WRIT DROP

With a writ drop on Sunday

I'm taking a moment of your time  to remind you we are still working on our Candidacies for NDP for Winnipeg South Center. A membership meeting is impending and if you are receiving this list, you are a voting member.  Joseph Estabrooks and I have made an effort to let YOU decide who the candidate is and we now have to do it on the liberal’s timeline - so be it! 

WE WANT YOUR HELP!

I’d like to take a moment to ask for your attention.  Yes this election is VERY important, YES it is the moment to get rid of Pierre Polievre and YES we need your support. However we also need to lift a new generation of new democrats. A new generation of fighters who will have to continue this quest for equanimity we have all chosen to participate in as NDP members. More importantly this will be their Canada soon enough we have to leave it ready for them. For those of us with children and grandchildren this election is also about our legacy.

I will take a moment to list my most important policy proposals at the tail end of this message, but I wanted to center on the most important issue in this election for our community, Winnipeg South Centre.

Almost 50% of the electorate in our community DID NOT VOTE in the last election. Ben Carr Got elected by just  25% of the electorate. A large swath of those non-voting folks are young people disillusioned with the system, holding the very valid belief that the system is not designed for them. They can’t afford to enter the housing market and build wealth the way previous generations have and they are living in an age of disinformation.

This is bad. Our democracy is at stake, but also the legacy of our generations.  The democratic world we, our parents and grandparents built is fading away.  Democratic institutions are being eroded slowly and we are watching our neighbours to the south dismantle and cannibalize their democracy.  We can’t let it happen here. 

This election has to be about engagement. Rekindling the democratic spark in all of us, educating people around us and most importantly combat disinformation. A good chunk of that 25% Ben got last time were NDP supporters( many with signs in their lawns)  who were voting strategically. Imagine what we could do if we took a large bite out of Ben's ( and royden’s) support AND we engaged new voters. Now we are cooking with fire!

All of the issues we as the NDP care about point to the same thing, an unfair system that prioritizes the wealthy and punishes the poor.  And as we all know young, racialized, indigenous, queer folks and seniors are more often than not in the lower stratas of our society. It is particularly those folks who are disappointed with the system - go figure. However they are also folks who would benefit most from participating.

A great deal of the issues candidates are pointing at nationally come from one single source:

Poverty. 

We have a crime problem because we have a poverty problem. 

We have an education problem because we have a poverty problem. 

We have an addictions problem because we have a poverty problem.

I see poverty as a form of oppression ( a very intentional form)  and as such I see poverty as a solvable issue.
I see poverty as an ethical Issue, one that anyone from any religion, creed or spirituality should be doing something to stop. This is what the federal and provincial NDP chapters are dedicated to achieve. 

I NEED YOUR HELP!

I keep being reminded that Winnipeg South Centre is a non-win race for the NDP - but people aren’t doing the math!  I have spent many hours looking at the voting numbers and sharing them with you. I know, even with a (Terrible) short election we CAN make a difference. 

Experts are now predicting a liberal majority with the most right of center liberal leader in my lifetime. They are also predicting between 1 and13 NDP seats nationally.  This is  alarming! This means the future of the NDP is riding in this election. We need to cease the moment and actively participate, invite and entice folks to join us. PLEASE, whether i’m your candidate or not; The battle must be fought for the NDP to survive as an option. The future of the left (even the center left)  is at stake.  If you believe we are all equal  in Canada it is time to fight, if you believe gender equality, racial equality labour rights and human rights  matter it's time to fight. 

I’ll add one more thought here. I have taken very little time to talk about Royden, the conservative Candidate.
That’s because of one very important thing -  Their party is in trouble.There is no Pierre Polievre without Justin Trudeau.Conservativesa have made a good effort to make themselves irrelevant.  His whole campaign has been built in un-kindness. Conservatives are a party of bullies with un-comedic zingers and comedic (cruel) views. I honestly think we need to laugh them off. Also they supported Trump and would relish the thought of annexation. We have all watched them wear maga hats in public and toe the line around issues like trans rights, racism, gender equality and human rights. They are the trump party of Canada whatever their current messaging is. 

OK, here are some of my leading views. 

On Poverty - Poverty is a form of oppression and we ethically as a society cannot let it grow, we MUST work on every strategy we can. From Guaranteed social income to basic basket of goods to transportation to national rent control. Solving poverty will largely solve crime.

Indigenous identity and reconciliation - we need a federal government who understands and practices the truth and reconciliation commission’s 94 calls to action. - No discussion, no debate. We need to do that. 

Education - Conservatives will continue to defund education and liberals will sit on their hands about it. 

Civics, economics, anthropology and arts  are needed at the highschool level. We need to produce humans that are ready to take over the world and solve the issues we will leave them with.  

Automation- this is a HUGE issue. Automation is very close to becoming a real part of our society and if we don’t legislate it now we will create an even deeper gap between the rich and the poor. We need to protect ourselves from private interests who may want to automate YOUR job, your children’s jobs. We need to create an automation tax.

Guaranteed Livable Basic Income - my friend Leah Gazan has done great work in this file. I believe in everything she has worked on.  GLBI can help solve poverty.  I’ll only add that Automation can be a path for funding a GLBI

Crime and policing - Our current system, the “penal system” is designed to PUNISH crime. And as such it can only punish crimes that have already happened.  The penal system cannot “prevent” crime. Any more than they can travel in time.  Everyone from beat-cops to the supreme court lacks the tools to create a safer society. 

I’m not saying crime punishment isn’t necessary, it is very necessary. We need to punish criminals but we don’t need to make any more. We are currently minting new criminals daily by letting poverty run free. There is only one real way to be TOUGH ON CRIME - that way is to be TOUGH ON POVERTY. Poverty prevention is the only crime prevention that works.

Anti-Racism- NEEDS to be a priority of the Canadian government and every provincial government. We cannot dance the American ( and conservative) dance against diversity and inclusion policies. It’s just not who we are. A part of this is reshaping the “multiculturalism” strategy of previous governments (which has delivered some important victories) and creating an inclusion strategy one that acknowledges intersectionalities and identities and is led by racialized, indigenous and queer communities. 

Immigrant inclusion - Millions of  immigrants effectively subsidize the Canadian economy with cheap labour and they are getting a bad deal. Here is the thing: the Canadian economy cannot survive without us.  Immigrants are the largest source of growth in Canada which drives GDP growth and insures our future, it's how our pensions are funded. Migro-phobia has been a cornerstone of Conservative politics and it needs to be eradicated.

Palestine - I do not want my taxes to fund the death of children anywhere in the world, including palestine. A Human rights government must uphold human rights with every item in the budget. The international court of Justice has been clear in their rulings calling for an end to the occupation. I will add here that Ben Carr was one of three Liberal MP’s to vote AGAINST a Ceasefire resolution after the UN resolution vote in 2024. Yes he voted AGAINST a Ceasefire resolution for Gaza.

Budget - Every ideological and policy driven idea must be a part of the budget. There is no “socially-liberal/fiscal-conservative” position. If you believe in human rights, equanimity, social justice. All of those things need to be in the budget.  Having a good society costs money. We should not have a balancing act of values. 

Labour - The only thing that creates wealth is labour. Labout movements have been instrumental in the creation of the democracy we enjoy we must keep labour at the center of all econoic conversations. Especially in the face of automation

The Economy - The economy is a thinking tool of human behaviour, not religion, not a deity. We need an economy that serves society. We should not be here at its behest.  Conservatives are religiously fervent in their belief that money makes the world.  I believe people are more important than money. I want to fight for that belief. 

I’m asking for your support to become your candidate for Winnipeg South Centre but furthermore I’m asking for your support to win this race and get an NDP candidate in that seat. Yes We are the underdog. But underdogs win! 

Please help me bring some punk rock into parliament.