Writing on the walls

Several bloggers, and commenters on this blog, aren't happy with Martin's promise to amend the constitution. Basically, their argument seems to be that the constitution was approved with the notwithstanding clause, perhaps even because of the notwithstanding clause, so it is just not right to change it.
But I believe times have changed.
Thanks to 9/11 and George Bush, rights and freedoms are much more at risk now from politicians than they were 30 years ago. When that clause was passed, it was believed that politicians would not abuse it. They wouldn't dare -- we thought then that any politician who tried to use the clause to roll back a minority's civil rights would be thrown out of office by an enraged electorate. But not anymore.
The writing is on the wall. The increasingly fascist society just south of us is promoting a hostile attitude toward civil rights of all kinds -- we see their 'enemy combatants', and Guantanamo, and wiretapping without warrants, and finding excuses for torture, and demonizing gay people through their anti-gay marriage amendments, and 'intelligent design' and targetting judges and university professors and 'liberals'. With at least three more years of the Bush administration, the attack on civil rights will be even worse than it is now.
Martin reads the writing on the wall, too.
These US attitudes are spreading across the border. The people who are against gay marriage in Canada are prejudiced fanatics who are inspired by people in the US like James Dobson and Pat Robertson to keep on fighting. And they're not even ashamed of it! These aren't people who wear sheets -- they are proud of their determination to legalize prejudice against gay people.
If the notwithstanding clause is available to people like this, they just might be successful someday in using it.
I know the notwithstanding clause was brought in because people didn't quite trust the Canadian Supreme Court not to be too radical.
But if I have to chose between trusting my civil rights to the Supreme Court or to Elsie Wayne and Stephen Harper, I'll chose the Court, thank you very much.