You're Fucking Right It Is

Dion laments Conservative "dream of ending supply management"

It's hard to say whether Stephane Dion is much dumber than he looks, or too smart for his own good.

Today, the Liberal leader attacked Prime Minister Stephen Harper for his "attacks" on the Canadian Wheat Board.

Ironically, he did so in Ontario, where they farmers have long ago chosen to abolish the single-desk marketing system.

"Their dream is to get rid of supply management," Dion warned. "If he's attacking the Canadian Wheat Board, what will happen to supply management?"

That's a simple question. As it turns out, it will finally be what prairie grain farmers have democratically expressed as their will -- namely, the abolition of the single-desk marketing system as it regards barley. It will remain in place for other grains.

In the end, "supply management" will be left not up to CWB bureaucrats, but to producers and consumers of grain -- as it should be, and according to the will of the farmers, not entrenched CWB bureaucrats.

Dion has been campaigning hard to find a breakthrough in rural Canada. He's already lightened his Green Shift policy for farmers who would be disproportionately penalized by the inevitable increased costs of diesel fuel. But any gains he may have made -- however unlikely -- Dion can kiss good-bye with this little blunder.

After all, farmers may be characterized as simple folk, but they know when someone's screwing them. When Dion turned his back on the democratically-expressed will of prairie grain farmers, he screwed them.

On the prairies, there is a simple -- paraphrased -- adage: "[screw] me once, shame on you. [Screw] me twice, shame on me."

Dion needs to get his head on straight as it regards the CWB. Prairie grain farmers will not stand for being screwed by another Liberal government.