"Tory Times are Tough Times"

Let us reminisce, shall we, on some of the great contributions of Prime Minister Stephen Harper to our democracy and to accountable, responsible government.

{Video by cmjhogan}

Please send LVD your political and news videos and clips.

Stop the Facebook Creeping, Mr. Harper - With Video

I like this Liberal war room. Quick, sharp, setting the agenda, even having the confidence to use humour. They are smacking the Conservatives around like hockey pucks.

This is a great rapid response to a very serious issue of the Conservatives spying "Facebook creeping" on ordinary Canadians, banning students and veterans who have properly registered (registering to see the PM? WTF is that?) and are not causing a disturbance (yet another banned Canadian - the 6th? - came forward today). More on that here, but here is the latest video from LiberalVideo:



{Video by LiberalVideo}

Please send LVD your political and news videos and clips.

"This campaign trail sure is bumpy."

"This campaign trail sure is bumpy."

So far this week:

- banning a veterans advocate from hearing Harper speak

- spying on and kicking out students because of their Facebook page (I'm sure it had nothing to do with their Middle Eastern sounding names)

- spying on and kicking out a student because of his bumper sticker

- kicking out students because they attended a non-partisan pro-student pro-vote rally (I'm sure it had nothing to do with the Middle Eastern sounding name of one of them)

- knowing what bumper sticker you have on your car and what's on your Facebook page, and then claiming you didn't know you had a criminal fraudster as one of your closest advisors

- only allowing 4 questions to the national media

- not allowing any questions to ordinary Canadians

- Liberal signs being "targeted" and vandalized

- actively trying to block a government report on G20 police actions

- actively trying to block a government report on detainee torture allegations

- berating a local volunteer, a veteran no less, for even mentioning where Harper was going to be that day

Yup, it's a bumpy campaign trail alright.

And this is all in the last two or so days.

WTF is going on here? This is connecting to Canadians? This is how you apply for a job? This is Harper's version of open, accountable and transparent government? This is Harper's democracy.

Please send LVD your political and news videos and clips.

Lawless Government

This is making the rounds and well worth watching... and archiving at Liberal Video Depot for posterity (and for anyone who is trying to find it later on, like during an election!). If you have a good video, send it to me.



Junius: "The subject who is truly loyal to the Chief Magistrate will neither advise nor submit to arbitrary measures."

Mark Twain: "True patriotism means to love your country always but to love your Government only conditionally."

{Video by 23January2010}

Please send LVD your political and news videos and clips.

It's not what you know, it's who you know

Mercer's rant on Harper's double standard based on his positions on Flaherty sneaking out of the budget announcement without answering question to fly out on taxpayer dollars for a photo op at Tim Hortons, announcing an "austerity" budget while quietly increaseing the Privy Council budget by $13,000,000 (that's $250,000 per week, something I did not know) and Guergis.

So that rant comes before some more recent double standards:
- Jaffer's wrist slap for cocaine possession and DUI, 25 months after he introduced a mandatory minimum sentence bill

- an austerity budget but then voting in favour of taxpayers paying for partisan propaganda with the 10%ers and other savings which would save up to $20 million a year and then saying, even though the motion passed, they will ignore it

- promises in his election campaigns to make MPs and Parliament stronger while he contemptuously ignores and defies (1) a Parliamentary subpoena to produce detainee documents, (2) a Parliamentary motion to cancel 10%ers, and (3) a Parliamentary motion requiring approval of Parliament before prorogation


{Video by MercerReport}

Please send LVD your political and news videos and clips.

If you are looking for an anti-prorogation rally to go to...

... you have a few choices of locations:


View Larger Map

National day of action is tomorrow at 1:00pm local time in 50+ cities across the country and even some outside of the country. To find out where the nearest rally is to you, please visit noprorogue.ca.

Please send LVD your political and news videos and clips.

Facebook Faceplant

National day of action is tomorrow at 1:00pm local time in 50+ cities across the country and even some outside of the country. To find out where the nearest rally is to you, please visit noprorogue.ca.

Please send LVD your political and news videos and clips.

Yes We Care! (Video)

Prime Minister Stephen Harper believes that Canadians don't care about democracy in this country and that only the "elites" are fussed by his shutting down Parliament for two months and giving himself a 3 month Harper Holiday.

Well, you know what? I care. A lot of people seem to care a lot.

If you are living in Toronto or pretty much anywhere else in Canada - or even in San Francisco, New York, Dallas or Londond, England - come out on January 23 at 1:00 local time and show that arrogant leader who the real disconnected elites are.

{Video by isesee}

Please send LVD your political and news videos and clips.

Harper "should go to Tim Hortons" - Rick's Rant on Harper's Holiday

... so much so, that I've transcribed the entire rant. The video is down below.

So how about those polls, eh?

For the first time in a very long time, the Liberals and the Conservatives are essentially tied. Well, at least they're within the margin of error.

Now polls never tell the full story, but this much is certain - whenever the party in power drops 15 points in 15 days, you can be assured of one thing: someone in charge did something really stupid.

In this case, the Prime Minister thought he could suspend Parliament for 3 months and get away with it because, in his words, "Canadians just don't care". Boy, was he wrong. Wow. He should get out more. Maybe go to Tim Hortons. Get a feel for the place.

See this is what I love about Canada. Yes, we are apathetic. But the minute someone tries to use our apathy against us, suddenly we start to care big time.

It's funny the Prime Minister doesn't get this. Instead, he just keeps saying "Oh, don't worry. Yes, I've suspended Parliament, but don't worry: I'm hard at work."

You know what? Big deal. Of course, he's at work. He's the Prime Minister. I'm sure Raul Castro is going to put in a full day tomorrow running Cuba. We just like to think we set the bar just a little bit higher than that up here.

Bottom lin is, Canadians got together. We elected 308 Members of Parliament to go to Ottawa to represent us and one Member of Parliament sent them packing.

Prime Minister, with all due respect, I know it's your job to run the country. I'm glad you're hard at it. But it's the voters who get to send the members home.

And with poll numbers like this, you might want to keep that in mind.

{Video by MercerReport}

Please send LVD your political and news videos and clips.

UPDATED - No Prorogue: A message from Christopher White

The video does not seem to be working on this site. You can see it in full here.

A very level-headed young guy.

Actually asks supporters to stop bashing Harper and stay focused on the democratic reform message.

And a nice bit of levity right at the very end.

He also wrote the following:

Now we, the vocal majority, find ourselves to be the new power brokers in Ottawa. With rallies planned across Canada on January 23rd, all eyes will be on us. We are not, as the traditional thinking goes, an apathetic people. We care deeply about our country, but for too long the increasing cracks in our political system have made it seem beyond repair, leaving people feeling frustrated and disempowered. Finally, we have an issue that unites us, one that we can wrap our heads around while keeping an eye on the eventual end game. This prorogation is far more than a matter of parliamentary procedure, it is emblematic of an institution that has turned its back on its people. We can stand outside and rage against the machine for as long as we like, or we can work together and take it apart, brick by brick and rebuild it anew. The upcoming rallies are not the culmination of our efforts, they are the beginning. Let’s start with prorogation and use our inevitable success to push for greater reforms, ones that ensure that our government is accountable, transparent, and responsive to the demands of the electorate. As in, you know, do what it’s there for.

Please send LVD your political and news videos and clips.

Tiny Stephen

If the highest form of flattery is immitation, the highest form of mockery must be... The Mercer Report.

OK, OK, I don't know if that makes any sense, but there is some truism in there somewhere and there most certainly is in this video:

{Video by MercerReport}

Please send LVD your political and news videos and clips.

ProrogueVacations.com

The world would be a much drearier place without Rick Mercer and Jon Stewart.

Thanks, once again, Rick.



{Video by MercerReport}

Please send LVD your political and news videos and clips.

Maybe we should have seen it all coming

"Let us replace darkness with light. Let us replace accountability with corruption."

--- John Baird, Conservative MP

In and out. Cadman. Liddel. Shutting down committees. Firing civil servants for doing their jobs. Attacking whistleblowers. Intimidating witnesses. Defying court orders. Defying Parliament motions and orders. Shutting down Parliament to avoid a confidence vote. Shutting down Parliament to avoid accountability questions.

Baird is truly a man of his word.



Join the Canadians Against Proroguing Parliament group. Sign up for information on rallies in your area of the country. Make sure you get on your feet on January 23. Help out by contributing to a party or a rally.

{Video by HatePMHarper}

Please send LVD your political and news videos and clips.

Apparently, this video and song, were not written about Harper shutting down Parliament to avoid accountability.

Maybe Dee Snider was a more farsighted visionary than many gave him credit for.


Find more videos like this on MamasFallenAngels.com


Lyrics:

Oh We're Not Gonna Take It
no, We Ain't Gonna Take It
oh We're Not Gonna Take It Anymore

we've Got The Right To Choose And
there Ain't No Way We'll Lose It
this Is Our Life, This Is Our Song
we'll Fight The Powers That Be Just
don't Pick Our Destiny 'cause
you Don't Know Us, You Don't Belong

oh We're Not Gonna Take It
no, We Ain't Gonna Take It
oh We're Not Gonna Take It Anymore

oh You're So Condescending
your Gall Is Never Ending
we Don't Want Nothin', Not A Thing From You
your Life Is Trite And Jaded
boring And Confiscated
if That's Your Best, Your Best Won't Do

oh.....................
oh.....................
we're Right/yeah
we're Free/yeah
we'll Fight/yeah
you'll See/yeah

oh We're Not Gonna Take It
no, We Ain't Gonna Take It
oh We're Not Gonna Take It Anymore

oh We're Not Gonna Take It
no, We Ain't Gonna Take It
oh We're Not Gonna Take It Anymore
no Way!

oh.....................
oh.....................
we're Right/yeah
we're Free/yeah
we'll Fight/yeah
you'll See/yeah

we're Not Gonna Take It
no, We Ain't Gonna Take It
we're Not Gonna Take It Anymore

we're Not Gonna Take It, No!
no, We Ain't Gonna Take It
we're Not Gonna Take It Anymore

just You Try And Make Us
we're Not Gonna Take It
come On
no, We Ain't Gonna Take It
you're All Worthless And Weak
we're Not Gonna Take It Anymore
now Drop And Give Me Twenty
we're Not Gonna Take It
oh Crinch Pin
no, We Ain't Gonna Take It
oh You And Your Uniform
we're Not Gonna Take It Anymore

{Video by XX}

Please send LVD your political and news videos and clips.

Ottawa Raging Grannies Against Prorogation

Slippery sloppery our man Steve
Gives new meaning to that word sleaze
Ducks and runs when the truth comes near
Climate? detainees? – scared to hear.
Slippery sloppery our man Steve
Tars our country with that word sleaze.

Jiggery pokery that man Steve
Undercuts democracy with practiced ease.
Slinks away from embarrasing facts
Dodging transparency. Quite an act.
Jiggery pokery that man Steve
Side-steps legality with practiced ease.

Slippery trickery sleazy Steve
An artful dodger. Who’d believe
That righteous Stephen would change so quick
From paragon of virtue to a brazen trick
Slippery trickery sleazy Steve
Killing Parliament, who'd believe???

When the Grannies are getting in a rage, you know something bigger is up.



Lyrics to all three songs are here.

{Video by raginggrannies}

Please send LVD your political and news videos and clips.

"Present" - Liberal Ads on Shutting Down Parliament

This is the second radio/youtube ad put out by the Liberals on the weekend.

As I said before, there is only so many times you can get sucker-punched in the face before you get up out of your turtle position and start hitting back.



{Video by LiberalVideo}

Please send LVD your political and news videos and clips.

"The Wild Proroguer" (Song by Trevor Strong)

Good song here by Trevor Strong on prorogation sung to the tune of "Irish Rover". Great lyrics.



{Video by TrevStrong}

Please send LVD your political and news videos and clips.

Get Back to Work (Video from noprorogue.ca)

There is something much bigger than a Facebook Group taking shape in Canada. The reaction from Canadians everywhere to Harper's arrogant attempt to shut down Parlaiment and avoid accountability started the moment he decided to undermine our democracy and go on his Harper Holiday. A lot of it is just plain old venting of anger toward Stephen Harper, but I've been quite surprised and impressed by how much of it relates to something bigger, recognizing that something has gone seriously amiss in the way we are governed over the last many years. It certainly didn't start with Stephen Harper, but our democracy and governance has been seriously threatened by an arrogant leader who will do anything and say anything to keep power and a weakened opposition which sometimes doesn't know which end is up.

So we now have an online grassroots Facebook uprising (last count 150,500+ and rising by the hundreds every few minutes) which is nothing on its own, but there are dozens of rallies planned for January 23, the first serious meetings for which occurred over the weekend. These are not being organized by any political party. Then there are a number of websites that have sprung up, including noporogue.ca and Citizens for Democracy. Not to be left behind by the masses, the Liberals have now started up a prorogation information page and an ad campaign.

And, of course, video which is where Liberal Video Depot comes in. This one is a bit long and a bit over the top at times but it has a strong powerful message.



{Video by 23January2010}

Please send LVD your political and news videos and clips.

"Cover Up" - Liberal Ads on Shutting Down Parliament

There is only so many times you can get sucker-punched in the face before you get up out of your turtle position and start hitting back.



{Video by LiberalVideo}

Please send LVD your political and news videos and clips.

Harper Holiday - Canadians Rising Up

Opposition to the Harper Holiday is taking root among grassroots Canadians.

Facebook pages with over 30,000 members in just a few days: Canadians Against Proroguing Parliament and Canadians Against Suspending Parliament.

Websites and petitions: Citizens for Democracy

And, of course, video which is where Liberal Video Depot comes in:



{Video by Citizens for Democracy}

Please send LVD your political and news videos and clips.