Wednesday, May 13, 2009

Incoming

Oh sheesh, they're coming for me:

Tories aim attack ads ‘far and wide'

UPDATE

Besides the six ads, which apparently are already on air, the Conservatives have released a new smear site:

Ignatieff.me

And in French:

Here


I'm curious to see the response...

27 comments:

cls said...

I checked out the Ignatieff.me site and it's beyond silly. I think the only people who will be impressed with site will be the same people who thought the pooping puffin was great. The Tories only prove they are sophomoric and completely out of touch.

Big Winnie said...

Oooh...I'm scared!!

I really think they got it all wrong...It should be:

HARPER.
It's all about me!!

Robert said...

lol... I don't think they have the wit to attack you directly.

Steve V said...

Winnie

If you want see an egomaniac:

http://www.conservative.ca/

Or here:

http://www.actionplan.gc.ca/eng/media.asp?id=1396


The irony is amusing.

bigcitylib said...

Note the "share feature" employs an anonymous emailer. you can send messages to your favorite reporters from addresses like "johnbaird@imsogay.com". You can ad a little message about how awesome iggy is to, under "your friends name"

Jeff said...

I did notice Steve hanging-out with Jason Kenney at the Liberal convention...

Big Winnie said...

Steve:

He truly is an egomaniac.

Just another attempt to divert everyone's attention from the real issues of the day.

I just hope the Libs come out and put finally put Harper in his place!

Anonymous said...

bigcitylib,

Not so sure making fun of someone's sexual orientation to reporters will do you much good.

Anonymous said...

Here's a good response:
http://twitpic.com/53ksn

Éric said...

The constant and consistent appeal to the LCD is really, really exhausting.

Steve V said...

Jeff

He was quite pleasant too.


I think this LCD aspect might be wearing thin. There is something to be said for these type of lowbrow attacks voluntarily reaffirming negative narratives for the Cons. The mean spirited, hyper partisan dividers- it's out there and this stuff does feed it.

This isn't Dion circa 2006, so don't assume that it works everytime.

Steve V said...

Robert

You did know I was joking right?

bigcitylib said...

Anon,

You can make up one of your own you know.

Sheesh.

Oxford County Liberals said...

There's a lot of irony in that website domain they're using.

Steve V said...

Great line here:

"Leave it to the Conservatives to get out attack ads faster than they can get out infrastructure money," Jill Fairbrother, spokeswoman for Mr. Ignatieff, said Tuesday in a jab aimed at slow-moving Tory stimulus cash.

Repeat, repeat.

Anonymous said...

Many people are starting to point out that Harper is once again dividing Canadians (this time new versus established Canadians). His ads are basically telling immigrants that they have no chance in hell of running for office because they haven't been in the country all their lives.

Steve V said...

anon

And don't think Liberals won't point that out.

I know I'm partisan here, but I don't see the "not a leader" type threat here, I really don't. Plus, the timing REEKS of desperation, just as their numbers are waning.

Mark McLaughlin said...

Steve V;

Most of you Libs weren't worried about the Not a Leader campaign either. The most damning material in all the ads and website is that video of him looking right at the camera saying he's an American. It doesn't even look that old.

Keep hoping. This isn't going to go well for your man.

Steve V said...

Mark

If you think this is a Dion redux, you're one blind and two guilty of wishful thinking. You expect the same non-response? Then you're just kidding yourself. You don't think Canadians have a better understanding of Harper as divisive, hyper-partisan and mean-spirited, then you're not paying attention. You think Ignatieff is Dion, keep telling yourself that.


You won't run these ads in Quebec, because that shit don't fly there. You're effectively snubbing your nose at immigrants here. About all I see, you're playing to your base. People in Ontario are worried about the economy in a massive way, and expect us to point this out.

I see just as much potential for blowback within the current environment, as I do real damage to the Liberals. There IS a reason you guys waited so long, don't forget, and this is ONLY happening now, because your polls numbers STINK. Let's keep it real, this doesn't exactly come from a position of strength and that's part of the equation with attack ad effectiveness. Sure, be optimistic, I mean what else do you have- you're record? Pardon me though, if I'm not up all night worrying, because this ain't 2006 my friend, not by a mile.

Anonymous said...

Almost tempting to start a boycott of stations that show the ads and writing their sponsors that they are insulted by these ads, that they insult a persons intelligence and won't buy products that sponsor a TV station that run them.

Who watches TV in the summer anyway?

Steve V said...

I wonder what the price of the ad buy is, given that these companies are at the trough for a government bailout?

Steve V said...

Ignatieff brushed off the new ads, calling the campaign an example of "old-style politics."


"On a day when we've got record bankruptcies, (when) we've got unemployment skyrocketing, all this government can think of doing is running attack ads on me," he said. "This is the old style of politics. We are in the middle of a serious economic crisis. This government needs to grow up and do its job properly."

Steve V said...

"They focus on the fact that Michael Ignatieff has not been in Canada very much for the last 40 years. That, on the surface, would seem to be a good attack approach. However, what the Conservatives are doing is providing Michael Ignatieff to explain what he has accomplished in the last 40 years," said Nik Nanos.

"I don't think they're very good, in fact I think they're very bad...amateurish. I don't think the message is very effective. I listened to the Quebec ads, it's stupid"

Daniel Lessard

"The attack seems fundamentally flawed to me...This one attempts that with a cheeky attitude, but builds up its target so much before it tears him down that the net result can be a grudging respect for Ignatieff."

Andrew Steele

Michael Harkov said...

Well, well. The PM threw the gauntlet at iggy's feet to take the fight to the Liberals over EI reform in QP today. And how does Iggy respond. Why, yet ANOTHER flip flop and another cave-in:


Talking to reporters at the close of the convention that confirmed him as Liberal leader, Ignatieff said today that he's told his party to have an election platform ready to go by June.

"I'm trying to protect these unemployed workers across the country who badly need help and if the government will work with me, we can get it done," Ignatieff said. "If they won't, we'll have to have an election."


http://www.thestar.com/News/Canada/article/628348

==========================

That was on May 2, 2009. And today?

"The call for EI improvements has perhaps been misinterpreted - it isn't a call for elections this summer. I think Canadians by and large would be less than happy to face another election - but I've said earlier we're going to hold the government accountable, and we're continuing to do this, and make Parliament work.http://www.southasianfocus.ca/community/article/69410

==========================

Way to climb down off that hill as well there Iggy; real leadership material YOU are. That was what, 11 days between a massive flip-flop on what could be a major election issue?

Liberal principles - when the ones you have are inconvenient, just get new ones! :D

Anonymous said...

Aren't you actually talking about Harper on that last point?

It will be an interesting summer, no doubt.

sassy said...

conLogic (yes, I know, a misnomer) -

If being out of Canada makes a Canadian less Canadian (?) then get out your calculators and divide the number of days you have been out of Canada into the number of days you have lived. The result will give you your percentage of CanadiannessHarper has travelled outside of Canada more since he became PM than he did before he got into office, thus Harper has become less Canadian since he has been in office.

Ignatieff has stayed in Canada more often recently than he did before, thus Ignatieff has become more Canadian in the past years.

Gene Rayburn said...

Michael Harkov, does that make Conservative principles hypocrisy, character assassination, lying, influence peddling, buying a dying man's vote, wiretapping, wingnuttery, incompetence and being assholes?

Those sure are some fine principles that Canada's Nixon brought to Ottawa. Go Harper! Go Away that is.