I am struggling to figure out why the Tories have chosen now to inject affirmative action into the national conversation. Yes I have been denied work because I am a caucasian male, but I'm not about to start decrying that I have been hard done by because I'm white. At the 30 year mark in my life, I am quite certain that being white has been an advantage. So regardless of how I feel about skin colour based employment discrimination, I am not going to start fighting for more rights for whites. I'd say that I already have it pretty good.
The fact that the Tories have launched an initiative most likely to be supported by white males, the demographic that votes Tory in higher proportions than any other, suggests to me that the purpose of this is to goad the opposition. The last time we saw such a deliberate attempt to mobilize the opposition was tax subsidies for political parties, something the PMO decided to do after the NDP announced a deal with the Bloc in a public conference call. I guarantee you that many a Liberal and Dipper across this country were frothing at the mouth with excitement when they saw Tories looking to re-address affirmative action.
Sometimes the "rope-A-dope" can be a very effective strategy in politics, a strategy that I'm certain Stephen Harper is familiar with. Affirmative action feels like a "right hand lead". For a complete understanding of what a "rope-A-dope" is and how it is effective, watch this (experts explain the rope-A-dope while showing the Ali v Foreman fight):
I am not white and I find affirmative action extremely condescending and paternalistic. I can compete with anyone on my own. Good for the Tories.
ReplyDeleteYou do know that they didn't bring this up, right?
ReplyDeleteSarah from Choice for Childcare was the start of this thing when she got denied a job because she was white.
She went to the media - you bet the Tories need to respond when it gets to the media.
I think it goes deeeper than you make it out to be. The civil service is an entrenched partisan foe of the Conservatives and conservative government policy.
ReplyDeleteHarper is tweaking the "service" to draw them out in full public view, so that "we" can see them for what they really are - handmaidens of Liberal and NDP policies. They certainly aren't conservative and represent an entrenched "entitled to our entitlements" BLOC to effective, cost savings of government and ultimately economic progress.
You want statistics to formulate hiring guides for the civil service? Pay for it yourselves out of departmental budgets, so that voters (the Minister responsible) can see what you are doing and judge & direct or correct, accordingly.
Personally, I think affirmative action has got to go! While it was brought in with seemingly good intentions, it is, quite bluntly, a racist and sexist policy. If I get a job, I want to know it's because I qualified for it, not because I'm female. People should be hired for their merit, nothing else.
ReplyDeleteheh, Iffy just said:
ReplyDelete"We believe each Canadian has the right to participate in the public service."
"Public-sector hiring should be based on merit but it should also be based on giving everybody an equal shot."
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