Poverty in Canada

Just in time for the election campaign, the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops (CCCB) has published a new resource document titled,  A Church Seeking Justice: The Challenge of Pope Francis to the Church in Canada.

Here is an excerpt from paragraph 25.

Canada is a wealthy country, yet has an ever widening gap between rich and poor. 4.8 million Canadians live in poverty, including 1 million children. In 1989, all parliamentarians committed to ending child poverty in Canada. Today, 1 in 7 children lives this reality, with 4 in 10 Indigenous children living in poverty. Current levels of poverty cost us billions of dollars in terms of increased health and social services costs and severely damage the fabric of our society as a whole. Why does a wealthy country like Canada not dedicate more of its resources to reducing poverty? Provinces like Quebec and Newfoundland and Labrador have adopted poverty reduction plans; should we not have a national poverty reduction strategy?

 An important point here is that there is a cost to poverty. You pay to eliminate it or you pay not to!

A Church Seeking Justice: The Challenge of Pope Francis to the Church in Canada. The Episcopal Commission for Justice and Peace of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops. 2015. Para. 25.

Asbestos, Kyoto, the Alberta Tar Sands: the Judgement of History?

There are many good things that Stephen Harper and the Conservative Party have done since coming to power in 2006, and especially since attaining majority government in May of this year, unfettered by the lefty Liberals and the anti-capitalist, proletariat pumping NDP; I know it intuitively but I just cannot think of anything right now. There must have been something.

However, as the future decades roll by I have little doubt that the legacy for which Stephen Harper and this Conservative Government will be most remembered  will be these three things:  Asbestos,  Kyoto, the Alberta Tar Sands.  Further, I do not expect the judgement of history to be kind or to be swayed by the argument that these policies are in the best interests of the economy, especially when it is shown that, short or long term, they are NOT economical, neither for Canada nor globally,  when full-cost accounting is employed and the dollars and cents impact on health-care (especially cancer and cardio-pulmonary disease), drinking water, agricultural land and global warming mitigation is calculated, not to mention the incalculable cost of environmental and associated species loss.

One other thought. How much money does the Harper Government spend each year on promoting Canada's image, trying to counter all the (deserved) negative publicity?  Maybe we should run a competition something like this one sent to me by a friend in Australia (thanks MOM) which attempts to help the town of Asbestos in Quebec.

How to sell Asbestos, Canada | The Gruen Transfer

It's OK if it's not illegal? News of the World. Canadian Asbestos.

"I knew what we did pushed the limits ethically. But, at the time, I didn't understand that I had broken the law at all."

Glenn Mulcaire, Private Investigator, in his statement of  apology released to The Guardian newspaper in connection with the News of the World phone-hacking scandal in the U.K..

The Spirit and the Letter

The company I work for requires me and all its employees to sign, annually, a document called "The Spirit and the Letter." It makes clear that as employees of that company we undertake to comply not only with the letter of the laws and regulations in all the countries where GE operates, but that we will also keep "the Spirit" of those laws, by which is meant the intent of the law and its ethical components.  Mr. Mulcaire's apology makes it quite clear  that he and his employers knew that they were in violation of the 'Spirit'  of the law but that he thought this was okay so long as they did not break the letter of the law.

The Letter, but not the Spirit

I have just a little data to back up my next sentence but I really do think the statement is true based on impressions and recollections for which I do not have the time to go back digging into archives. This attitude of something being okay so long as no law is actually broken is becoming increasingly prevalent in the West and seems to me to be displayed increasingly by political leaders.

Here are just a few recent examples in Canada.

Example 1.

Interim auditor general John Wiersema reported that  the Conservatives passed off a $50 million G8 Legacy fund as part of an $83 million investment to reduce border congestion when they sought Parliament’s approval for funding. (The Star.)  Further, Wiersema said auditors were unable to locate any paper trail for the selection of G8 legacy projects — a “troubling” finding that he said was unprecedented in his 33 years in auditing.  In response, Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird, who had signed off on the G8 legacy projects in his earlier role in charge of infrastructure spending, said the Conservatives had not done anything illegal. He noted the auditors’ own conclusion that they weren't “aware of any specific law that was violated.”

Example 2.

In March, Parliamentary Speaker  Peter Milliken ruled that  Bev  Oda's responses to MPs when she was asked about a funding decision related to a third-party foreign aid group caused "confusion" and, as a result, he believed this constituted a breach or breaking of Parliament's rules. (Canoe.ca.) In a second ruling, Milliken  found that the government broke Parliament's rules when it failed to provide information requested by MPs on the costs of its crime legislation.  History was made when  the government as a whole and International Development Minister Bev Oda specifically were found in contempt of Parliament.

 In response Stephen Harper said, "We have debates in Parliament all the time. You win some you lose some. We thought we had provided enough information. We'll go back and see what additional information we can provide." He said the  rulings are all part of the democratic system.  "But our focus can't be on parliamentary procedure. Our focus has to be on the big interests of Canadians and in my judgment, that is the economy,"

"Parliamentary procedure" are the laws that govern how we make laws and which ensure that we remain a Parliamentary democracy!

Example 3.

It is illegal to use asbestos for building in Canada because, as a known carcinogen, it is considered a health hazard. In April of this year Stephen Harper campaigned in Asbestos, Quebec and stated proudly, "The only party that defends the chrysotile industry is our party; the Conservative party."

The justification?

"Canada is one of a number of exporters of chrysotile and there are many countries in which it is legal who are buyers. This government will not put Canadian industry in a position where it is discriminated against in a market where sale is permitted."

The letter, but not the spirit of the law.

Asbestos: I am embarrassed, ashamed and sorry - and so should all Canadians

On Thursday, 28 April of this year I posted a blog entry, Stand up for your reputation or face the judgement of history.

So no surprise, then, that on Friday, June 24, the Canadian Government once again embarrassed our country on the international stage. Canada alone prevented the United Nations from adding chrysotile asbestos to the global list of hazardous substances.

Here in Canada we won’t allow asbestos in our homes and offices. We are spending millions to remove it from our Parliament buildings. Here in Canada, we know asbestos is hazardous. Yet our government refuses to let the world officially recognize it as hazardous because they want to continue to export it to countries whose non-existent health regulations have not caught up with modern environmental health and safety realities - without even a warning label.

I am convinced that the judgement of history will weigh very heavily on this action of our Canadian Government last Friday. Some political decisions are just that - political ideology with little or no great moral component. For example, should toll roads be publically owned or privatized? Other political decisions have such a huge moral component that the political element, over time, continuously diminishes until all that is left is the moral component. Consider slavery, apartheid, the Holocaust as obvious, if extreme, examples. At this stage nobody has any idea how historians will view a government that knowingly chose short term balance of trade gains, and vote garnering in one riding in Quebec, over the health and safety of millions of unwitting people in the Third World. I am pursuaded that the judgement will be such that I want my grandchildren to know that I did not agree with it, was not a part of it, and stood up against it.

Whether or not you voted for Stephen Harper in the last election, for the sake of your conscience and your reputation with your children and your grandchildren, let your voice be heard. Here are two ways that you can do this. The Green Party of Canada is inviting all Canadians to join in saying “We’re sorry!”

Firstly, if you have a FaceBook account, you can post a message of apology on the Asbestos Facebook page by clicking "Like" and then entering your message. I have posted the following:
Dear World. I am so sorry that Canada has let you down. As someone who has cancer and who has a close family member who is a cancer survivor, I deeply regret and am ashamed of the cancer that is going to bring so much needless suffering to so many people as a result of the nationally selfish decision that was made by our government that does not have the courage of its convictions to allow asbestos in its own parliamentary halls of power. I wish these words and these apologies could undo the harm that is going to come. I am truly sorry for this immoral action.

Secondly, you can send your own email of apology to imsorry@greenparty.ca and the Green Party will forward your email to the General Secretary of the United Nations.

If you are not a Green Party supporter and so are not comfortable doing something associated with the Green Party that is understandable, but for goodness sake, do something to distance yourself from this shameful, immoral action of our government and that will let Stephen Harper know that he has crossed the line of moral acceptability.

Photos on this page can be found on a blog called Mesothelioma Information.

Claire and her Sand/Water Play Station

Today (Friday) Ingrid picked up Judith, who finished her first year chiropractic yesterday, and the two of them went to deliver an early birthday present for Claire - a sand/water play station. The pictures tell the story better than words.

Tomorrow Ingrid, Judith and I drive to Quebec. After spending a night with my old friend, Clem, we take Judith to the University of Sherbrooke where she will attend the French language summer school for five weeks.

Vacation in Quebec - Part 2

The Sainte-Anne Canyon

Canyon Ste-Anne, upper falls

On Sunday we went to the Sainte-Anne Canyon. We took it slowly and made the most of some of the spectacular and beautiful views, taking dozens of photos.

Canyon Ste-Anne, lookout points

Some of the 187 steps to the lowest bridge

The canyon has been grooved into rock that is 1.2 billion years old at a rate, if I recall correctly, of about a millimeter per year.

lowest bridge

The waterfall, at 74 meters top to bottom, is higher than the Niagara Falls. The volume of water varies immensely during the various seasons. I would love to see the Spring melt.

Foofie Slide

There is also a zip slide at the highest point for the adventurous. We used to call it a foofie slide :-) I understand they have them at a few places in South Africa now, as well as Vic Falls.

This is a video I took of the rapids behind Ingrid and me in the picture above. Unfortunately I took the video with my camera tilted 90 degrees so you have to tilt your head to the left to watch it :-(

Vacation in Quebec

Clem's place - start and finish

On Friday 10 Sept we drove down to Shefford, Quebec,  in the Eastern Townships between Montreal and Sherbrooke where my old friend Clem stays and slept over with him for the night. He is a gracious host and was only too happy to have us use his home and hospitality as a staging post at each end of our holiday - Friday 10th and Saturday 18th.

Evening view from Clem's front yard

On Saturday 11th we drove up to Saint-Ferréol-Les-Neiges which is NE of Quebec City along the St Lawrence River. More of that in forthcoming posts. Suffice to say we had problems getting through Quebec City because I missed a turnoff and then could not take the route that Samantha wanted me to take because of construction. (Samantha is the patient lady who gives me directions on my GPS.)

A week later, on Saturday 18th, we took the trip back to Clem in Shefford. This time Quebec City itself was no problem. The curved ball came from construction on the highway when a detour forced us onto the north-bound lanes and prevented us from taking our off ramp - and the next three off ramps. Samantha took us through back roads and little villages where the locals had never seen English speakers before. We had lunch in a little place called St Christine. Ingrid and I practised how we were going to ask for an egg sandwich. It all turned out better than we feared because they had a menu and we could point to what we wanted. It turns out that Clem's mother came from that place.

Clem's place. Definitely Québécois

Line dance - Weekly dance for seniors

Clem is on the board for a seniors' association and took us to the weekly dance that is locally organised. There may have been one or two people there who were younger than us. It was quite an experience. Ingrid and I were very impressed with the strength of the local community.

Le musée du chocolat - Terry, Clem, Ingrid

Breakfast at Le musée du chocolat

Sunday morning after mass we had breakfast in the chocolate museum across the road from the church.

I will tell you about the intervening week in future posts.