A meme for Canadians deciding how to vote

Regular readers know that we run a lot of memes from the Memesters Union at the Patriot Post. Today we have something from north of the World's Longest Partially Defended Border (TM), which we're sure expresses the feelings of a great many Canadians.

You're not likely to see this in the Canuck social media though. It's not "social" enough for the oh-so-polite frost-backs. More like ANTI-social, the lamestream media say. Thanks to all at Blazing Cat Fur.

Canadian election: Whose side is Trump on?

For our readers who don't live in the People's Republic of Canuckistan, here's a quick guide to what's happening in the general election, set for April 28th.

On the left in the photos below -- but not so hard left as his loony colleagues Steven Guilbeault and Chrystia Freeland -- is Mark Carney, leader of the Gliberal Party of Canada.Unlike the other two, Mr Carnage has never been elected to anything. But was Governor of the Bank of Canada and the Bank of England. He is a banker, and a member of the WEF liberal elite.

On the right -- but not so hard right as his former colleague Maxime Bernier, now leader of the People's Party of Canada -- is Pierre Poilievre, leader of the Conservative Party of Canada. Mr Poilievre is a much-elected politician and former member of the cabinet of the much-unloved Steven Harpoon. This is his first test as leader of the Cuckservatives.

M Poilievre dislikes being referred to as "Pipi" (American readers note: it's pronounced "pee-pee".) He enjoyed being called "Canada's Donald Trump"... until recently.

For you see, gentle reader, the vast [or at least half-vast. Ed.] majority of Canucks dislike President Donald J. Trump. Intensely. Their fear and loathing of the Donald [That would make a good book title. If only HST were still alive. Ed.] has intensified since January 20th, owing to Mr Trump's straight-faced suggestions that Canada shoujld become the 51st of the Excited States of Canada, and his nonsensical campaign of tariffs to make it so.

The Liberal propagandists who run the state-owned CB C (Canadian Broadcorping Castration) as well and other lickspittle media (CBC) have put together a surprisingly effective TV commerical in which they juxtapose quotes from President Trump with quotes from Pipi, which shows them to be saying basically the same things. 

They're painting M Poilievre as "just like Trump", and it seems to be working. The Tories have plummeted in the polls while the Liberals have risen, and now lead by around five points. Having a new leader to replace the hated Emperor Trudeau has helped the Grits, but it's the comparison with POTUS that bites the Cuckservatives in the ass.

A few days before the election was called, President Trump made public out his unflattering opinion of M Poilievre, saying he is "not a MAGA guy." Pouncing on the chance to distance himself from Mr Trump, Pipi responded on X, "Mr President, it is true. I am not MAGA. I am for Canada First. Always. Canada has always been America’s best friend & ally. But we will NEVER be the 51st state."

President Trump attacked M Poilievre during a nearly hour-long interview with Ben Domenech, editor-at-large at the British magazine The Spectator. He warned Pipi not to make the mistake of thinking he will "be the tough guy"” and "knock out Trump. They all make that mistake… They end up getting the hell beat out of them."

Will saying that President Trump doesn't like him help the Cuckservative leader at the polls in which Canada's relations with the US of A be the chief issue? Was Mr Trump trying to give M Poilievre a boost by putting daylight between them? Is a puzzlement, especially given his Big Friendly Phone Call with the new Liberal leader yesterday..

Prime Minister Carnage and President Trump held their first-ever conversation on Friday, after which the former announced that they had agreed to comprehensive negotiations... after the upcoming federal election. Presumably if M Poilievre wins all bets are off.

"The spirit of the call was both cordial and focused on making progress," Mr Carney told the assembled lapdogs at a campaign event in  Montréal later in the day. You could almost hear the smirk on his face as he said, "The president respected Canada’s sovereignty today, both in his private and public comments."

Until yesterday, Mr Trump repeatedly trolled former PM Blackie McBlackiface, calling him "Governor Trudeau" of the hypothetical 51st state. But after the call, POTUS repeatedly referred to Mr Carnage as "prime minister".

And there was more (comparative) sweetness and light. Speaking to reporters in the Oval Office, President Trump said he will "absolutely" follow through on his threat of large-scale tariffs if Canada take actions against the American economy. Yet he also toned down his language toward Canada, who he has previously accused of ripping off and "cheating" the US of A on trade but declined to say so again. 

"I'm not referring to Canada," he said pointedly, "but many other countries have been taking advantage of us... We had a very good talk, the prime minister and myself, and I think things are going to work out very well between Canada and the United States."

What's going on? Why the sudden change of tone? Are yesterday's statements meant to help Mr Carnage by showing that Mr Trump can get along with him? Or to hurt Mr Carnage by showing that Mr Trump can get along with him? How would I know? President Trump's logic is too deep for me. I need my hip-waders.

VIDEO: People's Party of Canada promises an end to DEI, wokeism

DEI is a joke. Even in Canada, where people are too polite to diss that ideology, at least in public, they make jokes about it in private. "DEI = DIE", "diversity is our strength (NOT)", that kind of thing. 

Absurd though wokeism is, not one of the three major Canadian political parties has the cojones to challenge the DEI ideology promoted by the liberal elites, the loonie left, the academia nuts and their lickspittle media. You might as well call the Liberals, NDP and Cuckservatives the "Uniparty" because, when it comes to political correctness, they're all the same.

The only party to stand up against wokeism and DEI is the People's Party of Canada, whose leader, Maxime Bernier, made his party's stand clear today, in this video. (Cliquer ici pour voir la version française.)

M Bernier was speaking in support of Patricia Conlin, the PPC candidate in the upcoming by-election in the Ontario riding of Durham. Click here to learn more about Ms Conlin and her campaign. Walt wishes her and "Mad Max" all the best.

VIDEO: PPC's Max Bernier will give it another shot

In spite of the ruination of their country "progressing" day after day of the Trudeau dicktatorship, the sheeple of Canuckistan don't think much about politics in May. Hey, the Stanley Cup playoff are on. But it's now officially spring, because the Leafs are out. So Canadians can now turn their attention to getting rid of the smarmy, smug and loathsome Blackie McBlackface.

The next federal election is not due until 2025, although it could come earlier if the pinko "New" Democratic Party gets tired of its role as Trudeau's bitch. However, there is a vacancy in the riding of Portage-Lisgar, a Manitoba seat previously held by Conservative Candice Bergen, who resigned in February. That means a byelection must be held not later than August. Yesterday, Maxime Bernier, erstwhile leader of the People's Party of Canada, became the first to throw his chapeau in the ring. Click here to watch the presser in which he announced his candidacy.

"Mad Max" (as he is known affectionately, and Walt means that sincerely), says the vote in Portage-Lisgar will be a choice between him and what he called a "fake conservative". He told supporters in Portage la Prairie, that the area reminds him of his home riding, and urged them to make history by electing the first member of Parliament representing his party to "open the floodgates." "This byelection" he said "is the starting of a major turning point in Canadian politics!"

  

Portage-Lisgar, in rural Manitoba, is definitely conservative territory. In the last federal election, the PPC candidate there got 22% of the vote, a much better result than in most other ridings. The people of that area want a true conservative, M Bernier said, comparing his party to the former Reform Party. He has learned from that party's mistakes in previous elections, he said, and has no plans to merge with the federal Conservatives Cuckservatives. 

M Bernier urged supporters to join a political revolution and took shots at the Liberals, the NDP and especially the Conservatives, whom he accused of only caring about voters during elections. He also said Canada has changed dramatically for the worse in recent years, railing against what he called "the woke cult" and "moral and cultural degeneracy." He claimed that Canadian society has been overtaken by evil and "those who reject it are silenced and smeared as intolerant, racist and transphobic."

Canada badly needs a truly conservative voice in its politics and its Parliament. Walt wishes "Mad Max" all the best. 

Whither the People's Party of Canada?

As reported here last Sunday, the self-styled Conservative Party of Canada, having failed under two "moderate" leaders -- Andrew Scheep and Erin O'Tool -- to distinguish itself from the ruling Liberals, has now chosen a new and (they hope) better leader, Pierre Poilievre.

The lickspittle media long ago labelled M Poilievre as a "right wing populist" and "the Canuck version of to Donald Trump". Hardly. Populist he may be, but, as I told you way back in April in "The problem with Poilievre", he is no social conservative, let alone a turn-back-the-clock right-winger. He reminds me not so much of The Donald as of a nasty, bilingual version of Ronald Reagan.

Earlier this week, the new Tory leader [Canadians have stopped using that word. Ed.] announced his new leadership team on Tuesday. Left on the outside looking in was Leslyn Lewis, MP, seen here at the Freedom Rally in Ottawa last February.

Dr Lewis, who has a perfect rating on issues pertaining to life and family. Despite presenting a strong pro-life, pro-faith message, she finished third in the CPC leadership race. 

But there's no room in Pierre Poilievre's coterie for such as she. The press release included an image of "My inflation-busting leadership team", standing together in front of those same Parliament buildings.

One of PP's team is Melissa Lantsman, a proud lesbian Member of Parliament. Another is Ontario MP Eric Duncan, an openly homosexual man, who was appointed to party-caucus liaison,

Another notable absent from the team was former party leader Erin O'Tool, who was ousted quickly after he took a squishy stance on February's Freedom Convoy. M Poilievre's choice of MPs with anti-life and pro-LGBT voting records are not surprising, considering he himself has been given a failing grade by Campaign Life Coalition due to his pro-abortion voting record.

Where will the Conservative Party's more traditionalist and libertarian members, like Andrew Scheer, go now? Will they sit on the back bench, behind PP (on the left, wearing the pink tie) or will they join Canada's only truly conservative party, the People's Party of Canada, led by Maxime Bernier, on the right. (Geddit?)

The choice will be difficult, if not impossible, even for Dr Lewis, for the simple reason that the PPC seems destined for the ashheap of Canadian political history. They have been languishing at 4-5 per cent in public opinion polls, which is remarkable for a party founded only recently. 

But they have no seats in Parliament -- "Mad Max" failed for the second time to win his own riding of Beauce -- and are in grave danger of being crushed by the stampede of conservatives hurrying to get aboard the CPC bandwagon, since M Poilievre looks certain to beat the socks of Just In Trudeau whenever the latter dares to call an election.

Walt's headline question, then, might better be: Wither the People's Party of Canada? It's sad.

Worth watching: "Individuality and Autonomy: Maxime Bernier and the PPC", recorded by Dr Jordan B. Peterson on The JBP Podcast, exactly a year ago.

Further reading (added 17/9/22): "The Trudeau factor in Pierre Poilievre's big win", by good ole Rex Murphy in the National Post. Subhead: "Conservative chief's leadership campaign was greatly helped by the Liberals' increasingly embarrassing feats of incompetence"

VIDEO: Trending up! "Mad Max" Bernier fact-checks two years of lies

February was a turbulent time in Canadian politics, what with the Freedom Convoy leading the charge against the tyranny of the Trudeau Liberal government. The world's second-coldest capital city was occupied. Border crossings were shut down. And ordinary citizens fighting for freedom were bullied, arrested, and deprived of access to their bank accounts.

Prime Minister Blackie McBlackface claimed that the protesters and their supporters were just a "small fringe minority" of racists, neo-Nazis yada yada yada who held "unacceptable views". In fact there are millions of Canadians who agree with the truckers, and the growing popularity of this "populist fringe" has been duly noted by the elites, who are starting to run scared... scared of the people!

They might well be scared. Nanos Research numbers, reported by CTV in mid-February, show a continuing rise in "accessible voters" for the People's Party of Canada -- a trend that began during the run-up to last year's federal election.

On the latest episode of Trend Line, Nanos Research's Nik Nanos said that the percentage of Canadians polled who would consider voting for the People's Party of Canada (PPC) usually sits at around 10 per cent. But as of Feb. 16, that number has gone up to 16 per cent, which Nanos calls a "material increase."

   

On the ballot question, when it comes to how many Canadians would actually vote for the party as their first-ranked choice, the PPC is polling at seven per cent nationally, ahead of the Green party and on par with the Bloc Québécois. (It should be noted, however, that the BQ only runs candidates in Québec, so its support is only in la Belle Province, whereas the PPC appeals to Canucks from sea to sea.)

Nick Nanos said, "What's clear is that over the last number of weeks, an increasing number of Canadians have put them on the political menu as an option."

Indeed. And it will be part of the PPC strategy to keep its leader, "Mad Max" Bernier, front and centre during the popular uprising against woke authoritarianism and Just In Trudeau's Liberals, as well as the CINOs (Conservatives in Name Only -- sometimes called "Red Tories") who, in this time of crisis, want to keep their asses not on the front lines but on the fence!

In this video, from the PPC channel on Rumble, M Bernier tells the truth about the Covid dempanic and the elites' vaccine mandates, the real purpose of which is total control of the bodies and minds of the people.  

The PPC recently started "Mad Max Live", a video town hall in which M Bernier gives good answers (not just "talking points") to the very good questions Canadians have about what's happening to the Not-so-great Not-so-white North. Episode 2 appeared on YouTube yesterday. Running time 70 minutes. Click here to check it out!

"Nationwide insurrection!"? In Canada, you say? Really?

Ottawa police chief Peter "Moves" Sloly told his bosses, the Ottawa Police Services Board, that his "resources" are inadequate to evict the Freedom Convoy protesters now in their second week of peaceful demonstrations in the world's second-coldest capital.

Responding to pointed questions from the Board chairthingy, the diversity hire said, "As I look at the definition of adequate and effective policing, there is literally nothing in that definition of adequate and effective policing that could resolve a city under siege, that is a democracy threatened by a nationwide insurrection driven by madness." 

Wait a second. Did Chief Sloly really use the words "nationwide insurrection"?! Yes he did! Let's deconstruct that phrase. We'll ignore the incorrect use of "nation" -- in today's political orthodoxy, Canada comprises at least three "nations" -- and agree that the protests are indeed countrywide. 1000s of truckers, farmers and their supporters gathered yesterday in major cities across Canada, including Vancouver, and provincial capitals Québec, Toronto, Regina, Winnipeg, and smaller centres across Canuckistan. 

But is this photo, taken in Québec City yesterday, a scene from an "insurrection"? Look closely and you will see at least two of the green, white and red Drapeaux des Patriotes (Patriot Flags), featuring Le Vieux de `37. The old man (le vieux) is a depiction of a freedom fighter from the short-lived rebellion of 1837 in which Québécois patriots rose up against the English government of what was then called Lower Canada. There was a similar protest in York (now Toronto) against the Anglican "Family Compact".

What were those "rebels" fighting for? They were not anti-vaxxers! Yet Canada's lickspittle media are now pushing the Liberal Party line that today's protesters are just luddites and science-deniers who don't want to take their jabs. No. The patriots of yesteryear were fighting for freedom, just like those of today. 

Note the word "liberté", on the placard front and centre. That's "liberté" as in "liberté, égalité, fraternité" -- "liberty, equality, brotherhood". That's what this "insurrection" is all about, just as People's Party leader Maxime Bernier told the Ottawa protesters a couple of days ago. That and "Fuck Trudeau!"

Still, "insurrection" is a pretty strong word. The usual definition is: a violent uprising against an authority or government. The only report of physical violence reported so far was in Winnipeg yesterday when someone -- an agent provocateur planted by the authorities? -- drove an SUV into a crowd of protesters. That's it. The protests themselves have been not just "mostly peaceful", but totally peaceful.

The word "insurrection" also suggests organization and leadership, such as that shown at York by the firebrand William Lyon Mackenzie (grandfather of a future prime minister) and in Montréal by Louis-Joseph Papineau, whose name is now that of a Montréal Metro station and a federal electoral district. So far, no such leader has emerged from the throng of freedom fighters. The demonstrations appear to be genuinely spontaneous.

The liberal politicians and media are clutching their pearls and moaning about incipient "Trumpism" and the "death of democracy" in Canada. Some Canadians may wish it so, but we must be careful not to read too much into the present popular discontent. 

History buffs see parallels with the 1980s demonstrations which sparked the downfall of the Communist régimes of Poland, East Germany, Romania etc. But most Canadians are not yet ready to hunt down their near-Communist prime minister (still hiding in an "undisclosed location") and hang him by his heels. Won't happen today... because it's Sunday, and nothing happens on Sunday in Canada. But stay tuned.

Further reading: "Attack of the Transphobic Putin-Nazi Truckers!", on the CONSENT FACTORY, INC. blogsite: "Manufacturing consent for private and public sector clients for over 250 years". Thanks for Arnie at BCF for reposting this. Here's an excerpt.

"This is where we are at the moment. We are in that dangerous, absurdist end-stage of the collapse of a totalitarian system or movement where chaos reigns and anything can happen. The official Covid narrative is rapidly evaporating. More and more people are taking to the streets to demand an end to whole fascist charade … no, not 'transphobic white supremacists' or 'anti-vax extremists,' or 'Russian-backed Nazis,' but working-class people of all colors and creeds, families, with children, all over the world."

Walt explains Canadian politics: 50 shades of red

One thing Americans can be thankful for today is the two-party system which has been the norm in US politics for most of the country's 240 (give or take) years. With only two parties to choose from, you have a clear choice. You know where they stand. You know where you stand. Do what you think is right.

The downside of having just two parties -- right (ish) and left (ish) -- is that those two parties have to accommodate a wide range of right(ish) and left(ish) opinions and policies with their "big tents". The Republicans have to deal with the raving right, including (some say), the alt-right. The Democrats have to pander to the growing numbers of looney lefties, including the likes of the Squad.

The result is a lot of division, or divisiveness, or, dare we say it, polarization. There's a lot of rancor in the air these days. You can even see it. The way things are now, even the colour of your hat makes a political statement. It's no longer white hats vs black hats, like in the old westerns, but Red Hats vs Blue Hats. 

How the Republicans wound up being officially Red, and the Democrats Blue, is a mystery. In the rest of the world, blue is the colour of the right -- Britain's Conservatives, for example -- and red is the colour of the left, from Britain's Labour Party to (of course) the Communists, everywhere. 

It's the same in Canada. Blue is the official colour of the so-called Conservative Party of Canada, and red is that of the Natural Governing Party, which is what Canada's Liberals call themselves. But there are other parties -- four others, unless you work for the CBC (Canadian Propaganda Corporation), in which case you recognize only three.

The only truly conservative party in Canada is Maxime Bernier's People's Party of Canada. That's the one the CBC wouldn't recognize until they started to poll  higher than the Greens. Their official colour is purple, which is the colour of PPC members' faces whenever Liberal Prime Minister Just In Trudeau is mentioned.

The other five parties -- counting only those with over 2% of the popular vote in Canada's last federal election -- are all liberal. Their official colous don't disguise the fact that their policies range in hue from pale red to deep red.

Just slightly in the red (policy-wise) are the aforementioned Conservatives, who, under leader Erin O'Tool, moved well to the left of centre to attract "progressive" voters who don't care for Mr Socks. All they managed to do was alienate their conservative base, which is why they lost the election. 

All Blackie McBlackface had to do to win was to remind people he that he's the liberal Liberal. Colour him Red.

Farther to the left are Canada's "New" Democrats, founded 60 years ago, hence the quote marks around "New". Their colour is orange, to match one of their leader's turbans. Their whole campaign pitch was that their social democratic (or democratic socialist) policies would ruin the country even faster than the Trudeau Liberals. Didn't work, and having a Sikh at the helm didn't help them much outside of the "little Khalistans" of Toronto and Vancouver.

The official colour of the Bloc Québécois is powder blue. The colour of their policies is pink, but not quite as pink as those of the NDP. Most Canadians don't know what the BQ stands for, since they only field candidates in Québec, and explain themselves only in French. 

That brings us the sixth and last party, the darling of the controlled media but dead last in the hearts and minds of Canadians -- the Green Party. Their official colour is... well, you already figured that out. But their policies are the reddest of red, so much so that their last leader upset the party members who chose her by not being sufficiently anti-Israel.

The last Green leader was Enemy [Annamie, shurely! Ed.] Paul, a black Jewish woman -- ticking three boxes right there -- who finished a distant fourth in her own riding. The party managed to elect just two Members of Parliament, the same as in the last House. One of those won by default after the Liberal candidate in his riding got MeTooed.

Ms Paul resigned before she could be fired, but not without trying for a green parachute and blaming her troubles on racism and sexism... and maybe anti-Semitism too. No surprises there. Anyway, she's gone, and the Greens have now chosen an interim leader, in the person of  Amita Kuttner -- pictured at left. [Geddit? Ed.] Kuttner describes herself as a "nonbinary astrophysicist" and "an expert in black holes". Seriously. You can look it up on the CBC website.

At the tender age of 30, Kuttner will be the youngest person as well as the first trans person to lead a federal political party. In a statement, Kuttner said they were "honoured to have been selected ... during this time of transition and renewal."

What? "Kuttner said they were honoured..."? Referring to whom? Ah... pronoun problems. Since Kuttner is "trans", no-one, including the CBC knows whether to say "xim", "xe", "xer","xis" or... whatever. 

Similarly, we don't know which honorific to use. [Maybe "Mr/s" or "Ms/r"? Ed.] All the same, Kuttner, like her predecessor-but-one, the tired and over-refreshed Elizabeth May, will be the darling of the lamestream media, as if "they" were head of a real party. And "they" will be the butt of the same old joke, "Kuttner? Party of one?"

New blog interviews PPC leader Max Bernier

Ed. here. Walt is on his way to a corner of the forest where there is [gasp!] no Internet. We don't want to leave you with nothing to read while you wait for Walt to return, so today we present this link to an interview with Maxime Bernier, the indefatigable leader of the People's Party of Canada, which appeared yesterday in The Counter Signal. 

Their lede: Having risen from obscurity to overshadow the Green Party, the PPC has shown itself to be the first genuinely Right-wing alternative that might go somewhere. Now the question on many people's minds is "What's next for the PPC?" and how will they keep up the momentum they built during their campaign.... The Counter Signal sat down with PPC Leader Maxime Bernier to find out.

The Counter Signal is a new blog, at least new to us. It looks like it originates in western Canada, where the real conservatives roam. Good luck to the bloggers, and thanks to our friends at Blazing Cat Fur for sharing the link.

Canadian election: Impact of the People's Party of Canada

In yesterday's analysis of the pointless and inconclusive Canadian election, I wrote (in the first footnote) that Maxime Bernier's People's Party of Canada had drawn enough votes away from the so-called Conservative Party to cause them to lost "seven or eight" ridings.

A former Conservative Member of Parliament with the improbable name of Inky Mark has done a more careful analysis, and finds that the actual number of seats the Cons could have won, had they had the votes cast for the PPC, is... wait for it... 22! Here's his list.

That should provide some food for thought for "Conservative" strategists when they conduct their review of leader pro tem  Erin O'Tool's clever (?) plan to make the CPC resemble the Gliberals in all but name (and party colour, of course).

Footnote: As of this morning, there are 17 ridings in which the result of in-person voting is close enough that the mail-in ballots could overturn the provisional result. I'll post the final seat count after the Liberal appointees at Elections Canada get through manipulating it, but if you bet Blackie McBlackface would lose... pay up!

Further reading: "The Problem With Canada", by David Solway on PJ Media, 22/9/21.

The pointless Canadian election - no clear winners, only one clear loser

Yesterday's Canadian federal election, which promised to be interesting, turned out to be a big fat nothing-burger. 36 days and $600,000,000 ($480 million in real money) later, Canuckistan will once again be governed by the Liberal Party of Canada and its super-woke leader, Blackie McBlackface, aka Justin Trudeau, pictured at right. [Should be on the left, shurely! Ed.]

The composition of the House of Commons (analogous to the US House of Representatives) remains virtually unchanged. When the last Parliament was dissolved, the Gliberals held 155 seats, the self-styled Conservatives (really the alt-Liberals) had 119, le Bloc Québécois 32, the New Democrats (celebrating their 60th anniversary) 24, and the Green Party 2. There were 5 independents and 1 seat was vacant.

When the sun rose over Parliament Hill this morning, the Liberals were elected or leading in 157 ridings (+2), the Red Tories 119 (unchanged), the BQ 34 (+2), NDP 25 (+1), and the Soylent Greens 2 (unchanged). One MP who was fired by the Liberals two days before the election under suspicion of sexual misconduct will have to sit as an independent.

The People's Party of Canada, led by Maxime Bernier and endorsed by YVT, had no seats in the last parliament and will have no seats in the new one, as "Mad Max" failed to win his home riding of Beauce.

Canadian Conservatives can make the same claim as they did in 2019 and the US Dumbocrats did in 2016, that they are the real winners because they won more of the popular vote -- 34% to the Liberals' 32.5% -- but too bad for them, the systems of both countries are similar in that you can win the popular vote and still lose the election. 

Now let's take a look at the party leaders, to see who were the winners and who the losers.

Justin Trudeau called the election, in the middle of the kung flu pandemic, for no reason other than his egomaniacal desire to win a third term with a majority. He didn't. So we can say he lost. But he's still Prime Minister of Canuckistan this morning, so he also won.

The leader of the alleged Conservatives, Erin O'Toole, lost an election that was his to win. Mr Socks is the most loathed prime minister in Canadian history -- and that's saying something! -- and could have been beaten, had the Cons offered a real alternative. That they didn't is on Mr O'Tool, who deliberately dragged his party from the centre to the left, in hopes of appealing to "progressive" voters. Mr O'Tool will likely face a fight to continue in his role as leader. Still, he can say that his party increased its share of the popular vote, so in that sense he's a "winner", just like Hellery Clinton.  

Yves-François Blanchet's Bloc Québécois gained two seats, which makes M Blanchet a winner, except that, in spite of finishing in third place, they don't hold the balance of power in the minority government, since Mr Socks can count on the support of the NDP to do whatever they like to Canada, including Québec, which is all M Blanchet cares about anyway. [Walt! What have I told you about run-on sentences?! Ed.]

The socialist NDP, led by Jagmeet Singh, is down one seat, which makes Mr Singh a loser, since they should have been able to do better with liberals fed up with M Trudeau. Still, they are the real holders of the balance of power and can bring down the Liberals if they choose. But that's Strike Two for Mr Singh and he won't be in any hurry to step up to the plate a third time.

Annamie Paul was the first black, Jewish woman to lead a "national Party", although to call the Green Party "national" is being charitable, since it ran candidates in only two-thirds of the ridings. She finished a distant fourth in her own riding of Toronto Centre, and her party was lucky to win two seats, the same total (but not the same seats) as last time. Even before the election, the Green Party brass was trying to oust her, and she will likely step down after a decent interval.

Finally, let us consider the fate of Maxime Bernier, erstwhile leader of the People's Party of Canada, which he founded just four years ago. He lost his own riding by a margin of more than 2 to 1. But under his leadership, and as a result of his tireless campaigning right across the huge empty country, the PPC's share of the vote increased from 1.6% in 2019 to nearly 6% at last count. 

The analysts, pundits, etc agree: The PPC is real, and here to stay! IMHO, that makes "Mad Max" a winner!

FOOTNOTE: Where the PPC did make a difference was in seven or eight ridings where the PPC drew just enough votes, mainly from the Conservatives, to let the Liberal candidate win. That should be a lesson for the Conservatives about the perils of alienating the real conservatives just to appease the "moderates".

ANOTHER FOOTNOTE: Early this morning, the Campaign Life Coalition issued a news release saying it was disappointed but not surprised by the election result. "The Conservatives would've done much better," they said, "if O'Toole had not alienated the party’s socially conservative base with his shameless support for abortion, LGBT ideology, oppressive lockdowns and liberty-destroying vaccine passports." [My emphasis. Walt]

VIDEO: Canadian election: Dr Jordan Peterson talks with Max Bernier

Right from the day Prime Minister Blackie McBlackface called the totally unnecessary general election to be held on September 20th, the Canadian media -- bought and paid for by the Liberal government -- have pretended that Maxime Bernier and his People's Party of Canada don't exist. So also with the pollsters and, as reported here, the "non-partisan" (HA!) Leaders' Debate Commission. 

There was, and still is, a rather obvious conspiracy to silence any voices not subscribing to the liberal orthodoxy. It has become impossible, just this week, for the elites and their controlled media to ignore "Mad Max" and the PPC any longer. Just today a poll by the liberal Nick Nanos showed the PPC with over 7% support nationwide, compared with the 2% of the popular vote which they garnered in the 2019 election. 

The so-called (but not really) Conservatives, and their leader Erin O'Toole, are quaking in their boots, fearing that the PPC will bleed off just enough of their support to ensure a win for the loathsome Liberals. 

Dr Jordan Peterson, well known as a voice of conservative reason in a loony liberal world, invited both M Bernier and Mr O'Tool to discuss their positions, and the future of conservatism in Canada. Mr O'Tool declined. So now we have Dr Peterson's wide-ranging interview with M Bernier, recorded yesterday. If you have yet to hear M Bernier explain himself and his aims, here's your chance.

 

Further viewing: "The Great Non-Debate - Part 3", WWW 10/9/21 -- Lauren Chen debriefs Max Bernier and David Freiheit, the PPC candidate in the riding of Montréal-Westmount.

Now, for the last time: Walt's advice for conservative Canucks, and everyone else who's sick of Just In Trudeau and all his pomps and wokeness: 

If you live in a riding where the Conservative candidate is in a close race with the Liberals or NDP, hold your nose and vote for him/her. 

If you're in a Québec riding where the Cons have little chance, vote for the PPC if they have a decent chance of winning, otherwise for the Bloc. 

In all other circumstances, cast your ballot for the only party that offers a real conservative alternative -- Maxime Bernier's People's Party of Canada.

Unless something really astounding happens this weekend, this will likely be my last post until Tuesday. I am planning to be somewhere north of the World's Longest Undefended Border to watch the returns come in on Monday. It promises to be a long and interesting night.

VIDEO: Canadian Election: The Great Non-Debate - Part 3

Further to Walt's two earlier posts, here's a discussion of last night's debate farce. Lauren Chen talks with David Freiheit, creator of the Viva PPC YouTube channel, and Maxime Bernier, leader of the People's Party of Canada.

 

Max was lucky, IMHO, to have been excluded from this week's gong show. And now he's doubly lucky to have this opportunity to answer, without interruption, the arguments, calumnies and outright lies of the lickspittle media. Thanks to all those involved.

Canadian election: Rigged Leaders' Debates over, now what? - Part 1

Subhead seen on the CBC News website report on Wednesday night's "Débat des Chefs": "The five main party leaders will meet again on Thursday for the English debate." Did you catch that? "five main party leaders"! Ha ha! It is to laugh! The Liberal (and liberal) bias of the so-called "non-partisan" Leaders' Debate Commission was on full display, along with blatant rigging to silence any conservative voices, as Walt's question of August 28th was answered in the negative. 

In spite of polling ahead of both the Bloc Québécois and the ultrawoke Green Party, People's Party of Canada leader Maxime Bernier -- the man without the mask -- was excluded. Thus the "debates" amounted to nothing more than a liberal love-in, as the four leaders who aren't Just In Trudeau tripped all over themselves to say that they agreed with his "progressive" policies -- including "vaccine mandates" and carbon taxes -- the only issue being who should be Prime Minister come September 21st. 

What did voters want to hear about? A poll conducted exclusively for True North revealed that the two most important issues for hapless Canucks were getting through the kung flu pandemic (36%) and climate change (30%). High-profile issues like foreign affairs and terrorism (read: China and Afghanistan) and "indigenous reconciliation" (read: hand out more money to the victims industry) were the least of respondents' concerns, at 2% and 7% respectively.

So which issues did the alleged journalists and pundits asking the questions focus on? You guessed it. Reconciliation got about 18% of the airtime on Thursday night, and the proceedings both nights started with the now obligatory "land acknowledgment ceremony" in which the emcee said how grateful everyone was that the People Formerly Known As Indians were allowing the debates to be held on land that had been stolen from them.

The official topics for Wednesday night's French-language debate were climate change, the cost of living, "cultural identity" (which skirted the reconciliation non-issue), the pandemic and mandatory vaccines, justice and foreign policy. All five of the participants were pretty much in agreement on those things, so the four who aim to replace Blackie McBlackface threw in "trust and integrity", and whether this election is even necessary. 

In his first exchange with M Trudeau, Erin O'Tool, leader of the Mildly Conservative Party, asked, "Why did you call an election in the middle of a pandemic?... This isn't the time to be dividing people." Jugmeat Singh, leader of the Few Democrats chimed in, "The only reason to call an election is a selfish one. To gain more power. That was not the right thing to do." 

Mr Socks' lame response was that Canadians deserve a say on how the country gets out of the pandemic. Mr Singh countered that there was no real choice, since the two main parties -- and there are only those two -- were like Tweedledumb and Tweedledumber. (He didn't use that phrase. It's mine!)

With no real disagreements on the issues, what amounted to a liberal love-in droned on for two house, the only sparks coming when M Trudeau engaged his drama queen gear. When Yves-François Blanchet (leader of the Bloc Québécois) said he was the only one standing up for the rights of Québec and Québécois, M Trudeau got all huffy and said he was just as much a Québecker as M Blanchet. In fact thatès not true, as Just In's mother, née Margaret Sinclair, was from the western province of Saskatchewan, and never bothered to learn French or otherwise become part of the "Québec nation".

That reminds me of a story I heard recently about the wife of Emperor Trudeau I. She was always something of an airhead, an earlier version of Princess Di, who married a much older man for reasons known only to her. She may also have had a problem with, errr, substance abuse. (It was all the rage in the disco era.) Anyhoo, she took to hanging out with the celebs at New York's Studio 54, and was photographed "going commando", showing a type of Canadian beaver not seen on the nickel. When asked to comment, Pierre (le père de Just In) allegedly said, "I hope Teddy Kennedy drives her home!" 

But I digress. [Indeed. Can you just wrap up Wednesday night and we'll leave Thursday for the next post? Ed.] OK! Election debates always come with high expectations, to which they rarely live up. Wednesday night's debate was no exception. It did, however, signal that the languid pace of this summer campaign is over now. 

 The leaders' messaging, their efforts to stand apart from their opponents, the occasional lame barbs they traded back and forth, all amounted to an acknowledgement by the party leaders that the public opinion polls they profess to ignore are right. This race is close. A majority government appears out of reach for the two frontrunners. That means it's time for strategic voting.

Walt's advice for conservative Canucks, and everyone else who's sick of Just In Trudeau and all his pomps and wokeness: If you live in a riding where the Conservative candidate is in a close race, hold your nose and vote for him/her. If you're in a Québec riding where the Cons have little chance, vote for the PPC if they have a decent chance of winning, otherwise for the Bloc.

In all other circumstances, cast your ballot for the only party that offers a real conservative alternative -- Maxime Bernier's People's Party of Canada. The PPC is sitting at around 8%, nation-wide, in the latest polls. It would be wonderful, and good for Canada, to see them win not just Mad Max's seat (Beauce) but one or two besides.

Note from Ed.: Once Walt gets the bit between it's teeth, it's hard to stop him. Part 2 of his report on the Leaders' Debates follows momentarily.

UPDATED: Canada's only conservative leader barred from debate

As some of our readers [Well, a few... Ed.] have noticed, the Rt. Hon. Blackie McBlackface, Emperor of Canada, prevailed upon the Governor-General (whom he appointed mere weeks ago) to issue the writ for a general election to be held on 20 September 2021. I understand M Trudeau (for it is he) has bought a whole new suit of clothes -- the Emperor's New Clothes -- for the occasion.

Mr Socks is the leader of one of the six parties with more than 1% of support in the polls contesting the election. They are, in alphabetical order:

- le Bloc Québécois, led by Yves-François Blanchet

- the Conservative Party of Canada, led by Erin O'Toole... with an "e", to be sure

- the Green Party of Canada, led by Annamie Paul, who is a black woman who professes to be Jewish, thus the current darling of the lamestream media

- the Liberal Party of Canada, led by Himself

- the New Democratic Party (60 years old this year), led by Jagmeet Singh, who is a south Asian Sikh but (too bad for him) not a woman

and... wait for it...

- le Parti Populaire du Canada / People's Party of Canada, led by Maxime Bernier.

You remember "Mad Max" don't you? If not, check out "Non à l'implantation d’un passeport sanitaire! / Say No to the Vaccine Passport!", a short video posted here six days ago. 

The Leaders' Debates Commission, a supposedly non-partisan group chaired by former Governor-General David Johnston, is organizing two Leaders' Debates, in French and English, to be televised on September 8th and 9th. The Commission announced, very quietly, late Friday afernoon (when all Canadians are en route to their cottages), that all the leaders had been invited to participate, with the exception of... wait for it... Maxime Bernier!

The excuse given by the Commission for deplatforming Mad Max is that to be eligible to participate, one must be the leader of a party which:

- has at least one MP in the House of Commons who was elected as a member of that party

-.received at least four per cent of the total number of votes cast in the 2019 election, and

- has a national support level of at least four per cent, five days after the date the election is called, as measured by leading national public opinion polling organizations.

The first criterion was in place in 2019 but was struck down by a court challenge, since M Bernier had a seat in Parliament, having been elected as a Conservative prior to forming the PPC. So the second and third criteria were added to raise the bar high enouogh that the PPC would not qualify.

As it was, it was close. A poll released just ahead of Mr Johnston's announcement put the People's Party at 6% of decided voters, compared with 3% for the Soylent Greens. But the Commission calculated the PPC's average level of national support at 3.27%, just enough to lose out.

Why do they want to keep Maxime Bernier from speaking to a national audience? Because the People's Party of Canada is the only truly conservative party in the race, and M Bernier the only leader to stand up for true social conservative principles and Western values -- particularly freedom of speech and the fair and open debate of ideas!

The mandate of the Leaders' Debate Commission -- never spoken or written but very clear for all that -- is to prevent Canadian voters from hearing and beind "misinformed" by the PPC's politically incorrect ideas

M Bernier said he is "disappointed, but not surprised" by the Commission's ruling. "I do not blame the Commission, whose criteria were clear and objective," he said [rather charitably. Ed.] "Rather, I blame the political establishment cartel, which refuses to debate the crucial issues we raise and has done everything to marginalize us since the founding of the PPC."

UPDATE ADDED 24/8/21: The latest poll from the Angus Reid Institute -- more respected than the liberal shitweasels Ipsos -- has the PPC at 3%, and I guess the decimals (not shown) put them ahead of the Greens, also shown at 3%. By that score, neither party qualifies for the Leaders' Debate, for which the threshhold (see above) was set at 4%, to keep Max Bernier off the platform! Yet the lickspittle media gives at least 30 seconds to Annamie Paul every day. For Max? Nada.

VIDEO: Max Bernier: Non à l'implantation d’un passeport sanitaire! / Say No to the Vaccine Passport!

Seems hard to believe that it was just over two years ago that our good friend Poor Len Canayen was enthusing about the formation of the People' Party of Canada / le Parti Populaire du Canada, facing its first ever test in that fall's election. The party was new, and faced tremendous challenges, not the least being the studied silence -- shall we say ignorance -- of Canada's lickspittle media. 

The PPC did not fare well in the polls, failing to elect a single Member of Parliament. "Mad Max" just missed being re-elected in the Québec riding of Beauce. (He had been elected previously as a Conservative.) 

It would have been easy for M Bernier and his followers to give up, and some did. But Max stuck with it, putting out a regular newsletter, hosting "The Max Bernier Show" on YouTube, and posting regularly on Facebook and Twitter. Max also toured the country from coast to coast, speaking at rallies in defence of freedom. Freedom of speech, freedom of thought, freedom from political correctness, and freedom from control by Trudeau's overweening leftist nanny state. 

The most successful demonstration to date was held just yesterday in Montréal. 1000s of freedom-loving Canadians turned out to protest the Québec (and now Canadian) governments' plans for "vaccination passports", which would relegate the unvaccinated to the status of second-class citizens, unable to go where they please in the no-longer-Great, no-longer-White North. Here's part of Max's speech.

Discours du chef du Parti populaire du Canada, Maxime Bernier, dans le cadre de la manifestation contre l'implantation d’un passeport sanitaire tenue à Montréal le 14 août 2021.

   

Speech by the leader of the People's Party of Canada, Maxime Bernier, at the protest march against the implementation of a vaccine passport held in Montreal on 14 August 2021. 

Good stuff, EH! Whether or not you've had your shots (as we at WWW have, by the way), you should support the right of all people to decide for themselves whether to do so, not be forced into it by an authoritarian state bent on controlling every aspect of our lives. If you agree and would like to donate to Max and the PPC's campaign for election in September, click here. And tell Max that Walt sent ya!

VIDEO: People of Toronto & York! Vote for the PPC on Oct. 26th

Just received word from Agent 3 that voters in the Ontario ridings of York Centre and Toronto Centre will have an opportunity to send a message to the political and media establishment of Canuckistan on October 26th. By-elections will be held in those ridings, to replace MPs who have resigned, and the People's Party of Canada (still alive!) has nominated its leader, Maxime Bernier, and Baljit Bawa to run in those ridings. 

In this two-minute video you can hear "Mad Max" outline the PPC message: STOP mass immigration, destructive lockdowns political correctness, UN globalism, massive spending, and corruption!

   

If you live in Toronto Centre or York Centre and agree with what M Bernier is saying, get out there on October 26th and vote your convictions! If you don't live in those ridings, you can still help by joining the People's Party of Canada and/or making a donation. Remember, the PPC is the only truly conservative party in Canada!

Further viewing: "Is there any hope for conservatives in Canada?" Video of Max Bernier speaking about the recent election of a new "Conservative" leader.

VIDEO: Is there any hope for conservatives in Canada? Max Bernier

As reported here a few days ago, Canada's so-called Conservative Party elected a new leader to replace the hapless Andrew Scheep. The one who now holds the poisoned chalice in his hand is Erin O'Toole. Some Canuck cuckservatives applauded -- quietly -- because (they said), at least he wasn't the establishment candidate, the Red Tory Peter McHackey. But real conservatives withheld their approval because their choice, Derek "Conservative Without Apology" Sloan, finished fourth in a field of four.

The result is discouraging for real conservatives. The Canadian Conservative Party is CINO -- Conservative In Name Only -- in reality a party of the centre, differing only slightly from the Liberals of Prime Minister Blacky McBlackface. That is not just my opinion but that of the runner-up in the previous Conservative leadership race, Maxime "Mad Max" Bernier, who quit the Tories in disgust and founded the People's Party of Canada.

Walt has a lot of time for Maxime Bernier. I call him "Mad Max" not because he's crazy, but because he's mad at the so-called Conservatives, and rightly so. You can read his scathing comments on Mr O'Toole and his faux conservatism in our previous post. Yesterday he joined The Andrew Lawton Show to respond to talk about the state of conservatism in Canada and the future of the PPC. Here's the video.

The real Erin O'Toole

Earlier today Walt told you how, after a truly painful exercise in voting by mail, Erin O'Toole came to be the leader of Canada's so-called Conservative Party. It may be remembered that in 2017 Mr O'Toole finished third in the leadership contested won by Andrew Scheer. The runner-up, by just 60 votes, was Maxime Bernier, who left in a huff [or a minute-and-a-huff? Ed.] to found the People's Party in Canada.

"Mad Max" said at the time that the Tories could not win under Mr Scheep's leadership, because they were offering policies which were no different than those of the Gliberals headed by Mr Socks. The choice, he sasid, was "Liberal or Liberal-Lite". He was right, and many Conservatives (except for some dairy farmers) wished in 2019 that M Bernier had been their leader, instead of languishing in right field.

Now the Tories have a new leader who, as Walt told you, could almost be a clone of Mr Scheer -- just another middle-aged white man of European descent, with a big white wife and two perfect children, like "the Happy Hydro family" from 1950s advertising. The only noticeable difference between Mr Scheer and Mr O'Toole is that the latter will need lots more French lessons to be able to hold his own with Mr Socks on the debate platform.

Will Mr O'Toole, who made a not-so-subtle pitch to the social conservatives in his campaign but is really a creature of the "radical centre", push the Conservative Party into anything like a conservative position on the issues of the day, both financial and social? M Bernier thinks not. He has sent us this statement of his views on Mr O'Toole and the state of conservatism in Canada today.

Two years ago, I resigned from the Conservative Party of Canada and decided to launch a new, principled, and genuinely conservative party, the People's Party of Canada. I am more convinced than ever that I made the right decision.

I said at the time that under Andrew Scheer's leadership, the Conservative Party had become too morally and intellectually corrupt to be reformed. Instead of articulating a coherent conservative vision, all he did was play identity politics, pander to ethnic and interest groups, and try to steal votes from the Liberals by proposing centre-left policies.

Andrew Scheer's leadership has proven itself to be an utter failure.

The party now has a new leader who will follow the same strategy. Erin O'Toole said early in this leadership campaign that Peter Mackay would turn the Conservative Party into the "Liberal-lite Party" if he wins. He was right. What O'Toole did not say is that he, as leader, will do the same thing.

O'Toole and Mackay are like two peas in a pod. They are both establishment, centrist, globalist Red Tories. The party's establishment wanted a Red Tory leader. They got one.

O'Toole ran as a typical Red Tory three years ago. Nobody remembers anything from his bland campaign. No bold proposal, nothing to distinguish him from the rest of the pack. That's the real Erin O'Toole.

This time he put on a "true blue" mask only for strategic reasons: to be the second choice of the less well-known candidates, Leslyn Lewis and Derek Sloan. But I have a message for the supporters of these candidates: Don't be fooled. He got what he wanted. The mask will fall now that he’s the leader. He will take your support for granted.

From now on, his main objective will be to steal centre-left votes from the Liberals. Not to advocate for real conservative principles and policies. He will revert to being the Red Tory he always was. Under O'Toole, the Conservative Party will continue advocating for policies barely distinguishable from those of the Trudeau Liberals on issues that are crucial for Canada’s future.

The vast majority of Conservatives want an end to the mass immigration policy of the Liberals. It won't happen under Erin O'Toole. He and the party’s establishment support mass immigration and official multiculturalism.

The People’s Party is the only party that will protect Canada's culture and identity. The only party that proposes a moratorium on immigration until the crisis is over and unemployment is down to normal levels. And then a return to much lower levels of immigration, with a focus on economic immigrants rather than family reunification. We are the only party that emphasizes the integration of immigrants into Canadian society rather than the cult of diversity.

The vast majority of Conservatives don't believe in climate alarmism and want an end to costly and inefficient green policies. Policies that have proven disastrous for Canada's energy sector. O'Toole will ignore them and instead court centre-left Liberal voters. He still wants to reach the unattainable Paris Accord targets. He says climate change "requires global solutions."

In his platform, he promises to focus "on making industry pay rather than taxing ordinary Canadians, by forging a national industrial regulatory and pricing regime across the country." Watch out. He will simply replace Trudeau’s carbon tax with other taxes, more green regulations and more subsidies.

Under the weak leadership of Andrew Scheer, the Conservatives said it would take at least five years to eliminate the $20-billion Liberal deficit of two years ago. Imagine that. Five years to cut $20 billion! How long will it take under Erin O'Toole, now that the deficit is $350 billion? 25 years? 50 years?

The vast majority of Conservatives want Canada first policies. They want a foreign policy that restores Canada's national sovereignty. They want to stop sending our money to other countries, while millions of Canadians lost their jobs and suffer. They want to kick the United Nations out of Canada, along with its Paris Accord, its Global Compact on Migrations, and its socialist Sustainable Development Goals.

Erin O'Toole is a globalist, like the rest of Ottawa's globalist establishment. As Conservative critic for foreign affairs, he said last year he wanted to restore ties with Saudi Arabia "by focusing on improving commercial ties and by offering more aid, development and refugee support in the Gulf region." Can you spot the difference between him and Justin Trudeau? That's the kind of foreign policy you expect from Liberals. You can be sure nothing will change under his leadership.

Erin O'Toole won't touch the equalization program.
Erin O'Toole won't use article 92(10) of the Constitution to ensure we build pipelines.
Erin O’Toole won't repeal bill C-16 that imposes a radical trans agenda on Canadians. He won’t do anything to restore and protect our freedom of speech.

On every major issue, the Conservative Party under Erin O'Toole will be just like the Liberals. What else can be expected from the leader of the Liberal-lite Party? On each of these issues, the People's Party is the only national party offering a clear, consistent, conservative vision.

I know that real conservatives are disappointed today. Especially those whose first choice was Derek Sloan or Leslyn Lewis. Or those who supported Jim Karahalios, who was shamelessly kicked out of the leadership race by the party’s establishment. I want to tell them today: There is a place where you can fight openly for your values. Where they won't be disparaged or shut down, but will be proudly championed.

You have a home. It’s the People’s Party of Canada.
We're the fastest growing party in Canadian history. We accomplished more in our first year than the Green Party did in 20 years and 6 elections.

Nothing will change unless those who want change stop wasting their time, and their votes, on parties that will never bring any real change.
The door is open. Join the People’s Party. Thank you.

Voting by mail: Canuck Conservatives show what can go wrong

In 2019 the Canadian sheeple were herded to the polls to vote for a new government. The Conservative Party of Canada, led by Andrew Scheer, got more votes, but because the Liberals won more ridings (= electoral districts), they formed the government, and Just In Trudeau is still Prime Minister. [Where have we heard that before? Ed.]

Mr Scheer duly announced his resignation and plans were made to hold a leadership convention this spring to choose his successor. The last time the Tories did that, in 2017, they adopted a one-member-one-vote system, rather than the traditional delegated convention, to signal that they too were in favour of participatory democracy, diversity, inclusivity, yada yada yada. And they decided to allow voting by mail, as well as in person. With 13 contenders vying for the poisoned chalice, determining the winner was bound to be a complex and tedious business, but they muddled through and, by a narrow margin, chose the aforesaid Mr Scheep over Mad Max Bernier. Bad move.

The plan this time, in part necessitated by the Covid-19 "crisis", was to simplify matters by having mail-in balloting only. And instead of having votes counted at various places around the world's second-biggest country (by landmass), all ballots would be sealed in special envelopes and delivered to Ottawa (the world's second-coldest capital city) by Canada Post. What could go wrong?

Did I mention Canada Post? The crown corporation that runs Canada's alleged postal system is marginally more efficient than the USPS, but when Canucks pay 92 cents (plus tax!) for a stamp, they say it's 2 cents for postage and 90 cents for storage! Canada Post also has very strict regulations about the size and weight of letters.

In 2017 the Conservatives' ballots were so large (13 names, remember) that they had to be stuffed into oversized envelopes, for which CanPost charged extra. This time, CanPost told the Tories, use smaller envelopes and you'll save thousands of dollars. Great idea, said the genius in charge of logistics. Sadly, though, the genius didn't think to reduce the size of the ballots to fit nicely into the smaller envelopes.

Oh, you're getting ahead of me. Fast forward to Friday afternoon, by which time 174,000 envelopes, fat with ballots, were in a Very Large Room in Ottawa, where they would be opened by electric letter-openers. [They have such things in Canada? Ed.] The ballots would then be removed by human beings [Looks like only men in the photo? Ed.] and fed into machines which would scan them and tabulate the results. Again, what could go wrong?

The Big Reveal was supposed to begin at 1800 ET, and Canada's two major TV networks had cleared three hours or so of time to broadcast the speeches (to empty rooms) and the pundits' dreary drivel. At 1800 the Tories annouonced that there was a slight problem and the results of the first ballot (of a possible three -- a ranked ballot was being used) would be forthcoming at 1930. Then it was 2000, then 2100. By this time the talking heads on CBC and CTV were running out of things to say, but kept talking anyway.

What's the problem, they asked? Conservative Party officials fessed up that there had been a little problem with... wait for it... the machines. Seems the letter-openers had cut pieces off some of the ballots -- only a few thousand or so -- which then had to be taped back together to be fed into the tabulator machines, which also mangled some of them. (Think what your printer/photocopier does when a piece of paper gets caught in a cog.) In some cases, the damaged ballots had to be rewritten... by hand... onto new ballots, under the keen eyes of scrutineers for all the candidates to ensure that the voter's intention was accurately reproduced. Can you imagine...

2100 came, and still no results, so the "organizers" decided to run with a canned speech by Mr Scheep and a video of the lowlights of his career, followed by a much-too-long explanation of how the votes would be allocated so that the smaller regions of Canuckistan would not be dominated by the larger ones. Sports fans were switching over to the basketball and hockey games, but the non-show went on... and on...

After the 2230 quasi-deadline passed in silence, Party flak-catchers started saying "We'll give you 15 minutes notice." That notice came at 2315 ET. [We're running out of space. Just tell us when and how it all turned out. Ed.] The announcement of the results of the first ballot began at 20 midnights past midnight. None of the four candidates got the 50%+1 needed to win. There followed another half-hour delay, even though the votes had already been counted, and finally, at 0115 ET, the results of the second and third counts were announced in the space of about two minutes.

For what it's worth, the winner was another dimpled, slightly overweight, blue-eyed, non-threatening Canadian type named Erin O'Toole, seen here with his dimpled etc etc wife and kids. Mr O'Toole beat the runner-up (and establishment favourite) Peter Mackay, by virtue of being able to speak halting French, whereas Mr Machackey's had apparently learned his French, as a lad, from John Diefenbaker. (Older Canucks will know what I mean.)

The CBC, owned and operated by and for the Liberal government, is already spinning Mr O'Toole's win as proof that "socons" -- social conservatives -- are gaining control of the Conservative Party. Mr Mackay, they say, was the last of the oxymoronical Progressive Conservatives, whereas "Erin O'Toole courted the right of the Conservative Party and won" (Éric Grenier, 24/8/20).

Walt says Mr O'Toole is just another bland contrist with no real vision of where he wants to lead his party or, indeed, the Great No-longer-white North. All he wants to do is beat Mr Socks in the next federal election which could happen as early as November 3rd. [Eh? Ed.] In that, Walt wishes him many good lucks.