Re - Following government leadership?

Travers McCord | Sep 02, 2020

I read, with increasing disquiet, the letter to the editor regarding the federal government in your latest edition (2020-08-30).

While I share Mr. Balogh’s concern regarding ethical breaches, his inflammatory language poorly serves his cause. It is concerning that he contrasts lawful public health measures taken by duly elected officials with “desecrating the hundreds of thousands” of Canadian casualties. Canadian soldiers have fought to defend our Westminster parliamentary system – a system which, at federal and provincial levels, has elected governments via free and fair elections.

Mr. Balogh will see more democracy in action when the Throne Speech is delivered on September 23rd and the government will find out if they indeed command the confidence of the House, or whether we will have a fall election. That this democracy exists is to the credit of our war dead and to the living whose actions support its continuation. “Mere crumbs”, as Mr. Balogh writes, is an unfortunate description – and I think that the people in the streets of Belarus would fight vigorously to have such crumbs. Mr. Balogh’s casual dismissal of our democracy is evidence of how degraded our political dialogue has become.

Finally, I would strongly caution Mr. Balogh against the reckless use of language. His accusations of tyranny and desecration have no factual foundation. True tyranny is seen in the surveillance states of China or North Korea. There are no secret police in Canada, nor a silencing of free speech – as shown by the publication of Mr. Balogh’s letter. He cites his own advice to his former students, so I will reply with advice from my former English teacher: “Avoid purple prose – lest your just cause be seen as empty posturing.” Good advice for us all in this fevered political environment.

Travers McCord