WHACK A MOLE...

For a so-called leader who loves to boast, Steve Harper is suddenly empty of things to brag about.
Although polls are typically last week's news retold and too often fade into the fodder, this one is of real interest. It is the first time the Liberals have taken the lead in a year, since the leadership convention.
And it reflects what has been effectively happening -- a truly ineffective so-called leader, who's favourite sport of 'Whack A Mole' has kept the public and the media's attention off the scent, revealed as a reactionary thug with false declaratory tendencies.
While his accomplishments like The Five Priorities (opaque and often foggy accountability, shell-game on wait times, tough on crime, and 'Canada is Back (of the class)' on the international stage are starting to ring real stale if not fake as Johnny-boy Baird's machismo, Harper's list of negatives, from a mainstream media point-of-view, are now the talk of the town.
Someone who's been linked to the hip to the current prime minister, and right-hand right-side man Day, has slid easily into the lobbying field, working wonders for both the taser and medical industries. When suddenly the minister responsible refuses to comment of a flurry of taser deaths, and a very new and highly contentious medical drug aimed at young girls gets immediate funding from the government, it shouldn't take a full inquiry to follow the dots. But intense scrutiny is deserved.
And when your own appointees are starting to defend themselves from your own muddling -- whether the actually appointing was part of the muddle or not -- is music to the ears of us Liberals who have had to defend some out-spoken and occasionally secret source reports.
Harper's act is a clumsy piece of political opportunism, indeed.
This Globe article is fairly to the point, relaying the idea that Harper has lost his touch, or at least the edge when it comes to spinning to the spinners.
Now it isn't just bloggers, Liberals and progressives alike, pointing out how the CONs have little traction despite what appears to be perfect re-election conditions. The questions and complaints come from Tory faithholds like Alberta, BC's interior and Saskatchewan. Of course, if Paul Martin wasn't able to dance around a couple of puddles, why should we expect this gang that couldn't shoot straight to do it?
While Harper has done his best work silencing his critics internally, the issues like Chalk River and his blatant patronage busts, relying on twice-daily polling while pretending to be above it all, and thumbing his nose with an environmental card he continues to try to play 'Go Fish' with, could stamp him for the rest of his mandate.
By hitching his wagon to a very isolated American administration on global warming, Harper has given Canada a black eye to those looking in. And with half our population having strong ties to other countries, the Emperor's new clothing is going to be noticed at home, too.
He also demonstrated his ham-handed partisan nature, slamming a woman who's served both Liberal and Conservative governments, for doing the job of regulating a highly contentious industry. All the while his own appointee, quizzically named Burns, is now seen as either incompetent or a sleep at the switch. At least he was a loyal fundraiser.
As the media continues to point out these issues, Canadians will be marking these things down on their calendar. Harper will try to put a partisan spin 'Blame the Liberals' on a few more matchsticks in the near future, but this offensive defence is not sticking anymore on its target.
He just made a Scrooge-like Christmas eve conversion to protecting Canadians from dangerous imports, despite this having been in play for nearly 10 months. Change the channel he tries, but the media, which has moved on from the Dion watch to watching a stumbling CON troupe balance its holier-than-thou attitude with its lusty actions.
The people are seeing Harper for what he is, and more and more are finding him to be too much of a bully and not a leader in areas that matter to Canadians.