Canada is about to change...an opinion

If you are like most Canadian Tim Horton conversationalists, the latest domestic news is disheartening and probably even discouraging. Canada recently became a country ruled (not governed by one party). Stephen Harper’s Conservatives, New Cons, or Reform Party based Conservative alliance depending on an individual’s point of view is ruling with less than a majority in parliament. The Liberals, New Democrats, Greens, and even the Bloq are scrambling to keep what they have in the way of support.


Harper’s Tories are actually doing a great job of shedding a great deal of the bureaucratic empire building and public service expansion built up over the years of left of center governance. The only trouble seems to be that the way the current government is making the changes is unpopular with most Canadians. Harper appears so dictatorial that 65% to 70% of the population will not give his government the support and trust needed to make the needed changes.

Will the changes eventually happen? Probably unless the other parties begin to gain momentum in some yet to be disclosed manner, or a new party comes along to unseat the struggling, inept opposition. A new party can happen as witnessed by the recent surge of support for Alberta’s Wild Rose Party. The same scenario can happen nationwide if a dynamic leader emerges with enough funding to rise from the ashes of Canada’s former Liberal, Progressive Conservative and New Democratic parties. Undoubtedly, the Bloq Quebecois will outlive its usefulness to Quebecers and the Greens will linger as for a place for the disgruntled and idealist environmental factions to caste votes.

Change is inevitable. If Canadians are only interested in change for the sake of change then electing a party with a leader that dictates everything that happens means the Harperites will succeed in getting another minority or even a majority of seats in the next election. The announced Conservative plan for riding redistribution will mean the demise of Quebec as a major influence in Canada’s politics. Increasing the number of seats at the expense of Ontario and Quebec would strengthen the Conservative western base probably leading to another Quebec referendum. Would that result in the United States of Canada or a European type political landscape? With the selling off resource industries to foreign interests and a crumbling infrastructure that holds this great country together needing continuing revenue from those disappearing resource industries change is inevitable.

Political stalemate.

 A new month of the same old, same old with regard to Canada's politics. The Conservatives are still shooting the party in the foot once opinion polls reflect increases in popularity. The Liberals are still pretending to support an anointed leader, the New Democrats are still the NDP against everything the major parties propose and the Bloq are still Quebecers.

The only truly reasonable answer to those questions is where the country goes from here politically except to an election that Canada cannot afford and will probably bring about little in the way of change. We can’t on the other hand keep letting the spoiled children sitting in the House of Commons play partisan politics. One of the parties, maybe even the Green Party must come up with an alternative that voters will embrace scaring the foolishness out of the current political competitiveness.

Let’s be honest and admit a few dozen more state of the art airplanes and ships patrolling one of the world’s longest unprotected coastlines makes as much sense as telling the Americans Canada does not need the protection of our powerful neighbor’s military. The deterrence of any real threat against our sovereignty could only become serious if America didn’t come to our defense. Do politicians have to concentrate on whether our soldiers are following established protocol of warfare, the upcoming census answers should be long or short form, a minister of the crown or her husband is using their political office for commercial advantage and the list goes on. What about demanding politicians of every party begin dealing with the federal deficit and how it will affect the provinces and municipalities, tackling the burgeoning shortfall in healthcare and education funding, supporting industries trying to offset the decline of heavy industrial jobs in North America.

These complaints are all negativity caused by the fact most Canadians seems content to let the country and even more worrisome its citizens slip deeper into debt as prices escalate and savings shrink. All this is happening while politicians play Nero fiddling as the country burns its advantages in the world. The government insists Canada is the envy of every other nation because our banks weathered the recession that brought down larger less government regulated financial institutions. Our five banks compared to hundreds in the United States, Europe and other countries never even claimed a loss. Profits fell but never disappeared like in the rest of the world. Can a country boasting a few thousand citizens blessed with envied resources expect to retain that idealistic position against the concentrated effort of nations with larger budgets and bigger, richer banks looking to exploit Canadian resources?

We need leadership like the men that built the country and were willing to sacrifice political stability to build nationwide railroads, cross-Canada highways, metropolitan city transportation facilities, enduring tourist attractions and again the list goes on. Before the upcoming elections opportunists willing to sacrifice Canada’s wealth for instant cash must disappear replaced by forward thinking young people of a different cult. Today’s politicians are as outdated as the telegram and land phone.