With A Bang Not A Whimper

We Liberals & the other parties have no option but to oppose the Cons' cynical move on election financing, or sign our own death warrants. Should the government be defeated on a confidence motion, so soon after the last election, the GG would have to ask the 2nd party, the LPC, if they could command the confidence of the House. I think we could. Failing that, better to fight yet another Con-provoked election now, with their previous economic lies & mismanagement exposed, rather than allow ourselves to be bled to death before the next election. The Cons have two choices: back down or risk losing power. We & the other parties have no choice, we simply can't back down. No-one wants an election, but better one now, on a level playing field, rather than one later on a severely inclined pitch. Whatever the result, better we resolve ourselves to go with a bang rather than a whimper.

What is sad is that I favour the elimination of the subsidy over time. In theory, it's the right thing to do. But the devil's in the details and such fundamental elements of the architecture of democracy need to be the subject of a wide agreement among the political actors. In Quebec, many of these kind of decisions have to be apporoved by 2/3 of the National Assembly or the members of its committees, as a way to ensure that such decisions have multipartisan approval. This should also be the case in Ottawa.

Had the Cons come with a long-term project to slowly phase out the subsidy, starting after the next election, so everyone would know the set-up going in, few could object. But such noxious partisan game-playing in an economic update that is supposed to address the recession is completely vile. To try to change the channel from the recession and their own mismanagement while screwing the other parties when Canadians need responsible government more than ever...connards!

No! We must say No! Let us not expire with a whimper but bang the drum for democracy. No! With a bang not a whimper, Liberals! No!