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Election time – choice not so evident

Time has come to cast our  ballots. The choice is not so evident. In the County we really have only two choices – Ignatieff  or Harper. The local candidates for the most  part do what their respective leader tells them to do. I once shared a golf cart with D. Kramp at the Picton Rotary annual golf tournament and he was quite likeable.  However, it is his leader, S. Harper, that bothers me most. Harper is the one who closed off a productive prison farm in several locations, plans to build many un-needed prisons, purchase fighter jets far beyond what we need or afford and finally should we give him a majority will produce a right wing agenda that will shock us all.
Ignatieff, whom I once met and talked to at the Royal Ontario Museum, strikes me as a kind, compassionate and caring person. He will give us a more open government and not be a “control freak” that our present PM has been described by a journalist.
In the event that a minority outcome takes place, there is nothing to fear about a coalition. Many countries such as England, Israel and Australia have successfully governed the country. In fact, a coalition of several parties will provide a kind of governance that will serve many different constituencies and elector demands. Canadians are by now  one of the most multi-cultural, multi-racial people in the world. In the same way our government could represent such a mixture of Liberals, NDP and even the Bloc.
In the County we could do our part by voting Liberal, Peter Tinsley.
Ken Koyama
Picton, Ontario

Filed Under: Letters and Opinion

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  1. Killashandra Ree says:

    Great words by Pieere Elliott Trudeau, yet according to Harper, PM Trudeau did nothing but spend money. If we let him a=have a majority ogovernement, I guess soon we will be hearing/reading how Harper did it all.

  2. BV says:

    Get ready for a Harper majority Government. Everybody is always upset about money being spent by Harper in the wrong places, this election is not needed but the others wanted this. Jack Layton is nuts in the head with his idea’s and Ignatieff is so un-reliable he never shows up to vote on things.
    GO HARPER

  3. Rob says:

    I speak of a Canada where men and women of aboriginal ancestry, of French and British heritage, of the diverse cultures of the world, demonstrate the Will to share this land in peace, in Justice, and with mutual Respect. I speak of a Canada which is proud of, and strengthened by its essential bilingual destiny, a Canada whose people believe in sharing and in mutual support, and not in building regional barriers.

    I speak of a country where Every person is free to fulfill himself or herself to the Utmost, unhindered by the arbitrary actions of governments. The ‘Canadian Ideal’ which we have tried to live, with varying degrees of success and failure for a hundred years, is really an Act of Defiance against the History of mankind.

    Had this country been founded upon a Less noble vision, or had our forefathers Surrendered to the difficulties of building this nation, Canada would have been torn apart long ago. It should not surprise us, therefore, that Even Now we sometimes feel the pull of those old reflexes of mutual fear and distrust. – Fear of becoming vulnerable by opening one’s arms to other Canadians who speak a different language or live in a different culture. – Fear of becoming poorer by agreeing to share one’s resources and wealth with fellow citizens living in regions less favoured by nature.

    The Canada we are building lies Beyond the horizon of such fears. Yet it is Not, for all that, an Unreal country, forgetful of the Hearts of men and women. We know that Justice and Generosity can flourish only in an atmosphere of Trust.
    – For if individuals and minorities do not feel protected against the possibility of the Tyranny of the majority, if French-speaking Canadians or Native Peoples or New Canadians do not feel they will be treated with Justice, it is useless to ask them to open their hearts and minds to their fellow Canadians.

    Similarly, if Provinces feel that their Sovereign Rights are not secure in those fields in which they have Full Constitutional Jurisdiction, it is useless to preach to them about co-operation and sharing.

    We now have a Charter of Rights and Freedoms which defines the Kind of country in which We Wish To Live, and Guarantees the basic Rights and Freedoms which each of us shall enjoy as a citizen of Canada.

    It must however be recognized that no Constitution, no Charter of Rights and Freedoms, no sharing of powers can be a substitute for the Willingness to share the risks and grandeur of the Canadian Adventure.
    – Without that collective act of the will, our Constitution would be a dead letter, and our country would wither away.

    It is true that our Will to live together has sometimes appeared to be in deep hibernation; but it is There nevertheless – Alive and Tenacious, in the Hearts of Canadians of Every province and territory.
    I wish simply that the bringing home of our Constitution marks the end of a long winter, the breaking up of the ice-jams and the beginning of a new spring. – For what we are celebrating today is not so much the completion of our task, but the Renewal of our Hope  —  not so much an ending, but a fresh beginning.

    ” Excerpt from Pierre Elliot Trudeau in the presence of Queen Elizabeth II, ALL Canadians…and the Entire World – at the True Birth of Our Nation “.

  4. Killashandra Ree says:

    I could not understand how Harper, during the English debate, could look directly in the camera – at you and I- and straight out lie! I could see all the other candidates getting frustrated because they really wanted to call him out on it, but could not. It would be far too easy for his spin doctors to make it look worse on them. Power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. If he gets a majority, he will destroy Canadian Democracy as we know and love it.
    So get out and Vote. Get everyone you know to vote! Educate yourself – don’t listen to the sound bites and two second tweets – go to debates, ask questions, read the stories for yourself, (don’t forget the international papers that have no ties to any party in Canada) then VOTE, vote for anyone other than Harper & the Reform Party, oops the name change to Conservative Party .

  5. John Thompson says:

    I hope that the voters will see the prison farm closings as a huge mistake as the plan drew widespread condemnation in the Kingston area among others. I tabled a motion of opposition to this at County Council last year and it received unanimous support. Let’s follow up on voting day.

  6. Doris Lane says:

    Thank you Ken for bringing up the prison farm issue. It is one that should get more attention as it is a bad thing to close these farms.

  7. Hazel says:

    Well said! The latest news is such a condemnation of Harper and the Cons; they do not represent Canadian values and are an embarrassment to Canada. Please everyone, look at the big picture and vote LIBERAL.

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