Leading By Quiet Responsibility

It's gotten pretty dumb in the House lately.  Just when we thought things couldn't get much worse, government members in the House have taken to making the kind of outlandish comments that cast a pall on all of Parliament.Stephane Dion's carbon shift plan gets released tomorrow but that hasn't stopped Conservative members from going "over the top" in their attacks, not only in the media (through purchased ads) but in the parliamentary chamber itself.  I have attempted to stay as non-partisan as possible in these pages, yet what I have witnessed in the last couple of weeks has been empty politics on a grand scale.One called the carbon plan a "yuppy fad," while another said we would all be resorting to candles in the near future.  Watching people in the visitors gallery today showed me quickly that they were disgusted as well.  I'd hate to think what those watching on television were thinking ... and yet the attacks continue.Remember when blue boxes came out?  Those too were labelled yuppy fads and yet today almost everyone recycles that way, including my Conservative friends across the way.  Hybrid cars, dedicated bike paths, composting, new generation light bulbs - all of these were labelled the same way but have today become staples of responsible citizenship.People from all parties in the House shake their heads at such banter and yet it is happening at such a vitriolic level because one party in the Commons is afraid that Stephane Dion might actually be on to something.  For weeks they have pounded home the fact that, with the economy in difficult times, introducing a carbon shift would be irresponsible.  But south of the border, both Obama and McCain have promised such stringent measures - and we all know the shape the American economy is in.  Down there it's seen as leadership, but up here the Conservatives think Canadians are senseless enough not to see Dion's plan for what it is: a reasoned alternative to our consumptive way of doing things.  When the Liberal leader states it's time to pay for what we burn, not what we earn, there is a high degree of common sense in that.Many of the older generation will recall the vicious attacks endured by Franklin Delano Roosevelt when he introduced the rather stern measures of the New Deal during a time of depression and used government incentives to get people to subtly change their collective behavior.  He was told repeatedly it would lead to economic ruin but instead the U.S. people enjoyed the most prolonged period of economic expansion in their entire history.Stephane Dion has introduced a measure that at last deals with the serious issue of climate change and has significant third party support, even from corporate leaders. Whether it works or not is hardly the issue.  In a time when it could be foolish to introduce a carbon plan, the Liberal leader has followed in the footsteps of Obama, McCain and Roosevelt and opted for a compelling kind of moral leadership over a lax political expediency.  From witnessing the people in the gallery today, I have become convinced that Canadians in general are smart enough to know that a serious offer has been put on the table and they are also intelligent enough to watch the schoolyard hyperbole from across the aisle and find it demeaning and politically futile."Fossilized thinking."  That's what we're hearing from the other side these days.  The more fearful they are that Canadians are perhaps smart enough to take to the idea of preserving a future for their children, the louder they yell.  Yes, Stephane's on to something.  There are no borders when it comes to pollution and neither are there boundaries on sound citizenship.  The very idea that environmental courage and visionary leadership south of the border is seen as something worthy of a true president will find its counterpart in Canada and the braying will eventually give way to a responsible future.  But at least citizens in this country have now been given a choice.And for the guy who made the comment about reverting to candlelight in the House today?  Maybe he should ask his wife about the advantages of subtle illumination. Perhaps someday he'll understand it.