The Conversation

The latest Ottawa tempest-in-a-teapot here has centred on an allegation that the Liberals tried to bribe a Conservative MP to support them in a crucial budget vote a few weeks ago. The MP, Gurmant Grewal, secretly taped all their conversations and then after the vote released some excerpts as proof of how despicable the Liberals are. Unfortunately the full tapes, which he was very reluctant to release, appear to have been tampered with and they are not as damaging when taken in context. Also, because it's not clear who contacted who, Grewal may have been seeking a payoff but made the tapes to cover himself.

This seems to have been handled very clumsily by the Conservatives. They're sticking by their allegation even though it's looking more and more likely to have been fabricated from fairly ordinary political wheeling and dealing.

What tickles me about this is the parallels to a great film from 1974 called The Conversation. This Francis Ford Coppola film centres on Gene Hackman as a surveillance expert who is tape recording a young couple on behalf of the woman's powerful husband. The plot turns on what is heard, or not heard, on the audio tapes he makes. A truly excellent and subtle film. Coppola made this immediately after the first Godfather film.

Listening to: Smiling Faces Sometimes (Futureshock Main Ingredient Mix) by Undisputed Truth from MOTOWN remixed.