First, I should start by saying who I am and what I believe in, since that is the lens through which most of what I write politically should be interpreted through. Obviously if I think that one party or candidate is bad and another good, this is based at least party on where I stand in the political spectrum, and this bias ends up somewhat clouding my interpretation of the issues or the news whether I like to think it does or not. So here’s a brief primer on my politics:
For starters: I am a social progressive, or if you prefer a civil libertarian. This means that have strong feelings about the rights of minorities and of course for the rights of majorities as well. For example I am very much outspoken in favour of Same Sex Marriage in Canada, not because that policy affects anyone I know personally but because it is a matter of minority rights as interpreted by Canada’s Charter of Rights and Freedoms. I am also very critical of Canada’s infamous notwithstanding clause, something I believe means that we don’t technically have nearly any rights in Canada at all depending on the whim of parliament.
Being a social progressive in my books also means that I am also a dedicated pacifist. This led to my strong feelings about the Iraq war, and also about Canada’s historic military role as peacekeepers. I was very angered by W Bush’s decision to start an aggressive war when there was still a good chance for peace, and very pleased by Canada’s decision to stay out of it. But at the same time I have sympathy for people such as Michael Ignatieff and Christopher Hitchens who supported the war not on WMD grounds but instead based on humanitarian concerns. I still strongly disagree with those war supporters because I think the reason for starting a war is highly important, but I disagree respectfully.
At the same time I am a social progressive I am also an economic conservative, or at least an economic moderate. At least in the classic sense of the term, where conservative meant being concerned with the affairs of business and the economy. So I am concerned about labour productivity, international trade, and worry that too much spending on social programs could hurt Canada’s competitiveness in the long run. But unlike many modern so-called conservatives I am also concerned with running budget deficits and that excessive cutting of taxes may lead to long-term problems at the expense of short term gains. And one thing that differentiates me from most conservatives is my vocal opposition to regressive forms of taxation such as sales and payroll taxes.
In Canada, this puts me theoretically near the middle of the political spectrum. In practise this has led to me voting for the Liberal Party of Canada for the past two federal elections, and before that for Joe Clark’s Progressive Conservative party. However I am certainly not a Liberal Party hack, and I find that the NDP and Greens and perhaps even some socially moderate Conservatives people have good ideas too.
Ok. I’ve said a lot here now, and said very little to flesh that out with details or to defend my obviously controversial opinions. I will be changing that shortly, don’t worry… I just want my (imaginary) readers to know a bit about me in the general sense and know the basis for what I think.
