Eduard Hiebert

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Improving Canada and Parliament With Democracy


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Dear Citizens of Kildonan St. Paul & beyond!

For the citizens of Canada, this federal election was a very, very serious activity!  For many, much of our future hung in the balance!  Now that the results are in, I am sure many of us are breathing more easily again.

In order to place my words of thanks within a pro-community citizen-friendly context, allow me first a few words concerning the democratic deficit. Being linked to "deficits" is now a dirty word.  So words about "the democratic deficit" needed to cross both of Harper's and Martin's lips.  Yet did either ever let on knowing to whom the surplus accrues?

Just a moment ago, I did not use big-business-friendly language to describe the election as being "very serious business".  Instead I used pro-community words that elections are a "serious activity".  For as citizens, we know instinctively that our overall health of our entire household as individuals, as families and as communities, including the direction and sustainability of Canada, OUR COLLECTIVE CANADA, is of a higher priority to us than simply equating all into the language of a cheque-book where "the business of business" the financial bottom line is often the only bottom line.  Hence, quite appropriately, this election involved serious activity.

Nevertheless, bits and pieces of our nation's resources were shamelessly packaged into the form of "election goodies", dangled before us like bait in a mousetrap.  Should either the conservatives or the liberals have gained a "majority", with nearly absolute certainty, many important, irreversible and devastatingly long-lasting big-business-friendly, citizen-unfriendly consequences would have been set in stone over the coming years, regardless of whether we had a conservative or liberal "majority" government.

In as much as there are winners lurking in the shadows who will not willing step forward by the light of day while their hand-maidens make pitch of the inevitability of globalization, as if there is no such thing as a globalized corporate driven agenda, who among the majority of Canadians, who actually exercise their democratic franchise and vote are aware of the seemingly non-existant and unseen forces, who benefit from the democratic deficit?  Is there really no one that benefits?

To be sure, here too, there are those in the shadows for whom it is no small accident and no mean feat, almost surreptitiously despite the blatantly obvious form of the ballot held before our very noses, that our entire democratic franchise AND democratic voice, through the "first past the gate-post" electoral system, has been collapsed and restricted into exactly ONE VOTE!  Why must our entire democratic franchise be collapsed into but one vote, no more and no less, without any reasonable nor prudent regard for a range of preferences over an array of electoral candidate choices?  Have you ever stopped to consider whether those same unseen forces might also have a hand in advancing a multiplicity of star candidates as a means towards gaining further inside advantage by splitting our vote and thereby advancing their ill-gotten licence to plunder Canada further?

This structural and intentionally fashioned mouse-trap of an election process is neither democratic nor citizen-friendly when for example, a candidate in Hull-Aylmer, Quebec, with less than a one-third plurality (32.69% to be exact), is the winner take all declared Member of Parliament in the 2006 election!

Within the confines of this unmistakable reality within our electoral process, I would now like to express my thanks.  First with awe and deeply felt thankfulness, I give thanks to each of the 213 citizens in Kildonan St. Paul who expressed their hope and joy towards a better tomorrow and placed their one and only "x" behind the name of the one candidate that said what he meant and meant what he said in advancing a return to representation by the population, namely government of, by and for the people!

I would also like to thank those many individuals who privately and/or publicly, including those seen AND UNSEEN EVEN BY ME, who have in one form or another provided their support to this longer term project of moving towards a democratically collaborative objective of improving Canada with democracy.  To each and every one of you, my hearty thank you!

I also wish to express my gratitude to all Canadians, who through this year's overall election results, were able to express their collective wisdom!  By way of analogy, our Canadian government voiced agreement by "adopting" the internationally accepted "precautionary principle" regarding the use of GMO seeds yet then in tandem with US corporate interests then refused to "sign-on" to the agreement and in a complete about face attempted to sneak through the advancement terminator gene technology.  In stark contrast to this type of corporatistic leadership, the Canadian citizens, almost as if with one accord, have genuinely maximized the honest application of the precautionary principle through the make-up of our next parliament!

Change was the necessary watchword!  But change to what and who should define those alternatives?  Despite big-business interests, in conjunction with the conservatives and liberals attempting to herd Canadians from no real change by switching from an earlier red cat "majority" to a blue cat "majority", [click here for several related articles].  Canadians actually moved very cautiously, advancing bonifide change, with a qualitative difference far superior to what big-business interests, or either of these two party systems had in store for us.

As Canadians, we now have a new government, but thankfully and with much appropriate precaution, not a corporatistic induced "majority"!  Both the NDP and the Conservatives were given a very cautious yes.  However the larger message is that each must do much better before further support is given.  Both the Bloc marginally and especially the Liberals were chastened. In retrospect not too severely.  However, even more remarkably, by holding all the parties in check and electing one Independent voice, overall our next Canadian Parliament will be evidenced by many new brooms and the elimination of citizen-unfriendly brooms like Mr. Free Trade himself, Paul Martin's initial provisional Minister of Health, Pierre Pettigrew, as well as the Agricultural related ministries represented by Andy Mitchell (Agriculture) and Reg Alcock (Canadian Wheat Board) to name a few!  In my view, against the pseudo change being touted by big-business interests through the conservatives and liberals, the make-up of this Parliament was about the most constructive change currently possible!

The application of the precautionary principle was also much in evidence here in Kildonan St. Paul!  Joy Smith and the Conservatives were not seen as the bright alternative to the Liberal sponsorship scandal and under our current first past the gate post system, were rewarded only modestly, moving from what essentially amounts to an insult of democratic sensibilities, her plurality moved from 37% to 43%!  Both the Liberals and the NDP were chastened modestly.  Both will have to advance better representation in order to achieve a turn-around.  On the other hand, the Greens, despite repeated attempts and all kinds of positive national presence and exposure, were increase from 2.07% to 2.71%, while the Independent candidate, a first time federal contender, who came on board 3 weeks into the election was given a window of respectability at 0.51%!  All around, hardly a more cautious application of the "precautionary principle" available!  My hats off to the collective wisdom of the Kildonan St. Paul citizens!

Furthermore, similar to the chastened Parliament, with many a new broom added, I am not now, nor during the election period advocating the death of the party system.  I am however advocating that the party system must be revitalized and brought into the services of the citizens and not the other way around, if it is to have a future in government by, of and for the people.  Nonetheless, as an Independent voice of social conscience towards true representation by the population, from this unencumbered vantage point, I was surprised how much more clearly I could now see how the genuine grass roots in each of the party systems, some significantly more than others, is presently being squelched and pushed into the shadows by their own top-down insiders.  At the same time, I wish to express my thanks, particularly to the genuine New Democrat grass-roots, who despite the irritations of top-down voices with my voice of conscience, did not loose sight of their noble grass-roots focus and calling during the election! 

Then to all of my fellow party candidates.  Within the limitations imposed upon you and accepted by you as party candidates, I appreciated the graciousness each one of you personally extended to me, while I as the voice of conscience, drew public attention to how you were playing your part in the party system and systemically were being pushed to abdicate your own sovereignty as citizens by having to advance the party line, even when this meant remaining silent, when at forums that sounded like all-candidate forums, yet which in one way or another such as those arranged by the CBC and CJOB, quite literally were not all-candidate forums, yet you apparently, without exception went along to get along with these undemocratic activities, modelling once again the top-down citizen-unfriendly code of conduct that in a competitive environment there are no unfair advantages.

Terry, Evelyn and Colleen, with the election now behind you, now you too are more free of your party's top-down shackles.  With particular emphasis on you Terry, given your public statements in favour of mine regarding the advancement of democracy through the preferential ballot, I hereby invite each one of you, with even greater fortitude and resolve to advance the necessary work needed within and outside of each of your party structures towards obtaining a preferential ballot in time for the next election!  This is both a practical and attainable objective, towards the common good!  Will you help?

And Joy Smith, you and your party and its previous predecessors have then and now again spoken of the need for electoral reform!  On the public record, one Kildonan St. Paul citizen expressed clearly and concisely that "our voting system is fundamentally flawed.  Proportional representation is a step in the right direction, but... preferential voting is a bigger step in the right direction."

A preferential ballot will make voting more meaningful, including among those who do not vote currently.  For example, the preferential ballot system is less fraught with the unknown and unpredictable consequences of the current strategic voting strategies because under the preferential ballot, voters, in addition to exercising their best choice, may if they so choose, support preferentially all other candidates without having to guess correctly which two will be the front runners.  A preferential ballot is the most advanced form of strategic voting. It increases voter inclusiveness and increases confidence in making electoral outcomes more democratic, without having any of the downsides so inherent in the details of all known proportional voting systems.

Joy, your party platform said the Conservatives will "stand up for Canada". Will you now as a government member mean what your party said and help champion this measure of electoral reform?

Again to all, my thanks and gratitude for one very stimulating and informative election.  And in the coming days, at http://www.eduardhiebert.com  please come by for a visit and see the new forum on "electoral reform.  Further articles will appear in the next few days and weeks, while now already it contains a spreadsheet regarding the Back to top


Election Day! Lighting the democratic fire. Please Forward.

Kildonan St. Paul Citizens:

A vote for honest government, a government of, by and for the people AND electing Eduard Hiebert, (Independent) Kildonan St. Paul IS POSSIBLE!

Since my leaflet flyer came out last Wednesday, the voter response to my candidacy has been phenomenal!  If among those who voluntarily took the time to visit my site, with as few as 40% of these then deciding to vote for Eduard Hiebert (Independent) and encouraging another 15 people to vote for change, Eduard Hiebert (Independent) WOULD BE ELECTED WITH A LANDSLIDE!

AND THIS HAS BEEN DONE!  Since the advent of email and cell phone text messaging, several governments HAVE FALLEN when the citizens lit their own fire and canvassed for government by, of and for the people by reminding their neighbours to vote and vote for change.  The most notable example is the 2004 Spanish election after the Al Qaeda train bombings in Madrid, the people toppled the Bush friendly government!

So regardless when you see this prior to voting deadline, will you please forward this immediately?  And until voting deadline contact your neighbours and friends encouraging them to vote for change AND make their vote count?

In Kildonan St. Paul, please remind voters neither the Greens nor NDP are going anywhere.  Their party brass gave up on Kildonan St. Paul long before the election started and only the remaining grass roots are doing their best, though even they are being used by the party machine as an easy way to still collect the $1.75 etc public election funding money as "free money". So please ask these voters to make their vote count and vote for Eduard Hiebert (Independent).

And to the SOFT Conservative voter, who honestly wants a fix in government, ask them if they knew Joy Smith would lose, having only received 37% last time, with a campaign that went flat this time as people wanted a positive change, ask them as well to make their vote count and vote for Eduard Hiebert (Independent).

To all concerned, please note, on election day person to person canvassing and soliciting votes is legal.  So between now and when polls close you may copy, paste and forward this as an email.  You may call and visit neighbours to remind and encourage to vote and make a difference.  If confirmation necessary, please check to see what the party candidate machines are doing today or call elections Canada.

So, please forward this email and encouarge your neighbours to vote and vote for a positive change.  In Kildonan St. Paul, elect Eduard Hiebert (Independent).

Sincerely,
Eduard Hiebert

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Eduard's Platform - Public Leaflet #1

In Kildonan-St. Paul, a choice to clean up Canada with democracy

Big Picture Questions

What Agenda are Harper and Martin Hiding?

Compare: the Sponsorship Scandal, $350 Million!  Gun Registry Boondoggle, $2 Billion and Federal government's last annual revenues?  $211 Billion!!!

With all sponsorship monies, good and bad, being less than 2/10's of one per cent of federal income, what even bigger issues do neither Harper, nor Martin, nor their parties want you to focus and become troubled with?

From Conservative Mulroney forward, including the Chretien/Martin Liberals, the big business tax share has dropped like a rock whiled through down-sizing government and "free trade agreements" much of Canada's economy is being privatized, leaving citizens with a higher tax share and fewer public dollars for health care, education, roads!

Mulroney condemned liberal patronage!  When conservative Harper now beats his breast and calls the ad-scam a sponsorship scandal, what is the real difference between liberal sponsorship and Mulroney's patronage?

Let us remember Tommy Douglas' words.  If we are mice, is it not time to quite voting between blue cats and red cats and elect a real MP who advances honest democratic self-government, one that is of, by and for the people?  Why choose party candidates who in exchange for the plum of being party candidates make Faustian Bargains which hand cuff their hands behind their backs?

Central Plank of Eduard Hiebert (Independent)

My word and record is my bond.

Yes! Stop tax loop-holes for big business and the rich!

Yes! Stop all personal tax claw backs.  Instead, adopt more progressive tax structure.  Raise the basic tax minimum.

Yes! Adopt taxable income parity: $1 net income, regardless of source; wage earnings or capital earnings.

Yes! Stop tax holidays.

Yes! Systemic crime solutions.

No! Harper's "tough on crime" is a fortress of mentality, trying to protect the rich by walling in the poor.

Yes! National day care!

No! Harper increasing the children's allowance as tax credit for the rich and calling it day care.

Canada's democratic self-rule must be reasserted with citizens democratically, not big-business privately running Canada.

Together we can ferret out and mitigate the harm done by corporate-friendly citizen-unfriendly Trojan Horses called WTO, IMF, who together with their hand maidens, our Conservative and Liberal governments, one-sided business-friendly trade deals and through stealth and the back-door, keep de-regulating public Canada and re-regulating Canada as a private, for profit and under corporate control.

The Democratic Deficit

Paul Martin speaks of the "democratic deficit".  Yet neither he nor Harper act to correct it.  Ask yourself, if a democratic deficit accrues to Canada's citizens, who gets the surplus?  And who in our "first past the gate post" electoral system, gains inside advantage through electoral vote-splitting?

Anyone besides big-business and a party system run by big business rules?  A preferential ballot stops this!

On January 23, 2006 in Kildonan-St. Paul
VOTE EDUARD HIEBERT (Independent)

Our Voting System Gives Unfair Advantage!  Time for Change!

Change how we vote - use a preferential ballot!

When 60% of Canadians voted against free trade (Liberal & NDP vote) Mulroney with 40% and a preferential ballot would never have happened!

In Kildonan-St. Paul's 2004 election, Joy Smith became the Member of Parliament with a mere 37% of the popular vote, beating out the nearest contender by only 298 votes!  Yet the 63% majority who opposed her were left out in the cold by the "first past the gate post" electoral system.

A preferential ballot (ranking candidates 1, 2, 3, etc.) eliminates the above undemocratic results entirely and on this point outperforms virtually all proportional representation schemes.  And each of our political leaders, including Wheat Board directors, were elected with a preferential system.  If good for them, why not our MP's?

Top down parties prefer proportional systems because the proportional slate reduces voter choice and gives inside advantage to party central deciding who gets elected.

Want a more democratic Canada, a more functional House of Commons?  Namely a sovereign Canada that is truly self-governed?  Ask each candidate if he or she will unfailingly work to implement a preferential ballot for the next election.  And if they won't, elect someone who will.

Make electoral outcomes citizen friendly!  Demand mandatory disclosure of public funds!

New local Election Funding monies have been centralized to the advantage of top down big business friendly and grass roots up citizen unfriendly party systems.  Did you know all central party campaigns may now receive from Canadians a 50% rebate of central election expenses plus $1.75 per vote per year?  The Green's current internal public feud is over this money!  Furthermore, each candidate with a minimum 10% vote receives a 50% rebate.

However, most party candidates "agree" to gut local issue campaigns by folding to and assigning much the local 50% to top down central campaigns.

In exchange for the 2006 plum of party candidacy, will you ask each candidate how much they assigned to party central, as part of their Faustian Bargain and thereby secretly hand cuffed their own ability to provide citizen friendly government of, by and for the people.  Will you also ask if they will work towards changing the law so every assignment is disclosed publicly, including how much, of all three monies, the top down central party campaigns capture?  And if they refuse, will you ask your candidate why they are not free to advance public disclosure of public funds?

Eduard Hiebert, An Independent Voice of Conscience

I am part of a Canadian third generation family farm.  In my family, I am also the eldest first generation born in Canada, Canadian.  Having traveled internationally, I am deeply proud of being Canadian!

Yet from my vantage point I am deeply saddened that through all the privatization being forced upon us by the Conservatives and Liberals, Canada at an alarming rate is becoming ever more like the countries many of our families throughout Canada have left a short or long time ago.

It is because of what Canada has given me, that I now, with a deep passion and love for Canada, come before you here today, in order to advance a path towards the common good and that this land of milk and honey continue to be a land for the common folk.

I encourage you to ask each candidate for their understanding of the issues and their commitment to Canadian democratic self-government, please vote for the candidate most free and able to deliver.  In Kildonan-St. Paul, on January 23, vote Eduard Hiebert (Independent).

On January 23, 2006 in Kildonan-St. Paul
VOTE EDUARD HIEBERT (Independent)

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Leaflet #2, targeting Eduard's faith community

"Now that the hour of worship is over, may the service begin."
- Quaker/Friend closing prayer

"Evangelize, if necessary use words."
- A further rejoinder

"Every new beginning is a doorway to adventure... a threshold of discovery."
- Posted on senior's doorway

While it is true most members within the Mennonite Church are married and among these there exists the knowledge that "you have to kiss a lot of frogs before you find a prince(ss)", how is it when it comes to a new political voice, the doors are often closed in favour of the status quo with "Ah, politicians!  They are all the same!" ?

A variety of wisdom sources indicate that there are only two paths in the use of power.

One of these may be referred to as the "pecking order".  Like a coin having two faces, the "pecking order" too presents two faces, which are sometimes described as "kick down" and "kiss up".

The language in Martin Buber's "I and Thou" helps to define and to differentiate, one from the other, both paths of power.  From his "pecking order" would be akin to "subject-object" relationships, while the only other available path is described as being "subject-subject."

The latter path, regardless of the size, colour or age of our hat, is defined by a relationship that is egalitarian.  A meeting along this path builds community, and invariable stats with gatherings as little as 2 or 3...

In the face of the status quo, "Silence means consent."

"War silences all debate."

"Who is not against me is for me."  Or is it "Who is not for me, is against me."
Luke 9:50 & 11:23 respectively

"The conventional view serves to protect us from the painful job of thinking."
- J.K. Galbraith

"Fascism should more properly be called corporatism, since it is the merger of state and corporate power."
- Benito Mussolini

"It is not enough to say 'we must not wage war.'  We must concentrate not on the eradication of war, but on the affirmation of peace."
- Martin Luther King

In Kildonan-St. Paul, on January 23 will you vote Eduard Hiebert (Independent)?  And between now and then build community by speaking in 2 and 3's with your neighbours?  Such grass-roots activity is a working alternative to the corporate-down "we do it all for you."

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