THE PROFOUND EMPTINESS OF PIERE POILIEVRE by Bill lee

“You take the lies out of him, and he’ll shrink to the size of your hat; you take the malice out of him, and he’ll disappear.”

- Mark Twain.

There has never been any very substantial evidence that Pierre Poilievre is an even moderately well-rounded human being, or someone with even a modicum of depth. What he clearly is, is a career politician with no experience of, and no apparent interest in, life outside of the narrow, dark recesses of the CPC caucus room; i.e., he’s a pure political operator. Though that is something, let’s be honest, it is not a whole lot, at least if one wants to become an authentic political leader.

At this point however he is becoming (has become?) a completely plastic image created by the gang of back-room boys whose task it is to construct something that looks like a leader. Whether what they have rendered in PP is, or even looks like, a leader however is questionable. Good leaders (never mind great ones) have an ability to, and interest in, showing an understanding and identifying with the citizens they wish to lead. As indicated, PP’s resume suggests some depth, in the fetid swamp that has become the environment of the CPC, but no breadth. He’s never been anything but what he is now, a political operator.

And good leaders have and share ideas about how to attain the public good. PP, on the other hand seems only able to deny the genuine crisis of climate changei pretend that he is some sort of anti-establishment crusader, a la Trump, and blather on about individual good, climate crisis denial, small government and how everything wrong in this country can be put at the feet of Trudeau the younger. Oh, and we can’t forget his habit of reviling the press, particularly the CBC (which he seems intent on destroying). His fear and loathing of the fourth estate is particularly obvious when an individual reporter is so impertinent as to actually ask him to expand on or explain one of his simplistic statements or slogans. This last point is ironic in that the media, in general, has hardly gone after his over-generalizations, obfuscations and lack of substance. These may be mentioned from time to time but there has been no serious series of articles that question his substance that I’ve seen.

The only thing authentic about PP these days is his obvious lust for power and his small minded, mean spirited vacuity, both of which qualities he parades with increasing determination and enthusiasm. His personality, or at least what we can see of it, is thus, all facade composed of slogans, “Axe the tax” for example with no context or analysis. He is simply form without substance. In other words he’s nothing but a hollowed out piece of self-interest, ignorance and nastiness who wants more than anything else to become the Prime Minister of Canada.

And the tragic thing about this story is that, given the general ineptitude shown in the Liber’s performance in the present mandate, the determination of Justin Trudeau to stay on as the Liberal leader and the manner in which the mainstream media tends to frame politics in Canada as simply a kind of clash of gladiators, the odds are that this piece of shoddy work whose only
thought is for power, will indeed be the next Prime Minister of this country. To crib a saying from the late Allan Fotheringham, “It is to weep.”


__________________________________________________
Refences.
Arthur, B. (2024) Pierre Poilievre says one thing. 200 experts refute it. Who to believe? Toronto Star, March 28. A.9.

i Bruce Arthur (2024) points out that “Carbon Tax debate should be about policy” and also notes that, “… Poilievre’s party is driving this exhaust spewing bus, Affordability. Axe the tax …opportunist nonsense …”