December 3, 2003

Opinions ¢ the other press ©

 

Social Myths

Macdonald Stainsby
OP Columnist

Well, much like the majority
4 of people reading this col-
umn, I’m about to go to my
final exams this coming week. In prepar-
ing, I intend to do what we all do—check
the material and make certain I have as
good of a grasp on the material as possible.
I have really had the screws put to me, as
I (like many others) am trying desperately
to pass a Statistics course, which is a killer
on the nerves, and the patience of your
spirit. However, statistics has done one
good thing for me. It
reminded me that “data”
needs to be stated up front,
that simple guesswork isn’t
good enough. One cannot
base an opinion on a pres-
entation of what they
would like to believe, and
expect that belief to be
respected—you need some kind of proof.
Otherwise, you are simply mongering
myths as interpreted fact.

Case in point, I'll illustrate what I call
“social myths”—beliefs held by people in
this society that are not, in fact, based on

reality.

 

* Canada did not participate in the attack
on Iraq.

Both the media, and the good people
who desire to believe that they are not
involved in the mass slaughter of Iraq,
have perpetuated this myth. However, the
reality is that only Britain and Australia
have committed more to helping crush the
Iraqi people, as Canada led the Coalition
of the Killing’s Navy, involving some 1300
troops. Canada also coordinated air bat-

The only
thing free is
the rights of

the worker

tles, provided military transport, and is
the single largest provider (aside from
themselves) to the US of any arms. All
American airplanes, regardless of whether
or not they were attacking a sovereign
country, were granted immediate and full
access to Canada’s airspace. All of this and
much more is a matter of public record.

¢ Free Trade agreements reduce poverty
in Third World Countries.

This sentence is so loaded with social
myth, that I’m not sure where to start.
First off, the term “free”
trade is grossly misleading.
The only thing free is the
rights of the worker: free
from healthcare, union pro-
tection, working standards
and environmental legisla-
tion. Small companies,
when larger companies are
“freed,” are reduced by huge numbers over
their previous percentage of the market—
only a few super-mega-ultra corporations
are left, with prices rising, and real wages
(wages where you factor in the “variables”
like the cost of rent, gasoline, clothes, etc.)
falling. Mexico is a case to be treasured —
since 1994 and “free trade” imposed upon
Mexico—those living in absolute poverty
have more than tripled.

¢ I could play this game all day, but ’'m
going to go with one more myth and be
done with it. After all, we've got exams to
write. We live in a democratic society.
This is probably the most twisted social
myth there is. But all you need to do is
grab an online dictionary (I went with the
Merriam Webster) for the word democrat-

ic: “Of, relating to, or favouring democra-
cy—relating to, appealing to, or available
to the broad masses of the people.
Favouring social equality: not snobbish.”
Clearly we do not live in such a society.
The term has also been perverted beyond
recognition when it comes to countries
that the US—and Canada—have decided
to occupy and control. How can a govern-
ment imposed upona people “favour
social equality?” Is it possible, that under a
hail of bombs,
Iraqis might see
their own coun-
try as “available
to the broad
masses of the
people?” What
could be more
“snobbish” than
to say, “We have
a form of govern-
ment we like, and
you will adopt it
or we kill your
kids?” But this
happens with
every raid, and
with every child blown apart by an itchy
trigger finger—a finger on a man who is
probably younger than me, perhaps with
fairer skin (though that’s tough), thinking
he is acting in the name of democracy. He
might even be there to try and advance the
nobility of all human beings, but yet is
losing his ability to look in the mirror
with each passing day. He wanted to fight
for democracy, brought upon him like so
many other social myths. And those men
and women in_ Iraq, Palestine,

 

Afghanistan, and even here in our own
countries—Canada and the United
States—who try to allow people to make
their own decisions, are truly acting for
democracy—the right to live without
coercion.

Democracy is not something that hap-
pens for five seconds, every five years, and
then goes into hibernation. It’s something
that happens in the streets, in your work-
place (believe it or not), and it is some-
thing that hap-
pens in how you
think. You have
a right to think
outside the
party-politics
ballot box. You
don’t need to
settle for choos-
ing which of the
bad options you
want. You need
to rely on your-
self, me, your
neighbours, and
your family—
and we need to
all work together to empower not just our-
selves, but each other. Democracy will ter-
rify those we vote for in their mythical
“democracy,” for real democracy is not
only far more democratic than the swill of
our misleaders—democracy is far more
powerful too. Ultimately we are the real
power here—if we remove our consent,
then the system cannot function. Only the
people can. And that’s democracy.

 

http://www.otherpress.ca

e Page 11