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1 COR 15:23-JESUS THE FIRST FRUITS-CHRISTIANS RAPTURED TO JESUS-FIRST FRUITS OF THE SPIRIT-23 But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ’s at his coming.ROMANS 8:23 And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body.(THE PRE-TRIB RAPTURE)
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IF THE LIBERALS OR NDP WIN THE ELECTIONS.WE WILL BE JUST LIKE OBAMA MAOMMAS AMERICA.WE WILL BE TAXED OUT OF CONNECTION.WITH CARBON SCAM TAXES.AND TAXES ON EVERYTHING.WE CANADIANS WILL REGRET THEIR VOTE IF THE GODLESS LIBERALS-NEW DEMOCRATES WIN.JUST LIKE ONTARIO HERE.ALL CANADA HYDRO BILLS WILL BE SKYROCKETING EVERY YEAR.AND CARBON TAXES ON EVERYTHING.I JUST PRAY THE CONSERVATIVES-ISRAEL SUPPORTERS WIN.OR WE WILL BE ANOTHER AMERICA IF THE GODLESS LIBERALS- NDP WIN.PLEASE JESUS LET THE CONSERVATIVES WIN.THE ISRAEL SUPPORTERS. NOT THE GOD HATER LEFT-WING-ANY SIN IS RIGHT LIBERAL-NDP.
Will blue stay true in some of Ontario's most Conservative ridings?-The Canadian PressBy Jennifer Ditchburn, The Canadian Press | The Canadian Press – OCT 14,15-YAHOONEWS
BURLINGTON, Ont. — Would the candidate please speak up, comes a request from the back row of a nursing home common room.Mike Wallace, the incumbent in the southern Ontario riding of Burlington, obliges with his best theatre voice — he's making his campaign pitch to about 15 very elderly voters, most of them in wheelchairs.It's a small audience, but every set of ears counts in an election that is so much more uncertain this time, so much harder to get a read on — even for a strong incumbent like Wallace.Wallace won this riding of Burlington with 54 per cent of the vote in 2011 — there was no story here of Liberal-NDP vote splitting sending the Conservative up over the top.A few kilometres away, outside the Fortino's grocery store, brand-new mother Naomi expresses the uncertainty that's coursing through some of the most theoretically blue ridings."Probably leaning towards Mike Wallace, but not 100 per cent sure," said Naomi, who asked that her last name be withheld."Leadership is very important to me. I think that Stephen Harper has done a reasonable job navigating us through the financial crisis ... but I also think that Stephen Harper has been in power long enough and that it's time for a change."Wallace says voters in Burlington, about a fifth of whom are seniors, are well informed and engaged. He says they like to hash out the differences between the Conservative and Liberal positions on deficits and spending.The Conservatives have promised a new advanced manufacturing hub in the area that would help businesses develop cutting edge technologies.But Wallace recognizes that there's also an analysis underway of whether the government should be kept in power after a decade."Even though I won by 54 per cent of the vote, this riding was Liberal at one point ... it can move back and forth, and so we're not taking anything for granted," Wallace said in an interview at his campaign office."We're working from early morning to nine, 10 (p.m.)."Provincially, the Liberals orchestrated an upset in Burlington last year. Eleanor McMahon won the riding for the party for the first time in 71 years.Federally, Liberal Paddy Torsney held the riding during the Chretien-Martin years, and Tory Bill Kempling from 1979 to 1993."Burlington's had a history of voting for strong candidates from any of the parties," says Mayor Rick Goldring.Liberal hopeful Karina Gould argues that people in the riding are progressive, and moderate, and no longer see themselves in Stephen Harper's Conservative party."What I hear often is, 'Mike's a nice guy, but he's running for Stephen Harper, so therefore he shares those values, and those aren't the values I share,'" said Gould, an Oxford grad who worked most recently as a trade commissioner in Canada for the Mexican government."The flipside of what I'm getting at the door ... is, 'At first I was voting against Stephen Harper, now I'm voting for you."'Gould dismisses the NDP as a factor in his election, but don't tell that to candidate David Laird.Laird, who has run for the New Democrats four times before, said the demographics are changing, bringing more ethnic diversity and younger families. That bodes well for the NDP, he argues.Laird's own views sometimes differ from that of official party policy — including the notion that the Bank of Canada should carry some of the national debts, rather than international banks."We represent the interests of working people, we always have since the inception of our party, and the two main political parties represent the interests of top level financiers, and particularly international investors at the expense of Canadians," said Laird, a child protective services worker.At Coffee Culture, a cafe in downtown Burlington, there's a mix of perspectives and no clearer answer as to how the election will shake down.One man says he wants the Conservatives to find a "Red Tory" to lead them — he's voting Liberal this time.Another complains that the Liberals keep choosing leaders from Quebec.Lesley Miceli says she's voting NDP, but she doesn't think the riding will go that way."I think that it's going to be a Conservative victory, definitely here."
Canada election winner to set new climate direction-By Clement Sabourin | Agence France-Presse – OCT 14,15-YAHOONEWS
Montreal (AFP) - After nearly two decades of foot-dragging on carbon emissions, the winner of Canada's upcoming legislative elections will negotiate new CO2 cuts at year-end talks in Paris.But it is unclear if Canada -- which under the incumbent government became the first nation to withdraw from the landmark 1997 Kyoto Protocol -- will change tack on climate change.Polls show the race is too close to call a week before the October 19 ballot, after a late surge by Justin Trudeau's Liberals propelled the third-ranked party into the lead ahead of Prime Minister Stephen Harper's Tories and the New Democrats, led by Thomas Mulcair.In May, the Tories announced Canada would seek to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 30 percent from 2005 levels by 2030, after admitting it would miss an earlier, less ambitious goal.The new target was panned by environmental activists as the weakest pledge -- up to three times weaker -- of any industrialized nation ahead of the COP21 summit.The New Democrats, meanwhile, have said they will aim for an emissions reduction of 34 percent from 1990 levels by 2025 -- which is more in line with French President Francois Hollande's ambitious goal for the Paris meeting of limiting the rise in global temperatures linked to greenhouse gas emissions to two degrees Celsius (3.6 Fahrenheit) from the pre-industrial age. Mulcair has campaigned on electrifying Canada's transportation system and introducing a carbon cap and trade system.The Liberals have not outlined a specific CO2 target, but vowed to fight zealously to "re-establish Canada's (good) reputation in the world.""Whichever party wins, it has become untenable for the government of Canada not to act more vigorously to stem climate change," commented Karel Mayrand of the David Suzuki Foundation."Canada is isolated in the world and is missing an opportunity to shift to a greener economy," he said, adding that Canada has fallen behind on environmental matters during Harper's nine years in office.- Rising oil sands emissions -Former Liberal environment minister Stephane Dion noted the global community views Canada as "duffer" in the fight against global warming, pointing to Harper's decision to withdraw from the Kyoto Protocol in 2011.Harper has said the targets negotiated by a previous Liberal administration under Kyoto were unattainable, while calling the New Democrats' carbon pricing scheme a "jobs killer."The system would cap the amount of carbon dioxide gas emitted by each industry, and allow firms to buy and sell unused emissions quotas under an imposed ceiling.Instead, Harper has touted a sector-by-sector regulatory approach and aligning measures with its neighbor and biggest trading partner, the United States.But the pace of cuts has been too slow for most Canadians, according to polls.Canada has matched lower US car emissions standards, and banned the construction of new coal-fired power plants.But it has failed to regulate its biggest source of CO2 emissions -- the oil and gas sector -- which represents one quarter of emissions.Harper's political opponents say the Tory climate plan is a smokescreen."Mr Harper doesn't believe in the science of climate change, so he's not doing anything," Mulcair said.Harper retorted during a leaders' debate that only on his watch have emissions actually fallen: 5.1 percent between 2005 and 2012.But critics argue Harper is taking credit for lower emissions resulting from an economic slowdown during the 2008-2009 global financial crisis, and the shuttering of coal-fired power plants in Ontario ordered by the regional government.Canadian emissions represent only two percent of global emissions, but Canada is one of the highest per capita CO2 emitters due to its size, long and cold winters, and huge resource sector.The most recent emissions data reported to the United Nations shows total Canadian emissions have risen 18 percent since 1990 to 726 megatons in 2013.In order to achieve a new target, Ottawa will have to co-operate with regional governments with whom they share constitutional authority over environmental regulations.Tensions between the federal government and governing authorities in Canada's 13 provinces and territories were arguably high during Harper's three terms.But other party leaders have yet to explain how they would get the diverse regions to buy into their respective national plans.
Justin Trudeau asks Canadians to turn momentum into a majority mandate-The Canadian PressBy Andy Blatchford, The Canadian Press | The Canadian Press – OCT 14,15-YAHOONEWS
HAMILTON — Justin Trudeau is asking Canadians to give his Liberals something they haven't had a taste of in a while: a majority mandate.The Liberal leader made the comment in response to a question Wednesday, as polls suggest his party has the momentum heading into the final days of the campaign."I know that Canadians will make the right decision," Trudeau said at Mohawk College when asked about a majority."Am I asking Canadians to vote for us? Yes. Am I asking them to vote for us across the country? Yes. Am I asking them for a majority government? Yes."Several news outlets quickly reported Trudeau's remarks, which prompted one of his staffers to point out that his main rivals have also asked for majority governments during the campaign.The party sent emails to reporters filled with quotes from both Conservative Leader Stephen Harper and NDP Leader Tom Mulcair asking voters for majorities.Trudeau has indicated in the past that a Liberal minority wouldn't do, because Canadians want a strong, stable government with MPs from across the country.A party must capture at least 170 seats to hold a bare majority in the House of Commons, which will have 338 seats in the next Parliament.The Liberals held just 36 seats at dissolution.The last time the Liberals won a majority was in the 2000 election, when they were led by Jean Chretien.Trudeau was also asked Wednesday how he would stay in power if he wins a minority mandate in Monday's election and whether he was prepared to work with Mulcair if the Tories earn a minority.He responded by saying one of the great things about elections is that Canadians get to choose what their government is and what their Parliament will look like."What Canadians don't want is politicians organizing backroom deals around who actually gets to wield power," Trudeau said."I trust Canadians. I know that Canadians are going to make a real and strong choice on Oct. 19."The Liberal leader's tour is scheduled to make five stops Wednesday in five cities in southern Ontario.In recent days, his campaign has focused on ridings won by Tories and New Democrats in the last election.Trudeau has spent the week trying to woo supporters of the former Progressive Conservative party who he believes have been let down by Harper.He has also put energy into targeting left-of-centre voters who cast ballots for the NDP in 2011.Trudeau has made repeated claims the Liberal plan is the most progressive platform.Follow @AndyBlatchford on Twitter
On the trail today: Tories, NDP shore up support, while Liberals eye new seats-The Canadian PressBy The Canadian Press | The Canadian Press – oct 14,15-yahoonews
OTTAWA –€” With the federal election campaign finish line in sight, the leaders of the Conservative and New Democratic parties will spend the day shoring up support in ridings they won in 2011.Conservative Leader Stephen Harper will hold his first event of the day in southwestern Ontario in the Brantford-Brant riding, where the NDP may be nipping at the heels of the incumbent Tory, if NDP Leader Tom Mulcair's own two visits to that riding during the campaign are any indication.In the evening, Harper will attend an event hosted by the Canada-India Friendship Group in Brampton, Ont., an area with both a large South Asian population and where the Conservatives won many longtime Liberal seats in the last election.Mulcair, meanwhile, starts his day with a town hall in Dartmouth, N.S., where the New Democrats scored the previously Liberal riding in 2011.He then moves on to another riding that turned orange in the last election, in the hopes of keeping it for the NDP. Mulcair is set to hold a photo-op on a farm in the Quebec riding of Repentigny, which the NDP snatched from the Bloc Quebecois in 2011.Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau, meanwhile, will spend the first part of his day targeting ridings the Liberals hope to take from the NDP, then during the second part of his day he heads to two ridings the Conservatives won in the last election.He first heads to Mohawk College in the Hamilton Mountain riding, which the NDP won in 2011 but which currently has no incumbent. Trudeau then targets the Niagara Centre riding, another one the NDP won in the last election, with a photo-op at a restaurant.Trudeau will then switch gears with a visit to St. Catharines, Ont., a Conservative riding where the Liberals placed third in 2011.The Liberal leader finishes his day with a rally in Ajax, Ont., in what may be one of the most closely watched ridings of this campaign. Former Liberal MP Mark Holland is looking to unseat Conservative Chris Alexander to win his way back to the House of Commons.Green party Leader Elizabeth May will make three campaign stops in Vancouver followed by two more in the Victoria-area communities of Colwood and Langford.Bloc Quebecois Leader Gilles Duceppe has eight stops on his schedule today, including three in Repentigny, Que.
Clinton, Sanders spar on Middle East, guns, economy - but he says enough on the emails-The Canadian PressBy Julie Pace And Lisa Lerer, The Associated Press | The Canadian Press – oct 14,15-yahoonews
LAS VEGAS, Nev. - Hillary Rodham Clinton and Sen. Bernie Sanders clashed over U.S. involvement in the Middle East, gun control and economic policy in the first Democratic presidential debate Tuesday night, vigorously outlining competing visions for a party seeking to keep the White House for a third straight term.Yet in a moment of political unity — and levity — Sanders leapt to Clinton's defence on the issue of her controversial email practices as secretary of state."The American people are sick and tired of hearing about your damn emails," Sanders exclaimed as the crowd in Las Vegas roared with applause. A smiling Clinton reached over to shake his hand and said, "Thank you."While the five candidates onstage took issue with each other, they also repeatedly sounded traditional Democratic themes — such as fighting income inequality — that are sure to carry over to the general election campaign against the Republicans. And they sought to cast the GOP as a party focused on sowing division and denigrating minorities and women.Before they face the Republicans, the Democrats must choose their own candidate. And throughout most of the two-hour debate Clinton played the role of aggressor, an unexpected shift for a candidate who had barely mentioned her Democratic rivals since launching her campaign six months ago. Until Tuesday night, Clinton and Sanders — who has surprisingly emerged as her toughest competition — had circled each other cautiously and avoided direct attacks.After Sanders, a self-described democratic socialist, derided "a casino capitalist process by which so few have so much," Clinton said it would be a "big mistake" for the U.S. to turn its back on the system that built the American middle class. Asked whether she thought Sanders, who has a mixed record on gun control legislation, had been tough enough on the issue, she said simply," No, I do not."Sanders is drawing big crowds on the campaign trail and challenging Clinton's fundraising prowess, but he's largely unknown to many Americans. The debate offered him a high-profile opportunity to cast himself as an electable alternative to Clinton and appeal for support beyond his liberal base.Sanders has sought in particular to distinguish himself from Clinton over foreign policy, an issue where she is often more hawkish than others in the Democratic Party. The former secretary of state reiterated her call for more robust U.S. action to stop the Syrian civil war and defended her judgment on international issues, despite having voted for the 2003 invasion of Iraq.Sanders called the Iraq war "the worst foreign policy blunder in the history of our country" and said he would not support sending American combat troops back to the Middle East to fight terrorism."Nobody does, Senator Sanders," Clinton interjected.The only woman on stage, Clinton also highlighted the prospect of becoming the nation's first female president multiple times. When asked how her administration would differ from President Barack Obama's, she said with a smile, "Being the first woman president would be quite a change."Clinton's confident performance was likely to ease anxiety among supporters who have questioned her campaign's handling of the email controversy. One question still to be answered: how her showing will affect Vice-President Joe Biden's decision about making a late entry into the Democratic race.Biden has been deliberating about his political future for months and is expected to announce a decision within days. Debate host CNN kept an extra podium on standby in case he decided to show up, but the vice-president instead stayed in Washington, where he was watching the debate at his residence. He was not mentioned during the two-hour debate.Even with the swirling Biden speculation and Clinton's email controversy, the Democratic contest has largely been overshadowed by the Republican primary, where more than a dozen candidates are fighting to overtake billionaire Donald Trump. The real estate mogul still made his presence known Tuesday night, sending a torrent of Twitter commentary on the Democrats' performances."Sorry, there is no STAR on the stage tonight!" he wrote.While the Republican primary has been roiled by the emotional debate over immigration, the Democratic candidates were largely united in their call for providing a path to legal status for the millions of people currently in the U.S. illegally. The party is counting on general election support from Hispanics, a group that overwhelmingly voted for Obama in 2012 -Joining Clinton and Sanders on stage in Las Vegas was a trio of low-polling candidates looking for a breakthrough moment: former Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley; Jim Webb, a former Navy secretary and U.S. senator from Virginia, and Lincoln Chafee, the Republican-turned independent-turned Democrat from Rhode Island.For Clinton, the debate was a much-needed opportunity to focus on policy in addition to the controversy over her exclusive use of personal email and a private Internet server during her tenure in the Obama administration. The email issue has shadowed her rollout of numerous policy positions and has hurt her standing with voters.Clinton said her email use "wasn't the best choice" and cast the issue as a politically motivated effort by Republicans to drive down her poll numbers. She highlighted comments from Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., who bragged about how a House committee investigating Clinton's role in the 2012 attacks in Benghazi, Libya, had hurt her politically."I am still standing," she said.The only candidate on stage who challenged Clinton on her email practices was Chafee, who said "credibility is an issue."The former secretary of state has also faced criticism that she's shifted her positions on trade, gay marriage and other issues to match the mood of voters — a charge she denied Tuesday."Like most human beings, I do absorb new information, I do look at what's happening in the world," Clinton said. Pressed specifically on her newly announced opposition to a Pacific Rim trade deal she touted while serving in the Obama administration, Clinton said she had hoped to support it but ultimately decided it did not meet her standards.___AP writers Josh Lederman, Ken Thomas and Jill Colvin contributed to this report.___Julie Pace reported from Washington. Follow Pace at https://twitter.com/jpaceDC and Lerer and https://twitter.com/llerer
Shafia father, mother and son ask Ontario Court of Appeal for new trials-The Canadian PressBy The Canadian Press | The Canadian Press – OCT 14,15-YAHOONEWS
TORONTO - A father, mother and their son, all convicted of first-degree murder in the deaths of four members of their family, are asking Ontario's highest court for new trials.In documents filed with the Ontario Court of Appeal, Mohammad Shafia, his wife Tooba Yahya and their son Hamed argue, among other issues, that their trial judge should not have admitted evidence from an expert on so-called honour killings.The three were convicted in January 2012 of four counts of first-degree murder in the deaths of daughters Zainab, 19, Sahar, 17, and Geeti, 13, and Mohammad Shafia's first wife in a polygamous marriage, fifty-two-year-old Rona Amir Mohammad.The victims' bodies were found on June 30, 2009, in a car at the bottom of a canal in Kingston, Ont.The Crown at the trial asserted the murders were committed after the girls shamed the family by dating and acting out, and Amir Mohammad was simply disposed of.The trial judge described the killings as being motivated by the Shafias' "twisted concept of honour."
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IF THE LIBERALS OR NDP WIN THE ELECTIONS.WE WILL BE JUST LIKE OBAMA MAOMMAS AMERICA.WE WILL BE TAXED OUT OF CONNECTION.WITH CARBON SCAM TAXES.AND TAXES ON EVERYTHING.WE CANADIANS WILL REGRET THEIR VOTE IF THE GODLESS LIBERALS-NEW DEMOCRATES WIN.JUST LIKE ONTARIO HERE.ALL CANADA HYDRO BILLS WILL BE SKYROCKETING EVERY YEAR.AND CARBON TAXES ON EVERYTHING.I JUST PRAY THE CONSERVATIVES-ISRAEL SUPPORTERS WIN.OR WE WILL BE ANOTHER AMERICA IF THE GODLESS LIBERALS- NDP WIN.PLEASE JESUS LET THE CONSERVATIVES WIN.THE ISRAEL SUPPORTERS. NOT THE GOD HATER LEFT-WING-ANY SIN IS RIGHT LIBERAL-NDP.
Will blue stay true in some of Ontario's most Conservative ridings?-The Canadian PressBy Jennifer Ditchburn, The Canadian Press | The Canadian Press – OCT 14,15-YAHOONEWS
BURLINGTON, Ont. — Would the candidate please speak up, comes a request from the back row of a nursing home common room.Mike Wallace, the incumbent in the southern Ontario riding of Burlington, obliges with his best theatre voice — he's making his campaign pitch to about 15 very elderly voters, most of them in wheelchairs.It's a small audience, but every set of ears counts in an election that is so much more uncertain this time, so much harder to get a read on — even for a strong incumbent like Wallace.Wallace won this riding of Burlington with 54 per cent of the vote in 2011 — there was no story here of Liberal-NDP vote splitting sending the Conservative up over the top.A few kilometres away, outside the Fortino's grocery store, brand-new mother Naomi expresses the uncertainty that's coursing through some of the most theoretically blue ridings."Probably leaning towards Mike Wallace, but not 100 per cent sure," said Naomi, who asked that her last name be withheld."Leadership is very important to me. I think that Stephen Harper has done a reasonable job navigating us through the financial crisis ... but I also think that Stephen Harper has been in power long enough and that it's time for a change."Wallace says voters in Burlington, about a fifth of whom are seniors, are well informed and engaged. He says they like to hash out the differences between the Conservative and Liberal positions on deficits and spending.The Conservatives have promised a new advanced manufacturing hub in the area that would help businesses develop cutting edge technologies.But Wallace recognizes that there's also an analysis underway of whether the government should be kept in power after a decade."Even though I won by 54 per cent of the vote, this riding was Liberal at one point ... it can move back and forth, and so we're not taking anything for granted," Wallace said in an interview at his campaign office."We're working from early morning to nine, 10 (p.m.)."Provincially, the Liberals orchestrated an upset in Burlington last year. Eleanor McMahon won the riding for the party for the first time in 71 years.Federally, Liberal Paddy Torsney held the riding during the Chretien-Martin years, and Tory Bill Kempling from 1979 to 1993."Burlington's had a history of voting for strong candidates from any of the parties," says Mayor Rick Goldring.Liberal hopeful Karina Gould argues that people in the riding are progressive, and moderate, and no longer see themselves in Stephen Harper's Conservative party."What I hear often is, 'Mike's a nice guy, but he's running for Stephen Harper, so therefore he shares those values, and those aren't the values I share,'" said Gould, an Oxford grad who worked most recently as a trade commissioner in Canada for the Mexican government."The flipside of what I'm getting at the door ... is, 'At first I was voting against Stephen Harper, now I'm voting for you."'Gould dismisses the NDP as a factor in his election, but don't tell that to candidate David Laird.Laird, who has run for the New Democrats four times before, said the demographics are changing, bringing more ethnic diversity and younger families. That bodes well for the NDP, he argues.Laird's own views sometimes differ from that of official party policy — including the notion that the Bank of Canada should carry some of the national debts, rather than international banks."We represent the interests of working people, we always have since the inception of our party, and the two main political parties represent the interests of top level financiers, and particularly international investors at the expense of Canadians," said Laird, a child protective services worker.At Coffee Culture, a cafe in downtown Burlington, there's a mix of perspectives and no clearer answer as to how the election will shake down.One man says he wants the Conservatives to find a "Red Tory" to lead them — he's voting Liberal this time.Another complains that the Liberals keep choosing leaders from Quebec.Lesley Miceli says she's voting NDP, but she doesn't think the riding will go that way."I think that it's going to be a Conservative victory, definitely here."
Canada election winner to set new climate direction-By Clement Sabourin | Agence France-Presse – OCT 14,15-YAHOONEWS
Montreal (AFP) - After nearly two decades of foot-dragging on carbon emissions, the winner of Canada's upcoming legislative elections will negotiate new CO2 cuts at year-end talks in Paris.But it is unclear if Canada -- which under the incumbent government became the first nation to withdraw from the landmark 1997 Kyoto Protocol -- will change tack on climate change.Polls show the race is too close to call a week before the October 19 ballot, after a late surge by Justin Trudeau's Liberals propelled the third-ranked party into the lead ahead of Prime Minister Stephen Harper's Tories and the New Democrats, led by Thomas Mulcair.In May, the Tories announced Canada would seek to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 30 percent from 2005 levels by 2030, after admitting it would miss an earlier, less ambitious goal.The new target was panned by environmental activists as the weakest pledge -- up to three times weaker -- of any industrialized nation ahead of the COP21 summit.The New Democrats, meanwhile, have said they will aim for an emissions reduction of 34 percent from 1990 levels by 2025 -- which is more in line with French President Francois Hollande's ambitious goal for the Paris meeting of limiting the rise in global temperatures linked to greenhouse gas emissions to two degrees Celsius (3.6 Fahrenheit) from the pre-industrial age. Mulcair has campaigned on electrifying Canada's transportation system and introducing a carbon cap and trade system.The Liberals have not outlined a specific CO2 target, but vowed to fight zealously to "re-establish Canada's (good) reputation in the world.""Whichever party wins, it has become untenable for the government of Canada not to act more vigorously to stem climate change," commented Karel Mayrand of the David Suzuki Foundation."Canada is isolated in the world and is missing an opportunity to shift to a greener economy," he said, adding that Canada has fallen behind on environmental matters during Harper's nine years in office.- Rising oil sands emissions -Former Liberal environment minister Stephane Dion noted the global community views Canada as "duffer" in the fight against global warming, pointing to Harper's decision to withdraw from the Kyoto Protocol in 2011.Harper has said the targets negotiated by a previous Liberal administration under Kyoto were unattainable, while calling the New Democrats' carbon pricing scheme a "jobs killer."The system would cap the amount of carbon dioxide gas emitted by each industry, and allow firms to buy and sell unused emissions quotas under an imposed ceiling.Instead, Harper has touted a sector-by-sector regulatory approach and aligning measures with its neighbor and biggest trading partner, the United States.But the pace of cuts has been too slow for most Canadians, according to polls.Canada has matched lower US car emissions standards, and banned the construction of new coal-fired power plants.But it has failed to regulate its biggest source of CO2 emissions -- the oil and gas sector -- which represents one quarter of emissions.Harper's political opponents say the Tory climate plan is a smokescreen."Mr Harper doesn't believe in the science of climate change, so he's not doing anything," Mulcair said.Harper retorted during a leaders' debate that only on his watch have emissions actually fallen: 5.1 percent between 2005 and 2012.But critics argue Harper is taking credit for lower emissions resulting from an economic slowdown during the 2008-2009 global financial crisis, and the shuttering of coal-fired power plants in Ontario ordered by the regional government.Canadian emissions represent only two percent of global emissions, but Canada is one of the highest per capita CO2 emitters due to its size, long and cold winters, and huge resource sector.The most recent emissions data reported to the United Nations shows total Canadian emissions have risen 18 percent since 1990 to 726 megatons in 2013.In order to achieve a new target, Ottawa will have to co-operate with regional governments with whom they share constitutional authority over environmental regulations.Tensions between the federal government and governing authorities in Canada's 13 provinces and territories were arguably high during Harper's three terms.But other party leaders have yet to explain how they would get the diverse regions to buy into their respective national plans.
Justin Trudeau asks Canadians to turn momentum into a majority mandate-The Canadian PressBy Andy Blatchford, The Canadian Press | The Canadian Press – OCT 14,15-YAHOONEWS
HAMILTON — Justin Trudeau is asking Canadians to give his Liberals something they haven't had a taste of in a while: a majority mandate.The Liberal leader made the comment in response to a question Wednesday, as polls suggest his party has the momentum heading into the final days of the campaign."I know that Canadians will make the right decision," Trudeau said at Mohawk College when asked about a majority."Am I asking Canadians to vote for us? Yes. Am I asking them to vote for us across the country? Yes. Am I asking them for a majority government? Yes."Several news outlets quickly reported Trudeau's remarks, which prompted one of his staffers to point out that his main rivals have also asked for majority governments during the campaign.The party sent emails to reporters filled with quotes from both Conservative Leader Stephen Harper and NDP Leader Tom Mulcair asking voters for majorities.Trudeau has indicated in the past that a Liberal minority wouldn't do, because Canadians want a strong, stable government with MPs from across the country.A party must capture at least 170 seats to hold a bare majority in the House of Commons, which will have 338 seats in the next Parliament.The Liberals held just 36 seats at dissolution.The last time the Liberals won a majority was in the 2000 election, when they were led by Jean Chretien.Trudeau was also asked Wednesday how he would stay in power if he wins a minority mandate in Monday's election and whether he was prepared to work with Mulcair if the Tories earn a minority.He responded by saying one of the great things about elections is that Canadians get to choose what their government is and what their Parliament will look like."What Canadians don't want is politicians organizing backroom deals around who actually gets to wield power," Trudeau said."I trust Canadians. I know that Canadians are going to make a real and strong choice on Oct. 19."The Liberal leader's tour is scheduled to make five stops Wednesday in five cities in southern Ontario.In recent days, his campaign has focused on ridings won by Tories and New Democrats in the last election.Trudeau has spent the week trying to woo supporters of the former Progressive Conservative party who he believes have been let down by Harper.He has also put energy into targeting left-of-centre voters who cast ballots for the NDP in 2011.Trudeau has made repeated claims the Liberal plan is the most progressive platform.Follow @AndyBlatchford on Twitter
On the trail today: Tories, NDP shore up support, while Liberals eye new seats-The Canadian PressBy The Canadian Press | The Canadian Press – oct 14,15-yahoonews
OTTAWA –€” With the federal election campaign finish line in sight, the leaders of the Conservative and New Democratic parties will spend the day shoring up support in ridings they won in 2011.Conservative Leader Stephen Harper will hold his first event of the day in southwestern Ontario in the Brantford-Brant riding, where the NDP may be nipping at the heels of the incumbent Tory, if NDP Leader Tom Mulcair's own two visits to that riding during the campaign are any indication.In the evening, Harper will attend an event hosted by the Canada-India Friendship Group in Brampton, Ont., an area with both a large South Asian population and where the Conservatives won many longtime Liberal seats in the last election.Mulcair, meanwhile, starts his day with a town hall in Dartmouth, N.S., where the New Democrats scored the previously Liberal riding in 2011.He then moves on to another riding that turned orange in the last election, in the hopes of keeping it for the NDP. Mulcair is set to hold a photo-op on a farm in the Quebec riding of Repentigny, which the NDP snatched from the Bloc Quebecois in 2011.Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau, meanwhile, will spend the first part of his day targeting ridings the Liberals hope to take from the NDP, then during the second part of his day he heads to two ridings the Conservatives won in the last election.He first heads to Mohawk College in the Hamilton Mountain riding, which the NDP won in 2011 but which currently has no incumbent. Trudeau then targets the Niagara Centre riding, another one the NDP won in the last election, with a photo-op at a restaurant.Trudeau will then switch gears with a visit to St. Catharines, Ont., a Conservative riding where the Liberals placed third in 2011.The Liberal leader finishes his day with a rally in Ajax, Ont., in what may be one of the most closely watched ridings of this campaign. Former Liberal MP Mark Holland is looking to unseat Conservative Chris Alexander to win his way back to the House of Commons.Green party Leader Elizabeth May will make three campaign stops in Vancouver followed by two more in the Victoria-area communities of Colwood and Langford.Bloc Quebecois Leader Gilles Duceppe has eight stops on his schedule today, including three in Repentigny, Que.
Clinton, Sanders spar on Middle East, guns, economy - but he says enough on the emails-The Canadian PressBy Julie Pace And Lisa Lerer, The Associated Press | The Canadian Press – oct 14,15-yahoonews
LAS VEGAS, Nev. - Hillary Rodham Clinton and Sen. Bernie Sanders clashed over U.S. involvement in the Middle East, gun control and economic policy in the first Democratic presidential debate Tuesday night, vigorously outlining competing visions for a party seeking to keep the White House for a third straight term.Yet in a moment of political unity — and levity — Sanders leapt to Clinton's defence on the issue of her controversial email practices as secretary of state."The American people are sick and tired of hearing about your damn emails," Sanders exclaimed as the crowd in Las Vegas roared with applause. A smiling Clinton reached over to shake his hand and said, "Thank you."While the five candidates onstage took issue with each other, they also repeatedly sounded traditional Democratic themes — such as fighting income inequality — that are sure to carry over to the general election campaign against the Republicans. And they sought to cast the GOP as a party focused on sowing division and denigrating minorities and women.Before they face the Republicans, the Democrats must choose their own candidate. And throughout most of the two-hour debate Clinton played the role of aggressor, an unexpected shift for a candidate who had barely mentioned her Democratic rivals since launching her campaign six months ago. Until Tuesday night, Clinton and Sanders — who has surprisingly emerged as her toughest competition — had circled each other cautiously and avoided direct attacks.After Sanders, a self-described democratic socialist, derided "a casino capitalist process by which so few have so much," Clinton said it would be a "big mistake" for the U.S. to turn its back on the system that built the American middle class. Asked whether she thought Sanders, who has a mixed record on gun control legislation, had been tough enough on the issue, she said simply," No, I do not."Sanders is drawing big crowds on the campaign trail and challenging Clinton's fundraising prowess, but he's largely unknown to many Americans. The debate offered him a high-profile opportunity to cast himself as an electable alternative to Clinton and appeal for support beyond his liberal base.Sanders has sought in particular to distinguish himself from Clinton over foreign policy, an issue where she is often more hawkish than others in the Democratic Party. The former secretary of state reiterated her call for more robust U.S. action to stop the Syrian civil war and defended her judgment on international issues, despite having voted for the 2003 invasion of Iraq.Sanders called the Iraq war "the worst foreign policy blunder in the history of our country" and said he would not support sending American combat troops back to the Middle East to fight terrorism."Nobody does, Senator Sanders," Clinton interjected.The only woman on stage, Clinton also highlighted the prospect of becoming the nation's first female president multiple times. When asked how her administration would differ from President Barack Obama's, she said with a smile, "Being the first woman president would be quite a change."Clinton's confident performance was likely to ease anxiety among supporters who have questioned her campaign's handling of the email controversy. One question still to be answered: how her showing will affect Vice-President Joe Biden's decision about making a late entry into the Democratic race.Biden has been deliberating about his political future for months and is expected to announce a decision within days. Debate host CNN kept an extra podium on standby in case he decided to show up, but the vice-president instead stayed in Washington, where he was watching the debate at his residence. He was not mentioned during the two-hour debate.Even with the swirling Biden speculation and Clinton's email controversy, the Democratic contest has largely been overshadowed by the Republican primary, where more than a dozen candidates are fighting to overtake billionaire Donald Trump. The real estate mogul still made his presence known Tuesday night, sending a torrent of Twitter commentary on the Democrats' performances."Sorry, there is no STAR on the stage tonight!" he wrote.While the Republican primary has been roiled by the emotional debate over immigration, the Democratic candidates were largely united in their call for providing a path to legal status for the millions of people currently in the U.S. illegally. The party is counting on general election support from Hispanics, a group that overwhelmingly voted for Obama in 2012 -Joining Clinton and Sanders on stage in Las Vegas was a trio of low-polling candidates looking for a breakthrough moment: former Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley; Jim Webb, a former Navy secretary and U.S. senator from Virginia, and Lincoln Chafee, the Republican-turned independent-turned Democrat from Rhode Island.For Clinton, the debate was a much-needed opportunity to focus on policy in addition to the controversy over her exclusive use of personal email and a private Internet server during her tenure in the Obama administration. The email issue has shadowed her rollout of numerous policy positions and has hurt her standing with voters.Clinton said her email use "wasn't the best choice" and cast the issue as a politically motivated effort by Republicans to drive down her poll numbers. She highlighted comments from Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., who bragged about how a House committee investigating Clinton's role in the 2012 attacks in Benghazi, Libya, had hurt her politically."I am still standing," she said.The only candidate on stage who challenged Clinton on her email practices was Chafee, who said "credibility is an issue."The former secretary of state has also faced criticism that she's shifted her positions on trade, gay marriage and other issues to match the mood of voters — a charge she denied Tuesday."Like most human beings, I do absorb new information, I do look at what's happening in the world," Clinton said. Pressed specifically on her newly announced opposition to a Pacific Rim trade deal she touted while serving in the Obama administration, Clinton said she had hoped to support it but ultimately decided it did not meet her standards.___AP writers Josh Lederman, Ken Thomas and Jill Colvin contributed to this report.___Julie Pace reported from Washington. Follow Pace at https://twitter.com/jpaceDC and Lerer and https://twitter.com/llerer
Shafia father, mother and son ask Ontario Court of Appeal for new trials-The Canadian PressBy The Canadian Press | The Canadian Press – OCT 14,15-YAHOONEWS
TORONTO - A father, mother and their son, all convicted of first-degree murder in the deaths of four members of their family, are asking Ontario's highest court for new trials.In documents filed with the Ontario Court of Appeal, Mohammad Shafia, his wife Tooba Yahya and their son Hamed argue, among other issues, that their trial judge should not have admitted evidence from an expert on so-called honour killings.The three were convicted in January 2012 of four counts of first-degree murder in the deaths of daughters Zainab, 19, Sahar, 17, and Geeti, 13, and Mohammad Shafia's first wife in a polygamous marriage, fifty-two-year-old Rona Amir Mohammad.The victims' bodies were found on June 30, 2009, in a car at the bottom of a canal in Kingston, Ont.The Crown at the trial asserted the murders were committed after the girls shamed the family by dating and acting out, and Amir Mohammad was simply disposed of.The trial judge described the killings as being motivated by the Shafias' "twisted concept of honour."
