As I and others have been noting: this subject will very soon reach its climax.
We will fairly soon know for certain the coming-into-force date.
We can soon cease all speculation.
I am quite confident that within the next ten or twelve weeks all the speculation, informed or otherwise, will be totally irrelevant. We will know. The date will be fixed by an order made by the Governor in Council and that order will be public information. Indeed, I quite fully expect that within ten or twelve weeks the revised residency provisions as prescribed in the SCCA will be in force. Maybe not, but even if not, not much beyond that.
What will we have to masticate then?
In following this process, I for one have learned a great deal about my government (I have been a citizen for over a year now). A year ago I had no idea what "Governor in Council" meant, my reading of the Gazette was sporadic, my understanding of the legislative process in Canada was superficial and rudimentary. For me, following Bill C-24 since it was first tabled on the sixth of February last year (which, by the way, was the 8th year anniversary of the very day Harper first became PM) has been an education in Canadian government and legislation, a vehicle for learning more about the country I love and consider to be my true home.
Oh Canada! one might say with emphasis.
Clarification: to be clear, I am NO expert.
But sure, I do a lot of homework, and I make a concerted effort to carefully analyze and verify. And I do have a background in analyzing and writing about legal matters (having more than three decades of experience as a professional jurist).
It should be noted, in particular, that in contrast to an immigration lawyer, the scope of what I know has to do with a very narrow range of information and jurisprudence. I can afford to focus a great deal of attention on just a few issues because this is a hobby, not a profession (my professional efforts, my day job, while those of a writing-jurist, they have nothing to do with any aspect of Canadian law let alone Canadian immigration or citizenship).
Even in regards to the SCCA, there is a lot in the SCCA (Bill C-24 until it received Royal Assent) with which I am not much familiar at all, such as its further refinements of who is a citizen by birth . . . even relative to the grant citizenship provisions, I am not much acquainted with those which relate to the grant of citizenship for minors or adopted children. My focus has been very narrow.
Following this, though, has been fun, a bit like watching the bookies work the horse races, figuring out the odds, following the favourites, sorting through the rumours. The horses are coming around the final turn now, headed into the stretch. The odds are set, no new bets being taken. The office pool is closed. My bet has been on June 1st but there are signs that horse might fade in the stretch.
However, however, however: it is not all fun. This is about real life with real consequences for many.
As much as I love my country, it does bother me that there is so much disregard for its people. The lack of transparency in the current governing is not just disappointing, not merely disconcerting, but to my view cause for much concern. This is happening south of the border as well. As much to the Left as the U.S. President Obama leans, in many respects his Administration has continued the trend for government to move more of its functions behind the curtains. While Harper's pace in this trend is far more severe, the overall trend in modern governments foretells a powerful and converging current, a growing divide between the governing and the governed.
To my view it is as important as ever for a populace to pursue knowledge and understanding about its government, how it functions, what influences it, how to encourage the government to be a better government for all its people. This particular legislation has been an incentive, a vehicle, for at least me to pursue this.
By the way, the famous line from Groucho Marx is "Who are you going to believe, me or your lying eyes?"
Reminds me of Harper's insistence he knew nothing about Mike Duffy and Nigel Wright and others conspiring to deceive the public about the bribery payoff in regards to gross abuses in Senate expenses.
