Altered States - The Barbarian Invasions

Former Progressive Conservative Leader Robert Stanfield once noted that a modern and effective state was one that recognized and respected political jurisdictions. He would once again be tossing and turning in his grave today. Into every Bloc riding in Quebec, the Conservative government has launched negative mailings claiming that the Bloc isn’t willing to do anything to stop child pedophiles and showing a blurry image of a man guiding a young child away by the hand. In a word, this is sick. Worse yet, you paid for it; the Conservative attack ads were put out at taxpayer expense without any of those citizens having a say as to whether they approved or not.In past years, such a practice would never have been condoned at the federal level. To be sure, there were partisan ads, usually reserved for election seasons, but nothing of this kind would have breached the tolerance level in all portions of Parliament. But those were days when politicians believed that in order to gain public respect they had to show respect for one another. We are now a nation at war, not only in Afghanistan but in the halls of Parliament as well. Yet no one voted for this or even condones it.There is something remarkably hypocritical in these ads against the Bloc. In the days of his charm offensive in Quebec only a year ago, Stephen Harper claimed that the Quebec people were socially progressive, at times ahead of the rest of Canada in preserving their culture. That love affair didn’t last very long, as we all know now, but to claim that the Bloc would do nothing about pedophilia is nothing but the most sinister act of unfaithfulness. I have worked with Bloc members on any number of occasions and have learned that their views on criminal activity are as serious as in any other part of the country. In fact, on many committees they lead the charge against such practices.The Conservatives base their rationale for the ads on the fact that in one particular vote in Parliament the Bloc didn’t vote for one aspect of their crime agenda when the other parties did. Bloc members had a solid reason for voting against the initiative in claiming that judges should be permitted discretion when they passed sentences. The governing party is especially vulnerable in this rationale because on more occasions that I can count they were the only party that voted against issues such as fulfilling Kyoto, recognizing numerous UN declarations, fulfilling the promises of the Kelowna Accord for our aboriginal peoples, and placing proper preventative measures in criminal decisions. Does that mean that they don’t believe in protecting the environment or in the UN? Hardly, and yet they pummel the Bloc with their sinister approach.I received a piece of mail last week from Jay Hill, Conservative House Leader, claiming numerous weaknesses in Michael Ignatieff. This was the same Jay Hill who approached me at a charitable event last month in Ottawa, claiming that we should find more ways to work together in the future. I believe he meant it; his mailing seems to imply something else. What in all the world was Jay Hill doing sending letters to a London, Ontario riding? And how can the Conservatives possibly justify their slanderous mailings into Quebec at tax payer expense?Preston Manning, one of the godfathers of the present Conservative government, put out an op-ed just a few days ago, calling on political parties in Ottawa to work together for the sake of the country and to treat one another honourably in the House of Commons. How does he explain this? And is he willing to come out in condemnation of this violation of jurisdictions?These are barbarian invasions – “barbarian” because they are crude; “invasions” because they violate recognized lines of distinctions. Robert Stanfied was right, but that was a different day and this is a different kind of conservatism. This is what has changed in Parliament and the present altered state not only violates jurisdictions but the Canadian spirit as well.