geekent’s stuff’n things

We have an election next week. Far be it for me to tell you who to vote for, all I know is that I don’t like Stephen Harper’s cold demeanour, I don’t really trust Paul Martin’s used car salesman smile, and Jack Layton is a handsome, handsome man.
To get in deeper into my perceptions, the Conservative agenda is 4/5 counterproductive to how I’d like to see this country move forward. I don’t like the American way the Conservatives are running their ad campaign (focusing more on attacking the Liberals than really saying what they’re going to do in power, then again, in fairness, the Libs and NDP ads aren’t much better) (oh sod it, they’re all doing it), and Harper is just too high on his horse to really understand a lot of the ground level issues (his thoughts on gun violence miss the point completely). The Conservatives still promote a money-earnin-Mt. Vernon sensibility, interested more in what’s going to keep the working class jobs, and what will help the elite stay cushy, rather than explore new frontiers of hemp farming, alternate sources of energy and other innovative avenues which Canada could be forerunners in. Plus, Harper wants to be Bush’s pal, and that just don’t sit right.
I don’t really have much of a problem with the Liberals, generally, but they represent staus quo. The Liberal party is too concerned about keeping things politics-as-usual, and most Liberal politicians (same with Conservatives) want to stay professional politicians. This means they’re out to play the game, monitor polls and approval ratings, and do whatever it takes to keep themselves and their buddies employed. They’re all into Bureaucracy and inefficiency for the sake of “thoroughness”, and as a result they’re unwilling to take chances. They’re too guarded and protected to affect any real change. They have, though, come in with a balanced/surplussed budget for the past chunk of years, and Canada’s had some of the lowest unemployment rates during that time.
The NDP are always the most in alignment with my sensibilities. My only hesitation is that they push too much for social programs, and I’m not sure that the numbers have been accurately crunched to balance it all out. Taxes are moderate, and probably at their peak at the moment. They could be a little lower but it would be unfair and unappealing to have them any higher. If we want to get the most out of our social structure we need to have tighter control but less bureaucracy in the process of getting the money to where it’s needed. Maximizing dollars seems to be the NDP’s plan.
Now, I’m fully aware that the NDP isn’t going to win this election, but they have a shot at being a very strong position player. Strategically voting Liberal to stop a Conservative government sort of bastardizes the purpose of having a multi-party system. As much as I don’t like Harper and his gang of money grubbers, I don’t think that four years of them would do as much damage as people are expecting. I think if the NDP and the Liberals put in a strong showing they’ll have enough to keep the Cons in check. Plus it’ll give the people a chance to see what kind of damage the Cons would actually like to do, in case they’ve forgotten the Mulroney years.
But really, voting the Canadian way isn’t supposed to be about who’s leading the country or what party is in power, but rather, who you want to represent you and your community in Ottawa. But, the problem is we’ve gotten away from being a community-centered society (I’ve talked about this before in a different context) and I’m not sure that having community representation still holds the same way as it did when first introduced.
In my riding, which is the same as Accordion Guy’s (and he’s been very helpful in taking notes from the all-candidates forums), we have a strong NDP and a strong Liberal contender, with a moderate Conservative throwing a monkey wrench into the works (Green, Marijuana, and Marxist/Leninists are also represented). The High Park/Parkdale riding has an interesting issue presented to it which has, as Joey’s been covering, a scope well beyond the community they’re representing. Our current MP, Sarmite Bulte (or “Sam” as she’s known on her posters…) is taking campaign money from big business to help usher through American-style copyright legislation that would severly restrict what could be legally uploaded and downloaded in the country. Joey covers the topic in depth, and the subject has reached the bloggerati-at-large, making my riding one of the most visible in the country… depending on your audience.
Barring the fact that I associate Bulte with a yeast spread which I find repulsive (Sarmite = Marmite), the fact that she’s taken contributions that have put her on a crusade I’m sure she could otherwise really care less about is politics at its worst. If there was one thing I’d like to see across the globe, it’s the removal of politicians’ hands out of big businesses pockets, getting back to the idea of Governing for the people, not governing for business or self.
Sigh.
Politics depress and anger me, which I why I generally avoid it.
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Sam Bulte on proportional representation (as per the Accordion Guy)
* It was part of our February 2004 Democratic Reform Action Plan!
* We had cross-country roundtables
* The provinces are looking into it
* There’s academic research into the issue
* We’re talking to people about it
* Proportional representation [in and of itself] is not always the answer — you need political will
Oh, look! “Action plans”, “roundtables”, “looking into it”, “research”, “talking”, hyperbole.
This is what I call “playing it safe while cutting a cheque to your buddies for a couple hundred grand to conduct a pointless survey”
This is exemplifies what I was saying about the Liberals. Yes, there’s checking with the populace to see if what you’re doing is warranted, but we put you in power to make decisions, not to spend hundreds of thousands/millions of dollars to make horrendously long documents that are invariably ignored. More action, less talk. If it’s unpopular, we’ll vote someone in in the future to reverse it. Yes, that will mean you lose your seat, but being an MP isn’t a career, it’s a temporary position. You sign a four or five year contract with the people and when it’s up we decide if we want to renew.
I’m starting to Hulk out.
I’ll leave this now.