Former Prime Minister Brian Mulroney passed away last week.
His departure follows other politicians in recent times who greatly impacted Canada. Ed Broadbent, former leader of the NDP. Pat Carney, former Conservative MP, Senator and journalist. Hugh Segal Senator and Conservative operative for decades. There are countless others worthy of mention who served the country decades ago.
We always enjoyed a Mulroney speech. He was the consummate storyteller and his speeches were always delivered with perfect pitch and tenor. It’s a gift few have.
While his politics and the ways of getting things done were subject to interpretation, it would be hard to argue his end goals were anything less than visionary.
The despised consumption tax known as the GST would be railed against and ultimately cost the Conservatives a drubbing, but every government since would rely on that revenue to run Canada.
His efforts to bring justice for Nelson Mandela and end Apartheid stands as one of the greatest foreign relations challenges Canada ever undertook. He was there, despite its dubious political benefits, getting involved in Africa.
Free trade – another grand vision to open up Canada’s borders to the Americans and Mexico – was another game changer that would see Canada gain notoriety as competitive exporters.
The success of all these ventures has and will continue to be debated, but what those of us who have been around a while understand, we may not see a generation like that again.
Thinking back to the ‘80s and previous decades, Canada always had its share of characters and issues. As stiff and stern as the arguments could get, there was still a dose of honour in it all. There were lines of decency that rarely were crossed, knowing that once pointed to the abyss there would be nowhere else to go than down.
A generation or two later, big-picture ideas seem displaced by merciless discourse and pettiness on many levels. Grand speeches have been replaced by soundbites and social media tidbits that fail to tell the whole story.
Mulroney’s was a different time.
May he rest in peace.
Over a barrel
Surge pricing. What a concept.
Wendy’s recently announced a pilot project that would see its pricing fluctuate depending on volume/time of day. This sounds a bit like news a few months back when commuters stuck in Toronto accessed Ubers only to see a surge in pricing.
Most business relationships depend on consistency and price. What is fair? What is reasonable? These are factors in a business deciding its rates and a consumer agreeing to make a purchase.
The ability to change prices at will sounds a lot like gouging. It’s yet another example of unfettered greed cloaked as free enterprise each time a customer gets put over a barrel that way.
