Yesterday I opined on why democratic participation in our country is so muted, and offered two examples of what can be accomplished when people are willing to get involved.
One of the obstacles to greater participation is surely the belief that we have little chance of making an impact because our elected representatives do not listen to us, indeed, seem to actively discourage us from becoming involved.
I definitely got them impression while following the budget debate in Toronto, which saw a record number of citizens making deputations on the cuts that were being proposed. One of the city's most obnoxious councillors, Giorgio Mammoliti, a man quite happy to belittle anyone who questions him, a man who seems to have changed political stripes for the allure of power offered by conversion to the Ford agenda, is now getting his shorts in a twist over ' repeat deputers,' those citizens who have the temerity to make more than one deputation to City Council.
In a story appearing in today's Star, Catherine Porter reports how Mammoliti takes grave exception to people like Mary T. Hynes, a retired teacher whom he lumps into a group he has decided are exercising their democratic duties far too much.
Perhaps the best answer to Mammoliti's carping criticisms comes from Ms Hynes herself:
“I learned that people can make a difference, if they struggle long and hard and respectfully,” she says. “If people hadn’t come down to city hall, what would have happened?”
I suspect there is a lesson for all of us in her words.
Thursday, January 19, 2012
Wednesday, January 18, 2012
If This Is The Best They've Got...
Two Bright Spots For Democracy
I have to admit that on most days, I am darkly pessimistic about the efficacy of democracy. With a federal government whose members are but drones of a martinet Prime Minister, and a domestic populace that seems to be asleep, indifferent, easily manipulated, divided or defeatist the majority of time, I see little basis for optimism. Two events in the news today, however, help to counter that gloomy assessment, just a little.
The first comes from Toronto. Although I do not live there, the size of its municipal government makes it of special interest, especially given that until yesterday right-wing forces, led by Mayor Rob Ford, seemed to control the agenda.
Politics has been defined as the art of the possible. In other words, dictates seldom work as effectively as compromise and consensus. Neither concept held any meaning for Ford who, like the bulldozer he resembles, maintained an attitude that it was "my way or the highway" as he insisted upon deep cuts to programs and services in the 2012 budget. That is, until constituents, roused from their torpor, engaged in what should be a model of participatory democracy. They lobbied their council representatives en masse and filled City Hall with their deputations against the severe cuts championed by the right, thereby prompting left-leaning, centrist, and even a few right-wingers to form a coalition that eliminated the worst of the cuts through an omnibus bill presented by Josh Colle. The final vote: 23-21 in support of the bill.
The second example of democracy's potential power comes from Wisconsin, the home of Governor Scott Walker, the tool of the Koch brothers who did so much damage last year after passing legislation that stripped public employees of their collective bargaining rights.
CNN reports the following:
More than a million people have signed a petition to recall Wisconsin's governor, the state's Democratic Party said Tuesday.
That's nearly twice the 540,208 signatures required to seek a recall of first-term Republican Gov. Scott Walker, who drew the ire of labor unions and public school teachers after he stripped public employees of their collective bargaining rights.
All of us need to take heart from these two examples of what can happen when people mobilize to overcome the forces arrayed against their interests.
Such actions are both our right and our responsibility.
The first comes from Toronto. Although I do not live there, the size of its municipal government makes it of special interest, especially given that until yesterday right-wing forces, led by Mayor Rob Ford, seemed to control the agenda.
Politics has been defined as the art of the possible. In other words, dictates seldom work as effectively as compromise and consensus. Neither concept held any meaning for Ford who, like the bulldozer he resembles, maintained an attitude that it was "my way or the highway" as he insisted upon deep cuts to programs and services in the 2012 budget. That is, until constituents, roused from their torpor, engaged in what should be a model of participatory democracy. They lobbied their council representatives en masse and filled City Hall with their deputations against the severe cuts championed by the right, thereby prompting left-leaning, centrist, and even a few right-wingers to form a coalition that eliminated the worst of the cuts through an omnibus bill presented by Josh Colle. The final vote: 23-21 in support of the bill.
The second example of democracy's potential power comes from Wisconsin, the home of Governor Scott Walker, the tool of the Koch brothers who did so much damage last year after passing legislation that stripped public employees of their collective bargaining rights.
CNN reports the following:
More than a million people have signed a petition to recall Wisconsin's governor, the state's Democratic Party said Tuesday.
That's nearly twice the 540,208 signatures required to seek a recall of first-term Republican Gov. Scott Walker, who drew the ire of labor unions and public school teachers after he stripped public employees of their collective bargaining rights.
All of us need to take heart from these two examples of what can happen when people mobilize to overcome the forces arrayed against their interests.
Such actions are both our right and our responsibility.
Tuesday, January 17, 2012
Linda McQuaig on Harper's Anti-Labour Policies
Drawing comparisons between Republican animus toward labour and Harper government policies that permit the kind of outrageous corporate behaviour unfolding at Electro-Motive Canada, Linda McQuaig's column in today's Star warns us of what is ahead for workers in Canada.
Two key excerpts provide the tone of her piece:
Harper played a key role in bringing about this disaster for the London workers by approving the sale of the company, Electro-Motive Diesel, to foreign-owned Caterpillar in 2010, after supposedly investigating whether the deal was in Canada’s interests.
Harper is of course staunchly pro-capitalist, and has aggressively lowered corporate tax rates, while refusing to link lower taxes to investment or job creation.
But his anti-union stance, evident in disputes at Air Canada and the post office last summer, has been particularly provocative. He seems determined to turn Canada into an anti-union paradise.
As usual, McQuaig's analysis is well-worth perusing in full.
Two key excerpts provide the tone of her piece:
Harper played a key role in bringing about this disaster for the London workers by approving the sale of the company, Electro-Motive Diesel, to foreign-owned Caterpillar in 2010, after supposedly investigating whether the deal was in Canada’s interests.
Harper is of course staunchly pro-capitalist, and has aggressively lowered corporate tax rates, while refusing to link lower taxes to investment or job creation.
But his anti-union stance, evident in disputes at Air Canada and the post office last summer, has been particularly provocative. He seems determined to turn Canada into an anti-union paradise.
As usual, McQuaig's analysis is well-worth perusing in full.
Monday, January 16, 2012
Self-Serving Rhetoric From The Toronto Police
As one who strives to be a critical thinker, I am loathe to make absolutist or ill-informed statements and assertions, even as I admit to frequently falling short of the mark. Nonetheless, after the debacle of the G20 Summit of June 2010 held in Toronto, I find myself frequently dubious of statements from the police that may serve to conceal or excuse instances of brutality and blatant violation of our Charter Rights.
It is for this reason that I am very skeptical of assertions by the Toronto Police, as reported in today's Star about Sean Salvati.
Readers may recall that Salvati, a paralegal, was arrested, stripped naked, paraded in front of a female officer and left without his clothing in a jail cell in June of 2010, allegedly for public intoxication, a claim he vigorously denies. According to him, his humiliating treatment was prompted by an innocuous remark to a couple of RCMP officers about the task that lay ahead of them the next day, the Saturday of the G20 Summit.
Even if one chooses to disbelieve Salvati's claim, his lawyer's protracted and frequently frustrated efforts to obtain some basic documentation and the video of his client's ordeal is a testament to police obstructionism.
I hope you can spare a few moments to read the entire article.
It is for this reason that I am very skeptical of assertions by the Toronto Police, as reported in today's Star about Sean Salvati.
Readers may recall that Salvati, a paralegal, was arrested, stripped naked, paraded in front of a female officer and left without his clothing in a jail cell in June of 2010, allegedly for public intoxication, a claim he vigorously denies. According to him, his humiliating treatment was prompted by an innocuous remark to a couple of RCMP officers about the task that lay ahead of them the next day, the Saturday of the G20 Summit.
Even if one chooses to disbelieve Salvati's claim, his lawyer's protracted and frequently frustrated efforts to obtain some basic documentation and the video of his client's ordeal is a testament to police obstructionism.
I hope you can spare a few moments to read the entire article.
A Star Reader's Perspective On Caterpillar Inc.
I have been offline for the past several days, the reason for which I may write about later. For now, I am taking the liberty of reproducing the excellent lead letter appearing in the print edition of today's Star in which the writer, Dr. Robert Bahlieda, offers some penetrating insights into the significance of what is happening at the Electo-Motive plant in London, Ontario.
The lockout of the Caterpillar workers in London, Ont. reflects the brave new world of neoliberalism, an extreme right-wing ideology that has taken over Western and global society in the last 25 years.
It is a white, elitist, winner-take-all philosophy that emphasizes tax cuts, competition, de-regulated free markets, toothless labour protections, sharply reduced wages and limited social program funding. This has become the new normal under the mantra of globalization.
In this theory, according to its propaganda, North American working people are always to blame for the economy’s problems through their unwillingness to work for paltry wages without benefits, pensions or full-time jobs. They are also viewed as ingrates who scoff at low-paid work and foolishly demand civil and human rights as employees.
They hold the deluded belief that the world should be a place where society works for the well-being of all rather than the few. They are socialists.
Huge multinational corporations like Caterpillar on the other hand are the true aggrieved party in society, always struggling to increase market share and margins for demanding shareholders in order to create more jobs and grow the economy.
Emboldened by a litany of economic crises in the past two decades, the conservative right smells blood in the water and have ramped up their rhetoric, extremism and attacks on working people, minorities and the poor all over the world.
In the Darwinian universe they envision and believe in governments should drop the charade of democracy and allow business to take over the running of the world. Effectively this is already happening through globalization and free trade agreements, while governments have been left to play the roles of castrated eunuchs ministering to the demands of free-enterprise and wringing their conveniently tied hands.
It is a world where any job is a good job and those who fight for living wages are branded obstructionists or left-wing radicals. It is a world where anyone who resists authority is demonized. It is a world where the private-sector media takes on the social conscience and investigative roles that are the responsibility of democratic governments to protect citizens from the rapacious greed of free marketeers and others who would exploit society for their own gain. It is a world where the many toil for the few and are thankful for doing so.
Instead of being outraged by this situation and giving broad public support to movements like the Occupy flash protests, we sit passively by while we celebrate these corporate titans as though they were mythical gods benevolently dispensing wise, paternal advice to us all.
It is a Milton Friedman world of democracy through capitalism. In the 1960s this situation would have induced millions of people of all ages, colours and backgrounds to occupy every public space around the world — and politicians and governments would have been compelled to listen.
Instead, today we change the channel and move on. Democracy is going away with a whimper. It is the world of the Tea Party, the federal Conservatives and Mayor Rob Ford. Welcome to the brave new world of the London, Ont. Caterpillar workers.
Dr. Robert Bahlieda, Newmarket
The lockout of the Caterpillar workers in London, Ont. reflects the brave new world of neoliberalism, an extreme right-wing ideology that has taken over Western and global society in the last 25 years.
It is a white, elitist, winner-take-all philosophy that emphasizes tax cuts, competition, de-regulated free markets, toothless labour protections, sharply reduced wages and limited social program funding. This has become the new normal under the mantra of globalization.
In this theory, according to its propaganda, North American working people are always to blame for the economy’s problems through their unwillingness to work for paltry wages without benefits, pensions or full-time jobs. They are also viewed as ingrates who scoff at low-paid work and foolishly demand civil and human rights as employees.
They hold the deluded belief that the world should be a place where society works for the well-being of all rather than the few. They are socialists.
Huge multinational corporations like Caterpillar on the other hand are the true aggrieved party in society, always struggling to increase market share and margins for demanding shareholders in order to create more jobs and grow the economy.
Emboldened by a litany of economic crises in the past two decades, the conservative right smells blood in the water and have ramped up their rhetoric, extremism and attacks on working people, minorities and the poor all over the world.
In the Darwinian universe they envision and believe in governments should drop the charade of democracy and allow business to take over the running of the world. Effectively this is already happening through globalization and free trade agreements, while governments have been left to play the roles of castrated eunuchs ministering to the demands of free-enterprise and wringing their conveniently tied hands.
It is a world where any job is a good job and those who fight for living wages are branded obstructionists or left-wing radicals. It is a world where anyone who resists authority is demonized. It is a world where the private-sector media takes on the social conscience and investigative roles that are the responsibility of democratic governments to protect citizens from the rapacious greed of free marketeers and others who would exploit society for their own gain. It is a world where the many toil for the few and are thankful for doing so.
Instead of being outraged by this situation and giving broad public support to movements like the Occupy flash protests, we sit passively by while we celebrate these corporate titans as though they were mythical gods benevolently dispensing wise, paternal advice to us all.
It is a Milton Friedman world of democracy through capitalism. In the 1960s this situation would have induced millions of people of all ages, colours and backgrounds to occupy every public space around the world — and politicians and governments would have been compelled to listen.
Instead, today we change the channel and move on. Democracy is going away with a whimper. It is the world of the Tea Party, the federal Conservatives and Mayor Rob Ford. Welcome to the brave new world of the London, Ont. Caterpillar workers.
Dr. Robert Bahlieda, Newmarket
Wednesday, January 11, 2012
Will The Legendary Harper Vindictiveness Rear Its Head Again?
A report in today's Globe suggests we could soon be seeing another instance of Harper bullying and intimidation tactics.
Well-known for his intolerance of and disdain for dissent, and given his Natural Resources' Minister's recent musings about radicals having infiltrated the environmental opposition to the proposed Northern Gateway oil pipeline, Mr. Harper, environmentalists fear, "is planning to limit their advocacy role."
The story goes on to say:
The Conservative-dominated Commons finance committee is set to begin a review of the charity sector, and several activists say government MPs have told business groups that the committee will look at the environmental sector’s transparency, its advocacy role and the flow of funds from outside the country.
Given his autocratic nature and the fact that he has a majority government, there seems little to stop the dark lord from doing as he pleases, except perhaps a clamorous and widespread expression of public indignation over his thuggish tactics.
Given our legendary passivity and docility, I'm not expecting too much of that.
Well-known for his intolerance of and disdain for dissent, and given his Natural Resources' Minister's recent musings about radicals having infiltrated the environmental opposition to the proposed Northern Gateway oil pipeline, Mr. Harper, environmentalists fear, "is planning to limit their advocacy role."
The story goes on to say:
The Conservative-dominated Commons finance committee is set to begin a review of the charity sector, and several activists say government MPs have told business groups that the committee will look at the environmental sector’s transparency, its advocacy role and the flow of funds from outside the country.
Given his autocratic nature and the fact that he has a majority government, there seems little to stop the dark lord from doing as he pleases, except perhaps a clamorous and widespread expression of public indignation over his thuggish tactics.
Given our legendary passivity and docility, I'm not expecting too much of that.
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