Rick's Rant

One of the lovely things about living with kids is the certainty that once once person gets sick, it is only a matter of time until everyone else at home is sick as well. Having said that, I have been busy taking care of my sick hubby and kids, awaiting my turn to share in the "fun".

Of course, all this happens during a very interesting week for Canadian politics. Oh yes, those Canadian politicians have worked themselves in such a frenzy that CNNI actually dedicated some air time during their hourly world news report to the mess, and when CNNI reports on it, you know it's got to be interesting.

I am a little too preoccupied at the moment with my sick family to dedicate any significant depth to this post, so invite you to watch this clip, where Rick Mercer sums up what I think many Canadians are thinking...

Does anybody miss Chretien?

I certainly do. That man had his good share of hilarious moments. Remember his press conference with Clinton on April 8, 1997?

Q: Sir, this is a question for both of you. The records show that there are far more drugs coming over the border from Canada into the United States now than ever before. Can you look into that and maybe do something about it -- both of you.

CHRETIEN: It's more trade. (Laughter.)

Q: More drugs coming in from Canada to the United States.

CLINTON: More drugs, she said.

CHRETIEN: More drugs -- I heard "trucks." (Laughter.) I'm sorry.

CLINTON: I'm glad we clarified that, or otherwise he'd have to delay calling the election. (Laughter.)

How about this gem?



Sigh. You'll never get that kind of stuff from PM Harper and his creepy eyes.

Gay Nader Fans for Peace

Mr. Murphy and his law strike again. My mother-in-law took our older kids for the day to take some stress off of our shoulders, and what happens? I get sick. Ick. I did not get that nice (calm) stroll in the woods with Hubby and baby as we planned, but on the up-side we could catch up on tv shows we like without worrying that one of the kids sneak up behind us and ask why that "ugly man is naked on a table with his tummy open". I also found that I can watch whole episodes of The Daily Show and The Colbert Report in high quality. No more spike.com with their low-quality clips for me!

Last week I stated that the US Democrats are not left-wing on the world scale. I, unfortunately, was not able to find a chart shown to me ages ago that conveyed my point well. Turns out I did not need it. Here is Jon's take on Harper and the Tories:

Stephen Harper, of course, the leader of Canada's Conservative Party. Now, Canada's a relatively liberal nation. Their Conservative Party is the equivalent of our Gay Nader Fans for Peace.

A little exaggerated? Of course! He does, however, display my point from last week - erm - très magnifique! You can watch the clip below, or the whole episode here. I find his choice of clip at the end curious. It is obvious that he refers to Dion's accent, but is he perhaps also slipping in a comment on the Canadian notion of good government? What do you think?

From the Canadian to the US Election (nur auf englisch)

I'm not happy with the result of the Canadian election. The first words to come to mind are "waste of time". All that money spent on an election that pretty much resulted in maintaining the status quo. It's a shame the Green Party did not win a seat in Parliament - I was really rooting for May.

I'm sure that there are Conservatives celebrating the win. They now have more seats in the House of Commons. They believe that Canada is becoming ever more conservative. What do they have to say about the all-time low voter turn-out? It speaks to me of the population having lost its confidence in government and none of the major parties having the right answers for the problems at hand. It is possible that the same number of people voted Tory this year as in 2006.

Let's put everything into perspective: The Tories won 37% of the votes of 59% of registered voters which are 69% of the population. That means that 15% of the population supports Harper and 85% does not. (I hope the math makes sense!) Neither do the majorities of the three major urban centres. That is Harper's "mandate".

Oh well. What's done is done. Time to move on to the US!

I'm glad that CNNI runs repeats of the presidential debates. This third one is going to be interesting. The two candidates are going to be sitting down at a table with the moderator - similar to the Canadian Federal Leaders Debate earlier this month. As I said in this post, knowledge of key issues and communication skills will be much more in the spotlight. This might work against McCain, especially with all the name-calling ridiculousness that has defined his campaign as of late. It is much more difficult to insult your opponent whilst you are sitting down with him/her at the table than not facing him on a stage.

McCain needs this win against Obama. What can he do? Hubby suspects that he is going to try to pull off what Reagan did in his 1984 debate against Mondale. He was also trailing in the polls going in. In his closing statement, he did not summarise his plans should he be re-elected. Instead he went on talking a letter he wrote several years before, fondly remembering the beautiful California surroundings whilst he wrote it. He emphasised that the actions of the present will form the world that the people who open the capsule live in. He spoke of destructive powers, preserving freedom, and the "blessed planet called Earth". He used sentences like "...what they will say about us 100 years from now depends on how we keep our rendezvous with destiny", which mean nothing whilst sounding like something. It was sappy. It painted a beautiful picture. It spoke to the populace. And even though he was cut off, it was perfect. He was re-elected.

Reagan was the perfect candidate to deliver such a speech. He had all the training he needed from acting. He knew how and when to control his voice and mannerisms. McCain does not strike me as someone who can pull a similar stunt off. Take a look at this clip, watch McCain saying "Enh? Enh?", and I think you'll be inclined to agree. In either case, if this turns out to be his strategy, it will be interesting to see it unfold.

Now I'm off to bed, so that I can catch the debate re-run tomorrow morning.