Yesterday (01/30/12) the Vancouver Sun had a piece written by Paul Kershaw from the
University of British Columbia. It was
entitled “A
Canadian sidekick for Colbert”, and it began with the following:
Just 10 per cent of Canadians
trust politicians, according to a recent Ipsos poll. Canadians are more likely
to trust new-car sales people than elected officials, data from Leger Marketing
tell us.
These facts may be good for a
laugh. But, really, we shouldn’t be amused. The fact that Canadians are more
likely to treat politicians like punch lines rather than people to respect is a
fundamental reason why we are tuning out politics. Barely 60 per cent of
Canadians voted in the last federal election; in Ontario’s fall provincial
election, fewer than 50 per cent of eligible voters showed up at the ballot
boxes. Our largest province has not seen such low turnout since Confederation
in 1867.
Apathy is not a neutral force in
our democracy. Apathy helps to sustain the status quo. And the status quo is
not a friend of Canadians under 45.
“POLITICIANS” … have become the punch lines, and punching bags, of municipal, provincial
and federal voters – and THEY DESERVE TO BE! And not just of people under the age of 45.
In 1999 a Canadian political party release a brochure … “This is the
Reform Party”. Here are just some of the
things they had as policy objectives in this brochure:
- the equality of citizens …
- Responsible government that is accountable to citizens …
- More and better jobs through balanced budgets and tax relief
- Safer streets and communities
- Strong reliable and affordable social services
- Greater support for Canadian families as the basic building block of Canadian society
In BC we have two political parties that have governed this province over the past two decades … the BC Liberals … and the New
Democrats. Has
anything truly been done towards the goals I noted above ... and that apply just as easily to our province? I think the
fact that only 10% of Canadian voters trust politicians provides the answer.
