Sure the NDP did not stand up Canada by standing up to Stephen Harper, but the party has fallen down in another more serious manner. The NDP no longer sets, or champions readily comprehensible bench marks that people can get behind. The fight for a 5 day week, for 8 hour day and for universal health care has been replaced by nebulous claim that they are helping working Canadians. As result, the party has been effectively marginalized by the other major political parties and by a right leaning media. Very few Canadians would be able to say on what issues the NDP stand apart. The party does not set the terms of debate; it reacts to it. Worse, more often than not its reaction is reported in the media as an after thought. As long as this continues, the NDP can not justify its existence to progressives on the grounds that it was because of the NDP that certain progressive policies have became accepted by the vast majority of Canadians as good policy. Its only appeal seems to be its ability to play Kingmaker from time to time in, ahem, a Liberal led minority government.

Layton’s Afghanistan position is welcome reprieve in this regard. Layton, for once, is setting the terms of debate and he did so by going around the Liberals left flank. That said, judging from the NDP’s 5 priorities, I very much doubt the party will attempt such flanking maneuvers. The party’s five priorities bare a striking resemblance to the issues the Liberals are Harping on; these in turn bare a striking resemblance to the platform the Liberals ran on in January and lost. And so, outside of Afghanistan, the NDP’s wedge issue for the next election looks like it will be again vote for us; we are real Liberals and not Conservatives in drag like those fake Liberals.

This is too bad. NDP can out flank the Liberals on several other issues and in the process grab headlines. The NDP should promise to legalize marijuana; leave the Liberals to champion a strange and inconsistent mix of stiffer penalties for trafficking and fines for possession; the Liberal position inspires no one and with the prospect of legalization on the table it will grab no headlines. Promise to abolish the senate; that is after all party policy. Let the Liberals stumble over their own tongues trying to cut a path between the Conservative and NDP positions.

As for some readily digestible policy proposals, I have two.

One: The NDP claim to be a socially democratic party and at least 4 weeks vacation is the norm in every other socially democratic country; so what the hell is taking them so long? It is time they made an effort to keep up with the Jones, that is the Europeans, or drop the socially democratic pretense. They are a generation behind. Two: The same goes for public dental care. The NDP should be saying that if the Germans, Brits and Fins etc etc can do it, so can we.