[ssiguy]

You just articulated exactly why people like Bernier and myself no longer like the Conservative Party because under Scheer the party doesn't stand for anything anymore. At the very least, a conservative party should stand for the free market but Scheer has even thrown that out the window in an attempt to be more electable. In other words, the party is indistinguishable from the Liberals in their zeal to govern.[/QUOTE]

There is a VERY big difference between having firm convictions and being blindly ideological.

Harper's inability to accept any criticism truly bordered on the neurotic. Due to this I actually questioned the man's mental health. Harper could state 1+1= 3 and if someone tried to correct him, he is the type who would barrage you, throw you out of the party, and drag your reputation through the mud for questioning his belief. He fully believed that his MPs and even Cabinet were there solely to act like a bunch of well trained penguins clapping at his request and voting at his will.


Being a leader means not just having convictions but also being able to effectively work with other people in a constructive fashion, accepting feedback and being able to make informed decisions as opposed to strictly ideological based ones, and an acknowledgement that when governing a diverse country like Canada, there is no such thing as 'one size fits all' when creating and implementing policy. Harper was not a leader but rather a bully.