Canadians are increasingly tired of a small political elite telling us we should be happy and complacent as our nation declines.
Canada is a nation built on the idea of freedom.
As much as the Neo-Com Liberals and media may want to deny this, it remains an indisputable fact.
Canada’s founders repeatedly spoke about freedom.
Our anthem talks about the “True North Strong And Free.”
People from across the world came to Canada to live in freedom.
For much of our history, we were a country with a small and limited government.
The fact that there were few people in such a vast space also created an attitude of individualism and self-reliance.
Tens of thousands of Canadians died in large-scale wars against anti-freedom regimes, and it has long been understood that Canada is a nation that is supposed to stand up for freedom when it is threatened.
Even with such an assault on the idea of freedom, Canadians retain much of our past mindset, as evidenced by how quickly public opinion turned against the Chinese Communist Party as the CCP became more and more authoritarian.
The history of standing up for freedom is why the Freedom Convoy resonated with and inspired so many Canadians. The Freedom Convoy is an extension of Canada’s pro-freedom heritage. It was also a response to a government that was clearly seeking to destroy the Canadian value of freedom.
Over the past two years, Canadians have at various times lost the right to travel, lost the right to move freely in their own cities, lost the right to visit their relatives, lost the right to visit their friends, lost the right to operate their businesses, lost the right to attend the funerals of their loved-ones, lost the right to work, lost the right to bodily autonomy, lost the right to leave their own homes past a certain point in the day, lost the right to attend faith services, lost the right to gather indoors and outdoors, lost the right to play outdoor sports, and more.
Anyone who thinks this isn’t a problem either isn’t paying attention, or is just fine with this massive and unprecedented expansion of government power.
And this brings us to the Jean Charest campaign.
Failing to understand their own party
After a belated and often weak response, the Conservative Party of Canada has increasingly found the strength to speak out against the assault on our rights and freedoms, and oppose the expansion of government power.
This clearly reflects the will of their membership, as the leadership race front-runner Pierre Poilievre is someone who supported the Freedom Convoy even when it was under attack by the establishment press, and Roman Baber – an Ontario MPP who courageously stood up for freedom at great political cost – is rapidly raising his profile and will almost certainly play a big role in the party for many years to come.
Additionally, Leslyn Lewis – who also stood strong in support of the Freedom Convoy – is more popular than Charest among CPC members in much of the country, even accounting for the support that Poilievre and Baber have.
What this all means is that CPC members – and a growing number of Canadians – have sent a clear message: They want a leader who values freedom, and who will stand up for freedom.
Amid this obvious reality, the Charest campaign has somehow decided that now is the time to demonstrate an egregiously condescending attitude towards freedom.
The Co-President of the Charest campaign says “freedom” is now a “dogwhistle”:
“Sorry @nationalpost I have to disagree. “Freedom” has morphed from clarion cry to dogwhistle. Turns off more voters than it turns on. The centre right is where @CPC_HQ wins the next election & takes Canada forward”
Kheiriddin – in an echo of Liberal rhetoric – claims Canada is “already sixth freest nation on earth.”
“The “freedom” to make choices that disregard the well being of others is not what freedom means to most Canadians. Nor is the “freedom” to occupy our capital city for three weeks. Canada already sixth freest nation on earth.”
The “freedom” to make choices that disregard the well being of others is not what freedom means to most Canadians. Nor is the “freedom” to occupy our capital city for three weeks. Canada already sixth freest nation on earth. https://t.co/ddz63glgrM https://t.co/bX5x243JyA https://t.co/lO30CWfLKJ
— Tasha Kheiriddin (@TashaKheiriddin) August 7, 2022
With that kind of attitude, it’s no wonder that the Charest campaign has struggled to resonate with Conservatives.
The neo-com Liberals & NDP may be just fine with expanding government power and taking away freedoms, but Conservative Canadians certainly are not.
By downplaying the importance of freedom, the Charest campaign demonstrates that it is completely out of touch with the membership of the party they seek to lead, and no amount of complaining about how ‘mean’ or ‘divisive’ their opponents are will change this.
Spencer Fernando
Photo – YouTube
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