Let’s face it, we don’t count

Nothing says I don’t care about you like complete and utter indifference. It’s worse than hatred. Hatred has emotion in it. Indifference is cold and heartless. 

The thunder-ice storm that hit us in Ottawa-Gatineau and surrounding areas earlier this month saw more than 200,000 people without power, including tens of thousands of people without Hydro for several days. One person died from a fallen tree branch. There were plenty of incidents causing injuries and property damage that, while not significant enough to make front-page news, were nevertheless devastating to the people who suffered them. 

And what did the premiers of Ontario and Quebec do to show us that they’d noticed we were hurting? 

Fuck-all. 

Doug Ford was giving Tim’s free publicity and François Legault was on Twitter trying to claim that praising catholicism had nothing to do with religion. 

People in the Outouais are used to being ignored by provincial politicians. It’s nothing new. Ottawans are catching up quickly. Remember how we didn’t matter enough while we were being occupied a little over a year ago? 

Yeah, me too.

I understand politicians focusing on their strengths and the ridings they need to win during election campaigns. But once your party is elected — doubly so in this case as both premiers recently won re-election — you must act as the premier of all. Not just those who are friendly to you and send you money when you email them. 

Anyway, I noticed last week we’d hit a new low, and wrote a doozy of a column about it. Premiers can’t restore hydro to your home. But they can show up on TV — or at least on YouTube — and sympathize. Offer some kind of help. Tell us they noticed we’re in a jam. 

I know neither premier cares very much about the federal government and the people who work for it, but it’s disappointing, to say the absoute least, that two premiers can’t get past that when their own citizens are in peril.