Political junkies must have wet themselves when Prime Minister Stephen Harper dropped the writ on August 2.
We weren’t nearly as excited, though.
In fact, we groaned aloud after hearing it was going to be an 11-week election campaign leading up to the October 19 vote.
Oh, the agony of it all.
Get ready for a long and bitter fight, huge spending, and endless promises that will disappear once the ballots are counted.
Harper has served three terms and is looking to score a fourth. If he does, the first thing he’ll buy on his shopping list will be bigger muzzles for his cabinet ministers (since he likes to keep them quiet).
During this election, the candidates will tell you exactly what you want to hear – more jobs, more health care spending and fewer taxes. It’s almost like canned laughter from those old sitcoms we used to watch; you expect it and you know it’s coming.
But we have an obligation to ask tough questions, and the Oliver Chronicle and Osoyoos Times will do just that during the campaign.
One such question will touch on the national park and how the candidates view its importance in the South Okanagan.
Another will be how to better protect the public against prolific offenders like Ronald Teneycke.
We don’t need to hear how each party is killing the economy or our social programs; we need to hear how each party plans to bring prosperity to Canada and how victims will be given more rights than offenders.
A news release from the Conservative government last week stated that Harper would not tax Netflix. Wow, that should definitely secure his fourth term in office.
Forget about Netflix, people. Get off your butts and put the government and these would-be politicians to task.
Let’s focus on the important stuff, like clamping down on free-riding Senators and the perks that are draining the public purse.
Canada needs a new prime minister, a new governing party that will truly reflect what Canadians want. They want a health care system that is there when they need it (don’t tell them to “take a number” and wait). They want a chance to make a decent living for their families without stressing over oppressive taxes. (No wonder so many people try to cheat the system because the government makes it so difficult to get ahead.)
Voters have become so jaded about politics in Canada that many have painted it with the same disgruntled brush.
Can Justin Trudeau (Liberal) or Thomas Mulcair (NDP) do any better than the Harper regime? If you care, you’d best see what they have to offer.
Our local candidates in the South Okanagan-West Kootenay riding have already been door-knocking for your vote.
Marshall Neufeld (Conservatives), Connie Denesiuk (Liberal) and Richard Cannings (NDP) want to make a difference, so put them to task.
You hold the power now.
