Revolutionary Moderation

A Public Service Announcement for the readers of Revolutionary Moderation



The election of Stephen Harper to the leadership of the Conservative Party brings to completion the takeover of the Progressive Conservative party by the Canadian Alliance. (In as much as killing the PC party and then hiding the body in the hopes of picking up a rich inheritance can even be deemed a "takeover".) From here forward, you're unlikely to catch me calling anyone associated with this Conservative Party a "Tory". I'm going to have a hard time even thinking of them as "Conservatives". Rather, this party has just established that it's entirely comfortable as "Reform III: Reform Reloaded" You know, I like that even better than the strikeovers I'd planned ("Reform Canadian Alliance Conservative Party").



So what can we expect of Reform Rethought, given the declarations of MPs under Harper's watch as CA leader?



Let's see - Rob Anders declared that legislation designed to extend hate propaganda protections to homosexuals would ban the Bible. Because - and I didn't know this, but it's the only conclusion one can draw from this correlation - apparently God hates homosexuals. At least, Rob Anders' God must. Who would Jesus bash, Rob?



I won't speak for Larry Spencer's God, but the former Family Issues critic certainly wants the government to declare its hostility towards homosexuals, by making homosexual activity illegal. Larry got booted from the Family Issues position, not because Stephen Harper said that this offensive stupidity was actually anti-family, but because Spencer opened his mouth this about this so publicly, when Harper knew damn well this radical anti-family homophobia wouldn't play among most Canadians, who share families, offices, and friendships with all sorts of homosexuals. Harper knew Spencer thought this way, of course. You don't put someone in a position like "Family Issues" critic without asking him some of his opinions on, gee, I dunno - family issues?



And this is just one issue, albeit one in which Reform Redux will find itself at odds with most of the voters it was hoping to inherit from the PC party. Let me look at one more.



Perhaps the single most popular move Jean Chretien made as Prime Minister was to take a pass on joining Dubya's Iraqi adventure. Could the old leader/new leader of Reform Reconsidered be more out of step with the popular mood of Canadians?

...Harper says Mulroney's relationship with the U.S. was positive. He says the former prime minister treated the U.S. as Canada's best ally, biggest customer and most consistent friend. And Harper thinks the current prime minister should follow suit.

(This quote came before the war, and yet, we all remember where Stephen Harper's current former party was on that issue: "The important thing is that always Canada should work closely with its closest allies, particularly its military allies... That's where our bread is buttered." - Canadian Alliance Leader Stephen Harper, Sept. 17, 2002)



"It's the 90% of Reformers that give the other 10% a bad name" - John Crosbie.



Say, remember when my posts were short and pithy? I miss those. I promise some short & pithy as I get through my last week of employment.