Sarcasm In Da House, The Cons Laugh Off Criticism Like A Bunch of High School Brats

These days, when it comes to Stephen Harper, I honestly don't know where to begin.

I could talk about his weird and draconian Omnibus Crime Bill. A heinous piece of legislation, designed to essentially put more people behind bars, while the country's homicide rate is lower than its been for 40 years. The timing is also curious as it coincides with a dramatic (and expensive) expansion of this country's prison infrastructure. Are the two linked? We may never really know.

I could talk about his arrogance when it comes to the European Debt Crisis. He seems to feel that because Canada has remained relatively unscathed by the worst of the double-recession (emphasis on 'relatively', we are not out of the woods, nor did we get away scot-free) that he is now in a position to scold some nations and pat others on the head. I can only hope this condescending behaviour comes back to bite him.

But what has really got me fired up this morning, is a video I watched that shows NDP MP Charlie Angus directly challenging Industry Minister Tony Clement about the Auditor General's report, which reported strange discrepancies regarding the $50 million infrastructure grant received by Clement's home riding. In the video, Angus asks what seem to be pretty simple, to-the-point questions. Now, I don't expect someone like Clement,(who let's face it, is fucking guilty, we all know it, he seems to know it too, we just can't find a way to make it stick) to come out and admit he screwed up in front an audience as unforgiving as the House of Commons. However, what I would expect from a professional politician is some respect for his peers. I never thought I would see the day when I would long for the good old days of Canadian politics, when Tories were actually Blue, Liberals were actually Red, the socialists stood up for farmers, and MPs addressed each other with compliments, carefully worded criticisms, and ultimate respect.

Call me nostalgic (I actually didn't have the pleasure of being born before things really started to go downhill), but is too much to ask for a bit of the old way of doing things? John Baird's cringe-worthy and sarcastic comments about his 'fragile' self-esteem, are the kinds of things a bratty high-schooler, untouchable and beyond punishment because his Dad plays golf with the principle, says. "Na-na, na-na-na, you can't touch me but I-can touch yooo-ooo." Their nonchalant brush-off of the Auditor General is troubling to say the least.

I guess, in the end, I would love to say to Harper and his childish cronies: "I know you have a majority, I know you can do whatever the fuck you want, but could you at least PRETEND to give a shit what the the majority of Canadians WHO DID NOT VOTE FOR YOU think?" Because, to be sure, the MPs of the glory days certainly didn't love each other. I am certain there were back room shenanigans that would have made the Parliamentary Library's wallpaper peel. But there was at least a semblance of respect. That our modern politicians, and the Tories are easily the worst, have cast away even this semblance of respect for their peers reveals an even deeper contempt for the very way democracy is meant to function: with a multitude of voices, opinions, and ideas.

Harper doesn't need the Black Shirts or the giant parades with giant eagles and logos, but that doesn't mean he isn't a dictator. Also, saying you are open and transparent mean that you are.