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Do you want to know what’s wrong with politics today? If so I’ll need a book. Possibly an entire library. But as my heartless editor says 800 words not 800 volumes let me draw your attention to a small item in Tuesday’s Post that encapsulates the nasty vacuity that drowns out intelligent discussion.
In response to an Ontario bill relaxing the rules around alcohol very slightly, including removing divisive limits on transporting hooch from other provinces back to Ontari-ari-ario, the NDP’s critic for whatever snarled “This government is obsessed with booze. It’s like they’re incapable of writing a piece of legislation that doesn’t involve alcohol liberalization.”
What? I imagine a PR strategy meeting where someone says “But that statement is irrelevant, inaccurate and mean-spirited” and, in the old Night Court gag, is asked “What’s your point?” Except nowadays it is their point. There’s our problem.
For starters, the statement is false because the Ford Tories aren’t obsessed with booze. The premier doesn’t even drink, his ministry has succeeded in passing 18 bills on all manner of non-liquor subjects and if the parliamentary calendar indicates an obsession with anything it’s zebra mussels, subject of at least 12 bills by one NDP MPP. The press on the other hand has a thing about demon rum, including writers in both the Star (April 26) and Globe (April 12) who accused the Ontario Tories of being booze-obsessed, exacerbating Ontario’s “alcohol crisis” etc.
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See Also:
(1) Ford government to shut some agencies, streamline services
(2) Toronto city council votes in favour of Ontario government’s $28.5B subway plan
