End of year message as follows: Annus horribilis for Canadas Crime Minister. Stephen Harper clearly knows the difference between a hawk & a handsaw .But other than that, he doesnt have much going for him right now. It is my belief & many others who follow this on so many levels ,its been a rough year for our Crime Minister. The great tragedy of Hamlet, were told, is that the prince knows exactly what he must do to avenge his fathers death, but just cant act. May sound boring to some, but my message is clear. So my question is Why has this story gripped us for centuries? Because the great tragedy of all our lives is that we know who & what we want to be in our heads. But good luck making it come true. Even if the course of action seems simple. Which is where we find Harper. By next election he will have been prime minister for about a decade, including one majority term. Thats as best as you can hope to get in contemporary politics. Now, unlike Hamlet, Harper stopped giving soliloquies once he was thrust centre stage. So we dont know whats been in his head since he became Prime Minister by default. Doesnt take a genius to figure this one out. But judging by his writings & comments as opposition leader & reform MP, its fair to conclude hes largely failed to act as the politician he set out to be. For a rumoured control freak, his handling of the Senate scandal has been lousy. Election fraud is another issue, but on a later time frame will have something to say about that. He can no longer keep a lid on the big tent that unifies all sentiment right of the increasingly left-leaning liberals. The social conservatives are kicking up dust. The fiscal conservatives dont even blink at overspending these days. Cabinet ministers are jockeying to position as next leader.If Michael Chongs proposal to let caucus turf the leader was already in place, you can bet at least one minister would have tried a revolt when senate mania was at its peak. But forget politics for a moment. What about the real action - policy? Perhaps the biggest embarrassment is just how non-conservative the results have been. If ballooning debt isnt enough for you, try this one: Dec 15,the prime minsters Twitter account posted a graphic celebrating 2013 as our most productive year on record with 40 bills being passed. This is an embarrassment by all accounts. Reform-era Harper would have likely chastised any so-called conservative who thought the point of government was to pass bills with wild abandon. Generally speaking, more bills means more government. The EU trade deal is a conservative achievement regardless of its flaws. It remains for posterity to decide, but it could be Harpers legacy, but am not be betting on this one. For the Harper haters this is all good sport. Those who always laughed at him will gladly put Mark Twain on his head & let comedy plus time equal tragedy. But this is cold comfort for anyone - Mulcair & young Trudeau included - who hopes to succeed him. It would be reassuring to them if a simple aphorism could explain Harpers annus horribilis. Know thyself? To thine own self to be true? Keep your friends close & your enemies closer? No, its never that easy. Merry Christmas (Happy Holidays) stay safe where ever you are.
Posted on: Fri, 20 Dec 2013 21:01:56 +0000
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