The Elephant In The Room - The Conservative Supporters
The media - the mainstream media and the Canadian blogosphere - have dissected the NDP and Liberal voters. But, almost no-one has looked at what makes the Conservative supporters continue to support the Conservative party.
The only story I've seen so far is this one from the Toronto Star about Crowfoot, Alberta. Even though this community would be much better served by the policies of the NDP, they will still vote Conservative because, for generations, they always have. The question remains, why won't they change and vote for a party that will better serve them in government? Don't they know they CAN vote for another party; that they CAN vote for better government?
What makes people so dense to the facts staring them in the face? What makes people continue to vote for a party that has been one of the most blatantly corrupt, lying, cheating, thieving, racist, homophobic, women-hating, war mongering, anti-democratic, Canada-hating parties in the history of Canada? Why would people continue to vote for a party that has been THE worst at managing the economy, a party that has embarrassed us on the world stage and made it so that the rest of the world now frowns upon us instead of looking to us as a world leader on the issues of peacekeeping and environmental protection, a party that cares only about the rich and not a fig for most Canadians, a party that has gone out of its way to undermine the support mechanisms for farmers, a party that is hell-bent on tearing down democracy and setting up a fascist state, a party that is only passionate in how much it hates Canada, a party that would reverse all the progress that has been made in our country over the past 50 years?
Why?
The Grinch here is not Stephen Harper and the Conservatives, but the people who blindly continue to vote in these vicious thugs. As shown in many opinion polls over the years it is known that most of these supporters value what we have (or had until the Harper Conservatives took it away) in Canada. They value medicare, They value our social support system. They value helping each other out and the fact that in Canada we do help each other out. They value peacekeeping over war-making. They value the environment and would like to take better care of it. They value the diversity of the peoples of this country. They value equality. They value love not hate. They value our democratic system. They value fairness and openness. They value honesty. They value having a government that respects them. So, why won't they respect themselves and vote for a party that shares the same values? Why vote for a party that turns around and craps on everything they believe in?
The corporate mainstream media has definitely played a part at swaying people to support the Conservatives and paint the other parties badly. And, there are those, especially in rural areas of the country, who vote for the local candidate, regardless of what party they belong to. And, as mentioned, there are those who blindly vote for whoever their family has always voted for. There are those who vote like it's all a game, and vote for whoever they think will win the election; they feel good about voting for a party that wins, even though that party turns and stabs them in the back. There are gullible people, people who fall for propaganda and lies and shiny objects. Some people can't read, or don't like reading, and some people have short memories and short attention spans, so, they don't read, listen to, or watch enough to see what has been happening to Canada. Some people live in caves. Some people don't have any connection to the Internet, or read newspapers, or have TVs or radios, or talk to anyone. But, I can't believe there are so many of these people as to collectively amount to over one third of the committed voters in this Country.
Wake up people! Canada has been burning, and you set the fire.
Addendum
I am possibly underestimating my take on media persuasion in my post above. Check out the media endorsements for this election:
Conservatives: 31
NDP: 2
Bloc: 1
Liberals: 0
Green: 0
And Let Freedom Reign's take on this.
See also:
Harper's Majority: What's Left for us
Scott's DiaTribes: What we were up against (everyone who was anti-Conservative)
Excerpts:
That folks, comes from an obvious Conservative supporter from a very Conservative county, but that's the mindset of some of Harper’s supporters. It also shows the droning and droning of the economy obviously resonated with some of these folks – they didn’t care if Harper was in contempt of Parliament – they blamed the minority Parliaments for Harper’s failings. I can see similarities to the Harper voters and the George W Bush voters from 2004 – they voted for stability – and discretion’s were ignored.
From the comments:
The only story I've seen so far is this one from the Toronto Star about Crowfoot, Alberta. Even though this community would be much better served by the policies of the NDP, they will still vote Conservative because, for generations, they always have. The question remains, why won't they change and vote for a party that will better serve them in government? Don't they know they CAN vote for another party; that they CAN vote for better government?
What makes people so dense to the facts staring them in the face? What makes people continue to vote for a party that has been one of the most blatantly corrupt, lying, cheating, thieving, racist, homophobic, women-hating, war mongering, anti-democratic, Canada-hating parties in the history of Canada? Why would people continue to vote for a party that has been THE worst at managing the economy, a party that has embarrassed us on the world stage and made it so that the rest of the world now frowns upon us instead of looking to us as a world leader on the issues of peacekeeping and environmental protection, a party that cares only about the rich and not a fig for most Canadians, a party that has gone out of its way to undermine the support mechanisms for farmers, a party that is hell-bent on tearing down democracy and setting up a fascist state, a party that is only passionate in how much it hates Canada, a party that would reverse all the progress that has been made in our country over the past 50 years?
Why?
The Grinch here is not Stephen Harper and the Conservatives, but the people who blindly continue to vote in these vicious thugs. As shown in many opinion polls over the years it is known that most of these supporters value what we have (or had until the Harper Conservatives took it away) in Canada. They value medicare, They value our social support system. They value helping each other out and the fact that in Canada we do help each other out. They value peacekeeping over war-making. They value the environment and would like to take better care of it. They value the diversity of the peoples of this country. They value equality. They value love not hate. They value our democratic system. They value fairness and openness. They value honesty. They value having a government that respects them. So, why won't they respect themselves and vote for a party that shares the same values? Why vote for a party that turns around and craps on everything they believe in?
The corporate mainstream media has definitely played a part at swaying people to support the Conservatives and paint the other parties badly. And, there are those, especially in rural areas of the country, who vote for the local candidate, regardless of what party they belong to. And, as mentioned, there are those who blindly vote for whoever their family has always voted for. There are those who vote like it's all a game, and vote for whoever they think will win the election; they feel good about voting for a party that wins, even though that party turns and stabs them in the back. There are gullible people, people who fall for propaganda and lies and shiny objects. Some people can't read, or don't like reading, and some people have short memories and short attention spans, so, they don't read, listen to, or watch enough to see what has been happening to Canada. Some people live in caves. Some people don't have any connection to the Internet, or read newspapers, or have TVs or radios, or talk to anyone. But, I can't believe there are so many of these people as to collectively amount to over one third of the committed voters in this Country.
Wake up people! Canada has been burning, and you set the fire.
Addendum
I am possibly underestimating my take on media persuasion in my post above. Check out the media endorsements for this election:
Conservatives: 31
NDP: 2
Bloc: 1
Liberals: 0
Green: 0
And Let Freedom Reign's take on this.
See also:
Harper's Majority: What's Left for us
Scott's DiaTribes: What we were up against (everyone who was anti-Conservative)
Excerpts:
That folks, comes from an obvious Conservative supporter from a very Conservative county, but that's the mindset of some of Harper’s supporters. It also shows the droning and droning of the economy obviously resonated with some of these folks – they didn’t care if Harper was in contempt of Parliament – they blamed the minority Parliaments for Harper’s failings. I can see similarities to the Harper voters and the George W Bush voters from 2004 – they voted for stability – and discretion’s were ignored.
From the comments:
I don’t know what’s worse; the ignorance, bordering on foolishness coming out of your landlord’s mouth, or the conbots postings here trying desperately to defend a corrupt Conservative government.
What we have learned with this election is that Conservative supporters are hypocrites when it comes to government corruption.
...
"It also shows the droning and droning of the economy obviously resonated"
Which is why I kept harping on media figures promoting the myth that the Conservatives have some special competence where the economy is concerned. That’s an area where the media overwhelmingly reinforces the Conservative narrative.
8 comments:
Think about this very carefully.
Do you really want to know why we vote Conservative? The language and hyperbole that you've used implies that you've already decided; your way is right, our way is wrong, and nothing we can say will change anything at all.
So, ask yourself, do you really want to know? Do you really want the explanation, or would you prefer to go on posting without regard to what we really think? I'm not going to waste more of my time trying to explain things to someone who simply doesn't want to understand our point of view.
The riding of Crowfoot was used because its voters supported the Conservatives the most out of all the ridings in Canada.
I have driven along highway 9 through Crowfoot from the Saskatchewan border to the outskirts of Calgary. It is a place of straight roads and mostly slight rolling hills. I didn't get a sense that this was a land of Bible thumpers. In fact, I could fit right in except for the Ontario license plates.
While Stephen Harper preaches economics in his campaign, I do think he subtly promotes the hierarchy of power that goes directly from the prime minister to families. Everything in between is a void. This is just my assumption, but if one supports a strong Conservative majority (controlled by Harper), the prime minister will recognize the independence of families. The state will not interfere with families. Now, that does not necessarily mean that the state won't interfere with specifics such as limiting abortion rights.
Yes, Canada is a multicultural country which recognizes the plurality of its citizens including the diversity in race and sexual orientations. That is true in Toronto and Vancouver. However, travel along highway 9 through the riding of Crowfoot. I did not see the ethno-diversity. I also did not encounter a Canadian version of "Prisilla, Queen of the Prairie." While one can focus on Crowfoot, there are many ridings across Canada that do not have samosas and Prisillas.
Harper is the king. While the lords and knights in Toronto and Vancouver do not like the way he is taking control away from them, Harper does not bother with the peasants. He gives the illusion that the peasants are in control of their own destiny. That is probably why the peasants of Crowfoot accept Harper. He is not going to take anything away from the peasants when the peasants have nothing worth taking away. Harper can't take away the peasants' democracy, because they have none right now.
It is funny that way back in the mid-19th century Karl Marx thought that all you would need is universal suffrage and the people would get rid of representatives who look after the rich and powerful. It did happen for a time and to degrees but it never really happened in a meaningful way because what Marx didn't anticipate was how easily the "people" could be manipulated by ideology. People don't vote in their interests because they have bought a big lie about society and its possibilities. And this shows no sign of changing anytime soon.
Good post. The main problem, in Canada, as well as other countries, is how people "normalize" stupidity and scuzziness.
When Paul Martin engaged in naked, imperialist thuggery in Haiti, our media and elites simply lied about it until it was easy enough to ignore it. Then they continued to talk about Paul Martin as a decent guy.
Same thing with harper trying to sweep child rape by the Afghan forces we're trraining, under the rug.
That sort of shit should, in a sane world, have you up on charges and shunned forever by decent society.
Here it gets you an endorsement from the Glib and Stale.
Anon - yes, please enlighten us.
Conservatives come from an authoritarian background, from repressive child rearing. This results in 1. denial as a life strategy. 2. identification with dominating figures like Harper. 3 Fear and lack of curiosity. 4. black and white world views. Read up on the authoritarian personality for more on this...
Anonymous, I have lived in many countries, voted in three, been an official observer in three others and I know that there are numerous reasons that people vote conservative. But the primary one is simply that they are deluded, pure and simple. They are deluded into believing that right-wing parties and governments are good money managers and that these groups actually believe in democracy. They are deluded in the same way that average people are deluded into supporting wars that make money for large corporation but are sold as patriotic efforts.
Yes, Anonymous, we have already decided because we are careful readers of history and ideologies. We have read Edmund Burke and the Speeches of William PItt, we have read Thomas Malthus and Thomas Carlyle. We know the way that George Bush stole an election and how Nixon used the media to hide his carpet bombing of Cambodia. We know that Hitler was elected with 46% of the vote and that people are easily manipulated. And today we know that Harper's is the only government in the history of the Westminster System that has been found in contempt. We know that he has demonstrated again and again that he hates democracy and that he hates the people. And most of all we know that the core of Harper supporters also hate democracy and would support any kind of abuse if feeds their corporate agenda. We have decided because we know the lies and we know the dangers of tyranny. We know because we have read Percy Shelley and, like him, we believe that the poets have been the unacknowledged legislators of the world, and that it is the progressives that driven forward the real goals of humanity while the right has attempted to hold us back. It is conservatives that opposed the abolition of slavery and the conservatives that opposed universal education.
Yes, we have decided and nothing in your ignorant, blinkered, sophomoric, mind will change it because we are the music makers and we are the dreamers of dreams.
Boyah!
Comments from Facebook on this:
Coming from a family who mostly votes conservatives and always have, I find this very frustrating too. My dad, an aging veteran who has been rejected twice for extra disability pension for hearing loss directly related to his service in demolitions after WW2 still votes conservative. His second choice would be the Liberals. I can't get it through to him that the NDP is the only party that would take him claims seriously with real compassion. Oh ya, and when he makes a doctor appointment, he waits 3 or more months sometimes to get in! He has serious health issues and is 77 years old!! Unbelievable. He is still voting conservative, very sad :(
I've been asking myself that same question. Alberta is very similar to Quebec in many ways, just short of being separatist (although many are), but Trudeau's provincial wealth distribution policies and the western alienation effect is still rippling through society. The National Citizens Coalition is very strong here, there's a bit of an anti union movement, an anti Canadian Wheat Board movement, an anti long gun registry movement. Albertans want less federal government interference in resource management, they want money transfers to Quebec to end (many wish Quebec would just separate), they want to keep oil revenues here in the province and let the others fend for themselves, they want privatization of state run companies, they want to abolish the senate, and there's more. The general population of Alberta is largely Christian and groups like REAL, Focus on the Family and the anti abortion movement are hugely popular. Many Albertans take issue with the Charter of Rights and Freedoms (another Liberal initiative). Stephen Harper is the demigod. It's not just Albertans or christians which feel this way. The conservative campaign's focus on the economy is just a tool to attract new voters to the Harper fold. The other issues have been largely dormant as a result of multiple minority governments, but diehard Harper supporters are steadfast. The NDP is just not an option.
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