[fvc-wat-disc] The Record column by Luisa D'Amato

Wed Jun 29 20:32:02 EDT 2016

Bob:

Your response here needs to be posted as an article on the fvcwrc blog.

Maybe illustrated with a copy of the FVC postcard picture and an 
invitation to people to come pick up a postcard and/or ask questions at 
the Fair Vote booth at the upcoming summer festivals.

Regards,
Laurel

On 06/29/2016 12:23 AM, Jennifer Ross wrote:
> Yes, very disappointing.  I couldn't believe you guys were tweeting it 
> to make people read that piece of rubbish.  I'm sorry you had to be 
> the poster-boy for "but I did get a second viewpoint" journalism.
>
> On Tue, Jun 28, 2016 at 4:11 PM, Bob Jonkman <bjonkman at sobac.com 
> <mailto:bjonkman at sobac.com>> wrote:
>
>     -----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE-----
>     Hash: SHA1
>
>     I get quoted in today's column by Luisa D'Amato:
>
>     http://www.therecord.com/opinion-story/6743051-d-amato-despite-brexit-we-need-a-referendum-on-electoral-reform/
>
>     > D’Amato: Despite Brexit, we need a referendum on electoral reform
>
>     > Bob Jonkman, co-chair of the Waterloo Region chapter of Fair Vote
>     > Canada, says there is barely time to put a new system in place,
>     > let alone ask people what they think of it
>
>     Ms. D'Amato and I had a 20 minute conversation yesterday and that's
>     only a brief and under-representative quote of what we spoke about.
>     Among other things, I expressed my opinion that a referendum on
>     Electoral Reform isn't necessary because:
>
>     1) Parliament (and provincial legislatures) may change the electoral
>     system with a vote in parliament, as they have done for every other
>     electoral reform issue such as giving the vote to women (1917-1918) or
>     First Nations people (1960!)
>
>     2) A referendum on electoral reform is not a constitutional
>     requirement. The only issue that affects consitutionality is seat
>     allocation to the provinces, and that requirement is easily met by not
>     extending electoral boundaries across provincial lines. (We didn't
>     discuss it, but there have been many electoral boundary changes,
>     notably before the 2015 election, which didn't go to a referendum and
>     were perfectly constitutional)
>
>     3) That an effective and equal vote is a right, and that the
>     First-Past-The-Post system violates that right, and rights issues are
>     never decided by referenda.
>
>     I spoke of the rarity of referenda in Canada, that the only national
>     referenda have been on issues like prohibition (I thought that was in
>     the 1930's, but it was in 1898), and the separation of Quebec (1992).
>     Ms. D'Amato pointed out that we had a municipal referendum on
>     fluoridation, and pointed out the many provincial referenda on
>     electoral reform.
>
>     We talked about the 2007 referendum in Ontario -- that example is a
>     great reason to avoid referenda on these topics. Although the McGuinty
>     Liberals made it an election promise in 2003, the Citizens' Assembly
>     wasn't formed until 2006, leaving them only six months to become
>     experts in voting systems and make a recommendation. Elections Ontario
>     did not have enough information documents available; Fair Vote
>     Waterloo members went door-to-door, and we ran out. Elections Ontario
>     themselves were prohibited from giving out information on the proposed
>     voting system, and when voters went to the polls in October most
>     didn't even know there was a referendum on.
>
>     I expressed dismay that it took the Federal Liberal government eight
>     months to form the current All-party Parliamentary Committee, that the
>     Committee's proposal is due on 1 December (and consultations need to
>     wrapped up by 1 October), that the time it would take to move a bill
>     through parliament could be as much as year, what with debate,
>     multiple reading, and senate approval, and that Elections Canada will
>     need a year to re-tool for a new electoral system.
>
>     And that whole conversation was distilled down to the one sentence.
>
>     - --Bob.
>
>
>     - --
>     Bob Jonkman <bjonkman at sobac.com <mailto:bjonkman at sobac.com>>      
>       Phone: +1-519-635-9413 <tel:%2B1-519-635-9413>
>     SOBAC Microcomputer Services http://sobac.com/sobac/
>     Software   ---   Office & Business Automation   ---  Consulting
>     GnuPG Fngrprnt:04F7 742B 8F54 C40A E115 26C2 B912 89B0 D2CC E5EA
>
>
>
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>
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>
>
> -- 
> No other Western democratic country concentrates as much political 
> power in the hands of one person as Canada does with her Prime Minister.
>
>
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-- 
Laurel L. Russwurm, Author <http://laurel.russwurm.org/blogs/> § 
about.me <http://about.me/laurelrusswurm> § Libreleft Books 
<http://libreleft.com>
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