r/canada • u/CaliperLee62 • 5h ago
Opinion Piece [ Removed by moderator ]
https://www.thewrit.ca/p/ahead-of-bc-debate-its-doerksons[removed] — view removed post
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u/TheGracefulCrane British Columbia 5h ago
crazy part is he still had 2 years of a majority goverment left what a wild election call
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u/Ravoss1 4h ago
There is one seat difference. So while true, not exactly. I am sure you know how things work.
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u/Trained_Mushroom 2h ago
No. There was a one-seat difference. But there were also 3 by-elections coming up all of which were considered fairly safe for NDP. So it's likely it would have been a 4-seat majority.
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u/MXC_Vic_Romano 5h ago
After the last couple years no one really has expectations of the BC Cons, if they're able to keep the spotlight on Eby they'll probably cruise to victory.
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u/Winter8Bones British Columbia 5h ago
The Cons might actually have to answer questions and provide solutions instead of empty promises finally.
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u/DickSmack69 2h ago
Are you hopeful that the party in power will answer questions? So far I keep hearing “cons bad” and that’s about it from them.
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u/hairsprayking British Columbia 4h ago
surely they won't make literally everything they touch worse... but alas, I must punish the government for calling an election for... reasons.
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u/agoddamnzubat British Columbia 1h ago
Making a point is really easy when you just summarize and dismiss the counter-arguments as "... reasons".
I agree with you in that I think that blindly voting for change because you're upset at the current party and/or leader is a terrible voting strategy that could result in some absolutely terrible election results.. nervously glances south
I think that you can be rightfully pissed at Eby and call out his moronic self-serving election call while still voting NDP.
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u/hairsprayking British Columbia 1h ago
I absolutely agree, not sure why I'm getting downvoted. Hell, I'll probably be voting Green. But this Conservative party is literally "hey remember Gordon Campbell and Christy Clark? We're like them but with racism."
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u/agoddamnzubat British Columbia 1h ago
Probably because of the dismissive tone of the comment, but either way, I'm feeling the same way towards the greens. Will likely be forced to put a vote towards NDP though since my area looks like it could go either way at this point. Would be mildly upset with myself if I voted green and then the conservatives took my riding.
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u/MomentEquivalent6464 4h ago
Good. I hope the NDP get punished for calling this.
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u/lavenderbrownisblack 4h ago
Suuuuch a stupid take.
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u/MomentEquivalent6464 4h ago
BC held an election 2 years ago. The NDP won a majority government. The only reason to be calling this is Eby thought the opposition was in such disarray that he could get another majority government. The law stats it needs to be held every 4 years. He needlessly jumped the gun, and now will hopefully be punished for doing so.
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u/lavenderbrownisblack 3h ago
The Conservatives will make life worse for all of us. Voting for them because you don’t like the NDP is objectively very stupid.
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u/GrayLiterature 3h ago
So what? Sometimes people need to learn a lesson and sometimes that’s a harsh lesson to learn.
Deal with it.
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u/justinliew 1h ago
Problem is they’d hurt the marginalized people more than the NDP so it’s a lesson that won’t be paid by people who can afford to “teach the public a lesson”.
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u/Bhlubarber 2h ago
That’s just silly, you want to punish the province by installing the cons? Come on, terrible idea.
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u/Commercial-Milk4706 2h ago
I really really want to. i dislike eby and the ndp have been doing a decent job despite there screw up. i also do not want to pay more taxes nor do i believe we should increase it for the super rich. Balancing the budget would be a better idea.
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u/PuzzleheadedEnd3295 4h ago
Would you really change how you vote simply because you think calling an election was a poor choice? I would really hope British Columbians are less petty than that.
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u/Xyzzics Québec 3h ago edited 3h ago
Absolutely. Notwithstanding his disastrous fiscal management, It was an absolute scum move and devoid of any decorum or personal honor or respect for the system. It was nakedly self interested and gross.
If he’s willing to compromise on that for short-term political gain, what else is he willing to be morally flexible on? It’s abundantly clear none of this is about the electorate or needing a mandate. They had two full years of majority government remaining.
Hope his picture is shown in political science history books as an example of getting punished by the voters for disrespecting the electorate and the process.
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u/island-roamer 3h ago
Doerksen just has to convey a "non crazy" vibe and they'll win. "I'm normal, so is my party, we have no tin foil to make hats"
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u/nvsr19 5h ago
The daycare debacle has all but guaranteed a conservative victory. People really underestimating how sharply the optics leaves a sour taste with the average voter.
Eby himself is just the cherry on top, easy target to bring out the frustration, on top of the deeper problem of how clearly this whole mess highlights the NDP’s failure to deliver on a promise they made years ago, while most other provinces have figured it out.
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u/PuzzleheadedEnd3295 5h ago
Most other provinces have figured what out? What promise?
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u/nvsr19 5h ago
half the provinces have 10$ a day implemented universally, and the others apart from BC have much lower costs /caps. Even conservative ALBERTA has 15$/day cap.
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u/PuzzleheadedEnd3295 4h ago
I don't know if Alberta is a good example. The $15 a day part is great for those who had higher income and didn't receive the subsidy before, but this change actually resulted in low income families paying MORE.
So it was a benefit for high income earners but not low.
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u/Brodney_Alebrand British Columbia 5h ago
I don't think the average voter cares much at all about Eby's kids going to daycare. Seems like more of a reach than a scandal to me.
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u/nvsr19 5h ago
Every parent in this province has dealt with the headaches/high costs in finding daycare for their kids. I would struggle to think of a better way to personally piss them all off more than hearing rich people/politicians getting subsidized with their tax dollars while they never had a real chance.
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u/Joebranflakes British Columbia 4h ago
It really depends on where you live. If you’re in Richmond, then sure you’re paying through the nose. But outside metro Vancouver, things are less crazy. I was paying around 450 a month with my first kid in a non subsidized space.
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u/Brodney_Alebrand British Columbia 4h ago
Well speaking for my family and the other parents with young kids I know, this hasn't really moved the needle at all for us. If anything, we all agree that the problem is that the program expansion was paused, not that it's also available to politicians in places it was already implemented. That certainly isn't pushing us in a conservative direction.
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u/Valuable_Bread163 4h ago
What other Provinces have figured it out? Ontario? I keep seeing posts of people from Ontario saying “Don’t do it BC! Don’t make the same mistake we did!”
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u/Winter8Bones British Columbia 5h ago
Daycare debacle? Who's falling for this nonsense lol, there's absolutely nothing wrong with that, the daycare switched to the $10 program AFTER his kid was already going there and he's donating the difference in cost before anyone asked about it.
Now what will the BC Cons do to provide more affordable childcare? That's what you should be concerned with.
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u/Former-Put-4288 4h ago
It's not falling for nonsense. Regardless if he is "donating an unknown amount" to make up for it, his children are taking up someone else's 10 dollar a day spot. An actually deserving family. His family is bringing in over half a million a year in income! It's disgusting that he is getting something the vast majority of the population can't.
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u/nvsr19 4h ago
Insane cope, its not about Eby himself, its just a highlight of what a complete failure the 10$ a day (which the NDP has 100% responsibility for btw) implementation is, where 10% of day cares have it with no income testing, often skewing towards wealthier neighborhoods, resulting in most middle class families having no chance to get in while having their tax dollars often subsidize the wealthy. The fact this can happen is a failure in policy design, which is fully on the NDP.
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u/Winter8Bones British Columbia 4h ago
Again, how will the BC Cons improve on the program and provide afford daycare for everyone that wants it? All while cutting taxes and lowering the deficit as well, right?
The fact is the NDP have improved the situation overall.
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u/nvsr19 4h ago
I’d rather cancel the program than have the utter unfairness we have now, and use the tax dollars elsewhere.
Or increase it from 10$ to something higher but reasonable like other provinces.
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u/Such_Ganache6749 1h ago
Spoken as someone with kids in daycare, right?
Surely you would be willing to sacrifice any subsidies you receive, just for the optics of "fairness"?
OR
Do you not actually want a solution to the societal problem, since you suggested cutting support and increasing costs for parents? How "helpful"....
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u/nvsr19 1h ago edited 1h ago
Yes, I do have a child in daycare. And very personally irritated as I cant even get an acknowledgement from all the 10$ a day daycares i message, while my tax dollars apparently pay for wealthy people to get in.
We already have fair subsidies. It’s called CCFRI. It’s universal.
We also have ACCB which is income tested.Then on top of that we have this garbage 10$ a day additional subsidy being taken by rich/lucky people, paid for by everyone else who can’t get it. Get rid of it and instead improve the subsidies we have for everyone, or something else.
You make no sense and seem ill informed. What subsidies would you like me to give up exactly?? I don’t get any!
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u/Such_Ganache6749 1h ago
Its a simple argument, that you have an ideological bent against apparently.
There can be simultaneous, complementary approaches to solving societal problems.
The fee reduction initiative is great, and the rollout took a long time. Should we have scrapped that too, based on contemporaneous complains about individuals being unable to access daycare at any price, while some people get subsidies?
Fee reductions still make the costs unaffordable for many, and especially so for families with multiple kids.
$10 daycare should be means tested, but thats not an argument against a social mandate.
The scandal isn't Eby in a $10 daycare, its that there is one in Point Grey.
I don't see Conservatives coming out and saying "no $10 daycare in the wealthiest postal codes in the Province", nor do I see you being that focused either.
Your take seems simply to be "I can't get it, so why bother having it at all"
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u/Ashamed_Worth4899 4h ago
Exactly, the Cons live on the most insignificant things they can find, or even lie about it. Let’s talk about the not so far back Con party indiscretions.
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u/DENelson83 British Columbia 5h ago
I warn you, if the Cons win, life in BC will only get even _tougher._ You will end up with even more poverty, homelessness, and food insecurity.
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u/Prairie_Sky79 4h ago edited 4h ago
Well, in that case, they can always be voted out in 2030. "But the other guys could be worse" isn't an argument in favour of sticking with the guys who're failing right now.
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u/lavenderbrownisblack 4h ago
So three years of things being worse is a good argument to you?
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u/Prairie_Sky79 2h ago
Well, it's the difference between a possibility of failure (the Conservatives) and a certainty of continued failure (the NDP). If the BC Tories fail, they too can be voted out. But the mere possibility that they may fail is not a reason to re-elect the NDP, who've already failed, and will continue to do so.
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u/hairsprayking British Columbia 4h ago
"the other guy would be worse" is what our entire FPTP voting system is based around lol, forgive people for working what they're stuck with.
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u/Radical_Redditor 3h ago
The other guy would be worse is based on speculation though, as opposed to the actual evidence of the incumbent being a failure.
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u/ReceptionNo67 2h ago
It's how we got Doug Ford in Ontario. Sometimes it really is better to stick with the devil you know.
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u/Prairie_Sky79 2h ago
Well, of course. Ford did get re-elected twice after all.
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u/ReceptionNo67 1h ago
Nah the devil we knew was Wynne. Your life can get worse than eby, trust me. Did you know we spent more than a hundred million dollars to break a contract and get booze in convenience stores 18 months early? Now BC can enjoy that brand of nonsense too!
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u/hairsprayking British Columbia 2h ago
I've seen enough evidence of conservative failure in Canada and elsewhere to be pretty confident.
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u/Username4digits 4h ago
If you want to say more than just ‘trust me,’ I’m listening and I would like to hear about your opinion.
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u/physicaldiscs 3h ago
I've seen this exact 'trust me' argument popping up all over the place. It's the most inorganic thing so far this election.
Like ignore the evidence of your eyes as to what has happened under the NDP and worry about what someone else thinks might happen more.
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u/Radical_Redditor 5h ago
Whoever wins, it is what the people voted for, and therefore the best choice given their options.
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u/lavenderbrownisblack 3h ago
Definitely not how it works. Just best at leveraging the current electoral system to their advantage. That the Cons are providing any actual opposition considering the state of them and the world is genuinely embarrassing.
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u/Radical_Redditor 3h ago
Actually, that's exactly how it works, according to this place. Let's not switch up now.
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u/MXC_Vic_Romano 5h ago
Agreed, BC Cons haven't shown capable of functioning as a party let alone governing a Province. Yet polling is what it is, NDP aren't in a good spot.
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u/tofast05 3h ago
Not a good look, not the scandal cons want it to be. Excellent opportunity for cons to come up with an expanded day care program with income caps If they wanted a home run.
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u/arye_ani 5h ago
Did you see today’s poll? It’s almost neck-and-neck, with Cons leading 42% to NDP 40% (from 36%) last week.
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u/Zarxon Alberta 4h ago
Daring a conservative to lose a election is one way to make them throw away a sure thing I guess.
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u/Remarkable_Vanilla34 4h ago
Thats usually how it goes, conservatives run against themselves, I've seen them throw away victory more than once at multiple levels of politics
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u/augustus-aurelius 1h ago
I can’t believe we are going to ens up with the trainwreck conservatives because eby called a stupid election he didn’t need to call after YEARS of pissing off the entire province on a monthly basis. British Columbians have literally ZERO good options to vote for
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u/AprilsMostAmazing Ontario 5h ago
Eby needs to go full force Captain Canada. That's the only way I see him winning
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u/CaliperLee62 4h ago
He tried, people saw through it instantly. He’s already pivoted away from that tactic.
But sure David, wanna take another shot? 🤷♂️
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u/Prairie_Sky79 4h ago
Well, he could have done that instead of calling an early election. But called the early election with that as his excuse. And it is going oh so well for him, isn't it?
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u/HelloMegaphone British Columbia 4h ago
How will British Columbians' sense of moral superiority over everyone else cope when they vote in their own brand of crazies??
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u/Weird_Rooster_4307 3h ago
So still waiting on the BC Conservatives to say that they are totally 100% Canada first and that anything to do with separation is not in the on the books and they are not Trump friendly.
I see the bots are going crazy on supporting the BC Conservatives as well.
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u/midnightmoose 4h ago
Doerkson won’t score any knockouts in the debate, but as long as he stays steady and keeps the conversation on Eby’s failures and doesn’t get caught up in the individual tweets of his conservative candidates he’ll do okay.