BREAKING NEWS! QUESTIONS FOR THE CANDIDATES DEBATE LEAKED TO THE PRESS!

With the increasing violence on days like Black Friday in the United States slowly creeping into Canadian consumer identity, where does your party stand on the issue of extreme consumerism?

Recently, all levels of Canadian government have experienced big scandals: Rob Ford in Toronto, Allison Redford in Alberta, and the Senate scandal, just to name a few. How do you plan to address the problem of “bad politicians?”

Last week in the United States, two 12 year old girls were charged with first degree attempted homicide and will be tried as adults. Does your party agree with this?

A huge issue in the media right now is the creation of the Northern Gateway pipeline. Is your party in support of this project? if so, how do you plan to mitigate the impact on First Nations communities? Explain.

What role should the federal government play in supporting food sustainability movements such as organic farming and local food production?

First Connect Summit on Food Sustainability

Monday you are scheduled to meet with your opposition party to discuss the issue of food sustainability and security in our world at the Connect Summit on Food Sustainability. Your goal is to reach a consensus, but pay close attention to the specifics that you agree and disagree on, and the action you plan to take, so that you can summarize and share the results with your constituents. Keep in mind that this is a HUGE issue and likely will not be “solved” after just one meeting.  

Today you will have time to prepare for this meeting. Carefully consider the vision your party has for solving this complicated and important issue.

Monday, you will work together with your opposition to come up with a plan to address the issue of food sustainability in our world. You must try to reach consensus. Remember that this will require that everyone compromises!

Someone's Coming to Visit: Lobbying

Step One

You have been asked to meet with Timothy Powers and Robin Speer, both of which are professional lobbyists who are currently active, and have filed requests with the government in the last 12 months. Unfortunately, your assistant did not take a good message, and you are unsure of the reason for their visit. Use the Lobbyist Registry (http://www.ocl-cal.gc.ca/eic/site/012.nsf/eng/00035.html)  to discover the reason these two are coming to see you. (I.E., what issue are they coming to speak to you about?) Use this opportunity to explore the database and think about how lobbyists can affect government decisions.

Step Two

Once you have an idea about why they might be coming to meet with you, check with your campaign manager (Mrs. Waite or Miss Groeller) to ensure you are correct. Once you have confirmation that you are correct, you will be given a link to a press package that includes some important articles for your party to review before your meeting with the lobbyists.

Here is the link to the "press package." 

bit.ly/1oxDolf

Everyone must spend some a few minutes (half an hour only, probably) to read through these links and articles to ensure you clearly understand the issue these lobbyists might be coming to talk to you about. It is imperative that each group member is educated on this so that all can meaningfully contribute to this activity.


Step Three

Post a transcript of your conversation between your party and the lobbyists on your website. This is a great chance to use your imagination and be creative, while also demonstrating your knowledge. Think critically and have some fun.

Party Promotion

Your future possible constituents are listening - what do you have to say to promote your party? Do you want to spend your constituents’ money (provided to you through donations and taxes) on an advertisement showing the faults of the other parties? Or, are you going to choose to focus on what your party has to offer? What is the best way to meet your supporters’ needs? What approach best aligns with your values as a party? Are you leaders, or politicians?

NOTE: In order to promote your party effectively, it is important that you are aware of the other parties running against you. Take some time to review the sites of the other parties in your race (9.1/9.3 & 9.2/9.4) before deciding what the best way to promote your party would be.

Exclusive!

According to an unnamed source close to the current Conservative government, a joint committee headed by three high-ranking cabinet ministers has been exploring the implications of the following map for collective rights and immigration issues in Canada. It is suspected that the three cabinet ministers are the Honorable Kason Jenney, Minister for Multiculturalism; the Honorable Ghelly Slover, Minister of Canadian Heritage and Official languages; and the Honorable Ahris Clexander, Minister of Citizenship and Immigration. No one from any of the ministers’ offices was available to confirm this. Due to circumstances beyond this reporter’s control, the only document leaked was this, and no further details are available at this time.

Filed by staff reporter Peter Parker.