Sunday, November 30, 2008

Stephen Harper: Is the game over?

Cats have nine lives they say but this one may be on its last one. Harper took too many perilous actions in the last session of Parliament, daring the opposition time and time again to bring his government down. Liberals wimped out and Harper basked in his successes – successes in his own mind that is. Then of course he was so confident to win a majority that he dissolved Parliament and called an election breaking his own fixed election date law. That majority did not happen and he is back to his old games. He has no interest in actually governing,

It looks this time the opposition is going to call his bluff and the ball game may be over, the cat squandered hislast life for nothing. It is hoped that Canadians will get lucky and this CON man will soon be gone.

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Saturday, November 29, 2008

Jim Flaherty: After the State of the Economy Speech

Was he caught with his pants down misleading the public? Looks like it. As he says, no economic stimulus is needed and there will be no budget deficit. Looks like a mental deficit. If that is the state of economy then I have a bridge for sale.

Every major economy in the world has problems at this time and governments are coming up with stimulus packages. How Canada is an exception is baffling. How Flaherty will pull off balance budgets is another mystery. With economic downturn, government revenues are going to slump. Where would Flaherty get revenues? This time the Harper government did it. It played its tricky dickey hand once too often. Maybe coalition between Liberals and NDPers will work and we can get some stable government.

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Friday, November 28, 2008

Jim Flaherty: State of the Economy: Shoes are too big

Can Jim Flaherty really fill the shoes of Finance Minister? He is known to create disasters, not overcome them. Because of the Income Trusts fiasco people who had money in RRSPs and RIFs lost over $30 billion nationwide through stocks tumbling for Income Trusts type of shares.

Now there is a disastrous economic situation globally and Canada is no exception to it despite Harper’s mantra that "the fundamentals of our economy are strong." People have lost half of their portfolios if their stocks were diversified and even more if they were not diversified. It is a financial nightmare for Canadians which they would hope was only a nightmare they would wake up from. That ain't going to happen. Does Flaherty have the know-how to handle it? I have doubts, all the more reason to worry.

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Thursday, November 27, 2008

Dancing With The Stars: Sarah Palin and Dick Cheney

If you're a fan of Dancing With the Stars, then you probably missed this sideshow. See! Sarah Palin considers herself a star in her own right and Dick Cheney knows a move or two in Washington D.C. So they got together on stage in order that Cheney could teach some moves to Palin. You know it was very entertaining to see these droops dance together. Thank you Sarah for providing all this entertainment. Who says there is nothing to be thankful for this upcoming US Thanksgiving. The economy may be down but Sarah is there to entertain you. Only advice, do not go hunting with either one of the two.

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Wednesday, November 26, 2008

Ann Coulter Zipped

Not kidding. It is true. It actually did happen. Click here to read the story.

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Economy: Will Barack Obama be able to deal with it?


The US economy has two suitors right now – George W. Bush and Barack Obama. Bush has been squarely rejected. Will Obama be able to handle her or fall flat? Will he get on top of the economy or vice-versa? Time will tell how the scene unveils itself.

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Tuesday, November 25, 2008

Michael Ignatieff, Bob Rae and Dominic Leblanc: Let the race begin

When Rae and Iggy, the old college buddies, are evening the score is it possible that Leblanc will slide by and become the leader? Sorry to say but the Liberal leadership race so far remains a big yawn. Some fireworks and action is needed. Maybe we should put them in a boxing ring. Instead of debates there should be a few rounds of sparring.

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Sarah Palin and the Poor Turkeys

Keith Olbermann's take on Palin's notorious interview in front of the turkey slaughtering machine. His expressions are priceless :)

WARNING: This video is unedited.

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Monday, November 24, 2008

Rahm Emmanuel - SNL Skit

Unfortunately the NBC videos are blocked for Canadian ISPs, but I found this good clip from MSNBC, Enjoy :)

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King of Saudi Arabia and George W. Bush exchange gifts

From divine to absurd. From Rex to George W. Bush who is a great mystery in his own right. Bush managed to cause devastation throughout the world and will be leaving a legacy of global economic crisis. It does not seem to bother this simple mind at all and he dances to his own tune.

I did not have to photoshop this picture that much. The majority of the frames are available on the net. For example this one:



Note that in the first picture, the animated pictures, Bush is close up and personal to one of his oil buddies the King of Saudi Arabia – they are exchanging gifts and sharing intimate moments.


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Rex: The Mystery of Life


Watch CBS Videos Online

Evolution can explain the physical laws of creation, but the mind is something extraordinary. It still remains a mystery. This is not to promote any religion, but just to say that life remains, in so many ways, an extraordinary mystery. To me, evolution has not fully explained this mystery of life.


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Sunday, November 23, 2008

Sarah Palin: Turkeys Protest

What was Sarah Palin thinking, she stages a ceremony of pardon for a turkey and at the interview soon after, right behind her, turkeys are being slaughtered in a very gruesome manner. It is like a politician depicting herself/himself as a saint with the character of Ted Bundy. Poor turkeys. At least Bush did not pardon Saddam Hussein and then proceed to kill Iraqis by the millions. He did both openly. Now before Bush leaves office he may pardon himself and his co-executioner.

Check out the video below for the Palin interview:

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Saturday, November 22, 2008

Stephen Harper and the Economy

Whatever happened to "the fundamentals of the economy are strong." Stock exchanges have tumbled around the around and the Harper government is sending signals that there may be a deficit. And that financial institutions and auto industry needs help.

Note: Folks I am back from fishing. Caught nothing big. Too afraid of the ocean and the fear that the
big fish will drag me into the ocean. Watch out for the big fish folks in order to survive.

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Monday, November 17, 2008

Dog for Obama’s girls in the Whitehouse: Peruvian dog?

Many suggestions are being made for a dog for Obama daughters including the country of Peru who suggested their breed which is hairless and thus will not pose any problems to Obama’s older daughter as she is allergic to dog hair. But there is a serious problem. This dog has huge ears. Reporters and comedians will have field day with the pet’s ears and Obama’s ears. His ears are BIG. I will suggest get some other breed.

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Sunday, November 16, 2008

Liberal Leadership Race a big yawn


It is boring and more boring. Like the yawning guy in the picture I feel the same. And now they have blacked out their first leadership candidates' forum. They are trying to keep it as boring, unengaging, and secretive as possible

Below is my run-down of the candidates:


Michael Ignatieff: We have been there before. Scholarly but do we really want another professor as a leader? After all Dion was a professor, a very nice person and loyal Canadian, but lacked political street-fighting skills. Also, Ignatieff spent most of his adult life in the US. Does he really understand Canadians at the grassroots? I will be writing more on this at a later time.

Bob Rae: Nice guy. Likeable and speaks well but insurmountable baggage. Failed NDP Premier of Ontario. Are Canadians going to forget it and especially are Ontarians going to forget it. Watch my future posts on this.

Dominic LeBlanc: See my earlier post on him. Young and energetic. But Canadians need to know a lot more about him before they develop confidence in him. It will be a break from the past and beginning of a new era for Liberals if he succeeds.

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Joe Biden's Visit to the Vice President's Residence

This happened when it was first announced to Dick Cheney that the Bidens have arrived. Later he calmed down and put the gun down ;)

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Saturday, November 15, 2008

Productive

Wow, what a guy? You cannot complain that he is not productive ;)

Click here for the story.

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Dick Cheney: Credit should be given where credit is due

Dick Cheney came out of his undisclosed location and kept Bush and Obama entertained during Obama's visit with Bush at the Whitehouse. He showed his many dance moves. Besides hunting, he has other talents, you know ;)

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Friday, November 14, 2008

Jim Flaherty: Canada for sale

CBC, CN Tower in Toronto, and other government assets for sale to avoid deficit. Jim Flaherty is going for wholesale for assets. Surely Uncle Sam will be happy to buy our Parliament Building.

What happened to "the fundamentals of the economy are sound"? Privatization reaching new heights. Watch out he may sell us Canadians too - let the forces of the market take over.

Click here to read the story.

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Thursday, November 13, 2008

Dominic LeBlanc Would be a Good Liberal Leader

It is unfortunate to hear that Gerard Kennedy is not running, as I wrote in an earlier blog, I think he had the potential to be a good Liberal leader.

At this point, it is looking that this race is shaping up to be a rematch between Michael Ignatieff and Bob Rae with Dominic LeBlanc positioning himself to pull a potential upset win at the convention.

The Liberal Party needs new ideas, it needs youth and it needs to reconnect with Canadians to build a new electoral coalition. For this reason, I think Dominic LeBlanc is the best candidate to lead the Liberal Party. I have to confess that, at this point, I do not know that much about him, but what I hear sounds promising. He's young, he's energetic, and he promises party renewal.

Unfortunately, I do not see this same potential in either Ignatieff or Rae.

As well, LeBlanc is from Atlantic Canada and, as leader, he could give voice to a region that is too often taken for granted in Canadian politics.

Furthermore, Dominic LeBlanc is fluently bilingual. Also, he would make some history as, if he were successful in his leadership bid, he would be the first Acadian to lead a major political party.

Dominic LeBlanc also brings with him Parliamentary experience. He's been a Member of Parliament since 2000, and he has served as Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Defence and to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons. This is more federal Parliamentary experience than Michael Ignatieff, who has been in Parliament for little more than two years, and even more than Bob Rae whose cumulative time in federal politics (which includes his time as an NDP MP three decades ago) is only four years.

Dominic LeBlanc is also from a political family. His father, Romeo LeBlanc, served as Minister of Fisheries and later as Minister of Public Works under the Trudeau government. Also, Romeo LeBlanc was Governor General of Canada from 1995 to 1999. Thus, there is a strong family tradition of public service which is strongly ingrained in his son.

Dominic LeBlanc recently set down some of his ideas in an editorial for Macleans. He presents some interesting proposals to move the party forward.

So as this race begins to take shape, it is looking that Dominic LeBlanc is the strongest candidate.

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Sarah Palin stalking the spotlight

A few days after the US election, I posted a blog where I stated that Sarah Palin should be left alone. I said that the election was over and she has gone to her corner of the country, Alaska. I was wrong. The election may be over but she is not going anywhere. She is all over the place. Giving interview after interview on NBC, Fox, and to Wolf Blitzer and Larry King of CNN. She gave the keynote speech at the Republican Governors conference in Miami. The list goes on and on (it seems everyone except for Katie Couric is getting an interview ;) Palin is already running for 2012 and the President-elect, Barack Obama, has not even been sworn in yet.

She is still babbling that Barack Obama palled around with terrorists like Bill Ayer and public has a right to know. But at the same time she wants to help Obama on energy to make US energy independent – yeah she does produce alot of hot air. So there she is stalking the spotlight everywhere. In that case I take back my earlier refrain as she has made herself available for more fun.

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Wednesday, November 12, 2008

Barney, Bush's dog


If he could talk. Maybe Bush should donate it to the Obamas. However, he may not like them as he did lash out at a reporter. Barney has gone mad after the recent election.

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Tuesday, November 11, 2008

Sarah Palin Strikes Back

Interview with Matt Lauer of NBC.

Here is more of the interview

And here is a web-only portion of the interview:

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Have-not Blues, Ontario

Premiers' meeting. First time Ontario is a have-not province. What happened to Harper's "the fundamentals of the economy are strong."

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Monday, November 10, 2008

Barack Obama visits the Whitehouse

How many fires he will put out?

The Economy
Iraq war
Afghanistan war
Relations with Russia and China
International relations in general

Big fires to put out.

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Sunday, November 09, 2008

Gerard Kennedy would be a good Liberal leader

The race for the Liberal leadership is starting to take form as candidates declare their intention to run (Bob Rae, Dominic Leblanc), declare their intention not to run (Frank McKenna, John Manley), prepare to run (Michael Ignatieff), or openly talk about considering a run (Gerard Kennedy).

Of these candidates, the one I who think is best to lead the Liberals is Gerard Kennedy. To begin with, he is experienced in government as he was Ontario's Education Minister, and a successful one at that as he brought labour peace with the teachers' unions, something which eluded the earlier Conservative and NDP governments in that province.

Also, Kennedy is young and has a strong appeal among youth. Furthermore, with his background as a foodbank director, he has roots in the community working to help people. This kind of background is similar to Barack Obama's background as a community organizer. Furthermore, as Barack Obama supported Howard Dean's 50-state strategy, Gerard Kennedy has voiced his support for a 308 riding strategy which will be important as the Liberals desperately need to expand their electoral map. The Liberal Party has to be more than just the party of the Greater-Toronto-Area.

As well, Gerard Kennedy has a strong commitment to social justice issues and would be a great standard-bearer for a principled and progressive Liberal Party.

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No Walls Left Behind

You must have heard of "no child left behind" – Bush’s failed program for the education of children. Stephen Harper has a new program, "no walls left behind" as he wants to put children as young as 14 years old, who break the law, behind the walls of prison. You know what prisons are for such children – crime universities. They go there as children and come out as full fledged hardened criminals. In prison they find the company of the likes of Austrian Josef Fritzl who imprisoned his own daughter for 24 years, raped her repeatedly and had children with her.

Mr. Harper wants to throw out all the research of decades which states that prison for children does not reduce crime. You have to look at the history of these children. What kind of childhood they had. Maybe they had no supervison of parents or they had abusive parents and grew up being bitter and struck back at the society. Now all the research shows that such children need help and rehabilitation and not prison. Prison will further lead them into more crimes when they graduate from the university of crime.

Now it makes sense that CONS are so vehemently opposed to pro-choice. They want to ensure that children must come into this world no matter what the circumstances, no matter how endangered a mother's life is or that she was raped. And no matter what kind of social environment they will be brought into. The CONS need to populate these prisons or send them into illegal wars. CON philosophy is that let them come into this world. What happens to them after birth is their problem.

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Saturday, November 08, 2008

Sarah Palin, GOP Backbiting

I have repeatedly said on this blog that Sarah Palin was not qualified to be Vice President, much less President. The Obama-Biden ticket offered the most credible policies for America and I am glad they won.

That being said however, I must take issue with some of the comments coming from McCain staffers expressing discontent at Sarah Palin, and attacking her on her personality and her lack of knowledge on basic issues. First, these staffers were the ones who picked her in the first place, any lack of knowledge on her part should have been part of a proper vetting process. Second, despite Palin's shortcomings, she worked her heart out for the campaign and for John McCain. She tried her best to compensate for her lack of preparation for the national stage. And third, the election is over. She should be left alone rather than be the subject of such backbiting. Palin has gone back to her corner of the country, Alaska. The McCain people should not try to pin thier own failings on her. Their handling of the campaign was just as much, if not more so, responsible for the loss than anything that Sarah Palin did.

These are just a few of my thoughts on this matter. You can watch the video below for a good commentary on this by CNN's Campbell Brown:

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Barney, Bush's dog, is mad, very mad


Why is he mad? Maybe because reporters did not treat his master Bush well over 8 years? Or maybe he is mad because McCain, Bush's buddy, did not win.

More importantly he is mad because he has to leave the Whitehouse. I hope the Bushes will keep Barney away from the Obamas on Monday when they visit Whitehouse because he may be really mad at them.

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Friday, November 07, 2008

Joe Lieberman and Democratic Party, yada, yada

Joe Lieberman really thinks that he can make an ass of the Democratic Party. After poodling to John McCain and snouting his behind for two years, he thinks he can work with President-elect Obama and caucus with the Democratic Party in the Senate. Hopefully in two years his state will kick his butt when he re-offers for the Senate seat.

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Wolf Blitzer of CNN on US election night

You guys might have missed this special interview of Wolf Blitzer conducted with John McCain on the chances of his success. OK, I am just kidding but Blitzer did go Star Trekkie with the holograms and stuff. NBC wasn't much better with their virtual room.

Electronic trajectory and virtual reality kind of hijacked the election night coverage.

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Thursday, November 06, 2008

President-Elect Barack Obama: His Challenges

A Rough and Winding Road Ahead

Now that the US election is over, and the victor has been declared, congratulations to Barack Obama and the Democratic Party. But... what now? And, what is Obama inheriting as he prepares to take the reins of power?

First, there is the economy which is an absolute mess thanks to the deregulations of the ideological neo-cons, started by Ronald Reagan, which reached their peak under George W. Bush. People are suffering not only in the United States. With the United States being the cornerstone of the global economy the economic problems of America are the World's problems. This is a problem which President-elect Obama is going to inherit.

But more about the economy later, right now I want to turn to the two wars which the United States is embroiled in - Iraq and Afghanistan. If the Bush administration would have focussed on Afghanistan from the start - a war about disabling Al-Qaeda and which had international support - the objectives would have been achieved. However, George W. Bush and his big oil friends wanted to become rich in a hurry, so they invaded Iraq to control its oil resources.

The Iraq invasion has helped no one, Iraq had nothing to do with 9/11 and Saddam Hussein's regime did not allow religious extremists into Iraq. They were seen as a destabilizing threat to his regime. The only big winners in Iraq are Al-Qaeda - which has found new recruiting ground due to the instability brought on by the invasion - and Iran. In the case of Iran, what they could not do in more than two decades George W. Bush did for them, eliminate their chief rival in the region, Iraq.

Let us not fool ourselves, the United States controls Iraq. Some of George W. Bush's friends may have oil contracts in Iraq, but it looks that political power is now in the hands of pro-Iranian factions who are getting their directions from Iran rather than the United States. Bush's dream has become the Middle East's worse nightmare.

In the region, Israel already has nuclear weapons. If Iran has these weapons too and the two countries engage in nuclear war, it'll be a different World from the one we know... if there still is a World around after such a horrific exchange. The only way the Middle East problem can be resolved is to do what Carter tried, which Bill Clinton followed. That is, foster peace and mutual cooperation between the Israelis and their Arab neighbours.

Jimmy Carter was successful in bringing peace between the Israelis and their neighbours, the Egyptians and the Jordanians. If Carter had enough time, he could probably have resolved the conflict between the Israelis and the Palestinians, returning to 1967 boundaries.

All this has been lost with the Bush administration with the Arab World alienated from the West. I sincerely hope that Barack Obama can change this, and bring all the parties together so that resolution is found for the Middle Eastern region.

Then, of course, Barack Obama has to deal with the rising power of Russia and China as well as problems in Pakistan and between Russia and Georgia. These problems between Russia and Georgia can best be resolved with negotiations and diplomacy to avoid another Cold War.

Mr. Obama has alot on his plate, I hope and pray that he succeeds in his efforts.

I also sincerely hope that he succeeds in turning the economy around. There are many losers Worldwide with this slumping economy. Individuals invested in stocks, I'm not talking about the Wall Street speculators but regular people who had retirement savings or personal savings in stocks. They have found their life savings and nest eggs depleted. These need to be saved or else there will be a bigger Worldwide tragedy.

Finally, I want to add that John McCain, in his concession speech, was especially gracious. I only wish that he ran his campaign in that manner -- at heart, he really is a decent man. I am encouraged by his pledge to work with Barack Obama to help America and the World out of these crisis.


Below are a couple of very touching pictures from Obama's victory speech.


Jesse Jackson


Oprah Winfrey

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Tuesday, November 04, 2008

Monday, November 03, 2008

John McCain and Sarah Palin: Why are they Failin'

Why John McCain Should NOT Be US President:

This post is actually a bit difficult for me to write. As a person, I like John McCain. He is a war hero and a genuinely decent person. In 2000 he ran a principled campaign in the primaries but was brought down by Karl Rove style attack tactics.

Unfortunately, the John McCain of 2008 is not the John McCain of 2000. He has sold out on almost everything he stood for eight years ago, including the very Karl Rove attacks he once denounced. So here are a few reasons why I believe that John McCain should NOT be elected President of the United States:

1. His Erratic Response to the Wall Street Collapse: First, John McCain made the Herbert Hooveresque statement that, "the fundamentals of the economy are sound" only to retract that statement. He then said he would not show up for the first Presidential debate claiming he needed to help work out a bailout deal on Capitol Hill (even though evidence shows that his presence there was counter-productive). Then, even while there was no deal, and after much drama, he did show up to the debate.

John McCain's erratic behaviour, and inconsistent statements, show a poor temperment for a potential Commander in Chief.


2. Poor Judgment: Picking Sarah Palin as VP: Sarah Palin is clearly unqualified to be Vice President, she has only been Governor of Alaska for twenty months, before that being mayor of a town of 7,000 people. In interviews, she has not been able to display even basic knowledge of national and international affairs. Her views on issues such as abortion are extreme -- she opposes abortion even in cases of incest and rape. Why did McCain pick someone so clearly unqualified for the post, so clearly clueless about national and international affairs? Why did he pick someone with such extremist and fundamentalist views? If something happened to McCain and she became President, it would be a truly horrific affair.

Furthermore, she was not even properly vetted. McCain had only met her once face to face, and he seemed oblivious to the Troopergate scandal where she abused her power as Governor.

John McCain's hasty and ill-considered VP pick clearly displays poor judgment which further makes him unsuitable for the Presidency of the United States.


3. Out of Touch: Republicans accuse Obama of being an "elitist", John McCain tries to play the common-man with his constant repetition of "Joe the Plumber", but McCain owns seven houses and is clearly out of touch with the needs of ordinary Americans. John McCain is trying to promote his plan for tax cuts to the wealthy who don't need them, while denouncing Barack Obama's plan to give greater tax cuts to the middle class with erratic calls of "socialism" and "Marxism."

John McCain is clearly out of touch with the needs of ordinary Americans as he's focussed more on tax cuts for the rich, and on a $150,000 wardrobe for his VP, rather than on helping Americans up in painful economic times.


4. One Hundred Years in Iraq: John McCain is a foreign policy hawk, he supports a militaristic foreign policy that would include alienating Russia and China and setting off another Cold War. Furthermore, John McCain wants to keep troops in Iraq even though the Iraqi government wants out, even despite the fact that the Bush administration is now negotiating a withdrawal (in this respect McCain is not just a continuation of destructive Bush policies, he would go further than even Bush and Cheney's wildest dreams).

For McCain, the destructiveness of war is a joke, as seen with his refrain of "Bomb Bomb Bomb Iran."

John McCain will be a clear danger to the World, even worse than Bush, if he is allowed to enact his hawkish foreign policy agenda.


5. McBush: On a militaristic and unilateralist foreign policy, on a domestic policy of unaffordable tax cuts for the rich which have driven America into deep deficits, John McCain has effectively endorsed George W. Bush's failed policies which have dragged America down the tubes (and in some cases, such as on foreign policy, would go even further than Bush). Furthermore, as a Senator, McCain voted with Bush over 90% of the time. All McCain's cries of "reformer" and "maverick" cannot hide this fundamental fact, that McCain is closely allied to the clearly disasterous foreign and domestic policies of George W. Bush and the hard-right of the Republican Party.

I hope my American friends make the right choice, and not allow this man to take office. It is true that the polls are trending clearly in Obama's favour, but the poll that truly matters is the one on election day and I won't feel assured until after November 4th. So please, to all those in the United States, get out and vote, vote out the Republicans, and vote to take your country back.

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Sunday, November 02, 2008

Keith Olbermann SNL

I thought it was very funny :)

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Joe the Plumber: Mr. Clean

It is amazing that McCain and Palin are still going on and on about Joe the Plumber even though it has become a comedy punch line for the late night shows in the US. Did Joe the Plumber help their campaign? The jokes about it on the late night shows reveal that it has helped their ratings and that is about it.

Joe the Plumber can really help McCain and Palin by asking them to withdraw from the race. That will put them out of their misery because they do not have a hope in hell to win on Tuesday. McCain's flip-flops were bad enough that he needed to add Palin to his ticket. The other day Keith Olbermann of MSNBC was struggling to say something very funny about McCain and finally he came up with two words: Sarah Palin.

McCain is ready for the Smithsonian as an American relic but I do not think Sarah Palin and Joe the Plumber will qualify even for that distinction. However, Joe the Plumber's uncanny resemblance to the Mr. Clean character in commercials may give him an edge.


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Saturday, November 01, 2008

Sarah Palin speaks to Sarkozy ;)

CKOI's comedy duo, "Les Justiciers Masques" got Palin good. Almost seven minutes, and she didn't catch on. She didn't even seem to know the name of Canada's Prime Minister, even though she's supposedly worked with Canada on the Pipeline.

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George W. Bush rallies for John McCain

Now McCain should have no problem to carry on the McBush legacy ;)

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