I Heart Democracy
December 1
Perhaps you have been watching the news and have heard the rumours. The Government of Canada spiraling into the nether-regions of obscure democratic process and is standing on the brink of something rather historic. And no matter, from whichever side of that particular chasm of political upheaval you throw your tomatoes, the results are promising to be exciting.
So, fine. You are not a political junkie. You can’t be bothered to follow the musings of our small-stature democracy. Go read something else. What do you care that a fragile minority government gambled its fortunes on a minor political gambit, tossed the entire pot on a pair of tens, and the other three players and posing themselves to call the bluff? Huh?
But it is curious to see the arguments being rallied against this process. “It’s not democratic!” or “It’s a coup!” or “These are backroom deals!” Folks, this is democracy at its finest. Thirty eight percent of an underwhelming voter turnout chose the current government. This is how the other half (plus) replies to that, particularly when the other half is so fed up they actually decide to work together. Nice.
Brad: Illegitimate? No. Mr. Harper, had you won a majority, we could fairly call this a coup. Given that you have a minority, the mathematical majority is only divided by a difference of opinion. Giving that collection a reason to unite against you and legally cooperate to become a functional majority, you can just bully your way out of a basic math equation. Not a coup. Catastrophe? No. Mr. Harper, had you presented an actual plan to address the coming tidal wave of economic disaster, we could have perhaps thought you meant this country well. The catastrophe was your choice to pick politics over economics. Global instability? Yes. Mr. Harper, good on you for mixing your lies with a grain of truth. But what people need to know is that the biggest bouts of global instability have historically been treated with a healthy dose of coalition politics: See, Churchill, WWII.
http://www.cbc.ca/national/blog/video/rex_murphy/alll_politics_no_government.html
Also note that none of the parties got over 50% of the people’s votes.
Only one poll taken to date on this mess and it has been done in Quebec. Ironic.
It will take the new coalition till March / April to get a budget out and by then many Canaadians will not care as they huddle in line at the food banks. Give it three months and I predict we will be voting anyway so let’s get on with it and let the people decide. We will ultimatley get it right sooner or later. Dion is done in May anyway so who do we want next. Perhaps this time people will come out and vote and not be so Canadian (apathetic). The whole circus is akin to tying 3 cats together by the tail and hoping they will all play nicely together. It will get messy.
Fact: Harper has a minority government. Fact: he promised to work together with the opposition. Fact: as prime minister his first priority should be to get the economy on solid footing. Fact: his first priority according to the minutes of the last week of the house of Commons has been to pick fights with the opposition.
Harper is not a king. He is an elected civil servant and he works for the electorate. If he wants to keep that job he needs to remember that.