Provincial Elections PEI

Tags

23 april, Charlottetown, elections, Green, Green party, PBB, Politics

Well it seems that we are in election season in Canada. Today Alberta elected an Alt-Right Government, but then that is Alberta for you, a wealthy province with a population known for its racism and bigotry and proud of it. The exception being the 2 large Cities of Calgary and Edmonton who tend to be more progressive compared to the rural areas. The new Premier is Jason Kenney, a closet case, former Federal Minister in the Harper Regime. He is a bigot, a racist, etc and when the media brings it up he simply scoffs saying he was misquoted. We all heard that before. Kenney  wants to declare war on Canada, imagine the Premier of a Province with a 3 million population. Sad little man.

Newfoundland and Labrador is going to the Polls on May 12 and in PEI we are in the final days of our election which promises, if the projections hold, to give us the first Green Party Government.  Very exciting for us in PEI it would finally break the old feudal system of a handful of families ruling the Province as personal property. The current Premier Wade MacLaughlan, Liberal, is very unpopular. A man who came in 4 years ago with lots of high promises and hopes that things would change and nothing did. The Conservatives are no where with 6 leaders in 9 years and a fear mongering agenda. The NDP have two or three candidates and no one believes they will be able to have even one person elected. This leaves the Green with Leader Peter Bevan-Baker who has done a superb campaign, people see him as a gentleman, polite and courteous. Addressing every issue and presenting a no nonsense approach to social questions. I have spoken with him several times in the last 3 years and I am impressed by him. I remember the first time I saw him in a coffee shop near the Legislature, he was busy talking to his staff and it looked like a meeting of sorts over coffee. I nonetheless went up to him, apologize for disturbing their conversation, we shook hands and he asked me a few questions and we had a short conversation but it was very natural and interesting. He also during my own campaign for Municipal Office, listen to what I had to say and engaged me in conversation.  On the other hand I had a chance also to speak several times with the Premier but his manner is totally different, more aloof, distant and not interested. A very different experience.

Peter Bevan-Baker, Leader of the Green Party PEI.

PEI needs a change politically, the current system has produced nothing but stagnation for the last 100 years and the same people and families are always in power or in plum jobs. Corruption is rampant, the mafia could take lessons from the old style politicians here.

The hope is that with a Green party in power things can change. That is what we are all hoping for.

Also with this election, a referendum is being held to change the way we vote. Currently we have the old British system of First past the Post (FPTP) and the choice is to change it to MMP or Mix member proportional which makes every vote count and gives a more efficient level of representation. The old parties, the Liberals and the Conservatives are against any change to the voting system. If we adopt MMP system then we will be the first in North America to do so. If the Green’s are elected, the are currently leading we would also be the first in Canada to elect a Green Party Government. So this small island province of 150,000 people could make history.

Already with advance voting, some 30% of the electorate have voted, including me. The actual election day is Tuesday 23 April.

 

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Our trip to Portugal

Tags

art., life, Politics, Portugal, Travel, vacation

Well this trip had been planned half way through my campaign for municipal Office and we had decided that whatever the outcome, we would be off on a vacation away from PEI afterwards and somewhere in Europe.

So we departed on 19 November on Rouge, a division of Air Canada. We flew business class of premium I think it is called and despite all the negative press, I found it to be quite nice a flight, regular airliner and all the usual trimmings, can’t see what all the naysaying is about.

We found an Air B&B in Mouraria, one of the oldest neighbourhoods of Lisbon just below the thousand year old castle fortress of San Jorge formerly a Moorish Palace and citadel.

Lisbon airport is very close to the city centre, we were only 15 minutes away from our apartment. The joke is that Lisbon comes as a free gym, there about 12 hills and the city is small but everything is up or down hill some of them at a 40 degree angle.

this photo was taken from the Castle looking down on Mouraria where we lived, our building is in the middle of the photo.

From inside the Castle, the flag of the City of Lisbon and the flag of Portugal.

looking up to the castle walls.

Again from the Castle parapet looking towards the parish of San Vincente O Fora with the beautiful maritime pines providing the greenery. This church is the Royal Mausoleum to the Kings of Portugal. The monarchy was abolished in 1910 in a coup and the royal family of Braganza, retired quietly.

Some dates about Portuguese history you will here a lot about if you visit. In Lisbon 1147 Martin Moniz and a group of knights from England, Spain, France and elsewhere capture the Citadel and Castle from the Moors and expel them. Today a metro station is named after Martin Moniz who apparently according to the story wedged himself in a door of the castle allowing his companions to enter, he died in the process. The age of the Portuguese Empire starts with Prince Henry the Navigator and in 1497 Vasco de Gama,Count of Vidigueira travels to India and then to various points in Africa establishing colonies along the way. The Portuguese Empire spanned the globe and led to a Papal bull dividing the world between the Spanish and Portuguese Empires.

In 1644 the sovereignty of Portugal was restored and the Spanish Hapsburgs were forced to give up their control of the country. The Braganza dynasty becomes the Royal house in Portugal until 1910. Another metro station is named after the Restauradores (restorer). Another important date is 1834 when all monasteries are closed and confiscated and religious orders are dissolved. This happened because of a movement to liberalize society and give it a parliamentary and constitutional monarchy, the church chose to be on the side of the ultra conservative and fought the movement. In 1908 the king and the crown Prince were assassinated while crossing the Plaza de Comercio upon their return to Lisbon. This assassination shocked Europe, led to political paralysis in Portugal and two years later finally a republic was proclaimed. What is not much mentioned nowadays is the almost 50 years of dictatorship from 1932 to 1968 by the Estado Novo party and its leader Antonio de Oliveira Salazar, he died in 1970 but his government kept going, finally on 25 April 1974 the army ousted the party from power in what is called the Carnation Revolution and Portugal returned to democracy.

Plaza de Comercio, rebuilt in 1755 after the great earthquake destroyed much of Lisbon. What we see today is the work of the Marquis of Pombal. In this square facing the river Tegus, the King and his son the heir to the throne were assassinated in 1908.

We walked all over Lisbon, there is so much to see and do, it can be exhausting. Also many wonderful restaurants, good wines and lots of Port.

In the fashionable Chiado neighbourhood with the new Christmas lights. Love the sidewalks in stone mosaic pattern all over the city.

 

None but the Brave

Tags

Charlottetown, municipal, PEI, Politics, Ward 1

Today is Friday 26 October and advance voting has started in PEI on the municipal elections. By having a lot of days of advance voting PEI Elections hopes that more people will participate and vote. I have encouraged people in my speeches to vote, young or old, you must vote it is your Civic duty as a Citizen. I did so this week to a class of 16 year old at a school near us. They can vote in 2 years and luckily their teacher had prepared them well.

I voted today for a new Mayor and for myself as Councillor in Ward 1. It took all of on minute to do. I also finished thanking the people of the Ward for receiving me and listening to me and giving me their views.

All along I ran a dignified campaign according to several people who took an interest in what I was doing. I continually emphasized that it was about the people and not me the candidate, my wish is public service and what I can do for you.

I was the first to use YouTube to produce videos on issues, I ran an 8 month long campaign, most probably the longest in the history of this Island Province, however I wanted to attract the attention of the public who often was not interested. Would I do it again, yes but differently. I learned a lot about society in PEI and complex alliances amongst individuals. I also learned about the economics of the province and its social problems. I have now a far better understanding of the Capital and the Province. My past government work experience helped a lot.

In the oratorio Alexander’s Feast by Haendel, the aria None but the brave deserves the Fair = Success comes to those who dare and act.  The proverbs which illustrate that success comes only to the people who are ready to work hard. This proverb means that one can attain success only when a person is bold enough to act and ready to give up every other enjoyment in life and sweat for his success. The goddess of success visits only those who dare to act and lay everything at her Altar. I hope the goddess will smile on me and Fate will reward my efforts on November 5. But who knows, I take nothing for granted and hope that it comes to pass. If not well life goes on and I have other plans. One being travel, we will certainly travel in late November somewhere and again this Winter. I also have my volunteer job at the Art Gallery and at Government House plus other volunteer work at the Fédération Culturelle as Secretary where I have been reconfirmed for another 2 year mandate.

 

 

16 October Poll

Tags

#PEIPOLI, Charlottetown, elections, municipal, PEI, Politics, urban

Here is a Poll from The Guardian in PEI on the possible results of the Municipal Election in Ward 1 Charlottetown. Voting Day is November 5.

 

Have your say in our online poll

Today’s question: Who will win in Ward 1

Laurent Beaulieu  46.15%  

 

Paul Haddad  25%  

 

Alanna Jankov  15.38%  

 

Leo Killorn  9.62%  

 

Ron Dowling  3.85%  

 

This is day 215

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City, life, Politics

 

My other blog

Tags

Charlottetown, municipal, PEI, Politics

I have another blog which is completely different from Larry Muffin. I created this blog for my campaign for municipal office. The topics are specific to issues in our City Charlottetown.  Here is the link if you are interested.

https://ward1councillor2018.wordpress.com

 

Canada G7

Tags

Canada., Chabrier, G7, Music, Politics, threath, USA, World

Now that Canada has been declared a National Security Threat to the USA by none other than Prez Trump, let us look at others who have been declared such in the past by other Presidents and see if Canada fits in with this description.

Measures taken to ensure U.S. national security include:

• Using diplomacy to rally allies and isolate threats.
• Marshaling economic power to elicit cooperation.
• Maintaining effective armed forces.
• Implementing civil defense and emergency preparedness policies (including anti-terrorism legislation)
• Ensuring the resilience and redundancy of critical infrastructure.
• Using intelligence services to detect and defeat or avoid threats and espionage, and to protect classified information.
• Tasking counterintelligence services or secret police to protect the nation from internal threats.

I am sure being a retired diplomat that President Trump has already directed the US Government to take such action against Canada, it goes well beyond tariffs on steel and aluminium.

As the former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Adm. Michael G. Mullen, was fond of saying, US national debt has become perhaps our top national security threat. The United States has been running trillion-dollar deficits, resulting in a huge explosion in the country’s indebtedness. Publicly held debt now equals 70% of gross domestic product, a threshold many economists consider significant and highly worrisome. Making matters worse, half of our current deficit financing is being provided by foreigners.

Others threats to the security of the USA are:  unstable Middle-East with no peace in sight, Climate change, Cyber terrorism, President Putin, the energy future, South Asia (Afghanistan and Pakistan), the next space challenge, unstable Africa in the face of epidemics like Ebola. With President Trump’s unpredictable behaviour he may by himself create instability for the USA and create new unnecessary crisis.

This weekend in Charlevoix, Quebec the G7 is meeting and the attitude and tweeting of President Trump and his early departure from the conference simply isolates the USA in the world and angers is most trusted and long term allies. Prime Minister Trudeau is correct is stating that the declaration of Trump is illogical and insulting for Canadians. But the President does not seem to care and believes he can bully Canada and other nations. We will have to bow to his demands, however now Canadians are more united than ever in the face of this aggression by the American administration.

So I chose to listen to music instead by Emmanuel Chabrier 1841-1894. When confronted by fools take the high road, this is what I am doing.

Public Policy and Populist Politics

Tags

Canada., Government, marijuana, Parliament, Politics, reality, social, Trudeau

Politics today is no different than 2700 years ago at the time of the founding of Rome or when Athens was a great City State. Pericles convinced the Citizens of the City of Athens, then a mere village if compared to the megapolis of today, that they should gladly pay high taxes to build the most glorious shrine on the Acropolis to Athena and Diana. Pericles told the Athenians that as Citizens it was their Sacred duty to voluntarily give or pay for this urban project. The first duty of a Citizen is to pay taxes for Polis and thus ensuring the common good. Pericles was a brillant orator and he got his way ensuring his fame for all times by appealing to people’s vanity in a very populist speech.

Rome was no different, Marius the creator of the Roman Legion convinced the Citizens of Rome that all boys and men should serve in the army to defend and protect Rome, they were participating in protecting the homeland. At the age of 12 boys where sent by their parents to learn martial arts daily on the Field of Mars just outside the Pomerium (city limits). This is how you modelled the mind of a good citizen peppering the physical exercise with lessons about the Gods who protect and ensure the greater prosperity and dominance of Rome over the other villages around. Later Julius Caesar would ensure the loyalty of the Legions for his political program by giving all retiring legionnaires a plot of land, tools, slaves and a house. Quite the retirement bonus for soldiers who had protected Rome, he got their undying loyalty which explains the civil war after his assassination by wealthy Senators. The hero of the army and people was brought down by the 1%.

His nephew Octavian Augustus, the first and probably the greatest Emperor of Rome followed the same idea of public policy and populist politics. He had a political program based on glorifying his family by claiming descent from the Gods and a family link to Aeneas the hero of Troy whose mother was Venus (Aphrodite). Augustus wrote the Res Gestae (achievements) which can still be read today on the wall of the monument to Augustus the Ara Pacis, to me the most beautiful monument in the world. One of his achievements to have come to us is Family Law. Augustus in his speeches would always take the common sense approach which resonated with lots of people.

The political idea was to give something the public wants but give it in small doses and keep them wanting more. Promote the idea that you as political leader are progressive and a protector of the interest of the people. Absolute monarchy like France and Russia worked on that idea, the Sovereign was the protector, guardian, defender of the people, he provided good guidance to ensure the well being of his subjects. People were convinced that if anything should happen to the King, their lives would be miserable and uncertain, so that even in harsh times of famine or war, you could not blame the Sovereign, outside forces created your misery.

Recently I read a very good blog entry by sporeflections.wordpress.com who gave a clear and concise medical point of view on what many physicians think of legalizing Marijuana.

Reading it made me think that in Canada our politicians love to pander to the whims of the people if there is a possible vote and money in it. In the case of legalizing marijuana there is also the added political bonus of huge tax revenues without creating a new unpopular tax. Yes there will be a sales tax on the sale of marijuana but given that the public wants the weed, they will gladly pay to ensure gratification. Same way cigarette smokers keep on smoking despite the very high price on a pack of cigarette. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau likes to portray himself has a hip guy, as he says to his critics, he is doing this because we are in 2016 after all, thus portraying the opposition as retrograde and boring. The danger with this approach is the public’s perception that what they want is good and this belief is confirmed in the Chief Magistrate’s approach to Law making. We have the same dilemma with bill C-14 The assisted dying bill, where doctors would be able to help end the suffering of a patient who is facing unbearable suffering at the end of life.

Many people are in favour of this bill, who wants to see a love one suffer when there is no possibility of improvement or saving a life. However the way the bill is written right now offers all manner of restrictions and is not what the Supreme Court allowed in its judgement 6 months ago. Trudeau is pandering to public sentiment, he knows that public opinion might be in favour of medically assisting someone in a terminal phase of life but the public has voiced strong opinions that this help should not be granted to someone under 18 yrs of age or someone who is mentally handicapped. The Supreme Court did not impose any such restrictions in its ruling. The bill is now in committee in the Senate and amendments are coming which the House will have to consider and it appears that PM Trudeau will accept them or so he says. He could then simply state that he is following the advice of the Senate, the amendments may very well go further than what the public is willing to accept. The paradox is that at the moment because there is no Law on assisted dying, it is permissible for a doctor to help out a dying patient without any legal consequences if the request is made, the old Law was struck down as un-Constitutional by the Supreme Court.

The danger of course is that the public is fickle and will go for anything perceived at making life easier not necessarily good. The politicians know that a drunk driver or a driver under the influence of drugs is dangerous, but the responsibility is passed on to another level of government in this case municipal to deal with it. The plus side for the Federal Government is tax money and lots of it.  No one can foresee the social problems this will engender and by the time reality strikes, current politicians will be gone from Office.  Not exactly a responsible way to govern but then again politics is the Art of the possible and perception is everything.

 

 

 

A saying

Tags

hare, Politics

Pensée du Jour;

“The first requirement of politics is not intellect or stamina but patience. Politics is a very long run game and the tortoise will usually beat the hare.”