A bad day for democracy
Yesterday was a sad day for democracy not only because of the disgraced politicians parading before committees of inquiry and courts but primarily because of the resounding defeat of the STV (a form of proportional representation) in a referendum and the victory for an unprecendented third term of Liberal Gordon Campbell.
The defeat of STV is catastrophic because BC is where the most recent movement for electoral reform was born a couple of decades ago and because in the last BC referendum 59% voted for it, just short of the 60% majority required by the government. No politician in power is likely to allow another referendum on PR for a long time to come unless the electoral reform movement can mobilize huge numbers of supporters, which in face of the current crises we are facing is unlikely.
The defeat of the BC NDP is another sign of the bankruptcy of the current electoral system. Looking at the polls instead of their principles, the BCNDP started the campaign with the unbelievable slogan "Axe the Tax". It's almost incomprehensible after decades of right-wing governments that have persuaded voters to support cutbacks, privatization and deregulation by offering tax cuts, that a social democratic party would use that slogan reinforcing neo-liberal politics.
Just as bad the tax they want to axe is a carbon tax. Crude opportunism is the only explanation for why they would campaign against the only positive action of the Campbell Liberals, a carbon tax. They claim cap and trade is better and maybe it is but no-one has ever convinced me that there is much difference between the two. They both rely on the market economy to restrict carbon emissions.
When former supporters like David Suzuki and Tzeporah Berman denounced the NDP policy, they backed down a little but it was too late. A disaster totally based on crass opportunism and the professionalization of politics that have plagued the NDP, especially in the last decade. Instead of basing their politics on their values and the desires of their members, they hire slick operators who use polls and focus groups and claim they know what people want. Maybe this works for liberal parties but it will never work for a left of centre party that is supposed to be representing those who do not have voice and power in a society.
On Monday I appeared on TVO's the Agenda where a roundtable discussed these very issues. I felt badly that Nikki Ashton, one of the most talented and progressive MP's in Ottawa was required to repeat the NDP line on such things instead of freely expressing her views about doing politics. Another requirement of the kind of politics controlled by backroom mostly boys more afraid of what the media will say than what the people want or need.
A sad day for democracy indeed
STV opposition and the backroom boys
Bill Tieleman, STV opposition spokesperson and campaign manager for Mel Lehan, the NDP candidate contesting Gordon Campbell's seat, incomprehensibly managed to thwart electoral reform that would most likely benefit the NDP's prospects in many ridings if the "wasted ballot" effect were removed. He also failed to genuinely promote his candidate who already had a very high profile and was held in high regard for his commitment to a very serious issue: food security and local agriculture. Mel Lehan has a reputation of integrity and commitment to community values and, set against the extremely dubious record of his opponent, the premier of the province, could have won the election based soley on his community reputation.
To add insult to injury, Bill Tieleman persists in his perversive pursuit of some ultimate defeat of the left by proposing mandatory voting!
http://thetyee.ca/Views/2009/05/12/ForcedVote/
totally. except...
i in no way wish to mitigate the calamitousness of yesterday's results by saying this - and believe me, it leaves a bad taste in my mouth to say it - but i think it's important for us to recognize that the proposed carbon tax is neither the "only" nor the most important positive action of Campbell's Liberals: their "new relationship" to BC's First Nations is more immediately significant.
Guujaaw (president of the Council of the Haida Nation) has assessed the situation as a victory for First Nations; of course much remains to be seen as to what the actual content of the "new relationship" will be, but for a Premier to acknowledge the existence of Aboriginal Title to this unceded territory is a startling development, and something we, as activists, must pay attention to.
You're mostly right Judy. The
You're mostly right Judy. The Carbon tax appeared to be a regressive tax that affected lower income people worse, but perhaps instead of their counter intuitive yet populist "axe the tax" slogan the NDP could have offered to reform it, or better yet left it alone until after the election. I guess their "strategists" didn't foresee how much the green backlash would hurt the party and took what looked like an easy populist stand.
But you're right about the NDP. I think many NDP supporters, myself included, have really been turned off by their so-called strategic approach, including from the national leadership of Jack Layton. They appear to be trying so hard to follow the prescriptions and talking points of spin doctors that they don't seem like real people, more like contrived puppets. They're also bending over way to much to the corporate media, appearing weak in their vain effort to appear "acceptable". Both these approaches seem to be backfiring badly as the corporate types and their media hate them anyways and always will, and they seem to be loosing touch with their base of support and ordinary working people. The result is a lot of apathy. I almost didn't vote because I really felt there is very little substantive difference between the Liberals and the NDP, both their approaches are borrowing heavily from a US-style image and sound bite over reality vision of politics that is destroying democracy.
The magnitude of the STV defeat boggles the mind.
It all makes me think that perhaps this election happened as it had to, because things have to get a lot worse before we are shaken out of our stupor. Like Edward Abbey said "Society is like a stew. If you don't stir it up every once in a while then a layer of scum floats to the top."
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