
November 25, 2021 · 0 Comments
By Constance Scrafield
I thought and it is still my understanding that Justin Trudeau called the last election, not so much to win his party a majority, although he no doubt wished for it – no, I think he simply wanted to see Erin O’Toole’s party’s seats greatly reduced so that we all would not have to put up with him so much. I suspect that Trudeau was as disappointed as I was that Jagmeet Singh lost all his opportunities by the way in which he ran his campaign, attacking both the Liberals and the Conservatives, as equal misfits for leadership, in favour of himself; in essence running for the Prime Minister’s chair.
That was pure folly and an extremely exaggerated idea of his own place in politics at the moment. Perhaps, one election, Singh will reach his ambition to lead the NDP to a majority government, as Jack Layton may have done, had he lived. This was not the time and that was for sure. So, it is a great opportunity lost that Singh divided his energy between the two rather than concentrating on just the Conservatives, in a bid to be the leader of the opposition. Even if he had not got there, the NDP would have collected many more seats and the Conservatives would almost certainly have dumped O’Toole – always have to worry who will replace him, of course.
O’Toole is both pugnacious and weak. During the election, he waffled on his policies, which is one of the reasons why so many members of his party are pressing for him to resign.
He has no vision and we could not care about this too much if he would stop playing the tough guy, ready to punch Trudeau in the face, stop making a pretense of anger when he has little idea himself of the ways forward.
During his remarks with the CBC following the Speech from the Throne, he sputtered and accused, refuting the journalist’s rebuttals to O’Toole’s comments without construction or direction.
It is easy to say “that’s not right, not good enough, too weak,” when sitting across the aisle without solutions of your own that make sense and do not deny the climate crisis and humanitarian rights of Canadians.
We have to watch Trudeau, keep his feet to the fire while he is concerned that Canada is an oil and gas producing country. That status has to change and very soon. We have to watch how he allows the RCMP to abuse northern protesters, Indigenous protesters standing in the way of a gas pipeline going under the Wedzin Kwa River, where the pipeline was to be laid on Wet’suwet’en land without the consent of the people.
The police came heavily armed and with police dogs; they arrested 14 people, including two elders, three legal observers and two journalists. This was last week on November 18.
The danger to the river is intense, considering that is the drinking water for the communities and a salmon spawning grounds.
The nut of the whole business is the price tag on the multi-million-dollar pipeline. We have to hold Trudeau responsible for the sorry story of our treatment forever of the original dwellers on this land, the sins of our colonizing forefathers heavy on our shoulders and dominating still the philosophy of our leaders.
As to the climate crisis and this issue of pipelines across non-relinquished Indigenous lands, O’Toole would have no time for any of it. A massive majority of his party – some 60% – do not buy into the problem, still deny all of the Climate Crisis theories – deny that humanity is the problem and must – absolutely must – be the answer.
O’Toole would open up the Trans Mountain pipeline in the west, which Trudeau has, of a necessity, closed down.
O’Toole’s speech on the night of the election was all bluster and ridiculous shouting, hammering his fist down on the podium in a great show, to hide his ignorance and his fear.
So far, Canada has stood its grounds on matters of decent governors, not the brash, humiliating ruffians in the US, bringing the Republican Party to extinction in favour of a free-for-all with no idea of policies or rational behaviour. I stand firm that a man of Donald Trump’s demeanour, base standards and truly criminal behaviour will never rise to lead Canadians. Yet, the likes of Erin O’Toole and Doug Ford are red flags of what could come. The poison in the US is online here too and there will be those weak minds that fall under the spell of outrageous false information and the pressure to revolt – and violently.
Our greatest failing is our complacency. The last election woke many of us out of that and it was good to see. Meanwhile, in these dangerous political times, we need to be watchful, to listen truly to what our leaders are saying – or, perhaps in the shadows, not saying…