Jason Kenney on the Flag Flap

My member of Parliament, Jason Kenney, defended his Conservative government's decision to not fly the Canadian flags at half-mast on Parliament Hill to honour the recent deaths of 4 Canadian soldiers by stating on CTV's Question Period that Canada should proudly fly its flag high at all times because we are at war. Somehow, this signifies the "confidence" of the country during this time, according to Kenney.

Kenney then went on to ramble about the thousands of war casualties during the past century as if that somehow added to his defense. He also reminded everyone to take a moment of silence on Remembrance Day to honour the soldiers - as if millions of Canadians don't already do so each and every year.

What all of this shows is that Harper's Conservatives have absolutely no rational reason for refusing to follow the tradition set by the previous Liberal government and have fundamentally admitted that their decision is purely political - an attempt to distance themselves from All Things Liberal. And that, during this time of mourning, has got to be one of the most despicable displays of partisanship this country has seen in a very long time.

It's absolutely disgraceful and is a slap in the face to one of the fallen soldier's fathers who publicly requested on Saturday that all Canadians fly their flags at half-mast in order to pay tribute to his son and the others who died so brutally at the hands of their enemies.

Beyond everything this Conservative minority government has done so far to further their rigid, uncompromising agenda, I sincerely believe that if Canadians were allowed to vote on this latest and most egregious outrage, an overwhelming majority would kick Harper and his morally-challenged sheep right to the curb - which is exactly where they belong.

The fact that they chose this moment to make this political stand, which is now distracting people from the conversation about the circumstances around these deaths and the grief that Canadians feel, shows how callous and politically tone-deaf this government truly is.