December 9, 2007

Dad Be Not Proud

In Friday's Moose Jaw Times Herald, Ron Walter did a piece on Moose Jaw's newest MLA, Warren Michelson. The article is a shoddy piece of crap that degenerates rapidly into something about Brad Wall, but I'd stopped reading by the time Michelson started talking about how impressed he was with Wall's frankness. Well sir, if Wall was as frank with Saskatchewan voters as he was with you, we'd see him sidelined as Leader of the Opposition for another four years.

Be that as it may, the important thing to twig on to in this article is how Michelson credits his dad with telling him that if it’s important enough to do, it's important enough to do it right.

Really, Warren? What exactly were you trying to do in the election: provide honest and fair representation to the people of Moose Jaw, or fleece the voters? Because if it was the latter, you certainly did a good job. Tell me how the avoidance of two scheduled public debates without justification -- the latter a mere 30 minutes before being scheduled to speak -- counts as anything but a public fleecing.

Let's be straight for a minute here, Warren: you won by 31 votes. This is not a mandate to govern. This is a fluke. This is an aberration. You can be awed by the Legislature as much as you like, but don't think you belong there, even as a lowly government backbencher. You got lucky.

I want to believe you can make your dad proud, Warren, I really do. But the way to do it is not by ducking debates or hiding behind party rhetoric; it's by being honest with the public, being approachable, and treating people with respect. Unfortunately for you, your party's off to a pretty rocky start, and I'll be surprised if you do anything but get swept up in the wash.

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