Thursday, April 28, 2011

The Accidental Prime Minister

As we're now facing daily polls of Jack Layton's NDP replacing the Liberal Party of Canada as the official opposition, or Jack accidently being voted in as Prime Minister by legions of eighteen year olds living in their parents' basement, there seems to be some debate about what has caused Michael Ignatieff's poll numbers to do everything but "rise up".

In the Toronto Star, Chantal Hebert writes "To follow the 2011 Liberal election campaign has been like watching a plane crash in slow motion."

Warren Kinsella also outlines some pretty compelling arguments for the demise of the Liberal Party.
"His party’s policies are irrelevant (and contain ingredients that are very bad for you). They have some not-bad policies – and they have some that are plain nutty (like reopening the Constitution, or multiple billions in promises that Jacko doesn’t know how to pay for). But, in the main, his party’s policies don’t matter. Canadians have decided they want to vote for someone they like, not for someone with the best policies. Jack, they like. Harper, especially, they don’t. The policy analysis of many Canadians: Harper and Ignatieff are too right-wing. I’m voting for the only guy who isn’t right wing."

Perhaps this would help explain Michael Ignatieff's meltdown in an interview with the Toronto Star where he said "Jack Layton is “getting a free ride” and telling Conservatives “they can go to hell."
With the stress of likely being held to account for the failings of the previous Liberal governments, now might be an appropriate time for him to light one up, just like in his youth. Curl up and write a good book. What the hell.

For those of you still sitting on the fence with the choice of a safe, stable majority Conservative government or an unsure, weary worn out Liberal Party, just ask yourself one question: "Isn't voting Liberal a lot like betting that the Montreal Canadiens will win the Stanley Cup?"

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