I’ve recently been reading a very interesting book – “Seeking Balance: Conversations with BC Women in Politics”, by Anne Edwards, an ex-MLA from Kootenay. The Amazon.ca description reads:
“Many Canadians say that British Columbia is the zaniest political province. It's too diverse, too polarized--geographically, demographically and ideologically. But the British Columbia political arena is lively, and it has often led the way in electing women to parliaments--as respected spokespeople for the public and as equal people.
In 'Seeking Balance', Anne Edwards shares her conversations with more than eighty British Columbia women politicians, including Rita Johnston, Rosemary Brown, Grace McCarthy, Kim Campbell, Pat Carney, Darlene Marzari, Joy MacPhail and Carole James. These women who served as members of the provincial legislature or the Canadian parliament reveal their ambitions and their reactions to serving in a political system designed and dominated by men. Women struggle to find their place in the pyramids of power. They reach decisions in ways untraditional to Canadian politics; they bring ideas to a system ill-suited to respond; and they see clearly the jagged edges that should be smoothed in order to create a vibrant democratic state. These women -- of many ages, across party lines and from all parts of the province -- share attitudes and insights into the lively world of British Columbia politics, at home and across our nation.”
The conclusion reached is that men choose politics as a career while women view it as a community service. The author describes politics as a game of war, like hockey or football, where the only object is to win, not to negotiate change with the other party. Question periods in the House are there not to be answered, but to “score a goal”. The military stance of such political systems, as ours, are considered sadly outdated and need to change to reflect the changes of the 21st century. Do you agree? (This goes beyond the STV issue...)
Until then, many women who become MLA’s and MP’s will experience “shell-shock”, where opposite seats in the House are two sword lengths across from each other. Our women politicians soon discover politics is not a gentlemen’s/gentlewomen’s sport. Provincial and Federal politics is not your municipal, trustee, board member experience, Anne Edwards states. I consider this book to be a "must read" for all, especially those women who may be entering this battlefield for the first time (ie. Jane, Janice, Naomi, Mo, Michele...)
Good Luck to all of them, today. May the "best women" win! They will become the change we need.
29 opinions/comments:
May the best "people" win. To single out women is as discriminatory as it would be to single out men. The women that realize this and drop the cloak of victimhood, are the ones that succeed in business, or in politics.
Mocreal, quit trying to find an excuse for the failure of some folks to succeed (men or women). Instead, study the method of those (men and women) that become prevalent in our society and mimic those traits. You may be surprised what you're capable of with a simple mind switch.
You missed the point, anon 11:42
Yeah... like how when you run as a single father, you're viewed as a role model, and when you run as a single mother, you're viewed as trailer trash and somebody who's made bad life choices.
Or maybe like there's no criticism for male politicians who run while they have young kids, but women get viewed as ambitious and/or uncaring.
Then, of course, there's the thing about men making a good 25% more than women on average, so have more personal funds to put into nomination races.
Of course, then there's also that thing about white men between the ages of 50 and 65 occupying 50% of the legislature and senior positions in political parties. I know, of course, that being a part of the big Tory or Liberal (or even NDP provincially) old boys club gets you nowhere... oh wait, except a plum nomination or a senate seat.
Anonymous 11:42, get your head out of the sand.
Let's get back to the message, rather than playing the blame game, or judging the messenger of this post:
"The military stance of such political systems, as ours, are considered sadly outdated and need to change to reflect the changes of the 21st century. Do you agree?"
Thanks.
If political systems need to evolve, they will do so organically. And if it is evolving, it's the pocket book and the NGOs: don't buy what you don't support, and donate to whomever you do. That's where youth politics is at: not the ballot box (until Obama).
You wrote:
Good Luck to all of them, today. May the "best women" win! They will become the change we need.How can this NOT be construed as discriminatory against men? If I wrote:
Good Luck to all of them, today. May the "best man" win! They will become the change we need.I'd be hung and quartered.
Actually, 2:18, chances are good nobody would even notice, because that sentence gets repeated all the time. Apparently, you haven't even noticed.
Perhaps if men got in touch with their feminine side they would not be so offended by the term "women". Then they could also become the change we need to overcome this archaic, militaristic political system?
This whole affirmative action nonsense does nothing but encourage mediocrity. Choose the best people based upon their ability, not their minority status or sex.
STV is dead!!
Jane Thornthwaite, by a landslide, and Naomi Yamamoto beats Janice Harris.
Thank heaven that Janice is trashed along with STV.
48% took the time to cast a ballot; this is bad for Brirtish Columbia - bad for democracy.
What is really bad for democracy is that the people in the Lonsdale riding voted for someone who was wrapped in cotton and kept away from the general public as much as possible.
This is a tragic event for those in the riding with mental health issues, addiction issues, those who have lost their jobs and can no longer afford the rent in this area, let alone those who are already homeless.
It is sad for those in Lions Gate Hospital where I have been told the condidtions are disgusting and dirty - Yamamotto thought our health systme is great!
For those struggling to survive on minimum wage you had better learn to live on air and for union workers look out - you may be part of a P3 in no time.
For those in the education system, well you have already been snubbed once - better not hold out for any improvements in local classrooms any time soon.
However there is still a small glimmer of hope and that is the Liberals do NOT control City Hall, and if the voters are smart they will make sure they do NOT control the School Board either.
The good news is that the lawyers and other business owners can look forward to really fat wallets while the rest of us will just have to put up with four more years of not existing for the MLA in our riding. Actually nothing has really chaged at all.
Sue, get off your ass and work for what you want. Stop sitting there whining with your hand out complaining about how hard done by you are. You're in charge of your own destiny, so don't blame the rest of us who are working very hard to achieve what we've done and gained. Stop your vitriol towards business owners. They're the ones who are employing local people and keeping local economies going. How would you like it if all small business pulled up stakes and left the North Shore? Where do you think you'd be then?
Sue, democracy is a funny thing in that it tends to place the person in power that most people want. That's not to say it's what you want, but it's what most people want. You may think everyone else is wrong, but it's time to man up and suck it up. Your candidate didn't have what it took to win (she was a one-trick pony), and that's all there is until the next election. Move on..
Sue I was in LGH for surgery last December and had fairly good memories of my time in the emergency and in post-op afterwards.
For what it's worth seeing what those in the same room were going through (it was the week before Christmas) was a useful reality check for me.
Overall I have some serious returns with the Campbell government and the unfortunate side-effect of last night is that this will tend to be taken as an endorsement of the status quo.
Fact is, the provincial Liberals do have problems reconciling their Federal Liberal and Federal Conservative supporters - and for the moment the FedLibs are in the ascendency. This remains a problem for the future. (That said, I do not think Campbell will serve out his full term of office and I expect a change in 2011-12.)
In particular I do not think that North Vancouver's Liberal MLAs did that good a job in "delivering the goods" for this community. While I'm MOST distressed about our share of the Highways budget (that Mountain Highway interchange desperately needs work and in the current plan won't get it until 2018 at the earliest) we're getting badly shortchanged on transit.
Long-term if Jane and Naomi expect my support they've got to improve on what their predecesors have accomplished for North Vancouver because much as I like Dan and Katherine personally ... THEY DIDN'T DELIVER FOR NORTH VANCOUVER.
Thread title, "Women in Politics".
2 N.Van election results - both women. Elected by men and women.
Strident female "victims" - get off the bandwagon. Real outcomes don't match your biases and are tiresome.
I work very hard at my job. I do a combination of heavy duty cleaning, customer service, computer work and sales. We are the top facility in our organization.
I believe that is because my Managers have extremely high standards and they too work very hard. This has not been easy for them because they come from a very wealthy background in Sri Lankra. They came here to give their children a better future.
My issue is with the social problems that I see first hand and I believe they are going to get much bigger under a Liberal government. I understand the world will never be perfect and there will always be those who fall through the cracks. What I do not understand is how a fairly wealthy area like North Vancouver just closes their eyes to these issues.
What is the problem that we cannot have 24/7 detox and mental health centers in North Vancouver? When are we going to look at affordable housing as a necessary and healthy addition to our community? Has any one looked at the rental rates in North Vancouver? How can any one afford to live there on a minimum wage job, or if they have just been laid off? Are they lesser people then the business people?
I have given this example before but I will do it again. Last week one of our favourite couriers got laid off. He was a very hard working person and we liked him. The same day he got laid off the Canada Post guy came in bragging about the seven weeks of holidays he was getting. The difference - one is being paid by the bottomless pit of the public purse and the other is being paid by a private organization.
You don`t want to put your money into social housing but you are Ok with putting your money into government employees and all of their benefits - please explain this.
The bottom line is the social misfortunes will only grow in leaps and bounds and so will crime out of pure desperation.
Interesting fact:
"Rookie politician Naomi Yamamoto made history becoming the first ever Japanese-Canadian MLA in British Columbia..."
Anon 8:04PM said: "This whole affirmative action nonsense does nothing but encourage mediocrity. Choose the best people based upon their ability, not their minority status or sex."
The media doesn't seem to help the situation much, does it? News based on minority status and gender is always forefront.
Have the voters encouraged mediocrity because Mabel Elmore and Naomi Yamamoto are the first Canadians of Filipino and Japanese ancestry elected to BC Legislature? And they both happen to be women, too?
"However there is still a small glimmer of hope and that is the Liberals do NOT control City Hall, and if the voters are smart they will make sure they do NOT control the School Board either."
Really, Sue. You've spent quite a bit of hit praising the Liberals on Council, you've fawned over Fearnley consistently. You've also bashed the NDPers on Council but now you've voted for one of the District's development happy NDPers.
I doubt it has anything to do with parties or people, it's all about Sue's ego and unhealthy presumption that anyone campaigning in Lower Lonsdale has to get her permission.
Oh, and Sue, BC Liberals do control the School Board now.
Ah Sue.... I came to North Van, and paid dearly for my house, and live mortgage poor and environment rich, largely because I wanted to live in a place that was nice, not a place with druggies, or drunks, or homeless or shelters or low-income housing. You seem hell-bent on converting the lower Lonsdale area into one giant shelter for all those who choose not to participate in the production of wealth for our wonderful nation.
Sorry Sue, I'm not only not going to participate in that, but I'll put up any roadblock I can to prevent it from happening. I like NV as it is, as a bedroom community and one that has an above average standard of living. I work my butt off to be able to live here, and I'm not going to let it go to facilitate those who choose not to do the same.
Anon:3:41:00 PM a significant proportion of the homeless are either born with or acquire mental illnesses, products of the warping of residential schools or the foster care system, or the victim of global economic circumstances that none of us can control.
To be able to produce real wealth in society one needs a certain minimum mental, physical, emotional and educational standard. If a child is born into a crappy family which precipitates them getting sucked into the foster care system that tends to, repeat tends to, stunt certain neccessary social skills that allows one to flourish in the market place.
Child have no choice what kind of family or community they are born into, or if they are born with autism, the gene for various mental illnesses that manifest during adolescent, etc. [If your born in the Great Lakes region of Africa which has been at war for 30 years its highly unlikely you'll be a successful soft-ware programmer.]
Your sweeping generalization that the homeless & drug addicts choose to live crappy lives is contradicted by the evidence. Certainly there must be a few normal folk who choose to live the life of a nomad or getted stoned all the time because they just like it, but to turn your back on those who a truly the victims of circumstances beyond their control is evil. If goes against the virtues of mercy and charity that are part of the Judaism, Christianity and Islam. It goes against the principle of fairness embodied in such Canadian public goods as public education and Health Care.
And lastly, your, again, crude, sweeping generalization of what Ms Lakes "wants" to change all of Lower Lonsdale into is hysterical fear-mongering that evinces more than a little self-pity and fear.
Why not work with Ms Lakes to make your part of the NS more hospitable for small businesses & the truly needy when they are truly in distress? Sounds corny I know but isn't that a better first step than gnashing your teeth in rage, fear, self-pity and resentment?
Monica, I had the pleasure of working with Anne Edwards at the East Community College. She was an instructor of English and I was an instructor of the GED program. My Dad was on the Board. She is a wonderful dedicated woman and I commend your post.
Wendy
Anon 3:41 - I have spent my whole life in North Vancouver and I too, wanted to stay here because of the great quality of life.
Like most municipalities in the Lower Mainland, there are "problem" areas in North Vancouver as well.
You speak of "druggies" - may I suggest there are probably people who live on your street who are "druggies" and addicts.
The can be addicted to all kinds of drugs, including those that are not legal, they can be addicted to alcohol, gambling, pornography any number of things. You do not have to live on the street to be an addict.
The homeless are here whether you like it or not. Go look at any area that has a lot of bush around it and you are likely to find a homeless person, especially in the summer. Would you rather have a large fire in the forest because a homeless person was forced to live there or would you rather have a place where not only is the homeless person safe, but the community is safe as well?
Low income - how cruel that you seem to think that you cannot share some of this beautiful place to people who are working in your stores, in your coffee shop, in your hospital, taking care of your children, and policing your streets.
Have you thought that perhaps you are the person who should leave? Perhaps a place in India where you can put broken glass on a large wall around your property would be to you liking?
Sure Sue, Continue to lower the bar, and pretty soon we'll all be considered successful.
I don't believe Darwin had this in mind when he worked on his theory though.
Sue would like nothing more than to bring us all down to her level.
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