Morrisburg ON – For the election of 2006 the Reform-Conservatives campaigned loudly on a promise of Accountability and Transparency. And ever since their election to office in January 2006, they have delivered on their promise in spades. They have been absolutely and at all times accountable to themselves. As for the majority of Canadians who did not vote for them, when did the Reform-Conservatives ever promise to be accountable to all Canadians?
As to transparency, the Reform-Conservatives have been, in a recent phrase of their Minister of Foreign Affairs, “extremely transparent.” That is to say, transparently secretive, transparently uncaring of parliamentary democracy (two unnecessary prorogations, withholding Afghan detainee documents, etc.), transparently uncaring of majority opinion and the judgments of experts (long-form census, police input on long-gun registry, the environment and climate change, etc.), transparently bullying and smearing witnesses who present fact-based testimony at odds with reform-conservative ideology (Linda Keen, Richard Colvin, Munir Sheikh, et al), transparently intimidating all opposition however honestly based and expressed—not to mention summarily relieving outstanding public servants of their key posts for not toeing the party line
(Paul Kennedy, Peter Tinsley, Col. Pat Stogran, RCMP Chief Superintendent Marty Cheliak).
The net outcome is equally transparent. With this Reform-Conservative government, Canada’s Parliament is effectively trivialized to the point of near paralysis. Insofar as the government of the day sets the tone for the rest of the country, Canadians are being treated to a culture of abuse, evasion, and deceit. Canada, in a word, is toxic. People around the world are scratching their heads and asking, What’s happening to Canada—the Canada we have known and respected?
What to do? Since census discussions are in vogue, here is a modest suggestion: have a credible non-partisan organization, say Democracy Watch, come up with a simple method for taking the ethical pulse of people in elected office as well as those seeking it. Call it “A Democratic Census for Elected Representatives and Persons Seeking Elected Office—Mandatory Short Form” with questions along the following lines (Answer Yes or No):
- Do you think it is right to make a pledge and subsequently break it, if it serves your interest?
- Have you ever been charged or convicted for any of the following: (a) a felony (b) impaired driving (c) accepting a bribe (d) exaggerating, falsifying, or otherwise taking undue advantage of a job-related expense account?
- Do you believe it is acceptable to deceive another person/others, if it serves your interest?
- Do you believe it is acceptable to suppress or withhold information, alter facts or otherwise manipulate the truth, if it serves your interest?
- Do you believe it is acceptable to lose your temper, when you do not get your way?
- Do you believe there is a place for bullying and fear mongering in public service?
- Do you believe it is acceptable to smear, attack or otherwise undermine the credibility of anyone, especially a public servant, who may in good faith hold views that differ from your own?
- Do you believe in decency and fairness in all matters, especially in relation to gender, ethnicity, religion, and political persuasion?
- Are you aware of any patterns of anti-social behaviour you may have? If you are not sure, please refer to www.bullyonline.org
- Do you pledge at all times to respect and uphold the Charter of Rights and Freedoms?
Democracy Watch—or whoever might undertake to quarterback such a census—would then be expected to register the results, together with names, as a matter of public record.
Of course, even if it could be implemented, neither this nor any other measure is going to change things overnight. Trapped in their own anger, the ruling Reform-Conservatives appear to be deaf to the voices of fairness and reason. And Canadians are transfixed, as though under a spell.
The real object of the above exercise is to place everyone seeking elected office at the next election behind the same starting line. That is, on notice of the behaviour, responsibilities, and obligations expected of all servants of the public interest, from the prime minister down.
Intrusive? Surely not when our democracy and the well-being of a nation are at stake.
PJ Robertson PhD, CLU, is a chartered life underwriter, former professor of language and literature, and author of two books on criticism and a hundred plus articles and reviews. This opinion piece first was published appeared in the August 23rd issue of The Hill Times.
(Comments and opinions of Editorials, Letters to the Editor, and comments from readers are purely their own and don’t necessarily reflect those of the owners of the Cornwall Free News, their staff, or sponsors.)
The COMIC party supports Democracy Watch. We have the time and, besides, our Mickey Mouse watches are all broken.
When has the liberal party or NDP ever been accountable to Canadians? Unless, serving their individual best interest.
“withholding Afghan detainee documents” what business is that of the general public?
“relieving outstanding public servants of their key posts for not toeing the party line”
Really would you keep people working for you that didn’t do the job hey are hired to do, are you hiring??
Would Democracy Watch be a Crown corporation?
Let’s see what the liberals have accomplished, a huge deficit, some of the largest Crown Corporations in Canada and the province, a failing health care system and an outdated infrastructure. That is from being in power too long.
A prime example for our health care was Smitherman deciding it was better to have the public pay for Transgender reassignment before insulin pumps. I guess there is logic there if it is something that effects you directly/
Ah the Charter of rights and a Just society campaign. The blessing of Trudeau now exploited beyond repair. We all have rights but with out obligation, just ask Ruby Dhalla.
Martin with contracts designed to increase the federal government’s status in Quebec, not that we already haven’t spent enough money in that province.
Chrétien, sponsorship scandal
Martin/ Chrétien’s Redbook, I wonder what page it said remove the GST, I can only assume it was at the end of the book someplace maybe in the footnotes.
The liberals are all about spending on issues and not having accountability, more so then any other party to date. As long as people feel the false sense of security they provide by irresponsible spending the news is quiet. That has to do with such a long running leadership by the liberals in Canada. The liberals are deeply entrenched and have a large control over Canada see Orders of Council.
It would be interesting to see the orders of council and find the political affiliation of the crown chairperson and directors for the Crown Corporations.
Now energy prices soar under McGuinty and the Hydro Crown Corporation. This is a result of the green alternative and debt recovery. Richard Komorowski had written an article about solar panels and the money Hydro pays for fuelling the grid. Rick and all the tree huggers, you see where the money is going to come from as a result of your endeavors. We pay more for the same service. As for debt recovery, why is that my problem? Maybe I should charge the government a stupid tax.
Please quit ranting on the Conservatives, Harper is one of the first PM’s not having a huge ego logo campaign hoping to mislead the people. He was handed down a mess left by liberals due to the liberal lack of accountability they would rather fight then work together. So far he is doing more for Canada and much better then his predecessor and that is international news.
Should the liberals be elected the start will be the same as it was for Trudeau, Martin and Chretien Oh my we cannot meet our promises because of what Harper did….again proof to them it is always always someone else’s fault accor
Wow, smee, wonderfully off the point! You’d be a star on the government benches in Question Period.
I fear that Smee, Tammy, and the preacher have had their brains sucked away by some sort of ideology that will not tolerate ideas or opinions other than their own. Too bad, because these people seem to be reasonably intelligent in that they can string sentences together and express their thoughts quite well. Their only downfall is that they are convinced that only they know the truth, and those who disagree with them are pinko commies, or will roast in hell.
Thanx Furtz so kind of you to notice. But not brains sucked away we have removed the blinders so many others tend to hide behind.
Like Midas it is quite lo nely at the top.
Yes indeed, Furtz, and generously put.
Oh come on, Smee. You can do better than that. Or maybe not. Where’s Tammy or the preacher when you really need them? Good night.
Smee, I must so bow to your all-encompassing wisdom and knowledge, which exudes from every comment you make here. It goes beyond my belief how anyone could have survived without your eruditions, now that you have a platform in this journal.
I tell you what. Because I have learned so much from you in the last year (e.g. the Americans came into WW2 on 9/11/44, and not on Pearl Harbor Day, 12/7/41, or that there are no cars in China because they don’t have the infrastructure over there), I want to do something to pay you back.
If you run as the Reform candidate here in the next election, instead of Tammy or Guy, I promise you I’ll correct all the mistakes in your victory speech, as well as rewrite it in English, at absolutely no charge.
After that, you won’t have a problem, because any other original comment you might be called upon to provide will be happily dictated (with 6 month’s notice, of course) by King Stephen’s court itself.
Ricahrd, they call what you are feeling denial sorry bout that!
Joking apart, smee, it’s common knowledge that since 2006 Parliament has become progressively dysfunctional. What CONSTRUCTIVE proposals do you have to make Parliament democratically functional again? BTW, you will notice that the above article makes reference to ALL who seek elected office, irrespective of political stripe.
Glad to see your all thinking about me…I must grate on your nerves. Good common sense and intelligence eludes some people. Just keep taking my advice and you will never go wrong.
There’s something about kicking the less fortunate in the head that the hard-right ideologues can’t resist. It’s always been that way. Not sure if it’s because it boosts their self esteem, or if it just feels good to inflict pain on a defenseless (unworthy) person. It’s happening all over the world all the time. I think the Harris government’s philosophy was if you make the lives of the poor impossible, the survivors would become useful workers at Walmart or McDonalds. On the other hand, they might have created all the extra misery because it was fun and easy to do. I tend to believe that there’s a sadistic element in the movement. As I said in a previous post, when Harris quit politics to spend more time with his wife, there was dancing in the streets.
Mrs. Hart, there is nothing more irritating or more dangerous than a politician of ANY stripe with an ego. Your behaviour on this website – especially your last post on this thread – suggests to me that you have one the size of K2. I don’t know you from a hole in the ground (and I’m not sure I want to) but unless you want to continue presenting yourself as a stereotypical 60’s sitcom mother-in-law – nagging, shrill, presumptuous, self-centered and scornful of any opinion other than your own – I suggest you take a long time to learn some humility and grace. Remember that it is the interests and will of ALL of this constituency’s residents you’re aiming to represent at Queen’s Park, not YOURS.
PGA, You nailed it. Tammy is toast, politically, just because of her nasty rants here and in the Freeloader. I don’t think there are enough people as hateful as she is in this riding to elect her. In the meantime, I’d by all means encourage her to run for the Hudak/Harris party.
PJA and Furtz, you just cant take it, relax have a little fun. Don’t be such a stick in the mud. Just because I don’t happen to agree with both your philosophies on POLITICS don’t give me such a hard time. Would you rather I love everything you say…NOT A CHANCE IN HELL.
No, Mrs. Hart, I don’t expect you to love everything I say because I have no right to. I do, however, have the right to expect someone running for public office – no matter WHAT party they represent – to have enough respect for her/himself, her/his fellow candidates and above all, THE VOTERS to articulate their platform with dignity, polish and statespersonship – not someone who barks out their opinions like a fishwife. I expect a candidate to have enough courage and grace to respectfully agree to disagree with those who have opposing views – not boorishly mock them in public. I expect a candidate to be someone who wants to bring people together regardless of where they stand on either the political or socio-economic spectrum – not someone who delights in hunting scapegoats and kicking people when they’re down just to scrape a few votes. And most importantly, I expect a candidate to have enough humility in them to know that it’s the great unwashed like me who can give you this job and we can just as easily take it away from you too. Don’t you EVER forget that.
So don’t insult my intelligence by telling ME to lighten up. If you can give it you should be able to take it too.
Excuse me Mr. PJA, you sir are being very bullish…”Don’t you EVER forget that” I will be who and what I want to be on this web-site, and you sir don’t have to vote for ME. Don’t you ever forget that.
Tammy + Smee = Power couple of tommorrow. Clear disciples of the master, Lowell Green. How to dismiss leftist loonies swiftly and properly. Clearly all you socialists have been smoking the drapes. The problem with liberals, pinkos, commies, socialists, leftists, etc., is that they don’t understand the importance of the relationship between master and servant. Unions are a perfect example. In the glory days of the Industrial Revolution, pre-union, the government was able to assist the factory owner, the business man, the corporation. Workers had no choice: you work when I say, for how much I say, as long as I say. If they tried to organize, well the cops had ways to deal with that. (see Winnipeg General Strike, 1919…specifically June 17th)
But the socialists are strong, and through manipulation and propaganda, managed to convince the general public that workers had rights such as fair wages, safe working conditions, and even a forty hour work week. This has obviously served to hack severely into profits. The struggle continues to this day, and only the Conservatives stand up for the rights of the employer who is merely attempting to make a living, a concept foreign to socialists.
It is a breath of fresh air to see these voices of freedom (back to Tammy + Smee) standing up for the common man in these dangerous times with the spectre of communism looming darkly over our shoulder. Oh, for the days of McCarthyism…I would have all of you blacklisted. POWER TO THE PEOPLE (who own businesses)!
Did the Conservatives at the federal level change their name to Reform-Conservatives when I was not looking? Or as Furtz says, the provincial Progressive Conservatives are now called Hudak/Harris?
Yes Canada has changed, we have too many unscreened refugees (yes I know the diference from immigrants) cost us 10’s of millions of dollars without a decent return. We have too many government employees with fantastic pensions providing services beyond core needs.
That is just 2 examples.
You could probably go line by line in all three government levels and find waste but I would propose a 5% cut to each department just to start.
Oh My God! Thank you Sarcasmatron. I love you, we need voices like yours. Sometimes I wonder what planet I am on and man am I scared for our future.
Posted by Tammy A. Hart on August 27th:
“…you sir don’t have to vote for ME.”
Neither does anyone else, Mrs. Hart. With an attitude like that, I doubt you have much respect for your constituents.
So Tammy, where are you on MMA coming to Ontario? I bet you and Mike Harris are both walking funny at the prospect of watching human cock-fights at the local arena. Maybe you and Smee should set up an on-line MMA betting site to raise money for the party. You must admit that Dalton made the right decision on this.
Frutz, Dalton flip flopped as usual. One minute big daddy says MMA is bad for Ontario, its not an important enough issue to discuss, and then, realizing how badly in debt we are he says “Oh I made a mistake, we do need that money, I’ll give you permission to have it now”. Glad to see Dalton taking care of us all. I wonder if he will ever give us permission to purchase our whiskey from a glass skeleton head, or maybe that’s asking too much.
Smee, is Tammy Hart your Captain Hook?
PJA, For you information, I pride myself on being an excellent councillor, I was instrumental in moving forward on alot of important project in our township, and I am proud of our accomplishments. We all work well together in South Stormont.
I am aggressive and ambitious, I am accountable and honest, and I believe in being fiscally responsible as well. Does that not show respect for my constituents sir?
If only all this negativity could be used for good instead of trampling on someone. I know, we should direct anger at the Ontario Provincial governement for taxing us like crazy.
If you want to shoot a wild turkey next spring, you need to take a course and then buy a license, even if you have the outdoors card and a small game license. WHEN will this cr@p stop?
As soon as we get rid of Dalton, Eric.
The answer to your question, Eric, is when people stop talking past one another with shallow knee-jerk reactions, such as you see on this thread…and when everyone wakes up to the reality that currently we are governed at the federal level by third-rate people. The consequence? Third-rate leaders hire third-rate people, who hire more third-rate people, and so on…so that before long third-rateness infects the whole of society like a creeping sickness.
Canada and Canadians have been and can be first-rate. We know this well when we stop to listen to one another and think. So if we want to realize our potential, it’s up to us to push for first-rate people in positions of leadership at all levels.
(Fake lakes, Arctic photo-ops, billions on unneeded prisons and unneeded jet fighters, and the like are good examples of distractions by the third-rate trying desperately to look first-rate.)
There is a big difference between being “aggressive and ambitious” and being antagonistic and presumptuous, Mrs. Hart. There is an equally big difference between being “accountable and honest” and being churlish and tactless. And there is an even bigger difference between being “fiscally responsible” (which we all know is nothing more than politically fashionable code) and being callously stingy and mean spirited. Your constant rants and rages about how so much “make you sick”, your affection for name-calling, your blatantly intolerant opinions, your trash talk, your appeal to fear…you’d certainly never get MY vote no matter WHAT party you ran for. I don’t know what kind of a world you live in but your words on these message boards suggest you bear a deep seated contempt for the public and that your only motivators are anger and disgust.
According to you, all government is evil, all public services are a crutch, the only thing that matters in life is making money and only the strong deserve to survive. If you fall through the cracks, it’s your own fault and you deserve no mercy. Misfortune and failure are morally suspect and poverty is a vice. And there’s always an identifiable group of people somewhere who are to blame and must be snuffed out. Your slavish devotion to party orthodoxy (not to mention how often you blatantly brown nose your leader) is one thing; everybody knows how some politicians are ordered to stick to the script at all costs lest they dare think or speak for themselves. But your cruelly arrogant demonization of anyone who just happens to be at any other point on the curve is reprehensible and totally unbecoming of the office you hold.
I don’t know if that’s what the good people of South Stormont wanted when they elected you, but if they did then so be it. I’m genuinely glad to know that you and your fellow councillors get along and are able to work cohesively. And if, as you say, you were “instrumental in moving forward on alot of important project in our township” (sic) then I offer you my sincerest congratulations. Really, I do. But there’s an old Swedish proverb: “Noble deeds are done in silence.” Nobody likes a braggart (especially one in a position of power) and it is not for you to say that you’re an “excellent” councillor. That is strictly for THE ELECTORATE to decide and no one else.
You are a ONE TERM legislator with only four years experience sitting on a county council of just five members. And you think that qualifies you to hold one of the highest offices in the province? It is extremely bullish of YOU, Mrs. Hart, to smugly presume you’ve already got your party’s nomination in the bag solely on the strength that.
Hey Tammy. Have you talked to the Rizzutos?
I think they are working for cheap these days.
PJA can you please identify yourself, I get a sneaky suspicion that your the infamous John E. Milnes. You have to be related some how. Please.
I am not sure PJA, by third rate leaders do you just mean the Conservative Party, or the scores of waitng for retirement, advice giving, tree hugging desk warming office workers? Kidding really, I know what you mean, but I am not hearing anything substantial from Liberal or NDP. Maybe Ontario can get Duceppe to work for us…..
Furtz don’t be so rude, if you cant have constructive conversation and the only way you can get your message across is by being nasty then lets agree to disagree and same goes for PJA, and leave it at that. Nobody is accomplishing anything here.
That’s hilarious, Tammy. You are the one who accused me and others of being “lefties” like that is a dirty word, because we had the nerve to hold different views from yours. Even your heroes, Harris and Hudak, well maybe not Harris, have the smarts to not resort to name-calling in public. If you’re gonna dish it out, you’d better be prepared to eat it too.
Frutz you cant compare “lefties” to Rizzutos, a member of the mob and murderer…give me a break. I am passionate about my party and you are yours, we should be able to have a healthy debate without l mean words.
Unfortunately some peoples vocabularies are somewhat limited
Actually,Tammy, I am not a supporter of any party. I’m no fan of the Liberals, federal or provincial, but I will hold my nose and vote for them at times if I think they can defeat the Reform/Tories. The whole party-politics system seems to be breaking down lately because of the divisiveness and nastiness at the federal level thanks to the Harper style and the totally gutless Liberals. On the provincial level, as much as McGuinty has screwed up with the HST, hydro rates, etc, I hope we will never go back to totally corrupt and deadly style of government we had under Harris. Yeah, I know that all those stories about sick and dead people were just lies made up by the pinko media, but a lot of people still believe those stories. My Rizzuto comment was a joke. You want to get rid of Dalton, no? If you are serious about a career in politics, maybe you should consider redirecting your passion for your party to the needs of people. Also you might re-read the posts of PGA, PJR, John Milnes, and others regarding your abrasive intolerant style. You’ve pretty much sunk yourself already, but if you start bailing now, there might be a chance.
So, Mrs. Hart, you flippantly brush off salient criticism about your brand of politics by calling the people who catch you out “sticks in the mud” who should “relax” and “have a little fun”. Then when you’re cornered with irrefutable evidence of your behaviour, you play the martyr card and accuse your critics of using the very tactics you so gleefully antagonize them with. And when you’re finally made to own up to the fact that you just can’t take what you give, only THEN do you propose to “agree to disagree” and you try to scurry away. That is truly a cheap and low form of rebuttal and it is extremely unprofessional. If this how you always react when the deep, dark, truthful mirror is held up to you, I’d be unspeakably embarrassed to call you my MPP. As a voting member of the public, I deserve better than that. And we wonder why so many people refuse to vote and are so hostile toward politicians.
And with regard to my identity, once again you’re letting your presumptuousness make a fool of you. I find it quite funny indeed that you assume I’m male. In fact I actually laughed out loud when I read that you think I’m John Milnes in disguise. Do you not think women are capable of articulate, dignified argument? Or does your style of feminism mean the kind of coarse and catty venom you routinely spit in print? I don’t think you fully realize that in public life, everything one says and does in a public forum becomes a matter of public record. Old sins cast long shadows and politics is a bloodsport. If you’re not prepared to allow yourself up to be held up to scrutiny then you don’t belong in the ring.
Oh, and for the record, I am not John Milnes. I AM SPARTACUS!!!
Eric, I believe you meant PJR.
OK Ms Spartacus or who ever you are…you “intelligent” lady you. TAKE A PILL! I believe in the Conservative government. I’m not going to stand back and let this Liberal government tax us to death. I’m tired of the lies and I demand better health care, how far will I go to fight for that? In the most famous words of the famous Trudeau…”just watch me”, maybe I’M the REAL SPARTACUS.
PJA, beautiful.
Go for it Tammy!
Nobody likes a sore loser, Mrs. Hart, and you’ve just proven my point in spades. If you keep throwing shrieking tantrums like that when you’re beaten, you’re going to be crucified just like Spartacus was at the end of the film. I strongly suggest you start seriously dealing with your obvious anger and control issues before making any further attempts to move up the ladder in your political career. They will surely be your undoing.
And thank you, willie191.
I think I’ve made my point here so my time is now over. Have a nice day.
PJR
The current government is no more dysfunctional then any other party at this time. As I said before, the liberals always seem to loose right about the time the government runs out of money and the Liberal party cannot function as a team.
Constructive proposals, let the conservatives stay the course. Though we may not agree with what they are doing they seem to have better control of spending then the liberals ever did. They refuse to hand out money to the same dysfunctional entities without explaining why.
Government must legislate a more responsible industrial market.
It would be better then placing the current poor manufacturing practices and associated costs on the end user…us.
Take something simple, Our CCRI has just invested about $15,000 in local business to promote maintenance programs on our cars. These companies that will benefit from this promotion, can we see how man hybrid cars they stock? Do any of these companies stock diesel vehicles or is it standard gas burning disposable cars? Can we just look at their stock items and see how many meet the Green initiative.
Here again we have $15,000 being wasted on something most people already do. The people that do not maintain their vehicle don’t really care much anyway.
$15,000 of our tax dollars here, %15,000 in another location and so on and so on uses a lot of money that could be better sepnt else where.
Why is a company like bell allowed to sell so many versions of the same product? Has the government ever deicide to look into the marketing of their packages? Does it really cost bell as much as they charge us? Take a look at your bell bill and see how they add taxes. If your children did that in school they would loose marks for it is wrong.
Why are pensions so sparse for the general populous? Is it government’s directive to keep Canadians working into the grave, which is also taxable?
Eliminate the pension plans or at the very least minimizes them after a certain point. better yet turn them to a slef directed plan and allow the select few face the same challenges they put before the people who pay them.
Just a few small ideas
Actually PJA I thought Ms Hart last response showed a bit of zing. The Asian people have this custom I have always respected about allowing an opponent to save face….It’s something I always recommend to people. 🙂
Face is something important to Asians. It prevents embarassment and shame. Too bad that most people here don’t seem to give a damn about saving face.
Yes, I’m warn out. It was very interesting I’ll say that much. And a learning lesson as well.
Thank you PJA.
The only point you have made PJA is that you watch too much TV.
You’re welcome, Mrs. Hart. And smee, the only thing I watch on the idiot box is the news.
Thought you made mention of Spartacus getting crucified at the end of the movie?