The ideological roots of Stephen Harper’s vendetta against sociology

2014/08/28 Leave a comment

While a bit over-the-top, there is a more than an element of truth to the roots of the Government’s distrust of social science and sociology. Paul Wells captured some of this in The Longer I’m Prime Minister in his discussion of the reasons behind the cancellation of the Census and his explanation of some of the thinkers, like Peter Brimelow, behind his views and ideology.

But sometimes the social scientists assign all responsibility to structural factors, neglecting the individual. Bit more complicated.

But worth reading and reflecting upon:

Harper’s two disparaging comments about sociology, however, also need to be understood alongside his gutting of the long-form census in 2010. It is widely accepted that this action fundamentally undermined Canada’s ability to understand its own demographics, long-term social trends, and inequalities — in short, its sociology.

So what does Harper have against sociology? First, Harper is clearly trumpeting a standard component of neo-liberal ideology: that there are no social phenomena, only individual incidents. This ideology traces back to Margaret Thatcher’s famous claim that “there is no such thing as society.” Neo-liberalism paints all social problems as individual problems. The benefit of this for those who share Harper’s agenda, of course, is that if there are no social problems or solutions, then there is little need for government. Individuals are solely responsible for the problems they face.

This ideology is so seductive not only because it radically simplifies our world, but also because it mirrors the two social institutions neo-liberals actually believe in — the “free” market and law and order. Everything is reduced to either a simplistic market transaction or a criminal case. In the former, you either have the money to buy stuff, or you don’t and it’s up to you to get more. In the latter, a lone individual is personally responsible for a crime and is punished for it. Easy peasy. No sociology needed.

via The ideological roots of Stephen Harper’s vendetta against sociology | Toronto Star.

Filed under Government Tagged with , , , ,

What unites these slain native women? An inquiry might tell us – The Globe and Mail

2014/08/25 Leave a comment

Renzetti in the Globe on the need for an enquiry regarding slain native women and the double standards society has with respect to the most vulnerable (think of Leonard Cohen’s wonderful song, Everybody Knows):

This government’s fear of facts, study and research into any topic that might cast it in a poor light is well documented, and not worth repeating here. But where actual lives are at stake, this truculence beggars belief: It is only three-year-olds, and not national governments, who should hide in the dark with pillows over their heads hoping that the bad thing will go away if they just don’t look. If they look, of course, they might just see something unpleasant that requires immediate attention, and a bit of courage.

On Feb. 13, the day police believe Inuit university student Loretta Saunders was killed in Halifax, the Native Women’s Association of Canada presented 23,000 signatures to the House of Commons, calling for a national inquiry. Those names may as well have been written in invisible ink, for all the attention Mr. Harper gave them.

Does that sound cynical? I feel cynical at this moment. If hundreds of cattle farmers had gone missing, or if oil executives and Bay Street lawyers were being snatched from the streets, I bet we would have studies and recommendations coming out our ears. You wouldn’t see the Peace Tower for the mountains of paper. Some lucky developer would be building a maximum-security prison to deal with the horrible wave of farmer/executive/lawyer violence. Dolefully voiced television commercials would warn of the danger to men in suits and Stetsons.

But these are aboriginal women, many of them poor and described, euphemistically, as “living a vulnerable lifestyle.” You would think that the vulnerable would be more in need of the state’s protection, not less, but perhaps I’m living in some utopian dream of Canada – the kind you see on TV, sometimes, advertising the country to foreign tourists.

What unites these slain native women? An inquiry might tell us – The Globe and Mail.

Filed under Government Tagged with , , ,

The Two Sides of Stephen Harper: Cold War Warrior and Compassion

2014/06/02 Leave a comment

Starting with the former, a reminder that the PM is not only driven by diaspora politics in relation to Ukraine as he channels his internal Cold War warrior:

“Evil comes in many forms and seems to reinvent itself time and again,” he said.“But whatever it calls itself — Nazism, Marxist-Leninism, today, terrorism — they all have one thing in common: the destruction, the end of human liberty.”

Canadians, the prime minister said, are well aware of that destruction.

“We feel this pain so acutely because nearly one-quarter of all Canadians were either held captive by communism’s chains or are the sons and daughters of those who were.”

Stephen Harper takes aim at Putin.

And yet his softer side can be seen in his support for the recent summit on Maternal, Newborn and Child Health (MNCH) and his media interview with Melinda Gates (as well as a rare admission of the values of scientific evidence and experts):

“It’s hard for me not to get very emotional about this because we know, we scientifically know, what vaccinations and immunizations have done for us, personally, in our generation and for generations after us,” he said on the second day of the government’s maternal, newborn and child health summit.

“I frankly don’t understand people who are walking away in our society from something that’s proven to work.”…

Harper then offered his advice to those who “go off on their own theories and not listen to the scientific evidence.”

“Don’t indulge your theories, think of your children and listen to the experts,” he said.

‘If you love your child,’ vaccinate your child: Melinda Gates

 

Filed under Other Tagged with , , , , ,

Diaspora Politics and PM Trip to Ukraine – My CBC Interview

2014/03/24 Leave a comment

In case interested, my short TV interview on how diaspora politics is a factor in Canada’s response to the crisis in Ukraine and the PM’s trip.

http://www.cbc.ca/player/News/ID/2443812861/

Filed under Multiculturalism, Public Policy Tagged with , ,

Jonathan Kay: Even some Zionists should find the Tories’ Israel zeal to be disturbingly manic | National Post

2014/01/23 Leave a comment

Interesting commentary by Jonathan Kay of the National Post on the messaging of PM Harper and the Conservative government. Ironically, it is possible that such unqualified support may, over time, undermine support for the Government’s activities and initiatives against antisemitism, given the relative silence of the important linkages with other forms of discrimination that impact on a wide range of communities in Canada:

Perhaps the best adjective I can use to describe the Conservatives’ zeal for Israel — and, indeed for all things Jewish — is manic. In interpersonal terms, it reminds me of a couple that professes their status as soul mates — loudly, and very repeatedly — as they bask in the bloom of first love (as opposed to the occasional bickering that characterizes the long, solid marriage between Israel and the United States). In my email inbox, I have lost count of the number of messages from Jason Kenney advertising his government’s support of Israel, its steadfast opposition to anti-Semitism, and its diligent observance of some anniversary or memorial day honouring a figure connected to Judaism. Many times, whole days pass in which this is the only type of message I get from his office. In each individual case, the spirit is admirable. But the overall effect comes across as a sort of monomania.

This fixation is beginning to express itself in somewhat reckless gestures. One of the members of Harper’s official delegation in Israel, for instance, is a Rabbi who has offered public support to Pamela Geller, an anti-Islamic conspiracy theorist. When taken to task for the Rabbi’s inclusion, the PMO shot back with the lazy, apparently baseless, and possibly libelous charge that the Muslim group raising the objections has “ties” to Hamas. This is the not the way a serious government responds to the legitimate concerns of its citizens.

The Harper government is to be lauded for the overall tendency of its foreign policy — which is to offer full-throated support for democratic nations that share our values. But where the Jewish state is concerned, our support is crossing the line into a sort of emotional mania. And it has never been on fuller display than this week, during the Prime Minister’s trip to Israel.

Jonathan Kay: Even some Zionists should find the Tories’ Israel zeal to be disturbingly manic | National Post.

Filed under Antisemitism, Hate crimes, Holocaust, Multiculturalism Tagged with , , ,

PM Harper on Antisemitism at the Knesset

2014/01/21 Leave a comment

Full text in link below, section on antisemitism is stronger restatement than in Minister Kenney’s pre-visit interview (Canada has “moral obligation” to support Israel, stop anti-Semitism: Jason Kenney):

And in the garden of such moral relativism, the seeds of much more sinister notions can be easily planted.

“And so we have witnessed, in recent years, the mutation of the old disease of anti-Semitism and the emergence of a new strain.

We all know about the old anti-Semitism.

It was crude and ignorant, and it led to the horrors of the death camps.

Of course, in many dark corners, it is still with us.

But, in much of the Western world, the old hatred has been translated into more sophisticated language for use in polite society.

People who would never say they hate and blame the Jews for their own failings or the problems of the world, instead declare their hatred of Israel and blame the only Jewish state for the problems of the Middle East.

As once Jewish businesses were boycotted, some civil-society leaders today call for a boycott of Israel.

On some campuses, intellectualized arguments against Israeli policies thinly mask the underlying realities, such as the shunning of Israeli academics and the harassment of Jewish students.

Most disgracefully of all, some openly call Israel an apartheid state.

Think about that.

Think about the twisted logic and outright malice behind that: a state, based on freedom, democracy and the rule of law, that was founded so Jews can flourish, as Jews, and seek shelter from the shadow of the worst racist experiment in history, that is condemned, and that condemnation is masked in the language of anti-racism.

It is nothing short of sickening.

But this is the face of the new anti-Semitism.

It targets the Jewish people by targeting Israel and attempts to make  the old bigotry acceptable for a new generation.

Of course, criticism of Israeli government policy is not in and of itself necessarily anti-Semitic.

But what else can we call criticism that selectively condemns only the Jewish state and effectively denies its right to defend itself while systematically ignoring – or excusing – the violence and oppression all around it?

What else can we call it when, Israel is routinely targeted at the United Nations, and when Israel remains the only country to be the subject of a permanent agenda item at the regular sessions of its human rights council?

Read the full text of Harper’s historic speech to Israel’s Knesset – The Globe and Mail.

Filed under Antisemitism, Government, Multiculturalism Tagged with ,

Inside Stephen Harper’s ‘secret ethnic media’ session: Tim Harper | Toronto Star

2014/01/18 Leave a comment

In the vein of “Shopping for Votes,” this piece on the Conservative strategy with ethnic media is revealing but not terribly surprising. Previous governments also cultivated ethnic media to reach the diverse communities that comprise Canada, but generally did so in conjunction with a more open attitude to the national media.

His reluctance to sit down and talk about issues with the national media may not be puzzling but his view on the role of the ethnic media is troubling.

It is not our role, whether we represent The Toronto Star or Asian Star Weekly, to play a “vital” role in getting the government’s message out.

Both Liberals and Progressive Conservatives once played a variation of this game, giving priority to local reporters on trips outside Ottawa, in the belief they would toss softer questions to their leader.

That blew up when the local reporters decided they didn’t want to play that role and asked tougher questions than the Ottawa gang.

If Harper really thinks the ethnic media are there to help him deliver an unfiltered message, one of them is going to rise up and bite him before anyone poses for any pictures.

Inside Stephen Harper’s ‘secret ethnic media’ session: Tim Harper | Toronto Star.

Filed under Multiculturalism Tagged with , , , ,

No ‘mass phenomenon’ of homegrown radicalization in Canada, says Harper – Winnipeg Free Press

2013/09/24 Leave a comment

Correct assessment, although even isolated incidents can be deadly. Interestingly, no mention of the ongoing research towards better understanding of some of the possible factors involved that are part of the federally funded Kanishka Project:

…. invest in research on pressing questions for Canada on terrorism and counter-terrorism, such as preventing and countering violent extremism.

The Project is about better understanding what terrorism means in the Canadian context, how that is changing over time, and what we can do to support effective policies and programs to counter terrorism and violent extremism in Canada.

No ‘mass phenomenon’ of homegrown radicalization in Canada, says Harper – Winnipeg Free Press.

Filed under Government, Multiculturalism, Radicalization, Religion Tagged with , ,

Quebec Values Charter – Some Articles

2013/09/17 Leave a comment

Best commentary and analysis of the day from Chantal Hébert of The Star, trying to understand why Premier Marois engaged in such a risky strategy:

Moreover, the premier’s contributions to the debate so far — starting with the clumsy suggestion that multiculturalism is at the root cause of domestic terrorism in the United Kingdom, and the ill-informed assertion that France’s rigid secular system is a great model — suggest that her views on a diverse society may be shaped by impressions rather than evidence-based knowledge.

For the record, that view — as it is put forward — is strikingly less cosmopolitan than those of better-travelled predecessors such as René Lévesque, Jacques Parizeau and Lucien Bouchard.

At the end of the day, the motivations that drove Marois to lead the PQ across a Rubicon that distances it from the civic nationalism that it has always promoted in the past probably involves a mix of calculation, conviction and willful ignorance. But the combination, under any of its variations, does not add up to a compelling portrait.

Hébert: What motivated Pauline Marois to take such a risk?

First comment by Prime Minister Harper on the Quebec proposed Charter. Focus is on likelihood, rather than principles, compared to other federal leaders (but Minister Kenney has been dealing with those).

Quebec’s charter of values will fail, PM Harper predicts – Politics – CBC News.

Margaret Wente makes her usual generalizations but I think captures the political dynamic well in:

 Ms. Marois lays an egg 

And Warren Kinsella in The Sun provides credit to the federal politicians who have spoken out forcefully on the proposed Charter, where all three major parties have been consistent and clear:

The best of Canada, the worst of the PQ

Filed under Charte des valeurs québécoise, Interculturalisme, Multiculturalism Tagged with , , ,

Daily round-up on Charte des valeurs québécoises

2013/08/30 Leave a comment

Usual daily round-up, starting with expression of concern from Prime Minister Harper:

Charte des valeurs: «le gouvernement souverainiste cherche la chicane avec Ottawa», dit Harper | Stéphanie Marin | Politique.

Followed by a nice contrast piece between PM Harper’s caution and Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau’s forthright and clear position, and where he drew parallels between MLK’s I have a dream speech and the implied segregation of the proposed Charter. This of course inflamed some of the Quebec intelligentsia and politicians, but Trudeau has a point:

A tale of two politicians: Harper and Trudeau wade into controversial Quebec issue

And the réplique (and ongoing sensitivity about the Trudeau legacy and family) in Quebec:

Charte des valeurs: Lisée lance un appel au calme

The Quebec Liberal Party seems to be holding to its position against the proposed Charter:

Signes religieux: Couillard réaffirme la position traditionnelle du PLQ

And lastly – if you have lasted this long – short commentary by Charles Taylor, one of the leading philosophers and thinkers on multiculturalism, and how he despairs of the political class and its limited world view:

La question est de savoir qui va rédiger cette charte. Si c’est rédigé par l’Assemblée nationale actuelle, je n’en veux pas. [gras] Ce sont des gens qui ont des idées tellement bornées…dans la plupart des cas. Ça me fait pleurer comme Québécois d’entendre ce qu’eux entendent par laïcité.

Les fines nuances de Charles Taylor

Filed under Charte des valeurs québécoise, Interculturalisme, Multiculturalism Tagged with , , , , ,

← Older posts

Newer posts →