Motion 312

       Member of Parliament Stephen Woodworth recently introduced Motion 312 to the Canadian House of Commons, calling for a Parliamentary committee to "review the declaration in Subsection 223(1) of the Criminal Code of Canada which states that a child becomes a human being only at the moment of complete birth." On April 26th the motion came up for debate, and unfortunately many Members of Parliament argued vigorously against it (click here to watch the beginning of the debate).

       I believe that this motion is of the utmost importance. We must ensure that all human beings in Canada receive human rights protections, and this can only happen if every human being in Canada is considered such under our law! I couldn't agree more with Stephen Woodworth when he recently tweeted, "I'm pretty sure a child is as much a human being 5 minutes before birth as 5 minutes after birth." Yet Canadian law still states that a child is not a human being until it is born, and it is completely legal to kill a child at any time before birth!

       Many Canadians think that humanity begins before birth, and this view seems to be supported by current scientific evidence (for example, unborn children have their own, unique DNA and their own, separate circulation systems). It is Parliament's duty to examine this important issue and reach a scientifically and morally valid conclusion! All Motion 312 calls for is a Parliamentary committee to address this urgent matter. If Canada's law regarding the beginning of humanity is correct, it will hold up to scrutiny. If it is incorrect, then it is Parliament's duty to change it.

Abortion in Canada:

➜ Abortion is legal at any stage in pregnancy, right up to the moment before birth

➜ It is legal to get an abortion for any reason

➜ Almost every abortion in Canada is payed for by taxpayers

➜ Teenagers do not need parental consent to have an abortion (they do not even have to inform their parents)

➜ Many Canadians do not know that Canada has no laws restricting abortion

➤ Source: Abortion Statistics Show Reality of a Land Without Restrictions – National Post


       In the first hour of debate over Motion 312 in Parliament, Stephen Woodworth stated, "If you care about the truth, you will courageously follow the facts wherever they lead. Canadians expect Parliamentarians to embody that courage, that strength, that principled quest for the truth." It is time for the Canadian government to stop stifling debate and take a look at this issue. Please contact your Member of Parliament and ask him or to stand up for the truth by supporting Motion 312!

Alberta Election 2012: Summary

Alison Redford, Alberta's first elected female Premier!

Danielle Smith, Alberta's new opposition leader!

       On Monday Albertans made their final decisions on who to vote for, and the Progressive Conservatives came out on top, winning the party's 12th majority government in a row! In case you haven't already heard the results, the PCs won 61 seats, the Wildrose 17, the Liberals 5, and the NDP 4.

       Wildrose supporters are naturally disappointed that their party did not get elected into government, and many are angry at the results. I saw some fairly undignified comments on facebook last night (the funniest and most ridiculous one being "ugh redford isn't fit to run a hotdog stand"). Thankfully, Wildrose leader Danielle Smith remained very positive in her post-election speech. As a Wildrose supporter, I too am taking a positive view of this election – it is too bad that the PCs were not ousted from government, but I consider this election a victory for the Wildrose nonetheless. The party will get a chance to gain some experience and the trust of Albertans before (hopefully) coming into office in the next election (in 2016).

       I am no fan of the Progressive Conservative party; however, Premier Redford is an experienced and relatively competent leader. Because of this, I am proud to have her as my province's first elected female premier (by the way, the CBC has a good profiles on all the party leaders in their Alberta Votes 2012 feature). Many of the PC's votes were probably been from Liberal and NDP supporters who decided to vote for the PC party in order to keep the Wildrose party out of power. Despite this "strategic voting", four former cabinet ministers lost their seats in the election, showing that although the party was elected, there are a large number of Albertans who are discontent with the PCs.

       The Alberta Liberal Party declined in popularity this election, winning five seats (down from 8 before the election). The party's leader, Raj Sherman, was elected as a Progressive Conservative in 2008 but was soon kicked out of caucus for publicly criticizing the PC's health care policy. Fortunately for Mr. Sherman, many of his constituents decided to vote for him again, and he was re-elected (although only by 118 votes).

       The Alberta New Democratic Party (NDP) ran a successful campaign and were rewarded with four seats (up from a mere two seats before the election). Their leader Brian Mason was among those elected. From his performance at the leaders debate, Mr. Mason seems like a strong leader and I believe he will be a good voice to have in the Legislature.

       The new Alberta Party (yes, they don't have the most original name) failed to get a seat in the Legislature, but their leader Glenn Taylor is trying to stay positive, telling the press, "I feel we accomplished what we set out to. Our goal was to introduce ourselves to Albertans, and from that perspective, it was a smashing success."

       Voter turnout was a marginally successful 57%, up from the measly 41% of voters who bothered to cast a ballot in the last election.

       I was happy to hear that some of my favourite MLAs were re-elected, specifically Rob Anderson (a Wildrose MLA who gained my support after standing up for diversity in education choices in a recent Education Act debate) and Doug Griffiths (my favourite candidate in the PC leadership election last year).

       This election is a step in the right direction, but not as big a step as many Albertans had hoped for. I will conclude with a quote from Danielle Smith, regarding the election results: “Am I surprised? Yeah. Am I disappointed? Yeah. Am I discouraged? Not a chance.”

Alberta Election 2012

Alberta is going to the polls on Monday, April 23, and there are five major parties contending for seats in the Legislature:

The Progressive Conservatives have been in power since 1971, winning majority governments in the last 11 provincial elections! The leader of the PC Party (and our current Premier) is Alison Redford, who was elected by the party in October of last year.

The Liberal Party is the official opposition, holding 8 seats going into this election. Albertans in general are famous for their vehement anti-Liberal sentiments, and the Alberta Liberals have not been in power since 1921! The leader of this unfortunate party is Raj Sherman.

The Wildrose Party hasn't been around for long (its origins go back to 2007), but it has already gained lots of support from Albertans fed up with the PC Party's long reign. According to a recent poll the Wildrose is likely to win a majority government in the upcoming election! Their leader is Danielle Smith.

The New Democratic Party (NDP) has 2 seats in the Legislature and is hoping to gain more this election. On their website they say, "We believe that it’s time that Alberta’s prosperity, drawn from our shared natural resource wealth, worked for all Albertans, not just a select few." Their leader is Brian Mason.

The Alberta Party describes themselves on their website as "a new political movement dedicated to transforming government through citizen engagement." According to polls, they are unlikely to get a seat in the upcoming election. Their leader is Glenn Taylor.

I have decided to endorse the Wildrose Party this election. Here's why:

They've pledged to take numerous steps to increase democracy and accountability in provincial politics.

They acknowledge that there are good alternatives to public schools (e.g. Catholic schools, private schools, and homeschooling) and have decided "to foster a culture of educational choice, innovation and competition."

The party has decided to support "private health care for certain procedures as a way to alleviate long waiting times" (as reported by the Globe and Mail). They also say they will remain dedicated to "fixing" the the public health care system.

They want to balance the budget. I quote from their website: "Albertans work hard, pay their taxes, and live within their means – and they expect their government to do the same." I just hope they don't make too many cuts (and I'm not convinced that their idea to send cheques back to Albertans in surplus years is a good idea).

They support "conscious rights", which allows "public servants to opt-out of providing services they consider morally objectionable. This could allow a marriage counsellor to refuse to wed same-sex couples or a doctor to refuse to prescribe birth-control" (as reported by the National Post).

The Wildrose Party is the only party with enough support to dethrone the PC Party, which has dominated provincial politics for over 40 years.

LRA Violence and Joseph Kony

Did you know that over 30,000 children have been abducted by Joseph Kony, the leader of the "Lord's Resistance Army" in Africa?

These children are being brainwashed and forced to become soldiers or sex slaves. Kony has been on the run for years, as he is considered one of the world's worst war criminals. Now is the time to arrest him and put an end to this wickedness.

Kony 2012 Video

Kony 2012: Part 2

LRA Crisis Tracker

Invisible Children - Response to Critics

Please spread the word!

LOVE

– 1 John 4:8

“‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.” – Matthew 22:36-40  (Jesus speaking)

“A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” – John 13:34-35  (Jesus speaking)

     As these Bible verses show, following Jesus is all about love. But hold on a second... what is love? Is it just a fuzzy feeling we get when we're around the person we like? Let's find out...

First, take a look at 1 Corinthians 13, well known as "The Love Chapter." Here is a lot of information about what love is. Right off the bat, the first three verses tell us that love is extremely important, and without love, everything we do is meaningless. Then the next couple verses say:

1. Love is patient.

2. Love is kind.

3. Love does not envy.

4. Love does not boast.

5. Love is not proud.

6. Love does not dishonor others.

7. Love is not self-seeking.

8. Love is not easily angered.

9. Love keeps no record of wrongs.

10. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.

11. Love always protects.

12. Love always trusts.

13. Love always hopes.

14. Love always perseveres.

     Wow, that's quite the list, eh? But there's a pattern here – I think it's clear that love is about putting others first.

Second, visit John 13:1-17. In this passage, Jesus washes His disciples' feet because of His deep love for them. Here Jesus demonstrates true, perfect love. Jesus was God! Yet He humbled himself, taking the job of the lowest servant. And He told us to do the same. In this passage, Jesus showed us that the opposite of love is selfishness. Without humbling ourselves and putting others first, we can't love properly. Love is about action, not mere feelings or rhetoric (1 John 3:18). Without acting out our love to the people around us, what's the point?

Third, read Galatians 5:19-23. Here we learn that true, pure love needs to follow God's plan. Otherwise, it's just a cheap imitation. Stuff like sexual immorality, jealousy and quarrelling have nothing to do with love. You can see a lot of this in the world today: instead of true, pure love, we find stuff that corrupts and perverts love, or simply goes against it altogether.
     For example, some people think they can have sex with as many people as they want, or with people of the same gender, or with young children. Others think it's okay to kill their unborn baby if he or she poses an inconvenience to them (because someone isn't considered human by our society until he or she is born). Many people don't see any problem with treating someone as a mere sexual object (by lusting after friends or viewing pornography). In short, we find selfishness and hedonism – the complete opposites of love.
     I'm still trying to untangle the love and lust in my life. I'm still trying to fully understand what love means. I hope you'll join me in this quest for a deeper understanding of pure, true love. But in the meantime...

Follow God. Love. Change the world.

God Is Love Photo Source