Dispairing at the alternatives, the Flea has rattled the chains as Ghost of Political Parties Past and proposed a resurrection of the Rhino Party. I am all in. I remember their free time political broadcasts with guys drinking beer in lawn chairs. It was SCTV meets reality TV. We want moderate credible constitutional and legal government or we want silly. Time to break out the silly costumes to let Ottawa know we are saying enough is enough!

Unless you are talking about lawn chairs and beer, that is.

Update: We need some Rhino Party facts around here:

• From Usenet we read:

  For the uninitiated, and few words on the Canadian Rhino Party. At some point in our history, a rhinocerous was shipped from a Canadian zoo, to an American one (San Diego?). He was the "leader" of the Rhino Party, and their single issue was to have him repatriated back to Canada. However, they were determined never to get anyone actually elected. They had their celebrations the night before the election, in the certain knowledge that no-one from the Rhino party was going to be elected. In one riding it was rumoured that they had a chance of winning, so they put up two candidates to split the vote. They were in the election purely for the humour of the situation. One election they had 50 plus candidates, which meant they had enough to have free advertising on radio and television. But they did not have enough money to make a commercial. The next year, they had 50 plus candidates, and they got a commercial; it was the worst thing you have ever seen. Yes, its a pity the Rhinos have disappeared.

• We also read:

  Near as I can tell, the Federal Liberals have only attacked one political party as being unbecoming a Canadian Political Party, and that was when Jean Chretien attacked a member of the Rhino Party for suggesting that towing Newfoundland out into the Atlantic and sinking it, would save the country money in the long run. Seems that Jean was not amused.

• Elsewhere we read:

  The Rhino party's mascot was in fact a white Rhino living in the San Diego Zoo and there was great weeping and gnashing of teeth when said Rhino died. (What other party has had a living breathing mascot much less one outside the nation's territory?)

• And we read:

  This year's election actually is less fun than the elections of yesteryear. And there's one obvious reason why this is the case: the Rhino Party no longer exists. To voters of a certain age, that name will bring back fond memories. Until it disbanded in 1993, the Rhinoceros Party injected a much-needed dose of silliness into this country's federal-election campaigns. The party once famously promised to pave Manitoba if it formed the government, thus creating the world's largest parking lot. It also pledged to tear down the Rocky Mountains so people in Alberta could see the sun setting over the Pacific Ocean, and to sell the Senate at an antique action.

  It's true that the campaign of 2004 has generated a few chuckles. But while the idea of Stephen Harper forming an alliance with the Bloc Québécois may seem unintentionally absurd, the Rhino platform was humorous on purpose. And although it failed to ever send an MP to Ottawa, the fringe party did succeed in making Canadians laugh at the nation's political system. For Canadians who feel nostalgic for the Rhino Party, there's some good news: there is at least one party - the Lemon Party of Canada - that is attempting to carry on the tradition of irreverence started by the Rhinos.

• And yet we read:

  Bill Lee was leader of the Rhino party in the United States . He lives in Vermont near the U.S./Canada border and still appears on sports talk shows. His election platform included legalizing marijuana, probably a throwback from the days when he used to smoke up while pitching for the Expos. My favorite Rhino election promise: Building a palace for the Queen in Quebec...what a scream!

• And still yet more we read:

  In Canada we once had the Rhinoceros Party, based in a Montreal pub, until Canadians lost their sense of humour and began navel-gazing. The Rhino Party's platform one particular year was to set up a twinning program with Buckingham, Quebec and Buckingham Palace, and exchange the Queen and the mayor of Buckingham for a year. Another year, their platform was to drill a hole through the Rockies so that people could save time and money and drive from Alberta to British Columbia.

• And yet still even more so we read the wikipedia entry for the Rhino Party and here is apparently a Winnipeg riding's Rhino candidate's poster from 1980.