Editor:
It’s election time again and the contest to slander one another most is in full swing. It’s toxic and distasteful, but somehow, we’re used to it. We expect it. After all, this is what “politics” is in the early 21st century.
It doesn’t matter which level of government you look at; the same dialectic prevails. At its base, this dynamic is “my tribe vs. your tribe.”
There’s a huge cost to this that’s difficult to estimate.
More and more people are turning their backs on the political system. Why be a part of something if it doesn’t inspire you? The system itself has largely become the haven of those who wish to enact their own self-interest, rather than the collective interest it ought to be. Many talented and qualified individuals, who could form the bedrock of our civil society, will have nothing to do with public office or the political sphere. Perhaps most critical: we have lost sight of our guiding vision for the collective and where we are going as a community.
It’s a sad state of affairs that the guiding narratives of our time have devolved into such a miserable condition.
It’s high time that we in Sechelt resolve our differences and move forward in a spirit of unity. Let’s set an example for our children and grandchildren and start working together.
Noel Muller, Sechelt Councillor
