact in the province of Quebec. They considered it from their point of view and they didn't like it and so the separatist movement gained ground.

If Quebec does indeed finally separate from Canada over the Constitution, do you really think the rest of the country would survive? Canada would be geographically and possibly politically divided by the independent nation of Quebec and either part would have no land access to each other except through Quebec or the USA.

dbd33

Not repeating. Distorting.

dbd33

There is no danger of that. Wanting to continually negotiate over the constitution is a peculiar notion, it benefits some bureaucrats and some hotel keepers without having any bearing on the country at large.

Are you a lawyer Chi_Nook?

Chi_Nook

Oh yes one other reason I support the Conservatives is their Law and Order platform, a synopsis of which is, to be tougher on criminals (especially gun crime and crimes of violence) and especially repeat offenders and have more sympathy and support for the victims of these types of crimes.

dbd33

Something should be done about all those guns. Perhaps they could introduce a registry.

Oakvillian

hahahaha

Chi_Nook

The previous Liberal Governments gun registry program.

Full story at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canadian_gun_registry

The Canadian gun registry

The registry again became a political issue in the early 2000s when massive cost overruns were reported. The project which was meant to cost approximately $119 million ended up costing over a billion dollars to implement. Documents obtained by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation now estimate the program cost at $2 billion.

In December 2002, the Auditor-General of Canada, Sheila Fraser, reported that the project was running vastly above initial cost estimates. The report shows that the implementation of the firearms registry program by the Department of Justice has had significant strategic and management problems throughout. Taxpayers were originally expected to pay only $2 million of the budget while registration fees would cover the rest. In 1995, the Department of Justice reported to Parliament that the system would cost $119 million to implement, and that the income generated from licensing fees would be $117 million. This gives a net cost of $2 million. At the time of the 2002 audit, the revised estimates from the Department of Justice were that the cost of the program would be more than $1 billion by 2004/05 and that the income from licence fees in the same period would be $140 million.

The Auditor General's report found other significant problems with the way the project had been handled. These included significant questions around the financial management of the project. In particular, the report stated that estimated project costs often excluded project costs incurred by other agencies, such as the RCMP and provincial governments, giving a false impression of real cost. Problems were likewise reported with how funds were requested from Parliament, with 70% of funds requested through "supplementary estimates," a method intended for unanticipated expenditures and requiring only a one-line statement to Parliament on the purpose of the request. In comparison, only 10% of funds for all other programs in the department were requested in this way over the same period.

The causes of the cost overruns have been blamed on the inexperience of the Justice Department in managing a project of such scale. Especially crucial was that the scope of the project was in continuous flux requiring continuous changes to the basic set-up of the registry. This excuse, however, does not explain the extreme lengths the (Liberal) government went to in order to mislead Parliament about the cost and hide the actual amounts of money being spent

Gun registry effect on public safety

The Auditor General's report also found that there is a lack of evidence to support the effectiveness of the gun registry, or to prove that it is meeting its stated goal of improving public safety. The report states:

The performance report focuses on activities such as issuing licenses and registering firearms. The Centre does not show how these activities help minimize risks to public safety with evidence-based outcomes such as reduced deaths, injuries and threats from firearms.

Ontario Provincial Police Commissioner Julian Fantino is opposed to the gun registry, stating in a press release:

We have an ongoing gun crisis including firearms-related homicides lately in Toronto, and a law registering firearms has neither deterred these crimes nor helped us solve any of them. None of the guns we know to have been used were registered, although we believe that more than half of them were smuggled into Canada from the United States. The firearms registry is long on philosophy and short on practical results considering the money could be more effectively used for security against terrorism as well as a host of other public safety initiatives."

Novocastrian

.

And this differs from existing policy, how?

The unhighlighted bits are drivel. The bolded part is an outright fib. Harper has no intention whatsoever of limiting the oil industry's ability to destroy the environment. ( And, equally importantly, to help Canadian entrepreneurs' opportunities to take advantage of the swiftly emerging demand for sustainable technology in the energy sector).


Nobody outside of a small cadre of Albertan Rechtsradikalen gives a shit about this. Why on earth do you think that 19C british legislation is the immutable model for 21C Canada?


You do know that the biggest threat to our northern territories and the associated territorial waters comes from the US, don't you?

Eh? Iraq had nowt to do with NATO. Afghanistan unfortunately did. All these decisions were made before Harper got elected.

Don't waste your time. I've already voted by postal ballot for the Liberals, so I've already cancelled you out.

Eat that.

Chi_Nook

Boy some people sure need to take a program of anger management on this forum. Kind of a little sad really.

Oakvillian

And some people need to take a course of real life. In case you hadn't noticed, nobody, but nobody, has supported you on this forum on any assertion you have made about how wonderful Harper's party is. A few have taken the time and trouble to dismantle your arguments line by line.

You make much of a supposed democratic consensus in your spurious points about Quebec's independence. The democratic consensus here, amongst those who have expressed an opinion, is that you are in a significant minority of expat Brits in wanting to have anything to do with Harper.

For myself, I don't have a vote in this election, not being a citizen. If I did, however, rest assured it would go to my Liberal candidate. I think the Conservatives' policies - note, today's policies, not yesterday's baggage - would be worse for Canada, and for my future in Canada, than those of any other party putting up a canditate in my riding.

Chi_Nook

Ah it's true then immigrants automatically vote Liberal..how very sad...

Nothing more from me on this thread, have a nice day.