To the editor:
I hope that I am not the only one wondering what has become of our world and country recently. Why are some Canadians embracing the USA’s policy of hate, lies and racism? We prided ourselves, being nice polite Canadians, on being fair and honest. Not swastika painters and racists.
What I see now is the beginning of a total breakdown, from a lot of our politicians and regular citizens, towards meanness and an ugliness that we have never seen in this country before. It only took a little over a year for us to devolve into stupidity (bad ideas catch on quick) from watching what is happening south of the border, open lies and racist chants are now the norm in the USA. It sounds like Europe in the 1930s. It is happening here too. Check out the daily apologies for saying racist or untrue statements in our own government.
It sure did not take long to reveal the ugly truth that lurks just under the surface of humans, we do not know how to get along with each other, for whatever bias colour, creed or even how you arrived in Canada, the hate is just waiting to come out. It is very sad. Our politicians think it is okay to act up in parliament or legislature for that matter and launch into personal attacks and racist tweets because they feel it will advance their cause. I do not believe this is what Canada is about.
I see that the people of Toronto want a gun ban as people in Canada are mimicking the USA for mass killings, the daily coverage is becoming more acceptable as it becomes the norm. Pretty soon school killings will become page 3 news. Page one news will be how the Royals want their tea, or how some movie star had a wardrobe malfunction! These things are not news. Who cares.
The many recent natural disasters are not reported on after a couple of days and people put it out of their minds, the problems have not gone away, they are just not sensational anymore. Those people in “other” places are quickly forgotten.
There is a lot of unworthy news, maybe not fake, just useless trivia, the press has to take control of itself and relearn what is real and what is trivial. Our politicians need to get back to the idea that we are all the same, and not play to the hate base just to stay in power, those people should get another job!
The stupid useless tabloid stories that are out there need to disappear. They cause nothing but hate and fear, a distraction. Canadians get saturated with a constant barrage of nonsense and we start to believe it. Then it is okay to hate your neighbour because you read or heard it somewhere over and over again, someone else is doing it too and it must be alright. It is not.
Like it or not we take our cue from the USA: that much is obvious from the recent increase in racism and just plain meanness that is reported daily. I hope we are not beyond getting back to what I believe Canada is about or wants to be, which is inclusion, fairness and keeping an open and respectful mind.
The truth is hard to come by these days and I know the only way to keep informed is with a free and honest press. I hope our press does not degenerate to the point of some U.S. networks of just reporting one side of a story, that is not I believe how things should be reported.
Wake up Canada, we are not the USA and I for one am proud of that fact. Do not become closed minded and willfully blind to racism in any form or just plain meanness, stand up and call nonsense when you see it! Get the message to your M.P., start writing now. Tell them to get back to being respectful.
Like the X-files, “The truth is out there”. We just have to sort it out soon.
George Ostoforoff
100 Mile House
