International: December 2008 Archives

Recycle your shoes.

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oldshoe.jpgReposting Boing Boing links is widely deprecated, but following an Iraqi journalist's one-man protest against George Bush - his detention also inspired protests - I do like the idea that we should all send our worn out footwear to the George W Bush Presidential Library. Do it. It'd be good for your sole.

How minority rule ends.

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harperkitten.jpg
Canada just had an election, and the minority Conservative administration gained almost twenty seats while the Liberals lost about the same amount. The Greens got nearly a million votes, but no seats (for comparison the Bloc Quebecois got 1.3m votes and 49 seats).

And Stephen Harper stayed as Prime Minister, full of evil schemes to pollute the planet, to close down the opposition, stifle the economy, and probably strangle kittens (left). 

The opposition funding issue has proved, as Sir Humphrey would say, a brave move, especially in a minority Parliament.

Now the opposition Liberals, NDP and BQ look likely to cooperate (which makes sense, given that the Conservatives are significantly to the right of the centre of gravity both in and out of Parliament). Their plan is to throw out Harper a week today and install either a Liberal or an NDP Prime Minister. If you want to read the transcript of the NDP's conversations, they've been leaked, disgracefully.

Harper's trying to force another election instead, but there's no need if the others can agree terms. He looks likely to be sacked as party leader, too.

Closer to home, Salmond could in theory be turfed out in just the same manner by any three other parties in Parliament working together. However, the Unionisht Conshpirashy don't have enough confidence right now that a subsequent election wouldn't swing even further the SNP's way. But Canada certainly shows what minority hubris looks like.

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Along with Jeff (formerly SNP Tactical Voting) and Malc (formerly In The Burgh), I now co-edit Better Nation, a group blog. Stuff will still appear here, but more will be there. Better Nation


About this Archive

This page is a archive of entries in the International category from December 2008.

International: November 2008 is the previous archive.

International: January 2009 is the next archive.