Love him or hate him, Prime Minister Stephen Harper has taken Canada in a different direction.
The shifts are not overly subtle, but often overlooked. We have gone from peacekeeping to active engagement. Our foreign affairs policy is now more focused on commerce than diplomacy. Science is also focused more on commerce over basic research. Federal spending has shifted from national programs and services to targeted tax relief. Justice has become more about punishment than rehabilitation.
The list goes on.
Depending on who is reading this, you probably either think the last ten years has been a decade of long-needed change or a steady degradation of the country and its values.
That division can also be seen in reaction to the election call itself. By dissolving the 41st Canadian Parliament on August 2, the prime minister has given voters the longest election since the Victorian era when transportation and communications were comparatively primitive.
Many opponents of the government are incensed and calling the move cynical. Conservative supporters are cheering it under the auspices it levels the playing field.
Way too much is being made about the early election call.
Incumbent governments always have an advantage in terms of funding and control over the election agenda.
Furthermore, the campaign has been on ever since the parliamentary session ended in June.
Quibbling over how long and how expensive the campaign is going to be does not serve the electorate.
Within a couple of days, another silly quibble erupted. Harper started referring to the leader of the Liberal Party as Justin. The Conservatives even used it in an official press release.
Childish, petty and disrespectful? Yes. But hardly an election issue except perhaps as an indication of character.
This election is going to be about what kind of Canada voters want to see going forward, perhaps more so than any other in generations. It is important that voters keep their attention on the real issues and not get distracted by the length of the campaign and petty squabbles.
