Just for the record about coalition governments

In Canada, we live in a representative democracy. It's a bit messed up because of the first-past-the-post system, where seat distribution is not necessarily indicative of actual voting numbers, but that's not the point of today's post. For all its flaws, Canada is a representative democracy. In each constituency, constituents elect a Member of Parliament who is supposed to best represent their interests.

Why is there such fear about coalition governments? Today, Harper used the possibility of a coalition government for scaremongering. In response, Ignatieff vowed to never seek a coalition government to assuage potential (and, frankly, unfounded) fears amongst the electorate. Duceppe pointed out Harper's hypocrisy by waving a copy of a letter Harper wrote about a possible coalition during the waning days of Paul Martin's Liberal minority.

The likely outcome of the following election is the status quo: the Conservatives will likely win just under half of the seats in the House. In order for Parliament to function in this scenario, parties will have to work together regardless of circumstance. If there are some pressing issues that are shared amongst say the Liberals, NDP, and Bloc Quebecois and potential legislation can be worked out between the three parties on those few issues (e.g. limiting carbon emissions), consideration should be given to a coalition government. If nothing can be worked out between the three parties (again, assuming no one gets a majority), then the Conservatives would form a minority government.

All Members of Parliament are supposed to serve their constituents, regardless of arrangement of Parliament (majority, minority, coalition, whatever). It's not a "power grab" when these groups of MP's can work together as a government. It's a nonsensical argument: the Liberals in a coalition government would be just as dependent on the NDP and Bloc in a coalition government as a potential Conservative minority would be on the other parties. The NDP and Bloc are not going to mindlessly vote in lockstep with either the Liberals/Conservatives in a coalition/minority government scenario if a bill is disagreeable. MP's have to compromise with each other. That's life in a Parliament without a majority.

The likely sticking point (aside from who gets to introduce bills as a government) is the makeup of the executive. The executive branch has become increasingly (and disproportionately) powerful over the decades, and it is undoubtedly a coveted position. As it stands currently, a Prime Minister is not a dictator. Parliament is ultimately supreme (as it should be, as it is the only branch of government that is elected by the populace).

A problem seems to be a misinterpretation of our electoral system that the Conservatives are willing to play on: the Conservatives want to make it a question of who Canadians want as their leader. A much bigger problem is the apparent implicit acceptance of this "question" as being valid by other politicians and electorate in general.

Canadians don't elect leaders. We elect representatives, who answer to us. Canadians are supposed to be their own leaders.

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As an aside, the electorate's engagement in politics seems to have atrophied as a result of the generally high standard of living in Canada. It's not really a tyranny of the majority as much as an indifference of the majority right now (see the unchanging support for all political parties as the Conservatives had to deal with one scandal after another). Complacency has replaced any sense of urgency in dealing with still-existing issues (e.g. climate change, gender inequality, discrimination based upon sexual orientation, etc.) as the government and media keep harping on how good it is in Canada for most of us. As the electorate disconnects with politics, politicians become more disconnected from the electorate.

Ultimately, any wounds on our democracy will be self-inflicted if we don't re-engage with politics.

Peace and long life.

EDIT: To be fair, I should note that Ignatieff did refer to coalition governments as constitutionally legitimate despite his decision to not enter a coalition. Unfortunately, he didn't go into further detail as to why coalitions are legitimate, so right now in the public eye it stands as his word against Harper's...