Newfoundland and Labrador Makes its Election Choice

Ever since the election results rolled in last week the local media in Newfoundland and Labrador has been buzzing with the incessant pleas and moans of anguish from a handful of grumblers, all aiming to resolve the provinces lack of representation in a yet to be announced Harper cabinet.

Give me a break and climb down off (or maybe out of) the pot will ya!

The local call in radio shows are a twitter, editorial after editorial has been written and even the Mayor of St. John’s has weighed in with his two cents on the issue. The incessant buzzing is starting to sound like someone kicked a hornet's nest and, to say it as politely as I can, it's driving me freakin nuts!

It's as though everyone with ready access to a phone or a keyboard, yours truly definatly not included, suddenly woke up last Wednesday morning quaking in their boots and crapping their tidy whities because they heard rumors that Peter MacKay might be named as the province’s representative in cabinet.

“We deserve better”, they say.

“Harper can appoint a senator and name that person to represent us, anything less will show his contempt” others bawl.

“The sky is falling the sky is falling”, cries Chicken Little, or was that St. John's Mayor Dennis O’Keefe?

Personally I say, "Whooppee Ding. Who the hell cares?"

I realize the hue and cry is not coming from the majority of stable minded people in the province, but from the vocal minority. Unfortunately it isn't coming across that way in the media and instead is making it look like everyone in the province is suddenly living in fear after sending such a strong message to Ottawa.

It's as though voters suddenly woke up from a hypnotic trance and realizing what they've done want are all cry baby about it. The next thing you know they'll be calling for an investigation of where Danny Williams' gold pocket watch was on the evening of October 13th.

Yes, thanks to a few weak kneed loud mouths the people of Newfoundland and Labrador are once again being portrayed as a pack of whiners.

Don’t get me wrong, I agree that Mr. Harper is capable of naming someone from Newfoundland and Labrador to cabinet just as he did when he appointed a resident of Quebec to the Senate and made him a Cabinet Minister.

I also believe that if Mr. Harper decides to name Peter MacKay to the post it will be for the sole purpose of sending a strong message of retaliation back to Newfoundland and Labrador voters.

Doing so would ensure that the message, “Don’t F$%K with me again”, comes through loud and clear to all in ear shot.

Putting all that aside, I’m personally willing to live with whatever the Prime Minister’s decision might be on this and I believe the silent majority of Newfoundlanders and Labradorians are as well.

It's not because we've all suddenly decided to bury the hatchet, as Premier Williams appears willing to do, but because it's the adult action to take.

It’s the vocal minority that ticks me off, the rest of us are fine thank-you very much.

Long before electin day voters heard Conservative candidates warn them almost daily that they would have no representation in caucus if they didn’t elect a member to the government side.

Public discussion of the pros and cons took place almost daily in the media and were easily seen (or heard) by anyone with access to a radio, T.V., newspaper or the internet.

It changed nothing.

On October 14th Newfoundland and Labrador voters made a conscious decision to expel any remnants of the Conservative party from the province, regardless of the repercussions.

That decision was made, we made it together, so lets stop the whining already!!!

I mean come on folks, to tell the truth we all know for a fact that Newfoundland and Labrador had no representation in the last parliament. Isn’t that why we turfed the Conservatives out of here in the first place?

In reality, with a population of just over 500,000 and only 7 seats in Ottawa, we haven’t had any real level of representation in the federal government since entering Canada in 1949 and we never will under the existing system.

When it comes to a pissing contest in this federation the larger numbers of seats in provinces like Alberta, Quebec, Ontario and even Nova Scotia trump our pitiful seat count every time and as a result Newfoundland and Labrador invariably ends up down wind of the winner and a hot stream of... well you get the picture.

If Stephen Harper wants to make a pathetic attempt to placate voters in Newfoundland and Labrador, perhaps with an eye to gaining support in the province the next time around, he may decide to appoint someone from this province to the post.

He may instead try to meet on some middle ground by appointing a less distasteful representative than Mr. MacKay. Perhaps he may call on his newest MP from PEI believing, in some odd way, that it makes sense for an islander to represent other islanders, (no offense to the folks in Labrador, but you know how the minds of politicians work).

If, on the other hand, Mr. Harper is still in a fighting mood he might just go ahead and appoint Peter MacKay, or someone even worse, to take on the Newfoundland and Labrador file.

Either way, WHO THE HELL CARES?!!

I don’t believe any of us should care one whit if the Prime Minister appoints someone to represent the province at all. I also don’t believe we have the right or the moral grounds to ask for that representation, let alone demand it as some people are now doing.

The voters of Newfoundland and Labrador clearly decided to reject the Conservative party and to intentionally exclude the province from any voice within the current government, which includes the cabinet. Why then should anyone be yelling for representation now?

The election is over. The arguements were made long ago on this. The message was sent to Ottawa. What will be will be.

GROW UP and MOVE ON!!!