I have no idea. I like Paul Martin, but I don't necessarily like his party's politics (I think I like Paul because he was opposed to Chretien, like me...hehe). Their track record is less than impressive.
Steven Harper scares the bejeesus outta me...and I think that he waffles too much on issues like gay rights/women's rights etc. (says one thing to our faces now, believes and will act on a totally different thing behind out backs/once elected). And WHAT IS UP WITH THAT HAIR? It's like my plastic headed "Ken" doll from the 70's. Come on man, take $12 outta the campaign contributions and get to a Fantastic Sams already...(yeah, okay, I know hair doth not a good politician make, however, if elected he becomes a visible symbol/face of all Canadians...and I SO don't look like that).
Jack Layton seems to be the everyman's man, and I particularly like his social stance on health and child care. However, the party hasn't a hope in hell of actually making it in, so voting for him feels like a vote down the toilet. (All in all, I'll probably vote for him, so that when whoever -is- voted in screws up, I can say that I had nothing to do with voting them into power...)
[rant] And now one of my pet peeves about this country...Bloc Quebecois. I live in BC, a province that taxes its dwellers between 50.5 and 52.5% annually so we can subsidize Quebec and their unstable economy (I've seen the reports from the Feds on where my tax dollars go...pretty much right into the pockets of Quebec). Does the dood running for this party even KNOW where BC is? I mean, honestly. Speaking in gross generalities, BCers (and western Canadians) on the whole have little care if Quebec leaves or stays: Just make up your fricken minds already! I have been hearing about this 'issue' since I was born, and I'm over 30 now. They've had referendum after referendum and guess what? The voters said stay. I have an idea, if some in that party dislike it here soooo much, head on 'home' to France. (Yes, that's a very typical pat answer from a Westerner on this non-issue in the minds of a good half of the country...)
I was forced to learn French (which is fine for the cereal boxes it's printed on that I might have turned that way at the breakfast table, or the one or two cute phrases I can chuck back and forth with my bf...I know about the same amount of Spanish, Italian, and German and didn't have it shoved down my throat). I understand that students in Quebec (at least at the time I was in school) did not have the same mandate to learn English (needing to preserve the mother tongue and all that). It's not that I dislike French (it just has no real impact on my life here in the west), or French people, or Quebecers (sp?). But the party that is pushing for this is making a mountain out of a molehill...Westerners might as well be dog crap under Ottawa's shoes for the attention given (unless we have rampant forest fires or natural disasters, or we manage to land the 2010 olympics...then we're no longer the bastard step-child), and yet Ottawa bends over backwards to keep Quebec from 'leaving'. And through it all, this party whines about how 'bad' they have it, and how their rights and freedoms and life would be so much better if Ottawa wasn't involved in it. [/rant]
I wonder what would happen if the rest of the country got to vote on the separatist issue.
What I'd really like to know is when the US is gonna come and annex us already. I want more Hershey products and Cheezits in my stores!
P.S. Wow. It feels neat to be able to spew my feelings about politics out there and know that someone may disagree, and that it's okay. What a freedom!
