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Dec 14

A Voters & Democracy Mismatch

by Chris Billows in Political Ponderings 0 comments tags: Change of Mind, Political Opinion, Poltical Party Corruption
The problem we just had in Ottawa is more than just lying and ambitious politicians. It also has to do with our democratic system. Polls (if you believe them, I personally am skeptical) say that Canadians want to elect their governments. They do not agree with the Liberal-NDP-BQ coalition taking power from the Conservatives despite having more seats and more votes. Huh? That hardly makes sense. More Canadians voted for non-Conservative parties than the Conservatives. You would think that they would be happy with the coalition. Yet, I read that Canadians believe they should elect their governments and not have them formed by politicians. The problem is that Canadians are fully ignorant about their democratic institutions. They have never voted for governments. They vote for individuals who belong to a political party who may be able to form the government. Its kind of like how Americans vote for their president – they actually vote for Electors who in turn vote for the President. There is an added layer of democratic administration in both situations. When we vote for any MP, MLA, or City Counsellor, they are just a piece in the puzzle. They are not the government. That question is […]

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Dec 03

A Pack of Lying Dogs

by Chris Billows in Political Ponderings 0 comments tags: Political Opinion, Poltical Party Corruption
Well, I have been fascinated by the scandal in Ottawa with the Conservative Government being on the cusp of being overthrown by the Liberal-NDP-BQ coalition. It has been riveting to see Harper stick it to them and then see their reaction. Its like watching people poke each others eyes out. Sickening and riveting at the same time. What sticks in my eye is the complete lack of integrity our politicians are demonstrating. Nobody has escaped this scandal unscathed with the ironic exception of the BQ. They at least are consistent in their goals – get as much for Quebec as they can. The media has unearthed how the Conservatives, Liberals, and NDP have absolutely no credibility to protect Canada’s interests. The Liberals and NDP have no problem joining with the BQ now, while the former Conservative Party operating as the Canadian Alliance courted the BQ back when it was the opposition. Each accuses the other of betraying Canada. The hypocrisy demonstrates why politicians are so lowly regarded. Its as messy as a dog’s breakfast. The hyperbole and vitriolic positions taken by each party also shows how the institution of political parties fails to serve the nation’s citizens. They are ideological, […]

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Nov 05

2008 American Presidential Election

by Chris Billows in Political Ponderings 0 comments tags: Human History, Poltical Party Corruption
Well, history has been made. The first black man has been elected as President of the U.S.A. Very interesting to see how Barack Obama handles the pressure considering there is going to be huge expectations of him to fix everything. There is no doubt the man is an excellent orator and has charm, but that does not make for intelligent decision making ability. Its amazing how a single election of a single person changes everything. The world media and many people believe that with Barack’s election a new era has been ushered in. I remain skeptical just because I don’t see politicians being as useful as they used to be. I hope Barack proves me wrong. I came across this link while I was doing some searching on previous presidential and house elections. Dave Leip’s Atlast of U.S. Presidential Elections Enjoy!

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Oct 15

The Winner of the October 14 Federal Election is…

by Chris Billows in Political Ponderings 0 comments tags: Change of Mind, Human Condition, Political Opinion
The Winner of the October 14 Federal Election is… Nobody. The Conservatives received another well-deserved minority government. They definitely did not deserve a majority government. What is more interesting is the losers. The poor Green Party received nearly a million votes, yet did not receive a single seat. Ouch! What is interesting is that they appear to have benefited from the decline of the Liberals. Another loser is the Media. What a bunch of tripe they tried to push on us with their election coverage. What I saw on CBC demonstrated the levels of desperation and hyperbole they were prepared to stoop to in order to create an event out of a non-event. Soon after the polls opened in Alberta, one of the CBC analysts breathlessly reported that a Liberal candidate had pulled ahead. She failed to mention that it was only one poll. I found it more interesting to follow the results via the Internet. The final loser is Democracy with only 59.1% of eligible voters turning out. The lowest rate ever. Why is this? I have some speculative reasons: Canadians no longer care about voting because they hate politics and politicians. Canadians are so comfortable and richly entertained […]

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Sep 28

Beyond Left & Right Politics

by Chris Billows in Political Ponderings 0 comments tags: Change of Mind, Political Opinion
When I was part of the Green Party, we kept telling ourselves that we were beyond Left & Right politics. In fact we said, we are neither Left or Right but out in front. We told everyone that we were thinking forward. In its own way, it made sense. The Greens have helped expand the political debate which has illustrated the inadequacy of the Right vs Left dichotomy. I believe that the entire Right vs Left political spectrum is so archaic it should be completely thrown away. Its history stretches all the way back to the 18th Century which may indicate why it no longer is relevant to modern times. The Right vs Left spectrum was born during the French Revolutionary era, where the Right and Left political positions refers to the seating arrangements in the various legislative bodies of France. At that time, the aristocracy sat on the right of the Speaker while the commoners sat on the left. “The Right” was made up aristocratic or royal interests, including the church, while “the Left” was represented mainly the interests of the bourgeoisie and early capitalists. At that time, support for free market capitalism were issues promoted by the Left […]

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Aug 08

Book Review: The End of History and the Last Man by Francis Fukuyama

by Chris Billows in Political Ponderings 0 comments tags: Comprehensive Analysis, Meta History, Political Opinion, Western Ascendance
A controversial book that created a storm of derision and disbelief when it came out following the collapse of communism in 1992. Fukuyama argues how the West’s liberal capitalist democratic model of governance has become the epitome of human civilization. The West represents the final step in mankind’s political evolution. Fukuyama says that there are no other political models to truly challenge liberalism. Authoritarian regimes of both the right and left political wings will rise but eventually fall. Globalization is just the latest incarnation of the Western model being embraced by most of the world community. It is too deeply rooted to ever see a major reversal. Liberalism, capitalism, and democracy have won and the ideological conflict of the past 20th century is over. Fukuyama named his book in part because he believes that Hegel’s view that human society would evolve into rationale governance has arrived and history has ended. Following 9-11 many considered this book to be irrelevant. Despite its title, Fukuyama did not predict an end to conflict between the West and other ideologies. Some countries or regions might fall under the sway of religious fundamentalism (Middle East) or cultural co-opting of capitalism (Asia), but these will not […]
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