John Tory's Tories versus Caveman Caucus Ontario

Of the 26 MPPs John Tory's Tories elected at the beginning of the week, 15 of them or just over half are certified members of the supposed Caveman Caucus, Richie Rich's politicial antithesis yet also backbenchmates who have made it to the center. Led by Bill Murdoch, the group also includes past leadership candidate Frank Klees, plus Tim Hudak, Norm Miller, Jim Wilson, Toby Barrett, Jerry Ouellette, Ernie Hardeman, John Yakabuski, Garfield Dunlop, John O'Toole, Gerry Martiniuk, Ted Arnott, Randy Hillier and Bob Runciman. Now whereas John Tory and the Progressive Caucus of Norm Sterling, Elizabeth Witmer, Julia Munro, Christine Elliott, Ted Chudleigh, Bob Bailey, Laurie Scott, Joyce Savoline, Lisa MacLeod, Peter Shurman and Sylvia Jones are trying hard to decide what is next, they must look beyond their leadership woes and realize their party is splitting towards dichotomic political theory nobody can unite.

While the Cavemen see the use of a Reform motor under a Progressive Conservative paintjob as the key to future electoral success, as well as the way to stop a future Reform Party of Ontario breakthrough from happening in the next election, the Progressives see Green as the real key to future electoral success. With proof coming from voters in usually Tory safe rural Ontario ridings, like Dufferin—Caledon, Bruce—Grey—Owen Sound and others in Central Ontario region, where the Green Party of Ontario have been making some major waves with 15%+ points. John Tory may use his decision to merge religion and state as the major excuse to why this has all happened, but he must realize that under his leadership policy was advised by his party backroom, not developed by his party grassroots and that indeed leadership apparently matters.

On the other hand, both Reform and the Greens refused to allow policy to be created by a leader selected committee in their backrooms respectively, instead opted for their elected grassroots to bring in brand new election policy documents. In Ontario, the Progressive Conservative party have finally split into a two separate Progressive urban and rural Conservative factions, the only thing left to do is split into two separate parties or return back to each of their original principled stands as politicians independently. But whether it be a split Progressive and Conservative option in 2011 or separate Green and Reform options, the Ontario Tory option under John Tory can never replicate the Ontario Tories under Bill Davis and facing that fact may be the most painful for any PC politico in the United Loyal Empire today.

Showing Electoral Grits

Safe, secure and bland wins the campaign for Premier Dalton Mcguinty and his Liberal team across the province, especially when running against even blander competition and opposition trying hard to outbland you and your campaign.

Obviously with the kind of campaign it was, both Mcguinty and the Liberals ran it as it should have been run, as both the Progressive Conservatives and New Democrats now represent the old probable alternatives, Green and Reform being the new possible alternatives then we may see the repeat of this result more often then not in this new century for Ontario many more moons from here on.

But this isn't about those who got elected or even reelected (Joe Dickson of Ajax-Pickering, Mike Brown of Algoma-Manitoulin, Ted McMeekin of Ancaster-Dundas-Flamborough-Westdale, Aileen Carroll of Barrie, Kuldip Kular of Bramalea-Gore-Malton, Linda Jeffrey of Brampton-Springdale, Vic Dhillon of Brampton West, Dave Levac of Brant, Pat Hoy of Chatham-Kent-Essex, Tony Ruprecht of Davenport, David Caplan of Don Valley East, Kathleen Wynne of Don Valley West, Steve Peters of Elgin--Middlesex--London, Mike Colle of Eglinton-Lawrence, Bruce Crozier of Essex, Donna Cansfield of Etobicoke Centre, Laurel Broten of Etobicoke-Lakeshore, Shafiq Qaadri of Etobicoke North, Jean-Marc Lalonde of Glengarry-Prescott-Russell, Liz Sandals of Guelph, Sophia Aggelonitis of Hamilton Mountain, Carol Mitchell of Huron-Bruce, John Gerretsen of Kingston and the Islands, John Milloy of Kitchener Centre, Leeanna Pendergast of Kitchener-Conestoga, Maria Van Bommel of Lambton-Kent-Middlesex, Khalil Ramal of London-Fanshawe, Deb Matthews of London North Centre, Chris Bentley of London West, Michael Chan of Markham-Unionville, Amrit Mangat of Mississauga-Brampton South, Peter Fonseca of Mississauga East-Cooksville, Harinder Takhar of Mississauga-Erindale, Bob Delaney of Mississauga-Streetsville, Charles Sousa of Mississauga South, Kim Craitor of Niagara Falls, Monique Smith of Nipissing, Lou Rinaldi of Northumberland-Quinte West, Helena Jaczek of Oak Ridges-Markham, Kevin Flynn of Oakville, Yasir Naqvi of Ottawa Centre, Phil McNeely of Ottawa-Orleans, Dalton McGuinty of Ottawa South, Madeleine Meilleur of Ottawa-Vanier, Jim Watson of Ottawa West-Nepean, John Wilkinson of Perth-Wellington, Jeff Leal of Peterborough, Wayne Arthurs of Pickering-Scarborough East, Leona Dombrowsky of Prince Edward-Hastings, Reza Moridi of Richmond Hill, David Orazietti of Sault Ste. Marie, Gerry Phillips of Scarborough-Agincourt, Brad Duguid of Scarborough Centre, Margarett Best of Scarborough-Guildwood, Bas Balkissoon of Scarborough-Rouge River, Lorenzo Berardinetti of Scarborough Southwest, Jim Bradley of St. Catharines, Michael Bryant of St. Paul's, Jim Brownell of Stormont-Dundas-South Glengarry, Rick Bartolucci of Sudbury, Bill Mauro of Thunder Bay-Atikokan, Michael Gravelle of Thunder Bay-Superior North, David Ramsay of Timiskaming-Cochrane, George Smitherman of Toronto Centre, Greg Sorbara of Vaughan, David Zimmer of Willowdale, Sandra Pupatello of Windsor West, Dwight Duncan of Windsor-Tecumseh, Monte Kwinter of York Centre, Laura Albanese of York South-Weston and Mario Sergio of York West), no, this is about those who became deelected (Caroline Dicocco of Sarnia-Lambton, Mario Racco of Thornhill, Tim Peterson of Mississauga South, Joe Tascona of Barrie and Paul Ferreira of York South-Weston).

Each was interesting in their own right, but less about themselves personally, it was the local issues that killed the political careers for each one, especially Dicocco who at one time was among the greatest proponents of electoral reform within the government caucus, with some saying Sarnia Mayor Mike Bradley took away his support over a hospital deal and Premier Mcguinty for mistakes on the inside such as her abandonment of principles over giving up sponsorship for a political reform bill fining bad politicians.

For those newly elected () by replacement, this parliament will .

Mcguinty's Ontario Liberals have a chance here, start afresh with a new vision for a new mandate or repeat the same old status quo agenda like Bob Rae's New Democrats or Mike Harris' Tories did almost two and one decade ago respectfully that both lacked common sense and caused revolutions by the populus against them.

Dreaming of a Green and Reform Province of Ontario

The Referendum Election of 2007 in Ontario has given us a Liberal, Tory and NDP story, so with Dalton Mcguinty about to become the next Governing Premier again plus the Liberals about to become the next Governing Party, I ask that people look towards an electoral battle royale in Bruce—Grey—Owen Sound.

Having worked for the local campaigns, endorsed or volunteered for three of the five parties and their candidates of record in the riding today, I can easily say though Bill Murdoch and his Progressive Conservatives will massively win the electoral riding, I believe Bill Cook and his Reform Party of Ontario and Shane Jolley and his Green Party of Ontario deserve a second look.

Everyone in the riding not wanting to vote for Bognor Bill Murdoch's Tories should look at both of these pro-grassroots-friendly choices, again knowing all three personally, I know each care for the region and want only the best for the constituents who have likely worked, played and lived there for the majority of their lives.

Right here in Ancaster—Dundas—Flamborough—Westdale, Grit Teddy Mac is our version of Bognor Bill, populist, social activist and man of work within the cloth for the United Church of Canada on social justice issues, as the anti-amalgamation Mayor of Flamborough holds moral authority of the people on their issues locally so he should win.

Liberals will simply win the government at Queen's Park tomorrow, shouldn't Toronto have an independent member representing them from home in Bruce-Grey-Owen Sound too, one that will not just speak for the government in Toronto, as Teddy Mac will do here in Ancaster—Dundas—Flamborough—Westdale, but instead speak for the people back home just as it should be.

Yes, so this dream has me hoping for a Green and Reform comeback in my home riding, perhaps a rebirth of both provincial political parties would be a good thing for democracy in this province and perhaps to the point of giving us a much needed realignment.

Mixed Up Members Disproportional Nonrepresentation

Ontario's big decision has really been a little indecisive, basically the new Mixed Member Proportional Represenational ballot seems to be creating Mixed Up Members Disproportional Nonrepresentation out there and that will be the idea that comes in First Past The Post.

There are many problems with the system, obviously a system I would not chose, despite my own favour of electoral reform in this province. But we need to make sure the system we choose is free for people to vote in, fair for parties to elect on and democratically representative for the system's sake on its own. The Alternative Majority Preferential Ballot or Transferable Vote makes much more sense, commonly keeps traditions like the current ridings and their individual members, except that unlike the current system members are elected by a majority, every party has a chance and finally all votes count.

Finally, even if I disagree with the system being proposed by Ontario's Citizens' Assembly on Electoral Reform, I also disagree with how the Government and its Democratic Renewal Secretariat's Select Committee on Electoral Reform has placed such a huge threshold on the referendum itself. A majority is a majority, 50%+1 is a clear majority, I would hope any referendum in the future would be open enough to democracy to embrace a clear majority when given by the people. On the other side of the coin, a Students' Assembly on Electoral Reform shouldn't have given the Citizens' a partisan decision outside their own which became their own, truly makes one wonder just what other ideas were pushed upon this independent body in their independent decision. I look forward to our next Citizens' Assembly on Electoral and other kinds of Reform, but I hope more vigorous rules and regulations then debate and decision can be made with them, or else the whole exercise will be another waste of taxpayer's money, people's time and citizen's power.