Off Topic / Canada Election: Polls Suggest Conservative Surge Stalled

[Guest guest]

This article clearly portrays the state of disarray our country will face if

the Conservatives take power in the upcoming election. I urge all of you to

please think long and hard before casting your vote - as our fundamental

values and equal rights are at stake.

Currently, Canada boasts a worldwide reputation as a country that is open,

inclusive and welcoming. A Conservative leadership will not reflect this

value system - but threatens it at it's very core. We need to protect our

rights and freedoms as outlined in the Charter.

Some empirical expectations of a Harper Government:

* A Tory government would make life easier for large corporations and

the very rich by cutting corporate taxes, easing environmental regulations

and making a push towards privatization of health care

* A Tory government would make it more difficult for homosexuals to

feel equal in this country due to their blatant attempts at undermining the

Supreme Court of Canada with their 'veiled implication' to use the

" Notwithstanding Clause " - thus imposing their racial bigotry on Canadians.

When a particular minority group is attacked to this extent, it leaves one

wondering which group will be the next on the 'Notwithstanding' chopping

block.

* Under a Tory regime, we should expect more money to flow into the

military; thus aligning our country with the US and the values of it's

military dictatorship

We must all come together as a nation and stand up for Canada.

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Canada Election: Polls Suggest Conservative Surge Stalled

by 0'Hanlon Canadian Press

Posted: January 18, 2006 - 9:00 am ET

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(Ottawa) The polls they are a-changin' but not enough to make a dispirited

Liberal sing.

Two new public-opinion surveys suggest the recent Conservative wave of

momentum may have crested or even receded a bit just days ahead of Monday's

election.

A Decima Research poll, conducted Jan. 12-15 for The Canadian Press, put the

Conservatives at 37 per cent support compared with 27 per cent for the

Liberals.

The New Democratic Party stood at 18 per cent and the Bloc Quebecois at 11.

Previous polls had the Tories leading nationally by up to 13 points.

The most recent Decima survey suggested the two main parties appeared to be

in a statistical dead heat in Ontario.

It was a different story in Quebec, where the Conservatives vaulted into

second place with 25 per cent support, and the Liberals plunged to 14.

An SES survey, conducted Jan. 14-16 for the Canadian Public Access Channel,

also put the Conservatives at 37 per cent support nationally, but gave the

Liberals 30 per cent.

The results came amid a flurry of warnings about what a Conservative

government would do to Canada.

Environmentalists, economists, natives, victims groups, law professors and

even an abortion doctor have joined in a last-ditch effort to stop

Harper.

pressed on with his Hammer Harper tour Tuesday in British Columbia

and Saskatchewan. He warned that the Tory leader would ``walk away'' from

social services and ``turn back the clock'' by breaking promises to

Canadians and the world.

He reminded voters that the Tory leader has vowed to renege on the Kyoto

climate change accord, reopen a recent $5-billion deal with natives, and

scrap Liberal plans for a national child-care program.

said the election comes down to one question: ``Who do I think

reflects my values?''

Harper moved to reassure voters by insisting there would be nothing to fear

from a Tory majority government.

``The reality is we will have, for some time to come, a Liberal Senate,

Liberal civil service - at least senior levels have been appointed by the

Liberals - and courts that have been appointed by the Liberals,'' he said in

Levis, Que.

``That's why I say in the true sense of the word, there's no absolute power

for a Conservative government and no real true majority. We will have checks

on us and limits on our ability to operate that a Liberal government would

not face.''

Harper is mounting a late push in Quebec, where Tory support has soared from

single digits since the start of the campaign.

Harper said he's willing to work with any party, including the Bloc, if he

forms a minority government but he's clearly hoping for more than that.

As tackled Harper, other groups piled on:

- The Canadian Climate Coalition complained that the Tories were the only

party that refused to respond to a questionnaire on the Kyoto Protocol, and

accused Harper of moving Canada ``into the same camp as U.S. President

W. Bush.''

- The Council of Canadians expressed concern about recent comments by

Conservative MP Lunney favoring bulk exports of Canadian water, and

called on Harper to clarify his position on the issue.

- Sixty-six economists signed a joint statement warning that the tax breaks

being offered by the major parties would leave a huge deficit in social

services and hurt the poor. They took special aim at the Conservative

proposal to eliminate taxes on reinvested capital gains, saying it would

``deliver very large tax savings to a tiny group of high-income Canadians.''

- Phil Fontaine, national chief of the Assembly of First Nations, said he's

not satisfied by recent comments by Harper that the party supports the

principles of the Kelowna native deal, but not the final agreement and

dollar amount. ``Any suggestion that one supports the objectives and the

targets but not the approximately $5 billion allocated to these targets is

of great concern to us because we won't be able to meet the targets without

money,'' he said.

- The gay-rights group Egale warned: `` Harper goes ahead with his

plan to reopen the divisive equal marriage debate, it will lead Canada into

a legal swamp.'' On Monday, 104 law professors wrote an open letter to

Harper saying that his plan to reopen the equal marriage debate would lead

to ``legal confusion, a lack of uniformity, and unnecessary, protracted and

costly litigation.''

Harper also faced questions from reporters Tuesday on claims that the Tories

harbor a secret agenda to reopen the abortion debate.

On Monday, Dr. Henry Morgentaler, the father of the pro-choice movement in

Canada, had said Conservatives can't be trusted on the abortion issue.

But Harper maintained he ``won't be initiating or supporting abortion

legislation.''

``I'll use whatever influence I have in Parliament to be sure that such a

matter doesn't come to a vote,'' he added.

Conservative MP Kenney said he's not worried about the attacks.

``This is to be expected, it's not surprising. It's an extension of the

desperation being expressed by the Liberal party and its own endless

negative over-the-top attacks.''

As the Tories fended off the attacks, NDP Leader Jack Layton warned the

Conservatives there are certain measures his party won't tolerate if there

is a minority government.

He suggested he won't stand for two-tier health care, weaker environmental

standards or an attack on gay marriage.

``If any party tries to threaten the integrity of these values and positions

in any way . . . we will not stand idly by and allow the positive

accomplishments of Canadians to be undone,'' he told a business audience in

Toronto.

The Decima poll of 1,017 Canadians is considered accurate to within 3.1

percentage points, 19 times out of 20.

The SES poll of 1,200 Canadians is considered accurate to within 2.9

percentage points, 19 times out of 20.