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Rex, ask your editors

In a recent column concerning the Conservative Party of Canada leadership race, Rex Murphy mused perplexedly over the paucity of confabulatory prose by this nation’s columnists and news writers on the topic of the race.

Rex, the leadership race is not dead. Your editors have merely found another story and they’re running with it. I’m talking, of course, about the American Democratic Party Leadership Race. Why is our nation’s news media so focused on a topic that they usually abhor? Indeed, our national news peddlers tend to give American news less attention than its worth. Yet, why does our opposition’s leadership race get so much less coverage than the American’s opposition leadership race receives? The American Democrats and the Canadian Conservatives are trying to do the same thing, in effect: change the government. However, Peter Mansbridge has spoken more about John Kerry than Belinda Stronach, and we’ve heard more about Lieberman’s Joementum (or lack thereof) than we have heard about Tony Clement.

Our leadership race is news. Rex, you should ask your editors why they’re choosing to ignore the story. Without media coverage, our leadership contenders can only be heard as far as they can shout. Mr. Murphy has declared that Belinda Stronach, Tony Clement and Stephen Harper have all climbed inside a “Trojan horse”, ready to attack the Liberal party’s stranglehold on power. It’s not that the three intend to stay within the horse, rather, it’s that nobody has told the city of Troy that the horse is waiting outside its gates.

With one eyebrow raised

I can’t believe the news today.

In a move sure to astound, Paul Martin recruited Bloc Québecois co-founder Jean Lapierre to run as a Liberal in Quebec in the next federal election.

Does this indicate that despite one’s political inclinations or political past, as long as one is a Martinite, all is forgiven? It is good to see a seperatist become a fan of Canada again. It will also serve to take some Bloc votes from that party which makes it appear as though the Bloc is on its way out. Good strategy on behalf of Paul Martin, but what leaves me unsettled is that this man was the co-founder of the ‘federal’ party which helped the Parti Québecois bring this country to within less than one percentage point of a national crisis. Mending fences is always a difficult process and I guess that this is a perfect example of that difficulty.

If the Liberals can forgive such a former sovereigntist then perhaps Paul Martin and Alan Rock can give Brian Mulroney a call to share some laughs over a few pints. “Sorry ’bout our witch-hunt, Brian. We just didn’t realize at the time that we’d come to love those things called NAFTA and GST.”

From the Dept. of Irony

I believe that my political views are enriched by discussions with other Conservatives. I find that when we talk policy, we can argue the best approach that we should take concerning the issues of the day. However, I also engage in discussions with others who identify themselves as Liberal or as a supporters of the NDP. One of my best friends is, in fact, a staunch supporter of Mr. Jack Layton and the Orange Squad. I find that through discussion with him, I can at least understand, while rarely support, his point of view and that of other lefty Canadians.

My friend recently shared a letter that he had received from Mr. Layton and wanted to point out something he found quite ironic and baffling at the same time. I’ve scanned in the letter and you can access it below.

Click to enlarge

Jack Layton, in his letter, greases the wheels for his wide-eyed supporters:

“There are new political financing rules as of January 1. There’s a 75% rebate of your first $400! That’s right. You can now give $400 to our exciting and energetic New Democratic Party and get $300 back in a tax credit. So your donation of $400 only costs you $100. The other $300 is a loan! I’m hoping you’ll stretch to that limit right now, if you can. Because we need your help as never before to tackle the corporate drift of Paul Martin’s Liberals.”

You may be wondering… “Did I just read that right? Did Jack Layton actually bribe his members with a tax cut”. Don’t worry… Jack says it’s just “a loan!”

Let’s follow some Layton logic shall we?
1) Jack Layton is promising his members a tax cut
2) so he can take out ‘a loan’ from his members and then, ultimately, from the rest of us.
3) so that he can form the next government
4) to raise all of our taxes!

It’s difficult to understand Jack Layton’s logic, yet it’s entertaining to read his letter. From his fatherly pride over his passionate spunky team of die-hard workers “Tommy would be proud of our little team here”, to his Xeroxed ‘handwritten’ underlining of all the important parts of his letter, to the leftist rhetoric peppered throughout his piece of creative writing.