| Last updated at 10:33 PM on 08/06/09 |
Political debates have lost their lustre 
The Amherst Daily News
If everything goes according to schedule, this editorial should appear in print on June 9, which is, of course, election day in Nova Scotia. Far be it for me to predict a winner in this really mundane race, but one thing I can comment on is the public presentations of the candidates here and the leaders of their parties.
I didn’t see or hear anything about candidates in Cumberland South, and perhaps readers of this paper haven’t seen or heard from them either, at least not in any meaningful way.
I did have an opportunity to go to the so-called candidates debate in Cumberland North, at least the one at the Amherst High School, but certainly no one emerged victorious from that effort. It was basically boring, except for the couple of times during the evening that the Conservative candidate Keith Hunter and the “other” Conservative candidate Ernie Fage mixed it up a bit among themselves.
Last Tuesday evening I watched the three main party leaders in a CBC-televised effort that was billed as a debate, but which was certainly no debate. Questions were asked, and, in turn, politely answered by each leader. It was boring, as was the second effort, called a Round Table discussion, on CTV last Thursday. I thought for sure host Steve Murphy would cajole them into saying things they didn’t want to say, like he tries with all his guests, but that too failed. Boring.
Therein, I believe, lies the problem of why the whole election is basically off the radar. It’s boring, and in everyone’s need to be seen to play nice, and the silly rules the hosts create for those encounters, any attempt at real debate on the issues by candidates is so watered down in politeness that it’s impossible to remember the issue that is being discussed. No defining moments are possible.
Maybe it’s because there are really no issues to debate here in Cumberland North.
I mean, compared to times past, and those are still strong in memory, when only two industries dominated the Town of Amherst, and both of them shut down in winter and threw the whole region into economic hard times, today we’re all doing pretty well indeed.
Just about everyone who wants a job has one, the industry base here has grown substantially and is stable, we have a new hospital, new high school, new middle school and two new elementary schools, and all in all things are pretty good.
Sure, there’s room for improvement, lots of room if we really take a look, but no one is losing any sleep over those issues that could make life better. The non-issues such as the apparent loss of the jail, in a totally political decision that makes absolutely no sense whatsoever in any other perspective, is only an issue if you plan on visiting loved ones in jail, or have concerns about the millions it will cost to administer justice effectively. But who cares about that? Murray won, Ernie lost.
And then there’s the issue of the West Highlands school, which really isn’t an issue any longer, since the original announcement was made that it wasn’t going to be built, despite the recommendations supporting it’s replacement, and then, low and behold, during this election campaign, was reversed in an effort to make it look like Hunter was effective in getting the decision-makers to change their minds.
Well, if that wasn’t a set-up for political purposes, I’ll concede that nothing ever is. Fat chance of that happening anytime soon, and the bottom line is that the new school will be built. Someday, good for us.
I long for the time when political debate was real, when the candidates got down and dirty and really debated the issues, forcing each other to reveal their ultimate intentions, and in the process perhaps reveal their personal ability to be a politician, or not.
I long for the old political meetings, where the candidates entered rooms filled with voters, some of whom were supporters, some hecklers and many looking for answers, and through those answers either gaining support or shooting themselves in the foot.
Those were the good old days of politics, and to bring back the excitement of it all, to raise the interest of voters and spark participation at the polls, we need less politeness, more real debate, and real issues.
It all needs to be more entertaining than Law and Order or Coronation Street, and it all needs to mean something to all of us, the taxpayers who foot the bill. Our failure to participate is our personal loss, not the politician’s loss.
I urge you to exercise your democratic right and get out today and vote. It’s the only way you can make a difference.
Jerry Randall is a member of the Amherst Daily News Community Editorial Panel.
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