Remember all the charter members of the H.A.S. (Harper As Satan) movement who were insisting that Harper and the Tories were absolutely CRIPPLING Canada's International Reputation due to their stance on (insert your own pet issue here)?
Whoops.
Turns out we've got the second-best reputation in the world, overall, with 57% saying Canada has a "Mainly Positive" influence on the world (Germany is first, with 61%). The United States was seen by 40% as having a Mainly Positive influence, and by 43% as having a Mainly Negative influence - and the poll, folks, was taken AFTER Obama was elected (but, admittedly, before he took office).
Now, Liberals will point out, and I agree completely, that a reputation isn't built in a week, or a year, and that much of Canada's international reputation was built under the stewardship of Liberal federal governments. However, you can't pat yourself on the back with HALF of a truism, and ignore the other half.
"A reputation takes a lifetime to build, and a moment to ruin."
Guess our Stephen isn't the international pariah that so many of his critics wish he was, or claim that he is. He's had 3 years plus a day as Prime Minister - and our international reputation is still the envy of every country on Earth that doesn't hold an Oktoberfest. Wait until they realize that, on most substantive policy issues, he's to the LEFT of Obama...
p.s. In case anyone's forgotten - I really, really don't like writing stuff like this - I'm not a "Harper fan". But facts are facts, and the critics are wrong on Harper in this instance (the same way the Tories are wrong on Climate Change being "junk science" - see what I did there?)...
... an attempt to make sense of politics and political happenings in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, and North America.
3 comments:
As a CPC supporter, I found the "Hidden Agenda" smear strategy that the Martin used to be frustrating. However, it did work at the time. ( And P.s. Thanks for adding me to your blogroll!)
The obvious major flaw in your reasoning is that it doesn't establish what our reputation was like before Harper took office. If it was #1 in the world then Harper has indeed begun ruining it.
Robert: Believe me, I looked for the previous years. If you can find them, I'd be happy to post them as well.
My point, though, is that if Harper had, in fact, been so obviously and quickly ruining our international reputation as his most vocal critics have suggested, surely we'd be a lot closer to America's 40% than to within striking distance of the top spot on the survey?
Of course, all of this presupposes that we were not rating at 80% or so in late 2005. But I suspect strongly that wasn't the case.
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