A word of caution

Dear Diane,
I caught a little of the coverage of the Anti-Coalition rallys across Canada yesterday and, with particular interest, in Winnipeg. What I saw was a little disheartening. What was supposed to be a pro-democracy, anti-coalition rally turned into a pro-Conservative rally attended by many people that I look up to. I have no problem with our Conservative Cabinet ministers, MPs and provincial MLAs showing up to express their outrage at what has taken place in the past few weeks, but what did throw me was the overt partisanism in the crowd and what I observed as a bit of a spring in the step of those in attendance. It left me turned off and more disappointed than ever in the direction this crisis is taking.
In the past week, we have seen a backlash against the coalition by regular Canadians; people who have tuned out the political static for years because it all seems the same to them. This crisis put politics back in the forefront of their minds. It had them talking about it, not only at the coffee shops where small talk reigns supreme, but at the kitchen table. What happened in Parliament really mattered. And for the most part, people couldn't stomach the idea that a democratically elected government, minority or not, could be toppled before they could even produce their first budget. They took their outrage to the editorial columns; the talk radio airwaves; and most important to the politicos amoung us, the public opinion polls.
But along the way, the political junkies lost sight of what was really happening. What was a backlash against parliament's behavior(including the Conservatives) began to be thought of as a win. We started to puff out our chests and see it as a victory for the good guys, one that could possibly be used to get that coveted majority with. The public opinion polls that have the Conservatives up several points are a reflection of us being the best choice...of a bad bunch.
The stand against the coalition by ordinary Canadians is one that is principled and thought out and directly associated with the facts of this crisis. They didn't want the government they elected handed over to a smaller minority, backed by seperatists, and headed by possibly the biggest political failure of the past half century. It didn't make sense to do so and as a result, Canadians sided overwhelmingly with us as Conservatives.
But we must not forget that it was arrogance in our leadership that lead us to the brink of disaster in the first place. Our constant need to put politics ahead of policy drove the opposition to roll the dice and lose. But the game is not over. If we fail to be humble in the face of this parliamentary disaster and try to politicize it, we run the very real risk of having the pendulum of public opinion swing back to the left. Stephen Harper has never been a sympathetic figure and if it doesn't make sense to support him, the public will turn in an instant.
To sum it up, I'd really like to see my fellow Conservatives let this take its course. Instead of trying to push our way to the front of this anti-coalition movement, let's keep our heads down and work on solving the economic problems our country faces. Let the Coalition take their case to the people; we're the governing party and no one can take that away from us unless we let them. For once, let's not give them a reason to.