The Triumphant Triumvirate

Stephane Dion, speaking directly on public radio to the Canadian people, claims that the coalition he has engineered truly represents the will of the people. Whereas the election just passed one and a half months earlier, purportedly does not. An election where the electorate resoundingly rejected Mr. Dion's aspirations to the prime ministership of Canada, finding him severely wanting in every respect.

Mr. Dion claims that the coalition represents a wide swath of the country, and will advantage Canada. But Canada is not and has never been governed by a coalition of failed political parties.

Mr. Dion speaks of the various countries of the world where coalition governments prevail. But Canada does not have an electoral system of proportional representation. We did, in fact, have a vote on partial proportional representation, and the people spoke, emphatically turning down that option, preferring to stay with the first-past-the-post system.

A system which, true to its nature, brought the Conservative-led government of Prime Minister Stephen Harper back with an increased minority, just bordering on a thin majority. Rejecting handily the electoral overtures of the parties now comprising the "coalition" which has taken it upon themselves to bring a vote of non-confidence against the government.

Throwing Parliament into disarray and a disorder far worse than what occurred in the last dysfunctional parliamentary session.

At a critical time in the history of the country, when we are facing the very real possibility - not yet arrived - of recession. The country remains in fairly good fiscal health; the pulse on the GDP is strong, as is employment and retail sales. They will be inexorably tipped into hysteria thanks to the self-empowering antics of the opposition parties hungering for power and resorting to questionably legitimate tactics to attain their end.

The leader of the secessionist Parti Quebecois, Gilles Duceppe, currently glowing with satisfaction at the invitation extended to him to support the plans of the two other parties in the coalition of the greedy, just recently announced on the possibility of supporting a minority government led by Liberal leader Stephane Dion: "That would be a bit like writing political fiction. It's against our nature, we are a sovereigntist party."

And with what glee does he now hand his (expensive) support to the coalition. Enlarging his reputation and credibility within Quebec, assuring the Bloc Quebecois a happier marriage between itself and the provincial electorate come the next opportunity. And causing great jubilation among the ranks of the provincial separatist political party.

And the leader of Canada's self-availing Liberal Party, Stephane Dion, pronounced thusly on a previous occasion of Jack Layton, his current partner in the coup: He "does not understand the economy. I cannot think that Canadians will give their support to a man who will kill jobs everywhere in the country in raising the corporate tax... If you were worried about your savings, your pension, your mortgages, if you are worried about your jobs, then think twice before voting for Jack Layton."

Yet should the coup be ultimately successful, the NDP will be availed of governing opportunities at the federal level never before favoured it. In the new Cabinet that the new prime minister will appoint - consulting with Mr. Layton and Mr. Duceppe - six posts will be allocated to the NDP. And to ensure that the coalition remains intact, NDP demands will receive a level of respect higher than ever heretofore attained.

Then there is the doughty leader of the New Democratic Party, Jack Layton, whose opinion of Stephane Dion, whom he now happily supports read latterly: "You can't walk away from 43 confidence motions where you supported Mr. [Stephen] Harper and claim somehow that you're now going to lead some kind of a progressive group. It's not on. People won't buy it... His policies, your responsibility... If you can't do your job as leader of the Opposition, I don't know what you're doing running for prime minister."

Amazing what a difference opportunity makes. Now these three former enemies are suddenly staunch allies, delighted to be singing from the same hymnal. And how long will this mutual bliss and understanding last? Long enough for them to collectively take the country into deep debt? And what happens when one of the three suddenly realizes that they no longer gain sufficiently from the pact, and leaves?

Who picks up the shambles then? And who, ultimately pays the steep price of that collective ignorance and arrogance?