Decision Time

It has been, in the estimation of most people, an almost unbearably long campaign; its eleven weeks' duration likely tested the mettle of the most ardent of political junkies. Yet at the same time it has probably served at least one positive purpose for those who don't follow politics very closely: it has laid bare the true nature of the Harper regime. Contemptuous of democracy, willing to foster suspicion and incite racial, religious and ethnic tensions, the party's desperation has grown palpable. I am not sorry to see things wind down.

Ultimately, however, it has turned out to be personally valuable. As people get older, I am convinced that emotions like excitement and anticipation are harder to come by, time blunting the things that we so eagerly embraced in our youth. Yet it is precisely those feelings, along with some anxiety, that I am now experiencing as I anticipate the outcome of this election. This emotional state has also helped me realize more clearly than ever that there were largely two motivations behind this blog since I started it in 2010: a deep aversion to abuses of power, which I and so many others have written about over the years, and a deep love for Canada. It is the latter I want to discuss today.

Surely one of the most insidious and Machiavellian of the regime's schemes has been to relentlessly devalue and debase the notion of citizenship. While Harper's team was not the first to attempt this (here in Ontario Mike Harris gave it his best shot), they have had the longest opportunity to remake Canada in their own soulless ideology, one where the bonds that connect us to each other and the larger possibilities of society are slowly weakened until they break.

The low tax agenda, which erodes over time the ability to fund a larger vision, has been a centrepiece for Mr. Harper. And with it, of course, has come the inevitable extolment of the individual and the denigration of the collective. It is a formula designed to rip away our foundations as a nation, and one that people like former clerk of the Privy Council Alex Himelfarb and so many other progressives have been fighting back against. Himelfarb insists, for example, that tax isn't a four-letter word, warning that to embrace the neoliberal agenda means we won't be able to face up to our challenges and we will sleepwalk toward a smaller, meaner Canada.

But taxes are only a part of the Canadian equation that has been under consistent attack since the Harper ascension to power. The country I grew up in and love embraces so many qualities to which so many other countries aspire: acceptance, compassion, inclusion, peace are but four that have been put at grave risk by a government that regards them not as the virtues they truly are, virtues that need constant nurturing, but rather as impediments to the implementation of its marketplace mentality that knows the cost of everything and the value of nothing.

These are a few of the things about this country that I love so deeply, and I want them back to once more nourish our collective soul and enrich all of us. It is what guided my vote in the advance poll, and it is what I want to see rekindled throughout our land.

If all goes well tonight, the reign of Stephen Harper and his horde will be at an end. The healing and rebuilding of our country can begin. It is a task no particular party is up to alone, but I believe that all of us, together, can still accomplish great things.

“A Betrayal Of Conservative Values, And A Betrayal Of Canadian Values.”

That's how impassioned tech entrepreneur Frederick Ghahramani describes Bill C-51 in this interview with Power and Politics' Rosemary Barton. As you will see, he is willing to put his money where his mouth is:

On The Company You Keep

This kind of makes it easy to judge Harper, doesn't it?

More From Marg: Canada's Barbaric Cultural Practices Tip Line

Marg Delahunty reminds us of one of the many offences against Canada committed by the Harper regime:

Impending Relief?

For the millions upon millions of Canadians who have grown progressively more heartsick over Stephen Harper's systematic subversion of our country's traditions and values these last nine-and-a-half years, relief seems to be within our grasp. We can now quite realistically hope for the end of this hateful and divisive man's reign. However, those of us who have been around for a while know that upon his defeat, Canada will not magically revert to its former self, so radically has the domestic dictator altered our landscape. Neither Justin Trudeau nor Tom Mulcair have policy goals that radically differ from Harper's, as Thomas Walkom points out in his column today.

For me. however, the opportunity to start, if not anew, at least with someone other than Harper at the helm, is the basis for real hope and the opportunity to revive a sagging but hardly defeated Canadian spirit and resilience, a spirit that is more than amply demonstrated in letters published in today's Star.

Those multitudes of us with a deep love of our country are clearly ready for a partner who will reciprocate:

I am passionate about Canada. I am passionate about a Canada which stands for peace not war. I am passionate about a Canada which welcomes refugees based on need rather than wealth or religion, a Canada which values free speech, and holds in high regard our supreme court. I am passionate about a Canada where federation means a sharing of responsibilities, dialogue and consensus building.

I care about science, about receiving unfiltered information from our government scientists. I care about the plight of our disadvantaged, in particular native women and girls. I believe in the ability of Canada and Canadians to be leaders in the world when it comes to climate change, and world poverty.

I believe in the ability of Canada and Canadians to demonstrate to the world how a society accepting of divergent religions, races, and political philosophies can be the best of all countries to call home. By voting I express my passion for the Canada I believe in, in a material and positive way.

Gord Humphrey, Port Perry

A return to power by the diabolical Mr. Harper and his minions would further shred the tolerant, free and democratic fabric of this country.

Mark Goldstein, Mississauga

Letter writer Sybil Rowe is one of the millions of Conservatives who are ashamed of and turned off by Harper’s dirty, divisive, destructive politics aimed at winning votes by hook or crook. He has stooped to the lowest level of gutter politics. He does not deserve to continue to be the prime minister of the peaceful, united, cohesive, friendly, multicultural country like Canada.

I very am happy to know that more than 70 per cent of Canadians do not want Harper to continue for four more years because they know he will destroy Canada, which is envy of the world, by his extremely racist beliefs, attitude and actions.

More and more conservatives like Sybil Rowe are turned off by Harper, Jason Kenney and their conservative gang and are changing their allegiance to Trudeau who they know is a gentleman who, like his father, loves this country and would never ever do anything to destroy it.

Harper does not deserve to continue to be the prime minister of Canada. I appeal to Canadians to subject him to a crushing defeat and teach him the lesson of his life which, I hope, he will remember forever.

Girish Parekh, Burlington

Let this election be an exercise in restoring our Canadian traditions of kindness and tolerance and get rid of this wolf of a prime minister in sheep’s clothing.

John Fraser, Toronto

UPDATE: Conservative 'Team Gosal' Commits An Election Crime

Baljit Singh Gosal. the Con candidate seeking re-election in Bramalea—Gore—Malton, has apparently dispatched his 'team' to commit election crimes, as you will see in the following video. The perpetrators defend their actionss as just doing their job. May justice prevail on October 19.

Caught on camera: Conservative team destroying NDP and Liberal signs while putting up signs for their candidate. This is a criminal offence.Bal Gosal is is the CPC candidate for Brampton Centre.

Posted by Government for all Canadians, not just the wealthy on Friday, October 16, 2015

H/t Government for all Canadians, not just the wealthy

UPDATE: Apparently, Mr. Harper has met with the miscreants. A bit of a step down, perhaps, from his associations with Bruce Carson, Arthur Porter, et alia, some might say.

UPDATED: Home Of The Whopper

Given that the unofficial organ of the Conservative Party, The Globe and Mail, has endorsed Stephen Harper in the last three elections, I don't think it is much of a stretch to suggest they will make it four in a row, either later today online or in tomorrow's print edition. Today, I hope readers will indulge me in a little extemporaneous speculative fiction, the kind the paper itself indulges in when they tell us that the Conservative Party is best positioned to lead us into an uncertain future.

One note of caution, however: my political prognostications have been grossly inaccurate in recent years, so please take all of this with much more than the usual grain of salt:

The last four years have been difficult ones indeed, not only for Canada but for the entire world. Economic uncertainty has plagued much of the world. Terrorism has been on the rise. And here at home, the decorum and the debates in the House of Commons have been marred by rancorous and rabid partisanship by all political actors, Stephen Harper not the least of them.

Do we wish that he had brought more statesmanship to his role as prime minister? Of course we do. Do we wish that he had led with grace and diplomacy rather than denigration of his opponents? No argument there. But to focus on his personal shortcomings is to ignore the broader picture. The fact is that under his leadership, Canada has become a far more outward-looking nation, boldly forging new alliances and trade treaties that can only redound to the benefit of all Canadians. Under his watch, this country is no longer confined to parochial backwaters. We are a nation of the twenty-first century.

There will always be those who pine for an earlier, simpler time, when the nanny state grew at an unsustainable rate. Under Mr. Harper's leadership, both the country and its citizens have matured to the point where tax cuts that respect people's ability to make their own choices are increasingly the norm. Many applaud this development, while others still yearn to be taken care of by the state.

Much has been made about Mr. Harper's personal style; his reserved aloofness stands in sharp contrast to the gregarious charm of Mr. Trudeau. But Canadians are urged to remember that charisma is not a foundation of good government. Vision and solid policy-making are. In these areas, Mr. Harper has proven himself time and time again.

With a still-fragile economy, voters need to ask themselves whether this is the time to embark on risky experiments that will further burden our children and grandchildren with debt, led by an inexperienced Liberal Party leader, or stay the course with a government that has a proven track record.

We at The Globe and Mail believe the choice is clear and therefore endorse the Conservative Party of Canada in this election.

UPDATE: Well, the Globe has outdone itself this time; as I predicted, they are endorsing the Conservative Party and its policies. However, take a look at what they want Stephen Harper to do. It seems like the self-proclaimed 'newspaper of record' wants it both ways; its cowardice and fear of public ridicule is palpable.

Also, for a real treat, take a few moments to read some of the readers' comments, which are quite justifiably contemptuous of this sad facsimile of a newspaper with integrity.

And if that's not enough, check out this Globe Q&A on Facebook.