corrente

There are still places in the world that take accountability seriously. Really.

Thanks to a garden-variety corruption scandal involving the Chretien administration that, near as I can tell, Paul Martin had no part in, Canadians have been staring at the prospect of yet another snap election as Liberal approval ratings plummet.

But now folks seem to be having second toughts. The reason: the other guy.

But a flurry of public-opinion polls in the past several days -- all showing that sharp Tory gains last month have evaporated, leaving the Liberals narrowly ahead -- appear to have given some MPs pause.

A key theme of the polls is that many Canadians remain leery of [Tory leader] Mr. [Stephen] Harper, suspecting him of having a so-called hidden agenda to the right of his stated views.

(via Globe and Mail)

Not a compassionate conservative after all? Really? Ya think? Tell us more:

In Calgary, Health Minister Ujjal Dosanjh unleashed a harsh personal attack on Mr. Harper, playing on perceived vulnerabilities that have emerged in polls over the past week.

Canadians shouldn't believe that medicare "will be safe in the hands of someone who has devoted his entire career to dismantling and destroying it," Mr. Dosanjh told a conference hosted by the Friends of Medicare. He added that the country is "rightly suspicious of Mr. Harper's hidden agenda."

Is there, like, an exception in NAFTA for common sense? Some kind of tariff on importing skepticism? Because it would, you know, explain alot about the discussion of Social Security "reform" down here, and the conspiracy of silence about stating the fucking obvious concerning those pushing it.