They Should Party

by Epiphany Fellowes

I propose a new federal and provincial political party called "They Should".  This would bring a lot of Canadians together.  

We love to say what "they" should do and will participate in politics as long as all we have to do is talk about what others should do.  

"They" are the ones who cause the problems in our world. We notice everything that "they" do and we are not happy about it.

We, on the other hand, are struggling to get through the day's "shoulds" to help the friends we like and the family we would love if "they" did what we think "they" should do.

As Party supporters we make sure we are well groomed before we leave our house. We get our news from network television so that we can make "responsible" choices. We join groups that are just like us because we don't want to be part of a group who cause problems by being different or expressing disturbing points of view.  And mostly we don't want to tell them what is wrong because that would make us feel we are not nice.

The more we participate in our like-minded groups the more we are convinced we are on the right track. We can focus on becoming better people by becoming better at the things we think we can do.

We become more convinced of our goodness as we age - as long as we are not surrounded by news of problems we might have caused  - such as climate change, injustice, lack of compassion, apathy, greed. How can we be responsible for things we don't understand?

Because there is so much news now about the risks to our future we really need to come together. Clearly, the answer is to focus on what we already know others should do. These things are easy to agree upon.

They should:

• engage in sex only if and when "they" can afford to raise a child, 
• work hard so "they" don't lose their jobs, 
• abstain from drugs and drink when "they" drive, 
• discipline their children, 
• discipline themselves, 
• wash every day, dress well in clean clothes, clean their teeth twice a day, even if "they" are homeless,
• say please and thank you at all times, smile at neighbours and retail staff, and be polite to public servants such as police officers and politicians.

It is vital to understand it is "they" who should do the things that we have learned, through intelligence, wisdom and education - how to be better citizens for a better world. However we should not be told what to do because that would be undemocratic, authoritarian and socialist.

(Posted with permission from Epiphany Fellowes)