Advocacy News - Harper draws the
line ... to obscurity
January
21, 2005 (Updated with media responses, Jan. 27)
Harper
draws the line ... to obscurity Fearmongering,
bigotry & coercive attacks on rights
By
Kevin Bourassa and Joe Varnell
"Once
it becomes clear that Harper is using ethnic minorities and making promises he
can't keep, the Conservative party leader might well find that gay marriage is
his Waterloo." Editorial, Vancouver Sun, Jan. 24, 2005
"This
is bizarre, way out there," said a senior adviser to Nova Scotia Premier John
Hamm ... "The strategy has got our political people just shaking their heads.
Is this where you draw the line, really? How about dealing with issues that really
affect our lives." "Harper's gay marriage strategy exposes rift among
Conservatives, Canadian Press, Jan. 27, 2005
If
an election is scheduled for this year, as some suspect, Conservative party leader
Stephen Harper has sealed his fate as being unworthy to lead Canada into the future.
Instead he has ensured his path, and perhaps the fate of the Conservative Party,
will be a slide into obscurity.
Harper
took over the Conservative party last year in an attempt
to shed the reputation of bigotry and intolerance that his previous parties (the
Alliance and Reformers) had justly earned. The makeover was a spectacular failure
thanks to dinosaurs like Randy White (anti-gay) and
Cheryl Gallent (against women's rights). Harper has had the opportunity to distance
himself from these clowns, but instead, he has maintained the status quo.
It
seems Harper, known for his arrogance and self-assurance, has learned nothing
from the past election. Leadership of the country was within his grasp when voters
were unhappy with financial scandals in the Liberal party last year. But as always,
he tripped over Charter rights issues
(threatening women and gays), and frightened voters right back into the arms of
the Liberals. He's doing it again, this time without the help of his underlings.
"It
is not my intention to go into an election. We want to govern," Martin told road-weary
and astonished Canadian reporters who are nearing the end of a gruelling nine-day
Asian tour. "But if you're are asking me am I ready to go into an election to
uphold the Charter of Rights against those who would attack it? The answer is
certainly yes." PM
Paul Martin, Canadian Press,
Jan. 21, 2005
Yesterday
Harper said, "I hate to say this, but I think you have to draw the line somewhere
... I believe we have to recognize the traditional definition of marriage in law.
Otherwise, we will continue to be presented with demands that just get more and
more radical."
Harper
has retreated to scaremongering, drawing illogical connections between same-sex
marriage (a Section 15 Charter equal rights issue) with polygamy (a Section 2
Charter religious rights issue, if that).
"I
think that's where we should draw the line, and I don't want to get into the polygamy
debate - but I fear if we do this, the next thing on the Liberal agenda will be
polygamy and who knows what else," Harper said in a news conference. "Polygamy
is ok for cows."
"Today,
Canadian Conservatives face the same hard questions. How could they have lost
last year's federal election ... The easy thing to do -- as too many Conservatives
do in private -- is to blame Canadian voters for being sheep. The harder, but
more useful exercise, is to conduct a ruthless self-examination about why conservative
ideas and the way they are advocated by Conservatives, aren't connecting with
enough voters. It's either that or ... [march] to the beat of their own drum --
into what may well be political oblivion." Editorial, Calgary
Sun, Jan. 24, 2005
"In
fact, successive B.C. attorneys-general have resisted investigating the
Bountiful commune precisely because they feared a constitutional challenge,
and that was before gay marriage was even on the agenda," The Vancouver
Sun wrote in a Jan. 24 editorial. "The linking of polygamy and same-sex
marriage is nothing more than a mendacious ploy by those who have run out of arguments."
Harper
has aligned himself with the likes of Catholic
Bishop Fred Henry by promising to use the "coercive" powers of government
- namely the notwithstanding clause of our Charter, to make gays and lesbians
second-class citizens in Canada. He is attempting to appeal to recent immigrants
who come from countries with less respect for human rights, by placing anti-gay
ads in the media targeting new Canadians.
"That's
not my Canada. It will never be my Canada." Paul Martin said today from China
where the PM is on a trade mission. "Unlike Mr. Harper I will stand up for
the Canadian Charter of Rights."
It's
spectacular proof that Harper doesn't need any help from his underlings to sabotage
his credibility. He's quite capable of being a goon
himself, foolishly unaware that his statements appear more radical than marriage
equality now legal in most of Canada, without any of the doomsday impacts that
a hysterical Harper warns of.
The
Liberal party was quick to capitalize on Harper's stupidity. Despite losing the
last election on the same platform, the delusional Harper responded "We're
confident that our position is the position of the majority of Canadians."
Harper
forgets his party has already lost one vote to invoke
the notwithstanding clause to restrict gay marriage, he ignores polls demonstrating
support
for marriage equality, and he overlooks the fact that the notwithstanding
clause would have no effect on the 8 regions where same-sex marriage is already
legal, with thousands of these marriages now in existence. Denial, denial, denial.
"His
government is one that would strip away the rights of individuals and strip away
the rights of minorities," Prime Minister Martin said today. "During
the election campaign Stephen Harper accused us of supporting child pornography,
something he refused to apologize for. Now for him to accuse us of having polygamy
on our agenda, I just can't conceive how anybody can say that and not understand
just how ridiculous that he [Harper] must look."
You
can tell Harper what you think by calling The Conservative Party toll-free number:
1-866-808-8407
