Clearly Liberalism is Not Dead Though Conservatism May be On Life Support

When Stephen Harper was with the Reformers, promoting an American style conservative movement, he mocked Canada's historic Conservative Party, because they boasted to be descended from Sir John A. MacDonald. "So what!" he said.

Recently the Harper government conducted a poll to determine the top ten Canadians who inspired us. From top to bottom:

1. Pierre Trudeau
2. Terry Fox
3. Tommy Douglas
4. Lester B. Pearson
5. Chris Hadfield
6. David Suzuki
7. Sir. John A. MacDonald
8. Wayne Gretzky
9. Jack Layton
10. Romeo Dallaire

What first struck me about the list was that no women were included.

What about Agnes McPhail, the first female MP and her work on prison reform? The Famous Five who fought and won the right for women to become "persons", not chattel? Louise Arbour who became the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights? The list goes on.

Most who made the cut are self explanatory, since they contributed a great deal to building Canada as a nation, and strengthened our international reputation.

Jack Layton was a puzzle though. He enjoyed some political success but I can't think of anything he did that would stand the test of time.

He joined Stephen Harper in fighting against the Kyoto accord and even campaigned against the carbon tax, claiming that it would hurt families, despite the fact that it was revenue neutral.

Elizabeth May recounted her experience with Layton and his political move.

I remember phoning Jack Layton to beg him not to bring down the government on the opening day of the climate conference. I had known and liked Jack since he was on Toronto City Council. He had been enormously helpful, volunteering as an auctioneer in local Sierra Club events. He told me when he ran for leader of the NDP that he was only seeking a role in federal politics to deal with the climate crisis. I had believed him. As he threatened to sabotage the most important global climate negotiations in history, I recall leaving a message on his cellphone: "How will you look at yourself in the mirror if you do this?"

... It is only with hindsight that I have come to believe that the climate negotiations were not merely collateral damage to the incidental timing of November 2 8. I now believe that Harper and Layton had a shared desire to pull the plug before the Martin government had a chance to look good on the world stage. I think it is extremely likely, given the way Layton downplayed the climate threat in 2006, that a conscious decision was made by NDP strategists. They had to make sure the key issue remained Liberal corruption for the NDP to avoid losing votes to the Liberals. (Losing Confidence: Power, Politics, and the Crisis in Canadian Democracy, By Elizabeth May, McClelland & Stewart, 2009, ISBN: 978-0-7710-5760-1, Pg. 2-7)

A similar strategy backfired in the recent Ontario election.

I liked Jack Layton but he was not at the heart NDP, at least not in the Tommy Douglas tradition. He spent the most on travel, he exploited subsidized housing" and a study conducted by McMaster University, revealed that he was the nastiest MP.

I can think of many others more deserving, but there is a bigger issue with the list.

What does this say to Stephen Harper?

Our heroes fought for a Just Society, gave us National Healthcare, Peacekeepers, fight for the Environment and the plight of the downtrodden. Except for MacDonald, none were Conservative, though our first prime minister was nothing like our current, as Harper himself reminded us.

Clearly, Canada has not moved to the right, as some suggest. We cherish everything that Stephen Harper fights against.

It's also interesting as we watch American politics, in the days of the Tea Party, that they actually share the same values.

NBC recently conducted a poll asking who was the best President in the past 25 years. Bill Clinton was number one and Barack Obama number two.

As an interesting coincidence, the son of Canada's first choice will be running for Prime Minister in 2014, while the wife of America's first choice, may be running for President in 2016.

Harper conducted the poll in preparation for our 150th anniversary in 2017. We just have to make sure that the poll is his only involvement in the process.

How can we expect someone who wants to destroy everything our inspirations built, speak for our country?

Jason Kenney is Officially Out of Control. He Needs to be Removed From Society.

I think it's time for this country to take a serious look at the insanity of Jason Kenney. He needs to be heavily medicated and restrained immediately, because he's clearly a danger to himself and others.

When the wonderful Romeo Dallaire was suggesting that as soon as we start fiddling with human rights, we are no better than the people we are supposed to be fighting; that nut job starts bringing up the atrocious acts of others. Fair enough.

But I've got news for you Jas. We are not dropping marshmallows over in Afghanistan or kissing many cheeks. We need all of these human rights protections in place, or as Mr. Dallaire points out, we are no better than the so-called 'evil doers' we are supposed to detest.

Maybe I'll take up a collection and buy Kenney a New Testament. I haven't read it myself, but I hear it's filled with wonderful things, like humility, generosity, kindness and compassion. This man needs a bit of religion ... or a lot Prozac.

Murray Dobbin posted an excellent blog entry yesterday, that I want to share. He is one of my favourite journalists. Be sure to bookmark his blog or subscribe. Always a good read.

In it he elaborates on not only Kenney's irrational behaviour, but Stephen Harper's acceptance of it. I wonder if we could start a petition to have the walls of Kenney's office lined with rubber, and then lock him in. I just don't feel safe knowing he's out there.

Who determines Canada’s Israeli policy:

It has been said by many American commentators critical of Israeli policy in the occupied territories that Israel in effect writes US foreign policy in the Middle East.

But he continues:

It is difficult to imagine a country more accepting than the US of any Israeli policy or bad faith but Stephen Harper and his Israeli file manager, Jason Kenny, have shown they can out do the US. The Harper government appears to develop its policy vis a vis Israel and the Palestinians not from any consideration of Canadian interests in the Middle East or by any reference to the considerable expertise in DFAIT – the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade.

Star columnist Antonia Zerbisias recently wrote, (and I included this in a post): Is Canada pulling the plug on the UN's Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), which provides education, health and other social services in 59 Palestinian refugee camps in the Middle East? Will UNRWA's Canadian funding be diverted instead to training Palestinian police forces and building courthouses and prisons? That's certainly what was suggested on Wednesday by Treasury Minister Vic Toews in both the Jerusalem Post and a news release from B'nai Brith Canada.

This is very troubling and could backfire. As Mr. Dobbin points out: Ironically, people on the ground say that this move will actually have the effect of making Palestinians even more dependent on Hamas which offers similar services to those of UNWRA.

Neither Toews nor Kenney are known for forward thinking, and Harper just wants the Jewish vote, so easily influenced by Frank Dimant. What a team.