Unemployment Rates Historical Comparison East VS. West

Unemployment Rates Historical Comparison East VS. West

https://youtu.be/ASYn_YlgYM4

Last week we looked at poverty and the middle-class, and how they relate to Canadians. Now we are going to take a look at a subject that ties in these previous articles. Unemployment directly affects poverty and homelessness. In Canada, our governments could be doing much more to help this problem, federal, provincial, and municipal. Before getting into solutions, taking a look at the facts and stats around unemployment in Canada is necessary. 

Tradingeconimcs.com has some really great information in regards to this subject. They describe the unemployment rates as the “number of people actively looking for a job as a percentage of the labour force.” In other words, this means that it is measuring the amount of people who are able to work, who are of age, and yet are unemployed, in Canada this includes 15 year-olds. Most recently October 2019, showed Canadian unemployment rates at 5.5% which has been fairly consistent since July bouncing between 5.5% and 5.7%. Canada did see a loss of 1, 800 full time positions, but then replaced those with 14,300 part time jobs. Which is a trend happening around the world, replacing full time jobs with part time jobs. This means that more people have jobs, leading to lower unemployment rates, but leading to lower paying jobs, meaning more poverty, or struggling families. Since 1966 Canada has averaged an unemployment rate of 7.62%. In December 1982 this was at its highest rate of 13.10%, which was due to policies and economic decisions made in the United States. The lowest rate recorded falls in at 2.90% in June of 1966. Which means our current rates are below average, but it does vary across the country and across job sectors. Canada saw drops in the manufacturing, warehousing, construction, and transportation areas, but a significant increase in administrative, finance, insurance, real estate, rental, leasing, and agricultural employment. We also saw differences based upon age, ages 15-24 saw no changes, but 24-55 year-old workers dropped in employment, while those aged 55 and over increased in employment. Not quite the shift I expected, but considering the manual labour job loss, it should not come as a real surprise. 

If we look at Stats Canada, we can see how these rates are dependant upon the province and territory one lives in. As of the summer the stats were as follows, nationally 5.7% was the average. The provincial breakdown: BC 4.3%, Alberta, 6.7 %, Saskatchewan 5.2%, Manitoba 5%, Ontario, 5.2%, Quebec 5%, New Brunswick 7.2%, PEI 9%, Nova Scotia 6.5%, Newfoundland and Labrador 12.4%. These numbers vary depending on how diversified each province is in their economy. Maritime provinces tend to rely on many seasonal jobs, and so they end up with higher rates depending on the season, otherwise many will leave for other provinces to work in the off-season. In the territories we see Yukon with 2.7%, NWT with 7.3%, and Nunavut with 14.1%. Yukon has more Ocean access and the ability to help in BC with forestry/fishery jobs, whereas NWT and Nunavut do not have these options, and are far more spread out in population bases, increasing the unemployment numbers. A good way around this issue, is for provinces and territories to diversify their economies, so when one commodity crashes, they have others to fall back on. Compared to other developed countries, Canada ranks middle of the pack in unemployment rate success. Switzerland leads the pack with 2.2% unemployment, and South Africa comes in at the bottom with 29.1%, which also reflects poverty rates in these countries. 

If we then take a closer look at the situation with the territories, conferenceboard.ca has great reasoning behind their issue. They claim to have 2 factors behind the higher than national average unemployment rates. One is that southern workers travel up north to take the higher-paying jobs that take more skill, but they do not stay to live there. The same problem the west sees with workers from the Maritimes. The second comes in the form of “economic expansion”, this has pushed more people from the north to search for jobs, but not all will be able to locate a job, resulting in more unemployment. Yukon, thankfully has avoided these issues, maintaining one of the lowest unemployment rates in Canada. 

They do also provide information on how unemployment rates can vary depending on immigration status. In 2018, those born in Canada had a 5.2% unemployment rate, newly landed immigrants were at 6.1%, immigrants landed less than 5 years were at 9.4%, immigrants landed within 5-10 years were at 6.4%, and Immigrants who have lived here for more than 10 years were sitting at 5.3%. I do have an issue with these stats though. First of all, immigrants who come to Canada need to be able to support themselves and not rely on tax pay dollars to keep them afloat, these numbers simply raise our countries unemployment stats. Secondly, if they cannot maintain a job in Canada, then they should not be allowed to remain in Canada. We have a lot of homelessness and poverty in Canada, so returning people who are not working back home help us to support those who truly need the help and are Canadians. This would apply for anyone who does not have a citizenship. 

During Stephen Harper’s time as Prime Minister the country did fairly well economically, with the exception of the 2008-09 recession, in which Canada was hit less hard than the United States. Our unemployment rate hit 8.3% but since we seemed better prepared, Canada was able to not be struck as hard as the United States, who were bleeding jobs up to a total of 2.6 million jobs, according to CNN Money. Too many lost jobs in both countries, but Canada’s preparation helped the country to rebound quicker and to help other countries try to rebound. However long term the US has been able to recover to lower unemployment rates, having the US rates drop to as low as 4.9%. Canada was able to recover in a short amount of time after this, mainly due to the quick thinking of Stephen Harper, who was able to get a trade deal with China, which shortened the recovery period, although some might say China is a terrible partner to support. Then when moved forward to 2016, when Justin Trudeau was in his second year as Prime Minister, rates dropped again, which has a lot to do with failed promises, harmful bills, and failed projects. One such failure would be the $4.5 billion purchase of the Kinder Morgan pipeline, which then got sidelined by the Vancouver area blocked it from going through and had it upheld by the Supreme Court of Canada (Huffington Post) Another threat would come in the form of Bill C-69, which makes a lot more red-tape in place for any future pipelines; it has been deemed the “Pipeline Killer”, according to Global News. The purchase and failure to proceed as planned with the pipeline to the BC coast, and a bill making it difficult to complete oil projects, made it very tough for the West and cost many jobs and a lot of money. Atlantic jobs were affected by this as well. Another factor in this was a struggle to recover after the oil price crashed in 2014, which has taken years to try to rebound from, a struggle that still shows today, hindered further by Federal environmental laws. To further read into this, check out conferenceboard.ca. 

Unemployment rates due to economic crashes, like in Alberta, can cause a spike in poverty and homelessness rates, which we have seen in the west. I won’t get too far into this topic though, as I have a whole previous article dedicated to that, (https://authortonypeters.blogspot.com/2019/11/keep-foreign-aid-money-in-canada.html and https://authortonypeters.blogspot.com/2019/11/trudeau-considering-supplying-vancouver.html). I will say that in 2017 Stats Canada placed 3.4 million or 9.5% of Canadians below the poverty line, which is not very clear, but they say the line is $25,000/year for single adults, but $40,000 for families, which seems low to me. Wages tend to play a big role in this, especially since so many people are having to work 2 jobs to make a living. The part time job trend has made this more pronounced. The wage of an average Canadian is $25.55, but this can be a hard stat to set with Salaries, self-employment, farming, and contract work. 

When looking to set up a policy around employment, a lot of factors must be considered, as there will always be some unemployment, largely in part to people moving to find jobs, shifting between workplaces, or a change in career. Canadians tend to have the highest rates of moving between cities and provinces to move to a labour mobility, according to conferenceboard.ca. The goal that should be kept in mind for policy setting, is to motivate all eligible workers in Canada to be able to find a job, no matter where in the country they are located. When families and locations have longer periods of unemployment it destroys and tears apart families and communities, so these periods need to be acted upon quickly. This has been the situation in the west and Prime Minister Trudeau has not followed through on promises to help the west fix this problem. The west supplied thousands of jobs for eastern workers in their oil boom, but when government policy destroyed this market the easterners flooded back east, an option that westerners are left without. CBC estimated these workers as being 20%, or 1700 people up to 10,000 at one point.  Yet the east has then criticized and hindered their progress to try to recover and diversify. Another factor that could be looked at is technology. When new tech hits the market it often cuts out jobs, leading to a spike in unemployment, but as people receive training for the new tech, the rates drop, as people get jobs working with the new technology. This creates short-term unemployment spikes, followed by longer term employment spikes. There are times, however, when new tech actually destroys a sector and takes it over, resulting in devastating job loss rates, that will struggle to recoup, so when implementing new technology, caution must be exercised to avoid unemployment because of technological automation. 

When an area has low unemployment rates, employers will struggle to find employees and wages are going to be higher, making it harder for employers to get by. High wages can also boom the housing market, making it harder to buy a home due to the inflation. Can areas really control this though? On one hand they could, but should they? A boom does have to end at some point, often times with a crash, rather than the preferred gradual decline. Which is devastating; but being able to provide jobs for a long period of time is important, meaning that preventing the boom is counter-productive. The best way to deal with the situation, is to diversify, find ways of bringing in other economic opportunities while the boom is on, that way when a crash does happen, the area has other sectors to depend on. Not everything is within a community or countries control however, a lot of this results from global and neighbouring countries globalization. American decisions affect our country greatly, and more recently, the decisions of the globe’s environmentally brain-washed movement. 

History tells of mistakes made in this regard, but also tells of successes. Provides educational opportunities in what not to do, as well as what to do. Listening to these lessons, can guide Canada through economic struggle, to help make Canada prosperous again. This does require governments that will listen. Our government cares not what happens in the west, which has made recovery, which the west is working at on their own, more challenging. All levels of government should assist areas that are struggling, not ignoring one half of the country and helping one province that has had it’s struggles. The whole country needs to be economically stable to lower unemployment rates and the rates of poverty. If we continue to have governments that ignore this, Canada will be led into further disaster. Work together to come up with a solution for the country as a whole. United we stand. Unify the West. 

Written in collaboration with Spencer Mathews

Unify The West Server https://discord.gg/rBKxjD3

Unify The West Facebook https://www.facebook.com/groups/443787693008469/

Saskatchewan Online Petition Demands Change

Saskatchewan Online Petition Demands Change

Today Saskatchewan has made their voice heard. They want change. Yes, this has been the rally for a while now, but today is different. Action was put behind words. An online petition surfaced this morning asking Saskatchewan Residents to sign. What is this petition? The petition asks for a plebiscite on separation. For those wondering what a plebiscite is let’s explain. According to the Oxford Dictionary, a plebiscite is, “the direct vote of all the members of an electorate on an important public question such as a change in the constitution”. In this matter the change surrounds that of remaining in Canada. Although this is the subject surrounding the petition, it is not necessarily the goal of the petition. Let’s come back to that in a bit.

Is an online petition significant? In and of itself, no. However, it is generally used to test the waters, so to speak, to see how people react to the idea put forth. An online petition usually precedes a written paper petition, which IS significant. An online petition does not stand up in court, but a written version does. In the case of the petition spoken about earlier, this is exactly the case. A written petition has been promised from the group responsible for this, Wexit Discord Administration, who claims to have no part of the main Wexit movement, simply because they claim Peter Downing does not play well with others. This is the very same group who has worked in Alberta with Wheatland County MD Jason, to accomplish the motion to replace CPP with a provincial pension plan program. The printed petition is going to roll out after the lawyers have reviewed the petition. Keep your eyes open for it! Once the petitions have reached the desired number of signatures, it then leads to a plebiscite after it goes through the Chief Electoral Officer and the Lieutenant Governor. According to the Wexit Discord Administration member responsible, in part, for this petition, “The plebiscite would bring the question of separation to a vote, and either start the process of separation or put it to rest. Ottawa is not involved with our laws concerning this.”

At this point it remains to be seen how successful this route will be, but it will give a feeling of how the sentiment and solidarity is in Saskatchewan over the separation issue. The purpose then becomes, a signal sent to Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe and Prime Minister Trudeau, about just how serious Saskatchewan is about a desire for meaningful change. No more empty promises, the people of Saskatchewan want action, they want results. Premier Scott Moe came back from Ottawa after a final, disappointing visit with Trudeau. Prime Minister Trudeau promised to listen to the voice of Western Canada, and that he would take actions to fix what has happened. A false statement and promise given by a Prime Minister who can’t even accomplish a balanced budget, promising more debt to come. Premier Moe, confirmed everyone’s suspicions when he came back after Trudeau refused to give on even one request from a frustrated Premier Scott Moe, whose party has stated that they will be exploring all options. Which is clearly an attempt to figure out what to do next, how to go about bringing positive change for the people of Saskatchewan. Which assures the people of Saskatchewan that we have not heard the last from our Premier, a man of action. A man who in his action plan put forth today, promises to have meaningful meetings with several countries, that Ottawa will have no part of, Saskatchewan has to make these moves themselves, since we have a Prime Minister who simply embarrasses us overseas, and accomplishes nothing but division.

After this it is important that Saskatchewan stand up for themselves, stand up for their rights, demand that they be given a fair shake in this East-run country. The best way to do this seems to be signing this petition, online first, then more importantly, the written petition. Have Saskatchewan voices be heard, make Ottawa and our Prime Minister, who seems completely clueless as to how to keep a country united, listen. Make them take notice. The cash-cow called Western Canada, ends now. Rally to the Flag of Saskatchewan, the flags of the West, and stand up for yourselves! Western Canada has been trampled long enough!

Take the time to sign the online petition and when the written one is out, sign it. You have the right to be heard and respected, don’t let Trudeau abuse you.

https://youtu.be/NEolQMknTS

Petition: https://www.change.org/p/scott-moe-make-a-plebiscite-concerning-saskatchewan-separation?recruiter=934444302&recruited_by_id=b7d5fb10-292a-11e9-8e4c-319e5eb75b77&utm_source=share_petition&utm_medium=copylink&utm_campaign=petition_dashboard

First Article Published

http://mallarduk.com/trudeau-to-say-more-as-his-thinking-evolves-tony-peters/?fbclid=IwAR3yxM1Id52Cl8sG1APnN8FrfC2pAvcFhQ-Nb57phihqEhyb5vcRzgRY_tY This is the link to where you can find my first published article

Fundamental Issues of Canada (the article)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5DrMz0zzSaU&t=495s

Journal Entry Oct 23/24, 2019 Fundamental Issues of Canada

I want to start by stating that although some of the things I state may seem slightly offensive at first glance, but before getting upset and worked up about it, I encourage you to think, stop, and really think. Don’t be offended so easily, it only gets in the way of progress. Changes are made by people stating opinions and meshing all of these opinions together, this is what makes up our World, and more importantly our Great Nation of Canada. Everything I say, is said with the most utmost respect. Often, we search and crave to find offense where none is intended. Open your minds, open your eyes, don’t be so narrow in your thoughts.

Here in Canada, we have several basic and fundamental issues, like all other countries. Our problems, sadly, start from the top and work their way down to the bottom. These problems are as follows, and I will cover each of these problems throughout this essay.

1.      Our electoral system is outdated and needs reform

2.      Equalization Payments

3.      Amount of power focused in 2 provinces

4.      Unequal equality

5.      Lack of leadership

6.      Lack luster immigration policies

 In our electoral system, we use a first-past-the-post system. This type of system works in theory, so long as the seat distribution matches the populations of the whole country. That means that the population bases that are small should have less seats in Parliament. In Canada, however, this is not the case. Our representation does not reflect the population of Canada, which show the Conservatives had a small victory in obtaining the popular vote, but lost by a couple of dozen seats to the Liberals in our 2019 election.

If we then take a closer look at this system, we find that the Maritime provinces, which have much smaller population bases than many ridings in the West, yet PEI has 4 seats representing them in the House of Commons for just over 142,000 voters, where the Western ridings have one seat for much larger population bases. This leads to inequalities in representation and unrest in the areas, like Western Canada, who feel that their voices are not heard. A good point, considering that by the time that the election is closed for Eastern voters, the election has already been called, the West just determines Minority or Majority, but sometimes not even that. All ridings that have less than 50,000 voters, need to be combined with surrounding ridings, so that it better reflects other ridings, with the exception of the Territories of course. This is exactly what has led to this disconnect felt between the Eastern and Western halves of this Great Nation we call Canada.

You may be thinking, “What then does equal representation really look like?”. Equal representation would involve taking a closer look at where the country has the greatest population bases, and awarding the appropriate number of seats, then taking away seats from less populated areas, combine these ridings to match that of the more heavily populated areas. So give PEI, for example, 1 seat in Parliament instead of 4. Making representation accurately reflect the voter base in these areas, will mean policies that actually reflect the views of Canadians as a whole, not just 2 provinces. It will also mean parties and leaders elected that actually reflect popular vote. Equal representation would also reduce the occurrences of our Prime Minister Trudeau openly declaring war on the Western Provinces. He has done this by his speech right before the election, saying he will fight the oil industry, pipelines, and anyone who fights for them. A Prime Minister should not EVER say this about the economy that has supported and propped up this country financially, and should be encouraging all parts of the country. The fact that he still won re-election, speaks volumes about the lack of equal representation. In addition, the implementation of the Carbon Tax, was a direct shot across the bows of the Western ship. This has only been implemented for a short period of time and yet it is costing farmers, businesses, the oil industry, truckers, and each individual a tonne of money that few can afford. The adding of a Federal Tax on the Carbon Tax, is also repulsive, charging a service tax on a tax the majority of Canadians feel is a complete disservice? To top that off, as usual Trudeau has completely ignored the complaints of the Western Provinces and of many Canadians against the tax. He claims that it is helping Canadians through rebates they get, but it is actually causing more harm than good, these cheap parlor tricks of rebates, is a smoke screen to lessen anger, but does not cover the fact that it does not replace the immediate cost of the tax, and the devastation it is causing our industries that are supposed to be supplying money for the country as a whole. Proper distribution of representation, would mean the voice of the majority is heard and acted upon. To add insult to injury the Federal Government has completely ignored the suicide rate rise in Alberta since the oil field collapse. These deaths lay mainly at the hands of Trudeau and his American backers.

The next issue is the “Equalization” payments. These payments do not accurately represent the amount of money each province brings in each year. This was originally set up with the intent of providing money to keep the “have not” provinces afloat. Instead it has been abused and ignored by numerous Prime Ministers of all parties. Payments like these, need to changed and adjusted each year based on profits, or done away with completely, so that this abuse is not done so easily. Either do away with it altogether, so that each province supports themselves, or make them truly reflect the money each province has. It is not right or just to have 2 provinces like Alberta and Saskatchewan, more so Alberta, hemorrhaging funds after provinces they support through equalization payments, use that money to destroy these provinces. Quebec is certainly not a “have not” province, and should be PAYING equalization payments, not taking the largest slice of them, over 13 billion a year. Alberta and Saskatchewan have been in deficits since the Liberal Party bought and then failed to proceed with the pipeline developing, that would keep their economies strong, just because a VERY SLIM margin of people in a microscopic portion of the country, want it stopped.

Which brings me to my next point that needs addressing right away. The amount of power that two provinces out of 13 provinces and territories, have over the rest of the country. I had touched on this briefly before, but will look at it a bit more closely now. Ontario and Quebec determine who is in power, and influence/decide all of our policies as a result. In our 2019 election, the Bloc Party was elected heavily in Quebec. This means that they will further push through policies, with the Liberals, who are packed with Francophones sympathetic to Quebec, that are in Quebec’s favour. Their leader, in his speech after the election, stated that he will only work with the government on a case-by-case basis, and only if he feels it benefits Quebec. This self-focus is detrimental to our Country’s unity. The greed from Quebec has drained the funds from our Nation’s accounts for far too long. Why does one province dictate terms and make demands that the rest of the country cow-toes to? Ontario and Quebec need to start thinking about Canada as a whole, not focus only on themselves. We are a COUNTRY, not a collection of people bred to serve and feed 2 provinces. All Canadians deserve a say and should be able to influence policy, deciding how our country is run, and how funds are spent. One province, Quebec, should not be given special rights and regulations, separate from the rest of the country, they are not above the rest of us. We are all equal, a part of Canada, not meant to be walked all over. Every province, territory, and member of our Great Country, deserves the same rights, laws, and freedoms, if Quebec does not like living by the same rules and regulations as the rest of us, then let them leave, instead of forcing the West to leave. We live in a wonderfully free country, and are not here to serve the interests of only Ontario and Quebec.

Which leads me to my next point. And before I continue, let me reiterate not to get offended and fly off the handle at me. Read it, think on it, I am not trying to offend, nor insult any groups, races, religions, nor genders, only to summarize the feelings and sentiments I have heard, researched, and am now reflecting on. In Canada we have many groups asking for and demanding equality, and equality is the best thing for the world and our country. That being said, the groups we have demanding equality, and this is the part that may get people defensive, but think about the truth behind the statements before getting upset, they already have many more rights than the rest of the country. Equality means that every person is “equal” and is entitled to the same rights, freedoms, and opportunities, and follow the same laws. This, however, is not the case. First and foremost, we have Quebec, as mentioned before, who have far more rights, privileges, and their own set of laws that they abide by, somethings that no other province has the ability to do, yes we can make some of our own laws, just not to the extent that Quebec is able to. They force people to speak French mainly, and have French signage or they are unable to set up a business. If other provinces were to try to implement regulations like this in regards to English, which we would never do, there would be a huge uproar from the Francophone community in Canada, as there should be. This is a free country, English and French are our official languages, and as such, are entitled to the same rights. People of any language have the right to have signage in their language and to speak whatever language they choose, whether English or French. That being said, you do have to still be respectful of the main language of the area, and try to communicate as best you can, with the area’s language. Quebec should also not have separate tax laws, and get special treatment/funding for their colleges/universities. Just read today, an article in which Liberal MP Steven Guilbeault has inaccurately stated through Twitter that 70% of Canadians voted for Carbon Tax in the past election, and then goes on to rub in the Western Provinces faces, that fighting the tax was lost in court twice. Accuracy is key, and if he actually looked at the votes, he would see that in actuality, more Canadians voted for parties that oppose it, but that isn’t really what the election was about, it was about, and as a politician he should realize that elections are about more than one point on a platform. Rubbing the tax in Western Canadian faces is not the way to create unity and heal wounds, especially since he gladly accepts the equalization payments that get shipped his way from the West.

The next group that is demanding equality, and deserves equality, is our nations forefathers, the Aboriginal or First Nations people. With these different tribes, it does get complex with different treaties and agreements between tribes. Many live on reserve land and yet many still live off of the reserve, choosing to work in other cities or towns. This applies to all, though mostly those still on reserves. They are given special rights due to the aforementioned treaties, that were signed long ago. I am not saying that they do not deserve the status they have; all I am saying is that these treaties are outdated. Both sides need to come together and make new treaties that are more modern and suited to our current situation and standards. We as Canadians embrace all people, it is what makes our country the wonderful place it is. With that though comes responsibilities. Each group needs to be dealt with fairly and with EQUALITY in mind. To get back to treaties, special hunting rights should be changed to meet the hunting/fishing rights of ALL Canadian citizens. Money should not be given just to attend school, even if said person only attends the bare minimum of classes. Handing money out each month is not the right move, along with reserving spots in programs/professions. Removing all at once is not a good solution, it has to be done gradually, with respect for the individuals involved. Help our fellow Canadians, and your tribal members, become self-sufficient and have a true pride in themselves and their heritage. Taking handouts, no matter who the person, breeds laziness, no matter which group/race/religion/gender/age. Take a look at our welfare system for example, and how many on welfare don’t even have the pride or desire to go out and find jobs, again some people have no choice but to be on the program, just too many abuse it, so it also needs reformation.

Aboriginal heritage and culture are both fascinating and intriguing, filled with much positive and some negative, just like every single cultural group on the planet. We have all had bad things happen to us, and each group has also had negative moments in the millennia we have existed. Forgive the past, don’t forget, just forgive, let it lie there. Allow yourselves to move on and better yourselves, by focusing on the positives of your wonderful culture. Getting stuck focusing on the negative parts of history and your lives makes it impossible to move beyond. Trust me, I have had a lot of awful things in my life, which have caused PTSD, but I have had to accept, forgive, and move forward. Never forget, as it is a part of you, but don’t let these events distract you from what you need to do to move ahead. Positivity is the only way to get through life and make changes in your life, or the life of your people. It will greatly improve your people’s lives and their current situation.

Another group of people is our immigrants, who do fill necessary roles in our country and workforce, but when you come to Canada, take on customs and traditions, work to fit in to our society as a whole. Too many, and no I am not saying all, expect us to accommodate their beliefs, customs, and traditions. Complaining about our holidays and our laws regarding their clothing while working, voting, etc. These customs, beliefs, traditions, holidays, and laws, make up what it means to be Canadian, something we should take pride in, and not be willing to compromise on. I don’t move to a foreign country and expect them to change everything that they are as a country or people, just to accommodate me. I implore you to not come to our country and alienate us, you are quite welcome to our country, just don’t force changes on my country. Stop taking advantage of our hospitality, and more importantly, don’t take advantage of a Prime Minister who is weak.

Onto the next group. This one deserves a short statement before it. I am all for women’s rights, 100% behind that. Women and men should have equal pay, equal opportunity, and everything else that the other gender has. With that though comes making sure you are not demanding more than then equality, not special rights, like having positions reserved in schools or at workplaces. School openings and jobs should be reserved for whomever, despite race, gender, religion, or lifestyle choice, is most qualified. If that happens to be a woman, great, this would be the case in many situations, but you need to be more qualified and deserve it more based on merit. There would only be a few exceptions to this in fields that involve a certain race, gender, religion, or lifestyle choice, then those would be the ones who should be singled out for that particular job.

The final group that I will focus on is again, not meant to attack, or knock down this group. I am referring to those in the pride movement. I am just fine with you taking a firm stance for your beliefs, lifestyle choice, and your rights, even if it isn’t my lifestyle choice. We all have our lifestyle and beliefs we are entitled to. I do have a problem with a religious institution being forced to perform marriages when it goes against their beliefs and lifestyle choices. Your beliefs and lifestyle are not better than anyone else’s, forcing yours on someone else does not bridge any divides. In fact, what it really does is cause divides and makes these groups more set against you. We all need to understand that we are each unique and wonderfully created, and quit forcing our choices on others. We are all equal, we all deserve respect, but it has to go both ways, and that is not to say the Pride movement is the only party guilty of this, no quite the opposite, it has to come from all Canadians. Forcing causes prejudice and anger. Many of the things being demanded are not about equality but about special rights and privileges. Equality should be the goal, as is claimed, not gaining special treatment. The problem also comes with parades and weeks set aside for Pride weeks, or even other racial weeks. Why should this be done for one group of people, and not for every other group of people? When suggested by a few people jokingly, that they need a heterosexual parade or particular day/week, they are deemed prejudiced and against Pride groups in general, which is not the case. Discrimination has nothing to do with this at all in most cases, it is a feeling like they are being cast aside and discriminated against in return, they don’t want things shoved down their throats, as the Pride groups do not want anti-pride sentiments shoved down theirs. If this movement goes against personal beliefs or religions, it is discriminatory and antagonistic to expect them to change their beliefs or religion just to accommodate, whether Christian, Jewish, Muslim, etc. This is a matter of differing stances and everyone’s right to believe in their own religion/lifestyle. I do commend everyone in the Pride movement for having the incredible courage to come out and stand up for yourselves, though in many cases this could be done with more tact, bringing the desire for TRUE equality in mind, not special rights.

This all comes down to one thing. We are all Human, we are all Canadians, we are all uniquely different, but we are all EQUAL, and as such, no one deserves special treatment. Each human has the same value, as such the same rights, laws, and opportunities should be given to all. We all deserve what we are promised, equality.

On to the next point. I spent more time on equality than was intended, it is just so important that we all are equal and treated as such. Lack of leadership is a HUGE issue in Canada right now. Our leader does not speak with confidence, bumbling through sentences, dodging questions completely, never bothering to answer Canadians as a whole. He does not lead with confidence either, just a cocky arrogance he inherited from his father. His integrity and ethics are yet to be located. Caught insider trading, defrauding Canadians out of tax dollars to boost his personal residences, accepting bribes in the form of trips and vacations, forcing caucus members and the attorney general to do his bidding, accused of groping a woman, accused of pedophilia, and a blatant disregard for the wishes of his people, Canadians. He continues to ignore most of Canada and never fulfills promises, then jokes about it later, and can’t balance a budget. Never mind meddling in the ethics committees that investigate him, abuse of power with no accountability.

He claims to be a feminist, but women who leave his party claim the exact opposite. He embarrasses Canada abroad in every country he goes to, bringing shame upon our proud country, making us the laughing stock of the world. Then we get to all the foreign deals he has failed us on, money he has cost our country by spending without restraint, giving Canada it’s largest deficit in years, easily corrected by fixing our farming and oil industries. Finally, his mismanagement of our resources has been detrimental, and his actions have driven a further wedge into the divide and disconnect our country feels. He will be the cause of our nation’s folly, it’s ultimate destruction. Which is what the American organizations backing and secretly funding Trudeau desire, a humbled Canada, allowing them to shut down all of our resources, to bolster their own agendas.

The final point is our lack luster immigration policies. I won’t spend a lot of time on as I covered some of this before. Immigration is a good thing in moderation. Our unique diversity makes us Canadian and gives us pride as a nation. We do need to have strict guidelines and rules for it, as we used to, but Trudeau and the Liberal Party have weakened these guidelines and rules. We now have far more immigration than our country and economy can realistically support. We also have made it too easy to sneak terrorists into the country, not vetting more strictly in known terrorist-supporting countries (same with buying oil from them, when we know exactly where the money goes to). This has endangered our Canadian citizens, as well as our neighbors to the south. We have also diluted our own traditions to the point of losing our identity of what it means to be a Canadian. If asked what it means to be Canadian, I would struggle to come up with a clear picture. Some immigration is a wonderful thing, it just needs to be cautiously and in moderation.

To conclude, this is a beautiful country. A country I love and would hate to leave. Canada is a country in great turmoil, A country that is so full of division, and frustration, and very little respect between the divisive parties, that it threatens to tear apart our Great Nation. If nothing is done to fix this division, Canada will not survive. Our Nation will simply implode, splintering the Confederation that our forefathers fought to create and keep together. If changes are not made to show that every province, West or East, matters and that their voices are heard, we will lose our Canada. Canada will become a memory, a folklore, a story passed on to our future generations. I, along with many others in this Nation, call for our Prime Minister to step up, listen to the voices of Canada, for one moment in your life. Prime Minister Trudeau, do not be the cause of our Nation dissolving. You are already to blame for this growing discord between the halves of our country. Show Canada that you truly know how to care about something beyond yourself and not just act at it. Believe it, your actions speak volumes, the same actions that right now are speaking hate. Show Canada that you care, that you are even capable of showing true concern. Give all provinces and territories proper representation, consider ALL of our resources and show RESPECT for those who make up our Great Nation. We are ALL Canadians.