Dear MP for York Centre

My federal Member of Parliament, Mark Adler for York Centre, sent me a letter asking my opinion on the job the current government has been doing for Canada, and wanting to know what is important to me as a Canadian. So here goes....

I don’t want to eat Raisin Bran or Corn Flakes made and packaged in Thailand. 

I don’t want to eat Heinz ketchup made in Mexico. 

I do not want to eat fish processed in China or Vietnam et al.

I want to know when I buy pickles that I am buying are pickles from Canadian farmers and/or Canadian food processors.  I want to see all food sold in Canada labeled clearly so I easily understand the origin of all ingredients used to produce or make any given food product.   

I want to be able to buy an electric kettle, coffee pot or a television made in Canada, so if it falls apart in than a year, I can hold a local manufacturer responsible for the lack of quality control. I want to drive a car that is entirely made in Canada and was produced by my fellow Canadians rather than Mexico or Brazil.  I want clothes made in Canada and sewn to Canadian sizing standards. I want a t-shirt that will not fall apart  or lose its' colour in a few washings.  

When I call my bank, insurance company, telephone, or cable/internet provider, I want to speak to a fellow Canadian; someone who understands Canadian law, accounting practices and language. I want to be able to buy winter boots that are made for our winters and won’t fall apart half-way through the winter season. Don’t even mention shoes.

 I don’t want to buy pet food made in China – enough said. I can live without the dollar stores and cheap products that fall apart shortly after purchasing. I can live quite nicely knowing that no manufacturer or producer selling products in Canada is beyond the jurisdiction of the Canadian legal system. 

 

I can live without the Government of Canada giving Volkswagen a loan to produce cars manufactured outside of Canada. I can live without ‘Canadian in name only’ companies whose production facilities are located outside the country being promoted by the Canadian government.

I can live without free trade agreements quite nicely, in fact, before NAFTA and hundreds of other Free Trade Agreements; the quality of goods and services produced was far superior to what is routinely offered for sale today in Canada. The pricing deferential, when compared to the quality and health risk, just isn’t worth it.  

I want to live in a country which is economically self-reliant and who has a Prime Minister who has the interests of all Canadian citizens at heart rather than the shareholder stock price of  a select few corporations. I want to have a Prime Minister who safeguards Canadian sovereignty, rather than giving it away, just so he can sign another free trade pact for his corporate cronies.

I can easily live without a Prime Minister of Canada giving away taxpayer’s money away to sponsor trade programs in foreign countries.   

I can live easily with the idea that one needs citizenship to buy property in this country.  I can live with the idea that Canadian companies have to look after their own labour supply, as opposed to the current practice of lobbying the government to import a constant stream of cheap labour to meet their business labour needs. I can live with a Canadian high school student serving me coffee or asking me - 'if I want fries with that?'  And if you cannot afford to pay a Canadian caregiver/nanny minimum wage; either raise your own children or don’t have any.  

I can live easily in a country where a Canadian Union does not have to take the federal government to court to protect the interests of Canadian workers from foreign controlled corporations.   

I can live with potentially lower tax rates caused by a surplus of full-time jobs available for the working poor that pay a living wage rather than minimum one. And, I can live with a Prime Minister who cuddles dogs rather than kittens. Ironically, I was a 'Conservative' longer than Stephen Harper has been leader of the Conservative Party, but don't think for a second you can count on me during the next election.