Second Thots

Sometimes one has to step back, take pause, and have some "second thots"

Wednesday, February 14, 2007

 

Fixed election dates


I see we have another characterization of fixed election dates as the "Americanization of our politics." Funny, there has been no greater Americanization of our system than the creation of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, yet it's considered one of the great things about Canada. Go figure. That a democratic reform is attacked because it's "American" is usually a sign that the attackers don't have much material to deal with, by the way.

Fixed election dates simply take away the abuse of power that inevitably occurs when governments set their own election dates. They almost always call them to catch the opposition off guard. They almost never call them in the best interest of the country or province.

I believe the federal landscape would look different today if Liberals didn't call three elections within the span of seven years, for example. Heck, Stockwell Day might have even had a chance, which is why the Liberals called an election before giving him one.

Do we get longer election campaigns as a result? Boo hooo. It's democracy. Political parties are always campaigning anyhow. This just makes the playing field a lot fairer, which I'm sure Liberals are generally not used to. Too bad.


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