ChangeCampTO: Designing a Civic Engagement Toolkit

I would like to invite community-based organizers in southern Ontario to join us at an event in Toronto coming up on February 16th.

ChangeCampTO: Designing a Civic Engagement Toolkit
Tuesday, February 16, 2010 from 5:30 PM – 9:00 PM
Toronto Reference Library, Appel Salon
http://changecampto2010.eventbrite.com/

In a fun-but-focused 3 hours, registered attendees will contribute to the creation of a toolkit for a self-organizing, people-driven, nonpartisan movement for positive change in Toronto and beyond.

We see the municipal elections in 2010 as an excuse to gather people together to have real dialogues about the future of our communities. We believe that open source approaches can enable those conversations across the City of Toronto and beyond through community-based leadership.

We are tentatively calling this open toolkit “ChangeCamp-in-a-Box”. This idea was born in a ChangeLab session at last year’s ChangeCamp, and this year we plan to make it real.

If you are new to ChangeCamp and want to learn about its history please visit ChangeCamp.ca.

As one of the organizers of ChangeCamp, I look at the prorogation of Parliament as a symptom of a deeper problem of cultural and systemic apathy in our society. In its wake, I declared war on Canadian complacency.

I have also seen in the CAPP movement that responded, the potential power of people self-organizing in their communities thanks to the web. We aren’t complacent. We care. But we can do more.

In my view, these issues are nonpartisan. Prorogation wasn’t just about the Conservatives and the issues of the day, it’s about a deeper problem of the cynical abuse of power that is made possible by a complacency that is deeply cultural.

The question that all of us at some point have to ask ourselves is: What have I done to contribute to the very thing I complain about or want to change?

So, we turn our attention away from our leaders and Parliament Hill towards ourselves and our communities. We look to develop in ourselves and each other a new kind of nonpartisan leadership, one with a genuine capacity to engage one another in conversations that matter, to create new possibilities.

If ChangeCamp has patron saints, they are Peter Block and Clay Shirky. We want to enable a self-organizing movement of people who work to create spaces for their fellow citizens to have conversations that matter, both face-to-face and online, enabled by new forms of communication.

I invite you to join us.

ChangeCamp.ca
ChangeCamp on Facebook
ChangeCamp on Twitter

Pre-Game Action Before Your Olympics, Perhaps?

Cross posted at Sister Sage’s Musings

Yes, nice fun ReformaTory Games only Stevie can play, although, thus far he hasn’t been successful, has he?

Haiti became the would be perfect crisis for him but, obviously never raised his numbers, in fact, according to most polls as of late, Stevie’s Harpercon numbers continue on that downhill spiral.

The anti-prorogation rallies across Canada were a success; many of the venues even acknowledging the plight of Haitians.

Also, the fact is most Canadians acknowledge and expect their politicians to react quickly toward a crisis in another part of the world or domestically. Regardless of whether or not Stevie remained at the top, prorogation or no prorogation, it is his job to react quickly.  In fact, I would presume that one of the reasons for Stevie’s dismal showing as of late would be that Canadians would have liked to see parliament reopen for this crisis. As Jane Taber had recently asked Jason Kenney on an episode of Question Period, ‘can’t the Haitian crisis be handled with parliament sitting?’ To which Kenney showed a sudden need for speech therapy.

Furthermore, none of the opposition parties came out to criticise the Harpercons for their handling of the Haitian crisis. In fact, the opposition parties are doing their part to help Haiti as well.

Now, the trap. It would seem that Stevie & the Harpercons want to cancel March & Easter Breaks: a time MPs generally go back home to their families and check out their constituencies. After that prorogation ruckus, It would be  assumed that most Canadians would want this to happen. Certainly Conservative Canadians who were against the prorogation of parliament would be for this.

Traditionally, the parliamentary calendar does remain the same after prorogation of parliament.  If the PM wishes to change the calendar, all opposition parties must vote unanimously for this change.

According to Harpercons, they say there will be just too much work and they must make up for the time he prorogued parliament. Typical Stevie and his Kingly ways: parliament must only operate when it’s convenient for Stevie.

“Instead of playing silly games, the PM should recall Parliament right away to deal with all the important issues facing Canadians,” says Karl Belanger , spokesperson for NDP Leader Jack Layton.

Indeed. I was waiting for something like that to be said, by someone; anyone, really. This is exactly what Canadian voters should be thinking. Be for or against the suspension of spring breaks, but the fact of the matter is if they’re falling so far behind on their work, perhaps parliament shouldn’t be prorogued. Perhaps Stevie should call everyone back to parliament as soon as possible. The Liberals are already there doing some work and being productive. I’m pretty sure the N.D.P. and the Bloc Quebecois would head  back to Ottawa if parliament were called to session again.

Liberal House Leader Ralph Goodale mocked the Conservatives’ sudden change of heart from demanding time to “recalibrate” to now wanting to toil straight through.

“It’s clearly a government in full panic mode . . . trying to scramble out of a mess they created,” Goodale said in an interview Wednesday night.

In spite of what Goodale said, it is likely that the Liberals will entertain Harpercon propositions. Liberal support which has been going up since prorogation, is quite fragile and can change at any time. I even suspect those so-called centrists or small c conservatives who have been supporting Stevie and the Harpercons are looking for a reason to give support back to him. According to many pollsters and pundits, Liberal support is only up because of Stevie’s latest high-handed games, not because of a sudden Iggy love-fest.  In fact, some may argue that it’s not the act of proroguation of parliament itself but more the underhanded way Stevie went about it

“It’s completely a reaction to Stephen Harper,” Bricker, president of Ipsos-Reid, said in a Jan. 24 interview.

“It’s not because people have a really big issue with proroguing the House,” Bricker said.

“It’s really the (political) games, that’s what gets under people’s skin. That’s what you are seeing the effects of (in the poll).”

Well, I would say the act of prorogation itself did play a large part in the recent polls. There are many Canadians calling for parliamentary reform so that prorogation can’t happen again or, at the very least, much more difficult to do so. I think most who attended the rallies and joined the facebook group would agree with me. Most certainly the conservative voters who spoke out against prorogation would agree with me here.

The question becomes will the opposition parties vote unanymously for this calendar change? According to senior Harpercons, they strongly believe that will be on board with this. Gordon O’Connor said,

there is no reason for the House of Commons to take constituency breaks during these weeks. Quite frankly, we would be surprised if the Opposition disagreed.

Gee, Gordo, no time to spend with constituents?  Just because your boss can’t deal with them doesn’t mean the others might not want to.  Sometimes, it’s a good idea to be in touch with the citizens of the country you lead.  You Harpercons would know that if you only made some semblance of effort to open your emails, even if it is a form letter.

That aside: the trap Stevie set is not whether or not anyone will go along with his proposal to skip holiday weeks this spring; there surely will be. However, as mentioned above, the parliamentary  calendar remains the same with or without prorogation and to change it requires a unanimous vote; as in no dissention. I have doubts about that kind of vote being unanimous.  The Bloc Quebecois hasn’t said much since prorogation and I guess if he feels Stevie’s proposal is in the best interests of Quebecers he’ll go along with it.  It looks like the Liberals will go along with it. Will the N.D.P. ? Anybody’s guess.

If we remember one of Stevie’s tactics for remaining so successful is that he knew the game of divide and conquer. He would keep the opposition parties divided. The reason the cross Canada rallies last month were so successful was that the politicians from the opposition were united for that short period.  The picture on the front page of the Montreal Gazette showing Thomas Mulcair, Gilles Duceppe and Marc Garneau (we only see his arm at the other side of Mulcair, but still)  walking side by side leading the anti-prorogation procession through the streets of Downtown Montreal to Philips’ Square.  Our opposition MPs were leading us in unison.

I am also realistic enough to know that this unification was fragile at best.  Unfortunately, I had already seen Mulcair take some shots at the Liberals on Question Period since the rallies.   Right now, as a whole, the opposition is not united or feeling particularly collaborative; this already doesn’t look good for a unanimous vote on calendar change. Also, no matter which party votes for or against the Harpercon proposed calendar change, columnists, pundits, bloggers and of course, the rest of Canadian voters; left or right will no doubt either praise or criticize whatever was voted for and by whom.   Yikes! This isn’t going to be pretty no matter how we look at it.

That is why, Stevie will choose to play the tactician; it works for him. As pointed out earlier, his proposal will have succeeded in dividing the opposition and Canadians; a formula that could raise his numbers back up again. Make no mistake, he doesn’t care whether there is work that will have fallen behind`and catching up with it.  He will have divided and then conquered. Or will they? Do I dare hope for the miracle that the albeit uneasy peace between opposition parties to continue and that they will see right through Stevie’s tactical game? If he were really concerned about being behind on work, he wouldn’t have prorogued parliament in the first place or he would unprorogue parliament as soon as possible.

If we thought this was going to be a bumpy ride; prepare for more of  St-Stevie’s antics between now and March 3; including the reading of the budget, which is sure to be a poison pill.

Valentine’s Day Card campaign clarification

There was room for confusion in my last post.  The Valentine’s Day Cards mailing address is actually a CAPP Ottawa mailing address and CAPP Ottawa has lined up a horse and carriage and are working on a volunteer Cupid. We will make a spectacle of the delivery so that the press continues to cover the issue.

The FB Group is called Valentine’s Day Cards for Democracy but more important is getting the word out with the Event Invitation on that page. If you’re not on FB, our mailing address is P.O. Box 693, Osgoode, Ontario K0A 2W0.

Please help spread this initiative through the various regional sites and with reposts on the CAPP main site. Please collect cards from everyone you know and send them on. Together, we can make this a news worthy event.

Thanks for supporting the cause.

Jim Prentice Challenges Quebec’s Environmental Leadership

Environment Minister Jim Prentice is taking Quebec to task because of their leadership on emission standards. Please read the following article in the Globe and Mail:

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/prentice-attacks-quebecs-climate-strategy/article1452601/

Valentine’s Day Cards for Democracy campaign

CAPP Ottawa wants to heap a pile of Valentine’s Day cards (“I love Democracy” and the like) on Mr. Harper but we need your help.

So far there are only 84 members at the Valentine’s Day Cards for Democracy FB Group. Out of 222,384!?!? Please join the FB Group “Valentine’s Day Cards for Democracy” and forward the Event Invitation to your contacts.

Collect cards from family, friends and co-workers to send on.

Please post the link to your regional CAPP sites. Please repost this request regularly on the CAPP sites since we only have a short window of opportunity for this initiative. Thanks for your help, and let’s get those cards rolling. Cheers.

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=449845460461&ref=mf#!/event.php?eid=459823830166&index=1

When Proroguing is Undemocratic!

A minority government has only been given the power to prorogue parliament 4 times in the history of Canada. Stephen Harper and the Conservative Party would make you believe it is routine and has happened over 100 times since 1867. It is only routine with majority governments. There is nothing wrong when a Prime Minister asks the Governor General to prorogue parliament IF there is a majority government in place. It is not a threat to democracy because the majority of members in the House of Commons support the government in power. When a government is in minority status, the Governor General of Canada should not allow the government to prorogue unless it has been approved by the House of the Commons first.

Only 4 governments in the history of Canada have prorogued parliament under a minority government. William Lyon Mackenzie did it 4 times during the 14th Parliament and Lester B. Pearson prorogued the 26th Parliament twice. Stephen Harper has prorogued 2 parliaments 3 times in 27 months – the 39th Parliament on September 14 2007 (for 31 days) and the 40th Parliament on December 4 2008 (for 52 days) and on December 30 2009 (for 62 days). It is against all principles of democracy when one person (the Prime Minister, who represents only one riding in Canada) and with the backing of only a minority number of members of Parliament (the Conservative members) can prorogue parliament.

The will of the majority of members in the House of Commons who represent the majority of Canadians should prevail. Only they have the right to decide whether parliament should be prorogued or not. How can parliament be delayed and postponed, putting a gag on the majority of members of the House of Commons whom Canadians voted for? It is the right and duty of the opposition members to question the Conservative minority government and ensure that is running the country in the best interests of the majority of Canadians. Our parliamentary system and our democratic rights are under attack and it seems that even the Governor General can do nothing to protect us from Stephen Harper’s abuse of power. That is why prorogation in this case is dead wrong and a threat to our democracy!

VIDEO NEEDED OF PROTESTS FOR SHORT FILM ON THE LOSS OF SOVEREIGNTY

I am producing a 15-minute film that will be released in late February. It has been undertaken to confront the loss of personal sovereignty, medical freedom of choice, the circumvention of elected officials for multinational corporate benefit, and the countless other heresies being negotiated and acted upon by the Canadian government — in YOUR name. It is a film intended to educate and rally freedom-loving Canadians to action before our  precious liberties disappear forever.

Our duty: answer back to those who do not care

It is a citizen’s duty to answer back to those who do not care about whether Parliament is sitting or not and to those who say “no big deal”.

First: Yes the government is working, but Parliament as an assembly, our assembly, is not. Let’s not mix up executive and legislative powers, even if Ministers do wear both hats.

- Second, when Parliament does not sit, the government is less accountable. This pro-rogue-ation really calls for a little 101 on our British parliamentary system and democracy  which I hope are still taught in school. The first and foremost ExistenZia of Parliament, our MPs, is to represent us, you and I, the PEOPLE(S) of CANADA. MPs make laws and decisions ON OUR BEHALF. So if they are not there, tough luck for us. Second, the PM and his government are accountable BEFORE PARLIAMENT, i.e. before us Canadians. If Parliament does not sit, the PM does not have to report back and answer questions, and opposition is loosing opportunities to ask the government to be transparent and accountable of actions taken and money spent, again, on our behalf. Problem.

- Third, another fundamental concern with this prorogation is that it is an abuse of power.  Some say what’s the big deal, this is temporary and the MPs will come back. Sure they will, but think about it for a second:  Of all the reasons invoked by the Prime Minister for justifying the prorogation – and there were several, launched in despair in the face of critics- not one is passing the test of robustness and legitimacy. The most ridiculous and stupid excuse from Harper was  something like “parliament creates market instability so in these times of crisis, it is better this way”. This is not only stupid, it is actually worrisome and horrifying to hear such a clear and dangerous attack on our democracy. Our economy is important, yes, but let’s not forget the economy needs a healthy democracy to be able to work and pick up from the recession.

- Fourth: the” theater”, the “circus”, some are criticizing we have been witnessing in Parliamentary debates and question periods is because we have elected a minority government. So hello, get on with it. Let’s understand this. It is part of the game of having elected a minority government. Arrivez en ville and see British Parliamentary system 101, which also by the way allows for something called coalitions to be formed. It is quite important that we do all we can to “educate” those who do not know much about Parliament, to talk to the many who have lost trust and who are tempted by “populist” thinking (such as “our parliament is a circus” and “it does not change anything if MPs are not there”).  These ideas are dangerous because they are eroding our governance system of democratic representation. Let’s remind ourselves that millions in this world do not have free elections and debates.

-Fifth: as the Economist put it, luge or legislature, Canadians have chosen. Canada has won the gold for its model legislature in the past, while rogue states prefer luge (du pain et des jeux). In all cases, Mr. Harper is on a slippery slope.

- Bottomline: Canadians need a good government. Frankly, anything but Harper and his creationist Cons. Let’s get them OUT NOW.

Dear Tony

I can call you Tony, right?  I figure you wouldn’t want to be called ‘the Honourable Tony Clement’ seeing how that sounds so elitist.

Now, you don’t know me, but I have been following your career for years. I watched you rise up through the ranks of Mike Harris’ cabinet, all the way to Health Minister! Then, well, that all ended with the defeat of that government.

Do you remember when it all started to go downhill? That’s right: Walkerton. Premier Harris’ response to it was just, well, arrogant. You’d think it wouldn’t have mattered. After all, Harris was already well known to be opinionated, defamatory and hard hitting. Somehow, that all changed, and he got out when the going seemed good. It was just a gong show after that.

My point is, you can’t always predict when the worms will turn on you. Sometimes the negative narrative just builds, enough people hear it and catch on, and your halo runs out of shine.

Having any deja vu yet?

Monday, a dozen people chased you down at York University. I understand they had to work at it. As they brought their issues forward, I am told you said if we didn’t like the government’s conduct, we just had to vote you out.

I’d like to talk to you about that.

In a sense, we have voted you out. As I’m sure you know, yours is a minority government. Due to one of the many quirks of our electoral system, you and your pals got to form government despite having less than half of the seats. Most of us didn’t vote for your Party, and we got you anyway. This has happened twice.

So, what? Third time’s the charm? What if we had another three-hundred million dollar election, and got the same result? Would you, another minority in hand, declare all this ‘nonsense’ over prorogation done with because you were once again elected?

That doesn’t make any sense.

Most of us already haven’t voted for you. The majority not voting for your party again isn’t necessarily going to solve anything.

What you are supposed to do, Tony, is respect these electoral realities and listen to the people. Your party did run on a platform promising accountability and democratic reform, remember? Our demands for the PM to be more subservient to Parliament should be quite acceptable to you and your fellow Conservative MPs.

So, how about a better answer next time? Something like “I hear your concerns, and will bring them forward to the Prime Minister and caucus?”

Next, there’s this offensive business of you calling our nation-wide protests last Saturday a “stunt.”

Normally, I’d just demand that our MPs raise issues of concern in the House, but, geez, your boss suddenly and quietly closed it.

Meeting with our MPs doesn’t help because they are opposition MPs, and prorogation has effectively shut them up. So our best option is to meet with government MPs.Well, you all don’t seem to want to do that. We keep getting in contact with your fellow Conservative MPs with letters and petitions and yet they keep telling the media that their constituents are fine with prorogation.

So, taking it to the streets seems to be the best way of getting your attention. It takes a lot of time and work to do that. We don’t get paid for it. We don’t get ‘future considerations’ for it. We do it and then come home to a backlog of work. People (sadly) like you insult us for it, calling us ‘elites’ and ‘chaterrers.’ Our Prime Minister largely ignored us.

We’re concerned, Tony. We’re not stunt persons, we’re voters. Concerned citizens. We are due respect and a proper response.

Today, I understand you should be encountering a few more of my fellow chattering Canadians in Saskatoon. I hope you will be cordial towards them, more so than you were to my fellow CAPP members Monday.

We are Canadians. We are voters. We deserve better from you.

As a senior minister of some influence, I hope you’ll have a heartfelt recalibration, and will come to provide us with real democratic leadership and representation.

Sincerely,

Mark Francis

Conservative MPs report taking some heat

Robert Fife reports in this broadcast (see around the 8:45 mark) that Conservative MPs are taking “a lot of flak from their constituents… they think MPs are taking a two month holiday… they think the PM has abused his power for partisan reasons by shutting down parliament to avoid questions on the Afghan detainee issue.”

Keep it up people!