Dr Suzuki for Prime Minister

live in a constantly growing world: a

place where liberty is tempered with

justice, where the forces of evil can’t
spread their plague-like ideas unchecked;
where the good guys don’t always win, but
they sure-as-shit give it the old college try.
In short, I live,in a world where The West
Wing has come true, Jeb Bartlett (as
played by Martin Sheen) is the US
President, and...wait for it...David Suzuki

  

is the leader of the federally elected Green
Party in Canada.

Okay. I know I’m dreaming, but hear
me out. I think the majority of Canadians
want a country of long-term sustainabili-
ty and prosperity to leave to their children.
Even if you haven’t got kids, wouldn’t you
like to live in a country that actually mar-
ries sustainability with practical reason
and a caring heart? A country where pro-
active people take part in communities
that care enough to know their neigh-
names? A where

bours’ country

grandparents can look their grandkids in
the eye and tell them, “it’s going to be
okay” without lying? I know that’s where
I want to live, and I think Canada could be
it.

I’ve anointed Dr. Suzuki as the best-
chance Green Party leader for several
reasons. First, the biggest knock against
the Greens has long been the lack of actu-
al platforms on issues important to
Canadians. You know, those pesky issues
like economic viability in the 21st century,
like workable plans for social services,
taxes, and foreign aid. Basically, the
Greens are perceived as a party with one
message and one message alone: environ-
mental sustainability now (at whatever
cost).

It’s not that I think that current Green
leader Jim Harris is doing a particularly
poor job, it’s just that Canada (and, there-
fore, Canadians) deserves a leader whose
values are true; whose morality has been

May 11/2005

The Way Things Sometimes Are
CF Miley, Opinions Editor /

fired in the kiln of decades of public serv-
ice and debate; whose intelligence actually
exists (’m talking to you, Dubya and
Stephen Harper). Which brings me to my
second reason for wanting Suzuki to lead
the Greens: we need a Green Party leader
smart enough to get the top minds in the
country to give their input on policies
across the board. I believe Suzuki could
be this person.

Creativity has been sucked out of
political debate by the proven method of
repetition of message. For example, what
do you remember about Glen Clark’s run
as BC’s Premier? Don’t feel too bad if the
words “fast ferries” and “free deck for a
lottery license” leap to mind. It’s not your
fault that a constant barrage of media
attention on seemingly small matters (Can
anyone say, “Gomery Inquiry?”) shapes
your view of politicians’ capabilities. Oh,
wait, yes it is.

We’re constantly being told what to

think every day, and few even seem to

care. News Flash—“Today, Prime
Minister Paul Martin faced a barrage of
questions that continue to swirl around
the Gomery Inquiry. Gomery. Gomery,
Scandal.

Scandalous scandals around free money

Gomery. Sponsorship.
for cronies.” Et cetera, ad (scam) infini-
tum. Here’s another news flash for
you—politicians are damned near all dirty
in some corner of their personal closets.
They're fallible, every last one of them.
Just like me. Just like you.

Would David Suzuki be a shining bea-
con of truth and justice unseen in this
country since Captain Canada bagged his
first bad guy? Probably not. Would he
actually attempt to raise the level of
debate in the country by bringing an envi-
ronmentalist’s heart and scientist’s mind
to the game? You bet your great grand-
son’s last breath he would.

Suzuki is respected countrywide. He is

www.theotherpress.ca ]

 

actually sane. He originated Quirks and
Quarks on CBC Radio, has hosted The
Nature of Things for decades on CBC
Television, and is a member of the Royal
Society of Canada and the Order of
Canada. He’s the author of 36 books,
including An Introduction to Genetic Analysis,
the most widely used genetics textbook in
the world. He’s the chair of the David
Suzuki Foundation, and has been interna-
tionally recognized for his scientific,
environmental, and humanitarian efforts
more times than I have space to list here.

Basically, Dr. David Suzuki is Canada’s
real-life Jeb Bartlett. Am I alone in dream-
ing of a better Canada, a better North
America, and a better world? I sure as hell
hope not, because our futures depend
upon it.

Now, if we could only convince him to
run.