“Litigating someone’s past will not solve our most urgent, complex collective challenges.”
–Todd Corrigall
British Columbians just passed the first week mark of Election 2024 and I was laid up by COVID, trapped in a spin, rinse, repeat news cycle.
Voters have learned more about the ideological differences and the online statements of the candidates, than about other parties’ respective visions for the Province.
Sure, winning the media messaging battle is part of politics. But, does everything have to be a political cage fight trying to shred the other person’s integrity? And why are we still not recognizing the basic fact that Indigenous rights are human rights?
Why does it matter who scorns who the best?
Why is it when a young person takes the unfortunate ultimate step to end their life because they were bullied, political parties can mobilize legislation that addresses youth mental health challenges, yet they still turn around and bully one another in the legislature?
And why does the media and social media promote the most visceral exchanges as ‘political wins?’
Maybe for the same reason First Nations who engage in resource projects find themselves pitted against nations who choose not to be involved.
Because conquering requires dividing.
Since when did conquering become our primary end goal?
Candidates should keep their eyes on the issues
Somehow we’ve fallen away from discussing tough issues in an adult manner. And the political arena has become a high stakes, relentless, ever-devolving quest to expose the most damaging imperfections in each other, rather than taking the opportunity to learn from one another.
Nobody’s perfect – and it’s a fallacy to think or expect them to be.
And anyway, character assassination is beside the point.
Housing, healthcare, crime and social disorder and the economy are the only issues we should hearing about from candidates in this election campaign. Full stop.
Nobody’s perfect – and it’s a fallacy to think or expect them to be.
Here comes the old man raise-my-fist-in-the-air segment:
When I was younger, growing up in Toronto and Vancouver and couldn’t afford to buy a home, I moved further out of the core to get into the market. The government assisted by incentivizing construction builds in bedroom communities, away from the 400-square-foot shoeboxes in the downtown.
If land is the challenge, why not construct a housing plan for the province that focuses on rural areas with nothing but land that would welcome an expansion of the tax base in their jurisdiction?
[Editor’s note: BC Conservatives have just the policy for you: build brand new communities.]
If jobs are the issue, let’s move major projects forward by aligning First Nation priorities, industry requirements, sustainability of land, water and resources, then integrate all them all into a decision-making process for shared economic benefits.
Cedar LNG is proof positive this can happen.
Repealing Indigenous rights laws do nothing to move us forward, and everything to further divide.
Ultimately, my beliefs don’t 100 per cent align with any one leader, so I take positives from every party’s platform. One thing I am certain about – obsessing over our political opponents’ mistakes or litigating someone’s past will not solve our most urgent, complex collective challenges.
So let’s focus on the values we share, and how we can build the greatest future for ourselves, our children and their children.
After all, we’re supposed to leave it better than we found it.