London, ON By-election -- Drop-in Republican/Conservative?

[KSigkid]

Originally Posted by _Opi_

But could you be seriously surprised that Canadian conservatives are following the same trend as the US and the UK conservatives?

As SOME conservatives in the US. I wouldn't say that most conservatives here are anti-homosexuality, although the loudest conservatives (Ann Coulter, etc.) may be that way. It seems like you're painting all conservatives with a broad brush.

Not all of us are gay-bashers, and to paint all of us that way is a bit unfair.

[RACooper]

Originally Posted by KSigkid

As SOME conservatives in the US. I wouldn't say that most conservatives here are anti-homosexuality, although the loudest conservatives (Ann Coulter, etc.) may be that way. It seems like you're painting all conservatives with a broad brush.

Not all of us are gay-bashers, and to paint all of us that way is a bit unfair.

Exactly... there has been a new breed of Conservatives up here, much like the neo-con or social conservative movement in the US. Some of 'old Tories' are pretty disgusted at this newer ideology, and worried about the general damage they can inflict.

[KSigkid]

Originally Posted by RACooper

Exactly... there has been a new breed of Conservatives up here, much like the neo-con or social conservative movement in the US. Some of 'old Tories' are pretty disgusted at this newer ideology, and worried about the general damage they can inflict.

I wouldn't lump the neo-cons with the social conservatives; I'd say they are two seperate movements.

[_Opi_]

Originally Posted by KSigkid

I wouldn't lump the neo-cons with the social conservatives; I'd say they are two seperate movements.

I was talking about neo-conservatives..sorry.

[KSigkid]

Originally Posted by _Opi_

I was talking about neo-conservatives..sorry.

No problem - I'd still say, though, that it's not the neo-cons who feel that way, it's the social conservatives. But hey, everyone is entitled to their own interpretation.

[AGDee]

Originally Posted by KSigkid

As SOME conservatives in the US. I wouldn't say that most conservatives here are anti-homosexuality, although the loudest conservatives (Ann Coulter, etc.) may be that way. It seems like you're painting all conservatives with a broad brush.

Not all of us are gay-bashers, and to paint all of us that way is a bit unfair.

Even in BLUE Michigan, land of the liberals, they voted to ban gay marriage, by a huge margin. I think most of society in general is anti-homosexual. I know more states had this on the ballet in '06 but I didn't end up seeing what those results were in those states.

I think referendums such as gay marriage and banning affirmative action are fascinating studies in human behavior. In the exit polls regarding our ban on affirmative action, the results were FAR different than the actual voting results. More people voted to ban it than admitted it in exit polling. People do something different in a secret ballot than they do when they are responding to someone in person. Nobody apparently wanted to be perceived as being racist/sexist when asked in person. With regards to specific candidates, the exit polls were quite accurate.

That's a bit of a hijack, but it made me think about that phenomenon. Also, you don't have to be a public gay basher to be "anti-homosexual".

[KSigkid]

Originally Posted by AGDee

Even in BLUE Michigan, land of the liberals, they voted to ban gay marriage, by a huge margin.

And, on that point, people forget that in Massachusetts, two of the biggest opponents to the Goodridge decision (that legalized gay marriage in the state) were Democracts. One was the Speaker of the MA House, Tom Finneran at the time the most powerful Democrat voice in state government. Also, the Attorney General at the time (Tom Reilly, a Democrat), was against the ruling.

These things don't fit so neatly along party lines as people would like for you to believe.

[RACooper]

Well the by-election is done, and here are the somewhat interesting results:

Party / Candidate /Votes/ % Votes
Canadian Action / Will Arlow /49/ 0.1%
Independent / Robert Ede / 68/ 0.2%
Conservative / Dianne Haskett /8,434 / 24.3%
PC Party / Steve Hunter /132 / 0.4%
Green Party / Elizabeth May / 9,091 / 26.1%
Liberal / Glen Pearson /12,064 / 34.7%
N.D.P. / Megan Walker /4,939 / 14.2%
Total number of valid votes: 34,777
Polls reporting: 235/253 Voter turnout: 34,777 of 89,139 registered electors (39.0%)

I was impressed to see the Green Party perform that well... as well as being disappointed at the lower than usual voter turn out. Anyways it looks like 75% voted centre->left which I'm sure has got the Conservatives a little worried given how wrong the party predictions turned out (and of course the resignation of a Cabinet member over the Quebec as a nation passing in the House today).

[Lady Pi Phi]

Originally Posted by RACooper

Canadian Action / Will Arlow /49/ 0.1%

Who are the Canadian Action Party?? Are they anythinbg like the Canadian National Party (I think that's what they're called)?


However, since he only got 49 votes I'm guessing their platform is none too popular.

You should have seen some of the wack jobs running for councillor in my riding (33 - Don Valley) for the municipal elections. There was this one guy, Anderson Tung, who had some serious issues with the media, and was going on and on how when he became mayor he was going to sue the CBC, the Attorney General, Julian Fantino and a whole slew of others. I think he received about 49 votes as well.

[RU OX Alum]

What is Quebec as a nation? will that apply to British Columbia as well?

[RACooper]

Lady Pi Phi - the Canadian Action Party... hmmm they are a little hard to nail down, since their politics are all over the place. For the most part they are Nationalists politically and economically (ie. very protectionist); think of the Heritage twits but liberal minded.

RU OX Alum - the recognition of Quebec as a nation within a nation is a "wonderful" new idea that our PM came up with to "deal" with the seperatists in Quebec. Before Quebec was recognized as a "seperate and disticnt society", as a result of the 1995 referedum held in Quebec about seperation from Canada (very narrowly defeated). The Harper government (well okay some of the Harper government) saw this as a way of taking the wind out of the seperatists (Bloc's) sails, and to cut the Liberal's federal hold on Quebec by showing that the Conservatives recognize Quebec more... the only problem though is that the seperatists are now proclaiming this the first step in the seperation process.