I cannot ever recall as busy a time in Canadian politics as the last few months. Two more stories to add to the fray today: the Green Party is now a serious force to be reckoned with, and on the weekend, look out for Stéphane Dion. Add Kennedy's stance on Québec = nation, and you have the makings of a totally unpredictable weekend. And let's not forget the Alberta PCs!
As for the debate tonight on TVO, it went well and I'll be curious to see the feedback in comments. Andrew Coyne is very passionate about this -- more so than I -- and so is Tom Axworthy. But the bottom line for me is that their position -- favouring the status quo -- is a recipe for neverending discussion of this issue and a continuation of the tiring dominance of la question nationale in the Canadian debate. Trudeaupian Utopianism, as I called it tonight, tries to fit all parts of Canada into a fancy theoretical framework that is not grounded in reality. That vision is out-of-sync with today's francophone Québec and many younger and new Canadians. It ensures the Bloc continues to get half the Québec seats and that the PQ is the second provincial party in Québec.
Andrew is correct to say the Canadian constitution is legitimate and applies in Québec. But as we know, and as I said on TV, in politics, perception is reality. The reality in Québec is that there is a sense of unfinished constitutional business. Someday, sometime -- maybe not even in this lifetime -- the issue will have to be confronted, and the status quo won't do.
The motion has passed now, and we'll have to see the fallout.
UPDATE: The video from last night's show is up -- click on "Tom Axworthy -- The Politics of Nationalism" on the left-hand side.
MUST READ: Yes! Yes! Yes! Someone else agrees with me on this. (Via Staples.)
# posted by Adam Daifallah : 12:00 AM
