Mr. McGuinty, do you really need to give the rest of Canada more reason to dislike Ontarians?
So Dalton McGuinty wants the Senate abolished. Fair enough. I don't like it either. I wouldn't advocate abolition. It needs to be reformed and I personally would like to see Triple E. That likely won't happen, but it is good to see that Mr. Harper is moving towards at least one of the E's.
Another E that I particularly like in the triple E concept is that of Equal. As in the US model where each province would have an equal number of Senators. This would provide equal provincial representation, which is one of the original purposes of the Senate: regional representation. This would only be fair, as representation in the House of Commons is based on representation by population.
Apparently Mr. McGuinty doesn't agree. He was quoted today as stating that: "We're 40 per cent of the country by way of population and at least 40 per cent by way of contribution to the GDP," McGuinty said. "But we only have 22 per cent of the Senate seats." Poor Ontario. Always overlooked. They don't already run things enough in Canada so obviously they should have a greater proportion of the Senate seats. And, should this not be feasible, just abolish the whole damn thing.
Mr. McGuinty, you're giving your residents a bad name. And you wonder why no one else on the playground wants to play with them?
Another E that I particularly like in the triple E concept is that of Equal. As in the US model where each province would have an equal number of Senators. This would provide equal provincial representation, which is one of the original purposes of the Senate: regional representation. This would only be fair, as representation in the House of Commons is based on representation by population.
Apparently Mr. McGuinty doesn't agree. He was quoted today as stating that: "We're 40 per cent of the country by way of population and at least 40 per cent by way of contribution to the GDP," McGuinty said. "But we only have 22 per cent of the Senate seats." Poor Ontario. Always overlooked. They don't already run things enough in Canada so obviously they should have a greater proportion of the Senate seats. And, should this not be feasible, just abolish the whole damn thing.
Mr. McGuinty, you're giving your residents a bad name. And you wonder why no one else on the playground wants to play with them?
posted by Saskatory at
11:46 PM
8 Comments:
We are not the USA, quit trying to make us the USA.
By
Anonymous, at 8:41 AM
I think the essence of the Senate system should be compromise. WIth equal regional representation, if ON and QC want to get somthing passed, they'd have to convince other provinces that it's in their best interests. I think 5 Senators for each province and 2 for each territory would be a reasonable number.
And to the previous commenter, the US system is built on Montesquieu's system of checks and balances. There's never anything wrong with adding more accountability to government, regardless of the source of the idea (in this case, a French philosopher).
By
Anonymous, at 9:09 AM
Just because something is modeled off of what exists in the US doesn't make it wrong, nor does would it mean that Canada was becoming the USA. It is simply ignorance to suggest such facetious remarks.
By
Saskatory, at 11:26 AM
Fallacious, you and your christian extremists are the fallacy. Quit importing USA style life up here, we don't want it so you can shove where the sun don't shine and move to the Mecca of Calgary. Arsehole.
By
Anonymous, at 4:43 PM
I bet you pray towards Calgary 5 times a day.
By
Anonymous, at 1:24 PM
Why do you feel such comptempt towards a Canadian city? Is it because you are jealous of the opportunity and wealth that abounds in that urban mecca? Saskatchewan should be experiencing the same opportunities that the residents of Calgary (and formerly of Saskatchewan) are presently experiencing. To achieve this we require a change in government. Our province has the potential to be a very great place but it is not currently living up to that potential. Unfortunately, this un-tapped potential is due to people like you that continue to vote in NDP governments.
By
Saskatory, at 3:37 AM
While I am a big fan for the American Triple E Senate, there is no state that represents more than 9 percent of the population and 12 percent of the economy.
Mr. McGuinty is right when he says that the current senate is broken. The House of Commons already under-represents Ontario proportionately to their population, compounding that problem with a Triple-E senate is not a good idea.
By
Atlas Hugged, at 8:32 AM
The Charlottetown Accord managed to balance things out by giving Ontario and Quebec an additional 18 seats in the House (replacing the 18 they would loose by making the Senate Equal rep of 6 Senators). I'm not advocating 3E, but I just want people to realize that you can please most of the people most of the time and that Senate reform is no different.
By
Jade, at 4:10 AM
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