Thank you so much! And apologies for my belated reply - I've been even more slammed than usual the last few days and barely get a chance to check the news, let alone LJ...
Speaking of which, what's going on in Canada?! I hear there's a kerfuffle, but I can't quite find what it is at the root of all the squabbling. Any real chance of Harper getting booted?
what's going on in Canada?! I hear there's a kerfuffle
Here's my potted version of events:
1. We recently had a federal election, possibly the most boring election ever held. The Conservatives got the most seats in Parliament, making them the government, with their leader, Steven Harper (http://www.garth.ca/weblog/wp-content/uploads/2007/10/harper.jpg), as Prime Minister. Again.
2. Steven Harper announced the new Budget last week. It was so stupid and useless that it triggered a no-confidence motion in Parliament. Significant details: it didn't address the Recession, and he tried to cut funding to all the other political parties.
3. Here's where the tricky bit comes; usually a vote of no-confidence means a new election. But we just had a big, expensive (and did I mention boring?) election in October. So instead of that, the Liberals and the New Democratic Party decided to join together in what they called the Coalition. There are more Conservative seats in Parliament than either NDP or Liberal, but put the Liberal and NDP together and they have a party with a majority. The Bloc Quebecois (which is most of the remainder of Parliament) agreed to support this amalgamation.
This move would topple Harper as PM and make Liberal Leader Stephane Dion the Prime Minister.
With me so far?
4. On Wednesday, the evening before this was going to happen, Harper appeared on television to beg the people of Canada to keep him as PM because, well, anything else was unpatriotic. (He also used the word 'illegal' and hinted at the word 'treasonous'.)
5. The next morning, Harper went to Governor-General Michaelle Jean (http://www.gg.ca/media/pho/galleryPics/512.jpg) and asked her to suspend Parliament - because if Parliament can't sit, they can't form the Coalition government and can't boot him out of power.
6. The Governor-General agreed to this and Parliament is prorogued, which is the technical word for the suspension. Parliament can now not sit until the end of January. Till then, we technically have a government in power, the Conservatives, but they can't do anything.
7. Harper is now writing another, better Budget speech to present at the end of January, hoping it won't get him ousted.
Hmm, maybe I'll repost this in my LJ. I'm sure some other non-Canadians are confused about it all. I mean - it hasn't happened in years - something actually interesting happening in Canadian politics. Events unfold!
Thank you! That helps a lot (icon aimed at political behaviour, not explanation!).
It does seem like more than a whiff of unethical (and childish) behaviour to just take his ball and go home. (Then again, sounds like something Georgie Bush would have pulled had it been at all possible in US system.)
Prorogued is a strange word - I keep waffling between thinking about prologue, a professional rogue, and a small Cajun boat that one poles through the bayou (pirogue).
I did finally see one post that explained some of this on the Huffington Post, but this is clearer. Is the Governor-General a political person at all? Or is she ceremonial?
Obama is already working hard during this transition period.
Wouldn't you love to have the Doctor confront some of these guys and set them straight?
sounds like something Georgie Bush would have pulled had it been at all possible in US system.
There has long been a whiff of "Bush clone" about Harper, in his oh-so-Canadian way.
Prorogued is a strange word - I keep waffling between thinking about prologue, a professional rogue, and a small Cajun boat that one poles through the bayou (pirogue).
I confess: I never heard the word before and now the journalists are batting it around as if it's been in use forever.
Is the Governor-General a political person at all? Or is she ceremonial?
There has long been a whiff of "Bush clone" about Harper, in his oh-so-Canadian way.
I kind of got that impression, the little that I've seen/heard. Although he also seems to have that "so-bland-he's-practically-invisible" air about him.
I confess: I never heard the word before and now the journalists are batting it around as if it's been in use forever.
Jon Stewart did a funny piece about it last week (not one of their best, but then, it's hard when all the details aren't that well known). Then, of course, the Blagojevich thing broke, and that's just so much funnier, even without the word "prorogue".
So, basically, nothing happens in Canada until the end of January, government-wise? I remember Clinton shutting down the government in the 1990s, but that was in protest to Newt Gingrich and the Republicans refusing to deal with the budget.
Although he also seems to have that "so-bland-he's-practically-invisible" air about him.
He's been quite invisible over the last month, I tell you! There's a lot of nothing going on in Parliament right now, and we're all worrying fruitlessly about the weather and the economy.
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timeasmymeasure
no subject
Date: 2008-12-05 12:57 pm (UTC)Speaking of which, what's going on in Canada?! I hear there's a kerfuffle, but I can't quite find what it is at the root of all the squabbling. Any real chance of Harper getting booted?
Colitical mayhem and a prorogued Parliament...
Date: 2008-12-05 02:31 pm (UTC)what's going on in Canada?! I hear there's a kerfuffle
Here's my potted version of events:
1. We recently had a federal election, possibly the most boring election ever held. The Conservatives got the most seats in Parliament, making them the government, with their leader, Steven Harper (http://www.garth.ca/weblog/wp-content/uploads/2007/10/harper.jpg), as Prime Minister. Again.
2. Steven Harper announced the new Budget last week. It was so stupid and useless that it triggered a no-confidence motion in Parliament. Significant details: it didn't address the Recession, and he tried to cut funding to all the other political parties.
3. Here's where the tricky bit comes; usually a vote of no-confidence means a new election. But we just had a big, expensive (and did I mention boring?) election in October. So instead of that, the Liberals and the New Democratic Party decided to join together in what they called the Coalition. There are more Conservative seats in Parliament than either NDP or Liberal, but put the Liberal and NDP together and they have a party with a majority. The Bloc Quebecois (which is most of the remainder of Parliament) agreed to support this amalgamation.
This move would topple Harper as PM and make Liberal Leader Stephane Dion the Prime Minister.
With me so far?
4. On Wednesday, the evening before this was going to happen, Harper appeared on television to beg the people of Canada to keep him as PM because, well, anything else was unpatriotic. (He also used the word 'illegal' and hinted at the word 'treasonous'.)
5. The next morning, Harper went to Governor-General Michaelle Jean (http://www.gg.ca/media/pho/galleryPics/512.jpg) and asked her to suspend Parliament - because if Parliament can't sit, they can't form the Coalition government and can't boot him out of power.
6. The Governor-General agreed to this and Parliament is prorogued, which is the technical word for the suspension. Parliament can now not sit until the end of January. Till then, we technically have a government in power, the Conservatives, but they can't do anything.
7. Harper is now writing another, better Budget speech to present at the end of January, hoping it won't get him ousted.
Hmm, maybe I'll repost this in my LJ. I'm sure some other non-Canadians are confused about it all. I mean - it hasn't happened in years - something actually interesting happening in Canadian politics. Events unfold!
Re: Colitical mayhem and a prorogued Parliament...
Date: 2008-12-05 10:47 pm (UTC)It does seem like more than a whiff of unethical (and childish) behaviour to just take his ball and go home. (Then again, sounds like something Georgie Bush would have pulled had it been at all possible in US system.)
Prorogued is a strange word - I keep waffling between thinking about prologue, a professional rogue, and a small Cajun boat that one poles through the bayou (pirogue).
I did finally see one post that explained some of this on the Huffington Post, but this is clearer. Is the Governor-General a political person at all? Or is she ceremonial?
Re: Colitical mayhem and a prorogued Parliament...
Date: 2008-12-06 12:38 am (UTC)Wouldn't you love to have the Doctor confront some of these guys and set them straight?
sounds like something Georgie Bush would have pulled had it been at all possible in US system.
There has long been a whiff of "Bush clone" about Harper, in his oh-so-Canadian way.
Prorogued is a strange word - I keep waffling between thinking about prologue, a professional rogue, and a small Cajun boat that one poles through the bayou (pirogue).
I confess: I never heard the word before and now the journalists are batting it around as if it's been in use forever.
Is the Governor-General a political person at all? Or is she ceremonial?
She is ceremonial.
no subject
Date: 2008-12-15 09:41 pm (UTC)I kind of got that impression, the little that I've seen/heard. Although he also seems to have that "so-bland-he's-practically-invisible" air about him.
I confess: I never heard the word before and now the journalists are batting it around as if it's been in use forever.
Jon Stewart did a funny piece about it last week (not one of their best, but then, it's hard when all the details aren't that well known). Then, of course, the Blagojevich thing broke, and that's just so much funnier, even without the word "prorogue".
So, basically, nothing happens in Canada until the end of January, government-wise? I remember Clinton shutting down the government in the 1990s, but that was in protest to Newt Gingrich and the Republicans refusing to deal with the budget.
no subject
Date: 2009-01-02 05:30 pm (UTC)Although he also seems to have that "so-bland-he's-practically-invisible" air about him.
He's been quite invisible over the last month, I tell you! There's a lot of nothing going on in Parliament right now, and we're all worrying fruitlessly about the weather and the economy.