Health care priorities

Call it a hunch, but health care would generally benefit if there was less of this going on:

Quebec and Ontario have been in a spirited competition over the (location of a Shriners) hospital but Charest said Wednesday he is appalled at Ontario's efforts...

(Ontario's promotional) video apparently makes a number of unsubstantiated claims, including assertions that the site of the proposed Montreal hospital is dangerous. The video apparently says the former rail yard was not properly decontaminated.

"That's false, that's a lie," said Charest, who was shown the ad by an Alberta delegate to the Shriners' meeting.

Sounds like typical political attack advertising making its way into the private sphere. But even in politics, normally a campaign has the good sense not to let candidates (or top spokespeople) become the most egregious attackers, lest they be seen negatively themselves.

My hope and expectation is that, like most particularly bad attack ads, this attempt will backfire. Whether or not it does, though, the more important lesson is that there's no good reason for provinces to be fighting over the hospital in the first place.