Prudent Compassion

Well.

After leading much of the developed world in stepping up to help Haiti, and getting almost universal praise for his effort, compared to the Liberal response to the Indonesian tsunami disaster in 2004, it was almost a given that someone would say, "not good enough Mr. Harper."

And, true to form, Marie Andree Chouinard, with Le Devoir, suggests that the refusal of Immigration Minister Jason Kenney to "open the doors" to immigrants from Haiti is "frankly detestable", as reported in the Globe and Mail today.

In response to criticism, primarily from Quebec, Kenney responded that the Canadian government must be consistent in its immigration policies for victims of natural disaster in foreign countries - a point with which rational, but compassionate Canadians, certainly cannot take issue with.

And this is the point, isn't it?

Canada is able to step in to help others, primarily because we are a prudent and (relatively) well managed democracy.  And that requires that even during periods of great tragedy, our government act in a manner which is prudent - not purely emotional.

It's called "leadership".

The Conservatives have already shown that they have the ability to respond quickly and decisively in response to a neighbor's tragedy.  However, to maintain that ability requires continued prudent management at home, and, as Kenney also points out, consistency in how we treat other immigration applicants.

Surely, the starving and besieged citizens of Somalia or Darfur have little appreciable difference in their circumstances from those in Haiti.  So, contrary to the simple and mindless rant of Chouinard, "consistency IS justice".  To suggest otherwise is just, as I suggested yesterday, "politics for dummies" yet again.

Our government requires a soul; it requires that it stand for something.  And while it has a ways to go, it's response to Haiti and it's leadership in suggesting the development of a social welfare agenda for the G8 shows that there are ideals being followed that go beyond feeding the "McDonald's" mentality of so many of us, who see the point of government as doing little more than "giving us more for less". 

Prudent Compassion.  There could be worse things to stand for.

Meanwhile,  let Chouinard and her compatriots at Le Devoir continue to complain and trumpet their "Quebec first" agenda, even as her province, collectively, is the largest "aid" recipient in Canada, year in and year out..  but then "prudence" has never been the strong point of the Quebec separatist agenda, so why start now?