Electing our Leaders
Canada elects its new Parliament on Monday, and, inspired by Dilexit Prior's worthy post on the subject, I thought I'd offer my own reflections. According to my roommate (who is of no little authority): "Democracy is what happens between elections." That may be a little too cynical even for me. Whenever we reflect and consider the issues, we can make our democratic system a little stronger.
For the Christian citizen, it is important never to forget one fact: our nation permits the homicide of over 100,000 unborn children each year through surgical abortion and countless others through the morning-after pill and abortifacients. We live in the midst of a silent and invisible holocaust.
Building up a pro-life majority in Parliament should be a high priority- so much so that if you have a pro-life candidate to vote for, and who stands a chance of winning, do so irrespective of party.
Many Canadians do not have such a candidate for whom to vote. So when things are less than clear, what considerations ought one to weigh in making one's choice?
Firstly, pay attention to your local candidates. You may not have a wonderful choice, but you may be able to avoid a greater evil.
Secondly, know which issues are relevant. Education and Health Care are primarily provincial responsibilities, and while many words are spilled and the parties posture enormously, the actual impact of the differences between the parties will be minimal. I'd also suggest that Same-Sex Marriage isn't nearly as large an issue as often thought- even if a victory were achieved in Parliament, it likely wouldn't make it through the courts; even if it were to survive a Charter challenge, Same-sex marriage would likely be put in place as soon as another the Tories lost control of Parliament.
In my view, the biggest issue between the parties in this election is Child Care. The NDP and the Liberals want to put in place a child-care scheme which provides benefits for dual-income households but not for families which have already sacrificed to raise their children themselves. It provides benefits to parents who place their children in institutional day care, but not for families for whom extended family or other informal arrangements are utilized. It provides benefits for parents who have regular 9 to 5 jobs, but not for people who work shifts and would be unable to find institutional day care to accomodate their hours. The Conservative proposal, on the other hand is equitable, providing benefits to families regardless of whether they fit into the dual-income, yuppie mold the Liberal & NDP plans are designed for. Whoever puts their plan into place will quite possibly set the federal policy for the foreseeable future.
There are many other considerations, but I would make two final points. Firstly, the Liberal Party is responsible for the current resurgence of separatism in Quebec, and their view of federalism is inimical both to good government and to the justifiable prerogatives of Quebecers. Secondly, it is manifestly not the case that all parties are equal in their propensity towards corruption. Even if it were the case, there is still good reason to punish such parties when they are caught, for without punishment, what deterrant can there be to such conduct?
In short, I would recommend voting for the pro-life candidate; then the Conservative; then the NDP; and leave the Liberals to spend years in the wilderness.
Canada elects its new Parliament on Monday, and, inspired by Dilexit Prior's worthy post on the subject, I thought I'd offer my own reflections. According to my roommate (who is of no little authority): "Democracy is what happens between elections." That may be a little too cynical even for me. Whenever we reflect and consider the issues, we can make our democratic system a little stronger.
For the Christian citizen, it is important never to forget one fact: our nation permits the homicide of over 100,000 unborn children each year through surgical abortion and countless others through the morning-after pill and abortifacients. We live in the midst of a silent and invisible holocaust.
Building up a pro-life majority in Parliament should be a high priority- so much so that if you have a pro-life candidate to vote for, and who stands a chance of winning, do so irrespective of party.
Many Canadians do not have such a candidate for whom to vote. So when things are less than clear, what considerations ought one to weigh in making one's choice?
Firstly, pay attention to your local candidates. You may not have a wonderful choice, but you may be able to avoid a greater evil.
Secondly, know which issues are relevant. Education and Health Care are primarily provincial responsibilities, and while many words are spilled and the parties posture enormously, the actual impact of the differences between the parties will be minimal. I'd also suggest that Same-Sex Marriage isn't nearly as large an issue as often thought- even if a victory were achieved in Parliament, it likely wouldn't make it through the courts; even if it were to survive a Charter challenge, Same-sex marriage would likely be put in place as soon as another the Tories lost control of Parliament.
In my view, the biggest issue between the parties in this election is Child Care. The NDP and the Liberals want to put in place a child-care scheme which provides benefits for dual-income households but not for families which have already sacrificed to raise their children themselves. It provides benefits to parents who place their children in institutional day care, but not for families for whom extended family or other informal arrangements are utilized. It provides benefits for parents who have regular 9 to 5 jobs, but not for people who work shifts and would be unable to find institutional day care to accomodate their hours. The Conservative proposal, on the other hand is equitable, providing benefits to families regardless of whether they fit into the dual-income, yuppie mold the Liberal & NDP plans are designed for. Whoever puts their plan into place will quite possibly set the federal policy for the foreseeable future.
There are many other considerations, but I would make two final points. Firstly, the Liberal Party is responsible for the current resurgence of separatism in Quebec, and their view of federalism is inimical both to good government and to the justifiable prerogatives of Quebecers. Secondly, it is manifestly not the case that all parties are equal in their propensity towards corruption. Even if it were the case, there is still good reason to punish such parties when they are caught, for without punishment, what deterrant can there be to such conduct?
In short, I would recommend voting for the pro-life candidate; then the Conservative; then the NDP; and leave the Liberals to spend years in the wilderness.
posted by gabriel at 20.1.06
3 Comments:
thank you very much for posting
Well, I hope its of some use- I had to omit an awful lot so as to get it done and keep it short(ish). Politics is an awfully complicated game.
thoughtful. The best incentive for accountable government is an effective government in waiting. I fear that to thorough a thrashing of the Liberals will lead to merely a new dominant party and perhaps lead to similar abuses by the Conservatives. My hope is that the Liberal PArty be renewed not merely replaced and that the government be strengthened. Here's to a stronger Canada whether Liberal or Conservative
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