Conservative ad on Facebook being widely criticized as fear-mongering. Don't miss the comments below the picture there [if they haven't been deleted already].
The condemnation of Canadian P.M. Harper and his cronies ongoing fear-mongering tactics in the run-up to the next election is near unanimous across Canada and internationally. Harper and his ilk are the vilification of Islam has made some Muslims fear for their safety here in Canada according to security expert Ihsaan Gardee in his excellent article: 'Tory Ads Put Security Efforts at Risk'. In it Gardee details why he and other experts agree as well as concluding that "the advertisements are a political effort to draw attention away from a sluggish economy."
The fact that Harpo and Co. is fanning the flames of fear, division and bigotry is not accidental but a calculated stratedgy based on ulra rightwing neocon tactics is the focus of Ralph Nader's letter titled 'On Harper's Politics Of Fear' and his interview with the CBC's Evan Solomon [below].
Harpo and his gang of assholes are very dangerous, not because they have the muscle to back up their empty threats but because so many peole everywhere who don't pay close attention to anything but their 'portfolio' believe anything and everything that agrees with their short-sighted self-indulgent worldview.
In reality the only way we can stop Harpo and his fear-mongering is at the voting booth. Unfortunately the opposition parties refuse to co-operate and form a coalition. So it's up to Canadians to form a People's Coalition to do it for them Many, like The Dogwood Initiative and Leadnow, are already doing just that in one form or another. An email yesterday from Kai Nagata at Dogwood explained that they are coordinating efforts with other groups and currently building a website containing polling information and historic voting patterns in each of Canada's swing ridings as well as those newly created ridings whose outcomes are in doubt.
Almost every Canadian i've talked or emailed with is already on the 'Heave Steve' bandwagon. But in the divided political battlefield here in Canada it's often difficult to figure out how to vote strategically toward that end. As the election draws closer the pollsters will be covering Canada's 'swing ridings' but there are lots of them especially when all the new ridings that are not a forgone conclusion are included. So important pre-vote information about your own riding's leanings may be sparse but will be essential in a People's Coalition's toolkit. So it's up to Canadians to do the local research themselves.
For now, here's an excellent website that details the voting history in each riding as well as a comparision of the relative historic strengths of each party in the areas now lumped into the new ridings. Don't run and hide in a closet like Harpo did when the going gets tough, stand up to fear-mongering, stand up for freedom.
