p2pnet - rss feed: Canadian federal election and The Net
p2pnet news view | P2P | Politics:- The Net makes the difference and anyone, anywhere, who fails to recognize that will be in trouble — political parties in particular.
Canadians will go to the polls on Tuesday, October 14, to vote in the federal election. But the New Democrats seem to be the only party that’s fully aware of the importance of online People 2 People Power, appointing Charlie Angus as their digital issues spokesman. And Green Party leader Elizabeth May has acknowledged the strength of online support.
But it’s not all positive.
In the weeks leading up to the election, “teams of partisan researchers from every party - all paid for out of the parliamentary budget - have been trolling the Internet looking for anything that might be used against candidates running for other parties,” says the Canwest News Service.
“During the campaign, each war room is ready to pounce on anything stupid an opponent does, whip up a press release, and send it to every political journalist in the country,” it says, quotes a party operative as stating:
“But we just don’t have the resources to hire a private investigator to comb through everything our candidates in 308 ridings said or did.”
Enter Canwest with a list of skeletons in candidates’ closets, to wit »»»
Sept. 9: Halifax Conservative candidate Rosamund Luke resigns two days after being appointed, citing workload conflict. The local media reveal a two-year-old minor criminal record.
Sept. 11: The Liberals reject Quebec candidate Simon Bedard for his public view in 1990 that the military should have used lethal force, even if it meant the loss of 150 lives, to end the Oka crisis, the standoff between Mohawk Warriors and the military.
Sept. 12: Old quotes from Ricardo Lopez, a former Progressive Conservative MP supposedly running as a liberal in Beauharnois-Salaberry in Quebec, surface. In 1988, he suggested all natives should be relocated to Labrador and that unemployment insurance be replaced with work camps. The Liberals deny he was ever a candidate.
Sept. 17: NDP candidate Dana Larson in the B.C. riding of West Vancouver-Sunshine Coast-Sea-to-sky Country resigns after his hobby of videotaping himself smoking pot and taking LSD is shown on television and easily found on the Internet.
Sept. 19: Another B.C. NDP candidate resigns over video showing him smoking and rating different types of marijuana. Kirk Tousaw was briefly the candidate in Vancouver Quadra.
Sept. 20: Conservative candidate in Toronto Centre, Chris Reid, resigns after comments on his blog get media attention. On his blog he supports concealed gun laws so women and gays can better protect themselves and suggests aboriginals have a victim complex.
Sept. 23: Julian West, running for the NDP in Saanich Gulf Islands, B.C., admits he went swimming in the nude in 1996 in front of a group of teenagers. The police investigated at the time but nothing criminal occurred. West apologized on Sept. 21, then resigned two days later.
Sept. 26: Liberal candidate in Kildonan-St. Paul, Man., Lesley Hughes, is dumped by Dion. Shortly after 9/11 she wrote an article suggesting that Israeli businesses in the twin towers were warned by in advance by the CIA.
Stay tuned.
digital issues spokesman - Net neutrality, copyright, election issues: Charlie Angus, September 4, 2008
online support - Elizabeth May credits People 2 People Power, September 11, 2008
Canwest News Service - Internet exposing skeletons in candidates’ closets, September 26, 2008
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September 27th, 2008 at 12:43 pm
The greens support open consultations and a fair balanced copyright approach view response from my local green candidate
http://new-aur.110mb.com/questionaire.php?cand=green&Qnum=5
September 27th, 2008 at 1:31 pm
fair
how as i say does society benefit from a 50 year copyright?
IN code that means for 5 decades any advances i have ideas for are never going to happen for the benefit of mankind.
And can you not make what cash you will in 10years for movies and games?
What computer runs a ten year old game? why does it need such protection?
What images do youhave that you need to make this for such length a time.
ALL long term copyright does is protect lazy BIG fat corporations who wish to keep everyone in there place and poor.
September 27th, 2008 at 1:49 pm
Seems the NDP may be the only choice, if we want to see a continuing “free internet” and fair digital rights.
Of course, it’s unlikely they’ll ever sway enough votes to take charge any time soon.
The general mentality, unfortunately, continues to follow “popularity” like sheep, rather than vote with the brain.
The Liberal and Conservative Parties should really be DISMANTLED.
They’ve both been ignoring the public, catering to corporate interests, and continuing to forward the North American Union plan.
(Yes, international meetings keep happening and documents continue to be signed. And, they continue to deny even the existence of this blatant attack on the sovereignty of all 3 countries involved.)
The Liberals and the Conservatives have both demonstrated WE are simply not part of THEIR agendae.
They’ve been enjoying this 2-party flip-flop of the votes for quite some time. When one wins, the other still has employment.
And, somehow their negative campaigning has become an accepted part of Canadian life! Isn’t everybody completely sick of having their intelligence insulted by this childish display of non-information, using OUR money??!!
The whole things a travesty!
September 27th, 2008 at 2:59 pm
NDP are pro union.
My families business is being hit by the larget union in canada and will more than likely put my fathers 30 yr business into bankruptcy. I will not be voting NDP (despite agreeing with most of charlie angus’ digital views). The greens have the right views on copyright and if it weren’t for the extreme pro environment rhetoric they would have my vote (al gore has already been pwned if you still believe him your a tool).
September 27th, 2008 at 5:20 pm
“ALL long term copyright does is protect lazy BIG fat corporations who wish to keep everyone in there place and poor.”
Actually Chronoss, you have this completely wrong. My firm’s existence relies upon extended copyright, and we are not big, nor fat and we are the antithesis of lazy. We work our asses off every single day, and we profit from it, too. A lot. And you can too. Here’s how to stop being so poor: get to work, create the next Beatles or Mickey Mouse or Boeing aerospace design and then copyright it. Then license it: market it to folks who have a use for it, accept the fees for their use of your work and rely upon the law to protect your legal right to do it. It compels near-daily innovation on our part and it’s really not that complicated.
Well….. getting to work might be a problem for some of you, true. LOL
September 27th, 2008 at 5:33 pm
Also this on NDP’s Julian West http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/LAC.20080925.BCNDP25/TPStory/National
September 27th, 2008 at 6:20 pm
They’re all clueless. If they had any idea what they’re doing they would have been promoting themselves online instead of on old-age tv.
Just my 25 cents
September 28th, 2008 at 6:30 pm
Reader’s Write Says:
They’re all clueless. If they had any idea what they’re doing they would have been promoting themselves online instead of on old-age tv.
No kidding. I was falling off my chair laughing at these morons.
Until I realized that the idiots who are elected are just smart enough to have not yet been caught.
September 30th, 2008 at 5:15 pm
Personally, I don’t care anymore about what consequences (foreseen or otherwise) of having a different party run this country. Between the Liberals and the Conservatives, we’re already losing everything now, and if keep up the complacency, we’re gonna wake up one day as part of a North American Union!
The LibCons need to be flushed out now!