Toronto Star: (Stephen) Harper acting like an elected dictator

[marmar]

Siddiqui: Harper acting like an elected dictator

By Haroon Siddiqui Editorial Page
Published On Sun Dec 20 2009


When Pierre Elliott Trudeau and Jean Chrétien were in power, conservative commentators used to complain that both tended to be dictatorial, courtesy of our parliamentary system that made the prime minister too powerful, more so in some respects than the president of the United States.

Where are those pundits when we really need them? Stephen Harper is centralizing power in the PMO on an unprecedented scale; defying Parliament (by refusing to comply with a Commons vote demanding the files on Afghan prisoner abuse); derailing public inquiries (by a parliamentary committee and the Military Police Complaints Commission); muzzling/firing civil servants; demonizing critics; and dragging the military into the line of partisan political fire.

"When you add up all that this government has done, it's truly scary," says Gar Pardy, former head of the foreign ministry's consular services. He's the one who organized the petition that defended diplomat Richard Colvin from Tory mudslinging, and which has been signed by 133 retired ambassadors.

The extent of Harper's misuse of power becomes clearer when you realize that the Conservatives are replicating some of the worst practices of the Republicans under George W. Bush and Dick Cheney:

Consolidating executive power; eviscerating the legislative branch; operating under extreme secrecy (by keeping an iron grip on information, through endless court challenges and censoring/redacting documents); riding the coattails of the military and questioning the patriotism of political opponents; and forcing out public servants who refused to fall in line. ............(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.thestar.com/comment/article/740829?bn=1

[snagglepuss]

1. I have always thought that he has a contingent of US neocons advising

him in the backroom because the there are too many similiarities with Bush admin to simply be a coincidence.

[HeresyLives]

2. Well, Harper sees himself as Republican.

From a speech to the Council for National Policy, a conservative American lobby group, June 1997, as reported by the CBC
our country, and particularly your conservative movement, is a light and an inspiration to people in this country and across the world.

The Liberal party is very much your northern Democrat, or mainstream Democratic party, a party that is less concessionary to the secessionists than the PCs, but still somewhat concessionary. And they still occupy the mainstream of public opinion in Ontario, which is the big and powerful province, politically and economically, alongside Quebec.

The Reform party is very much a modern manifestation of the Republican movement in Western Canada; the U.S. Republicans started in the western United States.

http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Stephen_Harper

[DavidDvorkin]

4. But the US Republicans started

in a West that was very different from what we now call the West in the U.S., and the party was very different indeed when it started.

[HeresyLives]

5. I agree, but Harper is mentally

from that era.

[polly7]

3. Harper has been a total loss from day 1.

He didn't need help from Bush or anyone else, he's just always been that way .... dirty, slimey, secretive, sneaky. A tool for Big Oil, Big Banks ...., it's obvious why they got along so well.

[pretzel4gore]

6. such a disconnect, really

harper is so clearly a grasping reactionary, who will wreck the country if he gets the chance (a majority) and most voters seem to know it, but the rightwing scheme, using virtues like patriotism, hard work, honour and responsibility to divide their opponents- and exploiting the 'first past the post' electoral system to win out. They don't care if 90% of electorate oppose them; if they can just get a majority of the vote in the one case that matters. It's revolting to see that gang of thugs flirting with a majority (they should be in hiding to avoid getting arrested for treason!) The publicly funded CBC prefers harper, it seems, though harper would love to get rid of public broadcasting, and that don't make sense, but it's a fact

[DavidDvorkin]

7. When is the next election likely

and what seems likely to happen then?

[HeresyLives]

8. Since we have a minority govt, an election

can happen anytime. Well,after Jan 25 anyway because they are on holidays till then. :)

Judging by the polls, and assuming there is no big new issue that gets people riled up, we'll have pretty much what we have now. Another minority govt, by either party.

That's why we're trying to avoid an election because it won't be decisive.

[DavidDvorkin]

9. In such situations, a government will sometimes call an election

if it thinks it has a temporary advantage in the polls that will contribute to a majority. Or the opposition might gamble along the same lines and try to bring the government down.

But it sounds like neither is the case now in Canada. I'll keep hoping for something good, anyway.