What Stephen Harper thinks of Canadians' intelligence

[daleo]

"I was asked to speak about Canadian politics. It may not be true, but it's legendary that if you're like all Americans, you know almost nothing except for your own country. Which makes you probably knowledgeable about one more country than most Canadians.

P A9, Jan 21, 2006 Globe and Mail

[iverglas]

1. link

It was actually spoken in 1997.

http://www.cbc.ca/canadavotes/leadersparties/harper_speech.html

Text of Stephen Harper's speech to the Council for National Policy, June 1997

Ladies and gentlemen, let me begin by giving you a big welcome to Canada. Let's start up with a compliment. You're here from the second greatest nation on earth. But seriously, your country, and particularly your conservative movement, is a light and an inspiration to people in this country and across the world.

He seems to have been trying to do standup. Badly.

It's the source of the famous:

First, facts about Canada. Canada is a Northern European welfare state in the worst sense of the term, and very proud of it. Canadians make no connection between the fact that they are a Northern European welfare state and the fact that we have very low economic growth, a standard of living substantially lower than yours, a massive brain drain of young professionals to your country, and double the unemployment rate of the United States.

Pretty much none of which was actually true, but whatever.

Also:

In terms of the unemployed, of which we have over a million-and-a-half, don't feel particularly bad for many of these people. They don't feel bad about it themselves, as long as they're receiving generous social assistance and unemployment insurance.

I read some more of it -- everyone should try it once -- and I think if I'd been there I'd have been groaning and throwing tomatoes, no matter what my political stripe.

I wonder whether maybe he thought he was engaging in a little of that endearing self-deprecating humour of ours ...

[daleo]

2. Yes, I know

The Globe and Mail printed the entire thing today, an advertisement by some non-admirers entitled "Stephen Harper in his own words".

All these quotes are good for generating discussion, I think. There are a few more enlightening snippets I may get to later, for the benefit of those who hadn't read them. Today was the first time I actually went through the entire speech.

[Monkeybumper]

3. Would you disagree ?

That most Canadians are ill informed ?

[glarius]

4. Are you saying you agree with Harper's lies?

[Monkeybumper]

5. Most people dont spend the time

Most people are to busy to read or go to riding meetings to know what the candidates are for and rely on sound bites to make their decision .

[daleo]

7. Actually, I would

Most Canadians are quite well informed, particularly by world standards. The latest IALS literacy surveys done by the OECD point that out.

I would also say that I find it troubling that a Canadian who wanted to lead the country would have (and express to a foreign audience) such a low opinion of Canadians.

On edit - Notice he says Canadians know almost nothing.

[Hoping4Change]

6. I have been so surprised that the Liberals have done such a poor job

exploiting not only these gems from Harper's past and also gems spewed by his wacko cohorts. I will never understand why the Liberals didn't jump all over Lumpy's image makeover and put the lie to it.