The HarperCon Echo Chamber

To be honest, it comes as no real surprise to me that Conservative MP James Lunney won't meet with representatives of KAIROS.

The Harper-branded conservatives aren't interested in anything but their own conclusions. For them, it's not about representing their constituencies, nor is it about representing Canadians. If the idea doesn't come out of their little echo chamber, they aren't interested in even considering it or discussing it.

Jason Kenney has decreed that KAIROS is "anti-Semetic" (which likely as not means that they have the gall to criticize Israel, as opposed to actually being racist with a particular hatred for Jewish people). Therefore, nobody in the Conservative caucus will even dare meet with people who disagree with that declaration for fear of retribution from the PMO.

Living as I do in Alberta, I've had plenty of opportunity to watch this 'echo-chamber' approach to policy emerge among the ReformaTories. It's endemic to Alberta's politics, so a party whose power structure grew up here is going to think in the strongly partisan terms. However, just as it is bad for Alberta politics - where voter turnout has reached appalling lows - it is even more damaging on the Federal stage where the actions of our politicians affect not just the country, but how our country is perceived on the world stage.

Lunney's refusal to meet with members of KAIROS simply goes to show that the HarperCon$ are less about representing their constituents than they are about using the bully pulpit of power to railroad policies and politics through that a large majority of Canadians would find deeply offensive if they but took a moment to consider the implications.