No good deed unpunished
Maybe Green Day was right after all, perhaps nice guys really do finish last. That certainly seems to be the lesson some would take from some of the reactions I've seen to Stéphane Dion's decision to allow the Conservative government's throne speech to pass.
The general impression seems to be that Dion "blinked", or backed down in the face of Conservative toughness. From my point of view, nothing could be further from the truth. Dion is well aware that now is not the time for a third federal election in 4 years. Has everybody forgotten how many provincial elections have already occured this year? Is anybody else aware that there is currently a provincial election going on in Saskatchewan?
Some are suggesting that Dion's decision came as a result of our party's recent poor showing in Outremont, as well as unfavourable polls, but this strikes me as being rather unlikely. The last thing that the Liberal party needs right now is to be branded as the party that forced yet another expensive election.
Whether we Liberals like it or not, Canadians voted for change in 2006 and they want to see us give Prime Minister Harper a chance. If they don't see him getting that chance with a minority government, they might just decide to give him a majority government and see what he does with the country.
Jack Layton and Gilles Duceppe are as hungry for an election as Harper is. Both declared their intentions to vote against the throne speech without even waiting to hear it, leaving the ball in Dion's court. Dion listened to what Prime Minister Harper had to say and ultimately decided not to throw the country into an election. Is that so bad? Let's try to remember that it was the throne speech and not an actual bill. Had the PM actually been trying to slip through a confidence bill that all three opposition parties absolutely could not support, then I would say it was time for an election. Perhaps, a new session of parliament might actually get some important bills passed, such as the amended Clean Air Act.
As it stands the Conservative agenda contains several matters that the PM intends to call matters of confidence. If the Prime Minster comes right out of the gates with a confidence bill that no opposition party can support, he may just find that is he who suffers the backlash for triggering an early election.
posted by Fish at
11:28 AM
3 Comments:
Brian:
Considering as well what I've recently written in my blog, I hope you note that elections could theoretically take place in every province and territory of the nation, simultaneously, and you or me would be voting... once. Unless, of course, there's a clone "Brian Fisher" living in nine other provinces and three other territories, each of which being over 18 and a Canadian with a permanent residence in said province.
I take an unparalled pride in exercising my civic duty to vote. I've caught myself even dressing up for the opportunity. I've even taunted my former roommate on the matter (she being a conservative, I explained to her half-jokingly and all seriously that she had essentially given me three votes by her being to lazy to hit the ballot boxes since a) I got to vote; b) she didn't; c) she "gave" me her vote, so my vote was worth two).
Without digressing further, that elections only occur once a year at the best of times is a real shame.
Now should that civic duty be too difficult, I can suggest a variety of tried and tested regime styles employed around the world that, I say, would prove much more disagreeable to the average voter.
Might I say as well that for those who don't vote... why would they start caring that elections are happening more often anyway? They'll simply continue not voting, and I'll simply continue amplifying the strengh of my ballot by way of their abstinence. It's all very wonderful, if you ask me, and while perhaps not very "nice and fuzzy" of an approach on these things, I do have the virtue here of best respecting the free will of people who may want to vote, and who may not. That's the "free" part of our "free and democratic society".
By
Anonymous, at 6:12 PM
This wouldn't be an issue if the Liberals were ahead in the polls with a good chance of winning.
By
M-A, at 5:03 AM
I honestly can't say that I disagree with you MA. Let's be honest, you're absolutely right. But the key words remain "...with a good chance of winning". Right now I would seriously question just how good any party's chances of winning are if it is seen to be the party that forced an election.
Bronson, while I am rather partial to your idea of taking over the country by overwhelming the country's electorate with clones of myself, I am on kind of a fixed budget... for now.
You also fail to realize that not every Canadian voter is afflicted with the unhealthy obsession for politics that you and I are. They lead busy lives, and deserve a stable government that does not drag them back to the polls every few months. So until the whole cloning Brian plot starts to bear fruit, it is unlikely that you will get many people out to vote. Yes, that is their choice, but it is likely a choice made out of frustration, and people have a right to expect their government to work.
By
Fish, at 5:20 AM
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