The recent controversy spawned by Frank Graves of Ekos, whose company provides polling for CBC, over his “advice” given to the Liberal Party to start a “culture war”, has brought into question the impartiality of the publicly-funded broadcaster.
It would be difficult to find blatant bias at the CBC where everybody could look at it and all agree that it was something overtly critical of the Conservative Party. There is, however, a subtle undercurrent of hostility toward the Conservative Party and conservatism in general, but it’s definitely become stronger in recent years.
Some people don’t believe it, and I don’t blame them. It’s difficult to notice it unless you really pay attention to the language and the focus on the news reports and the editorial decisions on what to cover. I think that a former co-worker said it best recently. I was surprised to hear him acknowledge a bias, because when I used to work him over ten years ago, he always struck me as being very apolitical:
[...] I was news director at my university radio station years ago. I met a lot of folks in various Toronto news departments at that time, including the CBC. They all made an effort to be as unbiased as possible, but there are of course exceptions: Marching orders via management, and those with “current events” type shows, which were not strictly news but also opinion. The CBC has a management culture that is primarily small “l” liberal, and since they sign the pay cheques eventually those broadcasters who want longevity fall in line, consciously or unconsciously.
Honestly, I find the whole Conservative vs. CBC issue a joke, and I have for a while. Since at least Mulroney, and arguably since the 1970′s when Trudeau was in power, the CBC has shifted left in the political spectrum. And this is something small “c” conservatives have noticed and complained about for years, but until the recent economic downturn, the Harper Conservatives generally left the CBC alone. That was honorable, as far as I was concerned. However, when the downturn hit and the Federal budget constricted, the CBC (like many other Federally funded areas) took a hit. And the result was the CBC in general became a harsher critic of the government, and thus it doesn’t surprise me that the CBC would be using a biased pollster.
[...] While both sides have had immature moments, over the last few years, the CBC has acted like Paris Hilton dissing the hand that feeds her because her expected lifestyle isn’t possible. The knives come out, let the social engineering begin.
This seems to me to be a pretty neutral and accurate assessment of the CBC. It isn’t overtly anti-conservative, but the more it is constricted in its funding, the more it has — consciously or unconsciously — lashed out at the government. Whether that would happen under a federal Liberal government that made budget cuts to the CBC as well, I don’t know.
But to outright deny there is any bias at the CBC whatsoever, as many people are currently doing, seems to me to be a perspective that is only looking at one side.
Their cultural bias is more troublesome than their political bias, because it colours every story, and leads to the publics ignorance on a multitude of subjects.
They are small ‘l’ liberals in a Big way.
Laura Babcock made the similar comments about the culture at the CBC.
The choice and resources in chasing stories and lack of follow up are a problem.
Oversight?
State funeral holy host, late for photos of G8?
Interview of Somaila women single mother trapped?
A CBC crew films a H1N1 lineup with a Liberal staffer and captures his comments?
A CBC crew goes to work on Sunday morning to film extra bodybags returned to Gov’t offices closed?
A film crews flies down to talke to private detective on Jaffer/Guergis?
The front end is VERY heavy in painting the government in a negative fashion but the back end to clear up or correct the story?
Balance, perspective, accuracy is missing.
It is underhanded, sneaky bias – bias by ommission, such as Not reporting on something favourable to the Tories, or inserting a negative after a positive, or throwing in a statement that has nothing to do with the actual story such as happened the other day when they were reporting on the Gulf Oil disaster and added at the end that Alberta’s oil sands continue to spew dirty oil (paraphrased). It was a blatant dig at Alberta that had nothing to do with the story at hand.
I agree there is a bias by omission. Also I think that the whole detainee affair is really blown out of proportion and is partially based on a desire to find a scandal.
Again, consider my appearance on the show when I asked why the CBC refused to pay any attention to climategate.
BIAS? You ain’t seen nothing yet…disgusting
Just watched Power & politics tonight with the usual Don Martin and Julie Van Dussen and Rob Russio.(all Liberals on the CBC taxpayer funded payrole) I am” LIVID” with the comments…the most disgusting BS LIBERAL speculation and slanderous comments I ever heard on a political show. Hard to write down what was said….hope there is a video of this show. It went along these lines….Don Martin…”If there is effidence of Stephen Harper being a “war criminal”…Julie Van Dussen…”Then we will hear the word COALITION coming out”…”watch your wallets said Harper”bla bla bla and laughter …Then Allen Bonner on another section of the Liberal left arm propaganda segment…saying …”It is not hip to say you are a Conservative” in polls….then” Pat Martin has the “BEST” quotes” says Don Martin. Would that be the quote about the Eatons Catalogue and toilet paper in a john? CBC is just a slam against the Conservative govt and now I am listening to Rosemary Barton “out of control” asking what is worse for the conservative govt…Jaffer or the detaine situation….after talking to some guy from Britian about how terrible the Conservative has done. There is something WRONG here….I hope the Canadian people and the Prime Minister can do something about this on the air waves across this so called democratic country.
Reply
Ontario Girl Says: Your comment is awaiting moderation.
April 30, 2010 at 3:01 PM
Waiting for my comments to pass…(freedom of speech for Conservatives) cont:….Now we have the unbiased Don Newman) smirk… .Here is what Don Newman said tonight on the CBC….”If HARPER wins another election, he is beyond parliament”….”What if there are “WAR CRIMES” …how can we deal with effidence of war crimes.” Then Don Newman said ….” Harper peroged parliament…Conservatives should be nervous that Harper is beyond the reach of parliament”.” Harper is a dictator who shuts down parliament whenever he wants.”The difference is says Don Newman….”Cabinet ministers & people , know the players…the argument is, I may be dirty but your dirty too”. Time for us taxpayers to shut down this filthy CBC and their Liberal free 10%ers once and for all…pay for viewing for Liberals and the taliban. I am LIVID over this show.
You’re just now questioning the CBC’s impartiality? I’ve been convinced of their liberal bias ever since they ran a well-timed smear story that ruined any hope Stockwell Day had of winning the 2000 federal election.
As for why the CBC has a big-government, anti-american bias, this is the best theory I’ve come across.
Jesse,
No, not just now. But there’s been a ton of people saying that the Conservatives are overreacting on the Graves/CBC thing, and I’m trying to set the record straight a little bit.
You wouldn’t believe the denial out there.
Remember the ‘Charlie Brown’ woman in the street.
they ran her ad nauseam…
It is the gleeful laughter by Van Dussen, and the smirk on Barton’s face which is so hard to accept. All pretence of objectivety has been abandoned by this pair. Complaining to the Ombudsman will accomplish absolutely nothing.
Martin…I agree…it is unreal that a commentator for CBC can be so jovial, smirking, laughing, smirking once again…so opening….they can at least hide it can’t they?.But you ain’t seen nothing yet…check out the video of todays show with Lessard and Newman….the gloves are off…WHY? Because they must be drowning in the latest poll…they know it and they are trying to reel in the un-informed with their Liberal bias.
I know that the CBC is biased when left-wingers claim that CBC is “fair”.
It’s like Republicans calling Fox News “fair and balanced”.
The difference is fox news is not payed for by taxpayers dollars$$$$$$
I DO NOT WANT TO PAY FOR CBC. It is the most biases propaganda program I have ever witnessed in my entire life…..I do not support LIBERALS…NDP…or Separtists….the Coalition from hell. I did not vote for them or the CBC to voice their opinions.
Ontario Girl has hit the nail on the head.
Canadians that actually pay taxes should have the network that their tax dollars support in it’s entirety, be a safe and balanced viewing or listening experience.
CBC does not provide that haven whatsoever, therefore we have a right to call them out on it and it should be done in reasoned and balanced arguments such as this one. Good analysis, Adrian.
CBC as well, has a horribly low % following from what I have been able to determine. (that info is difficult to get) and those people are left leaning voters in Central Canada. They are playing to their pathetic audience is my opinion, what little there is of them.
They need to go. CBC is a fund sucking embarrassment.
Actually, I think they are calling themselves the Liberal-NDP-Bloc-Taliban Coalition.
Adrian,
I would probably agree with those on the left who are saying that conservatives are overreacting about this particular incident. However, they generally miss two key points:
1) If this was an isolated indecent, it would be one thing, but this is part of a history of left-leaning bias at the CBC.
2) We have other media outlets with a left-wing bias, like the Toronto Star. And while I choose not to read the Star, I don’t care that they are biased because it is a private company. Conservatives are rightly pissed off that we are spending $1 billion/year so that the CBC can preach socialism to rich people.
I remember my dad a few years after he returned fromm WW2 saying that the CBC were spokespeople for the radically socialist CCF (now NDP). The CBC’s major news anchorman was a despicable and miserable man named Defoe. I know how miserable Defoe was because he lived on my street. He screwed up his own son who I knew. My Dad is a dyed in the wool Toronto Star type Liberal. This was ingrained in him by his staunch Irish Catholicism that the Toronto Star rightly championed in the early 20th century. That was because of the Orange discrimination by the Toronto elite of the day. He realises CBC and the Torstar are biased and always has been.
Fortunately but slowly the left is losing that demographic.
I only mention this to remind everyone that CBC TV has been left since it’s inception.
PMSH appoints the President and the Board of the CBC.
2007 PMSH appointed Hubert Lacroix as pres, NOT what the Committee recommended!(patience)
Here’s a blast from the past!:
http://www.stephentaylor.ca/2005/01/cbc-board-of-directors-political-contributions-by-party/
It’s “Worth Repeating” the comment I left at Aardvark blop earlier:
The fraudulent Toronto media had ditched “bias” long ago. They’ve now morphed into being full frontal, bald faced liars. They’re doing what they’ve always done and that is following in the goosesteps of the fraudulent American media.
They are the “Pravda” of our times.
I just find myself, more and more, yelling at the radio. I’ve been a big fan of CBC radio in the past but all the shows that even slightly ‘touch’ on politics like “As it Happens” or even “Quirks and Quarks” are suddenly suffering McBushHarperHiltler eruptions. I think it was Tuesday night on AiH, Carol Off was interviewing an African Medical Official about the Canadian Government’s position on Maternal Health and the abortion question. Off kept referring to “the Harper administration” instead of “the Government of Canada”, a deliberate and calculated insult the CBC would never visit upon a Liberal or NDP administration. Carol had to keep steering the poor man back to more specific Harper-Bashing whenever the interview started to wander off into how ‘everything else seemed fine’ other than the Abortion bit.
Another thing that drives me crazy is when the CBC can’t quite get that perfect Harper-bashing quote so they lead off topics with, “Some people say…” and then paste in the Harper Hate without even bothering to fix it within some broader context.
Thanks Bec. By the way, did you see this one?
http://www.cbc.ca/politics/story/2010/04/30/politics-voter-preference-leger-poll.html
Pretty much. That’s how I feel about it as well.
I know the CBC is trying to appeal to a certain left-wing market and I have no problem with that. But please don’t do it using my taxpayer dollars.
I read about how Carol Off tried to ruin Major General Lewis Mac Kenzie’s career in his ” Book Soldiers Made me Look Good.” He and his wife had graciously welcomed Off into their home and trusted and disclosed information–to help her write her book–instead she deliberately smeared Mac Kenzie and twisted all his words. Once again, with the most horrific allegations hinting of war crimes. And Off yanked this theory of hers out of thin air.
These Generals must really love Canada a lot for what they put up with after they retire. It’s a slap and sting that Canadians are helping pay the bill enabling the CBC to undermine this country.
I watched another CBC reporter, in a fit of cruelty, go for General Natynczyk’s juglar not long ago.
I have no respect left for the CBC and want their funding yanked.
I no longer believe their motives are left-leaning; call me nuts, but I sincerely believe they’ve become part of the 5th Column in this country; they’ve fallen off the Canadian political spectrum and will do anything in their power to dis-arm Canada so it can’t protect itself.
They didn’t start out this way but that’s what they’ve become.
Back in 2001-2003 when Martin was trying to oust Chretien I challenged one of my left-leaning friends to watch it and count how many times Martin was mentioned positively in stories that he wasn’t involved in at all. After a month, my friend came back and acknowledged that the CBC was blatantly backing Martin.
Course, that only works if people are willing to look for themselves and not just see what they want to see.
Ha ha ha
It is amusing how you find people who agree with your partisan take on things “objective”.
You poor, poor, conservative victims. The WHOLE WORLD is against you.
Thanks for the chuckle on an otherwise humdrum Friday night.
The only thing more predictable than this comment is that the sun will rise tomorrow.
In case anyone’s interested:
Excerpt from “Soldiers Made Me Look Good”
MacKenzie on C. Off’s bias:
http://www.dmpibooks.com/book/soldiers-made-me-look-good/excerpt
Thanks for the recommendation, Joan.
It’s predictable because you’re predictable.
Because you are not seeing what you want to see, right???
Dear lord, if some of you took your own advice this whole thing would be over.
It’s true though – I do like mocking you people when you start acting all victimy and stuff.
You just make it so easy, I can’t help it.
Sure, I could point out that your “evidence” the CBC is biased amounts to the opinion of some guy who happens to agree with you, but you have never taken kindly to any criticism of your “analysis”.
I could point out that most of your little fans here see anything that is even mildly critical of Harper as total and complete bias, which kind of makes you look silly by the company you keep.
I could point out that the CBC has had many stories that are deeply critical of the LPC. I could point out that on their At Issue panel they have a pollster who used to work for the Mulroney government, and another guy who has openly declared himself to be a fiscal conservative, and a woman who has been openly derisive about Stephan Dion.
I could point out this whole thing has just been used by the CPC as another money making venture – and no doubt many of you little lemmings have ponied up the cash – which is what they do with their wedge issues.
I could point out the culture war is something the CPC have perfected, what with their years of experience decrying anyone who has an education (educated people are so out of touch with the Tim Hortons crowd), and feminists, and anyone who dares to question their handling of detainees, and so on…
But that would be lost on you, because, you know, Frank Graves gave some money to the liberals at some point in time, and his poll numbers do not show the CPC with a totally awesome lead (neither does anyone else, but I digress…), so the CBC MUST be biased against the conservatives.
See – it’s easier just to make fun of you.
and no doubt many of you little lemmings have ponied up the cash – which is what they do with their wedge issues.
I believe the phrase you’re looking for there, Gayle, is the democratic right as a free Canadian to donate money earned by myself to support the party that most closely represents my views. Of course the LPC would never, ever use wedge issues to further their own ends or their own coffers. Its just the CPC thats evil, the LPC stands for justice and true Canadian values, right Gayle?
Sure you have the right to put your money anywhere you want to.
But I must say I am amused by your “the liberals do it too” argument. Perhaps you missed my “the CPC did it first” argument.
Anyhoo – the point I am making is the CPC don’t care if the CBC is biased, and they probably don’t even believe they are biased. They just like to bring that up every once in a while because that riles up their base and they make a few bucks off it.
Gayle, trust me, the CPC thinks the CBC is biased. Do I think the CBC is biased? Yes, I do. Do I think the CBC is less biased if conservatives like myself complain? Yes, I do. If LPC supporters are convinced that the media is biased against them, I’d expect them to complain too. To me, thats how the system should work: the viewers expressing their opinions to the NATIONAL television network and demand that they reflect the beliefs of ALL Canadians, not just the views of Central Canada.
Sure they do. They probably also think the liberals support the Taliban.
Anyhoo…
But it must be hard living in a constant state of victimhood. I feel sorry for you.
I think of it less as victim-hood Gayle, more of vigilance.
My God. -and I’m an atheist. I think I’ve found my foxhole. Your post is very gracious Adrian, very gracious and fair considering the years of smears and tactical omissions perpetrated by the CBC against Reform, PC, anyone not leftarded.
That gayle troll is a badge of honour for you. she is dedicated. I don’t even spend that kind of time on my comments.
Well done all around everybody.
oh come now…all that the LPC and gayle have now is the support of a taxpayer funded institution. Certainly it’s doing so much good!
Let’s let them have their bone, and let them continue to look absolutely ridiculous with their blatant bias.
Predictable,
From Janke, Taylor and yours
The internet alias “Gayle” is likely a paid Liberal staffer, visiting active Tory blogs.
No proof, but as Gayle requires even less for her comments against this government, karma is appropriate.
She visits Lib blogs to boost their morale when they are crying about the numerous mistakes and poll numbers.
She fades away for a few days, when those cheques bounce.
The internet alias Gayle is the Joan of Arc for the Liberals.
Yes Gayle – you COULD point all those things out…so what.
It is painfully obvious to anyone with a brain and some moducum of critical thinking that the CBC Harper Bash and have a strong left leaning bias.
I used to get the “friends of CBC” emails – the absolute hatred pouring out of those against Harper were chilling.
So Gayle – you put back on your rose colored glasses and go back to your cosy little left wing nest where everyone agrees with you that they HATE HATE HATE Conservatives and DESPISE Stephen Harper.
You typify what Charles Adler called the typical leftwinger – smirking, arrogant, I-am-better-than you attitude, denigrating and blatantly a know it all.
When you decide to look at things objectively Gayle, come back and do a mea culpa.
Gayle: We know that Gregg polled for the PC party over 17 tears ago. That is slightly different from Graves polling for the CBC, appearing as a pundit and advising the Liberals at the same time, all the while denying he favours the LPC.
The behaviour that bothered me and others today, is not the At Issues Panel, but the women on the Solomon show openly jeering at the Prime Minister. To my mind, these people are biased, know they are, and simply no longer care. They believe no one will discipline them, in that they are probably correct.
Now I get it.
You think you are able to express critical thinking.
Here is something you need to understand AG. An argument that relies on “if you don’t agree with me you are stupid”, is NOT an example of critical thinking. In fact, it is an example of someone who has a “I am better than you” attitude, denigrating and a blatant “know it all”.
Try again.
Awwww look. CS is making this all about me again. I must be really important to you, what with all the time you spend on me and all.
It’s kinda cute. Do you have a crush on me or something?
I will remember this if you ever venture back to liblogs (I suspect you are like wilson, and only go over there when you think you have something to gloat about). I might even point out how much time you spend on personal attacks, since you do go on and on and on about being attacked over there.
I take it you have not looked up the word “hypocrite” yet?
By the way, this is it from me. I am not indulging your obsessive fantasies any more. I spoke to a shrink and she said I should ignore you because by responding I might encourage your irrational behaviour.
Toodles.
Do you have some evidence that suggests his polling methodology is biased?
PS – there is absolutely no difference between Graves and Gregg. You have not even bothered to tell us what you think the difference is.
You poor poor people. It must be really hard when the facts get in the way of your paranoid delusions:
http://www.vancouversun.com/news/Pollster+blasted+Conservatives+alleged+Liberal+bias+also+worked+Tories/2972772/story.html
“Although the Tories portray Graves as a political partisan and want him identified thus when he appears on CBC, he is among the few prominent pollsters who hasn’t actually worked for a political party.
The Toronto Star — frequently derided by Conservatives for alleged liberal bias — has used polling by Angus Reid Public Opinion. The firm’s director of research, Hamish Marshall, is currently a member of the Conservative Party of Canada’s national council. He was quoted in a recent Star story about how the Rahim Jaffer-Helena Guergis scandal was affecting Conservative support.
Allan Gregg, a prominent pollster who appears regularly on the CBC, worked closely with Progressive Conservative prime ministers Brian Mulroney and Kim Campbell. And in the last election, CTV used political polling provided by the Strategic Counsel, a Toronto firm whose principals then included Peter Donolo, a former communications aide to prime minister Jean Chretien and now chief of staff to Liberal leader Michael Ignatieff.”
Oh, and follow the link where you will discover just how much money the conservative government has paid Graves over the past 4 years.
Of course you do, but you are behaving like a victim, so…
Threats already?
This is not about “you”.
This is about an internet alias called “Gayle”.
Does this alias named “Gayle” post 20x a day on numerous blogging tory websites?
Does this alias named “Gayle” post 20x a day on numerous blogging Liberal blogging websites?
This internet alias is posting 40x a day boosting liberals, changing channels on Tory websites.
The question is are you a paid staffer, would be very easy to clear up.
1) Create your own blog and permanent account so Liberals/Tory posters can view your 1000′s on every subject.
What are you hiding?
Adrian, Steve J. Steve T have all used their real names and have not hid behind an alias.
The least you can do with your 20 posts a day on their sites is show some courtesy to the hosts unless you are in fact working and paid by a political party.
Cheers!
So you will continue to hide and deny you are a paid staffer for the Liberal party?
Oh, and follow the link where you will discover just how much money the conservative government has paid Graves over the past 4 years.
I thought Frank Graves said he’s never worked for either political party? In his public mea culpa AFTER he was quoted as saying the best strategy for the LPC was basically to divide the country via culture war, he claimed he’s never taken any money from either party. So which is it Gayle, is Graves a liar or an incompetent?
I choose door number 3 – you are wrong.
The link establishes he worked for the conservative GOVERNMENT, not the conservative party.
I know it is hard for some of you conservatives to understand, but they are not one and the same. One uses party money, and the other uses tax money.
In short, the conservative government used our tax dollars to hire Frank Graves, AFTER Graves donated to the liberals.
Funny that, doncha think?
YAY…Gayle saw the light….That is exactly what lefties (including both the CBC AND you) do!
So you’re saying that as long as Frank Graves delivered a professional product he had no trouble with a conservative government. It was only after he uttered his famous ugly divisive insulting rant about Conservatives and westerners, while in the employ of the National Broadcaster, that Canadian Conservatives and the CPC thought Frank acted improperly? Is that your claim, Gayle? That sounds more like the definition of ‘actions have consequences’. Correct me if I’m wrong Gayle, but has the LPC repudiated Graves’ advice or is it just waiting for the attention to die down before implementing the “CBC strategy”.
I thought I had outlined the difference between Gregg and Graves. Gregg worked for a forerunner of the CPC 17 years ago, Graves is advising the LPC for free, polling for the CBC and acting as a pundit, while claiming to be an independent.
As Teneycke asked him, why not admit the obvious that you favour the LPC? The bias in his polling stems directly from his personal advice, his opinion of huge swaths of Canadians he doesn’t particularly like. His polling for the CBC is funded by those same people, that is what is unacceptable.
It’s cute the way you pretend I did not provide any examples that show no bias, and you did not provide any examples that show bias.
The LPC do not have to repudiate anything. Their actions demonstrate their position. You guys rely on Graves’ advice to demonstrate the LPC’s “culture war”, and I rely on the CPC’s actions to demonstrate theirs.
The truth is, the CPC have demonstrated by their own actions they do not believe Graves is biased. What they believe is they can use his unfortunate comments to raise more money, and appeal to their base.
Oh, and to continue their culture war against the CBC.
You have not demonstrated any flaws in his methodology or his analysis. Therefore, you have no evidence that Graves is not polling as an independent. If you believe his polling is flawed, show me the bias. The fact his poll numbers are in line with most of the other polling firms would tend to show that it is not flawed.
The mere fact Gregg worked for the conservatives 17 years ago does not take away from the fact that he worked for the conservatives, which would include advising them. There is no difference.
Or maybe “I know you are, but what am I” is just another example of your “critical thinking”.
What they believe is they can use his unfortunate comments to raise more money, and appeal to their base.
Gayle, is it your position that Conservatives and Westerners shouldn’t be upset about Graves’ comments? About being labeled as parochial, moralist, racist, homophobic Palin-voters? About being constantly told that their values aren’t “Canadian”, but should move to the US? Do you think this is acceptable political discourse? Do you think this does ANYTHING to unite Canada? What color is the sky in your world?
Actually you would be wrong. The Government of Canada hired him, as you point out. Probably through a PWGSC contract, as required by Treasury Board rules.
This proves nothing, doncha think?
As so many people point out, not much of a culture war as they are still funding “the mother corpse”.
Perhaps one day we will see a CPC majority government cut the funding completely and allow the CBC to become a real public television station like PBS. I bet you would send them $5 wouldn’t you Gayle?
BTW, in case you would ask, no I would not send a penny to the CBC, but I have donated to PBS.
The difference is the PC party no longer even exists. I have no clear idea who Gregg supports now, it is not obvious. With the incendiary remarks from Graves, it is clear. Would the CBC accept a conservative pollster telling Quebecers to get with the program, or go back to France? No and neither would I, but this is clearly what Graves did tell Albertans and others… “move to US and vote for Palin”.
It is the optics that are all wrong here. Even if his sampling technique is sound, I could never trust his polls again. Neither should the CBC.
PMO hired him too – so it proves something.
If the government stopped funding them, they would also have to remove all programming restrictions for Canadian content.
But they will not do either. They want to keep the CBC, because that gives them something to rail against whenever they go on a fundraising drive.
Kind of like how they will never try to reform the senate into a Triple E senate.
Do you have a link to where I said I agree with what Graves said?
Frankly, it is the conservatives who promote this whole wedge issue politics. Which party pits university educated people against the rest of the country again? Tim Hortons v Starbucks? Urban v rural?
The notion I am out of touch with my fellow Canadians just because I worked hard and paid my own way through university, and just because I do not drink coffee, Tims or otherwise, and just because I happen to live in a city, is pretty damn offensive – or at least it would be if the people pushing those wedges were not so clumsy about it.
The conservatives entire modus operandi is to find those voters who they know who vote for them, target the voters they know they can swing, and totally ignore the voters who they know will never vote for them. That is what they do. That is what other parties do too.
Why is it only bad when the liberals do it?
As for your “the PC party no longer exists” silliness, as you well know they merged with the Alliance. Their baggage is now the CPC’s baggage.
Gayle, I didn’t say you agreed with Frank Graves, I said you can’t be surprised with the fact that conservatives and westerners are upset with being portrayed as wanna-be US republicans. That isn’t just wedge issue politics as usual, thats the deliberate attempt, to not just divide the country, but to demonize the half that doesn’t vote for you. I’m sure Liberals will accuse Harper of the same, but no Conservative has ever advocated the kind of ‘culture war’ that Graves is outlining, no conservatives EVER tell their opponents to go leave the country if they don’t like it. PMHarper, no matter your opinion of him, has made definite moves to the political centre. I wish Ignatieff would do the same and declaim against Graves’ opinions.
“…no Conservative has ever advocated the kind of ‘culture war’ that Graves is outlining….”
Maybe not publicly, but since that is what they are doing, I am guessing they have discussed it.
The Liberal Party of Canada has not said anything about adopting Graves’ advice.
Maybe target others they can swing, but suggest others should move to another country? That is exclusively a mark of the Liberals. Only Liberals normally describe Canadaian politics in terms of a foreign country, Obama, Palin, Bush etc.
After running 3 election campaigns on the CPC being too close to the US administration, Liberals have to shift 180 degrees and complain that PM Harper’s adminisration is not following the policy of the USSD.
I don’t see it as silly to point out that the Progessive party of the 1920s no longer exists; also the PC party of 1980s. Some of these members who could not accept the CPC must have gravitated somewhere, possibly to the LPC, perhaps dropped out. Ask Joe Clark.
Really? Please provide a link to where the liberals told others to move to a different country (and all you conservative types telling Ignatieff to go to the US does not count).
please, please point out where the Harper conservatives decried the policies of George Bush, or Sarah Palin.
If the shoe fits and all that…
“please, please point out where the Harper conservatives decried the policies of George Bush, or Sarah Palin.”
Um, that isn’t their job. This is Canada and they are hired to run this place, not the USA.
I’m not gonna say that CBC is totally fair and balanced. However, I don’t see much evidence to support the case that it has a horrible left-wing bias.
The problem that the right has with the CBC is that most of Canada, in fact, is left of center. So if the CBC were to say accurately represent all Canadians, conservatives would still complain as less than 35% of the people in this country are conservative …based on recent polling.
Maybe conservatives should just start accusing Canada of having a left-wing bias; there is much more evidence of that.
Searching for a scandal, and inventing a phony one if they can’t find a real one, has been the raison d’etre of all major media outlets since Watergate.
Just read the comments that follow CBC stories posted at their website. These are the CBC loyalists and their take on the issues is right out of the CBC little red book.
Ever noticed how the raving mad CBC supporters seem terrified of the prospect of privatization, as if they knew deep down in their little dark hearts that the CBC would sink if all they had to rely on was viewer support and satisfaction. Gotta prop up their propaganda machine with other people’s money, otherwise it’s a dead in the water.
Gayle, do you work for the CBC?
Try to imagine this scenario for a moment. Suppose you work for CTV or Global and the taxman takes his bit from you, like he does from every other Canadian with an income. The taxman then hands it over to the government who passes it on the CBC, your competition.
Now, pretend for a minute that you work for CBC. The taxman comes along and takes his bit from you, like he does from every other Canadian with an income. The taxman then hands it over the the government who passes it on to the CBC and the CBC in turn puts it right back in your own pocket.
Do you see anything wrong with that? Would you be a bit burned if you worked for the CTV and saw your wages being taxed and used to compete against the very institution that you work for?
I know a lot of people complain about the concentration of media, but this takes it to a whole different level. The government is essentially whittling away at the competitive nature of media, contributing to its concentration by forcing the big guns into mergers in order to survive, giving us fewer and fewer choices. Perfect territory for indoctrination. Not a good thing for freedom of thought and expression as guaranteed (supposedly) in our Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The government needs to get out of the business of funding the media. A free press is one that’s free from government interference.