Publisher's welcome:

Greetings from Alliance's Ontario beachhead

By: Ish Theilheimer, Publisher, Straight Goods

  The people of my riding spoke last week and elected one of the only two Alliance MPs in Ontario. For most of Canada, as pollster Marc Zwelling argues in Deflating five election myths, the federal election was a referendum on Stockwell Day.
  Here in Renfrew County, though, the election was a referendum on gun control. If you hate it, vote CA. For years, we've been seeing those bright orange bumper stickers saying "Remember Bill C68 when you vote." Here in Renfrew County, we sure did.
  What is it that makes intelligent, decent people cast their federal ballot on one issue, and one so seemingly trivial? Aren't guns and hunting just hobbies, pastimes? Why do people around here get so emotional about it that normally polite people cuss and howl at public meetings (see Publisher's Welcome, November 27).
  Commentators frequently observe that Canada has become a classless society, that class is dead as a factor in political life. Canadian Alliance organizers, and for, that matter, Mike Harris, don't make that mistake. They appeal directly to the sense of alienation and rage working-class people feel. By emphasizing tangible, emotional issues like gun control and crime, they mobilize alienation to their benefit. The parking lots at the all-candidates meetings here were packed with half-tons and jimmies, not import cars.
  The party that purports to talk about class issues just didn't have it. The NDP's attempt to polarize voters around health care was too broad, too general, too easily inoculated against by the Liberals and every other party. And at a time when most Canadians can't remember not having public health coverage, health care as an issue just didn't speak to that sense of working-class alienation in the way gun control and crime do. The NDP used to get a lot of the screw-you vote aimed at politicians and the wealthy elite. Now CA and Harris get it.
  Fortunately, the election season is now over, at least in Canada, and the silly season can begin. Most of our neighbours are back to being friendly with one another, and only the long-frustrated Tories - bitter at the Liberals finally being beaten here but not by them - still have their lawn signs up.
  Straight Goods has a fine lineup of articles unrelated to the election this week, I'm relieved to say. Of special interest for lazy, guilt-ridden, ethical Straight Goods readers is Kathe Lieber's wonderful lineup of great places to go on-line where you can buy presents you feel good about, or make donations in people's names. Check out I'm dreaming of an ethical holiday and let your friends know about it. You can click your way around to guilt-free giving.
  Speaking of health care, we didn't say the issue would or should go away. This week we feature exclusive commentary about how Canadian public funding is migrating into the US health care market. It's not a direct kind of thing. The money in question is from profits private health care operators earn in Canada and plough into American operations. Though indirect, it's strong support for the argument that private health care drains vital resources from the public system. This one is also worth sharing with one's friends.
  We're still trying to get our readers familiar with the constantly-updated sections we've recently added to our site under the heading News You Can Use. Our newest intern, journalist Oona Woods of Brudenell, Ontario (in the suburbs of Killaloe), is helping to collect and post web clippings in the amazingly useful Hot Headlines, Consumer Power, Take Action, and Media Files section of the site.
  Then there's Aaron Freeman's telling piece Governing with hypocrisy government arrogance and lack of accountability. We've linked it to our Fax Uncle Jean campaign. So far nearly 700 people have sent the PM faxes asking for him to make that special phone call on their behalf.

- Ish Theilheimer
- Killaloe, Ontario
- December 04, 2000

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