On the road to the Harper government’s tipping point
Wednesday, March 9th, 2011
Mar. 08, 2011
In keeping with its obsession with secrecy and control, we recall the PMO’s muzzling of the public service and the diplomatic corps, its suppression of research containing data countering its ideology, and its efforts to impede the functioning of the access-to-information system… The government’s arc of duplicity is remarkable to behold. And there are more revelations to come. It may not happen in the next election, but there will be a tipping point and the PM and his ministers will pay the price.
Tags: ideology, participation, rights
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Majority! Who cares?
Tuesday, January 11th, 2011
Jan. 11, 2011
Viewing the degree of authority, command and control that this Prime Minister has been able to effect with a minority, he should have no regrets over its limitations. To achieve his paramountcy, Mr. Harper has resorted in dozens of instances to overreach and to abuse of power. But democratic standards in this country have declined over the years and – to date, at least – he’s been able to get away with it. The story of his first five years has been less in policymaking than in taking over control of the infrastructure of power…
Tags: ideology, participation, rights
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When guilt by association wasn’t the Canadian way
Tuesday, October 12th, 2010
October 12, 2010
Guilt by association. It’s a hallmark of the modus operandi, a cheap instrument of attack politics that tarnishes the image of all Conservatives. The Progressive Conservatives of old would not have put up with it. Those Tories always had a right-wing cabal that manifested a prejudice and narrow-mindedness, like some U.S. Republicans. But that faction was always very much in the minority… the merger of the two conservative parties in 2004, more a Canadian Alliance takeover than a merger, gave them the prominence of place they enjoy today.
Tags: ideology
Posted in Governance History | No Comments »
Is there an old-style Tory in the House?
Saturday, August 28th, 2010
Aug. 26, 2010
… the party’s hard right now appears, with a few policy exceptions, to have assumed control of the agenda. And that agenda is about keeping out boat people, letting in Fox News, building new jails, reviewing affirmative action, killing the gun registry, playing down climate change, revamping the census and giving more voice to social conservatives… The garrison party, as it’s sometimes called, no longer has policy debates wherein dissenters have a chance to air their views. The role of the party’s rank and file is not to develop policy but to raise funds and tear down opponents.
Tags: ideology
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Tory triumph: They know where they’re going
Thursday, March 11th, 2010
Mar. 10, 2010.
Through their long history, Liberals usually felt they could propose increased taxes without fear of a scorched-earth backlash. The prevailing wisdom was that a higher tax regime was necessary to preserve a gentler, more compassionate society than the one next door. Look now, though, and watch the Grits, even with that big deficit out there, running from the subject, afraid to even mention it.
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