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Tip: Your message to SUST-MAR must be html-free. So, BEFORE you hit SEND, please go to your "Format" pull-down menu and select "Plain text." Thanks! ____________________________________________________________________________ I think this story might interest sust-mariners, and I hope you'll forward it to your networks. Last week, the Nova Scotia Environment Network circulated a note from Josh at Clean Nova Scotia encouraging people to vote in a CTV opinion poll to allow the Green Party to participate in the televised leaders debate. I did that, because it just seems obvious that a registered political party with candidates in all the ridings should be there. But it also made me realize that I had never paid attention to the Green Party as a factor in this federal election, even tho I would generally consider myself a "green". Good CBC listener that I am, I was astonished to realize that I had been an unaware victim of marginalization. The issue of participation in the televised debate goes to the heart of the matter. If our views are not visible or heard in our media, even we discount their importance, because they "can't win". So to remedy my ignorance, I went to the Green Party website, and read their statement of values http://www.greenparty.ca/index.php?module=article&view=37 which turned out to be a far truer expression of my values than anything I've heard from any of the other parties. In other words, for the first time, I have the opportunity to vote FOR something that is clearly not like any traditional political party. And then I thought, what if a lot of us voted green, suddenly and for no good reason beyond a healthy exhuberance about the possibilities of life, and developing a national political party to represent us. The Green Party doesn't have to win to be successful. Don't you find that interesting? When I told this story to Veronica Sherwood, coordinator of the Nova Scotia Environmental Network, she replied: "It's very interesting Don. You are indeed echoing everything I just went through. I offered to help Martin Willison out with his campaign - still voting NDP, then last night I read the Greens complete platform. It was fantastic. What a wonderful document...so I will be calling Michael and getting some signs...interested in helping out. V" The NSEN is now distributing "Green Notes" to its list-serve, with information about the Green campaign in Halifax. If this goes through the pipe quickly, there'll be about two weeks to go. Michael Oddy in Halifax, Michael Marshall in Dartmouth-Cole Harbour, and Martin Willison for gosh sakes in Halifax West. I don't know the other candidates personally yet, but I'd very happy to have Martin Willison as my MP. And think what that would do for our efforts on behalf of the environment. So I say, let's see if we can use our media to get a buzz going about our candidates. Thanks to Josh and Veronica for the heads-up. Cheers. Don Black ____________________________________________________________________________ Did a friend forward this to you? Join sust-mar yourself! Just send 'subscribe sust-mar' to mailto:majordomo@chebucto.ca
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