The writ hasn't dropped yet. But the signs are not good. It's going to get nasty. Susan Delacourt writes:
Canada is no stranger to intense election campaigns, with passions running high on all sides, and even the occasional, infamous political incidents — tomatoes thrown at parades, scuffles in the audience. Nor is this country immune to attack-style, personal politics — again, from all parties of all stripes.
What’s potentially different in the coming campaign, though, is the heightened role of the angry crowds, and their power to disrupt political debate in unexpected, maybe even unprecedented ways. It happened on Labour Day weekend on at least three fronts.
Everywhere, the nastiness is palpable:
In Mississauga, the leader of the anti-immigration National Citizens Alliance confronted MPP Gurratan Singh, brother of federal NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh, and challenged him: “What about sharia? Political Islam? You’re hiding bud. I’ll debate you anytime.”
In Hamilton, Justin Trudeau was blocked by union protesters when he tried to join the annual Labour Day parade, the hecklers chanting: “Justin Trudeau, Andrew Scheer, same old b- - - - - - t, different year.”
And on Twitter, People’s Party of Canada Leader Maxime Bernier launched an extraordinary, eight-part rant against the young, Swedish environmental activist Greta Thunberg on Twitter, calling her “clearly mentally unstable.” Bernier rattled off all the reasons that the 16-year-old Thunberg should be “denounced” and “attacked:” “Not only autistic, but obsessive-compulsive, eating disorder, depression and lethargy and she lives in a constant state of fear.”
We're better than this. But it appears that we're not immune from the disease that is running rampant in the United States and Britain. Our darker angels are ascendant.
Image: Typos Of Life
8 comments:
Saw a news clip on that NCA twit going on about sharia law and political Islam. Apparently, so much of a complete xenophobic dolt, he hasn't the first clue that Sikh's are not Muslim or even close to it. If a person can't even get basics sorted out in their fried brain, no wonder nastiness is spreading.
Bernier should be committed to count the holes in the acoustic tiles on the ceiling in a padded cell. He's off his rocker.
As for the union types calling out Trudeau and Scheer - well, this is a common refrain on Progressive Bloggers, after all.
Been monitoring the UK Commons on the Guardian live feed. That faction of extreme right wing Tories Johnson has assembled for a cabinet are getting a drubbing. But what chaos!
BM
One of these things is not political debate. It's the leader of a Canadian political party proving that he's unfit to lead. Not only did Bernier show himself to be bereft of compassion and humanity in his remarks above, he later proved himself a liar in trying to calm the public anger that followed.
Instead of apologizing to Ms Thunberg for his intemperate remarks, he claimed "My goal was absolutely not to denigrate her or whoever deals with these conditions. On the contrary, she is a brave young woman who has been able to overcome her problems and deserves our admiration for that." What a liar!
He then went on to blame "influential groups and the media" for using her as a pawn to avoid criticism. The man has absolutely no scruples and with any luck will be gone from the political scene in November.
Cap
Chaos. That's what it all boils down to, BM.
Bernier sounds like somebody else who is constantly in our faces, Cap.
Ford? Scheer? Kenny? Trump? McConnell? Johnson? Narrowing it down to someone is though. I'm gonna need a hint, Owen!
Cap
I was thinking of Trump, Cap. But you're right. He's got a lot of clones.
.. I dunno ..
I keep thinking an actual exemplar will emerge from the wilderness .. we have them of course.. but who among them would actually want to live the political pomp and ceremony.. or subject their family to such nonsense. Trudeau does a fair job of it.. gets in a morning run.. and acts pretty low key, handsome family well regarded.. Scheer & Hamish Marshall et al huddle in some dank 'war room'.. in between endless exposures on network TV, Twitter and Facebook.. who knows what all his children think.. he sure aint raising or parenting them, rarely even spotted in Saskatchewan.. Singh is somewhat busy in the public sphere, new wife spared too much publicity.. and Ms May keeps a rational lid on the public stuff, also newly married. Dougie Ford revels in the spotlight, craves it.. Jason Kenney lives for it, craves it more than Ford.. and used his mommy only as a device to pretend his primary residence was in Calgary.. so that's her exposure, hardly tiring or intrusive
But as you've said.. too many bottom feeders & the darker angels
and I say seek out exemplars.. and our brighter, smarter angels
..... amen .....
We do have better angels, sal. But those angels don't seek out the spotlight.
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