a day after he formally announced his candidacy for the leadership of the Liberal Party of Canada, a column penned by Ken Dryden appeared in the National Post. Titled "Canada needs to think big", Dryden outlined what he would like to see happen in the next ten years. He wrote,
"Within ten years, let us:
Cut child poverty in half.
Become one of the top five most productive countries on earth.
Lead the world in alternative energies and energy efficiency.
Finally and forever make aboriginal peoples full participants in the success of Canada.
Build a truly inclusive, accessible country for Canadians with disabilities."
Being on the left wing of the party, Dryden mentions nary a word about crime or more importantly, the military and the threat of international terrorism to Canada. Oh well, maybe if we don't talk about these things they will just go away.
This type of talk sounds really good when it comes from the winner of a beauty pageant, but not from someone who has aspirations to lead the country. If we have learned anything from the days when Paul Martin was at the helm it was that simply talking about things or having vision is not sufficient. Talking and doing are two different things. Nothing illustrates this better than Paul Martin and the environment and the Kyoto accord. as we all know, Kyoto was one of the hundreds of "top priorities" that Martin had during his brief tenure as PM. He never missed an opportunity to tell the world how great Canada was for supporting Kyoto while taking cheap shots at the United States for not signing the agreement. While all this talk was going on, the rate of carbon emissions grew twice as fast in Canada as they did in the land of the Great Satan. Thinking about and joining the right club to reduce emissions was more important than the amount of carbon that was being spewed into the air.
These grand visions of reducing child poverty (where have we heard that before?) and making aboriginals full participants in the success of Canada, whatever that means are nothing more than wishes and dreams. We need a leader who can set realistic and achievable goals and then carry them out. Or in the words of Nike; someone who can "just do it".
We really shouldn't have expected much more from Paul Martin than we got. Martin led a charmed life, killing time until he achieved the office that he was always predestined to hold. But Ken Dryden should know better. Dryden was the one out of thousands and thousands of hockey playing kids who not only went to the show but became a superstar. He wouldn't have achieved the success that he had if he had tried to be the best goaltender and the best defenseman and the best forward or had thought in generalities however good they sounded.
Stephen Harper had gone up in the polls since winning last January's election. It's hard to know whether this increase in support is because Canadians agree with the decisions that he has made or simply due to the fact that he makes decisions. Harper set five priorities and has worked to implement them while still being decisive about other issues such as foreign policy.
We don't need another leader who thinks big. We need someone who will take action and lead. These ten year plans didn't work in the Soviet Union or in China and they will not work in Canada.
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