Canadian Pluralism; Canadian Values and Politics

by Maj (ret'd) CORNELIU. CHISU, CD, PMSC, FEC, CET, P. Eng. Former Member of Parliament Pickering-Scarborough East The war in Ukraine and the events of October 7, 2023 in Israel illustrate the dangerous world in which we live. Obviously, these kinds of events do have some life changing effects on our country in testing our ability to continue to be a nation. As we have come to think about it, the post-October 7 events with increasing hostilities in Middle East and the continuous conflagration in Europe which seems to escalate instead of winding down, are testing a series of ideals and beliefs that have seemed immutable until now. It is testing Israel’s resiliency and its capacity to defend itself while acting with major restraint under immense pressure. It is testing America’s role in the world, NATO, and European Union unity in confronting new challenges and the new forces emerging in Asia. Here at home, it is testing the leadership of our civic and political institutions. It is testing the inherent tensions of Canadian pluralism, which is taking a dangerous turn. If not corrected, this turn will challenge our very way of life. Personally, I believe in this nation and the way it has evolved until now. However, I am starting to notice a shift to the back burner, of our national values acquired through years of hard work by our ancestors. Today there is a tendency to focalize on what is going in other nations and forget that our own nation needs attention. We need to take action in order to preserve our values, rather than disqualifying and totally rejecting them. We need to think forward to evolve in a positive direction in order to develop our country and our culture in a way that assures a better future for our children. Lately we have seen a lot of news about all kinds of political demonstrations. In particular, there seems to be an increase in the temperature of hate in our own country. A country that was once famous for understanding and tolerance. Notably, there has been a radical increase of antisemitism and hate towards other religious and ethnic groups. We are looking at a phenomenon that will ghettoize the country instead of unifying it. We need to stop this tendency at once, and the only way is to emphasize that we are all Canadians and we need to build our own country. For this, our diversity must evolve to unify our own country; the country where we live and where our children live. We need to put aside the luggage that may have accompanied us as immigrants; animosities built up over the centuries. We must concentrate on building our life here in Canada, together with our First Nations. We need to be all one nation, working towards one objective, and that is to make our country the best country in the world to live and raise a family. Of course, people should be free to express their political views and live out their values within the law. However, we must also be free to contest others’ views and values in a constructive dialog. We should be free to argue that they are bad or wrong. Moreover, we are free to contend that not all views and values are equally valid. That is a part of pluralism too. We as Canadians have been known to show compromise and cordiality which qualities are generally and essentially good. However, the post-October 7 and the conflict in Europe world calls for something different. We need a principled and considered pluralism that is prepared to stand up for basic Canadian values in the face of ongoing challenge. In view of these needs, the Canadian political landscape does not offer much satisfaction. The governing Liberals seem to be facing a strong challenge from the Conservatives, the loyal opposition. However, there are no significant differences in how the Conservatives will face the challenges of the world if they are elected to form the government. Besides wearing out the slogan “kill the tax” they have not put forward any new ideas about the way forward for the country. They seem to be hooked on the old ideas of the 2011 election with the old staff still in command. Aside from the usual parliamentary maneuvers that attempt to spark an election when the polls are favorable, the Conservatives have done nothing to electrify the electorate by advocating new ideas for building and strengthening the country. As confirmation of this, in recent months we have seen the Conservatives deviating from traditional conservative thinking, including their vote in favour of a ban on replacement workers. Their silence on the government’s massive EV subsidies and foreign aid, their support for Air Canada pilots in their labour dispute, and now their symbolic endorsement of an unaffordable and unjustified hike to the OAS program all go against the traditional conservative values of fiscal restraint and responsible spending. These actions all show theatrical manoeuvers calculated to force an election somehow. Unfortunately, the Conservatives are alone on the political spectrum and unless they get a majority in the next election, they will not be not able to govern because they do not have suitable political allies, as the Liberals do. Canada’s poor economic conditions call for a conventional political response. That means cut spending and taxes, and de-regulate the economy, but keep government control on the strategic industries while generally reducing the size and scope of government to kick-start economic growth. However, it needs to be specified that the social component of advancing our country cannot be neglected. There is an urgent need to reinforce belief in our history and traditions and to preserve and develop those values which are particularly Canadian. We will soon see whether there is a political party or leader who will be able to break this stalemate and guide us towards prosperity once again. What do you think?