Hmm.
Yes, this is exciting times for Canada. The
potential embodied in this coalition government is huge. Possibly unprecedented. The stakes, however, are equally huge. Canada has come off relatively light in this global economic downturn so far, but anyone who doesn't think we're teetering on the brink of absolute catastrophe is fooling themselves.
I make no secret of my dislike for Harper. Flaherty is the fallguy on the budget issue, but given Harper's iron fist policy when it comes to his party, I don't think we can really put on the blame on sorry Jim's shoulders.
So who steps up to the plate if Harper resigns? Prentice? Maybe. My impression of Prentice is that he's more of an industry pitbull than anything. As Minister of Industry he refused to advocate for consumer rights, and in the case of cellular providers double dipping on text messaging charges, even implicity condoned abuses by industries in power. Prentice is a minister, and a poor one at that. He is not a party leader.
The Harper government was far too arrogant. I think they expected the opposition to simply roll over and take whatever they put forth, for fear of sparking another election so soon. What I think the Conservatives are failing to realize is that a lot of their support was not due to their own merits, but moreso due to the faults of their opponents. Public opinion of Dion seems to be that he's just this side of useless, and the NDP have never been a viable alternative on the Federal level. What other choice was there? For a lot of Canadians (including, anecdotally, a significant portion of my own riding) the Conservatives were the only real option.
As an aside, it's misleading to say that Canadians vote for representatives. It's true that the Honourable Barry Devolin represents me in Federal Parliament. But that isn't to say that voters don't consider party politics when placing their votes.
So, the exciting thing about this coalition is that it
is democracy in action. A minority government by definition does not have the support of the majority of Canadians. When that government acts in bad faith and loses the confidence of the people it represents, it's time for a change. Since we can't agree on an alternative through an election, the coalition is ideally the way to satisfy the majority of Canada. Harper's desperate cries of treason and outrage notwithstanding, I suspect that such an action at least has the potential to steer Canada in the right direction.
I think it's naive to allow an issue like party lines come to the fore at this late date. Canada is on the brink of national crisis, and that must be what our government addresses. Harper's budget showed no intention of doing so in any meaningful way. I reckon it's time to let someone else have a go.
EDIT - Interestingly, immediately after I posted this,
this story popped up in my news feed about Saskatchewan premier Brad Wall. The banal: he, like all coalition opponents, raises the separatist bogeyman. The interesting: he suggests that the answer is yet another election. I would think an elected official would have sufficient understanding of the democratic process to understand why an election in February would be a phenomenally bad idea.