Open Letter to Chatham-Kent-Middlesex

This letter is in response to comments made by Bev Shipley in an open letter to the riding of Lambton-Kent-Middlesex on December 4, 2008. The text of this letter can be viewed at http://www.bevshipley.ca/EN/4866/77681

I would like to take a moment to tell you about the dishonest language being used by the Conservative Party of Canada and of Bev Shipley, MP for Lambton-Kent-Middlesex. On December 4, 2008 Bev Shipley posted an open letter to his constituency regarding a proposed coalition government between the Liberal Party of Canada and the New Democratic Party. I would like to discuss some of the language Mr. Shipley uses to describe this coalition.

The first piece of language that strikes me as odd is the repeated use of the term "separatist coalition.” The agreement to form a coalition government was made between the Liberal Party and the NDP, not the Liberals, NDP and Bloc. The Bloc has agreed to support the coalition government for a period of 18 months. They are in no way a part of the coalition. Referring to this alliance as a “separatist coalition” is nothing more than a form of scaremongering and is completely out of touch with reality. To use an example; If the Conservative government were being propped up solely by the support of the Bloc, would that make it a separatist government? This is what happened in the 39th Parliament and I didn't hear many complaints from the Conservatives or Bev Shipley then. It's quite simple; If the Bloc supporting the Conservatives isn't a separatist government then neither is the Bloc supporting the coalition.

Several times in his letter Mr. Shipley refers to this coalition as undemocratic. Either he is unfamiliar with our Westminster Parliamentary System, or he's toeing the party line and is simply lying to his constituents. A coalition government is completely legal. It does not “nullify the votes of the Canadian people.” It is not a coup and it is certainly not “undemocratic” as is claimed by Mr. Shipley and the Conservative government. In a Westminster Style Parliament it is possible for two or more parties to agree to form the government in the event that the existing government has lost the confidence of The House. To call such a coalition undemocratic demonstrates a disturbing misunderstanding by Mr. Shipley of how our democracy works.

There's more language in his letter which I consider dishonest, but those two examples are the main talking points of the Conservative government and are complete farces. They chastise the coalition because it will be propped up by the Bloc, while their last government was propped up by that very same party. They speak of an undemocratic coalition while their government effectively locks the doors of parliament when they are afraid they are going to lose a vote of confidence. This is not a government deserving of our support or respect. The Conservative government and our MP have lied to the Canadian people. We need to send a message to them saying that lying to constituents is not acceptable. We need to tell them that as they have lost the confidence of The House, they have lost the confidence of the Canadian public. You owe it to yourselves to elect a representative that understands our democracy and will not let their short-sighted political agenda stand in the way of what is best for Canada. Please, at the next opportunity vote out Mr. Shipley and elect an honest man or woman to represent you. Honesty is a trait we've gone without in our representatives for far too long.