Canadian Values
I've been reading a number of comments around the Net and everyone keeps bringing up Canadian Values. Apparently with the Conservative Government we are all going to lose our Canadian Values. My Canadian Values, according to all the complaining people, are not Canadian Values. To me it sounds like you have to be a 'lefty' to truly understand Canadian Values and anyone who doesn't vote NDP or Liberal is a far right wing extremist. Steven Harper's government is planning to do a lot of things that I think make sense. Please have a read of this article and see if you disagree with what Harper is going to do, with the blessing of the Canadian Value Coalition (CVC=NDP/Liberals): Stephen Harper's Agenda
So, after reading that article, please tell me how that is against whatever Canadian Values are supposed to be. I'm seeing a lot of good things in there. And lets not do the same-sex argument again. There is more to running a country than the same-sex issue, although it is important.
And...what are Canadian Values? Who said what Canadian Values are? Perhaps I didn't get the memo.
5 comments:
There are some interesting points in that article, but it's obviously written from the perspective of someone who supports the Conservative agenda, without reservation.
I like the idea of reducing the GST, but I find it hard to believe it will actually happen.
I think the most frightening part of the article is the comments on public healthcare:
This plan, while adhering to the Canada Health Act, would notably not require treatment at a government-run institution, meaning that if the public health system is unable to offer adequate treatment within medically accepted waiting times, then private options will be available to patients. We hope that Mr. Harper implements this plan soon, and that it leads to a broader rethinking of the failed Soviet-style public monopoly on which our health system is based.
If anything, this goes against "Canadian values" and the concept of free and equal healthcare for all people. People who are rich do not deserve better healthcare than people who cannot afford to go to a private clinic. Privatization of the health sector will also result in public healthcare suffering, as doctors are lured away by better wages to the private clinic. In essence, they are going to create a two-tiered system.
The fact that the article refers to our current, internationally lauded, healthcare system as a "Soviet-style public monopoly" is laughable, and points pretty strongly to a definite agenda. Do we really want to move towards an American-style medicare system?
Correct me if I am wrong but I don't believe the US has a Medicare system.
As for the private/public Medicare, there are a number of procedures that are actually not part of the Canada Health Act but are still being paid for by the provinces. The provinces actually have the say in health care, as long as they adhere to the Canada Health Act. And for your information, there are already many private clinics across the country, and in fact there is one in Martin's riding. I know in Alberta there are the MRI centres that people can go to for quicker MRI's. I just about used one last year when I had a pinched nerve in my neck and was having a LOT of difficulty. Fortunately the nerve started settling down and I could wait the 3 months it took to get in. There they found the problem but treatment could have started a lot sooner if I had gone and paid for it myself. My cousin had a back problem...disk/sciatic nerve problem and he went to a private place to get it done late last year. He couldn't wait the 3 months. He got his MRI and surgery in less than half the time it would have taken to get the MRI. Another thing some don't know about it is that it is a tax deduction at the end of the year.
All that being said it would be great if we all could get the treatment we need under the present system. I know that Alberta is/was considering having a private/public partnership to ease the backlog of many tests and procedures. Yes we could just throw money at Medicare and see what happens but I think that has been done for so many years and the backlogs get longer in the present system that something else needs to be done. What is that something else? Why are we having issues with the present system? Why are the costs expanding exponentially compared to the number of people?
And as for the Soviet-Style public monopoly you scoff at :-))) …isn’t that the same thing as the concept of free and equal healthcare for all people no mater how much money they have?
Even though I'm left leaning, I think the Conservative win is a good thing for the country. Harper seems committed to implementing changes, whereas the Liberals have, in recent times, been seemingly eager to hide things from the public.
I think the minority government makes it stronger, for us. Harper will have to introduce legislation to appease the Bloc and the Liberals... who could vote against the GST?
It's true - the Liberal's plan for tax cuts is opqaue... a GST relief is immediate and genuine.
But that article wasn't objective enough for me... it was an Op-Ed piece. From the article:
"Who knows: Throw in money for a few basketball courts and the NDP might even buy in"
What? That's pretty dirty.
I just thought the Soviet-style comment was a bit excessive. Why not just "public monopoly"? Are we still scared of the red hoard?
Yeah, I thought the basketball comment was funny as well.
I must confess that much of what Harper presents in his platform sounds like just right of centre pre-ballot vote-catching phrases. I really doubt that he (yeah, I know that he can always fall back on the fact that he doesn't have a majority) will follow through with most of his promises. And personally, I'm glad.
How is he going to boost defence and child care spending? Well, considering the tax cuts he's proposing, it must have to come from health care. But wait... if he's going to guarantee that everyone gets the service they deserve, even if it's from private clinics, well, heck, he must pay for it too. So... how is this private? How will he regulate private health care costs? If I go in to get a new kidney and the government says - you can wait 12 months for public service, fully paid for, or you can go in next week at a private hospital and we'll pay what we would have paid if you did public - you cover the rest. Not such a "Canadian Values" kind of policy. Who gets the new kidney? The rich guy, the rich guy. Who dies on dialisis? The poor guy, the poor guy. Sounds like crap to me. I definitely agree that the health system is strained and that service is wanting and that throwing more money at it won't solve the problem. But there are heaps of ways to revamp the system without privatizing.
As far as beefing up the military, police and cracking down on crime... this is right out of Bush's agenda. Since Bush has come into power, crime has gone up and jails have just gotten more full. If you don't address crime at its roots, it won't diminish. Social programs prevent crime, not more police.
Senate reform - that's cool. Not original, but cool. I think it was a vote catcher though. The Conservatives had the chance to do it many times in the past and never did anything about it.
So, is Harper thinking of electing judges to the supreme court? Horrible idea. Gosh, we could elect anyone if he was popular enough. That could be a nightmare. Do we want a political judge who is going to say what he personally believes should change in Canada or do we want one who will interpret the law and the charter based on reason and precedent? The latter way is the only way to ensure that laws change and that justice is done. Appointing judges is much wiser - it's much less political than electing one.
Childcare - $100/month for a child under 6. Gee, thanks. That might cover half of my child's visit to the private clinic when he has an ear infection! I wasn't too keen on the LIberal's child care thing either. Daycares aren't the answer.
Accountability - again, campain drivel. The Liberals ran on this back in 1993 because of Conservative scandals. If they do implement it - great. I just don't think they will.
Conservatives brought in the GST. Why? So they could promise to reduce it in an election 15 years later? I guess they won't need the money if they are dumping health care.
Not my values.
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