The Green Side of Tim Hudak

He must have one, since he recycles, recycles and recycless the same ideas at every opportunity.

From The Horse's Mouth

Actually, were I not committed to a certain level of decorum on this blog, the mouth is not the part of the horse's anatomy I would have chosen as the point of origin for young Tim Hudak's latest utterances that are simply a pathetic recycling of past demagogic platitudes that offer nothing in the way of enlightened policy.

Speaking to the Hamilton Spectator editorial board yesterday, the lad who would be Ontario's next premier had these 'visionary' insights to offer:

Hudak took aim at unions, saying a culture of entitlement on the part of union representatives has escalated McGuinty's conflict with teachers.

Hudak also hinted that his party's white paper will include some sort of privatization plan for the LCBO.

On balancing Ontario's books:

“I know the path forward. These decisions are going to be hard to do, but they're necessary if we're going to get out of the rut we're in as a province.”

“The best social program, I believe, as a conservative, is a job.”

On the Mike Harris legacy:

“Whether you agree with what we did or not, we did what we said we were going to do. We made promises we knew we could keep, and we kept them.”

So, nostalgia for a fictitious past, tired rhetoric about unions, and bromides about jobs seem to be at the core of Tory policy in Ontario. But to be fair to Mr. Never-Ready-For-Prime-Time-Politics, those vying for the leadership of the provincial Liberals have really said little to inspire hope either.

Nothing New Here

In a valiant effort to not be forgotten by a fickle public, Tim Hudak is at it again, advocating a policy that is guaranteed to find favour with the public: going after the pension plans of civil servants.

Unfortunately for young Tim, this repetition of his rather tiresome refrain is also an implicit indictment of the paucity of thought, imagination, and policy infecting the Conservative Party at both the provincial and federal level.

Perhaps public floggings for those who are paid from the public purse might capture greater attention?

Young Tim Speaks Again

But of course, he is singing the same tune as always: tax cuts will lead us to prosperity.

What's next? Did I hear someone say monorail?

Such An Expressive Face

This is young Tim Hudak's mad face. Damn those union bosses!

Tim Hudak's Anti-Unionism

Never an original or deep thinker, young Tim Hudak, whose recent decision to rely on demagoguery in place of reason by condemning unions as the reason for the poor economy in Ontario, has provoked a spirited response from Star readers, some of whose letters you can peruse here.

What "Flexibility" Really Means

Reading the print version of the story I posted a link to yesterday regarding young Tim Hudak's latest attempt at formulating policy (a.k.a. union busting) got me thinking once more about how politicians misuse and debase language.

In what I guess in his world passes for bold and innovative thinking, young Tim would like union membership to no longer be mandatory and would outlaw the “forced paycheque contributions” unionized workers make to political causes.

Hudak said that “the more flexible the workplace, the greater demand there is going to be for workers.”

“If you have a flexible workplace where businesses can adjust to market conditions the more likely they’ll open up in that jurisdiction.”

I suspect the flexible workplace the callow Master Hudak has in mind would be filled with all kinds of perils for the newly enfranchised worker:

The Ontario Budget: Andrea Horwath's Dilemma

Being the leader of an opposition party in Ontario just got a lot more difficult for one person yesterday. No, I'm not referring to young Tim (not ready for prime-time politics) Hudak, whose response to the Ontario's austerity budget was both swift and predictable:

“It fails to address the job crisis or runaway spending … and we can’t support it,” Hudak said, but he stopped well short of threatening to dethrone the minority Liberals.

The translation of young Tim's response? The cuts weren't deep enough, and taxes weren't lowered to create jobs, hardly a surprise given the Tory leader's simplistic world view and faith in magical thinking.

No, the real problem is for NDP leader Andrea Horwath who has deferred judgment on the budget in order to poll Ontario residents to see whether they believe Finance Minister Dwight Duncan’s budget is so unpalatable that they would be prepared to see the minority government fall.

“We are going to be having a very serious discussion with Ontarians as to how far short it falls,” she said.

On the one hand, political realities being what they are, Horwath's party cannot afford to seem too cozy with the public sector unions who will bear the main brunt of this budget through wage freezes and pension reductions. On the other hand, of course, the NDP cannot afford to abandon its support of working people, no matter how reviled by other working people certain segments are.

For Horvath to opt to support the budget on the morsel tossed to her by McGuinty, the freezing of further reductions in the corporate tax rate until 2017-18, would seem too small to earn her approval. How can that freeze balance out what essentially is the abrogation of public sector bargaining rights for the next two years?

Will she approve the budget after consultations with the public, the outcome of which is predictable? (Ontarians have told us they are not happy with the budget, but do not want another election over it.) Will she stand on principle and defeat the budget?

But wait, there is a third, though hardly honourable option.

I may be dead wrong here (it wouldn't be the first time) but Horwath, after a suitable period has elapsed, could announce that she will not be supporting the budget but, taking a page out of the playbook of the federal Liberals, ensure that two members are not in the Legislature on the day of the vote, thereby ensuring its passage.

It is a maneuver I neither advocate nor favour. It was that same repeated practice by the Liberal Party in the House of Commons that convinced me that they really stand for nothing except the bald desire for a return to power.

While the outcome will be fascinating to watch, I do not envy Andrea Horwath the choices that await her.

Sometimes You Just Have To Hold Your Nose

I always try to be completely honest in everything that I write for this blog. If I see reason for praise, I acknowledge it, sadly a rare occurrence. Most commonly I am extremely critical of the issues and people that I write about. One of my most frequent targets has been Ontario Liberal Premier Dalton McGuinty.

My contempt for the Premier arose out of the role he played in the G20 police-violence perpetrated against peaceful protestors last year in Toronto. As I have written previously and extensively, the McGuinty government was responsible for withholding crucial information from the public about the non-existence of expanded police powers, most notably the fiction that the authorities had the right to stop, question, and even arrest people who came within five meters of the security fence that had been erected to protect our visiting political 'masters.' I was, and I remain convinced, that that fictitious regulation emboldened the police to far exceed their authority, resulting in the mostly baseless arrest of over 1100 people, the vast majority of whom were later released without charge.

The other person I hold directly responsible is Chief Bill Blair, who, like the Premier, waited until the Summit was over before revealing the truth. The fact of collusion between the two is obvious, and the refusal of McGuinty to call an inquiry has allowed an ongoing distrust, cynicism and disillusionment to continue to fester, not a healthy situation for a democracy. And I remain convinced that Chief Blair should resign.

So what is my point here? Sadly, despite my publicly-stated repudiation of the McGuinty government and my resolve not to vote for them in this election, I have come to the onerous conclusion that I must go back on my word.

The are two reasons for my reversal: Tim Hudak, and the fact that the recent Star poll breakdown of ridings show that in mine, the Liberal and the PC candidates are virtually tied, with the NDP not even within shouting distance.

Having lived through the years of his mentor and predecessor Mike Harris, I know the emptiness of the recycled rhetoric which Hudak is fond of spouting: finding efficiencies, cutting taxes but not services, etc. etc., concepts that may find a ready audience with the simple-minded, but deeply insulting to the critical thinker. As well, the recent antics and attempts at dismantling Toronto by Mayor Rob/Doug Ford and their acolytes offer an effective preview of what is in store for the rest of the province should Mr. Hudak and his band gain entry to the Premier's office.

I find much to fault in Ontario's Liberal government, yet sadly at this juncture, I am preparing to hold my nose and vote for it, clearly the lesser of two evils from my perspective.

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