Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - October 05, 2008, Winnipeg, Manitoba C m y k Page 6 o Ottawa debate week in Canada. The time political junkies swarm the National arts Centre in Ottawa with noisemakers and partisan rhetoric to cheer for their Favourite Leader. The time the campaigns slow Down their daily events Ever so briefly so the leaders can appear on National television and face off against each other in person rather than through the Media an warring press releases. Its the one Chance canadians really have to compare their leaders directly with each other and see which ones perform Well under pressure. Who can be witty and get their Point across without being smarmy who will Wither like a Rose in autumn who will Wear the ugliest tie its also however one of the things Many canadians see to think is a waste of time. If i had a Dollar for every time Ive been told by someone in this election the entire thing is Boring or useless i could retire tomorrow. It seems these Days caring about an election just Isnit Cool. Ive heard these complaints from friends foes relatives even Fromm own newspaper. It All makes me want to scream. How can any Canadian actually watch the u. S. Vice presidential debate instead of our own How is it that an election in another country can rivet us but the Choice in our own government is deemed a waste of time the Choice the american voters Hakewill have some Impact on Canada but its kind of the same Impact a Distant relative has on your daily life. Our election meanwhile could affect everything we do. Will we get hit with a Carbon tax or try to save our plane without it will we change the Justice Laws to come Down harder on teen criminals will there be National Day care or payments directly to families will the wheat boards monopoly go on or be terminated there Are real choices in this election. Its not a status quo Deal folks. In sorry to break into your regimen of so you think you can dance and Sci reruns but this election matters. As i was pondering All of this and reflecting on the debates this week i heard something that really made me pause. Twas a Story about a woman who had immigrated to Canada awhile ago from the Middle East or Africa and who was absolutely stunned by the debate. She said the vision of a nations political foes coming together in civility to sit around a table and spend two hours talking about issues without threat of violence or assassination was almost unbelievable to her. She and thousands of others like her fled countries where elections Are not plagued by War rooms but actually by War. In the last year canadians should have been reminded several times to be grateful for the democracy in which we live. In Pakistan former Bhutto was assassinated in an election where she was making a serious run for Power by someone or some group who hate what she stood for so much they allow her to live. In Zimbabwe when opposition Leader Morgan tvs Angira appeared poised to beat president Robert Mugabe his supporters faced violent attacks and tvs Angira withdrew from the race to prevent further harm. Meanwhile in Canada our leaders can come together sit around a table like its a Friendly dinnertime Chat and discuss the issues. They Greet each other with handshakes and congratulate each other when All is said and done. There May be barbs and insults tossed around and the Post debate words of goodbye May be tinged with animosity. But there is nobody at that table who speak his or her mind for fear of his or her supporters being put at risk. The closest thing to violence weave seen in this Campaign was a defecating Bird on a website and it was condemned and removed faster than Stephen Harper can say tax Cut. So when you Roll your eyes at the events in the Campaign when you think the state of Canadian politics has withered and wonder if you Are even going to bother to vote on oct. 14, remember there Are a lot of new immigrants to Canad who cant vote in this election but would love to. And there Are a lot of people around the world who dont have that privilege. Mia. Rabson free press. My. Ca Mia Rabson Campaign snaps Friday oct. 3 the in siders a 6 Winnipeg repress. Com the voting Booth Winnipeg free press sunday october 5, 2008 conservative insider big Blue nip insider Orange crush Liberal insider True grit the free press has assembled a panel of insiders fro the tories liberals and nip who have helped run campaigns and Are political animals through and through. Each week they will bring their analysis of the electoral week that was. Well refer to the by code name in order to protect their identity so they can give you the Frank est assessment of their teams performance As Well As their foes. Shaking hands kissing babies Colour commentary not since the 1988 provincial election when Liberal Leader Sharon Carstairs came within a whisper of being Premier has a Brash Gutsy female Leader had a shot at upsetting so Many political Appl carts. Enter Elizabeth May. Just As people underestimated Carstairs by claiming her support was a mile wide but Only an Inch deep Twenty years later the old boys club is painting May with the same Brush of irrelevance. Now dont get me wrong. Ism not saying May is about to sweep into 24 Sussex but when the big four coalesced to try to Block her fro the debates you just had to know it a snot because they did not like the Colour of her hair. No its the Green tinge to her party that has them All worried and rightly so. Sheds thrown a Monkey wrench into this Campaign by turning it into a Centre left vote splitting exercise that could reshape the dynamic in Many different constituencies. For those of us to the right whose efforts to form government were thwarted through the years when our party was divided it is nothing but pure Joy to now watch a spoiler in their midst that will finally allow some of our candidates to come up the Middle and win. Where will this happen unfortunately the True extent of the May effect wont be known until after the votes Are counted and thatus enough to make the most seasoned political polling analyst squirm. Play of the week youve got to give the constituents of Provencher credit for not baying Vic Toews this Campaign. With a chorus of discontent regarding decisions in his personal life the Doorstep fire Only proves that voters there not Only have principles but possess the courage to hold elected officials to account. Of course Toews will still win but will no doubt be chastened by a reduced margin of Victory. Momentum bloc Qutb Cois Leader Gilles Dueppe for having the smarts to capitalize on the culture card one of the few issues that can soften vote for Stephen Harper in Quebec. Colour commentary one month into the Campaign canadians continue to be greeted with poll after Static poll each showing the parties stuck where they were when the writ was dropped. So out of love Are voters with the electoral options before them even the Ever fickle margin of error refuses to be swayed on most Days. Capac junkies will salivate Over the recent leaders debates however the debates Arentt Likely to shift any ones momentum. Simply put voters dont quite like or Trust Stephen Harper. And they Arentt wild about the alternatives either. Will this lingering Harper chill Hurt the conservatives chances to pick up seats in Manitoba tory my wannabes Shelly Glover Trevor Kennerd and Thomas Steen Are trying to win St. Boniface Winnipeg South Centre and Elmwood Transcona. But they ave been muzzled by the conservatives Central Campaign and have refused to participate in local debates. In a democracy like ours it ought to be Tough no make that impossible to convince voters you deserve a taxpayer funded salary when you Arentt allowed to publicly explain what you stand for if anything. One can Only suppose team Harper needs a face off Guy for the next Beer league hockey game on parliament Hill. Because based on actual political performance theress no evidence Steen can put the puck in the net for the residents of his newly adopted Riding. Play of the week the economic meltdown in the United states continues to Send Shock Waves across the Border. And while the world waited for u. S. Congress to bailout the financial sector Harper is still perceived by voters As Best Able to handle an economic downturn. This is Rich in irony As Harper believes in less government intervention not More. The Mirage of Harper with a Strong hand on the rudder continues to serve the tories Well As the election Heads into the Home stretch. Momentum nobody. This week in mudslinging a compendium of trash talk and bad behaviour on the Campaign Trail. By Bartley Kives be thankful you can vote what else does he have under there the dirty deed on thursday nip Leader Jack Layton scored the Best Zinger of the English language debate when he made fun of prime minister Stephen harpers plan. Where is it under your sweater Layton asked referencing the tory leaders warm no fuzzy Campaign ads. The cleanup Job none. But any Points Layton gained for being funny were offset by looking like a Schmuck. I mean the Best you can do tomake fun of Harper is attack his Choice of outerwear the aftermath the highly influential Wool Cardigan lobby has abandoned the nip. A speech so Good they read it twice the dirty deed Back in 2003, tory aide Owen Lippert penned a Harper speech on Iraq that borrowed liberally from a speech by then australian prime minister John Howard. The cleanup Job Lippert resigned after he admitted plagiarizing sections of the speech which Harper delivered As a member of the Canadian Alliance. The aftermath Green party Leader Elizabeth May launched a great Zinger of her own. I Hope that or. Harper will once again plagiarize or. Howard when he gives his Concession speech she told can West news. Owen Lippert Jack Layton Vic Toews Colour commentary Stephane Dion has so far been the Story of this Campaign. Of the four major party leaders hers the Only Rookie and to this Point his performance for better or for worse has had an undeniable and direct Impact on the fortunes of most everyone else. The bad news for Dion is that with Little More than one week to go in the Campaign hers so far failed to recoup the half dozen Points his party has lost to its left flank adversaries the nip being the most significant beneficiary with the greens also in on the action. And while its acknowledged by most that Dion won the French language debate his performance in the English debate was not As Strong and so will not in itself bring those lost votes Back. However an equally important Story is brewing and if you re a Liberal it offers at least enough Hope to keep you from ripping that Lawn sign out of your Lawn front Yard. And its this the vast majority of canadians think Stephen Harper is a condescending mean bully. Indeed How else can you explain harpers total and Complete inability to expand his part yes base one Iota beyond that which he scraped together last election by now he be on the inside track to majority Central after All Harper has everything going for him the largest Campaign War Chest control of the government purse strings an obedient pack of Lemming candidates and most importantly a major adversary who is Cue the Gong not a Leader. Indeed Harper understands his predicament. He also knows that if he cant deliver a majority government come october 15 inevitably the whispers questioning his leadership will Start especially among those red tories and former progressive conservatives in his own caucus. Thatus Why Harper wont spend the Home stretch ragging the puck but instead will surely go on a heavy offensive in a last ditch and desperate attempt to take his team Over the top. And themore aggressive More vindictive and More personal harpers attacks get the better for Stephane Dion. Play of the week Elizabeth May wins the English debate by appearing More articulate and better prepared than everyone else combined. Momentum Green party. Ryan Remiorz / the Canadian press guess hers not right Wing or left Wing Liberal Leader Stephane Dion plays Ball hockey against info Man radio Canadas mock reporter Jean Ren Dufort during a Campaign Stop i Montreal. Dion Jaywant to get some coaching on his grip hell never get the puck in the net like that. A _ 06_ 0ct 05 08_ Smyk. Ind a6 1 0/ 4/ 08 7 03 37 pm ;