Beyond The Commons

 Beyond The Commons

Aaron Wherry covers all the goings-on in and around Parliament Hill. Follow Aaron on Twitter: @aaronwherry

Categories: Beyond The Commons, Capital Read

A parliamentarian

by Aaron Wherry on Monday, September 20, 2010 11:52am - 0 Comments

A short note on unfortunate news.

Bloc Quebecois MP Francine Lalonde announced last week that she has been diagnosed again with cancer and, as a result, she will not be seeking reelection. Over the last three years of observing Parliament and its players, Ms. Lalonde has distinguished herself in these eyes as a passionate, insistent voice pushing this place to consider difficult matters: euthanasia, the treatment of Afghan detainees, Omar Khadr. Last week she was part of a Public Policy Forum discussion on the role of Parliamentary committees and indeed, whatever her original reason for entering federal politics and whenever an election does bring her time in Ottawa to an end, she will depart as a parliamentarian, a title that should be reserved for those most honourably committed to this institution as a true and valuable forum. The House will be poorer in her absence, but made richer by her time here.

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  • Jenn_

    Nicely said, Aaron.

    It's the take-away from the book The Best Laid Plans, in that only those who don't care are able to stand for what is right rather than what is politically expedient. The Bloc isn't trying to win seats in the RoC, so often have the most reasonable positions and are able to fight for them. Even Peter's little rant only proves the point.

    • http://secondthots.blogspot.com Dennis_F

      Being left-wing on euthanasia, Taliban prisoners, and Omar Khadr are examples of having "reasonable positions" to you, are they? Then many of you say you're not left-wing. Whatever.

      The news about Ms. Lalonde is sad. Too bad it also leads to the predictable and probably unjustified hagiographies.

  • WDM

    Nice work Aaron.

  • John D

    It must be so freaking convenient to have such a simple worldview that everything can be broken down into "left-wing" and "right-wing" like many of the commenter here.

    • http://secondthots.blogspot.com Dennis_F

      Question: Is Ms. Lalonde left-wing or not, especially on the issues left-winger Aaron Wherry praised her for in the original blog post? Why be dishonest or even ashamed about it?

      • Trass

        Is Tom Flanagan being left-wing or right-wing when he says drug prohibition is bad?
        http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/opinions/guns…

        • http://secondthots.blogspot.com Dennis_F

          He's a right-winger who is taking a position far more common on the left, right?

          Now, is Ms. Lalonde a left-winger or not? Again, why always hide it?

          • Jan

            Everyone who doesn't agree with you is left-wing, according to you, Dennis. What you don't seem to understand that, amongst that huge group of people, there are subsets. Some are even conservative.

          • http://secondthots.blogspot.com Dennis_F

            That is precisely not true, but a standard line coming from you.

            Now, is Ms. Lalonde a left-winger or not, especially on the issues that Aaron Wherry praised her about?

            Again, why always be so dishonest about it?

            The funny thing is that many of you left-wingers turn around and have absolutely no problem labeling your opponents however you please.

      • Loraine Lamontagne

        Would there be a right wing without a left wing?

        • Werthit

          Without both wings, one cannot fly.

      • burlivespipe

        Justice is neither left nor right. It is.

    • Neal Yonson

      I saw Stephen Harper with a red tie the other day. Was that a left-wing fashion decision?

    • Jan

      I describe DennisF's world view as Zebratology.

      • Jen

        Now, is DennisF a Level-1 Zebratologist or Level-2? Again, why always hide it?

    • Peterborough Dave

      Must be nice eh? So simple to live in a black and white world. However, as Obi-Wan says, "Only a Sith deals in absolutes".

  • peter

    I love getting thumbs down from this gang! It means I'm close to the truth. I'm so pleased to see you all jerking your knees before engaging your brains. Kinda like Pavlov's dogs…with less critical thinking. Back to the CBC guys, you've gotta get your talking points so your criticism isn't just the gnashing of angry teeth, or high fiving each other over your utter lack of understanding of how the world actually is.

    • Richard_S_Argent

      "…high fiving each other over your utter lack of understanding of how the world actually is."

      Perhaps you could inform us?

      • Mike T.

        why do you encourage this? Why? why?

        • Richard_S_Argent

          Morbid curiosity?

    • http://secondthots.blogspot.com Dennis_F

      There is a pack mentality here. Ironic coming from people like to pretend that those who disagree with them are nothing but unthinking slobs. Yeah, clicking those thumbs-down buttons sure is sophisticated, ain't it?

      • Mike T.

        MINUS ONE

        MINUS ONE

        MINUS ONE!!!1

        • Peterborough Dave

          zing. good one

      • Peterborough Dave

        Could it be the wisdom of crowds?

    • John D

      You're that guy in school who thought everyone hated him because they were "jealous," right?

      • http://secondthots.blogspot.com Dennis_F

        You're that guy right now who is not capable of anything more than schoolyard taunts, right?

    • Peterborough Dave

      So, you care about your scores eh?

  • http://secondthots.blogspot.com Dennis_F

    So there is no left-wing or right-wing in Canada, eh? Fascinating.

    • Mike T.

      Actually, the vast majority sit somewhere in a very narrow band of the mild right. Extremists tend more to the far right and have a far greater voice than the far left, both in media and politics.

      When you see things like the mosque "issue" and census thingy, it seems more and more like the big divide is reasonable vs. crazy, rather than left vs. right.

      • guest

        yes, "reasonable" vs. "crazy" is so much more nuanced than "left" vs. "right".

  • John W.

    I was wondering what Harper might say.

  • peter

    Hey guys, how's that Obama guy you all so adore working out? Ending the wars…check (well as long as we keep believing it). Balancing the budget?…check as long as we only use "new math" Returning freedoms sacrificed by the evil Bush? …check (well you wouldn't dare disagree now, just in case eh?) Restoring families? Creating jobs and just generaly working for the little guys like Bernanke's buddies? check. Yeah that's working out real well now isn't it. Must be the House and the Senate holding things up? Oh sorry, not till November. Welcome to the dream you hold out for Canada…would Iggy have us looking at a $180 billion deficit? Are you prepared to take that chance on behalf of our children? C'm on, you know you are. Damn the torpedos, that Harper guy dresses funny and he's mean to left wing reporters. Who cares that he's doing a fantastic job in unbelievably bad circumstances beyond domestic control, he believes in personal freedom with responsibility…he's gotta go.

    • Jan

      I love the smell of election panic in the morning.

      • peter

        Yeah just everything is so going against the CPC…keep rooting for the "coalition". We are all looking forward to a majority. We're so panicked, because we have better ideas, candidates and policy. To add to our worries we also have more members, cash and (again) ideas. Craziness in the House notwithstanding, I'm pretty confident of the last four and half years substantive record of steady progress on many troublesome issues. You're on your third leader in the same time frame and have flip flopped so many times on so many issues the only agreement you have is that somehow "this time" you'll get it right…oh and the debts from the leadership "contests"..well once you're in power you'll make sure they're paid back…like 16 year olds with learners licences " you just want to drive". Heads up dudes…the great big world is like the 401 at rush hour right now and there's precious little room for beginners.

        • Jan

          You need to turn off your right hand turn indicator. You've had it on for miles and you are not capable of changing lanes.

        • John W.

          I hope you're getting help.

    • Peterborough Dave

      Muhahaha. Another minus 1. I have the POWAH! UNLIMITED POWAH!

  • BGLong

    I blush in the presence of so much class. Best wishes to Ms. LaLonde.

  • Stewart_Smith

    I for one would like to commend much of the gang for the commentary above. It was a brilliant use of the Maclean's medium to characterize the general state of political debate in this country, bravo to all for a fine theatrical performance. It came complete with name calling, school yard taunts, misinformation, irrelevant sidebars, and threats of an election.

    While it might be easiest for those whose views align on specific subjects to recognize what Aaron was talking about, perhaps everyone can agree that by crafting a career in which no-one accused her of any of the above, Ms Lalonde made parliament a more civilized place for political discourse.

    • Peterborough Dave

      Stewart, if you make another eloquent statement like this I may have to use my UNLIMITED POWER and give you a minus 1.

  • Mark R

    I like this peter guy. Stick around will you?

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  • Jan

    If you're referring to Candice Hoeppner – you have got to be joking!

  • John D

    What a sad little man you must be.

  • http://secondthots.blogspot.com Dennis_F

    So only left-wingers can be good parliamentarians?

  • peter

    "I for one would like to commend much of the gang for the commentary above. It was a brilliant use of the Maclean's medium to characterize the general state of political debate."

    Which was exactly MY point, oh so above the fray one. It's just I call it a travesty and you seem to think it's a good thing. Wherry's spin, resonated by the misinformed legion of the deluded makes for a pretty hopeless situation. Back to the original idea…is she a hard core socialist? Check. Does she cater to to an ethnic/linguistic special interest group? Check. Is her political raison d'etre the destruction of Canada? Check.

    Your point seems to be that that doesn't matter if she advocates a clearly non-sensicle, doesn't work political/economic philosophy (even Castro recently repudiated it). It doesn't matter that she practices the most reprehensible, lowest common denominator form of identity politics and it doesn't matter that she is paid by the institution (and the country it represents) that she is sworn to destroy. She does it while fashionably attired and with good manners. You must have just finished reading the Star while sipping a latte.

  • Peterborough Dave

    FIRST!

    MINUS 1

  • ahm

    I think the original point is that the Honourable F. Lalonde represented her constituents well, upheld the rules and procedures of the Parliament in good order, and is retiring because she has had a relapse of a deadly disease. Regardless of what one may think of her ideology, her practice has been one that has actually made Canada a better place, and all of us are the poorer for her coming absence. The other point is that you should exercise far more civility towards her in the thread discussing the announcement of her departure due to a life-threatening disease. There are plenty of threads in which you are able to hurl invective, although it is somewhat discouraged at Macleans.

  • Stewart_Smith

    peter, oh peter, don't make me use captials.

    1) I drink cappuccino in the afternoon, espresso in the morning and a usually a saucy Shiraz in the evening, although tonight I am sipping a Moosehead.
    2) One of the messy aspects of democracy is that no individual gets to decide who gets voted in.
    3) What you think she represents hardly matters, she was voted in by her constituents. I don't have to agree with their position to acknowledge that they have the right to vote for whomever they choose.
    4) Obviously I don't agree with many of her positions, so what. I don't have to disrespect the person just because I don't like their ideas.

    I don't mind that you hate her politics for her left wing ideology, however perhaps you should separate the politics from the person. With regard to her position as a separatist, I am more sympathetic to your case. It grates me to have people that would gladly divide Canada serve in Parliament. Of course, it also grates me that Harper protects a racist and a homophobe in his caucus. In the end, I can overcome that by realizing that Canada is indeed strong enough to withstand attacks on all three of those fronts.

  • Jan

    Holy Dunning-Kruger, peter.

  • peter

    I don't know why I bother trying…but my point was Wherry's kid glove treatment of the IDEAS she represents vis a vis the scorn and invective he heaps upon Conservative MPs. Having met with several hundred MPs from all parties over the years the one enduring feature they all share is that are all reasonably nice people (except Don Boudria whose re-elections always puzzled me.) Hopefully though we are not electing nice guys, but effective representatives. Representatives who have their feet on solid ground and who hold actionable ideas, not pie in the sky dreams, or even worse, social and economic theories that have long since clearly demonstrated their total lack of ability to deliver on anything they so suggestively promise. When young people gravitate to a serial belief in Santa Claus well into early maturity…in spite of overwhelming real world examples of how the idea is nonsense and call perhaps their last chance a grinch because he gets the real world and they don't, and when financial/political opportunists mobilize this well intentioned ignorance and naivity for their own selfish ends I get cranky. Bad though he is, Wherry is far from the worst offender, just one that's where I go

  • John W.

    I will say something positive. What you are trying say, I think, and very poorly, is that people should realize that someday they may have to live with the consequences of their actions.
    But at the same time, I think you have missed the point of the parable of the good Samaritan.

  • peter

    Obviously you are unable to understand the written word. Perhaps they'll add a sketch section so i can draw you a picture. Rhetoric and reframing works better when well executed. Here's the BQ in easy terms, give us all your dirty anglo cash or we'll destroy your credit rating. Give us multiculturalism when we are out of PQ, but do as we say in the language WE choose when you are in PQ. Cater to us and infect your senior civil service with our agents as we exclude you from our ours. Make it mandatory to be bilingual so non-Quebec views will always be poorly expressed. Emulate the endless corruption of our politics and let your great grand children bear the burden, We're special. We deserve it. t doesn't matter how well healed the BQ member making the assertions is…in a nut shell that's what I see and hear from my spot in the sticks in BC.

  • Loraine Lamontagne

    Our prime minister is a man who thinks it doesn't matter whether Canada ends up with one, two or ten national governments. And the difference between sovereignty-association and ten national governments would be….???

    If that is what you see and hear from your spot in the sticks of BC then I'm not surprised that BC has a long history of corrupt politics. You have a very opaque veil clouding your vision.

  • peter

    In fact, under the BNA, we DO have 11 sovereign governments within their spheres of responsibility laid out in Secs. 91 and 92. It has always been so. It is the supreme law of the land. Sadly more observed in the breach than the observance, in spite of the 1950 SCC Lord Nelson Hotel decision. The history of our nation has pretty much been Toronto elites vs Montreal elites gaming the system for their personal advantage. The last time the West was really represented was under Diefenbaker, and the eastern elites took him down…now hey are trying to do the same to Mr. Harper…same old ,same old.

    As to BC, yes it is appallingly corrupt, but that said basi and Virk were gunning for PMO appointments in Paul Martin's government and I'm sure it was just coincidence that Paul Tellier headed CN prior to their successful purchase of BC Rail and further just coincidence that he's on the Board of Rio Tinto, who surely couldn't benefit from cheaper or preferential commodity rates from the wilderness served by the former BC Rail.

  • peter

    Well, well my post-modern friend, I suspect you haven't fully thought through the implications of your "ideaology". Barring a shared moral idealogy all democracies are doomed to fail as soon as the non-productive realize that they can shake down the productive, absent constitutional protection (he who advocates robbing peter to pay paul can always count on the support of paul?). Welcome to the monkey house. Are you implying that reality is a mere contrivance, a consensualy validated norm, Sharia law is just as valid as common law in our nation. as long as a Muslim enclave supports it? Honour killings are "cultural norms" ( see Fisk's recent piece) so should it be treated like socialism? An acceptable though wrongheaded approach to social justice? I suspect we could spend many productive hours "sipping shiraz" and/or mooseheads discussing this. But always remember the road to hell is paved with good intentions. I suggest you acquaint yourself with Von Mises' Human Action and or Rothbard's Man Economy and State. Yes they advocate seemingly hardline positions, but holy cow is their logic and evidence for their positions well argued.

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