As I struggle to stay abreast of the election happenings in the U.S., I'm also trying to figure out the Canadian system. Canada is also in the midst of an election, and unlike in the U.S., Canadian elections for Prime Minister are not preceded by a lengthy primary season. I admittedly know very little about Canadian politics and what I do know comes primarily from conversations with individuals I've met at CU Land, most of whom hold views very similar to my own.
Steven Harper, the current Prime Minister, is running for re-election, and he's been bombarding the airwaves with ads that don't say much about the issues. In fact, I don't think a single ad I've seen (and I've seen at least 5) mentions a single issue other than the economy. He seems to be taking his cues from his fellow conservatives in the U.S. and is running his campaign primarily on his identity. Here's an ad that, at least in my opinion, doesn't say much about his ability to improve Canada.
3 comments:
Unfortunately, I don't think it is supposed to be funny.
Go ahead and jest about universal health care my friend, but here is one of its downsides that I've become very familiar with this week as I've needed to consult a doctor about Wild Man's allergies: universal health care has created a shortage of doctors. It is therefore impossible to be taken on as a new patient. So the upshot for us is that we will be going to the University Health Care center, something I haven't done since I was an undergrad.
Oh, and I reserve the right to complain about health care until my family and I qualify for it--we have to be here for 3 months to receive it. So we paid a huge amount of money the first week we were here for the Canadian equivalent of Cobra.
And I know about hockey, Megs! ;)
Well at least it is not the same center as the undergraduates--its divided by two different waiting rooms.
What is most surprising is how complacent our northern friends are--they already pay ridiculous amounts for alcohol and huge amounts in taxes per pay checque (yes some does pay for social programs which is nice and it does average out to about what Yanks pay for insurance--if they can get it) but on top of that there is the GST (which the current Prime Min. would like to raise) and PST taxes that currently add up to about 13 to 15% on every purchase. OUCH!
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