Shameless Jack Layton....

[train]

And most people find it a lot easier to attack personality traits than political agendas.

At the last NDP leadership convention the big item on the NDP platform was bank transaction fees.

So its not too difficult to attack Layton on all fronts- he has no agenda other than to get re-elected.

 

[james t kirk]

My point was that Layton was not out to just enjoy a hockey game. He, or one of his supporters, had watched previous games and noticed that CTV cut to the Wayne Gretzky's crowd reaction quite frequently. So, he must have intentionally sought out that particular spot. He was not just some guy out to enjoy a hockey game. If that were the case, he would not have been looking straight at the camera every time it cut to Toronto. He was either fixated on it the entire time, or had the CTV guys tip him off. Nobody else in any other of the remote crowd shots was aware that they were on camera until several seconds after CTV switched to them.

Exactly.

Is anyone so NAIVE and STUPID to think that in a city of 3 million people - and maybe 20 of them get captured on TV down at Gretzky's that Layton just happens to be there by co-incidence?

Please.

If anyone is so naive to think that old Taliban Jack just "happened" to be in that one spot, and was just trying to get that woman's arm out of his face - I've got a bridge for sale in Brooklyn you might be interested in.

 

[danmand]

Exactly.

Is anyone so NAIVE and STUPID to think that in a city of 3 million people - and maybe 20 of them get captured on TV down at Gretzky's that Layton just happens to be there by co-incidence?

Please.

If anyone is so naive to think that old Taliban Jack just "happened" to be in that one spot, and was just trying to get that woman's arm out of his face - I've got a bridge for sale in Brooklyn you might be interested in.

He sure is a terrorist. This should get him on the no-fly list tout de suitee

Thanks for pointing this out to us.

 

[Captain Fantastic]

Wow, isn't blind partisanship wonderful...

 

[oldjones]

Unlike many whose posts must be based on reading Layton's mind—and why ever would anyone would want to?—I only know what I've seen. A guy in a crowd of several hundred in the primo hockey bar in town watching the primo game of the Olympics and trying to keep a clear view. Whoopee do.

But if you imagine everyone of those people didn't already know they were on TV, and hadn't already been mugging for off-line cameras, as they did when they went on-line, then you're amazingly media-ignorant for the XXI century. For all that he tried to keep his view clear, Layton was one of the most restrained of the whole buncha camera-hogs. I'da faulted him for looking wooden.

But it was Stevie, not Jacko, who shut down the government to to take his family to Vancouver to enjoy the games at our expense. Oddly, that was a thing Harpo managed not to do for the summer games. Did he even show up?. Wasn't the Commons even closed for the summer at the time, with no need to close it specially for his sports junket? I know he's writing a hockey book, but don't our summer athletes also deserve support?

But I'd have to ask folks who suggest he 'had' to be there to 'splain the difference. No mind-reading required.

How many of you get to close the company for a month, keep sucking in your paycheques and pensions and send the bills for your Olympic jaunt—as well as for your unelected kids and spouse—to the shareholders? Don't I recall some CEO's getting roasted for such stuff?

And the most some folks have to get excited about is maybe seeing a face that mighta been Layton's in an Olympics cutaway in a Toronto sportsbar. Imagine if they'd seen him in a crowd shot at BC Place; they'da gone on a shooting rampage no doubt. No wonder the country's in trouble with voters like that.

 

[Tangwhich]

Since he shut down the government to show up on the podium, there's no way anyone can call it 'picking on' Harper. Nobody ever asked for it louder.

That's pretty silly. He's the Prime Minister of the host country. It doesn't matter what the status of parliament is or the party he/she represents, I consider it their duty to be there.

 

[train]

Unlike many whose posts must be based on reading Layton's mind................................................



But it was Stevie, not Jacko, who shut down the government to to take his family to Vancouver to enjoy the games at our expense..

Gee and hear I thought you were of the opinion that Harper shut it down to avoid a military inquiry or so he could stack the Senate. I guess you now must be able to read Harper's mind

You just don't get it do you OJ ? No matter how much you dislike Harper, how much you are against his closing Parliament and how you don't think the PrimeMinister of Canada should be entitled to attend a few days of Oympic events it doesn't change the fact that most people see Layton as a publicity whore and this latest episode has only reinforced that view to most clear thinking Canadians

Harper being a jerk does not justify Layton from being one. Is that so difficult to grasp?

 

[danmand]

Gee and hear I thought you were of the opinion that Harper shut it down to avoid a military inquiry or so he could stack the Senate. I guess you now must be able to read Harper's mind

You just don't get it do you OJ ? No matter how much you dislike Harper, how much you are against his closing Parliament and how you don't think the PrimeMinister of Canada should be entitled to attend a few days of Oympic events it doesn't change the fact that most people see Layton as a publicity whore and this latest episode has only reinforced that view to most clear thinking Canadians

Harper being a jerk does not justify Layton from being one. Is that so difficult to grasp?

Why don't you talk for yourself instead of pretending to speak for most canadians.

Most people doesn't give a rats ass about this.

 

[dcbogey]

I have always had the impression that Harper was basically an introvert who is uncomfortable with such things but knows he has to do them (both because he is PM and for partisan purposes).
On the other had, I get the impression that Layton actually likes being on camera. Even if he were not a politician, I suspect he would like getting on camera.
Of course these personality traits have nothing to do with running the country. However, they are amusing/interesting.

I agree with much of this. I was pleasantly surprised with how low key Harper was during the Games. The athletes were front and center, not the politicians.

As for Layton, as I was watching the game, the first few times the feed cut to the bar, he was no where to be seen and then suddenly there he was. Interesting indeed.

 

[train]

Why don't you talk for yourself instead of pretending to speak for most canadians.

Most people doesn't give a rats ass about this.

I do it because everyone else seems to - see above.... Pots , kettles - heck you didn't even put your complaint and guilt for the exactly the same offense in different posts. If you don't care why are you posting exactly ?

 

[danmand]

I do it because everyone else seems to - see above.... Pots , kettles - heck you didn't even put your complaint and guilt for the exactly the same offense in different posts. If you don't care why are you posting exactly ?

See, you think it is wrong to speak for others than yourself!!

 

[oldjones]

Gee and hear I thought you were of the opinion that Harper shut it down to avoid a military inquiry or so he could stack the Senate. I guess you now must be able to read Harper's mind

You just don't get it do you OJ ? No matter how much you dislike Harper, how much you are against his closing Parliament and how you don't think the PrimeMinister of Canada should be entitled to attend a few days of Oympic events it doesn't change the fact that most people see Layton as a publicity whore and this latest episode has only reinforced that view to most clear thinking Canadians

Harper being a jerk does not justify Layton from being one. Is that so difficult to grasp?

Actually it was Harper himself who said he was shutting the Commons down because of the Olympics. And unlike previous Liberal and Conservatives, his guys couldn't consult with Canadians—I so enjoyed my chat with them; I trust you enjoyed yours?—write a new budget, and continue to govern all at the same time. So government had to go. Like I said, no mind-reading involved, all from the same mouth that promised he'd never run a deficit, and that calling elections for partisan advantage was now a thing of the past. But this promise he kept, and there he was at the Games.

As you said: "Harper being a jerk does not justify Layton from being one.", (whatever that means). But there's a mighty large difference in scale between shutting down the the whole freakin' government to fly your family to the Olympics on the taxpayers dime and going down to a local sports-bar like anybody else.

So far, apart from mind-readers who 'know' what Layton was up to, and who 'know' even though the network scrupulously avoided mentioning him, that it 'had to be him', all we know is that a face like his was seen in footage from Gretsky's and somehow for some pea-brains this is a sin of some kind.

Pray tell, what is it he must never do? Go to sports-bars? Or just never go anywhere a camera might be?

Let me say I have no problem with the concept of Jack as an attention-whore. But if there's anyone who imagines that hand beats a the straight flush of lies, stupid broken promises, miscalculations, dumbo elections and general bad action of the guy who's supposedly running the country in the national interest, then God help us all.

Being as those obsessed with a guy who will never be PM, and determined never to consider the shortcomings of the guy who is, have now run this trivial, silly topic to thirty posts—(still w/o any evidence it even was Jacko) we sure need that help.

 

[Tangwhich]

take your family tro the Olympics on the taxpayers dime and going down to a local sportsbar like anybody else.

I don't care about the rest of this debate, but he's the prime minister of the host nation, he'd damn well better be there. I dislike mis-use of public funds as much as anyone, but this is one case where it's completely appropriate..

(still w/o any evidence it even was Jacko) we sure need that help.

It was definitely him.. his wife Olivia was quite obviously there too.

 

[oldjones]

I don't care about the rest of this debate, but he's the prime minister of the host nation, he'd damn well better be there. I dislike mis-use of public funds as much as anyone, but this is one case where it's completely appropriate..



It was definitely him.. his wife Olivia was quite obviously there too.

Of course he should be there, but he's the first PM we've ever had who said he was shutting down Parliament to go to the Olympics. Everyone else has managed to squeeze it into his calendar and keep the House sitting. Care to explain why he didn't show the same regard for the boys and girls of summer? When the House was on vacation.

Same question to you: Was Jacko's sin going to the bar? Or was it not leaving when he saw the camera was there?

Is this Expedition to Conquer Mount Molehill part of Canada's Action Plan?

 

[Tangwhich]

Of course he should be there, but he's the first PM we've ever had who said he was shutting down Parliament to go to the Olympics. Care to explain why he didn't show the same regard for the boys and girls of summer?

Same question to you: Was Jacko's sin going to the bar? Or was it not leaving when he saw the camera was there?

Unless the map has changed recently, Beijing is not in Canada so he was not the PM of the host nation.
As I said before, I don't care about the other issues, I was just confirming that it was indeed Jack Layton at the bar.

 

[oldjones]

Perhaps, if you don't care about other issues, you might refrain carelessly commenting on them. Since you have: Are you suggesting Parliament was shut down for the Montreal or the Calgary games? Or that those PMs somehow failed in their duty to attend the matches rather than the business they were elected to do?

 

[Tangwhich]

Perhaps, if you don't care about other issues, you might refrain carelessly commenting on them. Since you have: Are you suggesting Parliament was shut down for the Montreal or the Calgary games? Or that those PMs somehow failed in their duty to attend the matches rather than the business they were elected to do?

Actually, I do care.. I shouldn't have typed that.. I just don't wish to debate it here.

I don't feel it's careless to comment on a specific issue. You're one of the worst people on this board for single minded partisanship so I felt I needed to defend the PM in this case. I'm no fan of Stephen Harper but I'm open minded enough to know that all leaders of all political parties do some good things and some bad things.. in this case I felt you were unfairly slagging him off. There's many things he may be worthy of contempt for but this isn't one of them.
You said that "since you have" (commented on the other issues).. other than confirming that Jack Layton was at the bar, please tell me what I said.

Edit: I misread and saw that you said I should refrain from carelessly commenting on other issues, which I didn't do.

 

[Don]

Big deal. Layton, like half the Canadian population, watched the game. Yeah he was at a bar looking to get noticed but whatever. He's a politician.

I do admit that seeing Harper at a game is more legit. He's actually a huge hockey fan and knows the game and history. I'll give him that at least.

 

[jwmorrice]

Or was it not leaving when he saw the camera was there?

Brings to mind the phrase, "thinking about the unthinkable".

jwm

 

[fmahovalich]

Truth be told.....JAck reached out and innapropriatley touched that woman...without her consent.

He risked being charged with assault!!

How dare he 'force' her arm down to stymie her!!

Forget all the Harper stuff......this thread was about Layton...

WHY DID HE NOT CELEBRATE WITH HIS CONSTITUENTS???...where truly the VOTES ARE!!
and he clearly went there to BE ON TV.....I might add..OUT OF HIS RIDING!!!!!!!!