I thought they believed in less government interference

Canada's Conservative government wants to kill any film and television productions that a committee deems to be offensive or not in the public interest.

In opposition, the Reform Party -- predecessors to the current government -- railed for years against films they saw as a waste of public funds. It was one of their recurring motifs.

Take this comment made in Parliament by luminary Myron Thompson:

The National Film Board receives over $80 million from taxpayers. I would like to outline for the House where some of those dollars are going. A film board promotion for a video says: ``Compelling, often hilarious and always rebellious, the 10 women discuss lesbian sexuality and survival in Canada during the fifties and the sixties. This video brings lesbian history out of the closet and contributes to the viable history of sexuality in Canada''. It also states: ``Due to the explicit nature of certain scenes, viewer discretion is advised''.

The film Thompson is referring to is Forbidden Love. Presumably, the kind of thing the new censorship committee would have disapproved of.

Would the world be a better place without Forbidden Love? Its many awards include a Genie -- Canada's highest film honour -- for best feature-length documentary. Fifteen years after its release, groups are still screening it. You can't say that about a lot of documentaries.

I say, give me honest libertarians any day. If you want to shrink the role of government, then just do it. Don't tell us you're against government interference, then insist on telling us what's good for us.