Elusive Ethics
Is it a question of elusive ethics on the part of the once seeingly-straight-up (albeit colourless) character of Prime Minister Stephen Harper whose personal rectitude was never in question, yet now is? If so, and I would certainly say it is undeniable that this man's ethical behaviour has been brought into question of late, the catalyst for this about-face in public opinion comes from his own lack of perception, that what we see is what we believe.There's little doubt that Mr. Harper has kept a tight ship, both as leader of his party and now as the newly-minted Prime Minister of Canada. But it hasn't been any of his Members of Parliament and Cabinet members who have slipped up (with some obvious exceptions), but himself. From where I sit he appears to have developed an instant, more casual outlook on ethics. Seeming to believe, and even publicly articulating so, that as prime minister he has the authority to do as he will.
Yes, he may indeed have that authority, and may also in the legal prosecution of that authority appear to be a trifle lacking in wisdom, but what he is succeeding admirably in doing is making more of us believe that this former champion of truth and justice is neither. That having achieved the pinnacle that he laboured so mightily to ascend, the bar has been lowered and he is allowing himself the luxury of behaving just as badly as his much-criticized (chiefly by him) predecessors. Same old, same old. Trust politicians? Ha, and more ha.
Here we have the chief governing officer of this country thumbing his nose at the high level of expectations which he himself led us to believe would be a result of his ascent to power. Everything above board, no flaunting of the rules, gone the democratic deficit. The Senate would be reformed, no more sleazy political shenanigans. Good grief, we're right back where we started. Imagine, did we expect otherwise?
A personal friend and political supporter who just didn't feel like upsetting his life/style by bothering to run for elected office brought on board anyway; spirited into the Senate, gifted with a Cabinet position. Hey, just like magic. The enticement of a Cabinet position dangled before a successful, promising high-profile candidate on the other slate resulting in an immediate post-election cross-over. No apologies, no hems and haws, this was done, he avers stonily to achieve the best possible results for Canada, for Canadians. Gee, thanks.
This Prime Minister appears not to be above flicking a finger of dismissal at one of Parliament's distinguished officers set in place for the very task of ensuring ethical conduct be pursued by all who venture into those sacrosanct corridors as elected representatives of We The People. The Ethics Commissioner's request for explanation of the Emmerson affair has been summarily dismissed with the tag of being irrelevant; this from an erstwhile crusader for ethics in government.
That's the diminishment in opinion of the public persona. What about the private one, the guy who loves his kids, walks them to school, profers a formal handshake into the day ahead. What about that really nice guy who likes and enjoys cats in his close environment? Dang! anyone who likes animals has just got to be a good guy.
Whoops, along comes this nasty little staffing issue and we do a double take. This up-front, Honest John appears to have behaved rather questionably toward a member of his household staff. And that's a shame. Really. Summarily dismissing, without stated cause, a gentleman of the kitchen who has gone out of his way to serve his employers well. To the extent that he accepted the professional humiliation of having his services truncated, hived off to do duty as a baby-sitter, chauffeur, vehicle attendant, pet undertaker. All undertaken as commanded without complaint in an effort to ingratiate himself with his employer. To no avail.
Mr. Harper has developed an instant authoritarianism, he feels no compulsion to explain himself, for he is numero uno in the House of Commons. Should he continue on in this vein, his emerging vanity may yet trip him up, the results being a long and hard fall. I can hardly wait.
posted by Pieface @ Monday, March 13, 2006
<< Home