Opinion

The Liberals peak early

Grits getting a free ride?

t 36 per cent in the polls, the Liberals

A now stand at the top of the polls. They

had best enjoy the view: this is probably

as good as it gets. The grits are unlikely to take

votes from either the Reform Party or the Bloc

Quebecois, while the NDP carcass has been

picked clean. On the other hand, between

Reformand the Bloc, the Tories have about 25% of the electorate in which to hunt for votes.

More to the point, it may be that before long somebody in the press will wake up from the hypnotic trance Liberalleader Jean Chretien has had them in until now. While the media have kept the Prime Minister under constant pres- sure to spell out the details in her program, no one seem to have noticed-or no one seems to care- that the Liberal leader has been even more vague. To put it simply, the Liberals have been getting a free ride.

Thus, the Tories have taken a proper lashing for suggesting social spending would have to be cut, without saying where or how much. But what has Mr. Chretien said? He has said nothing

on pensions. He has said nothing on Unemploy- ment insurance. He has said nothing on social assistance.

What, then, is Liberal social policy? We know that they loudly opposed every single Tory trim of the last nine years. Are we to assume that they would reverse all of these measures- restoring say, unemployment insur- ance benefits to those who quit their jobs without cause? Or was all of that deathless rhetoric just for show? Perhaps the Liberals would maintain social programs just as they are. Or would they? Mr. Chretien will say only that he wants to keep social programs “in the best shape possible.” What does that mean?

Or take taxes. Mr. Chretien betrayed his own conscience the day he declared he would scrap the GST, without saying what he would replace it with. And what about the 500 jobs in Summerside, and 500 spin-off jobs for the rest of P.E.I.?

But this is not the only tax question we find him ducking. Where the Prime Minister has

taken a solemn vow that she would not raise taxes, Mr.Chretien carefully avoids any such commitment. Since he is also proposing to add more than 100 billion dollars to the federal debt over four years, we might well ask how he proposes to make the payments on this mort- gage. No one has.

The chief source of this immunity is, of course, the Liberals’ election manifesto. Mr. Chretiencarries this wherever he goes,to show that he has the “plan” with the “specifics.” Of course anyone who reads this thing knows it is nonsense. The Liberals’ economic plan is the Tories’ April budget: the same spending esti- mates, the same growth forecasts, the works. This plan is specific on some things. For instance, it specifically shows that the Liberals are not promising what Mr. Chretien says they are promising: to “kickstart” the economy.

More troubling is the media’s apparent will- ingness at every turn to give the Liberals the benefit of the doubt. Just as the figures from Statistics Canada are seasonally adjusted, so party pronouncements are “Liberally adjusted” to correct for their obvious failings. Least cred- ible of all is the sort of comment often heard to the effect that well, Mr. Chretien doesn’t mean any of what he is saying: that he wouldn’t really let inflation rise, as he said he would, or abrogate the Free Trade Agreement, and that of course he’dhave to cut spending. Is that the best we can hope for: that Mr. Chretien is lying?

The media have not just spun on this one- they've been rolled.

CHRIS NICHOLS

Dear

For those of you out there who are wondering who Dear John is, here’s a brief background. Dear john is an advice columnist willing to answer all of the questions that keep you up at night watching reruns.

Dear John, :

This is my first year at University and my first time being so far from home. My problem is | blew my student loan money on going out and buying stuff. 1 don’t want to admit to my parents that they were right, | can’t handle being on my own. What can | do????

Broke at Blanchard

Dear Broke:

The way | see it, you've got two options... fess up to your folks or get ajob. For now, just tell them you got the job for spending money, then when you get home for the holidays tell them the truth, its the mature thing to do. Even

if your friends know better, let your parents think you are a “mature responsible young adult”. NOT! :

Dear John, _

My roomate is driving me crazy! She doesn’t know howto boil water...literally. She lives on frozen fast food and uncooked Mr. Noodle. She rear-

ranges our bedroom every other day- yesterday | __ found my bed in the closet and | still haven’t found

my desk. Why on earth did | get stuck with this... this... Frankenstein of a roomie? Are all Canadians like this? Did my parents set this up as punishment for not eating all my broccoli? How do | exterminate this pest? If | murder her, can | plead insanity? Southern Yankee

Yankee: Well, | don’t know the insanity part...after all you are American. Try getting her back in

little ways to make her think she’s the one who.

so she can’tuse it and only put it back want it. C’mon get imaginative! Getyour >

Dear Best Man, .

Don’t you know that you are polis incorrect? You shouldaccept applications from both males and females fitting the oe

14/X-Press/October 7, 1993