As I proudly supported the NDP in the federal election, plastering signs all over my property ( plus my monthly donation) I, today, got the "can we put a provincial sign on your lawn" phone call.
I'll admit, I haven't much followed the provincial platforms. An e-mail here, a news article there, but my heart hasn't really been in it as this is, after all, Ontario and - who are we kidding - the NDP doesn't have a chance in hell in this province.
But I scolded myself for not at least having a thorough grasp of what awesome - though totally wasted - plans they have in store. And began to research.
And research.
And research.
Are you there, NDP? It's me, Alex.
Part of Ontario's education system for the past 18 years of my life. The last three spent navigating the extraordinarily expensive [tax-supporting, job providing] world of post-secondary education. And what does your Ontario plan have in store for me?
If anyone can figure that out, let me know. Because all I can find are old plans to phase out the textbook and technology grant, and an article from the CFS arguing lower tuition costs as opposed to an East-Coast NDP student debt cap.
I am going to be in school for the next four years at least. I am going to finish my undergrad, and earn a masters degree (possibly two) and then I am going to come and work for YOU, my government, and attempt to make Canada's health care even better.
And how do you reward me, and all the other students in Ontario, for paying higher tuition fees than any other province, for denser classroom volumes than any other province, just so we can make our province a better place?
...?
Thanks.
Tuesday, September 6, 2011
Wednesday, August 31, 2011
Fwd: FW: It is only the beginning...
I received a Fwd: today that really pissed me off, and since my dogs are passed out on the couch (and don't really understand the Media's perpetuation of intolerance) I have decided, after a long absence, it is time for a [minor] rant.
The subject line of this e-mail read Fwd: FW: It is only the beginning...
Ominous? I thought so. I so rarely read forwards (my wonderful hotmail settings so diligently filter everything with an 'F' and a 'W' and a colon combination into my junk mail) but I thought, before hitting "delete all" I'll indulge, I'll open one - just one - for the first time in, oh say, two years?
I was greeted with the scanned image of a newspaper, an article from the Toronto Sun (I should have stopped reading right then and there) entitled Snap. Ka-Pow! Fat lip but fat chance punch leads to charges.
Now, I understand the frustration of all the upper middle class white folks with their high salaries and safe suburban neighbourhoods and job advantages being really upset at all those damn non-conformist foreigners coming in here and having the nerve to like, settle in our cultural mosaic. We were going to build another Tim Horton's there, you know.
But what really grinds my gears is that - okay, here's a scenario for you: two white girls. Altercation. Exchange [spitting of] words. Punch in the face. Girl B has a black eye and a bloody nose. Girl A is screaming bloody murder and being held off Girl B by two friends. Clear-cut case of assault, yes? Wrong! Watch in amazement as Girl A is questioned. Did you provoke her? Did you step toward her first? Did you raise your hand or arm? What did you say to her before she struck you? It is unclear if Girl B used a closed fist or an open hand. The girls are separated and told to mind their own business. It is recommended to Girl A that she not press charges. [I was there for the whole thing]. Does that make the news?
This is the kind of "flaw" in our system that comes up over dinner. All the time. This situation happens regularly. And it's never taken very seriously because - thank god - in most cases injuries are minor and everybody walks away slightly pissed off but able to move on with their life without PTSD. So why is this article such a big deal?
Because a muslim woman yelled at a white guy.
I am NOT saying I don't understand where this dude is coming from. He's in public, enjoying his new camera, and he is aggressively approached by a stranger who tells him not to take their picture because of religious reasons. But I see several problems with this whole thing.
ONE: I find it highly unlikely (given the tone of this article) that Jimmy Angry simply stated that he could take pictures wherever, of whatever, and that he expressed this view in a calm manner. If you read between the lines of his little "this is a democracy" speech, my interpretation (and in my opinion, how Ms Villain probably felt too) was that he was saying "get the fuck away from me you Arabic bitch. This is my country and I'll shoot what I want to".
TWO: Instead of launching into a speech about civil rights in the first place, would it not have been easier to simply state "I wasn't photographing you, I was taking pictures of _______."
THREE: WHY is this story being forwarded at ALL, and why is it being prefaced with VERBATIM! QUOTE! "We should be very afraid.............very afraid................we all have to say STOP.........enough........."
STOP.... enough.... what? That the rules surrounding what designates assault are too fuzzy? Too easy? Maybe. But what this article says to me, and what the preface of this forward said to me, and the fact that it was being forwarded AT ALL says to me "Get mad about this. We need to take back what's ours!"
Maybe she was totally psycho and if he hadn't escaped from the "mob" of angry Arabs he would have been seriously injured. It is not okay that she punched him. It is not okay for anyone, ANYONE, to punch anyone else.
But how much do you hate what she is in the first place, before an assault, for you to sit down and write an article about how little Toronto respects the rights of the white man?
I feel like my race is always just waiting for an excuse. From a woman punching (and not injuring) someone on the streets of Toronto (because that's seriously the biggest issue of violence we have in the city) all the way to acts of terrorism, every time you receive a Fwd: FW: about it, some white guy just self-validated his intolerance.
The subject line of this e-mail read Fwd: FW: It is only the beginning...
Ominous? I thought so. I so rarely read forwards (my wonderful hotmail settings so diligently filter everything with an 'F' and a 'W' and a colon combination into my junk mail) but I thought, before hitting "delete all" I'll indulge, I'll open one - just one - for the first time in, oh say, two years?
I was greeted with the scanned image of a newspaper, an article from the Toronto Sun (I should have stopped reading right then and there) entitled Snap. Ka-Pow! Fat lip but fat chance punch leads to charges.
Now, I understand the frustration of all the upper middle class white folks with their high salaries and safe suburban neighbourhoods and job advantages being really upset at all those damn non-conformist foreigners coming in here and having the nerve to like, settle in our cultural mosaic. We were going to build another Tim Horton's there, you know.
But what really grinds my gears is that - okay, here's a scenario for you: two white girls. Altercation. Exchange [spitting of] words. Punch in the face. Girl B has a black eye and a bloody nose. Girl A is screaming bloody murder and being held off Girl B by two friends. Clear-cut case of assault, yes? Wrong! Watch in amazement as Girl A is questioned. Did you provoke her? Did you step toward her first? Did you raise your hand or arm? What did you say to her before she struck you? It is unclear if Girl B used a closed fist or an open hand. The girls are separated and told to mind their own business. It is recommended to Girl A that she not press charges. [I was there for the whole thing]. Does that make the news?
This is the kind of "flaw" in our system that comes up over dinner. All the time. This situation happens regularly. And it's never taken very seriously because - thank god - in most cases injuries are minor and everybody walks away slightly pissed off but able to move on with their life without PTSD. So why is this article such a big deal?
Because a muslim woman yelled at a white guy.
I am NOT saying I don't understand where this dude is coming from. He's in public, enjoying his new camera, and he is aggressively approached by a stranger who tells him not to take their picture because of religious reasons. But I see several problems with this whole thing.
ONE: I find it highly unlikely (given the tone of this article) that Jimmy Angry simply stated that he could take pictures wherever, of whatever, and that he expressed this view in a calm manner. If you read between the lines of his little "this is a democracy" speech, my interpretation (and in my opinion, how Ms Villain probably felt too) was that he was saying "get the fuck away from me you Arabic bitch. This is my country and I'll shoot what I want to".
TWO: Instead of launching into a speech about civil rights in the first place, would it not have been easier to simply state "I wasn't photographing you, I was taking pictures of _______."
THREE: WHY is this story being forwarded at ALL, and why is it being prefaced with VERBATIM! QUOTE! "We should be very afraid.............very afraid................we all have to say STOP.........enough........."
STOP.... enough.... what? That the rules surrounding what designates assault are too fuzzy? Too easy? Maybe. But what this article says to me, and what the preface of this forward said to me, and the fact that it was being forwarded AT ALL says to me "Get mad about this. We need to take back what's ours!"
Maybe she was totally psycho and if he hadn't escaped from the "mob" of angry Arabs he would have been seriously injured. It is not okay that she punched him. It is not okay for anyone, ANYONE, to punch anyone else.
But how much do you hate what she is in the first place, before an assault, for you to sit down and write an article about how little Toronto respects the rights of the white man?
I feel like my race is always just waiting for an excuse. From a woman punching (and not injuring) someone on the streets of Toronto (because that's seriously the biggest issue of violence we have in the city) all the way to acts of terrorism, every time you receive a Fwd: FW: about it, some white guy just self-validated his intolerance.
Wednesday, May 4, 2011
Tentative Idealism
As overjoyed as I am at the outrageously exciting surge in public support for the NDP, I find myself shaking my head along with a significant portion of voters - both pro and antagonists in this political debacle - out of wonderment and concern over the situation surrounding some of our newly elected MPs.
I would like to believe, at the end of the day, that Miss Brosseau would not have submitted herself as a Member of Parliament candidate were she not entirely serious about taking on the role of representative to an entire riding. Her conduct surrounding the campaign, however sensationalized by the media, does make me wonder - however - exactly how serious this young lady is about her new role in the government.
As for all of the skepticism about Miss Brosseau's appropriateness as a representative, I find this whole argument irrelevent as she is who the voters of that riding elected. It was no secret that French is not her first language, and the voters chose her anyway. And if they voted NDP without bothering to research their candidate, and are now pissed to find she is not a true QUEBECOIS, sucks to be you. Should have taken ten minutes to educate yourself on what you voted for.
I hope Miss Brosseau steps up to the plate, and sets an example. I hope she, among many others, does not live up to the Tory vision of and NDP Parliament becoming a childrens' sandbox full of squabbles and people who don't take their jobs seriously.
I think that this is a true opportunity for Canadian politics; I believe, from the bottom of my heart, that youth enervation in the political spectrum has been desperately needed for some time. That fresh faces are required for fresh issues, fresh decisions, and to get to the heart of the questions Canadians are asking that seem to become lost in transit from our communities to Parliament. I hope that, out of desperation to appease their leader, Mr. Layton, out of contempt for the unchallenged authority of Mr. Harper, and out of duty to all the Canadians these young MPs represent, that they will take their jobs more seriously than the representatives we have become so apathetic towards that we don't even know their names.
So Miss Brosseau took a vacation to Vegas. Now that her job has begun, is she not present? Is she not working with Mr. Layton? Is she not about to step up to the plate?
Interesting that so many Tories are spitting on a vacation to Vegas before this young lady has even been employed, while their own MP seats remain empty through the majority of the year.
I'd like to see what these folks have got to say. I'd like to give them a chance. But for Christ's sake, please don't embarrass those of us, old and new to the NDP, that have put our faith in you!
I would like to believe, at the end of the day, that Miss Brosseau would not have submitted herself as a Member of Parliament candidate were she not entirely serious about taking on the role of representative to an entire riding. Her conduct surrounding the campaign, however sensationalized by the media, does make me wonder - however - exactly how serious this young lady is about her new role in the government.
As for all of the skepticism about Miss Brosseau's appropriateness as a representative, I find this whole argument irrelevent as she is who the voters of that riding elected. It was no secret that French is not her first language, and the voters chose her anyway. And if they voted NDP without bothering to research their candidate, and are now pissed to find she is not a true QUEBECOIS, sucks to be you. Should have taken ten minutes to educate yourself on what you voted for.
I hope Miss Brosseau steps up to the plate, and sets an example. I hope she, among many others, does not live up to the Tory vision of and NDP Parliament becoming a childrens' sandbox full of squabbles and people who don't take their jobs seriously.
I think that this is a true opportunity for Canadian politics; I believe, from the bottom of my heart, that youth enervation in the political spectrum has been desperately needed for some time. That fresh faces are required for fresh issues, fresh decisions, and to get to the heart of the questions Canadians are asking that seem to become lost in transit from our communities to Parliament. I hope that, out of desperation to appease their leader, Mr. Layton, out of contempt for the unchallenged authority of Mr. Harper, and out of duty to all the Canadians these young MPs represent, that they will take their jobs more seriously than the representatives we have become so apathetic towards that we don't even know their names.
So Miss Brosseau took a vacation to Vegas. Now that her job has begun, is she not present? Is she not working with Mr. Layton? Is she not about to step up to the plate?
Interesting that so many Tories are spitting on a vacation to Vegas before this young lady has even been employed, while their own MP seats remain empty through the majority of the year.
I'd like to see what these folks have got to say. I'd like to give them a chance. But for Christ's sake, please don't embarrass those of us, old and new to the NDP, that have put our faith in you!
Monday, May 2, 2011
Pick a Side, This is War
Finally, there is an opposition party that will actually OPPOSE. While a Conservative majority is far from paradise, 104 of my country's seats are - in a historical moment for the New Democratic Party - occupied by the new opposition party of Canada, the NDP. Now that we have some weight, let's see some political WAR!
Left vs Right
What side are you on?
And just for good measure, one more reason to hate Stephen Harper...
"In 2008, Luc Pomerleau, a biologist at the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, discovered secret government plans to weaken regulations & allow corporate food producers to conduct their own safety inspections. Pomerleau leaked the news and was immediately fired. Then the listeriosis meat outbreak killed 17 Canadians," (click for more examples of Harper's idiocy).
FYI - I was one of many Canadians who suffered from the listeriosis outbreak. While I was fortunate enough to survive, it was the most excruciatingly painful experience of my life, and I face ongoing digestive issues as a result.
Left vs Right
What side are you on?
And just for good measure, one more reason to hate Stephen Harper...
"In 2008, Luc Pomerleau, a biologist at the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, discovered secret government plans to weaken regulations & allow corporate food producers to conduct their own safety inspections. Pomerleau leaked the news and was immediately fired. Then the listeriosis meat outbreak killed 17 Canadians," (click for more examples of Harper's idiocy).
FYI - I was one of many Canadians who suffered from the listeriosis outbreak. While I was fortunate enough to survive, it was the most excruciatingly painful experience of my life, and I face ongoing digestive issues as a result.
Thursday, March 24, 2011
Society teaches "don't get raped" rather than "don't rape"
The heinous gang-rape by over 20 male individuals of an 11-year old girl in Texas has torn the community apart because "These boys have to live with this the rest of their lives," says Sheila Harrison, empathist for rapists, in Blaming an 11-year-old victim.
Coverage of this story in the New York Times reported quotes on the young girl dressing older than she was, wearing make up inappropriate for her age, and hanging out with older guys in a rough neighbourhood. While Nicole Colson, writer of Blaming an 11-year-old victim, addresses the astounding lack of empathy or concern for the victim by the community (and media), what the community, Colson, the New York Times all seem to have in common is a lack of speculation on the nature of the crime itself.
Colson writes that instances of "blaming the victim" are blatantly obvious in this case. It seems to have been implicitly suggested that the young girl appeared to be much older than she was.
"She looked and acted older than 11." Is that the defense of the 20 men who assaulted and raped her, while taking picture and videotaping the violation as if it were a sport?
If she were 30 years old, would it still be okay that a woman was repeatedly assaulted and raped?
It seems as though this is semantics to the community in question, as the parents of the victim have been urged to relocate due to harassing phone calls from community members, angry about charges against the perpetrators.
Thirty-six percent of female victims of spousal violence and less than 10% of victims of sexual assault reported these crimes to the police in 2004.5
Coverage of this story in the New York Times reported quotes on the young girl dressing older than she was, wearing make up inappropriate for her age, and hanging out with older guys in a rough neighbourhood. While Nicole Colson, writer of Blaming an 11-year-old victim, addresses the astounding lack of empathy or concern for the victim by the community (and media), what the community, Colson, the New York Times all seem to have in common is a lack of speculation on the nature of the crime itself.
Colson writes that instances of "blaming the victim" are blatantly obvious in this case. It seems to have been implicitly suggested that the young girl appeared to be much older than she was.
"She looked and acted older than 11." Is that the defense of the 20 men who assaulted and raped her, while taking picture and videotaping the violation as if it were a sport?
If she were 30 years old, would it still be okay that a woman was repeatedly assaulted and raped?
It seems as though this is semantics to the community in question, as the parents of the victim have been urged to relocate due to harassing phone calls from community members, angry about charges against the perpetrators.
Half of Canadian women (51%) have experienced at least one incident of physical or sexual violence since the age of 16.1
Every minute of every day, a Canadian woman or child is being sexually assaulted.2
One to two women are murdered by a current or former partner each week in Canada.3
Spousal violence makes up the single largest category of convictions involving violent offences ... in Canada over the five-year period 1997/98 to 2001/02. Over 90% of offenders were male.4
- Statistics Canada, The Violence Against Women Survey, The Daily, November 18, 1993
- Canadian Research Institute for the Advancement of Women, Fact sheet: extrapolated from Ontario Women’s Directorate, Dispelling the Myths about Sexual Assault. Fact sheet, Queen’s Printer for Ontario, 1998
- Dauvergne, M., (2002), Homicide in Canada - 2001, Juristat 22(7), Ottawa: Canadian Centre for Justice Statistics, Statistics Canada.
- Statistics Canada, Measuring Violence Against Women, Statistical Trends 2006
- Ibid
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
Harper Declares Japan a "No-Risk" Zone
The Harper Government was quick to issue aid and evacuation for Canadians in the midst of the extremely disconcerting situations in both Libya and Egypt.
The current situation in Japan, however, poses no threat to Canadians. According to a Foreign Affairs Representative, anyone wishing to return home in the wake of one of the greatest natural disasters Japan has ever seen, "...can do so by commercial means," (Claude Rochon, The Globe and Mail).
The official position of the Prime Minister regarding Canadian citizens and their safety stands as a no-risk zone.
"If people want to leave, they have that option," - Stephen Harper.
The current situation in Japan, however, poses no threat to Canadians. According to a Foreign Affairs Representative, anyone wishing to return home in the wake of one of the greatest natural disasters Japan has ever seen, "...can do so by commercial means," (Claude Rochon, The Globe and Mail).
The official position of the Prime Minister regarding Canadian citizens and their safety stands as a no-risk zone.
"If people want to leave, they have that option," - Stephen Harper.
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
Co-Ordinator for "Speed Dating" Decides Fate of Canadian Government
Finally being held accountable for various acts in violation of Parliamentary procedure, witnesses against the Conservative party commune tomorrow.
The hearing in question appears to have been co ordinated by a time management specialist, as all twelve (12) officials are to be heard during one (1) hour of the proceedings.
I greatly appreciate the Conservatives sacrificing their lunch hour to answer to Canadians for falsifying documents and refusing to provide budget information for various projects subject to public access including but not limited to tax cuts for corporations.
If dedicating only five minutes per official to prove their case against Parliamentary violation isn't enough to keep theGovernment of Canada Harper Government in power, surely Parliament can be prorogued again. The public didn't seem too upset last time... If only it weren't for those pesky opposition parties! Maybe they should be illegal...
House of Commons privilege fight continues (CBC News)
The hearing in question appears to have been co ordinated by a time management specialist, as all twelve (12) officials are to be heard during one (1) hour of the proceedings.
I greatly appreciate the Conservatives sacrificing their lunch hour to answer to Canadians for falsifying documents and refusing to provide budget information for various projects subject to public access including but not limited to tax cuts for corporations.
If dedicating only five minutes per official to prove their case against Parliamentary violation isn't enough to keep the
House of Commons privilege fight continues (CBC News)
Thursday, March 10, 2011
Stephen Harper: The All-American Hero
Bad news for American citizens; the All-American Hero, Stephen Harper, declared King of the foreign land north of the USA, is being charged for contempt in violation of the "laws" of the land put forth by the indigenous inhabitants of this wholly unAmerican landmass.
In his heroic efforts to convert these natives, who call themselves "Canadians", to the American Way of life, they have attempted to overthrow his governing authority. Of course, Mr. Harper easily overrode their so-called "democracy" by appealing to the authority of the Governor General, dismembering their "governmental system" for a period of time to ensure that the American Way was put forward, at any cost, since it is the best thing for them - they just do not yet know it.
Who wouldn't want the policies of their land dictated by an autocratic leader? Who wouldn't want to be represented by someone informed by only the most successful multinational corporations, as opposed to those ineffectual "elected representatives" these "Canadians" have attempted to install as leaders?
Harper has tried to expand the American way of unemployment! He has torn at the fabric of these ridiculous communist ideas of "social safety nets"! He has done everything in his power to decrease costs for the wealthy, and removed as many benefits as possible for the poor!
We will teach these "Canadians" what living in the First World really means! Our ever-resourceful leader of the northern territory of the United States of America will, I'm sure, find a way around following the "democratic" policies of their political infrastructure! After all, it's not a democracy unless we, the United States, force it on you!
Hold on to your flags, ladies and gentlemen! With $14 000 000 000 000.00 of national debt at our disposal, how could we fail?
Speaker’s contempt rulings add ammunition to election-minded opposition (The Globe and Mail)
In his heroic efforts to convert these natives, who call themselves "Canadians", to the American Way of life, they have attempted to overthrow his governing authority. Of course, Mr. Harper easily overrode their so-called "democracy" by appealing to the authority of the Governor General, dismembering their "governmental system" for a period of time to ensure that the American Way was put forward, at any cost, since it is the best thing for them - they just do not yet know it.
Who wouldn't want the policies of their land dictated by an autocratic leader? Who wouldn't want to be represented by someone informed by only the most successful multinational corporations, as opposed to those ineffectual "elected representatives" these "Canadians" have attempted to install as leaders?
Harper has tried to expand the American way of unemployment! He has torn at the fabric of these ridiculous communist ideas of "social safety nets"! He has done everything in his power to decrease costs for the wealthy, and removed as many benefits as possible for the poor!
We will teach these "Canadians" what living in the First World really means! Our ever-resourceful leader of the northern territory of the United States of America will, I'm sure, find a way around following the "democratic" policies of their political infrastructure! After all, it's not a democracy unless we, the United States, force it on you!
Hold on to your flags, ladies and gentlemen! With $14 000 000 000 000.00 of national debt at our disposal, how could we fail?
Speaker’s contempt rulings add ammunition to election-minded opposition (The Globe and Mail)
Saturday, January 29, 2011
Finally, a reason to vote Conservative
The following is a Facebook response to both my blog, and Jenn G.'s contributing post
"I read most of your articles, if that's what you want to call them, and they're very well writeen. I am someone who has been pushed from the centre-left by the centre-left into the arms of the right. To the point where I find myself defending the CPC and Harper. Your works are good and make good points, they're well thought out and well developed. I do not agree with your beliefs but I see where you're coming from. I know the feeling about walking past someone hopeless and feeling sorry for them. Now I have come to accept I can't change that, and that I only live one life, I can't spend it worrying about why someone I don't know and never will is poor and homeless."
And this personal realization is what drove this individual to support Harper. These are the views our Prime Minister represents.
"I read most of your articles, if that's what you want to call them, and they're very well writeen. I am someone who has been pushed from the centre-left by the centre-left into the arms of the right. To the point where I find myself defending the CPC and Harper. Your works are good and make good points, they're well thought out and well developed. I do not agree with your beliefs but I see where you're coming from. I know the feeling about walking past someone hopeless and feeling sorry for them. Now I have come to accept I can't change that, and that I only live one life, I can't spend it worrying about why someone I don't know and never will is poor and homeless."
And this personal realization is what drove this individual to support Harper. These are the views our Prime Minister represents.
Friday, January 28, 2011
Harpersick
The following is my response to Jenn G.'s Worldsick
I listen to my mother complain about her inability to get a job, at her age. Who wants to employ a senior, no matter how qualified? No matter how hard working? "She'll retire in a year or two and then we have to pay her out." No, no you don't. Who gets retirement these days? Who gets a pension? We work until we're 75, and then live off of food stamps. We won't keep a good worker whose older in case we have to repay them for their work. But a new company won't hire someone because of their age. The corporate world hasn't adjusted for the fact that people live to the age of two or three careers. That men and women go back to school and start again in a new job, at the bottom, working their way up in a company at the age of 50, like the 18 year olds used to do without having dropped a hundred thousand dollars on an education that they'll need to upgrade (thanks to creeping credentials) in ten years anyways.
I listen to my father come in to the office at 5am and leave at 7pm. He takes no lunch. He takes nothing more than a 2 - 3 minute cigarette break once or twice per day. I listen to him grind away at the law, fighting for terminated benefits for a man who has been laid off after thirty years with one company. I listen to him fight for denied life insurance for a woman whose husband dropped dead at the age of 40 leaving her, a housewife, with three children to feed and a mortgage to pay, with no income, no social assistance, and soon no home. I watch him grow tired, I watch him argue, I watch him say yes, he'll call back tomorrow, when the switchboard hours are open again. The big fat insurance men have to be home for dinner, you know. It doesn't matter that Mrs. Dead Husband can't feed HER kids tonight.
I watch Dan's father find projects around the house to keep himself busy. A working man, a hard working man, 60 years old who by Canadian statistics should be retired but for those of us in the real world means he has another decade of work before he can survive. Laid off, nothing to do for the winter. And someone on the phone from India denies him unemployment, the unemployment he has paid for his entire life, as mandated by the government.
Our government is consciously reducing the benefits a Canadian citizen can receive while on unemployment, and is consciously reducing the probability of qualifying for unemployment in the first place. Correlating with this is the staggering conscious notion of reduced Canadian jobs. The statistics to support this are disgusting. Especially pertaining to women.
Our government approves policies that keep Canadians from getting jobs, and the approves policies that keep Canadians from receiving assistance while they are unemployed. Is this not a fundamental flaw in ANY person's idea of government? Leftist, Liberal, Conservative... it's all irrelevant. Is the government, in its fundamental, most primal state, not supposed to provide some sort of incentive and/or support for its citizens welfare (i.e. work), regardless of the name of their party?
Who is benefiting from these policies? Why are they being passed without a fight? Why are Canadians not saying to themselves, "I'm unemployed, and cannot support my family, and have no assistance. My government is responsible for me."
And then these people, these same people who sit across from your dinner table complaining of the rise in the cost of living, complaining of their EI rejection, complaining of their lack of benefit package, the people sitting in the cubicle next to you scrapping against 100 other students for the same menial job just for one more line to add to their resume, hoping it's one line more than any other competitor, the man idling in his truck on his way to a car factory that's about to be closed down, the lawyer in his suit in his office whose at work before dawn...
These are the people that check off "Stephen Harper" in the voting booth. These are the people who don't SEE that one tiny check mark is a wrung in a ladder that starts with our government, and ends in a ballot box. And that ladder descends straight into poverty, and hell.
I listen to my father come in to the office at 5am and leave at 7pm. He takes no lunch. He takes nothing more than a 2 - 3 minute cigarette break once or twice per day. I listen to him grind away at the law, fighting for terminated benefits for a man who has been laid off after thirty years with one company. I listen to him fight for denied life insurance for a woman whose husband dropped dead at the age of 40 leaving her, a housewife, with three children to feed and a mortgage to pay, with no income, no social assistance, and soon no home. I watch him grow tired, I watch him argue, I watch him say yes, he'll call back tomorrow, when the switchboard hours are open again. The big fat insurance men have to be home for dinner, you know. It doesn't matter that Mrs. Dead Husband can't feed HER kids tonight.
I watch Dan's father find projects around the house to keep himself busy. A working man, a hard working man, 60 years old who by Canadian statistics should be retired but for those of us in the real world means he has another decade of work before he can survive. Laid off, nothing to do for the winter. And someone on the phone from India denies him unemployment, the unemployment he has paid for his entire life, as mandated by the government.
Our government is consciously reducing the benefits a Canadian citizen can receive while on unemployment, and is consciously reducing the probability of qualifying for unemployment in the first place. Correlating with this is the staggering conscious notion of reduced Canadian jobs. The statistics to support this are disgusting. Especially pertaining to women.
Our government approves policies that keep Canadians from getting jobs, and the approves policies that keep Canadians from receiving assistance while they are unemployed. Is this not a fundamental flaw in ANY person's idea of government? Leftist, Liberal, Conservative... it's all irrelevant. Is the government, in its fundamental, most primal state, not supposed to provide some sort of incentive and/or support for its citizens welfare (i.e. work), regardless of the name of their party?
Who is benefiting from these policies? Why are they being passed without a fight? Why are Canadians not saying to themselves, "I'm unemployed, and cannot support my family, and have no assistance. My government is responsible for me."
And then these people, these same people who sit across from your dinner table complaining of the rise in the cost of living, complaining of their EI rejection, complaining of their lack of benefit package, the people sitting in the cubicle next to you scrapping against 100 other students for the same menial job just for one more line to add to their resume, hoping it's one line more than any other competitor, the man idling in his truck on his way to a car factory that's about to be closed down, the lawyer in his suit in his office whose at work before dawn...
These are the people that check off "Stephen Harper" in the voting booth. These are the people who don't SEE that one tiny check mark is a wrung in a ladder that starts with our government, and ends in a ballot box. And that ladder descends straight into poverty, and hell.
Worldsick
The following was written by Jenn G., a future contributor to the (herein much more active) Confessions of a Communist.
I'm worldsick.
I can't take being the only one who cares. I feel like feeling something when I walk by a homeless man (there are lots in St. Kitt's) is frowned upon; like it shows I'm naive or "too young" or too much of an idealist.
I don't like people telling me that this election will result in a Conservative majority. Honestly the thought of it makes me sick. I feel physically ill thinking about it. Everyone I talk to seems to like the NDP, but it's a "wasted vote". If they would all just fucking vote for who they wanted we'd have a chance!
I see myself lusting after electronic drum sets and I want to shake myself awake. I DON'T FUCKING NEED IT. I'm aware we live in a consumer culture and I think by now I've taken it to heart that everything is fabricated and nothing should be real enough to affect me, personally, (I mean out there in media central) but some days I wake up and I note to myself, "Hmmm, better hit the gym" and I wonder why that is (with dismay).
I see myself unable (and perhaps unwilling) to be free from this. I see Harper skewing ads to the point where they aren't even remotely true and I see people shaking their heads and saying, "Well, it may be true that he's lying but he has a point... I didn't like that whole coalition thing and besides, Harper saves me money." THEY SAY THIS in front of the homeless, even as cars bounce around on terrible roads, as our social fabric collapses around us. And I want to say, shake, SCREAM at them. "HOW CAN YOU BE SO FUCKING BLIND TO WHAT'S GOING ON RIGHT IN FRONT OF YOU?! YOU DON'T NEED A BENZ, YOU DON'T NEED THAT TAX CUT SO YOU CAN GO TO CUBA AND EXPLOIT THE ENVIRONMENT AND POVERTY EVEN FURTHER. YOU DON'T NEED IT YOU DON'T NEED IT YOU DON'T FUCKING NEED IT, AND IN YOUR CONSTANT PURSUIT OF IT (BECAUSE WE'VE BEEN TOLD WE'RE SUPPOSED TO WANT IT) YOU'VE LOST SIGHT OF THE MEANING OF EVERYTHING!!!"
Does integrity exist anymore?
I feel sick because I'm starting to understand that we need to work towards getting the raise, the benz, the dream house with the dream children doing to the dream school. Because if we don't have these stupid goals to work towards we start to realize that we're working for nothing. I see myself, waking up at 6:45, having a shower, packing up baby carrots and other veggies in ziploc containers, going to work from 8:30-4:30, hitting the gym after, and coming home. And I'm thinking, "What about this makes me happy? Why do I feel so productive after work? I don't actually do anything that makes a difference. I just feel like I'm working towards something."
But what am I working towards? Paying off my debt, though I realize the entire time that as soon as it's paid off another will sprout up. Why have I spent that past 10 years of my life gunning for a career where I can influence things just so I feel worthwhile and justified in all the effort I've spent getting myself here? Why should I care about Dean's List? (to be honest, I haven't really cared much since high school, but I've been putting on the face without any of the effort required to take genuine joy in my supposed "accomplishment").
Everyone around me praises me for my "achievements". I know my parents are proud to say I'm in a "good" career, that I get good grades at a good school, that I seem "well-rounded" and pay my bills on time and am increasingly independent thanks to my success (so far) at getting well-paying co-op jobs.
But it doesn't matter, and it won't even matter, and no one around me seems to notice. I'm fucking eating blueberries right now because I felt I should increase my fruit and veggie intake........... For fuck's sake. IT DOESN'T FUCKING MATTER.
I don't know how to reconcile feeling aware (though I know it's still dawning) of the fabrication of society with my inability to rid myself of it. I want to scrub myself until I no longer feel guilty about not going to the gym, until I no longer feel stupid for wanting the world to be better, until I no longer feel sexier after I've shaved. I want to blast my music until I'm no longer concerned with how others will percieve me, or how strange people will find me if I "go rogue".
I mean, no one drops out of the best university when they're getting excellent grades and excellent marks in co-op, now do they? And for what? What would I do? Start up the queer homeless shelter? I'd be dismissed before I even had a chance to say it's the only thing I feel driven to participate in.
I feel torn between my idealism and my rationality more than I've ever felt it before. It's been a constant undertone for me, throughout; a constant bubbling. But the pressure is causing a fissure, and I'm not sure if I'll end up on the
LEFT
when the
RIGHT
is all people are concerned with.
In a world where we're all taught so many things, is it even possible to remove yourself? To shake yourself awake? To see the AMERICAN DREAM for what it is? (that is, a dream, or a nightmare of self-centered social negligence)
I see people outside, idling their cars, and as much as it makes me angry I'm aware that I'd be embarrassed to go out there and tell them it bothers me so deeply. After all, it's just ONE CAR, it's just FIVE MINUTES, and it can't possibly be contributing to anything. HE'S JUST ONE PERSON, he can't possibly have any impact, never ever ever, so why not just do what he wants?
Why? I can't fucking stand feeling like I'm the only one who's angry, like I'm the only one who cries reading the news, like I'm the only one who feels like everyone around them is brainwashed.
Yet I'm fucking eating blueberries, sitting at a desk, and in front of me are things I've arranged into orderly piles (in order of importance and priority), and my hi-lighter is beside a pile, and my fruits and veggies are beside my reusable water bottle, beside my resuable ziploc containers.
And the saddest part of all of this is that the fact that I do feel partially pacified using reusable items, and I do feel superior when I turn my car off and shiver beside someone idling their truck. I fucking sit there and shiver in a self-righteous rage.
I'm worldsick.
I can't take being the only one who cares. I feel like feeling something when I walk by a homeless man (there are lots in St. Kitt's) is frowned upon; like it shows I'm naive or "too young" or too much of an idealist.
I don't like people telling me that this election will result in a Conservative majority. Honestly the thought of it makes me sick. I feel physically ill thinking about it. Everyone I talk to seems to like the NDP, but it's a "wasted vote". If they would all just fucking vote for who they wanted we'd have a chance!
I see myself lusting after electronic drum sets and I want to shake myself awake. I DON'T FUCKING NEED IT. I'm aware we live in a consumer culture and I think by now I've taken it to heart that everything is fabricated and nothing should be real enough to affect me, personally, (I mean out there in media central) but some days I wake up and I note to myself, "Hmmm, better hit the gym" and I wonder why that is (with dismay).
I see myself unable (and perhaps unwilling) to be free from this. I see Harper skewing ads to the point where they aren't even remotely true and I see people shaking their heads and saying, "Well, it may be true that he's lying but he has a point... I didn't like that whole coalition thing and besides, Harper saves me money." THEY SAY THIS in front of the homeless, even as cars bounce around on terrible roads, as our social fabric collapses around us. And I want to say, shake, SCREAM at them. "HOW CAN YOU BE SO FUCKING BLIND TO WHAT'S GOING ON RIGHT IN FRONT OF YOU?! YOU DON'T NEED A BENZ, YOU DON'T NEED THAT TAX CUT SO YOU CAN GO TO CUBA AND EXPLOIT THE ENVIRONMENT AND POVERTY EVEN FURTHER. YOU DON'T NEED IT YOU DON'T NEED IT YOU DON'T FUCKING NEED IT, AND IN YOUR CONSTANT PURSUIT OF IT (BECAUSE WE'VE BEEN TOLD WE'RE SUPPOSED TO WANT IT) YOU'VE LOST SIGHT OF THE MEANING OF EVERYTHING!!!"
Does integrity exist anymore?
I feel sick because I'm starting to understand that we need to work towards getting the raise, the benz, the dream house with the dream children doing to the dream school. Because if we don't have these stupid goals to work towards we start to realize that we're working for nothing. I see myself, waking up at 6:45, having a shower, packing up baby carrots and other veggies in ziploc containers, going to work from 8:30-4:30, hitting the gym after, and coming home. And I'm thinking, "What about this makes me happy? Why do I feel so productive after work? I don't actually do anything that makes a difference. I just feel like I'm working towards something."
But what am I working towards? Paying off my debt, though I realize the entire time that as soon as it's paid off another will sprout up. Why have I spent that past 10 years of my life gunning for a career where I can influence things just so I feel worthwhile and justified in all the effort I've spent getting myself here? Why should I care about Dean's List? (to be honest, I haven't really cared much since high school, but I've been putting on the face without any of the effort required to take genuine joy in my supposed "accomplishment").
Everyone around me praises me for my "achievements". I know my parents are proud to say I'm in a "good" career, that I get good grades at a good school, that I seem "well-rounded" and pay my bills on time and am increasingly independent thanks to my success (so far) at getting well-paying co-op jobs.
But it doesn't matter, and it won't even matter, and no one around me seems to notice. I'm fucking eating blueberries right now because I felt I should increase my fruit and veggie intake........... For fuck's sake. IT DOESN'T FUCKING MATTER.
I don't know how to reconcile feeling aware (though I know it's still dawning) of the fabrication of society with my inability to rid myself of it. I want to scrub myself until I no longer feel guilty about not going to the gym, until I no longer feel stupid for wanting the world to be better, until I no longer feel sexier after I've shaved. I want to blast my music until I'm no longer concerned with how others will percieve me, or how strange people will find me if I "go rogue".
I mean, no one drops out of the best university when they're getting excellent grades and excellent marks in co-op, now do they? And for what? What would I do? Start up the queer homeless shelter? I'd be dismissed before I even had a chance to say it's the only thing I feel driven to participate in.
I feel torn between my idealism and my rationality more than I've ever felt it before. It's been a constant undertone for me, throughout; a constant bubbling. But the pressure is causing a fissure, and I'm not sure if I'll end up on the
LEFT
when the
RIGHT
is all people are concerned with.
In a world where we're all taught so many things, is it even possible to remove yourself? To shake yourself awake? To see the AMERICAN DREAM for what it is? (that is, a dream, or a nightmare of self-centered social negligence)
I see people outside, idling their cars, and as much as it makes me angry I'm aware that I'd be embarrassed to go out there and tell them it bothers me so deeply. After all, it's just ONE CAR, it's just FIVE MINUTES, and it can't possibly be contributing to anything. HE'S JUST ONE PERSON, he can't possibly have any impact, never ever ever, so why not just do what he wants?
Why? I can't fucking stand feeling like I'm the only one who's angry, like I'm the only one who cries reading the news, like I'm the only one who feels like everyone around them is brainwashed.
Yet I'm fucking eating blueberries, sitting at a desk, and in front of me are things I've arranged into orderly piles (in order of importance and priority), and my hi-lighter is beside a pile, and my fruits and veggies are beside my reusable water bottle, beside my resuable ziploc containers.
And the saddest part of all of this is that the fact that I do feel partially pacified using reusable items, and I do feel superior when I turn my car off and shiver beside someone idling their truck. I fucking sit there and shiver in a self-righteous rage.
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