So the debates happened.

Last night Jon Stewart had his final show, the states had their conservative face off and sandwiched somewhere in between Big Bang Theory and Elementary, Canada had it's National Leaders Debate. 

I usually vote Green Party. And honestly while it would be great to have Elizabeth as our PM.. my main objective is to put my vote to getting Harper out. 

So, sorry Elizabeth, you did a great job and I love how you talk with your hands, but after ten years of assholery it's time to get serious. 

I was truly torn between NDP and Liberal. (I mean we really NEED to get Harper out - it's time). After Mulcair's podium performance... I've swung pretty much all the way Liberal. (Sit down Panther, up here it's not all red or blue panties.)

Still early days yet though.

So I dug for more dets. 

A few things crossed my mind: 

As usual, each of them are courting the 'middle class'.. but they're all so out of touch with the middle class it's like watching Tom Haverford go on about feminism.  The journalism coverage is just as bad. Good gravy we're paying our CBC correspondents too much apparently. They should all take a pay cut to a middle class level while the campaign is running... ooh, see there's a good idea, somebody write that down.

NDP: Tom Mulcair

Here's the NDP soapbox: http://www.ndp.ca/issues

The NDP website/campaign seems to be based more on slandering the other players. Mulcair insists in every paragraph opening on every single issue that he'll do a better job than Harper. Well jeesuz don't be an ass, my goldfish would do a better job than Harper. Tom is thorough only in how vague he is about how he's going to do a better job... "create more middle class jobs".. uhm..right okay how? Do you even know the problem? The jobs are there, they just don't have benefits, job security or training. Give your head a shake. 

Go on, look at his page. Under "Issues" All he's done is pick a handful of easy headlines (nothing on indigenous issues, Bill C51 or science funding), and draws lines to how it effects the middle class. 

Oh for crap's sake, Tom, pull yourself together man, we KNOW we're pretty, now if you don't stop pulling out our chair for us we're all gonna fall on our ass. 

Conservatives: Stephen Harper (current PM)

Harper was just a complete douche, when he was attacked, well guess what he did? He blamed it on us. 

You're right Stephen, we did this to ourselves. Next time we'll make sure to wear longer skirts and higher necklines before we ever assume being Prime Minister means you get your shit done. 



Then he out and out lied when full on confronted about his decimation of our environmental protection laws and inhibiting of alternative energy resources. 

Here's his site: 
http://www.conservative.ca/

THIS you gotta see. It's big (compensating) but insubstantial. Stephen is that douchebag we all went out with in college. You know with the fancy car and good hair. The one who never told his friends to back off when they got a little too fresh. The ass who insisted on paying for dinner but - but the reality of him was just plain sleazazoid. 


From his website he slaps up two recognizable graphics distracting us with two main things he seems to think we worry about the most: a Netflix tax and terrorists. 

So we don't read the fine print on his 'tease' of a "home renovation" tax credit*, and really.. THATs IT. 

This is how Harper sees us. Ignorant and afraid. Can I even begin to get across how actual fucking insulting this is? 


WHO THE FUCK DOES HE THINK WE ARE? 

This is so fucking condescending, I want to puke in his face. 

Seriously. I do. But I'm sweet that way.

The tax credit he waves out there? That is for people who can afford to renovate their home! ! ! this is not the middle class. He's not giving you money to fix your flooded and now mouldy basement or insulate your windows. He's giving a tax 'credit' which means if you spend the money on ANYTHING for your house (pool, gazebo, patio, or even TREEHOUSE) you get to claim it under home renovation and he'll not take quite as much as he will from the rest of the neighbourhood (who can't afford to fix their leaking roof!). This is for rich people, not the middle class. 

Liberals: Justin Trudeau

Justin Justin Justin. Son of one of our most celebrated Prime Ministers. I am not shitting you. His dad was a total badass. 

And now his son, Justin. Yes, he's a young 'un, wait. - what? Young? He's 43 for crissakes!  

Hang on a minute.  and at 43 he's the same age as the United States President WHO PUT A MAN ON THE MOON. 

So, can we please stop about his age? 

He's been in and surrounded by politics his entire life. He is young enough to still think about a thorough plan and how he's going to roll it out. Seriously, if you take a look at his website, and a lot of his campaign ads/marketing, Justin talks more about what he's going to do, and very little about what everyone else is doing wrong. If this is the difference between a "plan", "issues" and Harper's words "breaking" well that says it all I guess. 

You know me, just stop whining and start doing. Doing ANYthing is better than nothing. 

He did screw up big time in my books, when he voted for Bill C51 to go through. So there is that and I'm having a bit of a hard time getting over it.

But, he is enthusiastic and has a lot of ideas. He lets us know what he wants to do to implement them and in some cases gives us an expected timeline. No kidding. He does. 

A few highlights that are important to me: 

Canadian Research and Reporting:

http://realchange.ca/unmuzzle-science

Economy: combining employment with environmental technologies.(seriously someone on his team actually gets this).  

http://realchange.ca/creating-clean-jobs-and-investment

He has other good ideas on the indigenous issues, and of all the top three candidates, seems to really know what the middle class want: not tax credits but tax breaks. 

To actually understand the difference between a credit and a break, you have to understand that in order to qualify for a credit you have to have spent money on the "thing" they're crediting you for. Harper has this one credit that was supposed to make us feel better about his cuts to education, where if we enrol our kids in extracurricular activities (you know, like hockey or piano) we can put that down and have a portion of that credited toward what we have to pay. I don't know about you, but I can't afford to sign a kid up for hockey or piano - not if I want to pay for his tutor or send her on the class field trip. A tax break is just that, it's a break a reprieve. It's the tax man saying "you've done enough, thank you". THIS is helpful -  to everyone qualified to pay taxes! A credit is not. 

Details on the Liberal platform. 
http://www.liberal.ca/realchange/ 

So, for information-first strategy alone I have to right now say my money's riding the Liberal wagon. For general good person strategy and incredible vagueness NDP lost points massively. And the biggest loser least likely to win my favour any time soon the Conservatives. 

Again, apologies to Elizabeth, I really do wish I could holler 'Green' again this time around - I just can't risk my vote enabling the Harpoon we have any further. You did really good last night! 


Thanks to you Stephen, for spending ten years of my money destroying our science programs, decimating our environment, obliterating our freedoms and stacking our economy... it makes it so much easier knowing you think we're all just a bunch of idiots. 

CBC has some of the highlights, while I don't particularly get a kick out of their editing style it's there and accessible. 

Go watch for yourself  http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics then come back here and tell me what you think. 

If you're thoughts are different, can you tell me why? No really I want to know. This is my opinion right this second based only on last nights debates and the individual party websites.