Friday, March 24, 2017

Niki Ashton is the leader the NDP and Canada needs


Guest Editorial by Robert McCarthy

My name is Robert McCarthy from Sudbury, Ontario and I am supporting Niki Ashton to become the next leader of the New Democratic Party of Canada. Like myself, Niki is a proud Democratic Socialist. She is the candidate that I most identify with. Her vision includes free tuition and student debt forgiveness, opposing pipelines where they infringe on Indigenous rights and endanger the environment, and the expansion of public healthcare to include dental care, pharmacare and access to mental health services for all Canadians. These policies are perfectly in line with what I believe.

I had the pleasure of meeting Niki in 2012 during her first run at the party leadership. The Sudbury NDP had hosted a debate for all the leadership candidates at the Steelworkers’ Hall. Before the debate officially started I had a few short minutes to talk to Niki and had my picture taken with her. Both during this meeting and during the debate she impressed me. She has strong conviction, unwavering principles, and the capacity to intelligently convey her beliefs. Niki is a great listener and takes the time to hear proposed solutions from ordinary Canadians to address the issues of the day. I knew Niki would be an important part of the NDP and Canadian politics for many years to come. Niki’s policies are a breath of fresh air. I believe Niki’s drive, determination, charisma, and all around ability, make her exactly the person we need to lead the NDP and Canada now and long into the future.

Robert McCarthy lives in Sudbury, Ontario and has been an NDP activist and the Disability Rights Representative on the Federal Sudbury NDP Executive since 2008.

Over the coming weeks The Left Chapter is interested in getting different perspectives on the NDP leadership race including from those both inside and outside of the party, from partisans of various candidates (perhaps explaining why), from critics of the race or those who think supporting any of them is perhaps a mistake, from those who would like to see a candidate who has yet to emerge, analysis of the candidates from an objective left perspective, etc.

If you have perspectives about the NDP leadership race specifically that you would like to share in blog/article/editorial form please contact us via theleftchapter@outlook.com

Do you have a left point-of-view or opinion, event or petition, a recipe or a story you want to share?

Send them to The Left Chapter via theleftchapter@outlook.com!

See also: The backlash against Niki Ashton from anti-Black Lives Matter commentators is what is really off base

See also: Niki Ashton launches her campaign from the left as NDP race heats up

9 comments:

  1. Is this the same Niki Ashton who said that Trudeau assaulted someone by brushing past them? The same Niki Ashton who said all parlaimentarian on-lookers were traumatised by that horrific event and that parlaiment would be seen as unsafe for women after this act of brutal violence against women? The same Niki Ashton who deleted a tweet that read "To the left, to the left..." after BLM Vancouver tweeted back calling it cultural appropriation? ...oh, I can't wait.

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    1. Justin Trudeau's behaviour that day was embarrassing for all Canaidans.

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  2. She has yet to come up with a high priority plan to promote basic income guaranteed.

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    1. To find financing for Niki Ashtons plans:
      Google Canada Oil Subsidies
      Google Canada Corporate Welfare
      Google Canada Offshore Tax Loopholes
      Google Canada risk transfer subsidies
      Wise Up Canadian!

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  3. Guy Caron has his priorities straighten up. He's an economics critics. So he knows where the savings are!

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  4. And that's to offer a basic income guaranteed.

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  5. Give it a rest! So-called Basic Income is a neoliberal trap designed to use our tax dollars to subsidize low wages and to eliminate targeted social programs.

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    1. Right on! and a total cop out on governmental responsibilities for the lower classes!

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  6. Justin Trudeau needs to realize that if you tax Canadians like a Tommy Douglas/Jack Layton/Niki Ashton/Tom Mulcair Socialist Democratic Government, you must give back like a Tommy Douglas/Jack Layton/Niki Ashton/Tom Mulcair Socialist Democratic Government! BUT: This wheezing, lying, sonofabitch can't follow through, cross the floor, join the NDP and give Canada's Universal Health Care System, a fully Socialist Democratic institution, a fair share in the cash flow. Instead Justin Trudeau short changed our Canadian Universal Health Care System in the Federal transfers to the provinces? Like a dirty Capitalist that wants to underfund, set up two tier, bankrupt Canada's Universal Health Care System, buy it out for ten cents on the dollar with his own fortunes (and the fortunes of his Liberal/Conservative eastern conspiracy "Backroom Boys" from Bay Street) and screw Canadians as badly as Americans are at the moment for simple health care? For taxation on the scale of Socialist Democratic NDP levels, Canadians should be getting back full and faultless health care, full drug protection, full dental protection, huge investments in public transportation and nationalized Western Softwood companies under a co-op system to prevent Trump's Marauders from buying them and their stumpage rights out and destroying the industry for High Short Term ROI. Our Military Budget should EXCLUDE American built armaments, and introduce better priced Chinese, Russian, German, Italian, Swedish, Canadian products (not British, after all they phoqued us over good on submarines, remember)? Somehow I see this little prick scurrying up the American Arms asshole like a hemorrhoid on fire when, in fact, Canada needs MIG 31's to defend its frozen north lands, not F-35's designed for American plundering of hot desert lands, landing capability on aircraft carriers that we don't own and acting as live targets for Chinese Drones? Justin Trudeau: Your First Past the Post election schemes won't save your bacon this time. Niki Ashton is about to chew you a new asshole, right beside the one Andrew Scheer is working on now. You may even have to decide which one to blow your smoke out of. The NDP, the honest Socialist Democrats, are about to expose your taxation follies, and they will allow tariff free electric cars from around the world to save Canadian lungs in our larger cities. Don't bend over Justin, you are all butt-hole and when they kick they can't miss!
    https://www.spencerfernando.com/2017/06/07/not-lie-believe-scheer-rips-trudeau-taxes/#respond

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