Are there no real issues in this election?

It began just as “The price is Right” might have started. Instead of Bob Barker calling someone down from the audience, we had three leaders talking about what was behind door No. 1, Door No.2 and Door No. 3.
Instead of referring to doors with numbers, Michael Ignatieff referred to the doors as a red door or a blue door for voters to choose from. Jack Layton felt left out and suggested that voters should choose a new colour this time … orange. Poor Elizabeth May of the green party didn’t even get to request a green door. Gilles Duceppe who only travels in Quebec didn’t request a door since he must already feels that he has the door sewn shut with Quebec voters.
I am sure that in time we will find out how much each of the doors, red, blue, orange and green will cost Canadian taxpayers. The party that ultimately puts together the best shopping cart of goodies will probably win.
Voters caught a glimpse of the Conservative shopping cart in the budget of last week. It arrived dead on arrival as all the opposition parties found it wanting. They wanted the government defeated as quickly as possible that they didn’t even put up alternatives or amendments.
We know that the NDP will more than double what the Conservatives offered low-income seniors. They have also promised to eliminate the HST on home heating fuels.
The eco-renovation option was returned to help Canadians renovate and reduce energy use in their homes, which too died.
So what might we expect to see and hear? While opposition parties were ready to topple the government at Christmas 2008 because the Conservatives were not borrowing to stimulate the economy, today they are complaining about the debt run up by the conservatives in the past two years. Yet they would much rather see the deficit continue to grow rather that balancing the budget as proposed by the Conservatives.
I am confused.
The big issue now is, “who can you believe about coalition governments”? A recent poll indicated that Canadians really are troubled by the thought of a coalition of parties getting together to topple the party electing the most representatives. Yet Bob Ray and David Peterson did exactly that when Frank Miller couldn’t form a government in Ontario in 1985.
Truth be told, Stephen Harper, Jack Layton and Gilles Duceppe in 2004. Together sent a letter to Governor General Adrienne Clarkson outlining the constitutional possibilities that could be used should the Martin Liberal Government of the time fall. It included the possibility of asking another party to create a government through a coalition with a second party.
The most recent agreement occurred between Jack Layton, Gilles Duceppe and Stéphane Dion to take down the Harper government in 2008. Canadians had gone to the polls on October14th and had elected a minority government lead by Stephen Harper.
To maintain power or gain power in a tight race for house seats in Parliament, what leader wouldn’t consider creating a deal with another party to lead the country? I don’t know. Precedents have been set in Canada.
So much for the kettle accusing the pot about doing something you already have tried.
In fact every piece of legislation that has been passed in both the Martin Liberal government and the Harper government required a coalition of political parties to support the measure.
And why are we as voters allowing our politicians to play this silly game? And why are political columnists falling for such silly nonsense? Are there no real issues in this election”?

–Jim Cumming,
Publisher