Provincial Leadership Debate

I actually laughed out loud a few times last night as I watched the provincial election debate. Liberal leader Dalton McGuinty’s visible frustration (shaking his head like a little schoolboy), his repeated references to the mistakes of the NDP over 15 years ago, and his inability to adequately address the broken promises his party had made under his leadership, provided some of the most comical and disappointing moments of the night. While PC leader John Tory may have presented himself rather well, much of his strategy focused on attacking McGuinty, often relying on anecdotal evidence to counter McGuinty’s problematic statistical evidence. NDP leader Howard Hampton also attacked McGuinty, however, he provided much more factually based arguments and proposed several clear and concise commitments that he believes will strengthen Ontario.

This morning I was absolutely shocked when I saw the front page of the Metro: a full-page advertisement authorized by the Liberals – and which looked deceptively like a newspaper column - declaring, “McGuinty Liberals the Clear Choice.” But what bothered me even more was the news that despite the barrage of critical challenges made by Tory and Hampton, as well as McGuinty’s inability to satisfactory address those criticisms, not much has changed in the minds of the voters. Thanks to the faith-based school issue, the Liberals will probably win the upcoming election.

While I do not agree with John Tory’s promise to provide government funding for faith-based schools, nor do I agree with Howard Hampton’s commitment to dramatically increasing the minimum wage, I do not believe that McGuinty is the alternative. As voters, we need to hold our elected leaders accountable. McGuinty has consistently failed us with his broken promises and his later denial of those failures. In the upcoming election, we have an opportunity to show not only McGuinty but all politicians that we will not stand for corruption in government and that we want leaders who are responsible, accountable, and represent the interests of Ontarians.

September 21, 2007 | Filed Under Ontario, Provincial Election | Leave a Comment 

Division and Exclusion: The Problem of Faith-Based Schools

By now we’ve all heard the arguments for and against public funding for faith-based schools in Ontario. While John Tory has tried to position himself as a champion of equality, Dalton McGuinty has recently denounced the idea, arguing that it will lead to segregation and threaten the current stability of Ontario’s public education system. For a moment, let’s try to push aside the rhetoric of this election campaign and focus on one important question: what kind of Ontario do we want to live in? While I do agree that our current system is unfair, in that public funds support the Catholic school board but none of the other faith-based schools in Ontario, I worry about the potential consequences if John Tory’s Conservatives are elected in the upcoming election. Although I don’t believe that Ontario schools will be entirely ‘sequestered and segregated,’ a government policy for faith-based schools will indeed create divisiveness among Ontario’s school children and, ultimately, within Ontario communities. I would hate for my future children to go to a public school where the only other faces they see, are those that look like theirs. Another issue, of course, is the practical application of this system. While we would all agree that faith-based schools must use certified teachers and follow provincial curriculum, will these schools also be forced to abide by other rules and regulations that directly conflict with their religious values and beliefs? Will homosexual students, for example, be excluded by religious schools because they have chosen to live their lives in ways that challenge the doctrines of religion? Although funding for faith-based schools would certainly pacify religious and ethnic leaders in Canada, I think this policy would ultimately result in the substitution of one inequality for another.

September 11, 2007 | Filed Under Equality, Faith-Based School, Ontario, Toronto | Leave a Comment