I WAS hoping we wouldn’t have an election for at least a couple more years.
I believe many things are going well in Canada. I also believe we have significant problems. Yet I do not believe much will be solved by this election.
That leaves me feeling hopeless. Many other Canadians feel the same way.
Yes, there’s a scandal. Scandals have been part of Canadian politics since our country began. For the Conservatives, there was Sir John A Macdonald’s scandal in 1872-73, involving election bribery and the building of the trans-Canada railway.
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There were problems with Avro Arrows and Bomarc missiles. Some would describe as scandalous the way the Reform/Alliance party became the Conservative party; for others, it’s the party’s alleged mistreatment of David Orchard.
The Liberals had problems with C.D. Howe’s Trans-Canada Pipeline, and Jean Chrétien’s Shawini-gate and judge Gomery’s initial report.
If scandal determines voting, neither party should get any votes.
Gomery’s report distracted us from more serious concerns. We face the potential death of medicare.
Earlier this year, the Supreme Court of Canada effectively undermined Canadian health-care law. But that didn’t happen without successive federal governments failing to deal creatively with medicare problems.
In international trade, we have felt the U.S. scorn for Canada as a trading partner. That attitude was forecast long before the first Canada-U.S free trade agreement was signed. Most politicians ignored the warning. Canadian agricultural policy is a mess, trapped in international rules and national confusion.
An election won’t solve those problems because an election won’t solve the problem of power politics.
There was a time, perhaps, when people sought political leadership – political power – for the sake of giving Canada a coherent sense of direction.
But lately we’ve seen political leaders seek political power for the sake of simply being in power.
We have seen the worst side of politics – the lust for power overcoming common sense and national needs. That’s why we’re having an election.
If prime minister Paul Martin had acted decisively when his minority government began, there would be no January election. Canada would have an effective, centre-left coalition government.
Did Martin reject stability because he didn’t want to share power?
An election won’t solve our problems because I’m not confident that Canadians have leaders or political parties able to guide the country effectively, with the conviction, compassion and integrity Canada needs.
I’m not confident that Canadians have leaders willing to do the really difficult things, like increase taxes and radically reorganize spending. I’m not confident that Canadians have leaders who are committed to honouring Canada’s “moral economy,” the values that should determine our national priorities
We cannot afford the luxury of turning despair to cynicism. And despair is what I think many Canadians feel about power politics.
To move from despair to hope, we must elect strong candidates, regardless of party, on the basis of who they are and what they believe personally, even if they challenge their parties.
I WAS hoping we wouldn’t have an election for at least a couple more years.
I believe many things are going well in Canada. I also believe we have significant problems. Yet I do not believe much will be solved by this election.
That leaves me feeling hopeless. Many other Canadians feel the same way.
Yes, there’s a scandal. Scandals have been part of Canadian politics since our country began. For the Conservatives, there was Sir John A Macdonald’s scandal in 1872-73, involving election bribery and the building of the trans-Canada railway.
There were problems with Avro Arrows and Bomarc missiles. Some would describe as scandalous the way the Reform/Alliance party became the Conservative party; for others, it’s the party’s alleged mistreatment of David Orchard.
The Liberals had problems with C.D. Howe’s Trans-Canada Pipeline, and Jean Chrétien’s Shawini-gate and judge Gomery’s initial report.
If scandal determines voting, neither party should get any votes.
Gomery’s report distracted us from more serious concerns. We face the potential death of medicare.
Earlier this year, the Supreme Court of Canada effectively undermined Canadian health-care law. But that didn’t happen without successive federal governments failing to deal creatively with medicare problems.
In international trade, we have felt the U.S. scorn for Canada as a trading partner. That attitude was forecast long before the first Canada-U.S free trade agreement was signed. Most politicians ignored the warning. Canadian agricultural policy is a mess, trapped in international rules and national confusion.
An election won’t solve those problems because an election won’t solve the problem of power politics.
There was a time, perhaps, when people sought political leadership – political power – for the sake of giving Canada a coherent sense of direction.
But lately we’ve seen political leaders seek political power for the sake of simply being in power.
We have seen the worst side of politics – the lust for power overcoming common sense and national needs. That’s why we’re having an election.
If prime minister Paul Martin had acted decisively when his minority government began, there would be no January election. Canada would have an effective, centre-left coalition government.
Did Martin reject stability because he didn’t want to share power?
An election won’t solve our problems because I’m not confident that Canadians have leaders or political parties able to guide the country effectively, with the conviction, compassion and integrity Canada needs.
I’m not confident that Canadians have leaders willing to do the really difficult things, like increase taxes and radically reorganize spending. I’m not confident that Canadians have leaders who are committed to honouring Canada’s “moral economy,” the values that should determine our national priorities
We cannot afford the luxury of turning despair to cynicism. And despair is what I think many Canadians feel about power politics.
To move from despair to hope, we must elect strong candidates, regardless of party, on the basis of who they are and what they believe personally, even if they challenge their parties.
