Stop!

"Money and the ethnic vote," said Jacques Parizeau

Here we go all over again.

Take the person who dislikes you the most, your rival at work, the nagging relative that never thought much of you, the disapproving neighbor, the person at school who is always making negative remarks about you and have them review your work and publicize their findings. Regardless of what you did, they will make it sound bad. The minor error will become the catastrophic flaw and evidence of loose morals. The complex decisions will be reduced to simplistic and factually inaccurate condemnations.

That is what Michael Fortier, the Conservative muck-raker in Quebec and backroom boy, has announced today. A separatist, Daniel Paillle, from the old Parizeau cabinet will be investigating the polling practices of the federal government within a very limited time frame that almost exclusively targets the Chretien years. The Parizeau government undertook extensive public consultations at the taxpayers expense. They polled. The separatists even used public funds, stashed away for such an occasion, to prop up the Canadian dollar during the referendum. And don’t get me started about the greatest fraud in a democracy, the votes from “ethnic” ridings that were tossed in the garbage on referendum night.

Let’s be clear. There is no impartiality in this investigation. It is not about improving government. It is an attempt to revive the ancient grudge once again. And it will cost $750,000 if not more to indulge in this nakedly partisan manuever. Harper can then commission a poll to see if this "strategy" was effective.

The federal government polled Quebeckers extensively about the clarity act during this period, the courageous legislation that formalizes how to deal with the eventuality of a sovereignist victory in a referendum. The separatists will have a field day attacking Canada with this. The Conservatives really do not know what they are doing if they think that the criticism will be contained to the Liberals. The separatists want to separate from Canada (including english Conservatives from Alberta).

The fiercely emotional allegations…the pettiness…the half-truths…

Here we go all over again.

Stop!

Stop with the tricks and do something real about the environment or health care.