If You Care About Canada, Don’t Vote Conservative
Every election is important. But arguably, some are more important than others — and the 2015 Federal Election is perhaps the most important I’ve ever seen.
Let me put this bluntly: If you plan on voting for the Conservatives, you are implicitly supporting a government that has been hostile to science and the environment, transparency and accountability, privacy and our Charter of Rights and Freedoms, social programs, veterans, democracy, and ethics. And that’s just a short list.
The Conservative candidate in your riding may not be an incumbent. He or she may be the most wonderful, upright, well-meaning person in the world. But the fact is, if the Conservatives form government again, it would still be run exactly how it is now: from the Prime Minister’s Office.
Ever since Harper became Prime Minister, he has abused his power and damaged our democracy. His MPs merely read talking points and vote in Omnibus bills, shut down debate, weaken our democracy, dismantle our environmental regulations, invade our privacy, and hurt our economy. The Duffy trial has laid bare how corrupt our top level of government has become — and this is the party that originally ran for power pledging to be open and accountable following the “Adscam” scandal. And as people start to focus on these issues, the CPC seek to distract by stoking the fires of xenophobia.
The Conservatives have consistently weakened environmental protections. The Fisheries Act was gutted. 98% of our lakes and waterways have lost protections. The National Energy Board has been stacked with appointees from oil companies. Under Harper, Canada has consistently refused to protect endangered species. On the urgent need for action on climate change, they have done virtually nothing. They are not even close to the already poor targets they set for 2020. Canada is recognized as a laggard — even an obstacle — internationally on curbing emissions that we desperately need to limit. Any minor reductions in emissions are attributable to BC’s carbon pricing, Ontario’s shutting down of coal power plants, and the 2008–2009 economic slump.
Science is regarded as an obstacle, one that the Harper government has steadily bulldozed. Government scientists are prevented from talking to the media without getting permission — permission that is rarely granted. Gag orders prevent them from talking after they leave public service. Research libraries are closed, irreplaceable books and records literally thrown in the trash. The long-form census, an invaluable resource for planning social policy, was killed, leading to the chief statistician resigning in protest. The data from the voluntary survey — which also cost more to implement than the long-form census — is severely limited and cannot be compared to data from past years.
On the economy, the CPC have slowly and methodically weakened the Treasury by way of tax cuts for business and individuals, while handing out tax rebates and introducing schemes like income splitting and doubling TFSA contribution limits — all of which disproportionately benefit the wealthiest 15% far more than the rest. And by lowering incoming revenue, they then claim they have no choice but to close veterans’ affairs offices, libraries, research labs, coast guards, cut transfers to health care, and more. At a time when our economy is struggling, when significant investments into infrastructure and renewable energy could bring higher quality jobs and stimulate growth, the Harper government does little. Household and student debt is at record levels, while the quality of jobs has dropped, income inequality soared. We are the only developed country with a national health system that doesn’t cover pharmaceutical costs. The cycle of austerity measures and the idea of “trickle-down economics” is harmful wherever it is practiced. Even the IMF — a staunchly conservative organization — has admitted is failings. Yet the CPC doggedly sticks to it.
On democracy and human rights, the Conservatives have repeatedly lost challenges in the Supreme Court for their actions that violate the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. They have failed to respect First Nations’ rights, and the crisis of missing and murdered indigenous women is simply ignored by them. They passed the euphemistically-named “Fair Elections Act”, which actually has the effect of making it harder for people to vote and limits what Elections Canada can do to encourage voting, despite tremendous outcry from experts. The Conservatives, it should be noted, have been caught cheating in each of the past three elections.
They then passed the Orwellian Bill C-51, a bill that hundreds of academics, past Prime Ministers (including a Progressive Conservative!), and legal experts decried for its scope and anti-privacy, anti-Charter measures. The Conservative’s response was to label critics as supporting terrorism.
To be clear, I think the rise of militant, radical Islamic groups is something we most certainly should be worried about. There is most certainly a role Canada can — and should — play. However, we also have a military that cannot meet the rhetoric Harper has boasted, having been hamstrung by budget cuts and a disastrous procurement strategy. Our navy ships are in disrepair, and aging planes and helicopters well-past their best-before date. Canada was once a champion of peace-keeping and humanitarian efforts around the world. Now our foreign-aid spending has shrunk to 0.27% of GDP, a record low.
These are not the actions of a conservative, compassionate government. Despite the similar name, the CPC is very different from the ‘Progressive Conservative’ party of the past. I urge you to truly analyze their actions. Is the course they’re setting us on going to help future generations, or the planet? Should a government that routinely lies to us be rewarded for it?
Certainly, past governments can rightly be accused of centralizing power in the Prime Minister’s Office, and being a laggard on climate change. But the Harper years have taken this to a whole new level.
I understand some conservatives may balk at the idea of voting for another party. But the CPC does not exhibit any of the qualities of compassionate conservatism, such as caring for the poor and marginalized, conservation of the environment, pursuit of peace and equality, or personal integrity.
I certainly have my own preference on who to support, but sadly, our voting system is horribly flawed, and desperately needs reform to one where a single party can’t claim a “majority” with less than 50% of the vote. We run 338 separate elections, and in each one, a candidate can win with far less than half the votes. All other ballots, while symbolically important, don’t help elect anyone.
The non-Conservative parties each have electoral reform in their platforms, so with any luck by the next election we will be able to vote with our conscience. But there’s no chance of that if the Conservatives win a ‘majority’ again.
The NDP, Liberals, and Greens each have far better platforms than the CPC. For all the animosity the NDP and Liberals seem to have for each other, both have progressive policies, and the simple fact is either is better than giving the Conservatives another four years of unchecked power. While the Liberals can justifiably be criticized for their support of C-51, they have pledged to fix the excesses of the bill. In some ridings, particularly in British Columbia, but also several in Ontario, the Green Party has a strong chance. If you are undecided, I suggest taking the short quiz at Vote Compass and see how the non-Conservative parties are actually not that far apart from each other on many issues.
Please ensure you are registered to vote, and do so on October 19. Voter turnout — particularly among youth — is poor, but as frustrating as politics is, this does directly affect our future. Showing up and voting could make all the difference in giving us a brighter one.
