The Conservative Party of Canada, Leviathan on Steroids

Leviathan is on the march, now sending in the storm troopers for the most minor of commercial issues and they will do any and all things they feel like doing.

The National Post very rightly takes exception to this, and I add a little more. The National Post will of course always endorse Conservative candidates and so has been fairly quiet on Fantino's election run, but hopefully I can prick that bubble.

Your editorial very properly outlines Bill C-36’s violation of basic rights, rights supposedly protected by the Charter. Mr. Fantino has also openly discussed his outright contempt for the Charter prior to his public silence on substantive issues during the current by-election.

Mr. Trudeau, author of the Charter, famously said “just watch me” in reply to how far he would go during a real crisis. Hopefully people will watch the Conservatives and will say “too far already” before Mr. Fantino, if elected today, tries to use that ‘iron fist’ he craves for items where a ‘velvet glove’ is appropriate.

Conservative as Free Traders?

The Potash story continues. Given conservatives, more than most, are supposed to be historically minded it is amazing how short their memory is. I try to fix that a bit, but as it does not fit the spin I doubt it will be heard. This was published a couple of days later.

As submitted to the National Post this morning.
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While I agree with much of what Mr. Watson writes I have to disagree with the closing premise that protectionism is not a “conservative” value.

1878 – Sir John A campaigns on his ‘National Policy’ of massively increased tariffs. This reverses the fairly free trade that had existed since 1854 and he wins.

1911 – Borden campaigns on a slogan “No Truck or Trade with the Yankees” and wins.

1930 – Bennett campaigns on even more increases of tariffs, and wins.

1985 - The McDonald royal commission (initiated by Trudeau) reports favourably on freer trade and convinces Mr. Mulroney. He changes his and the Conservative Party’s stance and campaigns on freer trade and next election he wins.

2010 - Mr. Harper goes back to the traditional conservative position of populist protectionism.

Unfortunately he too may win from this, while as Mr. Watson points out we lose.

Yesterday the Harper Conservatives blocked the sale of Potash Corp, clearly the central state planners that the Conservatives are believe they know more than the shareholders what to do with their own property. The letter was published - mostly as is and including the typo. I was bemused at how another letter on the subject claims the Conservative Party has been infiltrated by libertarians - what a joke!! This letter is copied at the bottom too, don't read at breakfast or you may end up with Shreddies up your nostrils as one local did :)

My letter to the National Post on the issue:

The National Post very properly lambasts the Potash buyout rejection, but I’m not so sure why the multiple commenter’s seem to think this is out of character for the Conservatives. Earlier this week Taseko Resources was blocked from starting a multi-billion dollar mine in B.C. by the Conservatives. The environmental assessment for Taseko had already been approved provincially in much more detail and the over-ruling of the approval by the Conservatives was state central planning politicians at ‘work’.

The Conservative Party policy is consistently one of central state planning of the economy: so it seems the much discussed coalition is actually the Conservatives and NDP not the Liberals and the NDP.