Sunday, August 16, 2009

you may not like this post

i vote on the left. i come from a very much small "c" conservative upbringing but i just look at the right and i'm appalled by the focus on protecting the rich, like they deserve protecting when they already have $$$'s cushioning them should they fall. there was a time that i voted on the right, but that was because i viewed myself to be conservative in nature and it seemed like a good fit. it isn't.

it is not sinful to vote for people who want to help and support the poor. trickle down economic theory doesnt work if the folks at the top don't let much trickle through the cracks toward those at the bottom.

if you're American and you read this, don't be offended but Christianity is not synonymous with the Republican Party. yes, perhaps the Democrats might lean toward abortion but is abortion even on the table as a political policy to be considered? no, it isn't. so if the right wants to continue in a war you don't agree with (or you shouldn't agree with) but the left would prefer to loosen up abortion laws then i choose the left because abortion isn't on the table but the war certainly is.

that's just what i think right now.

i vote for the New Democratic Party here in Canada. i just think they best represent the poor in this very fortunate land. i don't get why a poor person wouldn't vote on the left but ... i don't decide that for them anyway. the NDP had their convention this weekend and all the buzz was about how they wanted to drop the New from their name. big deal. talk about policy instead. whatever.
talk about homelessness, the cycle of poverty in this country, the unemployment rate, housing vacancy rates. let's talk about how the poor can't break into an economy even when it's going strong let alone when it's on a rebound.

the NDP has it's roots in the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation, a group that my father calls communist and has warned me to be careful associating with. he incorrectly called them the Co-operative Communist Federation. well ... i'm not a communist ... but i suppose you could easily refer to me as a social democrat. i do believe in social justice, i do see inequality and i'm not in favour with the rich getting richer for doing nothing other than being born with a silver spoon.



look globally for a second. there are BILLIONS of people in this world that would climb over broken glass to be eligible for programs in this country that our own citizens take for granted. how much debt does the 3rd world owe to the West? the numbers are so astronomical that i can't begin to tell you. will those funds ever be paid back? no, they won't. will the West ever forgive those funds? probably not either. they won't do that because it removes their leverage over the poor. i honestly think one of the most Christian things that the West could do would be to forgive foreign debt, so that the 2/3rds world can get to a place where they might be able to get their bearings and move toward self-sustaining life. i'm not saying that the NDP is suggesting that happen, although i do find that it is the political left who even has the jam to talk about that. what responsibility do i have to take in this? am i responsible for keeping the 3rd world under my thumb? well, if MY government is doing that, then yes i'm responsible.



do we have to talk about the environment and creation care? do we really? if the typical North American uses up 35 times what they typical 2/3rds worlder uses then how can we argue that the world will be fine? we're using it up. i'm using it up. i certainly realize that the fact that i bike to work and i recycle aren't really huge steps toward a solution. i don't have a lot of answers here but i see the need and i am noticing who is effectively speaking on environmental issues; more often than not, it's the left.
as far as i know my present government hasn't signed the Kyoto Accord. why is that? why do our governments prop up companies that have refused to address environmental need for the minimum of 4 decades that i've been hearing the world cry out against it? why did it take so long to get common access to vehicles that don't use up our resources and pollute our world? i don't know. i don't have many answers and like i said, you may not like this post.

i believe in social justice. i believe in equality. i oppose war and i'll speak up when i see people holding the sword of Damacles over anyone. if you ask me, you really should like this post, but you didn't ask me and maybe you don't.

11 comments:

Stainers said...

Ian,

When I used to vote I use to vote for the Conservatives because I thought that was what I was supposed to do as an Albertan with a Christian faith.

now I don't vote at all.

If a gun was pointed at my head and I was told to vote I would be voting very likely for the NDP for the exact same reasons you laid out.

You're just opened up a MASSIVE group of thoughts in this little message of yours and I really want to discuss some of them but I'm a little overwhelmed at where to begin.

Good stuff though!

shallowfrozenwater said...

i've been worried about this post all day actually. i don't want to offend anyone and one sure fire way to do that is to get up on a soapbox and start blasting about politics. i'm just tired of seeing the situation for the poor get worse and worse despite all sorts of promises by all sorts of power players.
i appreciate the comment Joel and if someone else is reading this then please realize that i don't want to be preachy, i just want to point to injustice.

Mosaic Street said...

Don't worry....sometimes you have to stand on the soapbox and be a voice for those who's voice is normally ignored. Not many are willing to be that voice..so thank you for speaking out!

shallowfrozenwater said...

thank you Denie.
i had thought by your blog that you were in Boise, but my Live Traffic Feed says somewhere in Washington so which is it?

Stainers said...

Your Live Traffic deal isn't 100% on it's aiming, it has me placed about 4 hours away from where I really am as well.

Al said...

I'd say I agree with approximately 100% of what you said--including your comment about not wanting to offend anyone. And then I realize that the people I might offend are probably needing to at least consider the things they disagree with. I think that kind of makes us prophets, whether we admit it or not.
Keep preachin'!

shallowfrozenwater said...

thanks for dropping by Al. i was wandering around your blog earlier today and i knew there was stuff we'd agree on. i'm ok even if we were to disagree and i'd still be able to send a little prayer your way to help you in your ministry. come back as much as you'd like to, i know i'll be checking out your blog too.
wait, you were the blog with the phenomenal traffic feeder right? that was really cool.

Al said...

If you are interested in my 'revolver map', I think you can just click on it and install it on your own blog. I think that's how I did it.

Stainers said...

Ian,

Just did a little digging and on the issue of debt relief I think we need to give Canada some credit at least for what they have already done in that area. Haiti was the latest country to have it's debts removed once they hit certain benchmarks.

They are the 13th country Canada has done this for under the Canadian Debt Initiative.

shallowfrozenwater said...

i saw a notice about Haiti not so long ago and thought that maybe i misunderstood or had an outdated opinion. it seems that SOME debt relief is going on by SOME in the West. Haiti is close to or perhaps is the poorest nation in the Western Hemisphere, i wonder what's being done in Africa?

Stainers said...

I do know that Canada has forgiven debt of African countries in the past as well. I remember a few yearrs ago that Ethiopia was one of those countries, and Ghana as well. Not sure what other countries are included on that list.

Sadly Canada is only one country among dozens that need to do something in order to give real relief.