Free advice

Assume, just for the moment, that CRA's polling numbers are right, and an accurate reflection of true voting intentions at this moment in time.

For a variety of reasons, they probably aren't.

But assume, for fun's sake, that they are.

Further assume that those polling numbers would be accurately reflected in the popular vote results in an election held today: PC 73%, Liberal 19%, NDP 7%.

Running those figures through Calcutron yields a reverse Smallwood 1966: all but three seats would be Tory blue.

And one of the projected opposition seats is Labrador West, which has already conceded to The Party in this past winter's by-election.

Calcutron say that Kelvin Parsons, and Wally Andersen — if he runs — would likely come out on top, even with Danny Williams' The Party at 73%.

But every other opposition seat — Lorraine Michael's NDP toehold in Signal Hill-Quidi Vidi, every Liberal seat in Newfoundland, even Yvonne Jones in southern Labrador — would go blue.

Not one currently government-held seat would, on those figures, be expected to turn over.

So for those opposition members and new candidates who want, for purely mercenary and selfish reasons, to win their own seats on October 9th; and for those other members, and their staffers, and their party membership at large, and for those in the general public, who would like, as a matter of principle, to see at very least a strong and viable opposition, if not the downfall of a wretched and incompetent government that is going to be utterly savaged by future historians who didn't have the luxury of voting it out of office...

Do you still think it's smart politics not to be vocal and unrelenting in your criticism of, and opposition to, Danny Williams?

Do you still think that it would reflect badly on you, and hurt your chances at election or re-election, to criticise the man "because he's so popular"?

Do you still think that opposing and criticising Danny Williams is going to hurt you, any more than the hurt you will inevitably feel if nothing changes in the next four months?