Canada Needs More Like The Honourable Chuck Cadman

He was not passed over as "being unworthy"! He was denied the ability to run for the Conservative party because he was defeated using the parties own rules. Jasbir Cheema signed up more members and thus was able to ensure himself as candidate. The riding of Surrey-North had been dominated by Cadman and the Reform-Alliance-Conservatives.

Cadman then used his political standing and public image to run as an independant. Which he did very successfully.

Cadman stood up for what he believed, but there is always two sides to a person. Cadman was also known for being abrupt and rude to those he did not agree with, including his own constituents. He was successful in changing young offender laws, but failed to do little else in his time in government. His riding is still one of the poorest, has a bad crime problem, has seen homelessness double in the last five years, is the stolen car capital of Canada, and little looks like it is going to change any time soon.

Cadman and his family probably achieved more OUTSIDE of politics than he did inside it.

Cadman was not about to let party tell him he was to be a sheep and follow their corrupt dirty ways, so he ran and won as he should have, because a parrt is NOT democratic, it is a private club.

wayne coady

Wayne your version of history is twisted. He would have ran for the same party (Conservatives) if they had not had rules that were exploited by another. He would have been a Conservative until his death. Those on his political team will also go back to working with Conservative Party now.

Cadman was only an Independent by circumstance, not by choice.

I agreee that Mr Cadman was an honourable man, and that he was independent by circumstance. He made the most of the situation he was handed, for the betterment of all. The arguments for independant are important, and if all things were equal it would be great. But that is not the case, in Canada today.

I understand the frustration with the party system, as it has become somewhat undemocratic; in the sense that the parties themselves, choose to be undemocratic. It certainly seems that after the election process, the members become totally beholden to the party rather than the electorate. If a democracy as defined by Websters, is a government by and for the people; then we are certainly in a democratic deficit at this point in history! As we can see our government no longer defers to us for our input into policy or legislation, they rarely consult with us at all, and if they do, they ignore our opinions in favour of the corporate lobbyists who have contributed to their campaigns for so many years.

An independent in Canada, will have a very difficult, though not impossible time getting elected. The cost of an election campaign is very expensive. Each person must pay Elections Canada a $1,000.00 deposit, which is refunded after the election, but for many Canadians that by itself is a hurdle! Then in order to educate the populous about their intentions to run, their campaign platform, etc. they will need signs, pamphlets and so on. All of this costs money. The problem is multiplied by the fact that Canadians for the most part, are not aware that we have a problem, or the issues we are facing. We don’t get the ‘news’ in the media, generally we get the ‘spin’ or the story. It reminds me of the way a parent dilutes a story to make it palatable to a young child, so as to not frighten them. The primary difference is that we the people, are not children and in fact it is our money that is being spent, wasted and stolen from our coffers. The fact that Canada is our country, the money is ours and the resources belong to us, has been completely ignored and our government has chosen to mortgage our future, through improper use of public funds, not using the Bank of Canada to fund programs, and instead pay exorbitant amounts in interest to private banks and foreign investors. We do not have any legitimate reason to be holding over $500 billion in debt!

As an independent it becomes difficult to get elected, and more difficult to have a voice in our parliament. Thus far the one party that holds true to democratic values, as far as my research has determined, is the Canadian Action Party and that is why I have chosen to become a member and candidate. They are the only party telling it straight, and allowing members to have input. They are truly grassroots driven and growing stronger everyday, due in part because of the dissatisfaction with main stream parties, that promise one thing and do another. I will give you some examples of things you will only hear from CAP(Canadian Action Party); -NAFTA needs to be abrogated NOW! Canada has signed on to CODEX, which is threatening alternative health options for Canadians, as the preference is for prescription drugs. The WTO did not assist us in the Beef border closure, the Softwood Lumber disputes etc. The threat to Canada’s water supply, is not being protected by anyone, (see Devil’s Lake, as they are preparing to pollute Manitoba’s Red River). All our trade deals, including the new plans for a ‘Smart Regulations’, and all laws within Canada, at all levels of government are bound and cannot conflict with our agreements in NAFTA, and the WTO, if they do, we risk serious financial penalties. The North American Tri-lateral plan, is coming to us not through consultation with Canadians but rather through the Task Force(the driving force that brought us FTA and NAFTA), which is a group of business/corporate elites, non-elected and yet very influential on our government. Health Canada is changing its direction and focus to be more in favour of industry, to make doing business in Canada more profitable, and our health and safety are secondary. We are in the process of allowing drugs that are approved elsewhere to be automatically approved in Canada. As Anne Mclellan, Deputy PM says, ‘Why duplicate tests?’ Well we have seen how some of those approvals have turned out for Canadians! Even the Green Party's website declares the plan to eliminate corporate taxes, how wonderful for corporations in Canada, how destructive to the lives of Canadians!

Now I ask you, do you believe an independent can fight all of these issues, effectively, or would they have more clout and resources available by acting with other like minded people? I think we have a huge burden ahead and that the only way to give government back to the people, is to have a vehicle to raise awareness all across Canada.

We need a strong voice to bring in an independent ethics commissioner, to reduce the power in the PMO, and make politicians accountable to the electorate. Doing business in Canada should be encouraged, but corporations must have guidelines that reflect respect for people and the environment first. A government that is beholden to corporations cannot be independent of them and make regulations, which might impact the profit margin at the same time. I think Canadians need to research a party and find out if they are influenced by corporate donations, or funded primarily by the people they are sworn to represent. That is the biggest hurdle, in my opinion as no one can serve two masters! It isn’t the party itself, it is the influence on the party that is the roadblock to true democracy. All you have to do is look at how these new rules are being implemented, and they aren't by one independant, they are through strong, corporately funded parties, that allow no dissenters!

If we made MP's accountable to their constituents first, party last, we would have more democracy. It is an unfair burden to expect one person to represent the thousands of people in a riding, with little or no financial support. Chuck Cadman had a base, most independants don't.

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If I stand for my country today...will my country be here to stand for me tomorrow?