OcToBER 25, 2005

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THE CADRE @ 2

But I digress...

Ray Keating Managing Editor

I was experiencing some difficulty in coming up with a topic to write about in this week’s editorial. Nothing really seemed to interest me as I sat down to write it, and I could think of no particular “thorns in my side” so to speak. So, I decided to take a lesson from Ryans Rant and ramble on about a variety of issues in the hope that something would come to me as I went along.

This issue of the paper marks the first this year to contain Letters to the Editor. In my mind, this is one of the biggest compliments readers can pay to any publication. When the letters are about content of a previous issue, it shows us that at least some of our readers are reading the paper closely enough to care about what was said... even if their feedback is negative. When the letters are about other issues on campus or around the world, it demonstrates that some of you are unaffected by the disease I mentioned in my last editorial: apathy. The great thing about living where we do is that we get to voice our opinions freely and without fear of retribution. Itmakes me truly happy to see people exercise this right.

That brings me to another topic that actually did stick in my craw this week. On a daily basis, we at The Cadre get news releases from a host of organizations, including the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO). This past week we got two of these releases back to back. The first said: “Prime Minister Paul Martin will attend a

ceremony commemorating the 35th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Canada and the People’s Republic of China on Wednesday, October 19, 2005 on Parliament Hill.” Well, any of you who know me at all probably also know where I stand on our country’s relations with China, given China’s occupation of Tibet and their dismal record on human rights. All that aside, I was particularly struck by the next release from the PMO; it read: “Prime Minister Paul Martin will meet Louise Arbour, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights on Wednesday, October 19, 2005.”

Huh?!? ... by themselves, no one might have taken notice of these two press releases, but together, they truly serve to point out that Paul Martin has his head firmly planted in his own nether region. How can he possibly meet with the United Nations about human rights and then, a scant two hours later, commemorate our relationship with this dictatorial regime that has murdered millions of innocents? What are the odds that next time he’s in Beijing with one of his “Team Canada Trade Missions” our illustrious PM will take the regime to task? Pretty slim I’d say. Then, as if to add insult to injury, the PM released a statement on Sunday singing the praises of the UN and Canada’s role in pursuing human rights around the globe. Talk about mixed messages. Give your head a shake Paul. If our Prime Minister were to ask my advice (and I think I'd be right behind

Stephen Harper on his list of trusted advisors) I'd offer this little tidbit... stop playing both sides of the field. There comes a time when we need to do what’s right, even if it means taking one on the chin. Naturally we all want to improve our country’s finances and power position in the world community, but for us to jump into bed with China is no different than a kid hooking up with a gang... that kid likely gets some money and power out of the deal... but what is the real cost in the end? Paul Martin needs to remember that the definition of right and wrong remains the same regardless of the scale of the issue.

if L.2 million Canadians were

murdered

would the world community notice’?

Why don’t we notice

12 miliion