Is it just me or does anyone else feel queasy hearing the expenses racked up by our Senators?
Despite Mike Duffy's guilt or innocence, do our political types really need to havd such expensive meals, hotel rooms, etc?
Quote from: "RW"
Despite Mike Duffy's guilt or innocence, do our political types really need to havd such expensive meals, hotel rooms, etc?
Our mayor and city council's expenses are wrong too..
It does not surprise me politicians do this regularly, but it is wrong to me anyway.
I can't bear to look. I have this sick feeling that the stupid voters are going to destroy a thousand year old parliamentary system because of what two senators appointed by one PM did. =(
Quote from: "easter bunny"
I thought there were several senators easter bunny..
Oh it does not matter because I have little faith that voting in a new government will make my family's life any better or worse either.
I dont agree with their spending habits. They do not need to eat 5 course 5 star meals and stay in luxurious hotel suites that cost a fortune.
Im personally sick n tired of the translink crap...the millions wasted on this vote...of course people are going to say no to a new tax...duh...they can build the trains and offer more routes...it can be done...sadly marjority of those tax dollars are wasted on total bullshit.
Quote from: "Berry Sweet"
Im personally sick n tired of the translink crap...the millions wasted on this vote...of course people are going to say no to a new tax...duh...they can build the trains and offer more routes...it can be done...sadly marjority of those tax dollars are wasted on total bullshit.
I try to avoid anything about what politicians say or do.
Quote from: "Fashionista"
Quote from: "Berry Sweet"
Im personally sick n tired of the translink crap...the millions wasted on this vote...of course people are going to say no to a new tax...duh...they can build the trains and offer more routes...it can be done...sadly marjority of those tax dollars are wasted on total bullshit.
I try to avoid anything about what politicians say or do.
Im in the same boat, I have never voted because i dont care what they talk about. Pisses me off that they come around ONCE to get your vote and you never see them again.
I cant complain and im not interested in politics
Quote from: "Keeper"
Quote from: "Fashionista"
Quote from: "Berry Sweet"
Im personally sick n tired of the translink crap...the millions wasted on this vote...of course people are going to say no to a new tax...duh...they can build the trains and offer more routes...it can be done...sadly marjority of those tax dollars are wasted on total bullshit.
I try to avoid anything about what politicians say or do.
Im in the same boat, I have never voted because i dont care what they talk about. Pisses me off that they come around ONCE to get your vote and you never see them again.
I cant complain and im not interested in politics
This is how I feel Keeper..
Our mayor of Calgary is very popular, but he and his council are no better than other politicians.
You have to vote. If no one does we could have our voting rights taken away. I understand how you feel about their crap. You need to let them know you are awake and aware of their bs and dont agree with it.
Quote from: "easter bunny"
Hold on a minute here bunny. This PM inherited this problem, he did not create it. Remember Liberal senator Andrew Thompson who lived in Mexico and didn't attend senate votes? That was an embarrassment to Chretien just as much as Mac Harb was to baby Trudeau and Duffy is to Harper.
Don't kid yourself, getting rid of the senate will NOT be easy. It WILL be there at the end of a term even if baby Trudeau wins a majority.
Quote from: "Shen Li"
Quote from: "easter bunny"
Hold on a minute here bunny. This PM inherited this problem, he did not create it.
Don't kid yourself, getting rid of the senate will NOT be easy. It WILL be there at the end of a term even if baby Trudeau wins a majority.
As much as I hate the waste I hope you're right, Shen. And why did you have to remind me of Andrew Thompson? I blocked that memory out. It left me traumatized. ac_tongue
Quote from: "Berry Sweet"
It's a tough one! It's understandable why many feel there's no point. Even when your candidate wins it doesn't seem to matter much.
But you're right as well! There are plenty enough eligible voters out there to make a real difference. Democracy is the best of both worlds, but it still isn't perfect.
I'm not happy about the Senate. They're like the House of Lords in the UK. Or medieval England. On "behalf of the Canadian people", our leaders just choose their rich celebrity friends. Already wealthy, do nothing, and become even more wealthy doing nothing. I can't believe they have the audacity to charge taxpayers for their personal fancy whims and fancy parties.
Did Harpo not promise and in fact run on "senate reform" . followed by trumpets full bore.... "senate reform" which he defined as having members be elected instead of appointed?
He went silent on that of late and strangely I have seen no press person or anyone call him on it
Hmm. He did promise. But there appears to be three sides to the story. I thought it was too silent as well, but apparently it has been fairly covered.
Quote
The Supreme Court has given a unanimous rebuke to the Conservative government's attempt to transform the Senate into an elected body without provincial consent, a ruling Prime Minister Stephen Harper said leaves him with little choice but to abandon his long fight to reform the Red Chamber.
Mr. Harper had said he wanted to democratize the Senate or kill it, but the court ruled that his government could do neither as it proposed to do – unilaterally create a system of elections and nine-year term limits, or abolish it with the approval of seven provinces with half the population. The court said abolition required unanimous consent, while elections and term limits would need at least seven provinces with half the population on board.
"The Senate is a core component of the Canadian federal structure of government," said the ruling, which was written in the court's name rather than by an individual so it would be seen to carry the court's full weight. "As such, changes that affect its fundamental nature and role engage the interests of the stakeholders in our constitutional design – i.e. the federal government and the provinces – and cannot be achieved by Parliament acting alone."
The court was responding to a request from the government for a legal opinion on whether it could go ahead with the proposed Senate Reform Act. Mr. Harper called the rejection "a decision for the status quo. A status quo that is supported by virtually no Canadian."
//http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/senate-ruling/article18205700/
I did hear something on that, but seems more could have been done ..... we elect people to do things ... even to change / update laws
I resent being stuck with OLD unchangeable laws.
My guess is that provinces would have ageed .. can't see why they would not . anyhow, if we can't change ANY laws we do not live in a true or "real" democracy .. and the word democracy becomes only a sham / scam
Quote from: "cc li tarte"
He went silent on that of late and strangely I have seen no press person or anyone call him on it
I thought that was the Reform Party that want a triple E senate. Didn't that policy get shelved when the PC party and Canadian Alliance merged?
I think the original idea for the Senate was to put people in there who have the integrity to do the right thing for the country and who can't be bribed by a few pieces of gold or dissuaded by fears of being ousted in the next election. The real problem is the successive appointment of party hacks and bag-men who don't serve anyone but themselves.
For abolitionists the toughest hurdle to overcome is not all that hard to achieve when there's a constant stream of bad news coming out:
Quote from: "General procedure for amending Constitution of Canada"
I would be in favour of a better selection process and a way to remove them if the people they represent choose to do so, but to make it just a mirror image of the House (EEE) would defeat the purpose imo.
^EB, you and I are pretty much on the same page about losing no tears if all senators were given their walking papers. However, any government that opens up the constitutional can of worms does so at their own peril. I hate to say it, but my son who will be 2 next month will see the senate around when he has kids of his own. I believe it is one of those things that irks most of us, but we will tolerate out of fear of the unknown if we open up the constitution.