Taking Back Our Government.

This spring's worst kept secret is likely the fact that we are all quite likely to be sent out to the polls to Elect a new Government in Canada.  Not the Harper Government as some would like us to believe but Canada's Government.  Personally I found the whole rebranding of our Government as the "Harper Government" distasteful.  No matter who lead's it we all retain ownership of it.  It does not belong to one man or one party.  Especially when we are talking about a Minority Government.  Even ridings who elect a member who is not part of the governing party continue to have a say in our future.  Whether you agree or disagree with the policies of this current Government it is still YOUR Government.  Unfortunately the current system gives too much ownership of our Government and political process to Political Parties and not enough to local MP's and ideas.

Electoral reform has been an issue that has failed in the past.  I find this a bit sad as we prepare for another round of "pin the tail on the Donkey" Federally.  Far too many asses and not enough Donkeys I am afraid.  One of the things that is lost in this whole system is the ability to support a great local candidate whose party may not be the best choice for PM.  Most of us go to the Polls and vote for the Leader or their Party.  The local candidate who will actually do the job of representing you is a fairly small part of the equation.  This is a real shame because there are quite a few opposition MP's who have managed to fight quite effectively over the years for their ridings.  Something that is quite often not the case for members of the ruling party over the course of our history.  Back benchers who don't speak unless spoken to most times make up the majority.  Others may be senior members simply riding out their last days in comfort in a "safe seat".

Imagine for a moment if you had two choices on the paper.  One for the local candidate you want and one for Prime Minister.  I believe the net result would be the best of both worlds.  You wouldn't have to worry about sacrificing the best local choice for the best Prime Minister.  The Prime Minister who is elected may or may not be a member of the party holding the majority of the seats so they may have to work harder to enact legislation that suits the interest of all MP's.  One could potentially see a candidate running for Prime Minister based on working to form a non partisan consensus.  We might even have a Prime Minister who is not a card carrying member of any party but simply the best man or woman for the job.  What a novel idea.

Your local MP choice would become so much more important and finding the best person for the job would be much more important.  Safe seats would no longer exist and back benchers wouldn't be able to just ride their party's coat tails into office.

In the end I believe we would get a democratic process that returns power to the local level without some complicated formula.  As voters we would get to take ownership back of our Government and have more of a say in who runs it.  To me with half of all voters staying home on election day any idea to return power to the people is an idea worth discussing.

Baby Joseph's family gets help from 'a mama grizzly' - Windsor - CBC News

The tragedy here is two fold.

1) Our government has chosen to battle this family over their wishes at what cost? The price of doing this procedure was likely eclipsed quite quickly in the first legal battle. Do the procedure and allow the family to take the child home.  From there this family can choose to pay for whatever care they wish in his last days. Baby Joseph will likely die either way however this family needs this option to provide them with peace of mind. We also just don't know sometimes. The stories of people who have defied our medical knowledge are all around us. It is arrogance for our establishment to make these choices. I just fed a cat that I was told was dead over a month ago. He is happy and enjoying the life our vet would have ended. Our medical science fails us when arrogance steps in. People in the medical profession need to remember the more we know the more we realize we don't.

2) This family's plight is being exploited by people who have a mission outside of helping this child. None of these Good Samaritans would be there to help if the press wasn't taking pictures. They are adapting this child's case to their own agendas and rhetoric.

Baby Joseph's family gets help from 'a mama grizzly' - Windsor - CBC News

PMO Throws The Media Out Before Iggy Speaks.

What I find most troubling with this is that the partisans are running the show. In any party you have extreme elements. Unfortunately in our current government it would seem the those elements are holding the reins and crossing what are traditionally non partisan lines.

Whoever we elect is supposed to become part of the "Government of Canada" an entity greater than themselves or any one party. Whether or not you agree with the Prime Minister's politics we are all supposed to have respect for the Office of the Prime Minister. This office is supposed to represent us on the world stage and be a source of pride. Recently our Government has been rebranded in far more partisan ways. It is now officially the "Harper Government" and the PMO is acting like a bunch of Partisan thugs. In addition our opposition parties have at times undercut our government on the world stage. The whole thing is shameful.

In reality our's is not the Harper Government. While they may control the key posts they do not even have a majority in Parliament. Rarely has a ruling party ever had so little ownership of the agenda in Parliament. All laws are passed based on the support of the house of Commons which means that they need the support of the Opposition.

It is time to stop fighting over who's ball it is and focus on working to make this government and country something Canadian's can be proud of again.


PMO apologizes for booting media from Ignatieff speech - Politics - CBC News

The Price Of My Neglect

There is some irony in the title to my last piece. Almost two years later I have come to realize that my own neglect of this blog needs to come to an end. I have decided to start including stories from the web that I feel are important along with my own writings. If anyone out there is actually reading any of this please feel free to comment. If not it will at least be a bit of a diary for myself and those I love of my thoughts and feelings at this time in our world.

Judy