The Liberal Party has been sending out newsletters and putting up information on their web site as they demonstrate their outrage at the revelation that Harper and his fellow Conservatives offerred the dying MP, Chuck Cadman, a million dollar life insurance policy and the costs of running his campaign if he would support in their favour a vote in the house of commons. I can understand the Liberal's outrage and feel a good deal of it myself. This is something that is not only against the law but it is dead wrong. Chuck Cadman thought so too and voted with the Liberals sustaining their government in office at the time.

The problem I have with this issue is that we the voters and citizens of this country have come to expect quite a lot of wheeling and dealing with MPs and compensation for their favours. We have seen member after member cross the floor for cabinet posts, favours, God knows what all and we have come to accept this as the ordinary, normal way things should be.

Here in Saskatchewan a sitting member of the NDP party was handed a free pass to run as a Liberal in an upcoming by-election without having to go throught the expense and effort of winning a constituency nomination. The Liberal leader makes no bones about the move and even our good old honest man, Ralph Goodal supports what is essentially a bribe.

I can remember as a kid in high school getting out of shape over issues that were morally serious in my mind and in my first year of college I was exposed to the wrong nature of federal politics and I was not amused. But, my family pointed out to me that these were "ordinary" if not even "normal" ways for things to be and it was my young age and lack of experience that was in the way of me accepting things that were wrong.

How often in my life I have come across situation that if I took a stand and fought for the right thing it would be costly to my career and to the future of my family. Many times I chose to fight and I had the good fortune of having a wife who accepted the quirks of her husband and made due with disaster. The thing is folks, it is so easy to just accept that fact that salt is part of our meals, that sugar is in large quantities in most of our foods and does that mean we accept these things that will surely kill us? The amount of salt and sugar in our foods is being reduced first by us individually and secondly, by the food processors, who are realising that if they don't get with it, they are going to have a tough time in the market place.

Lines have to be drawn, serious consideration must be given this whole problem of political bribery and we as voters and citizens have to point out to our politicians that legal, or sort of under the table, doesn't matter. Wrong is wrong and its just that simple. Harper as a lobbiest was constantly in trouble for breaking the rules and recently with the Oboma interference we can see the political ideology comes first and morals are not even part of the discussion. The Cadman thing will be forgotten and we are all too confused about Mulroney and his $300,000 or was it $500,000 or more, cash pay-offs. Citizens let's stop taking any more of this crap.