Canada elects Dead Fish Eyes with Lemony Smile (thanks to Russ and Katia for the colourful description of Stephen Harper)

So, the election. This will be a very unedited post, as I've got to get on with things this morning, and you know, in the NEW CANADA, things are efficient. No more bureaucracy, etc. Down to business…



Seriously though, what gives? This guy is really the Prime Minister? Can’t Michaelle Jean do something about it?

I guess not. But really, I don’t think it is so bad. History moves forward, not back, and despite cries of Bush-North, Harper is really not that scary a man. An American poet, Joshua Beckman, was recently in town, and he noted that if Harper had to back peddle like mad for just suggesting that judges might be activist, then we are going to be ok. There are dangers, yes, but the make up of Parliament is such that if Harper tries to whip out any kind of agenda he’s got stashed up in the right-wing of his ass, the Liberals, Bloc and NDP will shut him down. The only problem is that the opposition may not be willing to send him back to Calgary any time soon. Another election is the last thing we need.

I think Harper will be reasonable for the first two years. His democratic reforms could be very good news for Canadians who think they are not represented by the government. Since the coffers are overflowing, his fiscal policies may not be too harsh. The area of concern (for pinkos like me, and maybe you) remains his lack of interest in social policy, and in some cases, his vested interest, which may be that of the idiot Rev. Ray De Souza.

I really think that in the long run, Canadians won’t stand for right-wing moralizing. An oft quoted credo: “If you aren’t a socialist when you are young, you have no heart. If you aren’t a conservative when you are older, you have no brain.” Indeed, as this applies to finances, I agree. But morals move forward. Even the looney-left, if it even existed in, say, the 1950s, wouldn’t have dared stump for pro-choice. Abortion wasn’t even mentioned then. Gay marriage? At that point, society wasn’t even ready to come to terms with people just being gay. So, even as our generation starts to get old (gasp!), and we become the conservatives of the 2020s, we won’t hold on to the morals of this Conservative crew.

It seems like, in the last century, the last three decades specifically, the world is moving right in terms of finance, but we are moving left on moral issues. The Conservatives did not win because more Canadians espouse their values. They won because the Liberals fucked up royally. Lucky for us, they didn’t fuck over the country, they just fucked over themselves. Politics are cyclical. We bounce back and forth to get the best of both worlds. A little discipline never hurt anyone. The country will be fine in the long run. We know this.

64% of those who voted voted for left-leaning, social-democratic candidates. Some of the 36% who voted for the Conservatives are probably more centre than right on social issues. Our system doesn’t reflect that in the government, but Stephen Harper seems to understand that. He seems ready to compromise. For the left to refuse to do so would be to commit the same sin of which we accuse our right-wing opponents: being dogmatic, unmoving, my-way-or-the-highway. How uncanadian that would be. With apologies to Jack, let’s hope this Parliament works. Together.