Byers...

Vancouver East yes... but Vancouver Centre, which has never elected an NDP MP?

The provincial ridings therein comprise Vancouver Burrard (Liberal-close) and roughly Vancouver-Fairview (NDP - close).

The following riding map shows the provincial "blue" of the Burrard provincial riding:

http://bc2009.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/09/vancouver-burrard.gif

And the "federal" Liberals have strength in the provincial NDP "orange" areas of that map, inclusive of Davie Village.

There is simply too much condominium development in Vancouver Centre, which demographics are non-NDP, resulting in the increased population in Vancouver Centre over the past decade.

That's exactly the same statement that David Emerson made during the 2006 election, prior to his floor crossing a few days later. :)

Flux

I think Byers is absolutely correct...something is stirring in the electorate and Harper's paralysis on the economic risk factors emerging with each passing day is accentuating the potential for it to happen with this election.

Furthermore, Dion's connections with Gerard Kennedy and the Campbell/Marissen forces have him on the wrong side of things here in BC. This is not a good time to be associated with ‘Campbell’ liberals…

Byers has a far greater potential to be pee wee's nightmare than a corporate shill like Emerson ever did.....

Social inequality?

If Byers is worried about the Green Shift causing social inequality, why is he joining a party that opposed a reduction in the GST, the most regressive tax out there?

In a first past the post system, the NUMBER ONE RULE is that you need a big tent to represent your ideas. Ask Reform and Conservatives about a decade ago. Left-leaning voters are opening themselves up for a word of hurt this election cycle.

Michael

Sounds like you're a Liberal...the problem with Liberals is that they've tried to make the tent so big that they let a bunch of Bay Street right wingers steal beneath the flaps and take off with all the silverware.

The hurt coming isn't going to be restricted to leftists.

true, then NDP have never

true, then NDP have never taken Centre, but the CCF did once in a byelection many years ago.

Please can someone tell me...

Why there are 5 Liberal MLA's running as Conservatives in this election from BC?

It seems as though this small disconnect is being missed. And then Byers says this:

"The issue at the moment was Dion's approach to climate change. I took a look at his Green Shift document and decided it was the wrong approach at the wrong time." - Byers

Yup, sounds like Harper. There is no right time to do anything about climate change, we either won't make a difference or no one else is doing anything about it, or its too expensive, so lets do nothing. I really get a kick out of Layton being proud to "come on board with Harper for a big 20% reduction by 2020 from 2006 levels. Big whoop. Interesting how a bill got passed by Harper and Layton "promising" to hit these targets, but not actually having any plan laid ut to do so, or enforcement/penalties putting these targets into law in any way shape or form. My God, what will they think of next. Lets pass a bill "promising" action without ever making it binding in any way shape or form.

"He is proposing to put a tax on fuel that had already surged by nearly 200 per cent, therefore adding additional stress to individual Canadians and to the economy as a whole. So while I think it would have been appropriate to introduce a carbon tax when the liberals can to power in 1993 -- and oil was $20 a barrel -- to do it now would be a price shock that would impose additional economic stress and social inequity."

Since the summer, we have seen a barrel of oil peak from $150 to below $90 and still falling. Projections indicate that a world wide recession will create oversupply of crude and a BOE will price well below $60 bucks a barrel and flirt with bottoms in the $40's assuming U.S. currency doesn't crash. We are walking into copper worth 1.50 per pound and other commodities both base and precious hitting numbers not seen for 4 years or more and now Byers is preaching this nonsense?

Wow, another wannabe politician who thinks we can lay coilers in our own bed and not roll in it. Buddy just doesn't get it. So whats Latyon's big promise he'll never fulfill? An immediate $35 dollar a tonne carbon tax. Sorry folks, but this is the talk of a hypocrite.

Its like Afghanistan. Layton wants to pull everyone out. I can see walking away from military offensives and establishing diplomacy which I've always advocated. But pull out peacekeepers? We walk away from a peacekeeping role including a UN sanctioned role with NATO, and we risk having any influence at all on Obama for peaceful solutions down the road, especially with diplomacy and we heavily risk doing it at the expense of Afghan lives.

The role in Afghanistan has to change but a full withdrawl is not required to change our role there. Its too extreme and wrong headed. Its the same with corporate taxation. Does anyone seriously believe corporate taxes won't go up if Canada starts running deficits? Who was it that jacked up corporate taxation to 30%, lest we forget. Oh yeah. Right. It was Chretien and the elitist Martin.

I could go on, but the writing is on the wall. Hedy walks away with this riding once again for good reasons.

The brain

"Byers is preaching this nonsense?"

What nonsense? You didn't say where you disagreed with him on that.

"Its like Afghanistan. Layton wants to pull everyone out"

So do Dion and Harper, but they want Canadians to die for 3 more years before they're allowed to come home.

"Does anyone seriously believe corporate taxes won't go up if Canada starts running deficits?"

No one has mentioned it. Do you think Dion will increase corporate taxes to 30% if Canada starts running deficits?

Splitting Votes....

Michael Byers has a few good points in his book regarding change and how we need to develop more cohensive and longstanding agendas and policies. His views aren't short term as most politicians tend to lean towards.

While Byers may actually be interested in standing with the NDP at the moment I do not believe he is there to become the next incumbent. The NDP need to take votes away from Harper and Dion so by putting a man with "education and experience" in the ring they may be able to garner a few more votes that normally they wouldn't receive.

The demographics for the area do require someone well educated and able to wow the crowd. Will he do it? I'll keep watching this race as it should be an interesting one that in the future may cover more than a few paragraphs in someones autobiography.

GST & Afghanistan

1. The GST is NOT a regressive tax. Although there are perhaps, granted, better ways to tax the well-off, the GST puts a hefty little tax on the wealthy's excessive spending. Simply put, the more goods you buy and consume - the more you pay.... and the rich, according to statistics, consume A LOT.

2. Our current role can in no-way, no-how, be called a "peace-keeping" mission. It's merely called that by our so-called leaders trying to appease the public by masking our REAL reason for being in Afghanistan (defending American oil pipeline and opium money interests). You can be rest assured we're not there to "help little girls to read and write." As most wars are, it's a colonial venture - an indirect grab for resources, as most wars are.
If our troops were there to peace-keep, our soldiers would be wearing blue helmets and passing out chocolate bars, not being blown to bloody bits by little boxes on the side of roads.
I truly feel sorry for those in the military (and their families) who've been duped into thinking that serving in this misadventure is an act of patriotism. Their heroism and sacrifices are in utter vain.

Sorry Alda, I don't agree

The GST is regressive. Take, for example, the total consumer spending of two individuals.

One of them earns 200K/annum and the other earns 20K.

Now look at the package of taxable goods each one 'has' to buy - clothes, dry goods, furniture, a car, furniture etc.

Lets assume that amounts to 6 K for each of them and the tax on that 6K at 5% is $300.00 per annum...(also lets assume this is above and beyond the GST tax credit which the lower income person gets but the higher income guy doesn't)

Now take that $300 as a percentage of each individual's total income. For the low income earner it is 0.015 and for the high income earner it amounts to 0.0015.

It's a regressive tax. And payroll taxes, which are capped at a maximum each year, also impinge much more heavily on low income earners than wealthy people - without even considering that fact that many types of non-wage income don't attract payroll taxes at all.

I agree with your sentiments about the Afghan mission though.

Crossing the floor...

I'm going to be Stephen Harper's nightmare.

LOL this is what Emerson had to say before he told Mr Dithers (then the 'official opposition'),
"No thanks for that hard back bench, look there is a splinter."

This chatterbox is just as likely to waffle all over the political map.

As much as I detest Hedy Fry and all that she stands for, she is the most likely candidate in the riding to get re-elected.

For some reason the electorate there 'like' her?

Good article but The

Good article but The Ovaltine breakast must be tongue in cheek or something sure has changed since we frequented that part of town . You wrote "a luxurious breakfast at Hastings Street's infamous Ovaltine Café."
The guy sticks to his beliefs and I do hope he is a success in the election