Well in spite of John McKay’s best efforts, the Liberal party continues to lose support among Evangelicals and even among Catholics (!) which used to be their entitled constituency. Cynthia Munster tells us the latest in her Hill Times column – Liberals losing evangelical voters, says EFC study:
…According to this research, Catholic support for the Liberal Party has dropped 24 points since 2000. In 2006 they were as likely to vote Conservative as Liberal and by the 2008 election, they showed preference for the Conservative Party…
The question is less why it happened – because that is obvious, but rather why do the Liberals even bother?
Being religious usually involves having a moral compass and a set of strong values. It also means showing respect for other folks’ spiritual views.
Clearly Iffy is hardly the poster boy of unwavering commitment and sticking to principles and decisions. Furthermore, his strategists have have often shown contempt for people of faith and great delight in stirring up pseudo-scandals like Wafergate.
In other words, they are unable to walk the talk.
Iffy and McKay should cut their losses and move on to greener pastures.
I have faith, and, God willing, PM Stephen Harper’s government will prevail for a long time.
Remember when ‘Dion found God’? August 2008
”…It says a great deal about the man’s integrity as well as his innocence that he replied on air with a simple, “This is true.” A pause, then, “I have been told that this is important to the people who watch this show.”
Which is why he had mentioned God more often in the space of five minutes than most Liberals do in five parliamentary sessions… ”
http://network.nationalpost.com/np/blogs/fullcomment/archive/2008/08/25/michael-coren-st-233-phane-dion-finds-god.aspx
Wilson, I remember that well. And I must say that looking back, Stephane Dion was so naive and yet so honest in his own quirky way.
Liberal Mr. Knew-Nothing, aka Citoyen Dionky*, claims he “he knew absolutely nothing” in re Ad$cam. Dion sat at the right hand of da Boss while da Ad$Cam loot was doled out.
Is Dion a mute; deaf, blind, and dumb?
Dion tells the honest truth?
Is Dion a purveyor of terminological inexactitudes?
Dion sleeps well?
Veritas odit moras.
…-
“Gomery Wednesday-Night
*At his appearance before the inquiry, Dion claimed that, even as minister of constitutional affairs in the Chrétien cabinet, he knew absolutely nothing”
http://www.wednesday-night.com/Gomery.asp
Joanne, I read over that post to Bene Diction Blogs On that you linked to. I remember every one of those six actions the Liberals did that the study says alienated evangelicals. The difficulty every political party has is this: for their relatively small numbers, evangelicals contribute a huge amount of volunteer time; however, the people who occupy the key posts that steer our culture (media, judiciary, bureaucracy) are hostile to people of faith.
What’s interesting about the hostility thing is that those exhibiting animosity may in fact be Christians themselves. It’s just that they’ve been persuaded that Christians somehow have an advantage over other faith groups or non-faith groups; and as a result, our cultural elites think Christians need to have a few obstacles put in their way to level the playing field.
I think the most fundamental issue with faith and the difference between Liberals and Conservatives is easily explained.
Regardless of a Conservatives belief system, they generally believe that what they are doing/saying is for the best for the largest majority. We are prepared to swallow an unpalatable idea such as taxation if it is equally assessed and fairly distributed.
A Liberal on the other hand, does not have the ability to disconnect them from fairness; they believe that only people who think/act like them have somehow a superior ethical aura and as such should be relieved of mundane things, like equality.
The Human Rights Commission is a very Liberal idea, which chooses to dictate to the plebs what ‘their’ version of truth is. This type of thinking and ideology was responsible for the creation of the Spanish Inquisition and the HR Tribunals.
There is no room for true Christianity, Judaism, and Islam etc. in a liberals mind, they have a lock on ethics in their own minds, and as such believe that anything else is blaspheming.
The bitter reality is, that this fake ethical behavior is often mistaken for real ‘faith’ until it is confronted with a simple thing, like the truth
Jo, I liked Dion, the man.
No way he was PM material, but imo, Iffy is even less so.
Libs wasted 4 years trying to ‘get back into power a.s.a.p. ,
while the Cons built up their base by modernizing the party.
Tho few Libs will admit it, the coalition of losers has done so much damage to the ‘brand’, there is no quick fix now.
via the failed coalition:
-once again, as usual, the LPC flipped Western Canada the bird, willing to strip away 73% of WC seats in govt, in exchange for power (is there any other region in Canada that Libs would have done that to?)
-the ‘Canada and Quebec agreement’ separating Quebec from the ROC, in writting, delighting separatists, outraging Ontarians.
imo Iffy will roll over to Rae/Chretien pressure,
and try to unite the left with another coalition attempt.
Because they really don’t give a damn about Canada, just power.
I find that people who have integrated their Christian faith have an added dimension that makes them much more capable as societal direction setters. Atheists such as Trudeau, Chretien, Dion, and Iggy are too self directed to view the bigger picture while non-integrated Christians like Martin are so unsettled they don’t know what they stand for. PM Harper on the other hand believes that he must answer to a Higher Power and therefore attempts to integrate wisdom with personal integrity as he leads the nation. I find it tragic that our society so blithely ignores the jewel encrusted foundation, Christianity, that has made our nation possible.
Well said Joe
“He maketh me to lie down in green[er] pastures:”.
Boob (Hi. I’m the “real Leader” of the Liberal Party. Mao Stlong is my uncle Mo.) Lae has some nerve.
Now, Lizard May and Boob will climb up onto the same green lily pad in the same greenscummed pond and sing/croak the duet written for them by the fabled green frog:
We are so happy, we could sjrt.
…-
Senator Duffy:
“Bob Rae has a plan to grow the Liberal party by subsuming labour and Green Party support”.
“http://www.thesudburystar.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=2108634
The Liberal$ are such spin doctors, they have no understanding of faith, thinking that they can fake it, or manufacture it if need be.
One of the gifts of the Spirit is that of discernment. You can’t fool the Spirit. ‘Just as well the Liberal$ don’t get it. They expose themselves every time and don’t even know it!
The Liberals really can’t get much more pathetic. That they would fake faith when it appears convenient to help them get up from the bottom of the pit should come as no surprise.
Wasn’t it under Chretien rule when the name of God was banned in a ceremony on the Hill?
I know this is way off-topic but it rankles me still. Here’s the line that Ruby fed us a couple of weeks ago:
Citing the Library of Parliament, Dhalla says 32,000 immigrant seniors would benefit from the bill and that would translate into $300 to $400 million in costs.
“There’s been a lot of misinformation about the bill. If a senior has lived in Canada for 40 years, they would receive $516.96 a month for old-age security benefits. If a senior has only lived in Canada for three years, they would only receive $38.77 a month (through Old Age Security pension),” Dhalla explains. “It’s an issue of fairness and equalization. The $38.77 a month would help reduce poverty.”
That is what she told Tom Clark and numerous other interviewers but here’s the part that she left out:
“If these immigrant seniors (who have been here for three years) receive old-age benefits, then they also would be eligible for Guaranteed Income Supplements of $650 a month if they are eligible as low-income earners,” Dhalla says.”
A significant proportion of recent immigrant seniors may already be eligible for OAS benefits after one year of residency due to a social security agreement that is in force between Canada and 50 other countries.
However, critics charge that since low-income immigrant seniors with three years residency would qualify for GIS, as well old-age benefits, the cost of the initiative would jump from $300 million to at least $700 million.
Dhalla also said, “immigrant seniors are more likely than those born in Canada live in poverty.
And poverty among immigrant seniors is a problem that’s felt more keenly in Ontario — and Toronto in particular — than elsewhere in the country.”.
My first question is, “Where are their sponsors?”
My second question is, “Why did Dhalla chose to overlook the Guaranteed Income Supplement when speaking with most of the media?”
http://www.torontosun.com/news/canada/2009/10/12/11375526-sun.html
Speaking of faith, I can honestly say that I don’t really know if there is a God. I’m not really a non-believer, I just don’t know. With all of the murders, wars, poverty, general violence and daily catastrophes in the world I have to wonder about the reasoning of a supposedly benevolent God that would inflict such hardships on mankind.
I live my life according to a moral code that I have abided by all of my life. One that was taught to me by my parents and to them by their parents. I find it’s the same moral code that most of my friends and neighbours live by.
And yes, this moral code allows me to deny Canadian tax benefits to poverty stricken seniors who chose to come here from other countries because I also believe that such generosity can go only so far before it is so stretched that there’s little left for the rest of us who have actually contributed to it.
I also admit to being uncomfortable around people who proclaim their undying love for God but I strongly support their right to make that statement.
And I especially don’t like politicians who say God Bless (insert name of country here) because if there is a God then he/she shouldn’t be playing favourites.
But the number one thing that I absolutely don’t like is organized religion. Organized religion has truly been the bane of mankind.
NeilD:
October 12, 2009 at 9:00 pm
NeilD, I found your comments very interesting. I’d like to present an alternative view on a few of your points. I hope you don’t mind.
“And yes, this moral code allows me to deny Canadian tax benefits to poverty stricken seniors who chose to come here from other countries…”
I agree 100%. It’s simply not fair.
“With all of the murders, wars, poverty, general violence and daily catastrophes in the world I have to wonder about the reasoning of a supposedly benevolent God that would inflict such hardships on mankind.”
I believe it’s man that inflicts such hardships on mankind. IMHO, God placed us on earth as free individuals. We are free to make choices. God gave us the earth as our home and said take care of it and one another.
This world would be quite something if people actually followed the sacred texts of the major religions.
“And I especially don’t like politicians who say God Bless (insert name of country here) because if there is a God then he/she shouldn’t be playing favourites.”
Asking God to bless our country seems ok to me. It doesn’t mean God is playing favourites. If more nations did ask for God’s blessing, who knows, we might have a better world.
“But the number one thing that I absolutely don’t like is organized religion. Organized religion has truly been the bane of mankind.”
I think the problem is not organized religion, I think the problem is man. For example, there are Catholic priests who should never have become priests.
In every religion, there are those that do not belong. The religious faiths are fine but there are those that give religion a bad name by their poor example.
O/T: Stephen Harper story as heard about a week ago on the Lowell Green show, from a caller.
This Canadian family happened to be at the Vatican when the PM and his family met with the Pope.
The Canadian family was among the crowds in the Vatican square when an entourage paved the way for the PM and his family.
The husband noticed the PM and shouted to his family “hey, there is Stephen Harper.”
Hearing this, the PM turned in the direction of the husband who then said “hi, Steve.”
The PM motioned to him to come forward with his family and had his photographer take a photo of him and the Canadian family.
Very typical of PM Stephen Harper, I’d say. Having met him, I found him to be friendly and down to earth.
Very interesting article:
http://www.sgvtribune.com/columnists/ci_13465244
Thomas Friedman: Excesses in politics are destabilizing America
“What kind of madness is it that someone would create a poll on Facebook asking respondents, “Should Obama be killed?” The choices were: “No, Maybe, Yes, and Yes if he cuts my health care.” The Secret Service is now investigating. I hope they put the jerk in jail and throw away the key because this is exactly what was being done to Rabin.”
“We can’t change this overnight, but what we can change, and must change, is people crossing the line between criticizing the president and tacitly encouraging the unthinkable and the unforgivable.”
The above reminded me of this:
http://scottdiatribe.canflag.com/2008/11/30/destroy-harper-before-he-destroys-us-all/
“Their imperative could not be more clear: kill him. Kill him dead. Do not, whatever you do, provide him with an opportunity to extend his hold on power.”
Thanks to:
wilson says:
October 10, 2009 at 3:01 pm
Hoax/Fraud/Scam: Swine flu pandemic.
“At the time, a public health spokesman said H1N1 virus is no more common than any seasonal influenza and is now being treated the same way.”
…-
“Toronto students dodging swine flu
No significant increase in public school cases but trustee concerned by lack of notification from city
This little piggy flu pandemic hasn’t come to Toronto public schools this fall.
A month into the school year, Toronto District School Board officials say the H1N1 virus, popularly known as swine flu, isn’t keeping more students home sick so far this school year.
Health officials had warned the swine flu’s second wave would hit schools hard when classes started in September. But a report to the TDSB’s health committee says no significant increase in overall absenteeism has been noted across Canada’s largest school board.”
http://cnews.canoe.ca/CNEWS/Canada/2009/10/13/11382431-sun.html
Note to readers: Off to help out with my G/S again. Will check in later.
I’m a Christian. And it has NOTHING to do with my politics. My faith is personal and intimate, and, I don’t choose to seek to have anyone else agree with me. Ever. I am comfortable with atheists and agnostics, and, in many cases, prefer their company to other Christians.
I would be extremely uncomfortable with creating a relationship between the Conservative government and conservative religious groups akin to what is happening in the U.S. There are, in my mind, Christians who have little to distinguish themselves from Al Quaeda, and I am proud to live in a country where religion is all but irrelevant to politics.
The Conservatives happen to appeal to the religious right – but I think the notion that it should be a constituency they seek to appeal to would be wrong-minded.
Ed @ 9:50…very good comments.
Neild…God is not the cause of problems and hardships, but He has the remedy for the human heart.
I can relate to your feelings about ‘organised religion’; keep in mind those are problems caused by humans missing the message.
[...] Canadian Evangelicals and Catholics more opposed to secularism and socialism The Hill Times reports. (H/T Joanne from Blue Like You) [...]
Some good news for when you get back, Iffy fires Garth-NNW and Janke.
Ed on October 12, 2009 at 9:50 pm, good comments.
Yeaaah … Citoyen DionkIggy is baaacckkkk.
Bam, Kyoto, Green Shaft, & etc. The whole screwy light-dimbulb Iffy, er Iggy, er “We can do better”.
..-
“Ignatieff touts clean-energy platform
A year after carbon tax led to predecessor’s political demise, Liberal Leader vows to focus environmental policy on green spending”
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/ignatieff-touts-clean-energy-platform/article1322087/
Take a look at Chukercanuk- a site that will make you smile.
I agree with the insightful comments of bluetech and ed also. I’m always tempted to “jump in” on such topics. In spite of my father’s long ago admonition to avoid discussions of religion and politics, in recent years I have been almost mute concerning the former. As it stands, I find myself pretty much aligned with what Rob H. has testified. I’m happy to have a PM who’s a believer but doesn’t push it, nor does he shun other faiths. This is the way we all should be, and follow the example of Christ, but without His help, we can’t. Worldly troubles are caused by a worldly world. Organized religion can take the fall in some respects, but wherever people are involved, there are going to be human frailties and inconsistencies. Certainly the “great commission” cannot be enhanced by the so-called organic church, when there is so much “world in the church”. Assembling to rekindle flames of faith dampened by the world is one reason why organized religion exists, and its outreach should involve a helping hand to the needy as well as evangelism to the lost. Unfortunately, there are religious fanatics in every belief system, but the “kingdom of the heart” will prevail in the end, and “where your treasure is, there your heart shall be also”, and vice-versa. Religion kills / Faith saves / Christ has the only saving Power. I believe profusely in the separation of church and state. It just all works so much better that way. BLUE, of course, is the colour of choice. Our destiny is at hand. I hope I haven’t offended anyone… I used to be VERY involved in a local church, but now I’m just a free-lance dude, who wishes to keep fired up from time to time. But it’s more fun to go after devils incarnate, like the Great Igneutered One, and so fulfill the mandate of God and the PM. We cannot take this “calling” lightly.
Tripper523 says:
October 13, 2009 at 8:34 pm
Tripper523, wow, excellent writing!! Eloquent and insightful. I agree with you 100%.
Our priest says we should not be shy to say we are Catholic. I agree with that but, when it comes to politics, people of all faiths should simply focus on electing a government that will provide for the common good of all its citizens. In that case, the Conservatives fit the bill.
Anyone else notice Count Iggy’s countenance looking a tad more haggard lately? Appears the job is weighing heavily, could be another sign he’s out of his realm.
Quite a contrast to our PM, he enjoys his job, says so, is confident and he wears it well.
Did any of you catch the Q&A with Iggy in BC yesterday? Someone asked Iggy about how he and his wife use ‘green’ initiatives in their own lives.He flummoxed and fumbled around,said something about not using plastic grocery bags,he doesn’t own a car right now,and some other lame stuff..he was asked if he ‘rides a bike’..he answered,’no I don’t DRIVE a bike’ It was the lamest response,and he really appeared stumped for an answer.I thot he seemed phony,and for someone who was there to promote the new lib green agenda..not a great attempt to sell this!
So you’re saying that he not only feigns faith, but also feigns being green Sammy? Somehow that doesn’t surprise me. I can’t see the Aristocrat eating local.
“Human Rights Commission is a very Liberal idea, which chooses to dictate to the plebs what ‘their’ version of truth is. This type of thinking and ideology was responsible for the creation of the Spanish Inquisition”
Ha ha, no human rights commission required, those of the predominant christian faith of the time managed to come up with the requirement for it all on their own, pride and arrogance in their view of the world.
The ultimate view of religon, courtesy of Arnald Amalric (1150-1225), during the Albigensian Crusade in France against other christians, “Kill them all, God will recognize his own.”
It’s interesting to watch those of faith try to deny the destruction, suppression and evil that is it’s own foundation. Your bible has not changed, it stills states the right way to mark your slaves as property, what to do after you rape someone, that woman should be seen and not heard, that it’s ok to give up your daughters to be raped by a mob, among other things.
But of course in this modern and enlightened age, you’ve risen above all that old stuff, not leading the way of course, but being dragged kicking and screaming the whole way.
“The Christian’s Bible is a drug store. Its contents remain the same; but the medical practice changes…. The world has corrected the Bible. The church never corrects it; and also never fails to drop in at the tail of the procession — and take the credit of the correction. During many ages there were witches. The Bible said so. the Bible commanded that they should not be allowed to live. Therefore the Church, after eight hundred years, gathered up its halters, thumb-screws, and firebrands, and set about its holy work in earnest. She worked hard at it night and day during nine centuries and imprisoned, tortured, hanged, and burned whole hordes and armies of witches, and washed the Christian world clean with their foul blood.
Then it was discovered that there was no such thing as witches, and never had been. One does not know whether to laugh or to cry…. There are no witches. The witch text remains; only the practice has changed. Hell fire is gone, but the text remains. Infant damnation is gone, but the text remains. More than two hundred death penalties are gone from the law books, but the texts that authorized them remain.”
Mark Twain.
Presently the focus is being “Green”, where the church in the past enjoined you to reap god’s bounty, and celebrated every advance that lined their pockets, regardless of what physical destruction it caused, nowadays their PR section has them touting being “green” as the right path to god’s grace. Quite a change from collection their Peter’s Pence share of the plunder during the spanish conquest of the America’s.
You just keep believing in the supernatural if you want, the 3G’s, ghosts, goblins and god.
PS. What percentage of you believes in unicorns? How about angels?
I read your blog often, but have never commented before. I just can’t let the prior comment go unanswered however. My mother used to say “there’s nothing wrong with the church………………except that it’s full of people”. Explains a whole lot of things!When people use the church as a means to power, bad things can happen, but that is the doing of fallible humans, not of God. It’s important to remember that we are the only creatures of this earth gifted with free will and we have not always used it well.
Wildrose – Welcome! I’m glad you took the time to comment. That was really well said and very astute.
We humans are flawed indeed. Good thing we have God to turn to. And while God may be found in a church, the true believers know that He is available to us no matter where we are. We only need to reach out.
[...] They’re both sick and tired of being taken for granted by the Liberals and are shifting towards the Conservative [...]