I am too busy/tired for a long post tonight/this morning but I have a few thoughts to impart.
As I've scanned through the countless "strategic" voting sites (I refuse to link to any of them) something has been bugging me.
Most of the sites telling us how to vote to stop Harper decided since the beginning of the campaign that it was a foregone conclusion that the Liberals were the ones who were going to do it. Here are two major problems with that:
1) Liberals don't stop Harper. They helped further the Harper agenda by voting with him or abstaining 43 times. Dion's Liberals are responsible for $50 billion in corporate tax cuts along with other regressive Conservative policies becoming law.
2) It seems like the people who are drawn to "strategic" voting or vote swapping are the people who are fed up with our stupidly undemocratic First Past the Post system. Neither the Liberals nor the Conservatives have even hinted that they would be willing to move to proportional representation. So why are people who are disgusted with our antiquated and unfair electoral system rewarding the parties who keep it this way by treating them like they are the only two parties in the contest? You are playing right into their hands people.
These are of course, only two of the problems with the "let me tell you how to vote" sites. Expect to see my full comments on those abominations and "strategic" voting before this thing is over.
15 hours ago
Posts
9 comments:
I vote with my conscience.
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PowerUP Canada Global Warming Action Survey Questions and Results
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The Bloc Québecois, Green Party, Liberal Party and New Democratic Party
responded to PowerUP Canada's six-question Global Warming Action Survey
in late September. The Conservative Party did not submit answers.
Q1 Will your party establish an economy-wide price on greenhouse gas
emissions beginning at no less than $30 per tonne in 2009 and rising to
at least $75 by 2020? If so please indicate the mechanism(s) by which you
will do so:
A. Economy-wide price? Liberals - Yes, Greens - Yes
B. Economy-wide price of $30/tonne in 2009? Bloc - No, Greens - Yes,
NDP - No, Liberals - No
C. Economy-wide price of $75/tonne by 2020? Bloc - No, Greens - Yes
Q2 Does your party support a legislated cap on Canada's total greenhouse
gas emissions that declines over time? Bloc - Yes, Greens - Yes, NDP -
Yes
Q3 Will your party set, through regulation, vehicle efficiency or
emission standards that match or exceed those being used in California?
Bloc - Yes, Greens - Yes
Q4 Will your party negotiate with provincial and territorial governments
to secure the establishment of German-style "feed-in-tariffs" that
provide guaranteed prices to encourage private investment in low-impact
renewable energy production? Bloc - No, Greens - Yes
Q5 Will your party negotiate with provincial and territorial governments
to secure the amendment of building codes to require - like the UK
government has committed to do - that all new homes be carbon neutral by
2016? Bloc - No, Greens - No
Q6 Can you please tell us how much new public investment over what time
frame your party will make in:(*)
A. Public transit? Bloc - $190M per year, Greens - 1 cent of GST
(about $5B per year), NDP - $4B over 4 years, Liberals - more than
$8B over 10 years
B. Energy-saving upgrades to buildings? Bloc - $70M, NDP - $2.9B over
4 years shared with 6C, Liberals - more than $575M over 4 years
C. Renewable energy for heat and power? Bloc - $830M over 3 years,
NDP - part of $2.9B allocation over 4 years in 6B above,
Liberals - $370M over 4 years
D. Carbon capture and storage? Bloc - $0
(*) NB: Summaries of parties' responses reflect commitments to federal
spending specific to each of these four areas.
>>
For further information: Media contact: Neil Monckton, (604) 724-4307,
www.powerupcanada.ca
If you want to go and start the revolution, you go right ahead. At this point though, if you want to work within our flawed, but workable electoral system and actually accomplish something, then you need to compromise on some matters.
If you want to get more NDP elected to parliament you need to work within the system as it currently exists.
If you want more NDP legislation to get through you need to have less Conservatives overall.
The Libs vote more with the NDP than the Conservatives do, and in ridings where the NDP have no chance of winning are far better for supporting the NDP cause than another Conservative. It's an immediate, positive result in the direction of people who support progressive causes. It's results-oriented, and far better than hoping that somehow deep red and blue ridings will miraculously decide to start voting with you.
These sites provide a way for people to see if they should even bother "strategic" voting, and if they do, which party has the best chance. It's a highly effective way of educating the populous so they make an informed choice.
Or you can wait until the mystical election fairy comes and turns everyone into an NDP supporter somehow. Assuming progressives can come back after a good set of years of Canada run by Harper and his crew.
On this, we are agreed. This whole strategic voting thing is an invention of the parties who systematically get more than their share of the seats, the Liberals, the Conservatives and the Bloc.
Now that the polls have settled a bit for the Conservatives, it is clear that people should get out and support the party of their choice.
First past the post is long past its expiry date.
The Liberal candidate in my riding thinks we'd need to "reopen the constitution" to look at electoral reform (specifically PR).
Love your videos, Dipper Chick.
No website tells you how to vote. What the websites do is tell you how to prevent a Harper majority.
Certainly, this wouldn't be a problem if we had a PR system, but we don't. Should we accept a Harper majority just because the system is working against us?
I said this before in a previous post, but I dont think that we can count out strategic voting in Alberta (oher provinces I dont know.)
Wouldnt it depend on the riding and the person? I'm supporting Linda Duncan in strathcona, and telling everyone I know who are Liberal to vote for her.
In an area like Millwoods, I'm telling the NDP and green's to vote for the Liberal, Indira Saroya.
Linda Duncan, and Indira Saroya are strong candidates and have the strength to make this riding ABC, ANYTING BUT CONSERVATIVE!!!
By the way what do people think of the the provincial liberals and NDP uniting? Any takers?
Strategic voting should have an entirely different meaning in elections now with the new financing laws. Where each party gets annual funding from the federal government based on the number of votes cast in the last election, every vote counts.
By accumulating votes, even in ridings where there is no hope of winning, Green Party and NDP supporters can ensure the future institutional capacity of their party to launch future elections and maintain a national standing and presence.
By accumulating only 1000 votes in every riding, the party would receive funding of more than $300,000 per year. This is substantial and could mean future success.
Strategic voting for the NDP and Greens means looking to the long term ... not just this election.
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