CanPol: Throne Speech

[notyoueither]

The NDP is the West's baby, and Progressives, and Reform, and something else coming along any week now.

[Kuciwalker]

Originally posted by Victor Galis
That explains the Bloc but not the NDP.

It's possible that it's easier for a party like the NDP to exist when there's already a significant third party.

[notyoueither]

Or it's always possible that regionalism has always been a strong current in Canadian politics and one of the ways of expressing it in Quebec and the West has been in 'third' parties.

[Kuciwalker]

That could be it, too.

[Kuciwalker]

Come to think of it, that whole regionalism deal didn't play out well down here.

[notyoueither]

It sometimes looks bad up up here too, but any time emotions get too high a hockey game breaks out and everybody goes home *****ing about the refs.

[Tingkai]

Originally posted by Kuciwalker


It's possible that it's easier for a party like the NDP to exist when there's already a significant third party.

The NDP existed long before the Bloc.

In Canada, there have long been four parties.

1930s to 1990 (or there about): NDP/CCF, Liberals, Progressive Conservatives, and Social Credit/Reform.

Post-1990s (or there about): NDP, Liberals, PC/Reform/Alliance/Conservatives, BQ

[Tingkai]

Originally posted by Kuciwalker
Come to think of it, that whole regionalism deal didn't play out well down here.

Of course it does. Look at the U.S. senate structure which gives more power to low-population-density regions while the states with a majority of the population have less power.

[Kuciwalker]

The NDP existed long before the Bloc.

That doesn't necessarily disprove the mentioned hypothesis.

[Kuciwalker]

Originally posted by Tingkai
Of course it does. Look at the U.S. senate structure which gives more power to low-population-density regions while the states with a majority of the population have less power.

Dude, it was a joke. "Regionalism" at one point resulted in nearly a million American dead.

[Krill]

Summary?

[Tingkai]

Originally posted by Kuciwalker
Dude, it was a joke.

Is that what you call a joke. That would explain a lot about you.

[Tingkai]

Originally posted by Kuciwalker

The NDP existed long before the Bloc.

That doesn't necessarily disprove the mentioned hypothesis.

For many years, the NDP was the third party.

So your theory ends being: the existence of a third party is easier because of the existence of a third party.

The reason why parliamentary system results in multiple parties, as others have alluded, is because the system allows minority government where a small party can be the kingmaker. Just look at the Marxists in India and the U.S.-India nuclear deal.

It is not because of regional division or the existence of one party fostering other parties.

In the U.S., the battle for the presidency creates an incentive to band together against an opponent, the result being a two-party system.

[Krill]

It would also explain even more abotu you Tingtai.

[Wezil]

I prefer the diversity of views represented and expressed in a multi-party system. My world isn't black and white.