Is Public Interest Waning in Canadian Election Debates?

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Discussion Overview

The discussion centers around the Canadian election debates, focusing on the performance of various political leaders, public interest in the debates, and the implications of potential election outcomes. Participants express their views on the candidates, the effectiveness of the debates, and the overall political landscape.

Discussion Character

  • Debate/contested
  • Exploratory

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants noted that Layton and Duceppe performed well in the debates, with Layton being described as a strong candidate regardless of party affiliation.
  • Others expressed skepticism about the effectiveness of the debates, suggesting that the leading candidates, Harper and Ignatieff, were not convincing.
  • There are claims that the Bloc Québécois should not participate as they are primarily a provincial party, although some argue they are a federal party in practice.
  • Concerns were raised about the potential waste of taxpayer money if the election results do not lead to significant change.
  • Participants discussed the implications of voting for local candidates versus party leaders, with some expressing a desire for a different voting system.
  • There were reactions to the election results, with surprise at the NDP's performance and criticism of Ignatieff's candidacy in his riding.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants generally express a mix of opinions regarding the candidates and the debates, with no clear consensus on the effectiveness of the debates or the potential outcomes of the election. Disagreement exists about the role and legitimacy of the Bloc Québécois in the federal context.

Contextual Notes

Some discussions reflect uncertainty about the motivations and strategies of candidates, particularly regarding local representation and party leadership. There are also references to the historical context of the Bloc Québécois and its relationship to provincial politics.

bensprott
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Is anyone watching the debate?
 
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Watched it. The thing is the 2 best debaters have no chance of winning. Layton was really at ease, and Duceppe was great (considering the language difficulty. In French, he's really strong.)

Neither Harper or Ignatief were convincing, but of course, there is no doubt one of them will win the election, because they're from the only parties that aren't utopic.
 
Layton is and always has been one of the most stand-up guys I've seen in politics. If he were head of any other party, he'd surely win by a landslide.
 
I am not going to vote, neither interested but I heard Layton was good.
 
The Bloc isn't a Canadian Federal party ( Provincial only ) and should not have been there.

I almost wish Duceppe was a Canadian and a Liberal, he seems like the smartest of the bunch.
 
Alfi said:
The Bloc isn't a Canadian Federal party ( Provincial only ) and should not have been there.

I almost wish Duceppe was a Canadian and a Liberal, he seems like the smartest of the bunch.

Technically, the Bloc is a "Federal" party in the sense that it is built to play on the federal scene. But it only has candidates in Quebec, so its aspirations are not to govern Canada, only to "bloc" the winning government to pass any legislation that they see to be detrimental to Quebec.

The "Parti Quebecois" is the provincial counter-part that made the 2 historic referendums. It is a serious contender but it seems to have lacked convincing leadership in recent years.
 
Advance pools open today.

I haven't seen anything different in the talk from the leaders to indicate to me that anything different will result from this re-election.

I think it's all a waste of taxpayers money.
 
Alfi said:
I haven't seen anything different in the talk from the leaders to indicate to me that anything different will result from this re-election.
The ousting of the Harper government?
 
If Harper gets reelected with a minority government, then it's a waste of taxpayer money. If the result is anything different, then it's not.

Incidently, a former colleague of mine (and physicist/researcher) is actually running in these elections. It's rare enough to see scientists running.
 
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  • #10
As always, I will vote for the best person for the job in my riding.
Even though I do not like his leader, I will not vote for less than the best, just to try and change what Party is running the country.

We, as Canadians do not vote for the leader in these elections, only the local candidates of the various parties.
The Party with the most winners gets to be the government.
I wonder if it would be different if we only voted for the leader.My wife is working in the polls for this election. She tells me it was very busy at her location.
 
  • #11
Dr Lots-o'watts said:
If Harper gets reelected with a minority government, then it's a waste of taxpayer money. If the result is anything different, then it's not.

Doesn't look like NOT going to be a waste of money. :(
 
  • #12
Majority Government

NDP opposition
The Bloc lost it's leader
The Libs lost their leader Wow. that was almost worth the money
 
  • #13
Well, you wanted to be around when the robots rose up and crushed their creators.

It's a Harper majority...
 
  • #14
Wow! This was quite a surprise. I expected NDP to gain quite a lot but didn't expect them to come in second place! Liberals were crushed which is somewhat surprising but Ignatieff losing his own riding! wow, didn't expect that!. I for one am happy the Block Quebecois got owned. Gill Duceppe is a separatist tyrant.
As usual my province voted conservative..nothing surprising there. Guess what province that is?
 
  • #15
kraphysics said:
... Ignatieff losing his own riding!
As a member of that riding I can attest that he was jammed in here in the first place, in his first bid at Prime Minister, and we didn't know where he came from - and he has been increasingly called 'the absentee candidate'. We never see him.
 
  • #16
DaveC426913 said:
As a member of that riding I can attest that he was jammed in here in the first place, in his first bid at Prime Minister, and we didn't know where he came from - and he has been increasingly called 'the absentee candidate'. We never see him.

what was he doing then? it seems like an arrogant/foolish thing to do for someone new to Canadian politics.
 
  • #17
kraphysics said:
what was he doing then? it seems like an arrogant/foolish thing to do for someone new to Canadian politics.

An excellent question.
 

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