So another BC Municipal Elections autumn has come and gone, and despite eye witness descriptions of long line-ups at the polls, on average barely 40 per cent of those eligible chose to participate.
Canadian disillusionment with non-proportionally representative democracy, managed by four political parties and their Leaders/CEO’s, an increasing non-choice between “Tweedledum” and “Tweedledee”, candidates and politicians who more often than not are seeking a job for life or a step up on the career ladder, are clearly making the electorate wonder why they should bother.
That, and the realization that U.S. President Obama’s “Yes, We Can!” is really “Uh, Actually, No, We Can’t” gives one pause. Our two local television/news channels didn’t even provide election night coverage, choosing instead not to interrupt their (mostly American) programming.
Before the new Republican-majority Congress takes power in January, the U.S. Senate voted against the Keystone XL Pipeline, meaning President Obama doesn’t actually have to make his views completely known by vetoing it.
Sharmini Peries, Executive Producer of The Real News Network, published an interview with two journalist activists about the pipelines, Cherri Foytlin and Steve Horn. This information IMO is important for everyone in Canada who is against the tar sands and the pipelines, thank you for allowing me to share it, and I hope you will think long and hard about it and pass it on:
http://www.therealnews.com/t2/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=31&Itemid=74&jumival=12674
Unfortunately, we have just begun to fight.
Helene Harrison
Shirley