Kanadian Korner

[yesno]

hey kanadians,

When youse guys vote, do you see any name for the PM?  Or do just the people for whom the PM is MP actually vote for him?

I mean, I would assume you don't, because that doesn't make sense.  But it also doesn't make sense that Americans vote for President even though our vote "really" means we are voting for a slate of electors who promise to vote for the guy we "voted" for.

Anyway, if the coalition can last until Jan 24 he's out anyway, right?

[Amplituden]

We vote for a candidate for a certain party.

That party has a leader.

There are a certain amount of seats in the parliament, who ever has the most seats wins the election.

That party's leader becomes the Prime-minister.

Right now there is a minority government, that means that if the other parties decided to band together and vote against the ruling party we either have an election, or the other parties can band together as a coalition and form a new government.

Thats how we roll up here in Kanukistan.

[yesno]

Right, but does the ballot actually have the name of the party leader, in some sort of head trick fakeout way?

I'm trying to understand how some people are calling the possibility of a majority toppling a minority "undemocratic."

[Amplituden]

The Ballot does not have the name of the leader on it.

They are calling it undemocratic because they are grasping at straws.

[Bryan]

Yeah, as I say above, the "undemocratic" thing doesn't hold water at all. We vote for our MP (that's member of Parliament), a regional representative, who is usually (but not necessarily) a member of a party. The Prime Minister is simply an MP who has been selected by his party to be the big kahuna. The public at large does not vote directly for the PM.

I don't understand how proroguing until Jan 24th helps the Conservatives in any meaningful way. I guess they'll wage a PR offensive until then, and try to demoralize the coalition just in case there's another election real soon. But they'll also have to play nicer if they want to pass any legislation of any kind. I think that the coalition would probably back down if Harper resigned, but I can't imagine him doing that unless absolutely forced to by his party. He totally plays by Bush's rules - never admit any responsibility for anything that goes sour, ever.

[Sarah]

Kanadians, please accept my condolences for the recent turn of events.  It must be enraging, even though everything will probably turn out okay in the end.

[samir]

Kanadians, please accept my c kondolences for the recent turn of events. 

fixed!

[Fido]

Krazee.

[Amplituden]

Whats with all the Candian content last show?
Is the CRTC involved?

[Josh]

[Bryan]

I can't dispute that allegation (though I think Vancouver actually has more degenerates.)

[Regular Joe]

I can't dispute that allegation (though I think Vancouver actually has more degenerates.)

I can attest to that. More degenerates than you can shake a stick at. And none of them can drive, which in addition to the presence of the film industry makes Vancouver the Los Angeles of Canada.

[mrCoffea]

now that's a title I can agree with

[Sarah]

Hey, Canadians, have any of you seen Paul Gross's H₂O and The Trojan Horse?  I haven't seen the latter yet, but I gobbled up the former yesterday (along with Hard Core Logo and the first episode of Men with Brooms* [it was "I don't want to be American day" in the St. Onge household]).  I don't recall ever having seen a Canadian political thriller before, and to enjoy one featuring two of my crushes (Paul Gross and Callum Keith Rennie, whose villain here is hilariously competent) was a treat.  The ending seemed a little rushed and diabolus ex machina-y to me, but I still liked watching the house of cards tumble (inevitably, it reminded me of House of Cards; also State of Play, Margaret [for the intricacies of the politics], and, of course, A Very British Coup, which I really need to watch again).  I am most curious to hear what you thought of it.

*Very disappointing, by the by.  I think it's trying to be Corner Gas with curling?

[Pidgeon]

Not homos!