[Canada] Canadian Politics Redux

[Barrister]

This kind of interviewing can be very effective if the reporter "has the receipts", as the kids like to say.  But this fellow didn't.

No idea who the reporter is.  As far as I can tell this was at some kind of photo op at an apple orchard.  I'm surmising the reporter was just some local reporter, maybe for a local newspaper or TV station (as few of those that still exist).  The video itself was released by the Conservatives, not the media outlet.

Being accused of being "populist" is an odd attack.  Populism can mean so many different things in different situations.  Both occupy wall street, and yes Donald Trump, can be labelled as populist.  And obviously any politician wants to be popular!

Bold words for a professional.

There's always a tension in a democracy.  You DON'T want political issues just solely decided by the "experts", whether those be lawyers, doctors, engineers or what not.  But then obviously you don't want the experts advice ignored either - that way lies madness.

[Barrister]

Trudeau's government "not ready" to accept that Palestinians were behind the explosion at the Gaza hospital.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/trudeau-hospital-blast-gaza-1.7001656

Apparently it's due to divisions in his caucus

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/politics/article-trudeau-grapples-with-divided-liberal-party-as-he-navigates-israel/
(Pay-walled, I haven't read it, just seen it summarized on Twitter)

[Jacob]

Withholding judgement during the fog-of-war doesn't seem super unreasonable to me.

[Barrister]

Withholding judgement during the fog-of-war doesn't seem super unreasonable to me.

It's been several days.  The US has concluded it was a Palestinian rocket.  Heck there is lots of open-source info out there.

[Barrister]

Trudeau refuses to call for Hamas's destruction, citing divisions in caucus.

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/politics/article-trudeau-acknowledges-divisions-in-caucus-wont-repeat-canadian-envoys/
(again paywalled, going off of headline and Twitter summaries)

This appears to be similar, but different link that the one I mentioned above.

But really - how hard is it to condemn Hamas?

[Barrister]

More on caucus divisions:

33 MPs, including 23 Liberals, sign open letter calling for immediate cease-fire.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/33-mps-letter-trudeau-ceasfire-israel-gaza-1.7003256

[Admiral Yi]

Trudeau refuses to call for Hamas's destruction, citing divisions in caucus.

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/politics/article-trudeau-acknowledges-divisions-in-caucus-wont-repeat-canadian-envoys/
(again paywalled, going off of headline and Twitter summaries)

This appears to be similar, but different link that the one I mentioned above.

But really - how hard is it to condemn Hamas?

"Go ahead and destroy Hamas but don't kill any civilians." 

[crazy canuck]

From the Globe and Mail

Defence Minister Bill Blair said late Saturday evening that Canada has a "high degree of confidence" that Israel did not strike the al-Ahli Hospital in Gaza City on Tuesday.

Blair said in a statement that a military analysis found the strike, which the Hamas-controlled Gaza Health Ministry said killed hundreds of people, was more likely caused by an "errant rocket" fired from the Gaza Strip.

[viper37]

That's a very timid response.  They could have talked about the rocket hitting the parking and not the hospital.  They could have talked about the inflated number of victims.  Still better than nothing.

[HVC]

40% of all homes built in Toronto since 2016, including 57% of condos, have been bought by investors. A stark contrast to builds before 2016. Airbnb is an evil blight. I hate it as much as Josq hates cars. Building new homes will help the housing crunch, but getting rid of short term rentals will help a lot in the shorter term.

There's some quibbles with the exact number, but the trend is there .

Toronto Star link

[crazy canuck]

Agreed.

The trick to regulating it out of existence is it's hard to write a bylaw of general application that won't also affect legitimate purpose belt rentals.

In BC attempts are being made to regulate by differentiating short stay versus long-term rental, but the issue there is policing it.

[crazy canuck]

Latest polling, if an election was held today the Conservatives would win the biggest majority since 84.

How much longer will Trudeau last?

[Josephus]

Latest polling, if an election was held today the Conservatives would win the biggest majority since 84.

How much longer will Trudeau last?

Till the election? I can't see him leaving.
Besides, an election isn't being held today 

I realize things don't look good for him, but there's plenty of time still for Pollywog to blow it...unless the NDP plays their trump card

[Barrister]

Latest polling, if an election was held today the Conservatives would win the biggest majority since 84.

How much longer will Trudeau last?

Till the election? I can't see him leaving.
Besides, an election isn't being held today 

I realize things don't look good for him, but there's plenty of time still for Pollywog to blow it...unless the NDP plays their trump card

Can we not use stupid names like "Pollywog"?  I promise I've never used "TURDeau" or anything equally inane.

I agree there's still time.  Election doesn't need to happen until 2025 IIRC.  But these are very bad numbers for Trudeau.  I mean he's losing even in the youth vote.

Housing prices is a good issue for the Conservatives to latch on to - and the problem for the Liberals is that it isn't something that can be changed in 12-18 months.  Problem for the Conservatives is it may not be fixed in 5-6 years either, but that'll be an issue for future Poilievre to worry about.

I wouldn't be shocked if Trudeau takes a "walk in the snow" and resigns.  I feel like he'd want to go out on his own terms.  Although I have to admit - I kind of admired how Harper went out.  He knew that was an almost impossible election to win, but he went out, told the truth, and took it on the chin.

[crazy canuck]

But I don't think the conservatives have to solve the housing problem. Trudeau has set a very low bar for them to meet. All they really have to do is create some policy initiatives that go beyond the pitiful actions. The liberals have taken since being elected in 2015 and they're golden.