CHILD'S BIRTHDAY SAFE FROM TERRORISTS
Stephen Harper would have you believe that there is an evil
jihadi terrorist hiding in every alley or behind every shrub, ready to
attack. I thought of this false,
misguided, and slightly racist fear today when I attended a picnic in one of
Ottawa’s most popular parks. It was the
first birthday celebration for the daughter of some friends of mine. The little girl was incredibly sweet, always
smiling, saying “yayyy,” and carefully walking on the grass. I looked around the busy park and saw
numerous picnics composed of families and groups of all friends of all faiths
and races. I thought of how great it was
to see so many people having fun and relaxing in the same place. I also thought of how shameful it is for our
Prime Minister and his party to centre out particular groups and suggest they’re
lurking in our communities, waiting for the moment to take over. Sadly, there are many Canadians who believe
this too. Harper and the Conservatives
are taking advantage of that.
It is undeniable and unfortunate that there are people with
very extremist ideas and motives in Canada.
We are fooling ourselves if we do not acknowledge however that these
extremists are not only Islamic! There
are Christians in Canada who have equally intolerant and extremist views. Jewish extremism is much less heard of here,
but it is something which has received increased attention lately after Jewish
extremists in Israel have committed several acts of violence which has led to
the government there taking severe measures to deal with such individuals. There has also been media attention given
over the years to tension within Sikh and Hindu communities in the Toronto and
Vancouver regions. Notice how Harper is
not mentioning these concerns but seems obsessed with the perceived “jihadi”
threat. When I was sitting in that park
in the company of friends this afternoon, I did not see or hear anyone who
looked like they were planning an armed insurrection. I mostly heard laughter and smelled barbecue
charcoal.
CANDIDATE WEDS
I don’t want to politicize this overtly, but there was
campaign wedding today in Stratford, Ontario.
Ethan Rabidoux, the earnest NDP candidate for Perth-Wellington married
his fiancée Tracey. Unfortunately, I
doubt the couple will be having much of a honeymoon vacation right away as a
return to the campaign trail will likely be made on Monday. I wish this couple the very best and
sincerely hope that on the evening of October 19 they have even more reasons to
celebrate.
Ethan Rabidoux deserves to win Perth-Wellington. He’s hard-working, intelligent, ethical, and
connects well with people. He also has
real life experience that best reflects the citizens of Perth-Wellington. He was a local radio news broadcaster and
newspaper columnist. He served in the
Canadian Army for a few years and is a member of the Army, Navy, and Air Force
Veterans Association. He’s also written
a novel that touches on military themes.
Rabidoux’s creativity, talent, service, and real-life experience best
reflect the creativity, community service, and strong work ethic that embody
the Perth-Wellington area. In this
respect Rabidoux outdoes his Liberal and Conservative competitors who are far
too identifiable with the political machines of both parties.
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