Here we are, four weeks into a federal election campaign, and it would appear a splatter of Todd Doherty signs everywhere is the only indication it is happening.
I am sure the candidates are busy. I am sure their campaign staffs are revving up their activities. And I am sure there are numerous events scheduled. But on the face of it, we don't seem to be engaged with this election.
It is almost like the question: "What if you threw a party and nobody came?"
What would be the consequence of holding an election in which no one participated?
Of course, Prince George is always a late arriving crowd. As we get closer to election day, the races will become more heated and we will get to know the candidates.
After all, Tracy Caligheros is a well-known and respected local leader but who are Todd Doherty and Trent Derrick? And will anyone actually take on Bob Zimmer?
(Yes, I know that there are other candidates but I have yet to see anything from the Greens and do the other parties really have a chance? Then again, I could be totally misreading the situation, which is the delight of politics. Strange things happen in elections from time to time!)
I would suggest that for most of us the trick is to try and sort out what each party is about.
For example, there are many pundits - mostly those supporting the Conservatives - who would like to frame this election as being about the economy and safety. They would like to claim wise fiscal policy and aggressive international interventions in other countries affairs are the Conservative's balliwick.
Indeed, if you listen to the strange group of individuals repeatedly appearing in Conservative attacks ads, the economy and taking on ISIS are the only issues in this campaign. Their repeatedly point out that poor Justin just isn't ready. Being prime minister is not an entry level position, they say.
As an aside, I can't help but wonder how the spin doctors have come up with this line.
After all, there is no way to train for being prime minister and it wasn't so long ago that a young Stephen Harper was elected to the position with absolutely no experience. I suppose one could point out just how badly he has handled our economy for the last 10 years and suggest that we don't want to go through that again.
In any case, an objective analysis of our economy for the past 10 years shows this government hasn't done badly, but they also haven't done well. They might get a grade of "C" but pretty much any other party could have done the same.
Harper hasn't shown us any real promise of being able to handle the economy going forward either.
As to the safety issue, Harper's paranoia about terrorist attacks is leading us down the road to a totalitarian state where the government knows everything you do and everywhere you go. Telling us that his government, if re-elected, will bring in legislation that defies our constitution, all in the name of safety, is the height of arrogance and hubris.
But it is not like any of the other parties are redefining the central core of the election rhetoric either. "It's about the economy" seems to be the mantra of all three parties right now, which is unfortunate.
Not too surprising, though. When asked in the abstract what issues we care about, most people will answer "health" or "education" or "social issues."
We care about our kids, our family and the people around us.
But in order to afford an education for our children or ourselves, in order to ensure proper medical care and attention, and in order to address social issues, we need money. We need jobs.
Underlying our ability to do pretty much anything is the economy.
Still, focusing solely on the economy at the expense of other issues isn't really a good strategy for the country as a whole. Elections are a time when we should be considering what type of country we are and where we aspire to be. What are Canadian values and beliefs?
It is here that social issues, education and health come to the fore. For example, what should we be concerned about regarding child poverty?
James Moore, when he was industry minister, seemed to sum up this government's position when he said: "Empowering families with more power and resources so that they can feed their children is, I think, a good thing."
But he then added: "Is that always the government's job, to be there to serve people their breakfast? Is it my job to feed my neighbour's child? I don't think so."
Yes, there is much more than the economy that we should be discussing in this election.
