To listen to the audio version of this article click on the play image.
Brought to you by @tts. If you find it useful please consider upvoting this reply.
I suspected you were an expat from an Anglophone country because your English was unexpectedly good for a native Korean living in Korea. In NE Asia, advanced foreign language skills are less common than in Europe.
I used to study and speak French but I am rusty from lack of use. Learning that to an advanced level in a barely-native setting was significantly easier than learning Korean to an intermediate level in an immersed setting. People from NE Asia have it just as difficult the other way around. Fortunately the Korean alphabet is awesome compared to most.
But I always appreciate it when people don't pick that up and compliment my ability to read and write 🤗
They say leaving was my choice and I forfeit my rights. Sometimes they will try to guilt trip me to return. That makes citizenship sound like a cult and rights sound like membership privilages. Or they view it as collateral damage.
The only way politicians can convince peolple that rights are not important is by deception, ignorance and fear mongering.
Most people dislike citizens of convenience using Canada to evade military duties or as a plan B in case of whatever. The situation doesn't affect them and they don't realize the situation affects people like me.
I don't tend to run around with a victim card on my sleeve screaming social justice or whatever.
The number 1 question I get from pretty much everyone is why did you leave Canada? It's incomprehensible to most Koreans and Canadians.
Usually, I just say it's quite nice in Korea. Koreans agree, Canadians are generally clueless. I don't go out of my way to change people's opinions unless they are into politically correct culture, then I tell them that question is a microagression.
I look at this as true expression of values. We always here stuff like voting is important. The right to vote is important. We're brainwashed to support it on the outside. Most people don't value rights unless they are easy to grasp. It's a complicated situation.
That is a strong argument in favor for giving non-citizen residents the right to vote. However it isn't really a good argument for disenfranchisement.
Although residents may be affected more by federal decision making, I am still affected in some cases. Not everyone is affected evenly. I cannot vote in provincial elections because residency reasons are much more justified at that level of affairs. It is similar as usually not being able to vote in another province.
I never actually lost my right to vote for that reason. I was just required to vote in person in Canada while others did not have to do this. Fortunately the supreme court exists to make sure my rights are not unreasonably violated.
Canada will not pass a law saying that non-residents cannot vote because it would require ammending the charter of rights which is too politically difficult for such a benign reason.
Revoking democratic rights will likely be viewed as a back door to tyranny and will definitely result in significant international condemnation. It's also an integral part of section 3 of the constitution and wasn't a minor detail that was overlooked like adding a 3rd gender option or changing the name of a province so it would be an exceedingly difficult amendment.
Bottom line, there are more important concerns facing residents and citizens.
I can see them making a special MP representing every single voter abroad. Even if it's heavily tilted, just one. That's it. It's silly that they assign non-residents a particular riding that they have nothing to do with.
It is flawlessly written and your arguments impeccably articulated ... all of with which I agree.
I, too, am an ex-pat Canadian. I have lived in Florida for almost thirty years ... I married an American and, although now divorced, this is where my daughter lives. Am I supposed to choose my right to vote in Canada over her?
I did not know about this legal change so thanks for the heads up.
I have to say, though, I don't know who I would vote for in Canada (definitely not Trudeau). I think politics throughout the Western world has become unhinged. So much now seems mired in progressive (Far Left) culture war issues and God forbid one asks for evidence-of-assertion prior to enshrining a thing into law. It's making everyone stupid. What happened to the Enlightenment?
BTW, I too could walk circles around most Canadians regarding Canadian politics. You see, I have gained access to a high-tech tool which I use to keep informed ... it's called the Internet.
Thanks.
Interesting situation you are in.
You just need a photo of Canadian ID to register and the link is easy to find on the elections site.
At this point I'm thinking of spoiling my ballot by just writing "thank you for bill C-76", but I may change my mind and choose someone once I know who is running in my old district.
I'm going to write a little about Canadian politics, but platforms will have to wait until they are clarified. Other than the new party which has no hopes anyway, I doubt there will be many changes.
I like JT for restoring my right, but he has been involved in a lot of serious scandals. He evaded voter reform, too.
Your post was upvoted by @steem-ua, new Steem dApp, using UserAuthority for algorithmic post curation!
Your UA account score is currently 3.819 which ranks you at #4905 across all Steem accounts.
Your rank has not changed in the last three days.
In our last Algorithmic Curation Round, consisting of 147 contributions, your post is ranked at #92.
Evaluation of your UA score:
You're on the right track, try to gather more followers.
Congratulations! Your post has been selected as a daily Steemit truffle! It is listed on rank 24 of all contributions awarded today. You can find the TOP DAILY TRUFFLE PICKS HERE.
I upvoted your contribution because to my mind your post is at least 2 SBD worth and should receive 119 votes. It's now up to the lovely Steemit community to make this come true.
I am TrufflePig, an Artificial Intelligence Bot that helps minnows and content curators using Machine Learning. If you are curious how I select content, you can find an explanation here!
@ocdb is a non-profit bidbot for whitelisted Steemians, current min bid is 1.5 SBD and max bid is 10 SBD and the equivalent amount in STEEM.
Check our website https://thegoodwhales.io/ for the whitelist, queue and delegation info. Join our Discord channel for more information.
I'm up in the air about the expat vote... as an expat, I've let my registration lapse... From a personal point of view, I've thought that I'm not following closely enough to make an informed judgement as to who I vote for... on the other hand, given our compulsory voting system, I still think I would make a more informed choice than most of the population anyway.
It is a flaw of our current system (compulsory... and otherwise) in that it presumes an informed and educated population... something that is definitely demonstrably not the case and a bad (but well meaning...) assumption. Sortition would for me be a better solution (at least for one house of parliament...), otherwise we have people voting for whoever will serve their best short term interests (bribes... otherwise known as tax cuts usually work well...).
It's definitely a heavy topic. Voting is complicated enough nevermind issues with residency, or worse political parties.
I sort of like the Australian system where voting is compulsory.
Voter reform was on the menu in Canada, but since only two parties ever have a shot at winning, neither of them are interested in changing it to PR. There was some talk about reforming the senate to be based on PR, but then you will end up with regionalism which would be nice for the people in the urban areas who tend to support.
I follow Canadian politics quite closely even as a non-resident, especially at the federal level.
One issue for me has always been with immigration. I really like the points system, it just seems to be the fairest thing. Points can also be altered.
You are right to say most voters are not informed. People do tend to vote for whoever will lower their tax or populists. People vote in their self interest and that is really easy to manipulate. I think the key is to try and find someone you support who is going to follow that old adage of 'do what is best for the country'. It's very difficult to find politicians who think like that.
It was an annoying situation. There isn't an obvious voting choice for me out of the 5 national parties. I will have tonwait a few more weeks before all their information is presented and debate start.
Very interesting post @abitcoinskeptic. Belatedly commenting on it, due to the link you provided me yesterday. I enjoyed reading it, as an American with more experience in Canada than most of my countrymen. So … Comments:
”Am I informed? There are plenty of Canadians who would fail grade 9 civics class miserably and their ability to make an informed vote is questionable (they usually don't vote anyway), I'm not one of them and shouldn't have to prove it any more than anyone else should.“
Ditto, as most of my fellow Americans would fail civics miserably, but … I am not one of them either …
”The popular argument is that since I don't pay Canadian tax I shouldn't be allowed to vote. However, that is a dumb argument because at least 50% of Canadians will use more government benefits than they will ever pay taxes.“
😊 Not the point of your post generally nor this comment specifically, but again America is similar with a large and growing debt, i.e. receipt of benefits for which revenue has not been collected. We are, however, steadily devaluing our currency ...
”In any case, although there are 3 million Canadians living abroad, not all of them lost their right to vote and estimates are that only around 30000 expats who were affected by those laws will vote …“
Sounds like a “broken record” I know, but America is similar and, while not claiming to be an expert, my impression has been it is that way in much of the so-called Western world. Less and less acceptance of arguably the most important of our civic responsibilities …
”I still find it hard to believe that people can support democracy but also support the government revoking basic democratic rights. It's concerning how easily populism, fear, and fake news can convince people to support truly disgusting and autocratic ideas.“
Concerning? I would say that is a significant understatement. It should be very sobering how easily “we the sheeple” are manipulated into voting for what will ultimately prove our undoing …
”… the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, which is our constitution since 1982.“
Not a Canadian, I was unaware of how recently your latest version of a national constitution was put in place. In America, ours is under relentless “assault” as being obsolete ,irrelevant, etc. and should, therefore, just being “thrown out.” All the while conveniently ignoring the fact built in to it is a mechanism for change, but … Requires too much of what you are covering (in my mind at least) in this post …
”It's hard to imagine what arbitrarily losing your rights feels like until it happens to you.“
Yes, I can imagine. Here on our Steem blockchain, we have a fascinating opportunity to engage with others all over the world. For me, I have particularly enjoyed the opportunity to “talk” with our fellow Steemians in Venezuela. Who freely voted into power that which subsequently is now in an advanced stage of destroying all they value …
Well, that’s enough out of me. While I still don’t know any details of why you elected to move to South Korea, at least I now know ” I just say it's quite nice in Korea.” 😉
I don't think there is a problem with belatedly commenting on a post. Most people with more than a handful of SP know how Steem works. Maybe I'll republish bits and pieces or include links in future posts on similar topics. I do plan on writing about the 2019 election and my perspective as a long term expat. I think for Americans and Canadians our culture is very similar and there are a lot of exchanges. I could go on, but that's an entirely different topic I'm sure someone like yourself is aware of.
Ditto, as most of my fellow Americans would fail civics miserably
Regarding people who are well informed about politics and civics, it's usually obvious within a minute of discussion. Actually, I've always despised the idea of only the enlighted few being able to vote/poll. We don't even have direct democracies and we are voting for representatives and most referendums or polling questions are carefully debated before and after.
America is similar with a large and growing debt
The idea about voting for only those who pay taxes is also an argument that is rarely used by people who know what they are talking about. Lots of past societies have experimented with ideas like only the landed gentry could vote. That concept is archaic and predates democracy.
I'd love to discuss debts with someone who isn't just an infowars type of person. We probably have similar opinions. Debt to fix the economy 🙄, debt for populist ideas 😫.
my impression has been it is that way in much of the so-called Western world. Less and less acceptance of arguably the most important of our civic responsibilities
It is interesting how you tie voting to civic responsibility and not residency. You are obviously well informed on this topic. Citizens of convenience is a very complicated topic and should never be confused with residents or expats.
Are naturalized citizens required to constantly prove they deserve it whereas natural citizens are not? Disturbing to think so. I don't really like birth tourism and rules do need to be modernized which is why we have a process to do just that.
Concerning? I would say that is a significant understatement. It should be very sobering how easily “we the sheeple” are manipulated into voting for what will ultimately prove our undoing
I was trying to be diplomatic with my answers here. Concerning is definitely an understatement towards the idea of people trying to take away rights or inconvenience others exercising their rights.
Voter manipulation is a complicated concept (I'm starting to sound like a broken record here, too). Propaganda is nothing new. I like to think individuals know what is in their best interest which is why we have the first amendment and free speech. This important right is constantly under attack in the form of hate speech laws and group rights over individual rights, etc.
I was unaware of how recently your latest version of a national constitution was put in place. In America, ours is under relentless “assault” as being obsolete ,irrelevant, etc. and should, therefore, just being “thrown out.”
I'm not too aware of our constitutional history, but I know it was heavily borrowed from the UK and Quebec really complicates things. Did you know they have never signed it?
The American constitution has been amended a lot. Maybe an overhaul is due to at least consolidate it. Anyone who thinks the constitution is irrelevant should either be educated, exiled or imprisoned in my opinion.
Yes, I can imagine. Here on our Steem blockchain, we have a fascinating opportunity to engage with others all over the world.
It is interesting that you brought up Venezuela as a comparison. I cannot imagine that situation as mine paled in comparison. Whenever anyone defends the Russian or Chinese state as somehow being an alternative to America, Europe or the west, I get angry thinking those countries support the tyranny in Venezuela.
The west isn't free of issues, but compared to autocracies, even the worst democratic leaders are inspiring. I watch people having meltdowns about Trump or Trudeau, my advice for them, switch off CNN and diversify news sources until a leader they like is elected. Let's just say it's quite nice in America and Canada.
It may take me a couple of months to get around to it, but I'll write more about my story eventually and I'll get your attention and a couple of others who expressed interest when I do. Thank you for your great reply.
Yes, we have to make allowance @abitcoinskeptic for people commenting later, even after payout, as we don’t always even know about a post, until that initial opportunity is past. I have enjoyed this exchange, as I have a “soft spot” for political / philosophical writing …
Related to my experience with Canadians, you may (or may not) enjoy a highlight memory from my “old life,” when I was supervising the efforts to two Canadians for a British firm selling chemicals to the mining industry. When first assigned the responsibility and in a big follow-up meeting in England, I had become acutely aware of their desire (at least for these two …) to not be viewed as Americans …
So … Literally on my first road trip with one of them, we were high up in the Canadian Rockies (east of Edmonton) at one of the large coal mines there, visiting the Plant Superintendent of one of our largest customers. He was a huge guy – about 6’ 7” and probably + 300 lbs. (and not fat either …). It was in our introductory comments in his office, that he asked me:
”So, where are you from?”
And I thought to myself, ohhh boyyy, here we go, right “out of the gate!” So, telling him I was an American, but just over the border in Washington state, he made this grand gesture of standing up, with big grin on his face, and extending his giant hand across the table (mine was dwarfed inside his handshake …), he shook my hand while telling me:
”Welcome! I thought you were going to be one of those ^%$%#^%&! from Ontario or somewhere back there. You know, when they divided up our countries, they got it all wrong. Instead of dividing it along the 49th Parallel, they should’ve divided it north and south, say along the Mississippi River and norther from there. Something like that …”
I’m sure you can imagine the conversation from there. Great memory! 😉
Well, again, I have enjoyed the exchange. I hope all is well with you and yours. And that you’re gardening season has progressed as you had hoped, as you enter the harvesting time and the end of another one …
Until “next time,” all the best to you “over there!” 👍
To listen to the audio version of this article click on the play image.
Brought to you by @tts. If you find it useful please consider upvoting this reply.
I suspected you were an expat from an Anglophone country because your English was unexpectedly good for a native Korean living in Korea. In NE Asia, advanced foreign language skills are less common than in Europe.
Posted using Partiko iOS
Good guess. Some people don't notice.
I used to study and speak French but I am rusty from lack of use. Learning that to an advanced level in a barely-native setting was significantly easier than learning Korean to an intermediate level in an immersed setting. People from NE Asia have it just as difficult the other way around. Fortunately the Korean alphabet is awesome compared to most.
But I always appreciate it when people don't pick that up and compliment my ability to read and write 🤗
honestly? People really said that to you? 😄
They say leaving was my choice and I forfeit my rights. Sometimes they will try to guilt trip me to return. That makes citizenship sound like a cult and rights sound like membership privilages. Or they view it as collateral damage.
The only way politicians can convince peolple that rights are not important is by deception, ignorance and fear mongering.
Most people dislike citizens of convenience using Canada to evade military duties or as a plan B in case of whatever. The situation doesn't affect them and they don't realize the situation affects people like me.
I don't tend to run around with a victim card on my sleeve screaming social justice or whatever.
The number 1 question I get from pretty much everyone is why did you leave Canada? It's incomprehensible to most Koreans and Canadians.
Usually, I just say it's quite nice in Korea. Koreans agree, Canadians are generally clueless. I don't go out of my way to change people's opinions unless they are into politically correct culture, then I tell them that question is a microagression.
I look at this as true expression of values. We always here stuff like voting is important. The right to vote is important. We're brainwashed to support it on the outside. Most people don't value rights unless they are easy to grasp. It's a complicated situation.
Canadian residents have to bear the consequences of your vote and you don't have to. How is that fair?
Posted using Partiko Android
That is a strong argument in favor for giving non-citizen residents the right to vote. However it isn't really a good argument for disenfranchisement.
Although residents may be affected more by federal decision making, I am still affected in some cases. Not everyone is affected evenly. I cannot vote in provincial elections because residency reasons are much more justified at that level of affairs. It is similar as usually not being able to vote in another province.
I never actually lost my right to vote for that reason. I was just required to vote in person in Canada while others did not have to do this. Fortunately the supreme court exists to make sure my rights are not unreasonably violated.
Canada will not pass a law saying that non-residents cannot vote because it would require ammending the charter of rights which is too politically difficult for such a benign reason.
Revoking democratic rights will likely be viewed as a back door to tyranny and will definitely result in significant international condemnation. It's also an integral part of section 3 of the constitution and wasn't a minor detail that was overlooked like adding a 3rd gender option or changing the name of a province so it would be an exceedingly difficult amendment.
Bottom line, there are more important concerns facing residents and citizens.
I can see them making a special MP representing every single voter abroad. Even if it's heavily tilted, just one. That's it. It's silly that they assign non-residents a particular riding that they have nothing to do with.
That would be a reasonable compromise and solve the issues with prisoners, too.
Unfortunately, JT lied about election reform.
@abitcoinskeptic,
Boy, am I ever glad I clicked on this post.
It is flawlessly written and your arguments impeccably articulated ... all of with which I agree.
I, too, am an ex-pat Canadian. I have lived in Florida for almost thirty years ... I married an American and, although now divorced, this is where my daughter lives. Am I supposed to choose my right to vote in Canada over her?
I did not know about this legal change so thanks for the heads up.
I have to say, though, I don't know who I would vote for in Canada (definitely not Trudeau). I think politics throughout the Western world has become unhinged. So much now seems mired in progressive (Far Left) culture war issues and God forbid one asks for evidence-of-assertion prior to enshrining a thing into law. It's making everyone stupid. What happened to the Enlightenment?
BTW, I too could walk circles around most Canadians regarding Canadian politics. You see, I have gained access to a high-tech tool which I use to keep informed ... it's called the Internet.
Great post.
Quill
Thanks.
Interesting situation you are in.
You just need a photo of Canadian ID to register and the link is easy to find on the elections site.
At this point I'm thinking of spoiling my ballot by just writing "thank you for bill C-76", but I may change my mind and choose someone once I know who is running in my old district.
I'm going to write a little about Canadian politics, but platforms will have to wait until they are clarified. Other than the new party which has no hopes anyway, I doubt there will be many changes.
I like JT for restoring my right, but he has been involved in a lot of serious scandals. He evaded voter reform, too.
This post was curated by @theluvbug
and has received an upvote and a delayed resteem to hopefully generate some ❤ extra love ❤ for your post!
In Proud Collaboration with The Power House Creatives
and their founder @jaynie
Hi @abitcoinskeptic!
Your post was upvoted by @steem-ua, new Steem dApp, using UserAuthority for algorithmic post curation!
Your UA account score is currently 3.819 which ranks you at #4905 across all Steem accounts.
Your rank has not changed in the last three days.
In our last Algorithmic Curation Round, consisting of 147 contributions, your post is ranked at #92.
Evaluation of your UA score:
Feel free to join our @steem-ua Discord server
Congratulations! Your post has been selected as a daily Steemit truffle! It is listed on rank 24 of all contributions awarded today. You can find the TOP DAILY TRUFFLE PICKS HERE.
I upvoted your contribution because to my mind your post is at least 2 SBD worth and should receive 119 votes. It's now up to the lovely Steemit community to make this come true.
I am
TrufflePig, an Artificial Intelligence Bot that helps minnows and content curators using Machine Learning. If you are curious how I select content, you can find an explanation here!Have a nice day and sincerely yours,
TrufflePigYou got a 49.77% upvote from @ocdb courtesy of @abitcoinskeptic! :)
@ocdb is a non-profit bidbot for whitelisted Steemians, current min bid is 1.5 SBD and max bid is 10 SBD and the equivalent amount in STEEM.
Check our website https://thegoodwhales.io/ for the whitelist, queue and delegation info. Join our Discord channel for more information.
If you like what @ocd does, consider voting for ocd-witness through SteemConnect or on the Steemit Witnesses page. :)
I'm up in the air about the expat vote... as an expat, I've let my registration lapse... From a personal point of view, I've thought that I'm not following closely enough to make an informed judgement as to who I vote for... on the other hand, given our compulsory voting system, I still think I would make a more informed choice than most of the population anyway.
It is a flaw of our current system (compulsory... and otherwise) in that it presumes an informed and educated population... something that is definitely demonstrably not the case and a bad (but well meaning...) assumption. Sortition would for me be a better solution (at least for one house of parliament...), otherwise we have people voting for whoever will serve their best short term interests (bribes... otherwise known as tax cuts usually work well...).
It's definitely a heavy topic. Voting is complicated enough nevermind issues with residency, or worse political parties.
I sort of like the Australian system where voting is compulsory.
Voter reform was on the menu in Canada, but since only two parties ever have a shot at winning, neither of them are interested in changing it to PR. There was some talk about reforming the senate to be based on PR, but then you will end up with regionalism which would be nice for the people in the urban areas who tend to support.
I follow Canadian politics quite closely even as a non-resident, especially at the federal level.
One issue for me has always been with immigration. I really like the points system, it just seems to be the fairest thing. Points can also be altered.
You are right to say most voters are not informed. People do tend to vote for whoever will lower their tax or populists. People vote in their self interest and that is really easy to manipulate. I think the key is to try and find someone you support who is going to follow that old adage of 'do what is best for the country'. It's very difficult to find politicians who think like that.
Howdy sir abitcoinskeptic! Very interesting, amazing that it took so long to allow you to vote again but I'm glad they got that fixed!
It was an annoying situation. There isn't an obvious voting choice for me out of the 5 national parties. I will have tonwait a few more weeks before all their information is presented and debate start.
Oh wow, they have FIVE parties over there! I wish we had more than two. Well you would think that five would provide a great deal of adversity?
Canada and Korea have 5 which have a decent chance of getting at least one member in.
It gives you a lot of choice, but it also means there is strategic voting to make sure the guy you don't wamt stays out.
Very interesting post @abitcoinskeptic. Belatedly commenting on it, due to the link you provided me yesterday. I enjoyed reading it, as an American with more experience in Canada than most of my countrymen. So … Comments:
Ditto, as most of my fellow Americans would fail civics miserably, but … I am not one of them either …
😊 Not the point of your post generally nor this comment specifically, but again America is similar with a large and growing debt, i.e. receipt of benefits for which revenue has not been collected. We are, however, steadily devaluing our currency ...
Sounds like a “broken record” I know, but America is similar and, while not claiming to be an expert, my impression has been it is that way in much of the so-called Western world. Less and less acceptance of arguably the most important of our civic responsibilities …
Concerning? I would say that is a significant understatement. It should be very sobering how easily “we the sheeple” are manipulated into voting for what will ultimately prove our undoing …
Not a Canadian, I was unaware of how recently your latest version of a national constitution was put in place. In America, ours is under relentless “assault” as being obsolete ,irrelevant, etc. and should, therefore, just being “thrown out.” All the while conveniently ignoring the fact built in to it is a mechanism for change, but … Requires too much of what you are covering (in my mind at least) in this post …
Yes, I can imagine. Here on our Steem blockchain, we have a fascinating opportunity to engage with others all over the world. For me, I have particularly enjoyed the opportunity to “talk” with our fellow Steemians in Venezuela. Who freely voted into power that which subsequently is now in an advanced stage of destroying all they value …
Well, that’s enough out of me. While I still don’t know any details of why you elected to move to South Korea, at least I now know ” I just say it's quite nice in Korea.” 😉
I don't think there is a problem with belatedly commenting on a post. Most people with more than a handful of SP know how Steem works. Maybe I'll republish bits and pieces or include links in future posts on similar topics. I do plan on writing about the 2019 election and my perspective as a long term expat. I think for Americans and Canadians our culture is very similar and there are a lot of exchanges. I could go on, but that's an entirely different topic I'm sure someone like yourself is aware of.
Regarding people who are well informed about politics and civics, it's usually obvious within a minute of discussion. Actually, I've always despised the idea of only the enlighted few being able to vote/poll. We don't even have direct democracies and we are voting for representatives and most referendums or polling questions are carefully debated before and after.
The idea about voting for only those who pay taxes is also an argument that is rarely used by people who know what they are talking about. Lots of past societies have experimented with ideas like only the landed gentry could vote. That concept is archaic and predates democracy.
I'd love to discuss debts with someone who isn't just an infowars type of person. We probably have similar opinions. Debt to fix the economy 🙄, debt for populist ideas 😫.
It is interesting how you tie voting to civic responsibility and not residency. You are obviously well informed on this topic. Citizens of convenience is a very complicated topic and should never be confused with residents or expats.
Are naturalized citizens required to constantly prove they deserve it whereas natural citizens are not? Disturbing to think so. I don't really like birth tourism and rules do need to be modernized which is why we have a process to do just that.
I was trying to be diplomatic with my answers here. Concerning is definitely an understatement towards the idea of people trying to take away rights or inconvenience others exercising their rights.
Voter manipulation is a complicated concept (I'm starting to sound like a broken record here, too). Propaganda is nothing new. I like to think individuals know what is in their best interest which is why we have the first amendment and free speech. This important right is constantly under attack in the form of hate speech laws and group rights over individual rights, etc.
I'm not too aware of our constitutional history, but I know it was heavily borrowed from the UK and Quebec really complicates things. Did you know they have never signed it?
The American constitution has been amended a lot. Maybe an overhaul is due to at least consolidate it. Anyone who thinks the constitution is irrelevant should either be educated, exiled or imprisoned in my opinion.
It is interesting that you brought up Venezuela as a comparison. I cannot imagine that situation as mine paled in comparison. Whenever anyone defends the Russian or Chinese state as somehow being an alternative to America, Europe or the west, I get angry thinking those countries support the tyranny in Venezuela.
The west isn't free of issues, but compared to autocracies, even the worst democratic leaders are inspiring. I watch people having meltdowns about Trump or Trudeau, my advice for them, switch off CNN and diversify news sources until a leader they like is elected. Let's just say it's quite nice in America and Canada.
It may take me a couple of months to get around to it, but I'll write more about my story eventually and I'll get your attention and a couple of others who expressed interest when I do. Thank you for your great reply.
Yes, we have to make allowance @abitcoinskeptic for people commenting later, even after payout, as we don’t always even know about a post, until that initial opportunity is past. I have enjoyed this exchange, as I have a “soft spot” for political / philosophical writing …
Related to my experience with Canadians, you may (or may not) enjoy a highlight memory from my “old life,” when I was supervising the efforts to two Canadians for a British firm selling chemicals to the mining industry. When first assigned the responsibility and in a big follow-up meeting in England, I had become acutely aware of their desire (at least for these two …) to not be viewed as Americans …
So … Literally on my first road trip with one of them, we were high up in the Canadian Rockies (east of Edmonton) at one of the large coal mines there, visiting the Plant Superintendent of one of our largest customers. He was a huge guy – about 6’ 7” and probably + 300 lbs. (and not fat either …). It was in our introductory comments in his office, that he asked me:
And I thought to myself, ohhh boyyy, here we go, right “out of the gate!” So, telling him I was an American, but just over the border in Washington state, he made this grand gesture of standing up, with big grin on his face, and extending his giant hand across the table (mine was dwarfed inside his handshake …), he shook my hand while telling me:
I’m sure you can imagine the conversation from there. Great memory! 😉
Well, again, I have enjoyed the exchange. I hope all is well with you and yours. And that you’re gardening season has progressed as you had hoped, as you enter the harvesting time and the end of another one …
Until “next time,” all the best to you “over there!” 👍