Politics, anyone?
Canadian federal politics
is in "a terrible
state of chassis".
One of the characters
in Sean O'Casey's "Juno
and the Paycock"
had the right expression
for the current state
of affairs. There is
no other way to describe
it.
Canadian Alliance members,
at least some of them,
have decided to join
the Progressive Conservatives.
Put another way, the
Conservatives, at least
some of them, have decided
to join the Alliance.
Then, they say, the 138
year old party of John
A. Macdonald will cease
to be. It will merge
with the 16 year old
Reform/Alliance party
of Preston Manning,
Stockwell Day, and Stephen
Harper.
What will emerge when
the loose ends have
been tied up is a new
party, the Conservative
Party of Canada. At
this point who its leader
will be nobody knows.
The arrival of a new
political party in Canada
is nothing new. As one
dissolves another evolves.
The Canadian Commonwealth
Federation gave way
to the New Democratic
Party. The Social Credit
Party, with two co-leaders,
hived off the Creditiste
Party. Both fell by
the wayside, to be replaced
by the Bloc Québécois.
Then came the Reform
Party which later became
the Canadian Alliance.
Now comes the Conservative
Party, scheduled to
replace both the Alliance
and the Progressive
Conservative Party.
Thoughout all the Liberal
Party has formed the
government for most
of the past half century.
At one time it was almost
impossible to discern
major differences between
the Liberals and the
Conservatives. To varying
degrees they were slightly
left or slightly right
of centre.
The only clear alternative
was the NDP, the real
party of the left.
With the advent of the
Conservative debacle
of 1993 when the party
was reduced to two seats
in the House of Commons,
the Liberal Party quickly
moved to straddle the
centre, with one electoral
success after another
after another.
There was no room left
in the middle, and Reform/Alliance
came into being as a
regional party well
to the right of centre,
doomed to spend its
life in opposition.
Hence came its decision
to dissolve and create
a new party in partnership
with the dissolved Progressive
Conservative Party,
hoping to move closer
to the centre, hoping
to attract voter support,
hoping to become government.
The only real party of
the left is still the
NDP.
The General Election
to be held next year,
2004, will set a trend
to right, left, or centre,
that may determine the
course of politics in
Canada for at least
a generation.
It is not too early to
stress the importance
of public participation
in that election.
In the General Election
of 2000 voter turnout
was a mere 61%, down
from 75% in 1984 and
in 1988.
Eligible young voters
were so turned off,
tuned out, or didn't
give a hoot, they stayed
away from the polling
booths in awesome numbers.
There is little time
to persuade them to
become interested in
politics before the
next General Election.
But all parties, right,
left, and centre, should
make it a priority to
reach out to them before
it is too late. They
have every right to
know their votes are
important, to themselves
and to their country.
Show them how to become
involved. And in 2004
let's all vote, the
young, the elderly,
and the in-betweens.
The result could be
surprising.
--30--
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