Canada’s national Catholic news magazine, Catholic Insight, which I have written about on several occasions, has issued a call for the "defeat and removal" of Stephen Harper in his Calgary Southwest riding:
“For Mr. Harper to state that he would not personally support a law limiting abortion is one thing,” said de Valk. “But to go so far as to strong arm his own MPs from supporting the right to life and even, as his spokesperson suggested, whip his cabinet on the matter, is unconscionable.”
Yeah, good luck with that. But nevertheless more evidence that all is not well with Stephen Harper's Conservative base. who are seeing their issues (abortion, HRCs) frozen out of the debate this election cycle. It will be interesting to observe the practical effect of a SoCon revolt, esp. if the election tightens up. Could these guys casting protest votes swing the result in, for example, Ontario exurban swing ridings?
The immediate effect will be negligible. The socons, contrary to their misguided belief, are a tiny minority in this country. Over the long term however, I expect most rightwing pundits will start espousing socon dogma more often even if they don't believe in it (ie. Coyne's recent article on abortion).
ReplyDeleteI don't think it's accurate to call them Harper's base.
ReplyDeleteThere are large minorities in this country who agree with "so-con" opinionsm but the number who base their votes solely on it is infinitesmally small. Does anyone think that if during the years before the mainstream parties endorsed same-sex marriage a "Gay Freedom Party" would have done any better than the Christian Heritage Party?
Devoted so-con voters have nowhere to go and don't matter. Never have, never will.
I doubt 1 in a 100 Catholics has ever even heard of this filthy litte hate rag, let alone pay any attention to its lunatic rants.
Fascinatingly, in her monumental self-delusion, Connie Fournier has decided to claim the credit if Harper doesn't get a majority, thanks to his latest "go fuck yourselves" to the fetus fetishists. It's almost enough to make me wish for a Harper majority.
But not quite.
Majority, minority, it doesn't matter to the perennially-aggrieved like Connie Fournier and the Freedumb Minions. These people will bitch and moan for the rest of their lives...about everything. The irremediable Dunning Kruger Effect guarantees that they will never understand reality while at the same time will remain convinced that they are entirely correct. And there will always people like Alfonse de Valk (is that Afrikaans?) around to pander to them and exploit them.
ReplyDeleteBoy you guys are sore losers. It's your out of fashion worldview that will be sitting on the oppostion benches, not the socons. Enjoy the view!
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