'Populism' is a trump card. Its a weapon. Its a cudgel to wield at the first sign that your stake is...at stake. Use it if you're O'Toole, CNN, or, Jean Charest and you find yourself on the outside. Use it when some new and undefined force is emerging from within the populace, the “commoners”—be it traditional values, libertarian direct democracy, or regional pride. Use it when “they” ignore our public institutions..“All right-of-center parties are struggling with this populist element,” he said. “We've got to find a middle way. Avoid all the anger. Reassert our faith in institutions.”.The CBC recently gave Erin O'Toole a full-length feature article, with the headline: “Erin O'Toole wants his party to find a 'balance' between conservatism and populism. What if it doesn't?” The subheading: “Former leader says Conservatives need to 'come up with positive change, not add to the anger.'”.To O'Toole, Conservatives have to choose between being "angry, negative and extreme" and being a party of "inclusion, optimism, ideas and hope." Of course, your Spidey Sense sees the false dichotomy. CBC and O'Toole define two extremes, and we are left with one choice: our bureaucratic institutions or raving populism. No grey. When the only other option is the angry, racist zombie trucker, why wouldn't I choose the establishment?.There's a pic later on in the article with a predictable description: “One protester holds a sign referring to the 'Great Reset” conspiracy theory.'” Where has the writer been while the rest of us live the conspiracy theory? New government powers, crippling gas prices, changing standards on scientific ethics, apocalyptic inflation, digital passports, lockdowns and power grabs every day. I guess they missed from that under the rock..Odd how our reality has become a conspiracy to the CBC. Nevertheless, it does the trick: stay on the safe side..But I digress..Populism: Cas Mudde, author of Populism: A Very Short Introduction says “Populism is the idea that society is separated into two groups at odds with one another - 'the pure people' and 'the corrupt elite'.”.Wiki dictionary says, “Populism refers to a range of political stances that emphasize the idea of the people and often juxtapose this group against the elite.”.Then there's Roger Brubaker's description in his essay Why Populism:“the little people against those on top”, “the sovereign people against ruling elites”, and “a bounded and distinct people against threatening outside groups”. He also calls it “ethnic nationalism” and “redistributivism”..Those 'elites'? Brubaker describes them as “comfortably insulated from the economic struggles of ordinary people, but also as differing in their culture, values, and way of life.” To him they typically “rootless cosmopolitans, indifferent to the bounded solidarities of community and nation,” and “their moral self-understanding, cultural identity, and economic fate are de-linked from those ofthe people.”.So much for the theory on the matter. For those wielding the term as a weapon, populism comes down to this: “Lawlessness!”.This was the word of choice for Ottawa City Counselor Catherine McKenney when describing the Trucker Convoy last winter. You could hear the mix of fear and the virtue signaling each time she spoke with media: “Lawlessness!” We needed a return to order. There was something new here occupying Somerset Ward's streets that was too wild. Too savage. Too much that buffalo horned January 6th Capitol terrorist. The populist is a wild animal, a beast who pees on our monuments..In the land of law, order, and good governance where risk aversion and tearing down the brave and bold is a national pastime unless its done within the confines of the rink, we won't have our applecart upset so easily, even by a well-spoken numbers geek who dares utter the word 'freedom'..Really? Has the Canadian establishment really become so paranoid? Has our loyalty to what CJ Hopkins calls “The Covidian Cult” become so blind, such a morality test? Are we nothing more than weak-kneed virtue signaling hypochondriacs, triggered by a hint of anything new?.You'd think that Poilievre was talking “Canada First” protectionism, dominating Twitter, speaking to followers in code like 'Covfefe' and cozy-ing up to B-list world leaders. Will he drain the Ottawa swamp? Shut out immigrants in a new wave of ultra-nationalism? Is Poilievre using misogynistic locker-room banter that would make Roseanne Barr cringe?.Something is way off when Poilievre and the small-government Conservative element becomes the populist bogeyman. Yes, Poilievre has talked about defunding the CBC and he has criticized the Bank of Canada, but this is no personality cult, and he is no a maverick hero with a savior complex. Poilievre's biggest crime is that he and other would-be leaders like Baber and Lewis are listening to angry and disenfranchised Canadians, and giving them hope..We're sorry, if waving the flag scares you.
