How Many Strikes Can One Conservative MP Take Looking?

Here’s the letter I just sent to the current federal Conservative MP for Calgary Centre, Lee Richardson, a few moments ago.  You can send it to him, too.  It’s easy!

  • Copy and paste this letter into an e-mail message with your name, address, and phone number, and send it to lee.richardson@parl.gc.ca; or
  • Print and sign a copy of this letter with your name, address, and phone number, and fax it to +1 613 995 1862; or
  • Print and sign a copy of this letter with your name, address, and phone number, and mail it (no postage stamp required!) to:

Lee Richardson, MP

432-C Centre Block

House of Commons

Ottawa, Ontario

K1A 0A6

For that matter, the friendly staff at Lee’s constituency office in Calgary Centre would also likely enjoy a cordial, considerate, and polite conversation with you about the points in this letter at 403 244 1880.

With autumn in Calgary Centre fading so quickly into winter, Lee, it’s so easy to forget that the St Louis Cardinals won the World Series a matter of weeks ago, and that spring training is a mere three months away.  And it’s a shame, too, that the Calgary Vipers couldn’t make a go of minor pro ball in this town.  Yet the facts of the fall sitting of Parliament are as plain as the crack of a bat on a fastball, and as stark as a blown save.  The voters who gave you your job back on May 2 are questioning their call, Lee, and I think you’ll agree they deserve to see you step up to the plate and offer them some answers.

First of all, why did your federal Calgary Conservative MPs back out of a $100-million deal two years in the making to help their city fund four new recreation centres?  Calgarians are frustrated and angry with a government that looked arrogant, contemptuous, and out of touch with their needs and priorities.  Lee, we both know how much these new recreation facilities are desperately needed by Calgary Centre voters and by all Calgarians who want to stay active, enhance healthy lifestyles, bond with their friends and neighbours, and be part of the strong communities that are a hallmark of what it means to be a Calgarian.  Besides, the City of Calgary worked in good faith with Ottawa for two years, and counted on the federal government and PPP Canada to come through with that $100-million, 25-percent stake in these recreation facilities.  Trust, continuity, and transparency are essential to effective public-private partnerships, and the people of this city expect so much better from Ottawa than what we got last week.  Calgary Centre deserves a partner in Ottawa who will come back to the table and honour their word.

Secondly, why are your federal Conservative colleagues compelling Elizabeth May to travel to the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in Durban on her own dime?  It was less than three months ago that your government’s own foreign minister, John Baird, addressed the UN General Assembly and spoke not only to “our duty to pull” the Founding Principles of the United Nations “from the printed page, to breathe life into them, and to practise them every day”, but also to our great nation’s refusal to debase “multilateral institutions by conduct that is inconsistent with their values”.  How does denying a duly-elected Member of Parliament a place in our national delegation to a UN conference, and depriving our national delegation of an important source of experience and insight as we chart the course for our planet and our future on it, serve the diversity and the breadth of knowledge Canada has to offer to our world?  We both understand, Lee, that the world looks to us to live by our commitments in building the true democracy that we cherish in our country and promote around our world.  Our planet counts on us to lead by our example.  Calgary Centre deserves an advocate in Parliament and on the global stage who will give a fair hearing to expert evidence and ensure that every voice matters.

Finally, why did your federal Conservative government become so blinded by vengeance to the notion of Canadian justice?  Calgarians understand, as do our neighbours in Texas, in California, and in other North American jurisdictions, that the mandatory minimum sentencing provisions in Bill C-10 are an investment in nothing but misery and wasted human potential.  For less than the cost of incarcerating five new convicts for one year, Ottawa could more wisely spend instead on fully funding a Calgary Drug Treatment Court that since 2007 has already saved the Canadian justice system nearly $13-million and has brought responsibility, accountability, and hope to a population used to destitution, desperation, and despair.  Our police chief is an outspoken advocate for secure treatment facilities, and in describing them as “safe jails”, Lee, he underscores the hazards and the futility of delivering drug-dependent petty criminals to Canada’s prison system.  Calgary Centre deserves a prudent steward of the public purse who will spend less of our hard-earned taxes on dungeons and durance vile, and more on the smart economy that Canada needs for our future prosperity.

Most of the umpires who work our baseball diamonds would have scored you harshly on your performance at the plate, Lee.  Standing up for Calgary’s recreation centres?  Took Strike One looking.  Standing up for a committed Canadian presence in Durban?  Took Strike Two looking.  Standing up for an effective justice system?  Took Strike Three looking.

And you know what the umps like to do after they call Strike Three, right?

Calgary Centre deserves a louder voice in Parliament, Lee.  A stronger voice.  And because I’m one of your constituents, Lee, I’m willing to widen the strike zone on you just a little bit — putting the count at a ball and two strikes, in case you’re keeping score at home — and give you just one more swing at my questions to you.

But I hope you make that swing count.

December 1, 2011   Posted in: Uncategorized

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