November 06, 2008 Michael AugustineLisez en Francais
Good morning ladies and gentlemen,
Anyone who hasn’t been hiding in a cave will know that we have a new status quo in the House of Commons, as Stephen Harper and his Federal Conservatives have again been elected as the ruling party in Canada, leading a minority government, albeit this time with greater political leverage. Needless to say, it was a rather confrontational process, liberally peppered with moments of anger, indignation, accusations, and even belittlement. Still, despite that rather pervasively petulant atmosphere, there was some serious debate that happened. Relevant facts were concretely discussed and debated, and promises of solutions were even offered. With the federal election now behind us, I can, through hindsight, dissect the happenings a bit, and analyze the factors that helped shape our new governmental landscape.
Several issues came to the fore during the campaign - the cold reality of the economy being primary amongst them. However, more relevant to us, the potential voters, was who among us would be left out to die out in that cold, should one political party be elected over another. Special interest groups, lobbyist, concerned citizens, unions, independent political parties, and especially radical fanatics, all came about with rallying cries about their wants, their needs...their priority at the top of the list of relevant concerns. It was somewhat disheartening that, at a time when we needed to come together as a community, as a nation, we instead took turns eagerly tearing each other apart in the fervent belief that “we” are more important then “they” are.
Through it all, we seemed to have forgotten a most vital piece of information, that being: we are not a “free country,” we are a democracy - nothing more than a political system. As such, we need again remind ourselves that our self-declared “compulsory entitlements” are in fact not compulsory at all, but privileges, bestowed upon us by, well - everyone. We enjoy freedoms, not exemption from responsibility. And, more important than anything else, we enjoy the opportunity to pursue happiness, not the obligatory provision of it.
The socially militant mentality has forever been the bane of democracy; always attempting to disrupt that delicate balance of having to serve thousands of equally competing needs, by angrily (and sometimes violently) usurping that balance to give its own narrow, often truculent points-of-view more weight. That selfish ideal is often like a boulder being dropped in the water; its massive ripples moving ever further across the societal waters, spreading egregious shortsightedness that can cloud the vision of any other groups and organizations they come into contact with.
I’m certain we can all recognize moments in our lives where we’ve flown into a tirade about how “the government did this...”, and “the government did not do that...”. Sometimes we may have taken it upon ourselves to champion against those perceived outrages. On occasion, we may have even waved the banners of our indignity a little too eagerly, voicing what is essentially one person’s opinion as universal fact. That attitude can become treacherous! We must never allow ourselves to lose the objectivity that enables us to acknowledge that, yes, there are other points of view, and yes, they are as equally valid as our own, lest the weight of our arguments become yet another boulder in the water.
In my time with the Society, I have come across this “Us versus Them” mentality several times. Quite often it appears in the form of individuals who have lost much in their lives, and, who, through that loss, have angrily come to believe that they are entitled to some form of compensation, some restitution, for their suffering. To be honest, it can sometimes be a very difficult point of view to argue against.
The Multiple Sclerosis Society of Canada, itself, was founded on a similar platform, while holding a similar ideal: that people living with MS are as equally entitled to what society has to offer as anyone else, and that that belief was worth fighting for. For sixty years, we have worked diligently to further the rights of Canadian living with MS. We have been passionate in our efforts to be a leader in finding a cure for multiple sclerosis, and to enable people affected by MS to enhance their quality of life. However, being passionate and being militant are two very different thing - one builds bridges, the other burns them.
We have, since the beginning, been about building bridges. We have worked diligently with all levels of government, and all parties, making great strides in both legislation for the rights of all disabled citizens living with a disability, and in advances that especially benefit the MS Society’s members. We have always taken our responsibilities seriously, and continue to steward those established ties with our elected officials. We are a strong and vital voice representing those issues that are important to us, and we will continue to maintain an exemplary reputation as being considerate, constructive and cooperative.
I am pleased to announce that I have just embarked on a new path within the Society. I have been tapped to become a voice for multiple sclerosis, not to you, the public, but to those political bodies we have elected to oversee us. Thus, I have begun in earnest to learn the ways of lobbying and governmental policy making. It is, needless to say, a bit daunting, as much rides on my ability to effectively speak on behalf of the over 55,000 to 75,000 Canadians living with this disease, and the still many more, who seek to permanently end MS. I have no doubt that I will be confronted by some of those individuals I spoke of, who are as fervently non-supportive of my cause as they are in favour of their own private ideals and agendas. However, I remain passionate, not militant. My head and heart are in the right place, and I am willing to work with my elected officials in seeking solutions, not work against them while seeking confrontations.
I would ask those of you who are reading this, who seek to have a voice in what happens to you and those you care about, to not appoint yourselves as a crusader, and then take it upon yourselves to selfishly speak for all people. We all have our own unique voice, and we all want to be heard. Yes, it’s true. I am speaking on behalf of people with multiple sclerosis, but I speak, not as myself, not an individual, but as a representative of all of YOUR voices; your needs and wants, your hopes and dreams.
As such, I charge you with making those needs known, not with a yell or scream, but with words that we at the Multiple Sclerosis Society of Canada can use, to further our dream of being able to end MS. Please share with me those issues that are most important to you. Call your chapter or unit, and voice your concerns. Contact your division, and let us know what you value from your government, and how we can work together to help each other to make those desires a reality.
Together, we can achieve anything we dream. Together, we can end MS!
Irreverently Yours,
Aug, who is a pretty passionate guy!