The Vanity Press  has a clear post for anyone that noticed the decision of Canada’s Public Safety Minister this week.
Stockwell Day and Stephen Harper are welcome to their opinions, what they are not entitled to is even the appearance of advancing an agenda that has not been put to Parliament and the Canadian people.

Here’s why this matters:

One of the most stupefying charges that people on the right often make about modern people and the societies in which we live is that we are, allegedly, “moral relativists.” That is to say, we sometimes get accused of believing that right and wrong depends on who you are and what the situation is — that nothing can be said for certain regarding matters of ethics and morality. Furthermore, since Canada has always been a fairly progressive and forward-looking, modern country, this is also said to be true of Canada as a whole.

But that’s never been true. To be Canadian has always meant to hold certain principles, and to believe that they are true — not provisionally true, and not true just for us, but true. Among those principles, for many years now, has been that the state does not have the right or authority to execute people for crimes they have committed. The state may, by means of due process, remove a person’s property or a person’s freedom, but not a person’s life. The latter was not bestowed by the state, by society, or by anything over which the state has authority, and therefore it cannot be taken away by the state.

That is a principle that we have long held as simply true. And it’s a principle that applies to every Canadian convicted of a capital crime around the world, whether a political prisoner in a despotic nation or even a murderer in the United States. It’s a universal, sharp bright line beyond which we hold that no state may step. And our governments for decades, both Liberal and Conservative, have upheld this principle as vigorously as they were able.

I have a great deal of respect for Mark Byron and I look forward to his posts and comments on Canadian politics.  He makes me think about this country and it’s policies in fresh ways.
He made the point in the Oh oh Canada post below that:

What I think Stock’s up to is that he doesn’t want to pester Washington about people on Death Row in the US when it isn’t going to do any good. If anything, such intervention by a foreign cabinet member will tend to make governors or state parole boards (most capital punishment cases are at the state level) circle the wagons, not wanting the “nosy foreigners” to tell them how to run their state;

He is absolutely right.
It does.

When a US citizen crosses the law in Canada, we expect the US government to take an active interest in that citizen and his/her treatment regardless of their crime. 
As annoying and noisy as it can be, we understand it is their job and their responsibility. We have been known to circle our wagons, but not in disrespect.

Ronald Smith is a confessed murder. Facts are not in dispute, nor are the needs or wants of his victims families. 
When Canadians allow an arbitrary decision of an elected politician to abrogate our principles, or even begin to advance in that direction as Day did this week with his boss trundling along behind him making noises of ’clarification’; then we are permitting elected officials to slip into roles they have no business taking.
The principles above hold true, they are what Canadian voters and Canada’s parliament have decided. Mr. Day has never been given the responsibility or right to change horses in mid-stream.

As much as Montana (which has executed 3 people since 1976) may wish to circle the wagons, this isn’t about US jurisdiction, it’s about us.
This is about where Canadian voters draw the line and stand against any politicians who chose to barge past what we have chosen, why we have chosen and who we chose to be. 

There has been some outstanding blogging on Mr. Day and Mr. Harper’s opinions and public signals. Bow. James Bow:

If you wish to see the policy changed, then it is your government’s right to introduce legislation and give Canadians everywhere a fair chance to engage in this debate again. But you have not done this. Even in your recent legislation toughening up criminal sentences you have not done this. And I can only assume that you haven’t done this because polls suggest that Canadians don’t wish to engage in such a debate, that most Canadians accept that capital punishment is not the Canadian way.

Therefore, what you have done is abrogated your responsibility for maintaining the human rights of Canadians, regardless of where they happen to be. Worse, you have taken this extraordinary step — something both Liberal and Conservative governments before you have refused to do — without consulting parliament or the Canadian people. That is an inappropriate subversion of Canadian rights on a whim.

Mr. Day, I call upon you and your government to reaffirm Canada’s stance against the death penalty, regardless of where it is implemented. Failing that, I call upon you to put this matter before parliament, and before the Canadian people. We should have the right to determine what rights Canadians are entitled to, regardless of who they are or where they are. This is not a matter that should be hidden behind the veil of ministry policy. It is not something that you should try to sneak past us. We deserve better.

Nothing is on the table, not in the current law and order bill or waiting for Parliament. Stockwell Day announced they were backing off in the Smith case (the only Canadian currently on death row in the US).
Harper attempted to clarify the next day and merely revealed how willing his government is to reverse policy.

The point I made to Mark is that Canadians shouldn’t be surprised. This has been the position of the Harper government prior to election, it will continue to be their position whether they sit in opposition, gain a majority, or run a minority government. 
What Stockwell Day chose to do this week is a deviation from what Conservatives in Canada have fought for and stood for, and he announced a decision Canada’s voters need to address with him.

Mark suggested I ease up a bit on the fastball - calling out Day on exactly what he is doing.
Being a polite Canuck I said no.

This is not the time to ease up.
It is a time to speak and to speak very clearly to our own. 
 Licia Corbella:

Asked about his government’s about face on protecting a Canadian from the death penalty, Prime Minister Stephen Harper said seeking clemency for Smith would run counter to his government’s tough stance on crime.

In other words, Harper is comfortable with reversing decades of democratic Canadian procedure while in a minority position, but isn’t comfortable being at odds with party policy.

How’s that for a killer of logic not to mention Canadian ethics?

It’s also bad politics for the Tories, who have been portrayed with having a scary “hidden agenda” that they will roll out should they ever win a majority.

Yes, Smith is a monster. But Canadians decided long ago that capital punishment is an even bigger monster.

The decision about Ronald Smith’s execution is in the hands of the Montana governor,  the papers are on his desk.
The decision about why and for how long our federal government speaks to Governor Schweitzer  is on ours.