[fvc-wat-disc] Another opportunity for letters

[Kevin Smith]

Thanks, Ari.  Just sent the following:

Thanks to John Roe for some overdue education in Friday's Record
around the Mixed-Member Proportional system that Ontarians will vote
on for the October 10 referendum.

A couple of points:

For the 39 list seats, all parties have committed to selecting these
members democratically under the MMP system.  The member lists, and
how they were chosen, will be known to voters before the election, so
they can vote against a party who has a list of hacks who don't
represent voters.  The list members will ultimately be responsible to
voters, just like the riding representatives are.

Coalition governments can be quite stable, and have worked well in
other countries.  The "frontroom" negotiations are exactly what we
need for a legislature which truly represents Ontarians, and needs to
compromise on divisive issues.  This is much better than a one-party
phony majority with absolute power ramming legislation through, which
happens all too often under the current system.

People I've talked to have mostly welcomed this change, breathing
fresh air into our democratic system.  Please join with me in voting
for Mixed-Member Proportional on October 10.

Kevin Smith

On 10/5/07, ARI DAIGEN <adaigen at sympatico.ca> wrote:
> For anyone who hasn't already had a letter published, there's a great
> educational op-ed piece by John Roe in today's Record that's worth
> responding to:
>
> http://news.therecord.com/Opinions/article/251873
>
> Roe tries to be even-handed of course, and says what both proponents *and*
> opponents of MMP say. I'd suggest shooting down the opposing arguments he
> gives: 1.point out that party lists, as well as the processes for choosing
> them, would be known to the public before election day, meaning voters *can*
> vote for or against parties whose lists they don't like. 2.Point out that
> coalitions are made through *front*-room wheeling and dealing, which is the
> type of cooperation we want to see in a democracy, and is a lot more
> democratic than false majorities that hold absolute power without having to
> consult anyone!
>
> Best,
>
> Ari
>
>
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