Oh, the shame of it!

I have to admit up front that when Prime Minister Harper prorogued Parliament for a second time a big “Why” came to mind.  It has become normal for someone to approach any political news with suspicion and it does not matter who is at the helm.  Liberal, Conservative, left or right, as far as many are concerned it is fair to assume that a political agenda is at hand.  But that is like looking at a master chef with suspicion and saying, “You're cooking something up. I can smell it!”

This type of political maneuvering by Harper is precisely why he is so much fun to watch.  Like a kid looking at a frosty chain link fence wondering how good the ice crystals would taste, Harper will put his tongue in places very few politicians would consider.

Of course, Harper cannot prorogue Parliament without the consent of the Crown, and the Governor General has the last say in that.  So really, Harper's lives by the old adage  “Ask and you shall receive.”

The official reason cited for suspending parliament is to provide the opportunity to refocus the Government's agenda and explain to Canadians what the government plans to accomplish over the next session in Parliament.  It has also been said that the 2010 Olympics in Vancouver will be concluded shortly before the new session commences.  Whether the two are connected one can only ponder, but it would be fair to say that very few Canadians will choose to tune into the Parliamentary Channel to watch grown men yell at each other over cheering on our athletes during the Olympics. As exciting as the former really is.

The unofficial reason cited was provided by the NDP House leader Libby Davies who has stated that there is no legitimate reason to prorogue Parliament and to do so would be a "political scam."  Interesting how Davies gave us a peek into his political tool bag.  According to him, there is a legitimate reason to prorogue Parliament.  A lesson I suspect he learned the first time Harper did it, when the leaders of the opposition formed the coalition of the unwilling.  So at least the NDP agree with Harper, as least in principle.

Not to be outdone, Liberal House Leader Ralph Goodale called the government's move "beyond arrogant" and its justifications for it "a joke."  He is quoted by the CBC as accusing Harper of being a tyrannical ruler when he said, “It's almost despotic.”   Yet again Goodale gave us a peek into his political toolkit stating the justification for it was a joke.  Apparently he also believes that proroguing Parliament at some point can be a justified action as long as it is not a joke.  Perhaps he went to the same class as Davies.

Of course the real unofficial grasping at straws came from other sources, who have cited a Conservative government conspiracy to cover-up the Canadian military abuse of Afghanistan detainees.  CBC quoted Goodale as stating,  “Three times in three years and twice within one year, the Prime Minister takes this extraordinary step to muzzle Parliament. This time it’s a coverup of what the Conservatives knew, and when they knew it, about torture in Afghanistan. So their solution is not to answer the questions but, rather, to padlock Parliament and shut down democracy.”  It's bad enough Goodale is unable to count, now he tosses in the destruction of a Canadian democratic society.

The left-wing press was quick to pick out the three talking points established by the opposition, which are, (1) political scam, (2) despotic actions, or in other words tyranny and (3) the end of democracy.  According to the Liberals and the NDP, Canada is no longer a democracy but is run by a political tyrant hiding a scam, which of course we have been told is a right-wing political hidden agenda.  And, people ask me why I enjoy watching Stephen Harper govern.

So while conservative MP's across Canada were setting up meetings in town halls with constituents to field economic concerns for the government to address, the liberal press set out to egg-on the masses. As a result, large groups of young adults holding signs calling to “bring back democracy” and “we want our government back to work” marched on parliament buildings and public offices across Canada.

For some reason many actually believe that the government is only working when it sits in Parliament.  If that were so then according to historical practices no government has ever worked more than 150 days per year, because that is the average number of days that Parliament is ever been in session over the course of a year.  If the Harper government was not working when the earthquake hit Haiti, Canada would not have reacted so quickly and sent 2000 troops over to help in the rescue effort.  Harper even lifted the cap on financial funds to be used to rebuild Haiti.  All this was done while Harper and our government were 'not at work'.

The truth being told, it really doesn't matter why Harper prorogued Parliament.  His actions will be taken in account by the voters and his track record will be tallied in the history books.  The real truth behind such a fuss being made over Harper's actions is that the opposition has nothing else to attack him with.  He is a frustrating man for his adversaries to deal with.  It appears that he really doesn't care how he is perceived.  He has a job to do and if that means sticking his tongue where no other politician dares I suspect Harper will be stuck to the task.  Oh the shame of it!