This evening CBC News reports Liberal, NDP insiders talk merger, quoting Liberal strategist Warren Kinsella "Serious people are involved in discussions at a serious level."

Having lived through the Progressive Conservative Party's morphing into the Conservative Party, I have a perspective on mergers that might be different than those of the average NDP or Liberal member.

As one can probably tell from the title and pull quote in this article, I'm all in favour of what Mr. Chretien says.

I know it won't be easy, and that there'll be plenty of naysayers on both sides of this discussion. There has been plenty of scorched earth left between the two parties and there are elements in each party which have a visceral hatred of the other.

If it is doable, lets do it! Former P.M. Jean Chretien

This is a situation exactly like that which faced the Reform / Canadian Alliance and Progressive Conservative parties. Yet the vast majority of members in each, after they had time to consider what the merger meant, voted in favour of the merger.

I wasn't in favour of that merger. I'd spent a great deal of time volunteering with the PC Party specifically because I wanted to help ensure that the Reform/CA did not rise to power, and when Harper returned to the CA, I had an even greater reason to continue to fight for the resurgence of the PC Party.

That of course would never happen. Why that is so is the subject of another post some day, but the bottom line is that regional divisions within the country that had been growing for years would prevent the PC Party from ever regaining the critical mass a party needs to be viable on a national, winning, basis.

Winning might not be everything, all the time, but it isn't a concept politicos should be shy about desiring. You've got to be able to win to prevent others from winning, and winning remains the single best approach for effecting real change for the country.

While I wasn't in favour of the CA-PC merger, I did help man the phone banks that were set up to communicate to members, in order to make the merger happen. Why? Because it was clear from the start that most members wanted it to happen, and indeed on voting day for the merger ratification, members who had not participated in many years had come out of the woodwork to make their voices heard.

Don't dismiss the possibility out of hand. The CA-PC merger proved that it can be done, and that the result can achieve results.

Consider this as well: unless bold action is taken by Canada's centre and left, Harper will win a majority. I have no doubt at all about this. Those who believe he is stuck at a permanent minority have learned nothing about him, or how ruthlessly efficient a political machine they have built. No other party on its own could build an effective counter to what Harper and his minions can do when they grab a majority.

Canadians, the regular kind that are not party activists, don't give a crap about what we insiders care about when it comes to our beloved party creatures. They want to see a strong, united, opposition to whoever is in power, and I happen to believe that most Canadians, like me, oppose Stephen Harper.

Yeah, I was one of those "red Tories" but even within that bunch the political compass spins wildly. I might be too conservative for some hard core NDP activists, or too progressive for some Liberals, but chances are we would agree on a great many things. I'd like to see the Greens join this party because I find myself agreeing with David Suzuki - we need our big national parties to all be green, green or out of power.

I support a union of the Liberal-NDP parties because I believe that is what their members would like to see, and what's more, I will jump in to help if it stands a chance of happening.

Let's do it!