10 THINGS FOR STEPHEN HARPER TO REMEMBER
1. Always portray yourself as the underdog. Polls are irrelevant. Until you are in, you are out. Even if you go up in the polls do not get too excited. You are David, Paul Martin is Goliath. Never forget it.
2. Emphasize that you are middle class and Paul Martin is a billionaire. He cannot relate to the people and does not understand their concerns.
3. Talk about crime and safety. In the GTA it will matter. People are concerned.
4. Talk about tax cuts for the middle class. Emphasize a positive Canada that cares about the family and wants to strengthen it through proper education and valuing choice in daycare. My wife has already gotten two women to rethink their support for the Liberals by showing them how contemptuous Ken Dryden was about families wanting to raise children at home. This issue matters to women and it is not being properly explained to them.
5. Talk about a renewed role and respect for our military. Use the word 'respect' and how we need to be a force for good in the world.
6. Run a positive campaign but do not be afraid to have some negative ads. Tough ones that talk about crime, the decay of inner cities, lack of free speech and Adscam.
7. Talk about health care. Say that we need to put more money into it. Ask why the Liberals haven't fixed it in over a decade. Mention that Paul Martin's doctor has the biggest private practice in Quebec. Have an ad based on the Liberal hypocrisy of the
'Do as I say, not as I do' variety.
8. If you are called on the issue of same sex marriage and the media do not like the fact that you will have a democratic free vote, call up the issue of freedom of religion. Let the Liberals play this card first, however. Then unleash an ad of all of the people who have been silenced and hurt by this decision such as Chris Kempling, Bishop Fred Henry and now the Knights of Columbus. In the ad tell people that the freedom of religion guarantee was a lie. It would be very powerful indeed to portray the Liberals as anti-religion.
9. Use the word
'change' a lot. Every successful election campaign needs a catch phrase. This word is it.
10. Have a sense of humour. Crack jokes. Pull out the wife and kids. Go to a Leafs game. Be seen with a pint of beer in a pub in the GTA. Be human and real. We know you are a good guy...let others see it too.
Good Luck.
DOSSIER # 19: AIDS, LOVE, TOLERANCE & RHETORIC
“HIV IS SOMETHING THAT PEOPLE DON’T WANT TO TALK ABOUT, HEAR ABOUT, OR FACE”
Christina Aguilera
When I was in Britain I noticed the proliferation of a new advertising campaign. It was the ALDO FIGHTS AIDS campaign directed at fighting the spread of AIDS or HIV amongst youth. It was conceived and designed by the Kraftworks Advertising Agency which is based out of New York. After returning back home I noticed the posters everywhere. In bus shelters, inside subways, in shopping malls, virtually everywhere you looked this fall, the faces were omnipresent.
The campaign consists of several high profile celebrities posing with either their eyes, ears or mouth covered as a way of using the age old adage to
‘see no evil’, ‘hear no evil’ or
‘speak no evil’. Christina Aguilera, LL Cool J, Elijah Wood, Cindy Crawford and Ashley Judd are a few that I have seen on the posters. The goal of the campaign is to show young people that HIV can be caught by anyone and is a disease that does not discriminate against anyone due to age, race, gender or sexual orientation.
All of this is of course, true.
Yet, I find these ads not only an insult to my intelligence but indeed counter productive to the cause that they purport to be dealing with. In particular, the presence of Christina Aguilera in this campaign, a woman who has become a multi-millionaire out of promoting the type of promiscuous lifestyle that directly leads to HIV/AIDS, is particularly noxious. I do not believe Christina Aguilera really knows or cares one whit about the fact that AIDS is perhaps one of the greatest modern threats to the human species. I admit I could be wrong, but I do not think her actions would prove me so.
In the interest of full disclosure I will reveal something here now to you. In January 1993 my older brother, whom I loved dearly, died of AIDS. It was right after Christmas and I was about to begin my winter exams. He was a wonderful human being and I think about him a lot. He was also gay and a skater for the Ice Capades. I was in university in a different city at the time and it saddened me that I could not be closer to him during his death. It is one of the great regrets of my life. My mother, a nurse and my grandmother, also a former nurse went and took care of him in the last two months of his life in his small, cramped apartment in Toronto’s Yonge and Carlton district.
His death was not pleasant. It was not heroic. My brother was not a martyr. But he suffered. What bothers me about campaigns such as the ones above is that they do several things. They glamorize and heroicize the disease. By hiring beautiful young celebrities photographed in glossy B&W, these campaigns hurt more than they help. They create a visual romantic image of fighting HIV/AIDS that is just not true. These types of campaigns also traffic in rhetoric that is a staple of the fashion and entertainment industry. Let’s be blunt. HIV is predominantly (but not exclusively) spread by three factors:
1. Promiscuity
2. Anal sex
3. Dirty intravenous needles used for drug use
There are of course other factors such as blood transfusions that can also lead to the disease, but they are more rare.
Note the language I have used.
I said,
‘Promiscuity can lead to the spread of HIV’. I did not say
‘Unsafe sex can lead to the spread of HIV’. The term ‘unsafe sex’ is mere rhetoric.
That is what the entertainment and fashion industry has trafficked in with regards to this disease for almost two decades. Aguilera and LL Cool J in particular have made millions out of promoting promiscuity as a lifestyle. They sell it to teens and kids in videos, on disc and on many of the shows on which they appear. These campaigns send a message (like the
‘no glove, no love campaign’) that one should be
responsible while one is being
irresponsible.
It doesn’t work that way.
By using the language of rhetoric as opposed to the language of fact they sell a lie. The type of people who engage in irresponsible behavior are not the type to use condoms. I have taken stock of my friends lately and sadly, I realized that many of my friends, have been stricken with some sort of STD (sexually transmitted disease) in the past decade. They talk about it. They are also usually the ones who are the most morally liberal and the first to condemn moral conservatism. They fall for the lie perpetrated by television shows like
Sex and the City and then wonder what happened and why they are depressed and alone as they enter into their thirties. They are not bad people. They are good people who have merely bought into a cultural lie.
Saying HIV is spread by
‘unsafe sex’ is like telling people that driving drunk is okay so long as you make sure not to hit other people when you do it. This is spin. It is the language of rhetoric that only serves to obfuscate the truth. No, driving drunk is what causes death!
The entertainment industry no longer has a legitimate place at the table when it comes to the discussion of HIV/AIDS…neither does the fashion industry. Both of these industries sell a lifestyle that thrives and makes money off the very promiscuity and lifestyles that are conducive to the spread of HIV. That is not to say that there are no exceptions. Bono and Bob Geldof, I believe have much to say about the issue and are very well informed about it. They have never politicized it and indeed Geldof has went out of his way to make sure celebrities who performed at
Live 8 did not attack President Bush (who has done much for AIDS in Africa) and invited Pope Benedict to the event. Bono also had much time for the message of Pope John Paul II and virtually always wears a rosary around his neck given to him by the late pontiff. Bono and Geldof have earned their place at the table through actions.
Anyone can be affected by AIDS; gay, straight, old, young, male, female etc. But, AIDS has been a worldwide phenomenon for over two decades now with Africa being ravaged hardest. With few exceptions, the entertainment/fashion industry came to the table very late in the day and then only when they realized that in North America, white gay males were unfortunately being hit hardest. By fortifying the image of the noble gay man dying as a martyr for the cause of AIDS in movies such as
Philadelphia or productions such as
Rent, the entertainment community has politicized the issue and made it impossible to discuss without one having to couch their language so as to not offend. As long as the primary concern is ‘not to offend’, people will continue to die.
Regrettably, many activist organizations in the gay community have also added to this politicization with their attempts to vilify organizations such as the Red Cross when they ask potential donors about their sexual practices. Some went so far as to try to have the Red Cross banned on certain university campuses last year because they considered the questions ‘homophobic’. Who is it that wants to
‘hear no evil’? All that matters with AIDS is that people live. Gay people, straight people, men and women.
Now on the flip side, religious groups can also no longer stay silent. Too many Christians or conservatives believe that this is only a gay issue and avoid the topic altogether. They either fail to properly educate themselves or believe that as long as they stay in their own enclave it will not affect them. They too must get engaged on the issue. HIV is not political; it is a human issue and the voice of compassion must be heard from religious groups. They must actively campaign for issues such as AIDS in Africa and must not deny compassion and love to those in their own community who might have it. They must show love to people whether or not they are gay, straight, white, black etc. This is how they will become living examples of Christ on earth. Too often I think religious people believe that to care about the issue of AIDS is a way of saying they affirm homosexuality; as a result they do not get involved. This could not be further from the truth. To be a truly religious being they cannot let this issue pass them by.
It must also be stated clearly that I do not believe AIDS is God’s punishment and I have no time whatsoever for the Fred Phelps’ of the world and his rhetoric of intolerance and hate.
As far as AIDS in Africa it is easily one of the most important issues facing humanity right now. In some ways, it is truly a test for mankind. People with AIDS, be they gay, straight, Western, European, African etc. should all be treated with love, compassion and dignity. One cannot acquire HIV by coming in casual contact with someone who has it.
AIDS must be talked about if we as humanity are to combat it, but talking about it does not mean a fashion party hosted by Elton John with a bunch of buff dancers dressed as lions while he croons his hits; talking about it is not having
Fashion Cares with a bunch of drag queens preening on stage while industry execs who normally preach promiscuity look serious and preach to us about the crisis they have helped to create through their culture; talking about it is not church groups staying silent because only '
those' people get AIDS; talking about it is not looking down on people who are afflicted with it.
Until we can truly talk about AIDS it will continue to inflict mankind and will not go away. Recently, the United Nations estimated that approximately 40 million people in the world are affected with HIV/AIDS.
We need to talk about it. But we need to talk about it in terms that are real. Not in terms that are merely couched in glamorized politically correct jargon that cover up truth so that we can all feel ‘evolved’ and not hurt the feelings of those we should love enough to speak the truth to.
When my brother died, he did not look like Tom Hanks, or the dancing, enlightened, bohemian artists in
Rent. There were no witty drag queens by his side and there were no ad agency execs telling him he was a martyr for the cause.
In his last weeks, he went in and out of blindness and struggled with mild forms of
dementia. He vomited profusely and his skin was covered in sores filled with puss. He went from being a muscular, handsome well built man to someone who was perhaps little more than 100 lbs. He bled out of various bodily cavities. There was no last minute cry and hug from a series of quirky artist types and Hollywood did not come to the rescue. In his last hours he was with my mother and grandmother. Both were Catholic and did not affirm his lifestyle but were there to the bitter end. They wiped his vomit from the floor, cradled him to sleep at night and when necessary helped him relieve himself in the bathroom. They ran to him when he moaned in the middle of the night. They were the only people with him in the hospital the night that he died. To this day my mother is haunted by the experience. It was her son. She would have died to save him. It is an experience very few will ever know.
That is love.
That is tolerance.
All else is rhetoric.
For the past four decades the West has been selling a lie to itself about the culture of promiscuity and sexuality. A lie about what the human body can take and what it is and is not designed to do. Until we quit lying to ourselves millions more will die.
I wonder if Mrs. Aguilera thinks about it in those terms?
QUICK DISPATCH: PAUL MARTIN, GREAT DEFENDER OF RELIGIOUS TRADITIONS!
This report on CTV came just as predicted. Paul Martin says he does not want to hold a Christmas election for fear of offending religious groups.
"When you are talking about the holiday season, there are also other religions that have different New Year's at different dates and their holidays at a different date and I think we have to be respectful of that -- the orthodox churches, for example," he said.
"It's up to the opposition. I don't want a Christmas election."Isn't this the same Paul Martin, who for the past year has insisted that religious observances have no place in public life or government decisions?
Isn't this the same Paul Martin who had no problem with ministers such as Pierre Pettigrew telling Catholics and others that they should sit down and shut up when it came to certain contentious legislation that he and the Liberal Party of Canada were trying to pass?
Isn't this the same Paul Martin that said certain orthodox religious groups were a threat to democracy and were bad Canadians in the last election?
I had very little time for Jean Chretien...but at least you knew where you stood with him.
Paul Martin's continued contempt and politicization of ethnic and religious groups in this country is despicable and dare I say truly racist.
That many ethnic and orthodox Canadians will fall for this saddens me deeply.
ARE THE PAGANS RIGHT?
I just received an email from a friend of mine to attend his families 'Holiday' Party on December 3rd. Now had I received it from anyone else, I perhaps would have just shirked it off. But this particular friend is a vehement anti-Christian...aggressively so. He also has a very big hatred for Catholics. Now at this party I know there will be a tree, eggnog, presents, a good deal of merriment and probably a lot of Christian-bashing going around.
Ironically enough, this friend is also in the film industry and just helped produce a major release for the Christian film market that was released recently. Irony indeed.
On the flip side, I have another friend who is a devout Christian. His family has barely acknowledged the more 'secular elements' of Christmas in recent years. No tree, no turkey, maybe a ham and the odd gift...but no fuss. He goes to church on Christmas Day and that is his Christmas. It makes him content.
I myself was always raised as a Christmas fanatic. Turkey, gifts, Rankin-Bass cartoons, lights, the whole deal. But this year...something has shifted in me. I find it harder to get into the 'secular' aspect. The early commercials for the Bay with scads of pretty people 'doin' thier thang' just don't fill me with glee.
Paul Martin's attempt to keep 'Christmas in Canada' quite frankly disgusts me. I doubt he has the foggiest idea of what Christmas means. If this is what the Holiday at large has come to represent then perhaps I should no longer want it.
My question is this;
Is it time for Christians and Catholics to give up the notion of Santa Claus and commerciality being associated with Christmas?
I now have Jewish and Hindu friends that put up trees. Is it time for Christians to take the opposite tact to what they have been doing in recent years? Instead of insisting on wishing Merry Christmas to everyone...maybe they should refuse to wish it to anyone who in fact isn't a Christian or a Catholic. If they are invited to a 'Holiday' party, should they refuse to attend because they aren't pagan? Are the pagans right in saying that the commercial aspects of the season are thiers? Should Catholics and Christians be thankful for this?
I do not have the answers for these but merely put out the questions. As a Catholic it fills me with deep sadness that I am actually asking it...but I must.
I will no doubt have a tree up in my home this year but it is beginning to feel hollow to me. Like I am playing a game to which I no longer know the rules.
If the 'festive' elements of the 'Holiday Season' are now just a part of a secular, pagan culture that has nothing to do with the Christ child's birth...why should a Christian or Catholic acknowledge them?
REMEMBER
My father had me later in life and as such died when I was a teenager.
He served in the Canadian Navy during World War II.
Please pray for, honour and respect our war veterans today. Also, in their honour keep trying to make our country a better place.
Keep aspiring.
Keep dreaming.
Keep remembering that freedom and truth must always be fought for.
Whether that fight is in a war...
in a court of law...
in a classroom...
or over the honesty of government. Every time you fight for truth you honour our veterans.
Never forget that as much as there is a desire in every human being to be free...there is an equal desire in many to be complacent, apathetic or corrupt.
Never be one who gives up. History teaches us that things can and do always change. Sometimes that change is through natural evolution; other times it is by force.
Nevertheless, change always ocurrs and truth eventually breaks through; and as someone taught over two-thousand years ago...there is no freedom without truth.
Today we thank and honour those who fought for freedom on foreign soil so many years ago.
We also honour those troops who continue to serve in honour of their country.
God bless.
BEHIND ENEMY LINES: WHAT’S GOMMERRHEA?
KALLY: Mom, what’s Gommerrhea?
MOM: Well, that can occur when a man of low character pays a woman of ill repute to…
KALLY: Mom!
MOM: Oh dear! You mean the Gommery Report!
KALLY: Yes. Britney’s mom said she had a bad case of it.
MOM: She just means that people are fed up with hearing about Liberal corruption.
KALLY: But are they?
MOM: Corrupt? Well, the answer is quite nuanced. Sophisticated Canadians believe
all politicians are corrupt.
KALLY: So then Paul Martin
is a corrupt politician?
MOM: No. He was exonerated…
KALLY: Exonerwho…
MOM: He was found ‘not guilty’.
KALLY: I thought you said
all politicians were corrupt.
MOM: Except for the good ones.
KALLY: Is Paul Martin a good one?
MOM: Judge Gommery thinks so.
KALLY: But wasn’t Gommery supposed to be
non-political?
MOM: He wasn’t.
KALLY: Then why did he say Paul Martin wasn’t corrupt?
MOM: Because it was his job.
KALLY: Is the Liberal Party corrupt?
MOM: Hmmmm. Only the Quebec wing. The one under the influence of Jean Chrétien.
KALLY: So Jean Chrétien was only the Prime Minister of Quebec?
MOM: No. He was Prime Minister of all of Canada.
KALLY: Then the Prime Minister of Canada and the head of the Liberal Party
was corrupt?
MOM: No, not at all. Only stupid American’s elect corrupt politicians.
KALLY: M’kay. Is Jack Layton corrupt?
MOM: No. He’s a good man who’s trying to make a difficult parliament work.
KALLY: Britney’s mom said it’s a parliament led by a corrupt Liberal Party. Wouldn’t that make Jack Layton an accom..accompl…acco...
MOM: Accomplice? No. It makes him a man who puts the needs of the country ahead the need for power.
KALLY: But by propping up a corrupt government doesn’t that actually make him the most powerful man in the country?
MOM: No. The opposition only wants you to see it that way. That’s called ‘right-wing spin’. They spin things and twist the context until you don’t know what is true. If you want to hear the truth, listen to Scott Brison. Or watch the CBC.
KALLY: How about Stephen Harper? Is he corrupt?
MOM: He is a bad and evil man. He’s
only out for power. He also mocks gay cowboys.
KALLY: The paper today said his party
could form the next government.
MOM: (
chuckles) That will never happen. Not if Toronto has anything to do with it.
KALLY: But then why is he in the lead?
MOM: It’s how we
punish the Liberals.
KALLY: By electing Stephen Harper?
MOM: No, by making the Liberals
think we will elect Stephen Harper. If only for a day or two.
KALLY: Do the Liberals learn from the punishment? Like when you forced me to watch every episode of
Sex and the City in order to learn about modern relationships?
MOM: We like to think they do. It’s how we keep this country great!
KALLY: So lemme see if I understand. The Quebec Liberals are corrupt.
MOM: Yes.
KALLY: But Paul Martin who was a Quebec Liberal minister at the time is not.
MOM: Right.
KALLY: Jean Chrétien was the head of the Quebec Liberals who are corrupt but Jean Chrétien is not corrupt because Canadians would never vote for a corrupt Prime Minister.
MOM: Torontonians wouldn’t. All others are stupid. Go on.
KALLY: Jack Layton is the most powerful man in Ottawa and is in bed with the corrupt Liberals but he is not corrupt or motivated by power because he cares about the country.
MOM: Yes.
KALLY: Stephen Harper is corrupt and only out for power. Even though he has nothing to do with the corrupt Liberals and has no power whatsoever. He also doesn’t like cowboys.
MOM: Exactly.
KALLY: Hmmmm. Canadian politics sure are confusing.
MOM: Not really. It all makes sense if you have the correct enlightened and evolved worldview.
KALLY: Will you vote for the Liberals in the next election?
MOM: Of course! They’ve made Canada what it is today!
KALLY: I see. Well, you’ve helped me understand one thing about Canada.
MOM: Great! What’s that?
KALLY: Why so many Canadians want to leave it!
The preceding conversation was presented by The War Room as yet another transcription from our audio labs of general conversations heard between average citizens in the Liberal Mecca of Toronto. Our undercover agent Starr recorded this conversation between a mother (approx. age 35) and her daughter (approx. age 7) this past Friday November 4th, 2005. It occurred outside of a local mall in the downtown core at approximately 2:34 pm. They were said to be eating street vendor veggiedogs but refused the cheese for hygenic reasons.
