Real crime is repetition

I disagree with the Conservative approach -- it's just politics -- but crime is an issue that needs debate and the Conservatives are talking about it.

Brantford Expositor (ON)
Thu 25 Sep 2008
Page: A10
Section: Editorial/Opinion
Column: Editorial

Fewer than 50 people turned out for a Conservative campaign event in Brantford Wednesday featuring Justice Minister Rob Nicholson promoting the government's tough on crime agenda.

It's about the audience the tired Conservative message deserves.

Didn't we just have 2 1 /2 years of being governed by a law-and-order, tough-on-crime party?

Wasn't getting tough on crime one of the Conservatives' vaunted five priorities when they got elected? Or was that getting tough on the arts?

Aren't we already tough on crime, given that the Conservatives have pushed their justice bills through the House of Commons with the threat of an election?
To be trotting out this issue on the election trail seems bizarre for a party that has led in the polls since the election's start and in a country where we all know crime has been in decline for a generation.

Yet the Conservatives cling to their crime and justice mantra, almost in desperation.

We wonder how long they would have to govern for the nation to be sufficiently tough on crime.

The bigger issue is why changes to the justice system, presumably well thought-out for both their preventive and rehabilitative impact, are being introduced during a campaign.

If the criminal justice system is an integral part of a democracy -- and we believe it is -- fundamental changes to it are too important to be flaunted for votes midway through a campaign like a tax break or some other promise.

So far this election, Prime Minister Stephen Harper has announced his intent to reduce conditional sentences -- or house arrest -- for a wider variety of crimes and to increase the number of serious crimes for which youth as young as 14 could be tried and sentenced as adults.

The thrust is to move towards a more American style of justice system, even though the crime rate is higher south of the border and there is no evidence that sending more people to jail for longer sentences helps reduce crime.

No wonder the Conservative event in support of Brant candidate Phil McColeman drew such a small crowd, which included media, party supporters wearing buttons and a few protesters, who were targeting the wrong minister to address native land claims.

(We doubt we'll see Indian and North Affairs Minister Chuck Strahl in Brantford during the election, though we would certainly welcome him.)

Polls show that crime ranks in single digits as the major issue for voters, behind the economy, health care and the environment.

No mystery why the Conservatives prefer talking about getting tough on crime over any of the three latter issues.

We declared earlier in the election that crime and justice were among the five issues we would be watching.

We want action to reduce crime and agree with criminologists and other experts that there is no reason to believe incarcerating more people for more time has any effect except diverting money from more effective crime prevention measures.

We will say this for the Conservatives, however -- at least they're talking about the issue.

James Morton
1100 - 5255 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario
M2N 6P4