If Rae loses, Tories can have a button sale [Amusing stories from the Librano Convention]

Tory spies at the convention were handing out campaign buttons on Thursday night: one reads "Go for Bob -- Go for Broke" and another shows a graph, an arrow heading south and the line, "Bob Rae -- a New Direction for Canada." Another advises: "Who needs Ontario anyway? Vote Bob."

This suggests: (a) the Conservatives would like Michael Ignatieff to win this thing; (b) they won't be heartbroken if he doesn't, because the plans to bury Bob are at an advanced stage.

Every election campaign is heralded as the most unrelentingly negative ever. It might be true this time.

The NDP is also producing its share of propaganda for the Liberal convention. On Thursday, the party's representatives distributed a "map to the Liberal scars." The star-search-style map highlights locations in Montreal associated with Liberal scandals or other notable events. The guide suggests a stop at 75 Sherbrooke St. West, the offices of Groupaction Marketing Inc. Or, as the map calls them: "the home of 'money for little or no work,' " quoting the Gomery report.

The Buffet Sorento is also on the map. That's where Paul Martin held his non-victory party in January.

Belinda Stronach has not been the party girl Liberal delegates had hoped for this convention (no hospitality suite featuring Tom Cochrane like when she ran for the Tories in 2005), but she did not let the side down entirely: She brought in a surprise guest at the young Liberals bash this week -- Jarvis Church, the hipster solo artist, Nelly Furtado producer and Philosopher Kings singer.

The Jamaican-born musician (whose real name is Gerald Eaton -- he transformed into Jarvis Church in honour of the Toronto street names) did a version of U2's One that rocked the room. He is a friend of Ms. Stronach.

There were a few laughs this week at the expense of Mauril Belanger. The Ottawa MP spoke up against a one-member-one-vote system for Liberal conventions. Mr. Belanger is the party's former Cabinet minister responsible for democratic reform.

This leadership race has focused a lot on celebrities -- Justin Trudeau has been trotted out alongside his choice, Gerard Kennedy, while Mr. Ignatieff announced yesterday that Marc Garneau, Canada's first astronaut, was supporting him in the race. Mr. Garneau ran as a candidate last election.

Mr. Ignatieff, who one would never call modest, also name-dropped another celebrity endorsement in his news release yesterday, saying "distinguished Canadian Senator Romeo Dallaire welcomed Marc Garneau to the team."

Bob Rae has a long list of artistic big shots on his supporters list on his Web site, including actor Graham Greene, singer-songwriter Gordon Lightfoot, author Michael Ondaatje, film director Deepa Mehta and jazz great Oscar Peterson.

Bob Rae is hoping to give his mother the best birthday gift he can -- Lois Rae is turning 92 tomorrow, the day after the Liberals pick their new leader.

Until this campaign, only one woman had run for Liberal leader and made it all the way to the convention. Sheila Copps sought the job twice, losing to Jean Chretien (in 1990) and Paul Martin (in 2003). Martha Hall Findlay became the second woman to last long enough to make a speech to the full convention, a fact she pointed out, noting, however, that "just getting here is not enough." Evidently not. Just before Ms. Hall Findlay took the stage, CBC anchor Peter Mansbridge referred to her as Mary Hall Findlay. Twice. Though she won't win this time around, though, the betting is that Ms. Hall Findlay will live to fight another day.

Not only are "I'm Liberal" thongs moving well but calendars with candidate Scott Brison posing in his birthday suit are hot sellers, as well. The 'What Men Are Made Of' calendars were made by a theatre group in Nova Scotia to raise money for prostate and ovarian cancer. Mr. Brison is pictured peering into a fridge and the outline of his back and behind can be seen. Sales have passed the $2,000 mark, and Mr. Brison was busy autographing the calendars yesterday morning.

Jean Chretien showed up at the convention yesterday afternoon and held court briefly with a throng of reporters.

He didn't have too much to say about successor Paul Martin, whose tribute he missed on Thursday night, saying it's important the party looks to the future not the past.

The former PM said he doesn't necessarily miss political life but he does miss the people of the Liberal party. The feeling is mutual for one elderly woman who was trying to work her way to the front of the crowd to get a glimpse of Mr. Chretien. "I just love him," she gushed. "I'd vote for him again."

Delegates invited to Ken Dryden's hospitality suite last night were handed invitations in the form of ... hockey cards. The former goaltending legend's 2006 card features his photo (in suit and tie) and reads "Equipe Ken Dryden" inside a hockey puck; on the back it screams "Go Ken Go" with details of his post-speech party. It also includes a tiny photo of Dryden in his goalie gear from his years with the Montreal Canadiens. Another hockey card produced by Mr. Dryden includes achievements from his time in government, as well as his jersey number -- 29. Trading value of the card: $0.

Meanwhile, rival leadership candidate Gerard Kennedy was featured in a television profile this week and was filmed playing hockey with his organizers. One of his aides joked that he and other supporters were delighted -- they got to appear on television playing the national sport. Not quite the NHL, but not bad payoff for a lowly candidate worker. "It's the only chance I'll have to play hockey on national television," the aide told us.

It never ceases to amaze me how Liberals invariably choose a leader from Quebec.>>>>>>>>

Of course, the Anglophones will step aside while Dion plays the equivalent of the "race" card, i.e. the francophone card.One of Dion's three planks for the leadership was Social Justice: Translation: Revenge by the French for being conquered and subjected to discrimination by the rest of the nation. Those who perpetrated injustice, if any, are long dead. Dion will move to proceed with the equivalent of Black Americans seeking reparations from the US federal government for slavery.Lets get the French banging their War Drums again.

Only it is done in Canada by administrative fiat , taxes and prejudice against English Canadians.To accomlish this Dion will need to scare the hell out of Canadians, so he must recreate a seperatist nemisis....a newly invigorated FLQ? That is what Trudeau did in October of 1970 with the War Measures Act and it is the reason why Trudeau must go down in history with the infamy of totalitarianism.And so must Dion should he try the likes of that game.

Only a francophone can play that game, which is how and why he is leader, and Dion is a former Parti Quebecois member, a former communist , just like Trudeau, educated in the hallowed Halls of Paris where he studied Sociology and later taught at the Universite de Moncton, another viper pit of socialist totalitarians. I say if they want to separate, let them bleed for it. My bet is that they are far to intellectual to take up the gun, or cowardly.

Harper could easily take care of that by simply saying if Quebec wants to leave it will have to win a Civil War. Case closed.

Hopefully, Stephen Harper will remain as PM for a long, long time.>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

My hope is the same. Stepen will be tested and I hope he has a great , strong heart for what is to come. He must stand against the streamed socialist threat of Quebec separation, and the liberal game of appeasing Quebec as the way to hold Canada together. In short he will have to make it clear that Quebec will not separate without winning a Civil War, and he must not flinch in this resolve.

Does Stephen have the greatness of an Abraham Lincoln within him? His task is similar, for Dion and his socialist liberal running dogs will again seek to drive the legislative and cultural agendas based on a policy of secession, and beggar the nation for special privileges based on culture and lifestyle, as the Southern States of the USA did in the 1860's. Let Les Quebecoise seize the Canadian Forces Base in Valcartier, after the province votes for secession, and watch our troops take the province, and defeat the Provincial government forces, and make it into a federal territory ruled by an appointed military junta from Ottawa until they re-earn their provincial status.

That showdown has been coming for over a hundred years, and its time to have it.Like you I lived through the conquest of Canada by federal Francophone politicians. I took all I could and then left rather than fight. I watched grown fisherman cry when Lewisporte Bay was so thick with herring you could walk across it, and Romeo LeBlanc had reduced their fishing quotas to about nil, while the French on the South coast of labrador got the quotas.Today the French fishermen live in mansions all the way from southern Labrador to the Northeastern shores of French New Brunswick.The English Newfies live in trailers, log cabins and shacks. Men lost their boats , their homes and were forced into alcoholism and the dole, hunting moose to feed their families.That is what I know about liberal socialism. I wanted to fight, one of the few, but we Canadians are passive and I am not one of the same.I left, and perhaps I was wrong to do so, but I too had a wife and children, and no desire to be a martyr.

Why do you think the liberal socialists wanted gun control so much? We dare not allow the nation to go down that road again, for a shooting war is likely next time. canadians in certain areas of the country are really fed up. Stephan Harper needs to stand firm in the face of what is to come.

It is my guess he knows what is coming, and I hope he uses his ""force majeur" as a commander to stare the francophones down both federally and provincially. None of these petty conferences and conventions on separation.Let it be war, if the French have the balls for it.

Canada is one of the greatest nations on the face of this earth,and her people among the greatest, hard working and peaceful, ruled by some of the most aristocratic and inept liberal socialist mandarins the world has ever seen. Like you I hope those days are over for good.

God Bless you and the True North Strong and Free.

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