Harper Not "Right-Wing" Enough

Harper Not "Right-Wing" Enough

As Paul Martin continues to beat on the only Liberal campaign bongo remaining - that Stephen Harper is a right-wing ideologue who would turn Canada into a neo-conservative utopia - one should pause to reflect on how far to the right the current Conservative platform actually is.

Let's see: give families $1200 a year for child care; guarantee a maximum wait time in a publicly funded national healthcare system; add $500 million a year to further subsidize an already heavily subsidized agricultural industry (from 1991-2000 for every $1 farmers earned they were provided with $3.76 in provincial/federal subsidies) - does this sound more like a conservative or a socialist platform?

The fact is, there is no truly neo-conservative political party in Canada (except perhaps the Alberta Alliance - stay tuned). The environment for such an organization does not yet exist as the Canadian public is very much to the left of center and will remain there without a full commitment on the part of proud "right-wing ideologues" to shift public opinion to the rational right.

The Conservative Party of Canada in its current form is exactly what the Canadian public is demanding from their government. As prime minister of Canada, Stephen Harper will provide Canadians with a clean, social democratic government with enough "right-wing ideology" mixed in to keep it from falling apart.

What is truly frightening is the fact that Paul Martin considers the Conservative party to be staunchly right-wing. What horrors did this knuckle-headed leftist have in mind if he actually had won a majority government? The thought is enough to drive even the most ardent right-wing athiest into the comfort of the Lord's prayer.