The election of a centre-right government in New Zealand should be regarded as a blow to the leftist propaganda machines cheering the failure of capitalism and conservatism.
In Canada, the Conservative government of Stephen Harper was recently re-elected with a 12 per cent positive swing.
Similarly, the Conservative Party lead in the British polls indicates a likely victory there over the Blair/Brown Labour Party.
Why are these results a blow to the political left? Not simply because they have or will see centre-right governments in power but because they repudiate the hysterical claims that only the left have the answers to the current woes of the world.
Typical of this hysteria is the following comment from journalist Jill Singer: “New Zealanders have voted for change – a leap from Left to Right – with all the enthusiasm and reasoning power of a doped slug.”
So according to Singer, voting for a conservative government is being dopey but voting for someone like Obama is an act of inspiration that will save the world.
Of course, the left have always believed that no matter what the question, the answer is always ‘more government’. They believe that government can spend your money more effectively than you can and that a government program is better for you than your own personal choice. \
And to support their shallow arguments they trumpet the failure of the Bush Presidency and the toppling of Australian statesman and former Prime Minister John Howard.
As I have mentioned before, G. W. Bush was elected twice as a conservative, however he failed on a number of counts to implement conservative fiscal policy. He led an interventionist government (at home and abroad) that clearly highlights the folly of allowing the power of government to go unchecked.
The Australian election result was more a product of ennui with the incumbent and complacency about the strength of the economy rather than any malfeasance.
Singer and Co should also be mindful that the Rudd ascendency was only achieved by mimicking one of the most successful centre-right governments in Australia’s history – hardly a vindication of the credentials of the leftist policy agenda.
Cory Bernardi is the author of seven books and has been a member of the Australian rowing team, a publican, an investment portfolio manager and spent nearly 14 years as an Australian Senator.
