Call in the clowns

Canada is being turned into a three-ring circus with the clowns acting as ringmasters. Installing a coalition of Liberal/NDP/Bloc Quebecois parties could well be the final nail in the coffin of what was once a great nation. The idea for this coalition of clowns has the unique imprimatur of Jack Layton, whose cravings for power have reached sociopathic proportions. Stephane Dion could not have thought of forming this coalition because his mind lacks that subtle snake-like quality that is the hallmark of Layton, nor could Giles Duceppe have thought of it, given his shortsighted focus on breaking up Canada.

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Of course the voters of Canada are outraged that Canada’s Left would attempt to launch a bloodless coup, after voters soundly rejected all their ideas in favor of a minority government led by the Conservatives. On the news of the pending coup d’etat the TSX lost close to 10% of its total value, a drop that signaled what the country thought of this idea. It’s within the realm of possibility that the TSX will lose the other 90% of its value if Michaelle Jean, the Governor General of Canada allows the clowns to form a new government. Canada will instantly become the North American Zimbabwe, as profligate spending on the part of the government sinks the country into hyper third-word hood. The idea of the government spending itself into prosperity is an old one, tried most recently under Bob Rae (yes, that Bob Rae) in Ontario during his tenure. It took the steely determination of Mike Harris to turn Ontario around after the voters turfed Rae and his socialist cabal once they wrecked the province’s economy. Now they want to take this bad idea nationwide. Plans that have been floated include a bailout of the auto, the forestry and the manufacturing sector, as well as beefing up spending on infrastructure. All of this sounds good on paper, but the idea of bailing out the auto sector independently of what the Americans will do next year is ludicrous. What if the US government doesn’t bail out the automakers and allows them to go bankrupt? Any money that Canadian taxpayers will have thrown their way will be lost forever. What’s more, any bailout is likely to be predicated on the auto makers producing eco-friendly “green” cars that no one will want to purchase. Same goes for the forestry and manufacturing sectors. A bailout sounds good, but what’s really needed for these sectors are markets and a competitive edge, something that the socialist coalition will not be able to provide, given that there is currently a world wide recession. And infrastructure enhancement is a great idea, provided there is money available. In a year when government revenue will slide due to a recession, the worst thing a government could do is increase spending because that will increase the deficit, which will increase the national debt, which will increase interest payments on that debt and decrease the amount of money available for program spending. It’s economics for dummies, for heaven’s sake. Yet all the loonie Left can think of for solving our problems is to throw money. As my colleagues Judi McLeod and Art Weinreb have stated elsewhere in these pages, the voters have already passed judgment on the competence of Stephane Dion as well as Jack Layton some six weeks ago and the verdict was a resounding “NO”. Now they want to seize power using some dubious legal constitutional stratagem. No wonder every election fewer and fewer Canadians bother going to the polls because the Left doesn’t seem to care what the voters want. Perhaps the most outrageous aspect of this clown coup is the fact that they are colluding with a party whose very existence is predicated on the proposition that Canada should be broken up. It’s a brand new low in ultra-cynicism, but then what would one expect from a politician as smarmy and as desperate as Jack Layton and Stephane Dion appear to be? It’s enough to make a # vomit. Please Write to The Governor General and your MP