Who to vote for: Canadian federal election Jan/06

[Zachary]

It’s coming up to the time for us Canadians to vote for our federal leadership. The only thing I know for certain is that it won’t be for the Liberals. Any advice out there? I’m looking for a pro-life agenda first and formost. I’m not a big follower of the politcal mill, so any guidance will help.

 

[Lapsed]

None of the major parties are officially pro-life. There is a Christian Heritage Party, which is run by Evangelicals, that is pro-life, though they are on the fringe of the fringe. The Liberals accusing Harper of having a secret pro-life agenda during the last election was a contributing factor to the Conservative’s momentum halt. Being a pro-life party in Canada is sadly a political death sentence.

There is a general thread on the election here

There is most decidedly a bias towards the Conservatives among the major thread participants (me being one of them).

 

[BillyT92679]

If you’re traditionally minded, you should emigrate to the United States, frankly. To me Canada lost its soul a long time ago.

 

[Seamus]

Lapsed:

Being a pro-life party in Canada is sadly a political death sentence.

In that respect, you are not alone.

Other than my own Congressman, Chris Smith, it is hard to find a pro-life candidate here in New Jersey that has a viable chance of actually winning an election. As a Catholic voter, I will often find myself in the voting booth faced with two choices: (A) standing on principle and voting for a third-party pro-life candidate that has no hope of victory, or (B) writing in my brother Bob’s name. Bob doesn’t have a prayer of becoming governor either, but at least if he does get elected, I am sure he will continue that great Jersey tradition of nepotism and offer me a cushy government job.

Good luck with the election, Canada.

 

[mastda]

BillyT92679:

If you’re traditionally minded, you should emigrate to the United States, frankly. To me Canada lost its soul a long time ago.

Please tell me this post is a joke? New York, Massachussets, Vermont and California (to name a few) have not lost their souls?

 

[Seamus]

mastda:

Please tell me this post is a joke?

I am reluctant to speak for anyone else. That said, please know that while we Americans are far more patriotic than most, the vast majority of Americans are not the nationalists that some would suggest. We, Canada and the United States, share a 3,000 mile border that is, for the most part, largely undefended. That border is undefended for a reason. We don’t trade to the extent that we do–Canada is, by far, America’s largest trading partner—because we think Canadians spend their free time holding hands with the devil. Quite frankly, until I had read this thread, I had never run into a fellow American that spoke of an entire nation–and a democracy at that–as being damned. We Americans may scratch our heads in wonderment over some of the decisions our neighbors to the north have made, but that is to be expected, even amongst close friends and allies.

At the considerable risk of diverting this thread away from a discussion of the upcoming Canadian elections, please permit this one American to render a sincere and heartfelt “Thanks, Canada!” to the Canadian readers of this thread. (I rarely get to speak to Canadians, after all.)

I was 14 in November of 1979. I can clearly remember the day that a group of Iranian students (the current president of Iran included) overtook the US embassy in Tehran and took our people hostage. (52 of them were held for 444 days.) More importantly, I can remember that on that day, a small group of Americans, led by a US Marine, were able to flee the horror that awaited their fellow Americans. I would respectfully remind my countrymen that when those Americans were running through those terror-filled streets in fear for their lives, they ran towards that red maple leaf that is the Canadian flag, and which proudly hung in front of the Canadian embassy. Canada, of course, gave refuge to those Americans that had escaped. In a daring move, and at considerable risk, Canada provided fake passports to those Americans that enabled them to return home safely.

And who can forget what Canada did for us on that dark day, September 11, 2001? On that day, once again, Canada gave refuge to Americans when we needed it most. When President Bush shut down US airspace in the hours following the attacks, all airborne flights were, by necessity, diverted to Canada. Canada willingly accepted those planes into their airspace without knowing whether terrorists would crash those planes into Canadian cities. They did so without thinking twice. In their modesty, they will tell you that that is what good neighbors and friends do.

I could go on but I’m on a rant. Thanks again, Canada. Good luck with your election.

 

[EtienneGilson]

I am a Canadian though I do not consider myself much of a patriot. I seem to remember a quote from somewhere stating that patriotism is the religion of the ignorant (possibly Chesterton, but given his love of Britain, I am not too certain). The extent of my patriotism is pretty much spent on the world junior hockey championships right now (sorry to see we will not be playing the USA in the finals).

I look at both sides of the 49th parallel as having so many problems that neither should be pointing out the speck in the other’s eyes. Canada has a lot to offer the United States and the United States has a lot to offer Canada. Often in Canada we hear of the ignorance and chauvinism of the Americans; however, I consider our Canadian pompous attitude far more offensive and repulsive than the American faults.

Having studied in the United States I can say that the people (especially in the mid-west) are almost rediculously friendly and outgoing. My father likewise worked on a joint Canadian/American income tax taskforce in DC and loved his stay there.

All that said, my father taught me something important in Federal Canadian elects. Unlike in the USA, in Canada, it is more important to vote for the party than the person. It is sad that in Canada, roughly 20% of Canadians consider themselves pro-life yet none of the 4 major parties wish to tap into that vast wealth of electoral votes. The Catholic Answers voting guide is useless up here. The Alliance party danced with it under Stockwell Day but we saw what happened to that poor man. Also, in the case of a Conservative minority (with the Bloc) the Bloc has threatened to bring the government down if abortion is raised.

I cannot tell you how to vote but thowing away your vote on a fringe party like the Christian Heritage Party (I have a friend who frequently sends me emails from them, and they have more nuts than an O’Henry bar) is not a good option. In BC, between the Reform, Liberal, Conservative and SoCred parties, the right vote was spilt so many times that we were subject to the tyrannical rule of the NDP for over a decade resulting in the near collapse of our economy.

But that is just my rant.