The Harper Government's War on Critical Thinking
Posted: Fri May 08, 2015 7:36 amThe Harper Government's War on Critical Thinking
[ http://www.desmog.ca/2013/05/07/harper- ... l-thinking ]
By Adam Kingsmith • Tuesday, May 7, 2013 - 10:24
EXCERPT:
If we combine the abuses and misuses of power in the Cabinet with the above list of “act first, think never” policy catastrophes, it paints a bleak national portrait indeed.
The Harper Government must believe the majority of Canadians to be incompetent, apathetic, and too simplistic to take note of their ultimate vision. How else can you explain trying to brazenly yank such an excess of wool over our collective eyes?
But this ultimate vision is slowly becoming clear.
By callously stifling the research of our scientists,
[ http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2013/05/02 ... ref=canada ]
forcefully restricting our ability to assemble,
[ http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/ ... -1.1390717 ]
unnervingly assuming increased control over the CBC,
[ http://www.hilltimes.com/news/politics/ ... -cbc/34566 ]
ominously redrafting our national history to reflect images of a Conservative polity,
[ http://o.canada.com/news/politics-and-t ... an-history ]
and sloppily framing critical and analytical musings by concerned citizens, journalists, and academics alike as patronisingly “committing sociology,” the Harper Government is meticulously eradicating our means of democratic debate.
And in treating critical thinking as indulgence, something that a good government has no time for because they’re too busy “governing,” Harper is trying to enshrine a notion of his party as the so-called defenders of what he believes to be the “average Canadian” – who upholds the status quo without asking too many tough questions.
However, as an open letter from dozens of Canadian academics indicates, [ http://www.straight.com/news/376826/ope ... g-any-kind ] we need to be questioning and thinking critically now more than ever.
In doing so, we can show the Harper Government that those “average, simple-minded Canadians” they believe to be representing, do a great deal more thinking than we’re given credit for.
[ http://www.desmog.ca/2013/05/07/harper- ... l-thinking ]
By Adam Kingsmith • Tuesday, May 7, 2013 - 10:24
EXCERPT:
If we combine the abuses and misuses of power in the Cabinet with the above list of “act first, think never” policy catastrophes, it paints a bleak national portrait indeed.
The Harper Government must believe the majority of Canadians to be incompetent, apathetic, and too simplistic to take note of their ultimate vision. How else can you explain trying to brazenly yank such an excess of wool over our collective eyes?
But this ultimate vision is slowly becoming clear.
By callously stifling the research of our scientists,
[ http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2013/05/02 ... ref=canada ]
forcefully restricting our ability to assemble,
[ http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/ ... -1.1390717 ]
unnervingly assuming increased control over the CBC,
[ http://www.hilltimes.com/news/politics/ ... -cbc/34566 ]
ominously redrafting our national history to reflect images of a Conservative polity,
[ http://o.canada.com/news/politics-and-t ... an-history ]
and sloppily framing critical and analytical musings by concerned citizens, journalists, and academics alike as patronisingly “committing sociology,” the Harper Government is meticulously eradicating our means of democratic debate.
And in treating critical thinking as indulgence, something that a good government has no time for because they’re too busy “governing,” Harper is trying to enshrine a notion of his party as the so-called defenders of what he believes to be the “average Canadian” – who upholds the status quo without asking too many tough questions.
However, as an open letter from dozens of Canadian academics indicates, [ http://www.straight.com/news/376826/ope ... g-any-kind ] we need to be questioning and thinking critically now more than ever.
In doing so, we can show the Harper Government that those “average, simple-minded Canadians” they believe to be representing, do a great deal more thinking than we’re given credit for.