DISCUSSION OF ENVIRONMENTAL POLICIES AND PRACTICES IN CANADA

In response to Tim Mak's note http://www.facebook.com/note.php?note_id=2234009114&friends&index=1

As an introduction, here is the ad for that night:
The Karl Polanyi Institute of Political Economy (Concordia University), The Urban Ecology Centre and The Council of Canadians Public Event
Time: 6:00 – 8:00
Place: St. James United Church, 1435 City Councilors, (Corner St. Catherine West)-(Metro Place des Arts, Bus No.15)

Address by Elizabeth May
EVERYONE IS TALKING GREEN! But what does this mean?
A DISCUSSION OF ENVIRONMENTAL POLICIES AND PRACTICES IN CANADA

Discussant: Dimitri Roussopoulos, Founding President, Urban Ecology Centre Publisher, Black Rose Books
Chair: Daniel Salée: Principal, School of Community and Public Affairs Member, Executive Board of Directors, Karl Polanyi Institute
For further information: (514) 848-8707 or (514) 842-7432
Voluntary donation at the door

We, Greens of the Green Party of Canada, use the "environment issue" as a starting point and a common ground. Think of it as the place you live in, then extrapolate. Humanity might not be able to adapt to such an instable climate, in the near-geological future. How can one think about economics if the species' survival is not guaranteed? I agree that the market equilibrium is important short-term. I agree that our last plateform might not be that well-structured, and drawing too heavily from our starting point. I have a hard time learning it, because it is so general (and so strives to reach as most people as possible). I'm impatiently waiting to read the next one.

When we claim that we are forward, it is to account the diversity of our membership: members come from all the political spectrum.

You forgot to mention the "car-mad" woman, by the way, and the Mohawk was the one who declared the Jesus analogy. Yes, there were active members from Montreal in the room, but you didn't hear from them beside the shadow cabinet finance minister and Kyle Bailey, plus the crazy woman candidate in Montcalm (which I hope will be ousted in some manner or another). This was not a Green Party event, and at the next one, I will invite you so you can meet real Greens.

I would say that the question period would have needed to be controled with Robert's rules of order, but Chair was too polite or tolerant to do that. Although I agree with you that it is quite worrisome to notice an apparently unstable mental state or tons of false beliefs in a minority of the questioners (and a tendency to love to hear one's voice in their majority), I think we can draw interesting conclusions from the evening: people truly feel concerned about humanity's future.