I've started to wonder what happened to the Canada that I grew up in. What's happened to our belief in multiculturalism? To our respect for the environment? To our conviction to a "just society"? To our understanding that we most need to help those most in need? When did we, as a nation, become so mean-spirited?
I miss my old Canada, and I want it back.
I fear, though, that the past eight years of right-wing ideologues running the country might just have stripped me forever of that kinder, gentler nation.
If the Conservatives are able to ram the Orwellianly named "Fair Elections Act" through Parliament, they will take another step in further distancing that notion of Canadian identity from the today's reality.
And to what end? To ensure that those who vote are more likely to vote Conservative.
The Fair Elections Act has some provisions that have been almost universally condemned. It eliminates "vouching" - the process by which one registered voter can vouch to the identity of another who may not have valid picture ID - that is, the poor and the homeless.
It prevents Elections Canada from running educational programs - including those in schools - that encourage Canadians to get out and vote.
The "Fair Elections Act" also increases the amount that individuals can contribute to political parties to $1,500.
It's not hard to see how these three changes serve the Conservatives' voter-base. There's nothing here to encourage the young or the poor. It is a most self-serving and cynical effort to consolidate power.
It's not just those of the centre-left like me saying this. Right-wing National Post columnist Andrew Coyne has written critically about this legislation. Even the "godfather" of the current version of conservatism in Canada, Preston Manning, has criticized the Act.
The irony, of course, is that there have not been any significant voting irregularities that this legislation will address. In fact, it weakens the investigative powers of Elections Canada to look into robo-calling and inappropriate campaign spending - you know, the kind of things the Conservatives have been found guilty of.
The Prime Minister, with his "let them eat cake" attitude, pushes on. He reigns like a demagogue, indifferent to anyone who disagrees with him.
If Canadians can resist this heinous bill, we might just be able to rid ourselves of the Conservatives and keep the things we value. Then we might indeed be eating cake - one in celebration.
