Friday, May 27, 2016

The Con Convention and the Foul Legacy of Stephen Harper



It was as ghastly as I had imagined. The tacky tribute video looked as if it had been put together by the same Cons who brought us the Porky Action Plan.

But it did bring back horrible memories of the way Stephen Harper loomed over us for so long, trying to brainwash us into submission.

While he brutalized this country, its democracy, and its values, over and over again.

But still won't admit it.




For in his final speech to his shattered Con cult, and the rest of us, there were no apologies.

Just a desperate effort to put lipstick on his legacy.  

Stephen Harper broke his lengthy public silence Thursday night to bid farewell to the Conservative Party he created and led for more than 11 years, delivering what amounted to a motivational speech for a political organization still adjusting to life on the opposition benches and uncertain on what it might take to unseat Justin Trudeau.


“It was thanks to you that we were able to cut taxes to their lowest level in 50 years and put dollars back into the pockets of families … to get tough on crime, to rebuild our military, to vastly expand Canada’s global free-trade access [and] to witness the decline of Quebec separatism and Western alienation,” he said. “And to stand up as a country and take principled positions in a dangerous world.”


Even though his legacy couldn't be more foul or more porky...



And as if that wasn't bad enough, then there was the long parade of Cons also lining up to try to buff Harper's tarnished legacy, and glorify his place in Canadian history. 

He’s going to be seen as one of the most successful Canadian prime ministers in Canadian history. It’s going to be a legacy that history will shine upon.

With Tony Clement contributing that shiny turd. And Marjory LeBreton contributing this comic relief.

It was a scandal-free government. There were no billion-dollar boondoggles, or cost overruns on gun registries.

It was our government that brought in proactive disclosure in the name of transparency, and shone the light where it had never been shone before.


Even though the Con regime was the most morally corrupt, secretive and sinister government in Canadian history....



It's leader was a politically depraved maniac. And if there is any justice the verdict of history should be a harsh one.

But what's even more depressing and disgusting is to see how the massive Postmedia conglomerate is continuing its campaign to try to rehabilitate Harper's sordid reputation. 

Like Michael Den Tandt does here. 

Stephen J. Harper was a good prime minister — a smart, basically decent, hard-working guy who, for all his flaws, left the country better than he found it. If you say that publicly these days, be prepared to tuck and roll. Even some former Harper stalwarts will grouse about his legacy now, if you corner them privately. As for the Twitteratti, don’t even go there. 

Yet the record will show Harper was, indeed, a better-than-fair steward, in a long line of Canadian prime ministers sharing similar traits — and considerably more moderate than his critics have long contended.

Who not only claims that Harper was a good and moderate Prime Minister. When he was exactly the opposite.

But also seems to shrug off the damage that would be dictator did to our democracy, as mere collateral damage...



Tone, and the democratic deficit? Well, yes. There is that. The tone under Harper was often corrosive and it got worse as time marched on. The ads were often cruel, the digs at opponents personal, the attacks on institutions — including the Parliamentary Budget Office, a Conservative creation, and the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court — self-defeating.

Nobody, before or after the decision to kill the mandatory long-form census in 2010, was ever able to explain it. Harper did not shoulder personal responsibility during the Mike Duffy mess. The party’s descent into the politics of the niqab last fall was deplorable and disastrous. All granted.

When it was the worst thing he ever did, and it alone should condemn him. 

But yes, the Con media are trying to buff Harper's legacy, and the Cons themselves are planning to put up 40 more billboards like this one all over the country...



In yet another attempt to brainwash us into believing that Harper was a great leader.

And we must not let them succeed. We must fight back as some are already doing on this site set up to thank Great Leader.


We must remind Canadians who that monster really was, and what he did to our country..

How he corrupted everything he touched.

And as he leaves the building for the last time.

Make sure that his foul legacy pursues him forever...



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21 comments:

Anonymous said...

The corporate media said wonderful things about W Bush shortly after he left office. Now, even conservative pundits pretend his two terms never happened and the presumptive GOP presidential candidate openly criticizes his disastrous policies. I expect the same will happen with Steve - the Worst PM Evah!

Dan said...

Thank you Stevie for running an inept tone deaf election campaign, for taking out Mulcair and for underestimating your most hated opponent in the biggest Canadian political upset ever.

Nadine Lumley said...

Thank God it's over.......

thank you lord jesus

Anonymous said...

My goal in life is to pull that rug off his head....... I also had great pleasure canceling my shit paper the Edmonton Urinal. Fuck you Postmedia, and fuck you Steve Harpo.

Anonymous said...

Just a short term ploy by the ReformaCons to put enough lipstick on the pig to hold the party together during the leadership selection process. No one wants to support a looser so presto Stevie and his gang were winners and the sun will shine again tomorrow once the Canadian electorate come to their senses.Hopefully the progressive Tories will not buy that as it is Canada's loss if they do.We need to get back to managing the important issues and seek out win-win solutions not that divisive and quasi religious bullshit the ReformaCons are mired in.
RT

Anonymous said...

Meh... when most Canadians think of Paul Martin they think of Sponsorship Scandal so much for his legacy.

Omar said...

If one of those billboards goes up in my neighbourhood I will deface it. Take that to the bank.

Scotian said...

I already spent the past day and a half beating back this crap at Kinsella's site (yes, I know, it is a dirty job but someone needs doing it) and I will easily do so for the rest of my life. One thing about the idea that he wasn't the extremist we were led to expect. Harper was able to use the fear of Harper the hidden socon secret agenda to hide from most people, but not me, that his TRUE secret agenda was something far worse, and that was wholesale abuse of power, corruption of the basic civic structures of government, and his best attempt to undo the most basic works of PET such as the Charter and the role the courts play in our system since the repatriation of the Constitution and the introduction of the Charter and it being passed not just through Parliament but also the Provincial legislatures making it impossible to change without the Provinces being onboard.

This was one of the main points I kept hitting back in 2005, and which I was using the Grewal recordings fraud to show what the TRUE risks of a Harper PM could and would be, and why I was making such a big stink over them at the time, they were a clear fore-teller of what we could expect, and what we saw with Cadman later that year only proved I was right to be so concerned in this regard! In many ways he would have been a LESS destructive PM if he had just been the socon extremist many had been conned into believing was his true nature (not least the socons in the Conservative base), but no, he was someone whose core political beliefs were profoundly anti-democratic (as the Calgary School being disciples of Leo Strauss clearly were taught to be) and his naked contempt for the idea that the average citizen was qualified let alone had any business believing they should have any say on government policy was so offensive to our system that even Preston Manning back in the Reform days had major arguments with Harper over this point, and Harper's refusal to accept Manning's POV that public participation in policy development was important was a major factor in why Harper left Reform then to join the NCC where he continued to suck up to the most extreme elements in the American right wig movement.

No, Harper's legacy will not be treated kindly by history no matter how much the attempts to make him appear better are tried right now, being the only Westminsterian PM to ever be formally charged with contempt of Parliament will help make sure of that, and I suspect that will be taught not just here in Canada but in other Westminsterian Parliamentary governed nations because of its precedent that it set, being the first of its kind. Not to mention there will be you, and I and many others, including I am certain academics who care more about honesty and process than any partisanship, and what Harper did to try and unravel the basic fabric of Canada on the process side will be the work of many dissertations for decades to come!

Harper will be as well treated by history as George Walker Bush will be, albeit for different reasons. Actually thinking back on that, it is possible GWB will get some better treatment, as he was more of a dupe than the architect of the worst crap his Administration did, that was Cheney, a fellow Straussian with Harper.

Anonymous said...

That was a shiny turd indeed Simon. Googly eyed Clement keeps on kissing Harper's ass as a thank you to for winning the 50 million dollar lottery way back when and Lebreton must be senile for claiming they were scandal free. What a joke, what a legacy, so long Stevie. Here's hoping the door hits you on the way out.
JD

Anonymous said...

Key to never letting this happen again is to expose this fraud for what he is.

TS

David said...

http://www.pressprogress.ca/place_your_bets_here_are_the_odds_on_the_cpc_leadership_candidates

David said...

Here's a 9 part summary of Harper's foul legacy:

https://web.archive.org/web/20151223001011/http://operationmaple.ca/harper-non-answer-generator.html

David said...

Steve - the Worst PM Evah!

Part 1
http://www.nationalobserver.com/2015/05/18/news/harper-worst-prime-minister-history

Part 2
http://www.nationalobserver.com/2015/06/07/news/harper-worst-prime-minister-history-part-two

Archive:
http://www.nationalobserver.com/special-reports/assessing-stephen-harper

David said...

What Harper said:

"I know friends, that throughout all these efforts, ours will continue to be the party of those who work hard, who play by the rules and are struggling to raise a family in an uncertain world."

What Harper cut:

"I know friends [ I can’t even get my friends to like me ] that throughout all these efforts, ours will continue to be the party of those who work hard [ and have the highest incomes with stay-at-home spouses ] who play by the rules [ unless you are like our party's former spokesman on ethics, Dean Del Mastro ] and are struggling to raise a
[ rich, two parent ] family in an uncertain [ and dangerous, an ever more dangerous ] world."

http://www.nationalobserver.com/2016/05/27/news/transcript-harper-goes-out-blazing-comet-final-speech

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/editorials/the-year-in-review-has-harper-gone-from-leader-to-liability/article22212088/

http://ottawacitizen.com/news/politics/live-former-mp-dean-del-mastro-to-be-sentenced-today-has-filed-appeal

http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/canada-election-2015-stephen-harper-isis-stump-speech-1.3213686

Anonymous said...

AS THEY SAY....."THE ONLY GOOD TORY IS A SUPPOSITORY" FS

Anonymous said...

Love your last image "THE END"!!!!!! I'll vape to that one Simon. Hope Toronto Police don't read this.... I will become a "safety concern" for vaping in my own home!!!!!!! FS

Anonymous said...

Anon 9:22am..... hear ye, hear ye, I like how you added the "Fuck you Postmedia" into your Harper farewell comment. Both are related my friend. Both going down at the same time. Goodbyes can be such great pleasures!!!! FS

Anonymous said...

I'm with you 100% Scotian. Whenever someone brings up Harper or his politics, I tell them that unlike the BS they have been fed by the media, I knew Harper at the U of C, and that goes for his mentor Tom Flannagan too. Then the people I speak to pay more attention than they otherwise would.

When I have their attention I tell them the true story of Harper. Bottom Line: There has never been a PM in Canadian history who was more ill-suited for the job, in terms of character, personality, intellect, experience, and ideology. He displayed all the characteristics of a true sociopath while in office.

We are lucky as a nation that he did not do more damage during his reign of terror. I tell my kids and grandkids the whole sordid story so that they never forget how Canada elected its first and hopefully its last dictator.

Let us all tell the story of how we survived during the darkest age in Canadian history, so that future generations don't have to piss away 10 years of their lives under a Canadian -style dictatorship ever again.

e.a.f. said...

What else can they say but nice things. They were complicit in his reign of terror. If they say bad things about Steve, then they say bad things about themselves.

it was appropriate and funny the convention was held in Vancouver, B.C. the province which hired a lot of his old staff which are now running the same type of commercials the Cons did. We can only hope the B.C. photo op queen meets the same fate Steve did.

jrkrideau said...

Just another example of Harper's general incompetence?

David said...

Michael Harris (Party of One) thinks Harper's true character can be summed up in one word: amoral. The interview with Harris was on TVOntario.