Elbow-Gate

Remember a few months ago when everyone was all up in arms about the appalling nature of Syrians arriving in Canada? Remember all the base-less facts people were spreading around about the means of getting said families safely to Canada and away from the unimaginable realities they had been living for so long? I do. Allow me to list a few for you:

• It's taking away from our veterans
• It's taking away from children's programs and education
• Why aren't we helping the homeless people

I have, sadly, had to make the point on far too many occasions about the "expense" of international affairs to Canadians. In case you missed one of my in-person rants on this topic, it's less than 1% of the total annual Federal budget. Well... about 0.2% as of 2014. And yes, on a nearly CA$300 billion budget, that still equals significant chunk of chain. Of course, Canada, along with several other Western states agreed to dedicate 0.7% of the annual National budget to this spending area... so there's still a LONG way to go. 

But why I bring all of this up is not to lobby for this additional 0.5% of the promised budget allocation. In fact, I don't really want to talk about that issue at all. No, I bring this up, because Canada is currently in the middle of a crisis, and a big one at that! You see (and I'm sure you have, if you've been on social media or watching the news over the last few days), our beloved, hunky, self-proclaimed feminist Prime Minister did the unthinkable - he accidentally elbowed a member of the opposition. And then, (wait for it)... he immediately apologized! The horror!

So why did I bring up the Syrian refugees or the failed foreign aid promise? Simple. This topic is what "the country" is up in arms about... or elbows, I suppose. Sure, the vast majority of Canadians are probably not paying attention to this non-issue, but the media would have us thinking otherwise. Why I bring this up is because all of those issues so many felt so strongly about - the need for better veterans services, improved childcare and education, and access to support services to the country's homeless - are being forgotten, tossed aside, while this debacle is going on! And yet, no one seems to be bring this up. 

What people are bringing up is how this accidental bump somehow turned into a platform for non-supporters to throw the "feminist" word around, along with other big (although empty*) topics, such as how Trudeau's actions signify the growing need to talk about domestic violence. And the way the media has been reporting what transpired the other day in the House of Commons, the masses will be calling for his resignation by the end of the weekend! It's nuts! 

Have we forgotten what being human is all about? Have we forgotten that people aren't perfect, and that sometimes, just sometimes, they aren't capable of seeing what's physically behind them, only to accidentally nudge them with their elbow? I mean, if the media and others put half the effort they've put into this, into things that matter imagine what that world could be!

I don't want to sound all "big brother's watching us" or paranoid about the control the media has on what we know... or don't, but at some point, we as citizens of the world need to exercise some critical thinking skills. If this is what is being reported... repeatedly, what isn't? What is happening that isn't being reported?

So yes, I'm calling out all of you who cried injustice (to Canadians) during the refugee welcoming. To you who insisted that the government focus more on these disheartening social issues (the ones you used to justify your deeply embedded racism). To those of you who dared to use Fort Mac as a platform to reuse the Syrians will ruin Canada arguments. Do something. Stop listening to the falsehoods of the media, or whatever source you are receiving your garbage information. Get back to what makes Canada one of the most respected countries in the world, and put your money (or volunteer efforts) where your mouth is!

We need to refocus. And we need to do it now.

-the Orange Canadian

*domestic violence is not an empty topic - it's an important one! BUT throwing out this term or action as a means of harming Trudeau's reputation, is empty.