Buzz speaks out
On the NDP, Reform and the doughnut of Canadian politics
Dear Alexa McDonough:
I see the New Democratic Party narrowly missed becoming the Old Democratic Party last weekend when almost 40 per cent of the party faithful at the annual conference voted to evolve into a more left-wing party. It’s a shame the idea didn’t fly, but I guess left-wingers have as much trouble embracing change and letting go of the past as us folks on the right.
The party obviously wasn’t ready for such a change (it may never be), but as we once-proud Reformers know, these movements for change can be irrepressible. This is a choice you will face again. Next time, listen to the seductive song of change with your heart, not your head.
I know all this is going to sound strange coming from a born and raised prairie conservative such as myself, but I understand the tug and pull of principles versus success in politics. Canada’s political periphery, left or right, is too damn important to lose. It’s the only thing keeping this country from sinking into complete political mediocrity.
You must do whatever it takes to stay away from the evil darkness that lurks at the centre of Canadian politics. Moving away from the centre of the political spectrum to gain more voters is counter-intuitive. It will not help you win elections, but it will save your soul. Look at the Canadian Alliance’s efforts to move towards the middle, and be thankful that dark path was not proposed for the NDP.
The NDP is staring into the same vote-sucking black hole in the middle of Canada’s political spectrum, known as the Liberal party, as the Reform Party once did. If your faithful stare into that dark and evil place long enough, they, too, will be driven to the evolutionary madness that caused perfectly rational conservatives to abandon their principles for the golden calf of electoral success.
Like the rest of us, you have watched the trials and tribulations of the Alliance, née Reform, as it evolved into the political force it is today. Looking at it from the inside, I can tell you it is a hollow shell. Without the principled foundations of the Reform Party, all that is left is a political party where the selfish and greedy fight with each other for no other purpose than power.
That has always seemed to work fine for Liberals or Progressive Conservatives, but it’s not for those of us on the periphery. We, the few and the brave on both the left and right, who believe politics is about principles – not leaders’ egos, election results or the size of your financial contributions – are doomed to wander the desert for a few more years.
Be wary of the paths you tread, for both heading to the centre and heading to the periphery hold danger. The move to the left is meant to make the NDP the party of choice for young activists. It will, but there isn’t much of an upside to that constituency. Despite the hysterical efforts of the media, only a small proportion of young folk become activists and even fewer remain activated throughout their lives.
You worry about doing anything to the party that would threaten your special relationship with Canada’s labour unions. They are the financial foundation, but even that is looking shaky these days with the NDP-union tithe system on the chopping block. If the unions stop requiring all their members to contribute to the NDP, you will be forced to evolve in a hurry to fill that financial void. So, will it be left or right?
The answer, my friend, is a doughnut. The fried lump of lard and flour is not only the little piece of heaven that gets us Canadians through the day, it is the solution to the political riddle afflicting Canada. There is nothing in the middle and only dull, fatty dough surrounding it. Nibbling on the edges, as the NDP and now the Alliance are attempting, does not satisfy your hunger, change the doughnut or differentiate you from all the other hungry doughnut-nibblers.
At one time the NDP and then the Reform were the glaze, the sprinkles, the chocolate coating that defined the flavour of Canadian politics. Sure, we weren’t in the fight for the substance, but we gave the doughnut flair and were the reason voters wanted a taste.
It is time for both sides to return to our raison d’être and work on a new glaze for Canadian politics. Do not fear change, it is what the left- and right-wings are here to create.
Here’s to fighting the power,
Buzz Angus
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