A Company of Fools

Something is going on in this country and it makes me sick. Canada touts itself as a democratic nation and yet a pathetic number of us choose to actually cast our ballots. In our recent election, the Conservatives won a minority government. The voters spoke and Stephen Harper was reelected as the Prime Minister to lead us through these tough economic times. Like it or not, the democratic process dictates that he won fair and square.

Now, only a short month after an already-too-costly election, the Liberals and NDPs and Bloc Québécois have been meeting behind closed doors and planning to form a coalition government to overthrow Harper. They claim that a coalition is necessary in light of Minister Flaherty's recent economic update which failed to mention a stimulus package for ailing Canadian industries.

This leaves a bad taste in my mouth. In my opinion, the Liberals are merely clutching at straws in a desperate attempt to gain power; they can't stomach the fact that they were unsuccessful in gaining the confidence of Canadians in the last election. Of course, the NDP are no dummies and see this possible coalition as a means of gaining more power, knowing full well that they wouldn't be able to otherwise garner as many seats in the House. As for ‘bargaining’ with a separatist party, there are simply no words! The term "jumping the gun" also comes to mind, considering that the Conservatives have not released their official budget yet – a result that they have already promised to deliver in January 27, 2009, almost a full month before a budget would normally be tabled in the House of Commons.

How is it that three parties who, only a month earlier were mud slinging and refusing to see eye-to-eye, can suddenly decide that they are unified enough to lead our nation through one of the worst recessions that we have seen in decades? To me, it smacks of desperation and it's just another sign that the Liberals and really going to hell in a hand basket. Never mind the fact that the leadership of the party is already on shaky ground after Stéphane Dion was 'convinced' to step down after poor party election results. The Liberals are flip-flopping so much these days that it's hard to know where they stand anymore – yet another reason why a coalition government is frightening at this point.

I'm not telling folks to love Harper and I'm not even trying to sell you on the Conservatives; be whatever party / leader supporter you're going to be. However, I am urging folks to examine the situation closely and ask yourselves, is this truly in the best interest of Canadians?

My two cents, for what it's worth – this is absolute BS and a stupid game played by the old-boys network in a desperate bid for supremacy. The future of our nation is on shaky ground and I don’t think it’s unrealistic to surmise that this coalition would likely lead to a further crippling of the market and dollar…not exactly what this country needs right now.

The future of our nation now rests in the hands of our Governor General who must decide whether to dissolve Parliament and accept the new coalition government or to send Canadians to the polls again. I am sincerely hoping for the latter, although I’m not holding my breath seeing as the GG was nominated and instated back in 2005 under Liberal leadership…we’ll see how deep those old ties run.

As for the question of democracy, this proposed coalition government is a slap in the face to our political process. Voters already made their decision back in October’s election and yet the Liberal and NDP parties are willing to disband the government, ignore the voices of Canadians and put a man in power who many clearly did not want as their leader in the first-place. The proposed coalition argues that “it’s all about leadership in a time of economic uncertainty,” to me it’s simply a matter of soothing bruised egos.

The voters already spoke; deal with it and let the government get back to governing.