Tuesday, December 18, 2007

Hallelujah

Looking at these results, I suspect the most disappointed subset of Canadian society will be the media class. Canadians don't want a formal inquiry:
A new poll suggests most Canadians don't want a public inquiry into Brian Mulroney's business dealings with Karlheinz Schreiber.

The resistance comes despite deep misgivings about the former prime minister's story and the propriety of his relationship with the German-Canadian arms lobbyist.

The Canadian Press Harris-Decima survey suggests only 21 per cent of Canadians think Mulroney was telling the truth when he testified last week about $225,000 in cash he received from Schreiber.

Moreover, two-thirds of those surveyed felt the relationship between the two was inappropriate.

Nevertheless, only 32 per cent wanted to see a public inquiry delve into the minute details of the affair; 52 per cent said they would rather avoid that spectacle.

Interesting result, considering people don't believe Mulroney. A finding such as this will make it easier for Harper's appointee to avoid an inquiry, particularly since there is no political price to pay.

A lot of people(bloggers) have done an excellent job covering this story, and I don't dismiss the importance. That said, our media has become completely intoxicated with this scandal, at the exclusion of other matters. The prospects of an inquiry would pretty much ensure that our political discourse would be dominated by Mulroney for months to come. If the coverage was balanced, I might have a different perspective, but I've come to realize that the media simply can't resist the lure of dirty laundry, it actually CONSUMES them.

I read the above result as confirmation that we have reached the saturation point with this story, and Canadians understand the consequence of an inquiry. With the media kicking and screaming, maybe now we can move back to the 21st century, at least for some of the time.

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

The most disappointed will be the media and Ottawa area lawyers.

thescottross.blogspot.com said...

Why does Canadians opinions even matter in regards to the issue? Should we investigate possible crimes based on public opinion?

It shouldn't even come into consideration.

Our Prime Minister said we'd have an inquiry.

Inquiries are after the truth.

If you have a problem with the media fine, but the inquiry has nothing to do with it. The media hypes stories; you're solution is get rid of the stories, even if their stories about investigating possible abuses of power.
-Lib Outsider

Tomm said...

The gritty, front page truth will never come out.

Given that, we can either look in the reptile cage to watch the creatures circle for food scraps, or we can send Schreiber back to Germany and also be confident that destroying the PC Party to get rid of Mulroney was clearly the right thing to do.

I don't have a problem with either one, but quite frankly, I don't think our body politic gets stronger with a long public inquiry, and there are issues of today that our politicians & media should be focussing on.

Tomm

kitt said...

Polls are constantly manipulated to have the outcome desired by the persons/government paying for the poll.

I believe that the majority of Canadians definitely want to know what shady dealings Mulroney did. Also what Harper knew and when he knew it.

Steve V said...

People assume that an inquiry will uncover the truth. The fact of the matter, some of the key players are DEAD, the paper trail is thin and the central character is an unreliable, wanted felon. It's a he said/he said scenario, which makes a satisfactory conclusion elusive.

Anonymous said...

I wonder what age group were asked. Funny, all my friends want an inquiry.

Remember - Harper "promised" one.

I don't think people are paying much attention to political issues right now - it's Xmas time, things to do, places to go. I think they should have waited until the New Year to conduct polls. Hmmm....deliberate?

Dame said...

First time ever I do not agree with you . We need to face the NAKED truth even if it is inconvenient for all of us..
There is a lot of paper trail to follow just meticulously and without bias.. as the process supposed to work.
This story is far from being Too old it is relevant
great number of the "public" is too young to be interested ...so i see why it is a low interest in generally..

I found it interesting how Shreiber was held back in Canada for so many years/9 or so???/
I think Shreiber even more dangerous for some if he is handed over to Germany....

we must have a complete limitless Inquiry here .
and recommendations at the end how to end the era of Lobby Business Heaven which is very much thriving and alive .

marta

Steve V said...

marta

Fair enough. I see the other side of this issue, and maybe if it wasn't for the media pre-occupation I would have a different attitude.