Posted by Nick Fillmore, Catch 22

Stephen Harper says he personally favours the death penalty in some instances – but he has no plans to resurrect debate over capital punishment, at least not in the next Parliament.

Harper made the comment Tuesday night during a relaxed, chummy discussion with CBC-TV’s Peter Mansbridge. If there are any barn-burner issues right now in Canada, you’d never know it from the way Mansbridge pussy-footed around the PM.

Harper certainly wasn’t speaking for us here at Catch 22 when he replied to Mansbridge’s question about whether Canadians might not give him a majority in the next election because they fear what he might do.

“My own sense is Canadians have gotten comfortable with this government,” said Harper, despite the fact that his party is stuck at around the 34 per cent support level in opinion polls.

Toronto Star columnist Susan Delacourt consults Advertising Standards Canada about whether the new series of Conservative attack ads meet the proper standards.

Ad standards

• Ad standards are subject to a voluntary code in Canada and political entities are exempt
  Even though political parties are exempt from the code, ASC wishes they would go along, just to live up to the example of the private sector, and mainly so advertising doesn't get a bad name. Here's a 2008 advisory that the council issued to that effect.