There's a new comment on Warren Kinsella's blog from yesterday that I just had to share with you.

 ** Blair Thomson says:
September 17, 2013 at 4:35 pm
...
Please permit me to recast the “hate/understand” dialectic. We “understand” Stephen Harper though his actions just as I likewise “understand” my father, for example. We can can indeed hate Harper without calling him evil because we “understand” what he does within the context of common sense-based ethics.

 Take the 2008 prorogation of parliament. Harper’s prorogation of parliament to avoid a confidence vote was simply dishonourable. My father (and I suspect yours, too, Mr. Kinsella, based on your past writings about him) would have done the right thing, the honourable thing–yes, the conservative thing–and accept the vote like “a man’s man.” Hence, we “understand,” Harper as a devious, cowardly man lacking a sense of fair play (itself a true conservative value, worth upholding).

 Moreover, as regards the “art” of politics, it does not logically follow that during campaigns you may freely treat people like shit (Stéphane Dion), distort words from their contexts and expect people to not hate you simply because the rules of the game permit such egregious behaviour. Worse, how can Harper, with any seriousness of mind look at his son and say: “look at the way I conduct myself, dear son. Aren’t you proud of me? Aren’t I a model of piety, honesty and human decency?”

I have followed Canadian politics closely for 35 years and have never seen a lower level of discourse than during the Harper years. Its immaturity and dishonesty is unprecedented because it comes from a truly cynical political mind who knows how significant language is as a window into the mind. Harpers’ excessive and shocking lies reveal a devious man who is clearly only really interested in maintaining power and beating up enemies. Most of all, he is a hypocrite, whose actions have betrayed his promises time after time. So, yes I hate Harper because I understand him though his actions, which are well documented. And spare me the warm and fuzzy hockey Dad bullshit. Even Genghis Khan doubtless shared a few laughs with adversaries. **

http://warrenkinsella.com/2013/09/to-defeat-an-opponent-you-need-to-understand-him-not-hate-him/