Coalition Put to Bed?

So what is going on in our parliament these days? Do you know? Yeah. Didn't think so. But I bet you're aware of Obama's inuguration tomorrow.

Well, if you remember, the threat of a Liberal-NDP-Bloc coalition caused Stephen Harper to ask the governor general to prorogue parliament. We're coming close the the end of the cooling period, however, and the question on everyone's mind (Well, the ones who aren't completely obsessed with the aforementioned inauguration. Look, I appreciate that the US has finally been able to elect a president who is not an old white man. But I live in Canada. We have a government too.) is, now what of this proposed coalition?

As promised, Dion is finally gone. Now, Michael Ignatieff is on the scene, making pretty speeches in the style of... you guessed it. Obama. Seriously, guys, can't we do better than try to be Americans?

But to get to the point, the "c" word has not been mentioned yet. Keep your ears to the ground and your eyes peeled... as the kids say.

Canadian Politics Finally Get Interesting

To everyone who watched the exciting unfolding of the American election and considered the laughable tameness of our own system of government... Your drama has arrived.

Less than two months ago, we elected a Conservative minority government with Stephen Harper as Prime Minister. Under a global recession (and by the way, Canada is suffering much less than many other countries so far), our chosen Prime Minister decided to cut tax funding to political parties. Seems like a good plan to me. I don't want to pay for their annoying signs.

But of course, the Liberals felt this much more than the Conservatives (who mainly rely on other sources for funding). Upset, they threw a fit. Stephan Dion (wait a second... I thought he was supposed to be gone by now?) is making plans to form a coalition government... with the Bloc and the NDP. There are rumours of granting the Bloc veto power; in my opinion, a BAD PLAN.

I have so many issues with this it's hard to organize them all. Firstly, regardless of who the coalition consists of, this is Canada. Last I checked, I was fairly confident that we were a democracy. We get to vote and pick our own leaders. A coalition government really just sounds like a bunch of people who did not earn enough votes to get power ganging up and taking over.

People who voted for the Liberals did not know they were also voting for separatists and our lovely orange friends. This was not what we voted for. Canada made itself clear, and this seems extremely underhanded to me.

The Liberals are airing commercials saying that the Conservatives have "blown it." What? How did I miss that? It must have been bad, it takes talent to "blow it" for an entire country in less than two months. (Yes, I realize Mr. Harper has been in power for longer than that, however, in my reasoning, the "blowing" of "it" must have happened since the last election, since I trust Canadians would not re-elect him if he had, in fact, "blown it" before then.)

We are in a global recession. Some even fear it could get as bad as the Great Depression. Now is not the time for petty power struggles, which are not being played for the good of the people (the entire purpose of government!). We already picked our government. To the proposed coalition I say this:

You lost. Deal with it. It's a minority government, so you still get some say, which is more consolation prize than you'd get if this were the US. Respect the choice Canada made in an open and democratic election. Frankly, you are behaving like children. Stupid ones, too.

This is not going to help the economy any. If you want your government to represent you, make your views known! Email the Governor General! Plague your MP! Go to the protests!

This is OUR country.

Back to the Beginning: Bill C-484

I had originally meant to do an in-depth, piece-by piece study on Bill C-484, the Unborn Victims of Crime Act. However, in my research of the Bill, I have decided I would much rather let you read the information first-hand. I wouldn't want to inadvertently misinform on the issue.

http://www.kenepp.com/issues/insidepage.asp?ID=92

This is Ken Epp's personal response to a letter he recieved concerning his Bill. I find it addresses all of the issues surrounding it in a complete and methodic manner.

I should warn you, I am about to share my opinion of the Bill. I hope that you will make your own conclusions and seek out true facts regardless of what I think. If there is one thing I have learned through looking into this issue, it is that we must always guard ourselves against misinformation to avoid ignorance.

I think that Bill C-484 is what it says it is: an effort to protect pregnant women. Although I am srongly ProLife, I understand that abortion is not what this Bill is dealing with. It is worded clearly and with careful precision so that there can be no mistaking this.

Personally, I had no idea that there was no sort of legal protection for pregnant women under canadian law. I think this should be repaired, especially considering there have been precedent cases where a law such as that proposed by the Bill could have been applied. This would also perhaps serve to deter potential offenders.

But read up on it for yourself!