Democracy is still a rare privilege in this world - something we should value and not take for granted. Make sure you're counted in - get to your polling station today.

Where?
Enter your postal code at  Elections Canada.  They also give a lot of other ways to find your riding and polling station.

When?
Polling station hours are staggered, so make sure you know when yours is open:

From The Independent:

A 'Green New Deal' can save the world's economy, says UN

The ambitious plan – the start of which will be formally launched in London next week - will call on world leaders, including the new US President, to promote a massive redirection of investment away from the speculation that has caused the bursting “financial and housing bubbles” and into job-creating programmes to restore the natural systems that underpin the world economy.

It aims to convince them that,…

From the Elections Canada website:

• for contributions up to $400, a credit of 75 percent (for example, a $300 credit for a contribution of $400)
   
• for contributions from $401 to $750, a credit of $300 plus 50 percent of the amount over $400 (for example, a $475 credit for a contribution of $750)
   
• for contributions over $750, the lesser of $650 or $475 plus 33⅓ percent of the amount over $750 (for example, a $650 credit for a contribution of $1,275)

You can listen to the archive version of the program in streaming audio format or you can download the podcast.

David Suzuki was guest host of CBC's The Current last Friday.

Here's the program line-up:

Part One:

• Economists Peter Victor (York University) and Jim Gaisford (University of Calgary)

 
Part Two:

• Chris Carlsson, one of the founders of the Critical Mass urban cycling movement and author of Nowtopia: How Pirate Programmers, Outlaw Bicyclists and Vacant-Lot Gardeners are Inventing…

Below is a list of surveys along with a list of which parties have responded (note: the Conservative Party has consistently neglected to respond to survey questions.)

1. Make Poverty History: Asked all 5 party leaders to respond to questions about their plans to reduce poverty nationally and internationally. All parties responded except the Conservative party. http://www.makepovertyhistory.ca/ontherecord

1. Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal Network and Interagency Coalition on AIDS and Development: Sent…

From the Halifax Chronicle Herald:

A carbon price will usher in a green economy

By DAVID SUZUKI and PIERRE SADIK

It's not often that people from different walks of life agree on an issue,
let alone a difficult and vitally important one. But that's precisely what
has happened in determining how to best tackle the serious challenge that
climate change poses for society and the planet.

It's interesting how climate change has come to dominate the meetings of our
elected representatives,…

Sure, that's not as impressive as Elvis' 50 million fans, but STILL it's a big number!  And it's yet another nail in the coffin of global warming deniers and delayers.

Check the letter out at http://www.site.climateletter.org/

We have been disturbed by what we perceive to be a lack of attention to the environment during this election campaign. While it’s clear the public accepts that global warming is a threat, it seems people have simply no idea how serious this issue is. Global…

The recent news about Stephen Harper using the same speech that Australian Prime Minister John Howard used to argue in favour of joining the U.S in its war on Iraq has caused a bit of a stir in this election campaign. But maybe he just plagiarized the wrong speech. That's the argument Mike Buckthought makes in the Toronto Star.

For example, Mr. Buckthought writes: "Canadians would be pleasantly surprised if he copied a speech by David Cameron, leader of Britain's opposition Conservative…

I picked up my newspaper this morning to see a huge headline: "The R Word". Strangely, reading front-page news about a possible recession comforted me. Yeah, I've already lost a big chunk of my mutual-funds savings and will likely lose more. But at least a recession is something we can live through. We'll recover, even if it's with a diminished retirement plan. I'm sure the politicians are working on some kind of plan to rescue the stock markets and banks. At least, that's what they've…