by Brendan William Cross
Friday, November 11th, 2011.
According to Wikipedia, a grand coalition is "an arrangement in a multi-party parliamentary system in which the two largest political parties of opposing political ideologies unite in a coalition government. The term is most commonly used in countries where there are two dominant parties with different ideological orientations, and a number of smaller parties large enough to secure representation in the parliament."
Juxtaposing that into the Canadian political landscape could mean consolidating sovereignty into a parliament where the Aboriginal Bloc (Conservative Aboriginal Caucus), Quebec Conservatives, leaderless NDP, leaderless Liberals, leaderless Bloc Quebecois, Green Party, and moderate Conservatives could unite into a coalition government to represent Canada on the world stage with more unity than ever before. What I like to view as the "4 equal identities" of Canada (Aboriginal Canadians, le Quebecois, English Canadians, and people from around the globe) could all be adequately accommodated should a war, depression, or Constitutional crisis occur. Those 4 identities would maintain the unique cohesiveness of our Canada while wordly events occur which might pose a threat to our defense militarily or with regard to our sovereignty. We must remember it was a Great Coalition which, in part, led to the birth of our country in 1867.
I am not suggesting at all that such a path to such an outcome is any preference of mine. I abhor war, but there are those who are called to fight them. I value our prosperity and way of life in Canada like you wouldn't believe, and would suffer emotionally to see anybody caught in a depression. And I am not a lawyer, so Constitutional wrangling is far beyond me. But I will be frank- if there was ever a threat to our airspace by any other country, or boots on the ground from any other forces than our own, or an economic meltdown triggered in any other place on the planet, I believe it would be time to unite.
My recent dalliance with the Green Party began with my admiration of Elizabeth May who was the only leader who stood up in the House of Commons to oppose the invasion of Libya, and it taught me that three percent of the vote is still a beginning. There might come a day when the various regions of Canada might face incredible differences in circumstance and opinion, and it will be a new day where there is more than distinct society status to discuss. It is then that I would seriously look at our country as 4 equal identities that transcend geography and represent the true heart of our people.
Brendan William Cross
Brendan Cross at the Green Party of Saskatchewan leadership meeting in Regina, Sunday, September 25th, 2011.
