The knives have come out

After 911, in airports around the world metal cutlery disappeared from the restaurants inside the security area. Today having watched the performance of Canadian politicians, I wonder if the cutlery is going to disappear from the member’s dining room on Parliament Hill.
Following the election, all the members talked nice, letting the public know that they had received the message that they were to work together. It now appears that what they were saying to the public and what they were planning behind closed doors was completely different.
No party is innocent. If the members had been in my first grade class, they would be lined up on Sparks street with their hands outstretched and Michaelle Jean would be forcefully giving each member the full force of the leather while camera crews from the major networks filmed the process. Maybe a little public humiliation would help.
We now know that Stephen Harper didn’t live up to what he was saying, nor did Jack Layton or Stéphane Dion. They were all plotting the downfall of each other.
All three had the knives out and had armed their fellow party members for the knife fight in the House of Commons and the main streets across the country. Harper was bloodied. Has sought respite care.
We still don’t know what the final outcome will be.
Thankfully Michaelle Jean told them all the leaders “to take a time out”.
But as of Monday, Canadians learn that in the Liberal party, many of the members have still not sheathed their knives. Two in particular are out for more blood. Their scapegoat appears to be Stéphane Dion and both Bob Rae and Michael Ignatieff can’t seem to plunge the knife fast enough.
So much for the spirit of Christmas and goodwill to all men!
No sooner had parliament be prorogued to January 26 than Bob Rae had dismissed Dion and had appointed himself as the leader of the coalition Liberals, Bloc and New Democrats.
Right across the country he sped announcing that he was the leader. There wasn’t even a coup. There wasn’t an election. He grabbed the crown.
Not to be outdone, by Sunday, Michael Ignatieff had persuaded the third Liberal leadership candidate to withdraw and was working to have the insiders and Liberal house members elect him the next Liberal leader of the parliament within the week. He too couldn’t get rid of Dion fast enough.
Dion wasn’t supposed to leave ‘til May but was being given a hurried exit from Stornoway his official residence. How unfair to evict a person in winter just before Christmas. What kind of message does that send to Canadians about a party that puts people first?
The other message being offered by Ignatieff is that he doesn’t feel the Liberal members across Canada can be trusted to elect the next leader of the party. Why else would he be looking for members of the caucus to be his sole electors?
The knives have come out. The parliamentary system has been wounded. The democratic selection of leaders has been cut. The needs of the country have been put on hold while this political knife fight goes on.
Is it time to get rid of the knives in the parliamentary restaurant and ban knives from parliament hill?
This Christmas let’s give every member a lump of coal. It’s more than they deserve.

–Jim Cumming,
Publisher