All Candidates Meeting Tues Sept 30: report

I attended the standing room only crowd of over 300 people who came to hear the four candidates tell their version of "why vote for me". I'm a NDP supporter, because the party has the least bias to big business and the elite, including the union elite. That's just my opinion, who's to say for sure! The candidate I would vote for if it was on the basis of the debate was the stand-in for the Marxist-Leninist Party, who'd I'd never vote for in a million years. But she was the most frank, down to earth and articulate of the bunch. Gordon Guyatt was armed with the facts, took unswerving aim at the conservative record of deficit, arms buildup, international disgrace on environment, cronyism and head-in-sand stance on environment. He's a strong strong candidate, but underfunded and overworked. I just wish he had more momentum. I've seen newcomer candidates like the Liberal, Arlene MacFarlane-VanderBeek, bring a fresh candour to the arena and I hope she will. I just feel the Liberal machine is too strong and tightly controlled to allow freshness to get much attention. You know the Liberals: campaign from the left, govern from the Right. After all, Dion supports the Security and Prosperity Partnership that ties Canada completely to the US economic and geopolitical agenda of control and dominate. (That issue never came up on Tues but there was a distinct anti-US mood in the room, which erupted in cheers and applause when the Jamilé Ghaddar (MLPC candidate) standin took aim.) All said, I'll vote Liberal, to be strategic about getting a sure good riddance for the conservatives. We'll not miss Sweet, he's a non-player in the conservative caucus and I'd sure like to deprive him of his cushy pension he inherits with a two term incumbency. I think the Pairvote.ca idea has a lot of merit, to get votes to the candidates who I'd support in case my own first choice does not have a realistic chance of winning. Check it out. Ian in Dundas