Canadian Politics Thread

[Warhippy]

2 minutes ago, Optimist Prime said:

I do know that a lot of our companies are owned by yankee lumber firms. In fact the blockades that have tried to stop the Pacheedaht First Nation from harvesting timber on their ancestral and treaty lands was originally led by the son of the richest lumber barron in Washington State. Weird eh? Almost like those yankee billionaires were trying to stymie Canadian forestry..but the lawless ecowarriors don't mind that part so much if it advances their feeling of doing something for the environment. 

Between covid shut downs, logging issues in the summer months due to lock downs caused by multiple record years of fires plus beetle killed areas being untouchable due to fire risk and fuel prices cause significant issues in the chain between 2020 and 2024 without the tariffs and ongoing soft wood dispute.

 

Anyone who insinuates that there was no supply issues in the past few years at any time is lying.

[Miss Korea]

1 hour ago, Elias Pettersson said:

No wonder PP is destroying Trudeau in the polls.  There are people who still think we are doing just fine and nothing needs to be fixed.  If that were the case, Trudeau would win the next election in a landslide.  There is a reason Trudeau has lost his appeal among the majority of voters including the generation Z, which should technically be voting Liberal or NDP.

 

But again, if everyone is happy with the current economic conditions and Trudeau isn't really at fault with anything then I am sure people will still be voting for him.  You don't have to convince people on an anonymous message board to vote for Trudeau.  Just go out into the general population and talk to regular people.  

 

This is the best website to follow the polls.  338 Canada.  As of January 28, the Cons are predicted to win 199 seats, the Liberals 73.  I will be following this regularly for updates...

 

338Canada Canada | Poll Analysis & Electoral Projections

 

Here is a great article on Generation Z.  There are 4.5 million Canadians who are in this demographic, which works out to 14% of the voters for the next election.  Here is what they are saying...

 

In Generation Z, a new kind of voter emerges, focused more on issues, less on parties - National | Globalnews.ca

 

The arrival of Generation Z — this cohort will be about 14 per cent of all eligible voters in 2025 — is almost certain to have a significant and growing impact on the political culture of Western democracies, including Canada, as this youngest group of voters focuses their political activity on solving the problems their generation has identified as top priorities — climate change and housing are currently the top two in Canada — and are prepared to move their support across the political spectrum to match those priorities.

 

“It’s interesting because I think my generation has a little bit more of a cynical approach to thinking about how politicians are going to be helping us out right now,” said Russell Van Raalte, a 21-year-old third-year economics student at Queen’s University in Kingston, ON.  “I think we look at the housing crisis and the environment and we say to ourselves, really, can the government do very much? I’m not exactly sure.”

 

And while younger voters tend to see more progressive parties as more aligned on the issues GenZ adults rank as most important, that Ipsos poll from November found that nearly one in three respondents under 30 said they would vote Conservative — almost certainly the result of the Conservatives seemingly singled-minded focus on housing, an issue with GenZ adults ranks as a higher priority than other generational cohorts.

 

So basically, the #1 issue with Generation Z is housing.  Makes sense as this generation is the one most affected by the housing crisis.  They will vote with whoever gives them the best chance to be able to afford to buy a home.  I don't think it matters to them who is at fault for the housing crisis.  They will vote based on who they feel can fix this mess.  Seems like PP is the one who is making the most noise about it.  Maybe Trudeau should do the same if he wants to get re-elected.  And if the housing crisis isn't his fault, then he should be doing everything possible to let Generation Z know this.  PP attack ads are no excuse.  All politicians use attack ads.  Trudeau needs to attack right back if he wants a chance at winning the next election...

 

1 hour ago, Elias Pettersson said:

 

The people who support Trudeau keep saying he isn't responsible for anything and hasn't done anything wrong.  Also, everything is fine and we have nothing to worry about.  If you can't afford a home, it's your problem, figure it out.

 

This is why the Cons are leading by a landslide in the polls.  The Liberal voters have become too complacent and it seems they are now disassociated with the average person who can barely afford their rent and their mortgage payments.  If the Liberals continue this pattern, then I agree that PP won't need to do much over the next 18 months.  He will just keep attacking the Liberals with housing ads and show up for some PR events once a week and call it a day.  

 

Every Trudeau supporter here has already established his party moved too slowly to combat housing.  It really, REALLY isn't the federal government's jurisdiction.  The feds haven't touched housing since the 80s and 90s when Mulroney and Chrétien got out of the social housing business.  That isn't something Trudeau is interested in doing, and it's not something Pierre Poilievre is either.  In the 90s and 00s, the provinces also backed out, deferring almost all responsibility to the municipalities.  The one exception here is Quebec, who has not experienced the housing crisis as poorly as the others due to how nationalized its program is.  BC has just started to target transit-oriented housing and revamping local zoning laws, but it's a new iniative that wasn't really ever their responsibility before.

 

All of this boils down to history, @Elias Pettersson.  All of this has to do with the lack of knowledge that Gen Z voters have.  You can't really use that excuse.  You know for a fact that a lot of the inflationary pressures experienced by everyday Canadians are largely out of his control.  It is ridiculous to actually think Pierre Poilievre and the Conservatives are going to get involved left-wing style.  Would a Conservative government introduce social housing?  Hell no.  Would a Conservative government get their hands dirty in controlling grocery prices?  Hell no.  Is a Liberal government making such promises?  Also no!  But what the Cons will do is sell whatever public land they have (Greenbelt style) for private development.  Poilievre has promised to do so (ignoring treaty laws, environmental impact, and just the overall prohibitive conversion costs.  It is like the equivalent of cutting down an ancient forest and letting an American company throw down housing, with zero urban planning.

 

Not even Stephen Harper engaged in this level of disngenuity and misinformation.  Pierre Poilievre is a lying sack of shit, straight up.  He has steered his party heavily towards GOP terriotory and all the dynamics that come with American politics.  It is wild that you cannot see that.

[Optimist Prime]

1 minute ago, Warhippy said:

Between covid shut downs, logging issues in the summer months due to lock downs caused by multiple record years of fires plus beetle killed areas being untouchable due to fire risk and fuel prices cause significant issues in the chain between 2020 and 2024 without the tariffs and ongoing soft wood dispute.

 

Anyone who insinuates that there was no supply issues in the past few years at any time is lying.

I am with you on that, but the american logging lobby has worked without pause against the canadian industry, both shipping their holding companies here in BC's product south, as their parent company, and where they couldn't just buy their way in: literally blockading the logging roads on the west coast of Vancouver Island using well meaning hippies here in Canada to achieve their goals. Extinction Collective or whatever they call themselves is almost totally funded by billionaires in America. 

 

[5forFighting]

2 minutes ago, Warhippy said:

As are your insinuations about lumber shortages v pricing v exports.

 

A certain poster has posted no less than 4 different stories which you have refused, not failed; to respond to that directly refute your anecdotal statements.

 

There is a word for that sir.

I renovated my master bathroom and our kitchen in the last 4 years, no source for that. 

[The Lock]

8 minutes ago, 5forFighting said:

I renovated my master bathroom and our kitchen in the last 4 years, no source for that. 

 

Well then you're lucky (or just full of crap, haven't decided) because every recent renovation project that I've been a part of or know of in my immediate social landscape has seen a massive price hike of lumber due to a shortage of it due to exports.

 

For the record, I live in a rural area full of tradesmen including carpenters and the biggest complaint is lumber prices due to exports. If you seriously don't think it's a thing then you don't know crap.

 

And yes, I 100% mean it, you don't know a thing about what you're talking about and it shows.

 

 

Edited February 3 by The Lock

[5forFighting]

33 minutes ago, Warhippy said:

So here's the issue

 

Pierre has positioned this to be an issue in which the nation is

 

Not free

broke

immoral

tyrannical

 

While you may not think that; the fight positioned is just this by the conservative brand.

Every government uses the same talking points. Pierre is no different, Trudeau is using that language now to describe Pierre. 

[5forFighting]

3 minutes ago, The Lock said:

 

Well then you're lucky (or just full of crap, haven't decided) because every recent renovation project that I've been a part of or know of in my immediate social landscape has seen a massive price hike of lumber due to a shortage of it due to exports.

 

For the record, I live in a rural area full of tradesmen including carpenters and the biggest complaint is lumber prices due to exports. If you seriously don't think it's a thing then you don't know crap.

 

And yes, I 100% mean it, you don't know a thing about what you're talking about and it shows.

 

 

Re-read my posts on the lumber topic. I never said prices weren't higher. There was no shortage other than a manufactured one to drive prices. 

[The Lock]

5 minutes ago, 5forFighting said:

Re-read my posts on the lumber topic. I never said prices weren't higher. There was no shortage other than a manufactured one to drive prices. 

 

Even if that's your stance, coming from literally the heart of the lumber industry, I can tell you there is a shortage of lumber due to too much previous clear-cutting and not enough tree planting.

 

Don't die on this hill man, it ain't worth it.

Edited February 3 by The Lock

[Bob Long]

2 hours ago, 5forFighting said:

Weirdly threw in? Black people don't exist? Dolphins are inanimate? If you boys can think they are girls why can't people think they are different races? There are definitely people who identify as animals unless you are saying they don't exist or should be taken less seriously. 

 

You just don't see it.

[The Lock]

2 hours ago, 5forFighting said:

Weirdly threw in? Black people don't exist? Dolphins are inanimate? If you boys can think they are girls why can't people think they are different races? There are definitely people who identify as animals unless you are saying they don't exist or should be taken less seriously. 

 

How about this: we are all human beings. Race, gender, sexual orientation: none of this should matter. It shouldn't even be a topic of conversation. Everyone should just get automatically accepted because we're all human beings.

 

Yet, it's something the weak-minded, the afraid, the unconfident in themselves find difficult.

Edited February 3 by The Lock

[5forFighting]

4 minutes ago, The Lock said:

 

How about this: we are all human beings. Race, gender, sexual orientation: none of this should matter. It shouldn't even be a topic of conversation. Everyone should just get automatically accepted because we're all human beings.

 

Yet, it's something the weak-minded, the afraid, the unconfident in themselves find difficult.

I would agree with this. 

[5forFighting]

19 minutes ago, Bob Long said:

 

You just don't see it.

Nor do you.

[5forFighting]

56 minutes ago, The Lock said:

 

Even if that's your stance, coming from literally the heart of the lumber industry, I can tell you there is a shortage of lumber due to too much previous clear-cutting and not enough tree planting.

 

Don't die on this hill man, it ain't worth it.

There isn't a hill to die on. 

[aGENT]

6 hours ago, RupertKBD said:

 

It's funny, because I always wanted one too. (Although I would have leaned towards the Silverado, or F-Series) My youngest used to remind me about it all the time...."That's the kind of truck daddy wants", etc....

 

Now over 20 years later, seeing the prices at more than 100 grand, I've given up on that dream, even though I wish I had something I could pick up a sheet of plywood in....Now I've set my sights on an old beater. As long as it runs and has a full sized box....

 

I just have a utility trailer I can tow with my car. I can pick up plywood, take gear camping etc. No need for a truck.

 

5 hours ago, Optimist Prime said:

I do enjoy that one from time to time also, hehe. I am a wine efficionado of sorts...that is misspelled but it is pronounced Whin-Oh.

 

 

Nothing wrong with being a connoisseur

 

3 hours ago, Elias Pettersson said:

 

The people who support Trudeau keep saying he isn't responsible for anything and hasn't done anything wrong.  Also, everything is fine and we have nothing to worry about.  If you can't afford a home, it's your problem, figure it out.

 

This is why the Cons are leading by a landslide in the polls.  The Liberal voters have become too complacent and it seems they are now disassociated with the average person who can barely afford their rent and their mortgage payments.  If the Liberals continue this pattern, then I agree that PP won't need to do much over the next 18 months.  He will just keep attacking the Liberals with housing ads and show up for some PR events once a week and call it a day.  

 

The "average person" should realize that a global pandemic, supply chain issues, wars, an aging population, corporate profiteering, increasing climate change extreme weather events etc were ALWAYS going to make this a difficult time, regardless of who was in power.

 

Dealing with said difficult times gets harder for "average people" under a conservative government, not easier.

[5forFighting]

February is Black history month, in honour of that, The Prime Minister of Canada and Jimmy Kimmel

[Bob Long]

13 minutes ago, 5forFighting said:

Nor do you.

 

No it's clear what matters to you .

[Bob Long]

2 hours ago, Alflives said:

Exactly! Parents need to raise and care for their kids. When did we get this attitude it was okay to have other people take care of our kids? Parents. One of you stay the f home and raise your kids up proper. The state should not be raising kids! 

 

It's not about the state raising anyone tho, thats the right wing red herring. 

[Alflives]

1 minute ago, Bob Long said:

 

It's not about the state raising anyone tho, thats the right wing red herring. 

When it comes to children old Alf cares not for politics. We should always put the well being of our children first. There is nothing more important than our children. 

[Bob Long]

Just now, Alflives said:

When it comes to children old Alf cares not for politics. We should always put the well being of our children first. There is nothing more important than our children. 

 

That's the whole point of making sure the most vulnerable kids get help.

[Alflives]

3 minutes ago, Bob Long said:

 

That's the whole point of making sure the most vulnerable kids get help.

And anyone who harms a child needs to be hanged. We are way too soft when it comes to punishment against those who hurt kids. Hang those who harm children. Hang them by the nuts. 

[Elias Pettersson]

1 hour ago, The Lock said:

 

Well then you're lucky (or just full of crap, haven't decided) because every recent renovation project that I've been a part of or know of in my immediate social landscape has seen a massive price hike of lumber due to a shortage of it due to exports.

 

For the record, I live in a rural area full of tradesmen including carpenters and the biggest complaint is lumber prices due to exports. If you seriously don't think it's a thing then you don't know crap.

 

And yes, I 100% mean it, you don't know a thing about what you're talking about and it shows.

 

 

 

My friend builds houses for a living. I’m also heavily involved in the real estate industry.  Lumber prices have indeed escalated over the last 3 years.  However, nobody ever told me they ran out of lumber or that there was a shortage.

 

Also, a large reason why costs have increased for builders is because of city bylaw changes. Previously, you were able to build a house using 2x4’s.  Now depending on where you build, you need to use 2x8’s.  That alone has increased costs by 20%.  

[Bob Long]

1 minute ago, Alflives said:

And anyone who harms a child needs to be hanged. We are way too soft when it comes to punishment against those who hurt kids. Hang those who harm children. Hang them by the nuts. 

 

That's the really evil part about what the far right is doing. They have convinced some people that "they are coming for your kid" but the reality is vulnerable kids will get less help. 

[5forFighting]

13 minutes ago, Bob Long said:

 

That's the really evil part about what the far right is doing. They have convinced some people that "they are coming for your kid" but the reality is vulnerable kids will get less help. 

The laws that stop kids from drinking to early, doimg drugs to early, driving to early, voting to early should also be applied to cutting off your body parts to early and taking hormone blockers to early. 

[JoeyJoeJoeJr. Shabadoo]

5 minutes ago, 5forFighting said:

The laws that stop kids from drinking to early, doimg drugs to early, driving to early, voting to early should also be applied to cutting off your body parts to early and taking hormone blockers to early. 

Gender affirming care is medical care, supported by the majority of the medical community, to save the lives of these children who disproportionately take their own lives. Are you a doctor? No? Then park your trucks and stfu. 

[4petesake]

12 minutes ago, Elias Pettersson said:

 

My friend builds houses for a living. I’m also heavily involved in the real estate industry.  Lumber prices have indeed escalated over the last 3 years.  However, nobody ever told me they ran out of lumber or that there was a shortage.

 

Also, a large reason why costs have increased for builders is because of city bylaw changes. Previously, you were able to build a house using 2x4’s.  Now depending on where you build, you need to use 2x8’s.  That alone has increased costs by 20%.  

 

If we’re relying on anecdotal evidence I will say that when I finished my basement during Covid I could find only one small stack of 2x4s too twisted to use at Home Depot, managed to get half of what I needed at Lowes and then had to wait for another delivery to get the rest. Pickings were slim, crappy and outrageously priced. If actual evidence counts for anything…

 

https://www.nbcnews.com/business/economy/how-lumber-industry-misread-covid-ended-global-shortage-sky-high-n1272542

 

How the lumber industry misread Covid and ended up with a global shortage and sky-high prices

 

The price jump was "a classic case of supply and demand imbalance," that followed a "massive supply chain disruption" due to Covid. "Never before in history have we had that kind of price appreciation so quickly," Yurkovich said.

Mills temporarily shut down to implement new safety protocols and acquire personal protective equipment. Some mills took down time. Others had to cut back production because workers got Covid. Mills were short-handed when demand hit.

A delivery logjam further stressed supply as grain deliveries tied up rail cars and truck drivers continue to be in short supply.

 

Having cut back in the spring, mills raced just as hard to capture the buying interest, adding shifts and hiring workers in the fall. Plants headed for being mothballed were spun up again as quickly as possible.

Lumber usually has a two-week delivery time frame and some customers are just now getting wood they ordered 4 to 6 weeks ago. The breakthrough in deliveries has helped fuel the dropoff in prices.