Australian Left, Canadian Right, "Boat People" And "Red Tories"

Lawrence Martin believes that Canada has undergone a shocking transformation.

The Canada we know was a blend of the centre and the centre-left. Now it’s a hybrid of the centre and the hard right,

- he claims in his Globe and Mail article. Hard right? Now, that is ridiculous. Here is a brief rebuttal from Suzanne:

Is there an abortion ban yet? Has the deficit been paid down and the CBC been sold?

No?

Then it's hardly a party of the hard right.

Suzanne is perfectly right about that. If anything I doubt if we even have a political "right" (or even a "center-right") in Canada. Let's take a look at this example:

Here’s a warning for bogus Tamil refugees made by the Australian Prime Minister, Julia Gillard, just before she called an election last month:

“Do not pay a people smuggler, do not risk your life, only to arrive in Australian waters and find that you are far, far more likely than anything else to be quickly sent home by plane.”

Gillard does more than just talk tough to Tamil gatecrashers.

Australia is now in negotiations with East Timor, New Zealand and the United Nations about setting up a “regional processing centre” where intercepted ships will be taken.

“Arriving by boat would just be a ticket back to the regional processing centre,” warned Gillard.

Right now, refugee applicants are processed on a remote Australian island called Christmas Island, where they’re held until their cases are heard.

Gillard wants to go one better — outsource the job to other countries. Why not?

Her plan is pretty simple. If someone’s refugee claim was rejected, they’d be sent home. And if a refugee claim were found to be legitimate, that refugee would be resettled — but in a safe third country, not necessarily in Australia.

There are plenty of friendly countries in the neighbourhood where Tamils don’t have to worry about being picked on, as they claim they are in Sri Lanka.

Australia would pay those countries to resettle Tamils — a lot cheaper than giving them five-star treatment in Australia. They’ll take some, sure. But they’ll choose which ones.
...
Oh, by the way: Gillard is with the Labour Party — they’re the soft-on-immigration party.

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So, that's the Australian left. Obviously, it can't compare not just to the Canadian left, but also to what some still regard as the "center". Yes, I'm talking about the Liberals and their leader who believes that unlike Australia, "Canada has principles", that Canada's "international obligations" should take precedence over the nation's interests and that the Charter compels the government to offer these refugees a five-star treatment in Canada while their applications for asylum are being processed.

But what about Canada's only major right-of-center Federal party? Can we look forward for the governing Conservatives to come up with an initiative which goes even half as far as the one put forward by the Australian Labor PM? Of course not! First, they wouldn't dare to come up with any initiatives that may displease the ethnic communities in the three largest urban areas, whose votes are badly needed. Then, even if they dare to make even a baby step in that direction, they'll feel the wrath of all the Lawrence Martins out there, for whom anyone who doesn't toe their line on immigration and multi-cult is a fascist, a racist, a redneck, a bigot etc.

So, it turns out, Lawrence Martin doesn't really have worry about Canada becoming a "hybrid of the centre and the hard right". Sure, the Conservative party may actually appear somewhat right wing when compared to Ignatieff's Liberals. But not when compared to the Australian Labor. Instead of crying for the "red Tories" which "have no voice", L.Martin should have checked out the biographies of the National Council members and of the directors of the riding associations and figure out how many of them started their careers in the old Federal PC party or in its provincial branches. He would be pleasantly surprised. As for the other "moderate Tories" whom Lawrence Martin misses so much - well, he knows exactly where they went:

• Jean Charest, who led the PCs following their demise - is now a Liberal Premier of Quebec.
• Belinda Stronach, the pro-abortion, anti-marriage Conservative leadership contestant - a Liberal.
• Joe Clark, former PM and a two-time PC leader - endorsed the Liberals in 2004, then (finally) retired from politics.
• Scott Brison, who sought the PC leadership in 2003 - a Liberal.
• David Orchard, another PC leadership contestant of 2003 - also a Liberal.
• Garth Turner, who sought the PC leadership in 1993 and later served in Kim Campbell's cabinet and on her campaign team - returned to politics in 2006, lashed out at the Conservative electorate, ended up crossing the floor to the Liberals.

Those are the people Lawrence Martin wants to come back and take over the Conservative party. Back in the 1990s and early 2000s, Martin and his colleagues did everything they could to destroy Canada's political right, using all their influence and the power of their media outlets to make the success of the Reform (and then the Alliance) look like failure, compelling them to make more and more concessions to the "red Tories". Now, Martin & Co are troubled by the very thought that the Canadian right might have a chance of rebirth.