Monthly Archives: April 2011

Democratic reform should be the central issue of this election

From Wednesday’s Globe and Mail
Published Wednesday, Apr. 13, 2011 2:00AM EDT
Last updated Wednesday, Apr. 13, 2011 4:50AM EDT

Gordon Gibson

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/opinions/opinion/democratic-reform-should-be-the-central-issue-of-this-election/article1982405/

We are now well into one of our occasionally scheduled games of “futures markets in stolen property,” otherwise known as an election. (Thank you, H.L. Mencken.) The promises are flying.

Stripped of all the fine words, the parties all come to us with a remarkable proposition: “We will confiscate a goodly portion of your hard-earned money and remove it to Ottawa. There we will launder and shrink it and then return some of it to you. We will also issue a series of orders called laws and regulations that will tell you what to do with your lives. You may now say thank you.” Continue reading

Surge in number of Independent candidates – Ireland

Nominations for the General Election have closed with 233 Independent and smaller party candidates standing; FF has 75 candidates, FG 104, Labour 68, Greens 43 and Sinn Féin 41.

http://www.rte.ie/news/2011/0209/politics.html

A total of 564 candidates will be contesting the General Election – nearly a hundred more than in the last general election in 2007.

The number of those running as independents or for smaller parties is 233 – this compares to 108 in 2007. Continue reading