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Mike Nagy is a rock star. Sure he might not wear leather pants, maybe he does but I haven't seen him in them, but he's a rock star nonetheless.

HISTORY HAS COMPANY!!

If you haven't heard the news, WE'RE IN!!! (The debates, that is).

Layton caved, then Harper. No word from the Consortium yet, but what else can they do?

Latest:

This is the truth as I held a membership in the conservatives for a year... and once my membership was up, I was so glad I NEVER will be a member of a party like this again.

As you well know, the course of Canadian politics changed the morning of Saturnday August 30. Rewrite the political history textbooks! History has just got a little bit of company!

Hello, hello!

The news came unexpectedly but was nonetheless very warmly received: in mid-morning at campaign headquarters in Guelph Blair Wilson's decision to join the Green Party of Canada was greeted with a dive

We said that we would like to be in the televised leader’s debates because we received over 650,000 votes in the last general election from ridings throughout Canada. They said sorry, you have to have a Green MP.

Greens land first MP
Mike De Souza , Canwest News Service
Published: Saturday, August 30, 2008
OTTAWA -- The federal Green party has landed its first member of Parliament.

I am one of the (I hope) many people who have recently broken off from the Conservative Party after having such hopes for economic and monetary reform in this country and instead being presented with

Steve Paikin (from TVO, not a consortium station) has been chosen as the English language debate moderator. See the press release here. You can reach Steve Paikin by email at spaikin@tvo.org to encourage him to publicly refuse to moderate an undemocratic debate that does not include the Greens. TVO is a public network that delivers highly intelligent programming, including Mr. Paikin's show ("The Agenda"), and neither he nor the network should contribute to such a travesty of electoral justice.

Just a really cool and quick thing I'd like to share with all of you.

Here we are almost a week into the campaign and the gaffs, mudslinging, hollow promises and question dodging of the old parties are thick on the ground.

The following was a comment submitted to cbc.ca in response to the article Greens' inclusion in debates a 'tectonic' shift in politics: May. It was largely duplicated from a post on my blog Challenging the Commonplace. Out of 148 comments so far, readers have placed it in a tie for 2nd as Most Recommended.

If this "tectonic shift" should mean democratic and electoral reform getting back onto the table - and front and centre - then I'd be ecstatic. The recovery of our democracy, with voters becoming once again engaged and their votes having meaning, is the single most pressing issue of our time.

Not the environment. Not poverty. Not the healthcare system. Not crime, gangs, or violence against women. Not abortion. Not the war in Afghanistan or the US invasion of Iraq and their imminent attack on Iran. Not the sabre rattling between the US and Russia.

While no one would claim that these issues aren't important, no matter on which side a person stands, the fact of the matter is they won't get addressed by ANY party or politician. Not in any substantive, meaningful way.

Not unless something fundamental changes in our eroding democracy.

I say this as a woman and activist whose employment income is limited to well below poverty levels by disability and who is passionate about peace, the environment, food and housing security, a woman's right to choose, and the development and sustainability of local economies.

I have been watching politics for a long time, and notice one important thing that each candidate should do in this election in our local debates and stops...