Guest column - Blue collar disconnect
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- Published on Friday, February 11, 2022
By Mike Waddell
Neepawa Banner & Press
It is said that every scar tells a story. When I was a child our family was establishing a mixed farm three miles East of Arden. As the farm took shape there were tasks for everyone.
One of the things I learned to do early on was to pull nails out of lumber we were going to reuse. Where possible the nails would be hammered straight and set aside for future use.
As luck would have it I ran into a particularly stubborn nail and, in my 10 year old wisdom, I decided to straddle the beam intended for a corral post and put both hands on the crow bar to use my entire body weight to leverage the nail out of its stubborn set.
To this day, every time I look in the mirror to shave, I am reminded of the scars that mistake triggered, as the flat end of the crowbar struck the bridge of my nose as the nail gave way under my weight.
I learned a lesson that day about leverage, consequences, timing and positioning in relation to the tools needed for a given job.
As I write this column, the situation in Ottawa and across Canada is still very fluid as it relates to the Freedom Convoy, its proponents and its opponents.
This is not a column in support or against the activities that are in the national focus.
Rather, this is an observation that the activities have shone a spotlight on a glaring gap in our democratic makeup.
Historically, when a group protesting a given issue or cause comes to the forefront, governments work to open channels of communication. Often, it is through an emissary or a secondary leader, so as to prevent appearing that the leader is softening or giving way to the cause.
This requires that someone in a given government can speak the language of those who are protesting or at the very least appear to be relating to them on some level.
Of all of the images Justin Trudeau can project or 鈥減ut on鈥�, the one he truly doesn鈥檛 understand is the combination of blue collar, rural or even suburban life.
PM Trudeau can wear the cultural apparel of many different peoples of the world and pull off a reasonable impression or at worst a characterization of a lot of different groups but putting on a tool belt, a hard hat or work boots does not appear to be in his repertoire.
Further to that, as I glance through the current Cabinet roster, there are no characters who visibly jump out who could be an emissary in talks with the convoy and those who support them.
No one in this government appears to be able, or willing, to speak 鈥渂lue collar鈥�.
This is not a phenomenon unique to this government. Under previous governments of all stripes there are gaps in understanding. As someone who has run for public office under the Progressive Conservative banner, I am all too aware that there is a shortage of right leaning elected officials who can fluently speak the languages of 鈥渉ealth care, education and social work鈥�, as examples.
Every election cycle there are talks about the idea of electoral reform to allow for proportional representation, or some other form of government that will theoretically level the playing field for all Canadians.
When a plumber wants to find out where the leaks may be in a given water system, they apply pressure on a controlled basis to the pipes. Once the leaks are visible, pressure is eased and the fix is applied.
Governments are no different than a plumbing system and right now, as they are under pressure, the leaks and flaws of our current structure are visible.
Now is a time to note where those flaws are and to move towards a long term solution to the structural issues that seem to be preventing balanced representation with elected officials who can relate to the largest possible cross section of their constituents.
As a starting point, anyone who is running for public office should be able to show at least a few scars to their potential constituents as proof that they have experienced pain like those they intend to represent.
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this column are the writer鈥檚 personal views and are not to be taken as being the view of the Banner & Press staff.
