It’s rampant!

By chance I was reading a book on the O.J. Simpson trial this morning, where the author went to great lengths to support his belief that incompetence is rampant in modern society (as obvious prelude to his comments about the trial). He’s certainly correct on that, and it’s all a part of a larger problem that I’ll comment on some time.

I glanced over my book to see Stephane Dion in what was apparently his TV address, comments supporting the coalition plan, comments that were supposed to arrive at CTV in time to air immediately following Harper’s address to the nation last night, and never did. Dion was on the receiving end of a lot of free shots last night as the reporters tried to fill time with frequently inane comments (like the one that “the Governor-General might consult her hairdresser” on the current issues, this from Lloyd Robertson—who should know better— a comment that my wife immediate labelled “sexist”). The camera turned then to reporter Robert Fife for comment, and he confessed he “didn’t hear the question because I was checking my email”. One shot they did get off about Dion & Co. was the obvious “how can they expect to govern Canada if they can’t get an important tape to the studio as promised?”


So as I looked over my book at Dion, I noticed, as a million Canadians probably did as well, that his face was blurred, while the bookshelves in the background were clear. I could only shake my head. What was this, Dion filmed by Gilles Duceppe with a $200 JVC camera that they ran down and got in a hurry at Zellers? These are men who would run our country?

And there is Harper, stuck in the tar baby of his own creation, thinking a week ago that the Liberals were so disorganized and leaderless that he could get off a cheap shot, could kick a man when he’s down, with his little cutting of funds for political campaigning, knowing that the Liberals were almost bankrupt and if he cut that fund, they would have little ability to do much more in the next election than buy Bristol board and markers.

But not apologetic. Nothing of that in his smirky smiling address to the nation. Harper doesn’t make mistakes, he’s only misinterpreted, misquoted, severely misjudged. But never wrong.

So he’s off, cap in hand, to the Governor-General this morning, no doubt to ask for prorogue of parliament, effectively canceling this session. His hope (apparently only hope) is that by the time he calls parliament again January 26, the coalition will have dissolved in its own morass of egos and incompetence, and it will be thrown out like old Christmas trees.

His address was mainly an attack on the coalition, as expected. On that topic he was right and wrong. Right in the notion that a coalition with the separatist Bloc is not a good situation for Canada— they will not be in it without getting something out of it. Wrong in the notion that this hasn’t been attempted before, which it was with the “pre-party” conservative Alliance of Stockwell Day in 2000, and wrong in the notion that a coalition taking over power is “not democratic”— it’s perfectly democratic. The PM and the party in leadership come from whoever has the confidence of the House, and if a coalition has that (combined, they have more members in the House, and they achieved more of the votes of Canadians) they have every right to govern. A lot of other countries in the world would be hard pressed to form governments if they didn’t have coalitions.

The general mood of Canadians has been voiced quite a few times, from the man on the street to the Canadian Chamber of Commerce: stop the silly games and get on with governing this country! We’re on the cusp of the biggest downturn in world economy in eighty years, and you guys are playing games– as usual.

Incompetence. The auto industry is screaming that they will go belly up within weeks if they don’t get help (talking of incompetence), and we will not have a government until the last days of January, and a shaky one then if the Christmas tree is still alive.

Incompetence. It’s rampant.

One thought on “It’s rampant!

  1. This ‘westerner’ agrees with the ‘easterner’ (Francis Perry) on this matter. Completely; except that I could go much further! I have been busy the last few days as I read e-mails with attached petitions looking for signatures against the proposed coalition. Each petition was based on a false premise — that voters had not voted for a coalition and it wasn’t democratic. As Francis said, it is democratic and very much part of our constitution and traditions. We don’t vote for a government; we vote for a riding candidate. Americans vote for a President — we don’t vote for a Prime Minister.

    Please let me add one final word. Stephen Harper might be the member of a Calgary riding but he doesn’t look like a westerner to me. And he isn’t! He was born in a Toronto suburb and lived there until the end of high school. NOW do you recognize him?

    I agree that I am in a minority among westerners. It’s not so much that they love Harper — it’s the deal for a coalition with the Bloc. This tempest is hugely divisive and very threatening to the unity of our country.

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