Apartheid was propped up by first-past-the-post elections

I voted a number of times in South Africa in the aprtheid era including, and especially, the last three or four elections before the fall of apartheid. Even allowing for the fact that only whites had the vote, I was painfully aware that in the last few elections less than 50% of (white) voters were maintaining the apartheid government in power. The reason for this was a gerrymandering of electoral districts that was enabled by a first-past-the-post system of voting. Voting districts with mainly opposition voters, largely in the cities, had electorate numbers close to the upper limit allowed. Those supporting the regime, mainly in rural areas, had fewer voters, close to the lower limits required. The first-past-the-post system ensured we had "stable," majority government elected year after year by a minority of voters. It was no accident, but a very deliberate decision that was made, to conduct the first democratic elections in South Africa using a system of proportional representation.

The big fear that many Canadians have expressed over proportional representation is the "instability" of minority government or, horror of horrors, a "coalition". Quite honestly, I have to ask which is worse, minority or coalition government on the one hand or a democratically unrepresentative, winner takes all, government that often as not results in two parties with not dissimilar vote counts having a vastly different number of seats in parliament as illustrated in Canada by the Bloc Québécois and the Green Party after the last election? Why should somebody whom 63% of voters have voted against be the one to represent them because the vote was split 37-33-17-13? Why should smaller parties be made to feel guilty for "splitting" the vote on the left or on the right? Is this a democracy or isn't it? I am all for the protection of minorities but why do the democratic rights of the 37% trump the democratic rights of the 63%?

In the riding where I live, the outcome of an election, year after year, is a foregone conclusion. Peter Van Loan will return to Parliament as surely as night follows day. Why should I even bother voting? I know my vote won't count for anything other than to put $2 into the Green Party coffers. On the radio this evening I heard a young immigrant Canadian quoted as saying, "Dad, don't vote. A choice between bad and worse is no choice at all."

I honestly and strongly believe that our winner-takes-all style of voting coupled with our reluctance to see the political parties representing "us" trying to find middle ground with "them" is what has us mired in the point-scoring, negative politicking we have witnessed for the last seven years. It is also hugely responsible for people who do not believe that their vote counts for anything staying away from the ballot boxes.

I found the following list of 82 countries currently using some variation of proportional representation.

Here are a few references:
Wikipedia - Proportional representation

Wikipedia - First-past-the-post voting


Or do your own search: proportional representation pros and cons

Stand up for your reputation or face the judgement of history

Try doing a search on "The only party that defends the chrysotile industry". It's amazing how many web sites in Canada and the U.S. and abroad are shocked and disgusted at the cavalier, double standards towards asbestos being shown by the past and likely next Prime Minister of Canada, Stephen Harper.

"The only party that defends the chrysotile industry is our party; the Conservative party," Harper said in Asbestos, Que. on Tuesday. Chrysotile is the term for white asbestos that supporters of the asbestos industry prefer.

"Canada is one of a number of exporters of chrysotile and there are many countries in which it is legal who are buyers," Harper said.

"This government will not put Canadian industry in a position where it is discriminated against in a market where sale is permitted."

One would think that Stephen Harper would take his statement to its logical conclusion and seek to legalise again the use and sale of asbestos in Canada; after all, wouldn't that help the economy and create jobs? But no, "We have no plans to do that." On the contrary, work will continue on the stripping of asbestos from parliamentary and government buildings and residences in Ottawa. Why? Because asbestos is a known carcinogen.

Any Conservatives who do not wish to be tarred with this brush of dishonest, double standards need to speak up now - and loudly. Stand up for your reputation or face the judgement of history.

Easter Sunday in Peterborough

Everyone except Stephen, who is in South Africa for the wedding of his friend Sean McKenna, got together in Peterborough for dinner and a walk to the lake on Easter Sunday.

Mark cooked an amazing beef roast, assisted by Sean after we arrived. Claire, who is very used to my singing to her while I walk around with her, was decidedly ambivalent about my doing the same with Jonty.

Claire was also very intrigued with the real, live ducks swimming in the lake since she thought she already knew everything about ducks from her story books.

The Uncles

Looking very spiff in my tux (bow-tie hidden)

Mental Illness, Healthcare and the Economy - the $50 billion elephant in the room that nobody's talking about

The federal election campaign has been short on policy discussions, but there’s one issue that needs national attention immediately. It’s a problem that’s having a grave impact on our society and our economy; the problem that is affecting 1 in 5 Canadians — mental illness and addiction.


Mental illness touches all of us at some point in our life. No economic action plan is complete without a focus on the illness that is now the number one cause of workplace disability in Canada. It costs our Canadian economy over $50 billion annually.


Mental health claims have overtaken cardiovascular disease as the fastest growing category of disability costs in Canada. Every day, half a million Canadians are absent from work due to a mental illness or addiction. This is a tangible productivity problem, and it doesn’t include “presenteeism,” those showing up for work, but unable to contribute to their full potential.


If it isn’t compelling enough to talk about today’s problem, think of our future workforce. Our children are being affected seriously and frequently. Depression, anxiety and substance misuse in children and teens is a regular media topic.


We hear of lost potential from lives unlived, student suicide occurring at increasing rates in universities across the country. Our academic institutions, preparing the future of Canada, are struggling to grapple with a health problem that’s been a secret for too long.


It’s time for all party leaders to put this issue on the agenda and start improving the mental health of Canadians.

Carol Lambie, President and CEO, Mental Health Centre Penetanguishene
Glenna Raymond, President and CEO, Ontario Shores
George Weber, President and CEO, Royal Ottawa Mental Health Centre
Catherine Zahn, President and CEO, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health

The above letter was published in today's Toronto Star under the heading, Put mental illness on election agenda

The Holy Thursday Foot Washing - Is the point being lost because of legalism?

It is ironic that commemorating the setting for Jesus' new commandment of love has become an occasion of hurt and division in the Catholic Church.

My wife and daughter complained to me after the Holy Thursday service that there were no women selected for the foot washing. What could I say? All I could do was defend our local clergy and say that their hands are tied because the rubrics, the little red instructions in the missal, talk about selecting men. OK, they said. Then why are nearly all of the men selected old or middle aged white men? Why was there nobody there that youth or young adults could relate to? Other than our fiend Eric, why were there no people of colour? Good questions. I don't know why. Why?

For pastoral considerations the foot washing is optional at this service at the priest's discretion. I have always loved it but I think it is coming under siege - with justification. This is not the first time I have heard these objections. Ingrid's and Judith's remonstrations were pretty meek and mild compared to some of the charges that I have heard from some very impassioned and hurting women. There are many who see this as yet another point where women are made to feel like second class citizens in the Catholic church. I foresee that as the groundswell of antagonism towards the "men only" rule keeps growing, and grow it will, that this will become a point of division in the Church with many women, especially young women and their partners, opting not to go to mass on Holy Thursday, and many priests opting to leave the Mandatum, the foot washing, out of the Holy Thursday liturgy if it is going to cause such pain and division in their congregations.

Canadians' love-hate relationship with weather and taxes

Canada
Soon after coming to Canada I discovered that there are two things that we Canadians like to complain about: the weather and taxes. Canadians enjoy winter skiing and skating, if not by doing it ourselves then by proxy, watching others, particularly the National Hockey League season. At the same time we complain about the cold and the snow. In summer we love to get out'n'about and, of course, we love to complain about the heat and the mosquitoes and the black flies.

We seem to have the same love-hate relationship with taxes. We love healthcare, a reliable postal service, schools and school buses, national parks and a corruption-free system of courts, vehicle registration and driver licences. We just do not like paying taxes. We hate taxes.

South Africa
There are many things about South Africa that I loved and still love: the people, especially my friends; the climate and weather; the beauty of the land, whether the amazing sea coasts, the mountains, the highveld or even the Karoo. Taxes, however, were another story. In terms of "bang for your buck" I paid a much higher proportion of my income and derived a lot less benefit than I do here in Canada. Yet, strangely enough, I do not remember people in South Africa complaining nearly as much about their taxes as we do here in Canada.

Some Lists
This week I read an article by Heather Mallick, Tax is not a dirty word, where she points out that "taxes pay for good things that we don’t think about until they vanish." She then lists about 35 benefits that we enjoy that depend on our taxes and says, "Take a deep breath, class." Mallick then lists another 35 or 36 itmes and says, "And another breath."

After listing another 22 (does hunting and snaring licences count as 1 or 2?) tax benefitting services she observes, And that was just a taste, a smattering, of what Canadians do and have done for them, the stuff that makes you want to kiss the sweet Pearson tarmac when you get home from the bloody dust of Afghanistan and never leave this good-natured civilized paved place until whatever-awaits-us extends its bony hand and says “Follow me.”

Federal Election Guide for Catholics
The Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops (CCCB) published a paper entitled Federal Election 2011 Guide urging Catholics to vote with discernment. It lists some basic principles from Catholic moral and social teaching to help voters analyse and evaluate public policies and programs. The document focuses especially on respect for life and the dignity of the human person, social justice, the family, world peace and the environment. For any government to adopt and implement these principles in law, the funding for this would have to come largely through taxes.

Just What Kind of Canada Do We Want?
I don't "enjoy" paying taxes any more than I have enjoyed standing at a bus shelter when the temperature was nineteen degrees Centigrade below freezing before the wind chill, but I do want to live in a Canada that is just, peaceful and free, where all children and the elderly have access to sufficient food, shelter, clothing, and medical care, and children have access to education to the level of their ability - just for starters.

To achieve this I am more than willing not only to pay taxes, but to pay even more taxes. I do not feel the same way about my taxes going into a black hole of inappropriate stealth fighter jets, more and bigger prisons for unreported crime, and military bases in the Arctic.

According to Heather Mallick, in 1997, Stephen Harper gave a speech to the Council for National Policy, a right-wing U.S. think tank, summing up Canada as “a Northern European welfare state in the worst sense of the term and very proud of it.” He said of the unemployed, “Don’t feel particularly bad for many of these people. They don’t feel bad about it themselves, as long as they’re receiving generous social assistance and unemployment insurance.” If that is true, and I don't see any libel charges being levelled, then the vision of Canada that Stephen Harper has is very different to the vision of Canada to which I am inspired by the Catholic bishops 2011 Federal Election Guide.

Not So Trivial Pursuit for the Canadian elections

Q Were there any Environment Committee hearings prior to Parliament exempting all energy projects from environmental assessment under CEAA (Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency)?
Answer: Gutting the CEAA never went to environmental committee. It was stuffed into the 2010 budget bill and only finance committees looked at it.
Note: The following is taken from the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency website :
Our role is to provide Canadians with high-quality environmental assessments that contribute to informed decision making, in support of sustainable development. The Agency plays a leadership role in the review of major projects assessed as comprehensive studies and those referred to review panels. We also coordinate the Government of Canada's Aboriginal consultation activities during the environmental assessment process.


Q: What bill removed "the duty to act honestly" from the Ethics Code?
Answer: Harper's Accountability Act of 2006.
For more commentary, read here.


Q: Whose salaries did the Harper government just raise?
Answer: All CPC political staffers got raises. There are also expanded severance packages in case the Tories lose. This is hardly a deficit reduction initiative.
For more comment read Winnipeg Free Press of April 16, 2011.


Q: Prorogation of Parliament to avoid political difficulty has only occurred 3 times in the entire Commonwealth. Which countries?
Answer: Only in Canada. Three times. Once when Sir John A. Macdonald wanted to avoid a non-confidence vote over the Pacific Railway Scandal; this led to an election which he lost. Twice by Stephen Harper.
For more comment read Winnipeg Free Press of April 16, 2011.


Q: How has the Harper government undermined the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty?
Answer: by entering into nuclear deals with India, the Harper govt violated the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.
Part 2: India violated the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty by using waste fuel from the Canadian research reactor for a bomb. We should not have entered into new deals.
For more comment read The Ploughshares Monitor, Autumn 2008, volume 29, no. 3


Q: How many nations that signed and ratified Kyoto have repudiated its goals?
Answer. Canada is the only country to have repudiated Kyoto. This was Stephen Harper's unilateral decision with no parliamentary vote.
For more comment read The Canada Problem by Sierra Club BC


I found the above questions and answers by following @ElizabethMay on Twitter. I added the comment links.

Jonty - and how things went in Winnipeg

On 11th April Luisa sent us this email update on how things went on Jonty's first vacation trip to Winnipeg, together with these great pictures.

Hello everyone!  How are you?  We are great, reunited after Jonty and I spent 2 weeks in Winnipeg.  It was a great visit--never a dull moment, and Jonty met all his cousins.  They loved him--lots of hugs, kisses, squeezes, handshakes, joint baths, the works.  He partook in a few firsts too:  his laugh, going to the zoo, bowling, McDonald's, and his first Easter Egg hunt.  As expected, we came back with colds (a game with the younger cousins seemed to be:  here is your soother Jonathan, oh wait, let me test it first!), but we are both on the mend.

Then, next day, Luisa sent us this news:
Hello!  Jonty and I were at the doctor's today for his 4 month shots.  Good news, he now weighs 12lbs, 2oz - he has graduated from 3rd percentile age for weight to 10th percentile.  We are so proud of our little man :)

...to which I should add congratulations to the mommy who is able to super-size a healthy meal. Thanks for the update, Luisa. Great pictures.

CAMR - Canada's Access to Medicines Regime. Dead in the Water. Thank you, Stephen Harper and the Senate A-Team.

This happened a week ago, apparently, but I only found out a few hours ago reading this article from The Globe and Mail off my Blackberry while sitting on the john. See How can Conservative senators look at themselves in the mirror? by GERALD CAPLAN. In hindsight the john was a most fitting location - I was able to give vent of the most appropriate kind without saying a word. To say that I'm disappointed is an obscene understatement.

This is a cynical, shameful perversion of democracy to so use the Senate to thwart the clear will of the majority of the parliamentarians elected by Canadians to represent them. According to Caplan, Marjory LeBreton, Mr. Harper’s Senate Leader, dismissed the legislation as “a coalition bill,” some kind of conspiracy, apparently, of Liberals, socialists and separatists. Apparently if you can label something as "coalition" it loses legitimacy.

This is a slippery slope. Canadians should be afraid, very, very afraid when they hear any politician brazenly propounding this sort of justification. If this is how they behave as a minority government, what will they do if they win a majority? The A-Team is bigger and more ubiquitous than I realised.

Claire crawling and standing

Not to be outdone by Jonty, Geoff sent us these YouTube links of Claire.

Last Friday she started crawling for the first time:




Yesterday she pulled herself up by herself: