Why Canadians are talking about the American Election

I live streamed the latest debate between Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders, tweeted a bunch, and followed up with a response to an article I read in the New York Times:

In Democratic Debate, Hillary Clinton Paints Bernie Sanders's Plans as Unrealistic - Amy Chozick and Patrick Healy

My response to this article on Facebook:

"This is a very disappointing article. Yes, Hillary Clinton didn't win New Hampshire, but if you talk about substance rather than flash, at least her answers held some detail in her plans. Bernie Sanders speaks with broad statements and talking points. This is very effective when trying to win over a volume of people with short attention spans. However, Hillary Clinton's responses - while sometimes stilted in delivery - were more detailed and actually told something about her thought process."

As you can imagine, this garnered quite a few responses including +130 likes and +30 comments.

One comment was particularly important, I believe:

"Sorry but, i just looked at your page, and you're Canada (great country by the way)

What's up with all these Canadiens commenting on America's Political Revolution ? I just find it peculiar, because i don't know if they're being sincere in their interest, because some of them are for Bernie and some are HRC.. Is there paid trolls on each side?, or they being sincere in their interest? Like i said, i just find it peculiar is all..Are you sincere in your interest?"

My response:

Yes, I'm a political scientist and writer from Canada - Yes, I'm very sincere when I comment because the relationship between Canada and the US is incredibly important. The US is our largest trade partner [United States: US$363.2 billion (76.8% of total Canadian exports)] and we share the world's longest unprotected border. Whenever we have a disagreement, our lives are effected e.g. Softwood lumber, pipelines, participation in military and peacekeeping efforts. We also work well together e.g. Hurricane Katrina, 1998 Ice Storm. Generally, I don't pay much attention to American elections during the primaries, but in this election, we've already witnessed so much violent rhetoric from Donald Trump and a ton of aggressive comments about Hillary Clinton, that I am paying attention much more than I normally do. During the Barack Obama elections, Americans got swept up in his positive messages and, while I had my doubts, I didn't feel compelled to act because it was at least rhetoric that was going in the right direction - and he has had successes and failures during his terms in office - But Canadians like me are seeing our American friends struggle with racial, censorship, inequality, family planning rights, medical coverage, education, and debt issues that appear to be getting worse instead of better and we are concerned. It's a mix between caring for a friend and self-interest that you'll pull us down with you that compels me to comment since I can't vote in your country. We have Prime Minister Justin Trudeau who is doing his best to help our internal and international trade issues, refugees, and our place on the world stage, and after 100 days in office, there are already changes being made. I look at American news (which is actually easier to get here than some Canadian news since your population is so much larger than ours - 35,985,751 to 322,835,000) I know that whether you elect a Republican or Democrat, we're going to have an interesting next four (or eight) years. My interest is sincere, it is mostly unpartisan, and I am greatly interested in what leader you will choose. It will have a great effect on lives both inside and outside of your country.

Cost of Living, Mental Health, and The West Wing

As we wait for the New Hampshire primary results in the US, Canadians reflect on how our country is doing on helping our citizens do more than live from paycheque to paycheque but to actually thrive.

Even though it's a TV show (that is becoming dated), The West Wing came up with a lot of great ideas - or at least great discussion topics - over its' lifespan.

This is from 5x19 - "Talking Points"

JOSH
Ten years ago, I worked for this Senate candidate. He had this idea that
health care, pensions, even vacation time ought to be portable, that it
should follow you from job to job, 'cause everyone was gonna work 15 jobs
in a lifetime. Might as well fly in the teeth of it. And we talked him out
of it. We told him he was scaring the bejeesus out of people. Who wants to
know about 15 jobs? Maybe we should have done that, I don't know.

***

I would like to start a debate based around this suggestion.  Since I am a writer and not affiliated with any political party, I'm working towards increasing awareness on issues and suggesting possible solutions that are politically unpopular.

For the Americans that read this post - I'm not supporting any of your politicians either, but I think Obama has made a lot of mistakes and I cringe at Donald Trump and the equality problems I read about - and I'm hoping the next president is open to new ideas for your country and the world.

For my fellow Canadians, many of us - The Working Poor and those struggling with Mental Health issues - went through our last election hoping that we might be mentioned by our political leaders and talking heads.  Everyone was championing the "Middle Class" as if most Canadians assume they are part of that group, but no one ever defines what that means.

If I were to define "Middle Class", I would say that it would include individuals that were able to live and work full time and be able to afford not only the necessities of life and the ability to save for a proper retirement but also any sudden expense (like replacing a broken refrigerator or time off for a medical emergency) without worrying about not being able to afford it; education and caring for family members will not bankrupt them; and being able to enjoy life with things like celebrating an achievement, heading out to local community events, participating in hobbies and organized sports, and the occasional vacation.  I would add to this that a middle class family would be comfortable having the children they choose to have with the knowledge that they can be tested for any health issues that may come up; successful pregnancy including pre/post natal care; early education; school fees that won't cripple their family budget; the ability to have the kids participate in arts and sports; the nightmare of post-secondary student loans will not hobble them and their soon-to-be-adult children; the ability to participate in community events for the whole family and individuals; and everyday joys like birthday parties and competitions can be participated in without first checking the bank account.  This is a very low bar, I believe - as the saying goes, we should work to live not live to work.  The people who can afford more than this aren't automatically "rich" - this should apply to everyone in Canada.  We should all be able to enjoy some comforts of life and be able to answer the phone without worrying about creditors.  No one should fall through the cracks, have to go to a Food Bank, receive welfare, or cringe at the phone ringing because they are ducking creditors.  Everyone should be able to enjoy life.

Juno Nominations are out, including Justin Bieber...

I love this song so much that I rewrote the lyrics for our troubled and strange pop sensation, Justin Bieber and his love of illegal street racing and other oddities: You know, I never listened to you on the radio, I wasn’t in your target group for your records or your shows, But I thought “Just let him be. He’s a Canadian kid like me” And I turned the channel anytime I heard “The Beabs” Because I’ll say that… Every rose has it’s thorn, Just like every night has it’s dawn, Every cowboy sings a sad, sad song, Every rose has its’ thorn. I went along with my business and I left you to the tweens, To worry about your millions wasn’t worth a hill of beans, I thought it was a little much when they boo’d you at The Cup It’s just you’re all jealous of his growing means, Because I’ll say that… Every rose has it’s thorn, Just like every night has it’s dawn, Every cowboy sings a sad, sad song, Every rose has its’ thorn. So now you’ve gone and gotten yourself in trouble, And you seem to think it’s all a little game, Buzzing down the street could turn you to mincemeat, So I sigh and turn the page for the boy of 19 Because I’ll say that… Every rose has it’s thorn, Just like every night has it’s dawn, Every cowboy sings a sad, sad song, Every rose has its’ thorn.