It’s time for a new party

To the Editor:
As Harper’s Conservatives, start to dismantle Canada, it is time for a new party to give voice to the millions of Canadians who are disenfranchised in this country. The homeless, the elderly, families living below the poverty line, First Nations people mired in northern slums.
Canada, since its inception, has been a colony, first of the French, then of the English, and now increasingly that of the USA. It has been a resource rich entity open for exploitation, furs and fish, forests, oil and gas and now our sovereignty is at stake.
We decry the courage of a Hugo Chavez standing up for his country against the multi nationals, but where do we fit in the equation? I’ll tell you where, right up there with Brazil, Chile, India, or any other Third World country, except we haven’t the guts to stand up for our rights.
The major national issue facing our current government is how to get the oil sands to market; true to form we are going to allow the multi nationals to decide our destiny, dig it up, ship it out, and damn the consequences. The massive environmental effect of the oil sands development on the last major uncontaminated watershed in North America, the downstream effect on first nations communities, and C02 emissions, matter little to Harper.
The lack of any federal policy to ensure there is value added to our resource, we are not even going to refine our oil never mind where the profits go. We must be the laughing stock of every major industrialized country. There is need for a massive shift in policy, and I have yet to see any aspiring leader of any party have the guts to tackle these major issues.
We need a new party, one which will stand up for Canadians, not the bank presidents or CEOs of major corporations.
A Canada-first policy must be enacted on all industrial decisions. How much employment will it create, where do the profits go, the long term impact on communities? The establishment of a base price for all energy commodities produced in Canada, to hell with the free trade agreement, it’s our energy. Ensure this price is standard across the country. Ensure free trade from coast to coast, so that there are no provincial tariffs and no restrictions to the movement of goods and labour.
Income levels must be established that ensure both individuals and families can live in dignity, a threshold of $20,000 for an individual $30,000 for a family. Income tax provisions which ensure that money earned within that threshold is not taxed. Old age pensions brought up to that level through increases in the old age pension plans and supplements. A prescription drug plan that ensures all Canadians have coverage for catastrophic health issues. Establish a tax base which ensures all corporations and most wealthy Canadians pay their fair share of taxes, with a base rate of 50 per cent for any income over $200,000.
The New Democratic and Liberal parties mired in parochial battles to elect new leaders show little evidence of the courage or backbone to tackle these issues. We need a new voice which will stand up for all of us.
Mike Pierce
Three Brooks Road, Pictou