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When MP's become Propaganda Agents by Ron Saba A great change has happened to our representative government over recent years. In school I was taught that the role of our Members of Parliament is to represent the will of the people, all the while respecting our laws, which include the international conventions which Canada has signed, and acting under the highest standards of truth, ethics and morality. Of course, as is the case with much of what we learn as a child, this turned out to be a fairy tale. Increasingly, and in a shockingly brazen manner, our Members of Parliament have become propagandists for the ideologies and agendas of special interest groups, wealthy contributors and lobby groups. They see their role not as one of honestly reflecting issues to their constituents, raising the level of truth within the Parliament and reflecting the will of the people, but rather of selling their vote to the highest bidder, the one which can control the press and guarantee not only funding and re-election but financial security though cushy jobs and directorships once the MP leaves political office. They have no problem knowingly misleading the people through propaganda to achieve the agendas of their elite backers. MPs now parrot word for word position papers of elite and special interest think tanks and sign their names to documents and letters which their private interest benefactors have drafted for them, in many cases likely not having even read them. In this neo-liberal world, everything is for sale. And it is only going to get worse unless we speak truth to power and demand respect for the will of the people, domestic and international law and the highest standards of honesty, ethics and morality. Otherwise our democracy will become a fairy tale, if it hasn't already. Ron Saba the is editor of Montreal Planet Magazine Related: Liberal Parliamentarians for Israel Your Comments |
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