While flu season may be over, several events over the past week force us to conclude that Ottawa's politicians have contracted a virulent form of "political lunacy".

Symptom #1: Spontaneous wasting of millions of taxpayer dollars.

Deputy Prime Minister Herb Gray contracted 'political lunacy' last week when he announced $160 million in funding for groups wishing to celebrate the millenium.

The government can't find money for substantive tax relief or debt reduction, but when it comes to some party favours and Tylenol for a post-millenium hangover, all of sudden, money grows on taxpayer trees. As further proof of his affliction, the Deputy PM has the gall to defend this expenditure by stating that this money will help 'build the country.'

We hope that Mr. Gray, a respected Ottawa veteran, quickly recovers from his bout with 'political lunacy'.

Symptom #2: Seriously clouded judgment that distorts reality.

Deputy Finance Minister Scott Clark and Treasury Board Secretary Peter Harder have also been stricken with 'political lunacy'. They fired off a tersely worded letter to Auditor General Denis Desautels effectively telling him to shut-up and stop criticizing the government for booking the Millenium Fund in the current fiscal year.

But Denis Desautels was merely doing his job. It is his duty to ensure that the government follows generally accepted public sector accounting principles. If taxpayers were to engage in the creative accounting that Paul Martin practices, Revenue Canada would be up in arms. The Auditor General should be praised for his impartial watchdog role, not chastised.

No doubt Mssrs. Clark and Harder were following marching orders from Paul Martin who refuses to admit that he has hidden a fiscal surplus by booking the Fund for fiscal year 1997/1998. His judgment on this point is undeniably clouded. This points to the highly contagious nature of 'political lunacy'. Martin's bureaucratic lapdogs have also succumbed to his affliction.

Symptom#3: Deliberate wasting of taxpayer dollars to protect local political fiefdoms.

Like a true virus, 'political lunacy' does not discriminate between levels of government. The poor immunity of Ottawa's local councillors and mayors has also been exposed.

After providing a $250,000 budget to a volunteer Citizens' Panel to study the issue of local governance changes, these same municipal politicians torpedoed the Panel's efforts by spending hundreds of thousands of dollars more on advertising and consultants to hijack public hearings and skew community responses for the mayor's preferred multiple-city model.

The Citizens' Panel resigned in disgust overt these tactics. So turf protecting and empire building continue to be the modus operandi for local politicians. This points us to another conclusion, some forms of 'political lunacy' are terminal.

Symptom #4: Lack of focus and wasted energy on trivial issues.

Of course we speak of the recent flag flap in the House of Commons. An extremely localized form of 'political lunacy' was in incubation for two weeks on Parliament Hill. Instead of tending to greater affairs of the nation, MPs outduelled each other on who is more patriotic.

MPs would be wise to remember that the last two politicians who played one-upsmanship in patriotism were John Turner and Brian Mulroney during the free-trade debate in 1988. And look where they are now!