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Subject: Re: Our Federal Government needs serious prayer!

This [the forwarded] email is full of lies and half-truths. The thing about democracy is that it only works when people work together for the common good of the whole country. Stephen Harper and the Conservatives have demonstrated time and time again that they are only interested in their own wants and needs. They do not care to work with others. The rule on the playground is that the kid who does not play well with others will end up playing alone. That is the position Harper put himself into.

Harper, before the election, was trying to rule the country as if he had a majority. Because the Liberals were in a bit of a predicament, they played along with the Conservatives. It was a game of chicken: two people speeding toward each other, both praying the other person would swerve out of the way. Before the election the Liberals always did. Now Harper tried to play the same game but the Liberals had a plan.

A coalition of parties working together is exactly what a democracy looks like. Each of the parties in the coalition will have to put aside some of the ideas which make them different and look to where they have common ground. As such they will be working for the majority’s interests and not a small group.

Harper demonizes the NDP by calling them socialists and the Bloc by calling them Separatists. But in order for the three groups to work together they will have to put aside their more extreme ideas. Therefore, this coalition is not socialist and it is not separatist. Any group can sound evil if their politics are boiled down into one word. The word I would choose for the Conservatives is Fascist or authoritarian. Harper controls his party like a dictator. He does not have them speak to the press and he wants to choose which reporters have access to the Members of Parliament. This is a restriction on freedom of information.  Harper also keeps us in the dark as to what his plans are to solve the economic crisis.

I believe that minority governments are best because the parties must work together in order to get anything done. Harper and the Conservatives have refused to do this, otherwise this would not have occurred. As such, everything that is happening is his own doing. There is no reason for anyone to complain because this is something which the Conservatives have done to themselves.

At any rate, the government does deserve our prayers. But our prayers should never be ones to tell God what is best. To demand that the Conservatives stay in power is to try to force the hand of God. We deserve a government which serves the interests of a majority of people and, I feel, that that is a government which is willing to work together. And the Conservatives are not doing that.

I will quit my rambling.

Take care.

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[forwarded email below]

Subject: Our Federal Government needs serious prayer!

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A Political Crisis?

By Chuck Strahl MP

November 29, 2008

Last week I sent around an update on Canada’s economic situation, with the observation that it wasn’t a very enjoyable subject to write about. Unfortunately, this week it appears that our economic woes are morphing into a political crisis of sorts, at a time when we can least afford it. What’s happening in Ottawa is bordering on the absurd, but its impact would be felt most harshly by Canadians, not political parties. It is potentially a shame of historic proportions.

The Throne Speech I wrote about last week has now been passed. The Opposition Parties apparently had no trouble supporting the direction of the Conservative government, and in fact, they let it pass “on division”, which means they didn’t even want a stand up vote! When the Finance Minister tabled his economic update, though, things got ugly, mostly because the speech made reference to politicians and political parties receiving less from the government coffers. Suddenly, the Liberals and NDP want to form an alternative government, apparently by joining forces in a coalition, and supported by the separatist Bloc Quebecois.

This unholy alliance is trying to paint a different picture, of course. They say they simply want to spend more money to stimulate the economy, but when asked for details, it’s pretty thin gruel. Apparently they’re prepared to take the ‘ready, shoot, aim” approach to spending, and agree to some blank cheques without even knowing what will actually help specific industries, without knowing what Barak Obama has planned, and without working in concert with the other G-20 countries. It is a recipe for a fiscal disaster.

More importantly, it is a democratic disaster. During the campaign, Liberal leader Stephane Dion said he would not and could not have a coalition with the NDP, because their policies would destroy the economy. Apparently that principled position has now gone out the window. Now we have the prospect of the Liberals (with 77 seats) joining with the NDP (with 37 seats) to unseat the democratically elected Conservatives (with 143 seats) . Of course, the only way to do that would be with the support of the separatist Bloc Quebecois, who bring their votes to the table in exchange for their separatist agenda. It is almost beyond belief, but apparently the back room discussions amongst these parties are happening as I write this note.

As I said last week, our Conservative government has been preparing our economy for over a year to weather this world-wide economic storm as best we can. We have brought in almost $200 billion dollars in economic stimulus over a 5 year period, by lowering taxes across the board and in every category. We have freed up billions more by adopting Bank of Canada policies and mortgage protection that have increased the availability of credit and addressed liquidity issues, without costing the taxpayer too much and without risking our country’s core stability. The IMF, the World Economic Forum, the OECD and other international organizations are united in their opinions that Canada is in the best shape of any industrialized nation in the world. Now the left-leaning parties in Parliament are willing to risk it all in order to gain power through the back door, power that was denied to them in a general election.

In order to diffuse this crisis, our government has agreed to separate the political party financing issue from the confidence vote, and we’ll be bringing it back to Parliament in a stand-alone Bill for a vote next year. Whether a person believes the taxpayer should be forced to pay for political party finances will be debated and decided at another time. I’ll be supporting the Bill when it comes to a vote, and we’ll see what happens. For now, Canadians should be appalled that we could be thrown into a democratic and constitutional crisis by an attempt to gain power at any cost, to overthrow the democratically expressed will of the Canadian people, all at a critically important economic time for us all.

I’m uncertain where all of this is going, but it is entirely possible that the Conservatives could lose the confidence of Parliament and be forced into an election within days. You can’t run the government without revenue, and we simply must have the authority to pay the bills and stick to the agenda already approved in the Throne Speech. But it is also entirely possible that the Conservatives could be forced from government by the Liberal/NDP/Bloc coalition, if the Governor General agrees. Canada deserves better than either of these options, and we’ll be working hard to keep everyone focused on the economy, jobs, and a sound budgetary plan. We believe Canadians want us to get on with governing. But I just don’t know what will happen, and I share Canadian’s shock and anger that we’re teetering on this abyss at this critical time.

The vote to bring down the government will now take place on December 8th, so Canadians have a week or so to express themselves before that critical moment. I urge everyone to write a letter-to-the editor, call a radio talk show, circulate this article (or others) through their own email list, and contact political parties with their opinion. A strong grassroots reaction may be the only thing that stands between us and a Prime Minister Stephane Dion and Finance Minister Jack Layton.

Those who fought against the Nazis in WWII are called heros for doing what they thought was right.  But those who fought against the Allies did the same thing and we don’t call them heros.  And, while I agree they were wrong, there was no opportunity or channel for dialogue.   And without dialogue there cannot be change.

This leaves us with a conundrum.  The Nazis lost and the Allies won, but the hearts and minds of those who lived but lost were not won.  So the problem was attacked but never quashed.  This is why the Germans have never fully dealt with the issue of Nazism.

And the issue of WWII was never that of prejudice or racism.  The problem was that everyone who fought and killed did so because they believed that by killing others they would prove their ideals.  And, in the end, there was no dialogue and therefore nothing was proven or dealt with.

Without dialogue there cannot be change.  And war is always the end of dialogue.

• On both sides of the battle field are people; people who believe that what they are doing is the right and honourable thing to do.
• On both sides of the barrel are people; people who, whether they agree with the reasons for the fight, believe that what they are doing is worth the risk.
• Inside and outside the trench are people; people who believe, for some inexplicable reason, their own value is greater than that of those who oppose them.

At what point will we realize that death is not the end?  There have been countless wars and even more deaths fought for one reason or another.  I believe it is time that we realize the value in others.  It is only then that we can work together to create a lasting peace where everyone can benefit from each other.  But there is much to be done before that happens.

• It is time for us to forget that we have been wronged.
• It is time for us to forget the debts owed to us.
• It is time for us to look to the future and forget the past.
• It is time for us to put our grievances to rest.
• It is time for us to realize that shit has happened.
• And it is time for us to realize that we don’t have to walk through it again.

But so long as we continue to remember and honour those who have taken other peoples lives, and those who have taken the lives of our loved ones, we will never be at peace.  Peace is not about remembering, it is about forgetting.

• Being right does not carry with it the responsibility to demand all others to agree.
• Being right does not demand that all wrong be quashed.
• Being right is not a position of arrival.
  • Being right is a pursuit.
  • Being right is a goal.
• Being right demands opposition.
  • But being right does not mean killing.
    • Because killing means being wrong.

War demonstrates that two or more groups of people can feel very strongly about two or more opposing ideas.

War does not make people right.

And war does not eliminate those that are “proven” wrong.

Adam then Noah then Abraham then Jesus.

The deal with Noah was for all his descendants and there were 7 rules. This, understandably, was for everyone.

The deal with Abraham was for all his descendants and there were too many rules. This was only for the Hebrews (and, it must be said, more than likely the Israelites and then the Jews).

The deal with Jesus was something totally different. It was a fulfillment of a deal made with either Noah or Abraham. Likely it was with Abraham. This means it was the conclusion of a deal with the Jews.

More Gentiles are Christians than there are Jewish Christians. Would this mean that Judaic-Christianity is mostly wrong? Where are the Noahic-Christians? And what does Jesus mean to the Gentiles anyway?

The rules for the deal with Abraham are too many. Here are the rules for the rest of us.

• Prohibition of Idolatry: You shall not have any idols before God.
• Prohibition of Murder: You shall not murder.
• Prohibition of Theft: You shall not steal.
• Prohibition of Sexual Promiscuity: You shall not commit adultery.
• Prohibition of Blasphemy: You shall not blaspheme God’s name.
• Prohibition of Cruelty to Animals: Do not eat flesh taken from an animal while it is still alive.
• Requirement to have just Laws: You shall set up an effective judiciary to enforce the preceding six laws fairly.

We can impress ourselves and those who think like us. (And so far I am less than impressed.)

We can convince no one (Really? You think that your blog will provide someone with a Damascus Road conversion story? Seriously? You think that?)

We can prove others wrong all day long, but what is the point? (Seriously, you think that you being right proves something more than just your point?) Because being right does not mean anything unless it can make some sort of change. And really who are you kidding? What kind of change have you been able to spark as a result of your blog?

We can get the word out, over and over again. But if we all have the same message (vote for me on the Canadian Blog Awards, yeah!!) then maybe the word already is out.

And so, I am hanging up my political blogger hat. I have other ideas for this space. They may come to nothing, but I have high hopes.

Here is the most revolutionary idea I have seen in a long while. Why bother with battery cars? Magnetism can run a car. Granted a battery is used to run the blower and the radio, and to get the thing started but the idea is revolutionary and extraordinary. Watch the video. Be amazed.

Replacing one fuel for another fuel does not solve all of our problems. The impending problems include global warming or climate change, and the depletion of non-renewable fuel sources. These two problems could partially be solved through adoption of other fuel sources.

Renewable sources of fuel will solve the depletion problem and may solve the climate change issue. But even renewable sources, no matter how clean, will have output which is not clean. Contaminants are created either through the production of these alternatives or through their use. At some point this might be reduced, but it is, at present, unlikely that it will be clean enough to consider it as a clean and safe alternative. Batteries and nuclear leftovers need to be dealt with eventually.

The problem with our fuel consumption is not necessary what we are consuming but, rather, how much we are consuming. Further, it is not how much we are consuming but the fact that we are consuming.

The question which should be discussed and highlighted is not what we are using as fuel. We should be spending money, time and research investigating new ways to do the things we want to do.

We want to travel. We want to have lights, heat, food, recreation, and so on.

We don’t need to replace our fuel, we need to replace our dependence on fuel in general. We need to find ways to use our own energy to get around. We need to find ways to produce goods which use less power. Much less.

The problem is that we need to admit that we have a problem. We insist on living the life we want without curbing our own desires. We need to realize that a large part of our problem is not what we use, but it is us.

If you are not part of the solution, you are part of the precipitate.

The group says they meet to discuss topics among themselves. Conversion, so it appears, is not their goal. As such this group should be an official Campus Club. As long as they aim to proselytize the group should not.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Aboriginal Students Awareness Accounting Association

Ace Laurier

Amnesty International

Anthropology Society

Archaeology Society

Association of Black Students

Badminton Club

Best Buddies

Biology Students’ Association

Boxing Club

Canadian South Asian Business Association

Catholic Campus Outreach

Chinese Students’ Association

Communications Students’ Association

Culinary Arts Club

Cricket Association

Drama Club

D R E A M S

East Meets West

E Biz

Economics Association

Equestrian Club

Film Production Club

Financial Math Association

Friends of Capitalism

German Culture Society

Global Studies Club

Greek Council

Habitat for Humanity

HawkSquad

History Students’ Association

Italian Club

Jewish Students’ Association

Kult of Gaming

Kayaking Association

Korean Students’ Association

Ladies Softball Club

L A S A L A S

Laurier Activist New Democrats

Laurier Campus Conservatives

Laurier Chinese Christian Fellowship

Laurier Campus Greens

Laurier Christian Fellowship

Laurier French Club

Laurier Liberals

Laurier Marketing Association

Laurier Musical Theatre

Laurier Ski & Snowboard Club

Laurier Students for the Ethical Treatment of Animals

Laurier Students Public Interest Research Group

Lifeguard Club

Music Association

Music Therapy Students’ Association

Muslim Students’ Association

Photography Club

Political Science Association

Psychology Society

Religion & Culture

S K I F F Y

S. O. C. A.

Society for Esoteric Exploration

Students Against Sweatshops

Students’ Association of Music Educators

Students Helping Students Association

Students of the Carribean Association

Tennis Club

Toastmasters Club

Triathlon Club

Ukranian Klub

World Affairs Society

X L E R A T E

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