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Coalition governments are not necessarily a bad thing. But just seven weeks after an election where the governing minority party is rewarded by the electorate with a strengthened minority, this current coalition is a political coup and an assault on Canadian Democracy. By the election results, the only coalition that Canadians would be happy with is a Conservative-Liberal coaliton. A Liberal-NDP coalition can only be sustained by separatists and that is a recipe for disaster.

A greater concern is that this idea was hatched by Jack Layton and Gilles Duceppe who waited until the Liberals forced Stephane Dion to announce his resignation before springing their plan into action.

Layton wants constant minority parliaments as it's the only chance of his party having any influence on government and is a strong proponent of proportional representation for this reason.

This coalition idea was the last chance for Dion to ever be Prime Minister as his exit from the federal scene was already scheduled in May.

Duceppe's motivation is even more sinister. He wants to show Quebecors that Canada doesn't work, and he wants to discredit the Conservatives who have become his greatest threat in Quebec. When Conservatives and Liberals take seats in Quebec, it is the Bloc that loses them.

It is the Liberals who have the most to lose from this coalition. By associating themselves so closely to the NDP they risk alienating the remaining fiscal conservatives in their party, ensuring the Conservatives of majority level support. They also risk defections to the NDP by increasing their influence and credibility. This is a great deal to risk for a short 18 month gain. But then power is it's own reward. Eighteen months is a long time in politics and we're bound to have an election before that runs out.

The point is, when it comes, and it will, Canadians need to act and exercise their democratic right in the next election and make sure that this does not happen again. Political unrest is always worrisome at the best of times, but in this period of economic instability it prevents us from addressing the real issues. How can we manage our own economy and take advantage of oppurtunities around the world when we are focuses on this political unrest.