It has been quite a year. The one guarantee about living here is that there is rarely a dull moment, for better or for worse.
On Sunday March 9 it was for the better. The day of the infamous PKP fist pump. The day then-Premier Marois embraced her star candidate and started nattering incessantly about separation.
She couldn’t help herself, giddy with the prospects of leading Quebec to the Promised Land.
But that’s when the bottom fell out. She was trying to sell something nobody wanted. That, on top of a divisive Charter of Values which made many second class citizens, was all that Quebecers needed to see to send to send that gang packing on April 7.
It was the month that changed Quebec and the election handed the PQ their most humiliating defeat ever and it gave us a government that doesn’t seem to be afraid of doing the right thing.
There are weak spots in the Liberal cabinet and Dr. Phil will have to change up some of his lines. But for once we have a government that is doing what it promised. It’s not easy and the Liberals seem to have just about everyone seething right now.
Anyone with a special interest that is.
The government unions are asking for more than 13.5 percent over three years. That is a ridiculous demand given the fact that we are living on credit in uncertain times.
The pension reform protests left everyone cold. Storming our local seat of democracy was dissent at its worse. Our police officers are still looking like clowns with their baseball caps and camo pants. They are doing disservice to their profession and hurting their credibility with the public.
The Liberals may take a beating in 2015 over what they are proposing but I do believe that what they doing to restore some sanity to our public finances will work and will get the blessing of the majority of Quebecers who want a future for their children and grandchildren.
They must be prudent and always remember the most vulnerable who need our help.
PKP looms as PQ leader
The PQ will pick a new leader in May. Mr. Peladeau is the obvious frontrunner. The Pequistes sense they may have a winner with him despite the fact that his past behavior runs contrary to anything the party ever stood for.
He will try to convince Quebecers that independence makes economic sense but most Quebecers have already made up their minds on that.
All this in a time where federal transfers to Quebec will hit a record level of $20.4 billion in 2015.
Terrorist attacks unnerving
It was also the year where Canada woke up and realized that the war against terror came home.
Two attacks inspired in some way by twisted Islamic fundamentalism left Canadians shocked and saddened.
We are not bystanders on the world stage. Our country and our way of life are targets.
On the federal scene we will be voting next October. It now appears to be a two way race between the Tories and Liberals. But that could change. In the meantime, Justin Trudeau is the best thing the Liberals have going for them and sometimes the worst.
On a more personal note, I would to thank each and every one of you who is part of our CTV family. We appreciate you inviting us into your homes and your computers and smart phones. It’s a privilege to bring you the news every day. In an increasingly complex and noisy world and living in a community which faces its share of challenges, we hope we help make sense of it all.
