Hear, hear! [slaps desk repeatedly]
The problem with Canadian Parliamentary Government is that it was designed to produce majorities as it was believed that government would work best in a majority situation (as they can get more done). This is exactly why a party tends to win 50% or more of the seats in the house of commons when they only receive roughly 40% of the vote. Really, the parliamentary system isn’t the most democratic system in the world. Hence why we have a governor general who isn’t elected, and a senate which isn’t elected. Not to say that minority governments can’t work in Canada, but they generally aren’t very long lived. Also, the reason that people try to claim that this type of coalition is undemocratic isn’t because it is undemocratic so much as the fact the parliamentary gov’t is very much based on tradition, and traditionally, there has never been this type of coalition in Federal politics before, where the party with the most votes would essentially become the opposition.
Elect the Senators.
Elect the GG.
Elect Parliament by STV.
Leave the rest alone. Minority gov’ts and coalitions beat the hell out of waiting out a Bush or Mulroney for 8 years!
I agree, its just not so easy to implement those things
Some interesting commentary in the National Post
preview.tinyurl.com/5car2v
preview.tinyurl.com/6blkef
and from a local rag in the Fraser Valley
preview.tinyurl.com/5vgjjt
While I do agree with the need for a new system to elect our MPs, I don’t think that the STV is the right system. On of the principles of election is that they are transparent, and when you need a formula to figure out who won, I think you lose the transparency that the first past the post system gives you. I think we should either elect Senators through proportional representation and keep the MPs in a first past the post or have run off elections 'till one candidate has at least 50%. This way everyone’s vote truly counts (through the Senate), and we still have regional representation (through the MPs), and no one party can dominate.
Ha-ha Rick is in fine form:
Although I do think it will be a good thing if the coalition governs in late January this is funny nonetheless. 
Well to keep up with the comparison with dogs and such… as Rick does
this coalition is going to end up as a dog that don’t hunt… 
Here’s John Manley’s solution to the angst of December…
Mr Mercer has my vote. His take sums up pretty much my frustration at the state of affairs and makes me even more certain that NO current party deserves my vote if we end up in an election over this fiasco.
Where is the Rhino party when you need them???
To quote from your link:
Interesting times ahead:-)