The Globe and Mail editorializes that some of Canada's premiers have lost their minds:
The recent actions of some of Canada’s provincial premiers bring to mind a scene from Woody Allen’s 1971 comedy Bananas, in which the newly installed dictator of a Latin American country greets his cheering compatriots for the first time.
“Hear me,” he commands. “I am your new president. From this day on, the official language of San Marcos will be Swedish. In addition to that, all citizens will be required to change their underwear every half hour. Underwear will be worn on the outside, so we can check.”
“Power has driven him mad,” says an observer.
Consider what has happened in Alberta, Ontario, and Quebec:
The latest example is Alberta Premier Danielle Smith. Her government this week tabled its promised deliverance from the iron chains of federalism, the Alberta Sovereignty within a United Canada Act, and it’s as loony as anticipated.
The bill proposes, after the simple passage of a resolution in the legislature, to give cabinet the power to unilaterally amend legislation via orders in council. Cabinet can do so if it’s been decided that a federal law is unconstitutional, or even just “harmful,” without first testing the constitutionality of the law in question in court, and without defining the word “harmful.”
Cabinet can also order provincial bodies not to enforce specific federal policies or laws. It verges on insanity.
In Ontario, Premier Doug Ford has gone mad with power in his plan to build 1.5-million homes over 10 years. This month he reversed himself on a promise not to allow development in the province’s Greenbelt – a vow he had repeated like a mantra for years. And his government has neutered the municipal councils of Toronto and Ottawa, by allowing the mayors to adopt pro-housing bylaws with only one-third of the vote.
Mr. Ford also has made a regular habit of resorting to the Constitution’s notwithstanding clause to get what he wants. This fall he tried to use it to essentially strip an education workers’ union of its right to strike. He backed down in the face of a general strike, a predictable outcome that Mr. Ford somehow failed to imagine might be the result.
On to Quebec Premier François Legault, whose Coalition Avenir Québec government in 2019 unashamedly enacted an unconstitutional law, Bill 21, that prohibits some public employees from wearing religious symbols or garb at work. Mr. Legault calls it a defence of Quebec’s secular culture; a Quebec Superior Court judge called it a cruel violation of Charter freedoms in a 2021 ruling, but he had to let it stand because the law is shielded from restraint and tolerance by the notwithstanding clause.
What the premiers of Alberta, Ontario and Quebec share is their predilection for populism. All three focus on a base of voters that they portray as the victim of an uncaring enemy. In Quebec, it’s the federal government and immigrants that are the peril. In Ontario, it’s “elites” in big cities. In Alberta, it’s Liberal Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
When some people attain power, they go mad.
Image: Steam
8 comments:
It's funny how often "for the people" turns out to require more power for the leader and lack of accountability.
Cap
It's fraud -- pure and simple -- Cap.
Where oh where is Howard Cosell when you need him?
I repeated what you said about Alberta Pemier Danielle Smith to a close Canadian friend and he agreed completely. So now the question is: why are the good citizens of Alberta voting for her?
I suspect that he and Muhammed Ali are continuing their conversation, PoV.
She hasn't been voted into office, hels. She simply replaces the retiring premier. She still has to face Albertans in an election.
All three are very much like Trump. They think because they are premier they can do what they want. Unfortunately they are either too stupid or too ego driven to see the harm they do. All they are interest in is staying in power.
Ford's decision to convert green space into housing has been part of a plan which goes back at least twenty years or more. Recall reading about it at a much younger age. Once Ford was in office I expected him to do this because he is friendly with developers and he thinks the public will permit him to do this because the lack of housing is going to be a problem Ford also has given builders a lovely gift of not having to ppay some of the permits, etc. they usually do. John Tory isn't happy. I think Toronto will loose about $100 Million and have to raise taxes. tory has already said he'll go door to door explaining he is raising taxes because of Ford's "generosity" for developers.
Quebec's premier and his followers are simply racist. They want everyone who is not white, catholic, been in the country for a couple of hundred years, out
Smith just wants to run with the other premiers. Once her game starts to impact those who make money in Alberta she'll be gone. It maybe she is tossed out of office or some one takes her to court. Smith, with this law, could privitize health care, change laws, try to prevent the feds from implementing enviornmental laws, airport safety regulations. The list goes on. Smith will do what ever she wants until some one "hits her" Watch the racism increase in Alberta
These 3 premiers are why countries have Constituions. Unfortunately it is the Constituion which gives them the idea they can trample others rights.
My suggestion: for Alberta and Quebec, Trudeau should simply stop sending those cheques. Sort of like when your teenager runs amoke and you revoke their allowance or electronic equipment.
Ford has already lost the wage cap deal, but we in B.C. could have told him that. The land, well who knows perhaps some of those enviornmental protestors we have in B.C/ may head East in the spring. they can block traffic in Toronto for awhile, along with railways, and roads going to the green space.
There's a confrontation coming, e.a.f.
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