| Dear Mother:
The latest speech from the throne and Premier Ralph Klein’s state-of-the-province address made my blood boil. They were so close together, Mitzy had to turn off the electric blanket in the middle of a cold snap. Never in my life has so much following been dressed up to look like so much leadership.
Prime Minister Paul Martin and Klein will be glad they can win the next election running backwards. Their governments’ agendas consist entirely of reinstating, restoring, renewing and reassuring. Reinventing has been given yet another one-year holiday.
You always said success in politics is about figuring out where the pack is going and running to the front before everyone else. I am not ready to admit you were right. I still cling to the faith that politics is the business of electing leaders.
This is a faith these two speeches did little to sustain. They were only remarkable for their similarities. The two governments fight like jealous brothers over the details of health, the environment, education and the nature of our confederation. Yet their "visions" (their claim, not mine) are so promiscuous you can find them on almost any street corner looking for a friend.
Granted, neither Martin nor Klein ever took credit for the so-called vision. The words "I believe" do not appear in either text. All the values in the two speeches were prefaced with either "Albertans believe" or "Canadians hold dear." Even if we Canadians and Albertans hold the truths our politicians utter as self-evident, we do not practice any of these values. They grabbed our own hypocrisy and turned it into a political truth.
The speeches reminded me of New Year’s resolutions. A once-a-year moment of clarity when questions of identity and purpose fade and we believe we can actually change what we are into what others value. When the questions return and the way ahead becomes less clear, the resolutions become painful reminders of what will never be.
Both speeches were opinion poll top-ten lists dressed up as new agendas. Klein and Martin were feeding our own fears back to us as action plans. The tone throughout both speeches was frugal posturing with a hint of astute spending; the caring economic man. They gave us the same values, although Klein was more concise, giving us fiscal responsibility, compassion for those in need, efficient public services, facing problems head on and a commitment to a better future.
Fiscal responsibility means not spending more than you have. Something Canadians have failed to do for years. Personal debt has never been higher. Personal bankruptcies have gone up 13 per cent a year since the ’60s. Much of the personal debt helped fill government bank accounts and build Martin and Klein’s reputations, often mentioned in the speeches, as debt slayers.
Canadians fared better on the compassion scale. We certainly talk about it; action is another matter. Only 10 per cent of us managed to fork out more than $200 in charitable donations last year. Of course this number does not include our most popular charitable act, gambling.
And then there is your favourite kissing-baby catch-all of commitment to a better future. We are just not sold on having to do much about it. Unlike your day, Mom, Canadians are not putting money away for a rainy day. Less than three per cent of our income goes into savings. We do value the environment – we say so every time a pollster comes by to ask – but we have trouble doing much about it. We rank second last to the U.S. among developed countries in almost every indicator of environmental management, although we appear to be improving.
I did my word counts to find the real agenda just like you taught me. Klein’s state-of-the-province address rings pessimistic despite his brief claims to being Canada’s economic powerhouse. Albertans have more challenges than opportunities, a count of nine to seven, and have to be more determined. Martin gave Canadians three opportunities for every challenge, but requires no determination. Our prime minister gave us no hope either. Our premier gave it to us seven times.
I will give Klein credit. His speech was straightforward and short. He gave us less detail, but also less vacant political prose. Martin’s first throne speech started with some stomach-turning oratory before giving way to a workmanlike list of previously announced plans. I will, unfortunately, have to spend the rest of the year considering the possibilities of being a mature nation with an enlarged ambition moving forward to express its true values. Mitzy tells me the dry cleaners will charge extra if any of the values expressed by my ambition happen to stain my pants.
Yours in enlarged ambition,
Buzz
Web resources
The speech from the throne – www.pm.gc.ca/grfx/docs/sft_fe2004_e.pdf
Klein’s address – www.gov.ab.ca/Premier/address2004/Premier_Address.pdf
Canada’s personal financial troubles – www.statcan.ca/Daily/English/020718/d020718h.htm
Living for today or saving for tomorrow? – www.vifamily.ca/library/profiling2/partii60.html
Canada’s environmental record – www.ubcpress.ca/books/pdf/chapters/unnaturallaw/chap1.pdf |
Copyright ©2004 FFWD. All rights reserved.