(The following article is from the October 1-15, 2007 issue of People's Voice, Canada's leading communist newspaper. Articles can be reprinted free if the source is credited. Subscription rates in Canada: $25/year, or $12 low income rate; for U.S. readers - $25 US per year; other overseas readers - $25 US or $35 CDN per year. Send to: People's Voice, c/o PV Business Manager, 133 Herkimer St. Unit 502, Hamilton, ON, L8P 2H3.)
People's Voice Editorial, Oct. 1-15, 2007
Judging from the corporate media's response to Tom Flanagan's new book, Harper's Team, the Conservatives have learned to be moderate Canadians just like the rest of us, so we should all just stop worrying and learn to love the PM.
Such nonsense is a little hard to take, to say the least. After all, the media is just regurgitating Flanagan-spin, which aims at lulling voters to sleep until Harper wins a majority and starts ramming through his complete far right agenda. Think about it for a moment; even with a minority in Parliament, the Tories pay zero attention to the views of most Canadians. How will they act if they don't even have to count heads in the House of Commons?
This reality check shows the importance of building up broader resistance against Harper's gang. Instead of watching the "major parties" play games seeking an advantage in the polls, we need to turn up the heat, engaging in stronger extra-parliamentary actions to defeat the Tories.
In the meantime, Bloc Quebecois leader Gilles Duceppe's new "ultimatum" threatens to bring down the government, unless this month's Throne Speech includes concrete plans to cut greenhouse gas emissions and to pull Canadian troops out of Afghanistan by 2009. Duceppe may be bluffing, and some of his other demands are purely Quebec-oriented. But a federal election called on these two issues would allow the labour and people's movements to go on the offensive, demanding policies to tackle the threats of global environment disaster and unending imperialist wars of occupation.
Yes, the Harper government should be defeated - in Parliament, and more importantly by the peoples of Canada in the streets and at the ballot box - and the sooner the better.