Letter to the Editor, Mississauga News, 23 February 2010
By: Farah Kalbouneh, MSNDP Federal Candidate
Dear Editor:
I have met with residents while canvassing in recent weeks, and many have expressed unhappiness with the federal Liberal and Conservative parties. However, many of these same residents have never given serious consideration to supporting the New Democratic Party (NDP).
Many residents I meet have never encountered the NDP’s policies, except when they are “borrowed” by the Liberals and repackaged as their own. Many have never thought of voting anything but Liberal or Conservative — and some choose not to vote at all — while at the same time crying out for an alternative to these two parties. Why is this?
I have been told that (former NDP Premier) Bob Rae ruined the province, but he ran Ontario almost 20 years ago, and is arguably the weakest example of an NDP government in Canadian history. What of the fiscal prudence of Premier Roy Romanow in Saskatchewan, now a “have” province, or the sensibility of former Manitoba Premier Gary Doer, now Ambassador to the United States?
Some believe the NDP has the best policy ideas of any federal party. Yet, New Democrats are still commonly dismissed out of hand, without any recognition of what we actually stand for.
The New Democratic Party tried to prevent the federal government from sliding into its current $36 billion deficit, first by opposing the meaningless two per cent cut to the GST, and then by opposing $50 billion in corporate tax giveaways. Had Harper heeded our advice, Canada could still be running budget surpluses.
New Democrats alone opposed the McGuinty government’s decision to place a huge power plant in the middle of the taxed Clarkson airshed, a principled stance that was based on science and community interest.
The Mississauga South NDP was one of only two community groups to oppose the city’s move to abolish Public Question Period, which was successfully retained only after persuasive arguments to city council.
At all levels, we are engaged and offering solutions that benefit everyone, not just an entitled few.
We have proven ideas, effective leadership, and we are growing every day. New Democrats work hard to bring the interests of all Canadians — not just multinational corporations and trust-fund millionaires — to the forefront of our political system.
Link to Mississauga News
