1 People are ultimately divided more by class than by nationality.
An rich English Canadian can still hire a poor English Canadian to work for him. He can't even communicate with the French Canadian. Beteen nations, division can be complete.Though here we can also understand nations along ethnic lines. In this sence, an English Canadian and an Englishman are closer than an English Canadian and a French Canadian, unless one knows the culture of the other. THis was just a statement of fact in my mind, not necessarily an ideal. In that respect, I don't even see how it could reflect ones policical beliefs.
2 It's a sad reflection on our society that something as basic as drinking water is now a bottled, branded consumer product.
Drinking water is available through our faucets too. I don't see how bottling it reduces our access to it in faucets.
3 Land shouldn't be a commodity to be bought and sold.
I don't see why not. Sure some public proterty might be needed, but not all public property. I took this question to suggest that property should under no circumstances be bought and sold.
4 The rich are too highly taxed.
That would be a right wing response, but I also beleive that workers should have more say in how a company is run. That quesiton was not in the test, and thus not reflected as a counterbalance. I'd even go so far as to give workers a vote on the board of directors. Heck, many labour unionists would love me for that point, even if I'm not in favour of nions per se.
5 Those with the ability to pay should have the right to higher standards of medical care .
I do beleive in privatising medical care, but also in charity. But yes, that point would be not far right, but certainly not moderate right in Canada either.
6 The freer the market, the freer the people.
Now this was open to interpretation. I took it as international trade, and not necessarily access to what we want. Sex trade, drug trafficking, etc., I'd want to control. I don't see why free trade should be viewed as a right-wing thing necessarily. After all, could two socialist countries not trade with each other? I realise that it is a right-wing stance in Canada. I just don't understand why.
7 Taxpayers should not be expected to prop up any theatres or museums that cannot survive on a commercial basis.
THis follows from the hospital question above. If tax money isn't funding hospitals, we need to ensure that people have as much charitable money as possible to give to hospitals. To give to unessential things like theatres takes away money that could otherwise be used for charity to help the truly needy.
8 Those who are able to work, and refuse the opportunity, should not expect society's support.
Not too much should be read into this. I do support helping the poor. And certainly I accept that there may be leitimate reasons for a person to refuse work. I was reserving this statement for extreme cases only.
9 No broadcasting institution, however independent its content, should receive public funding.
Why should we? Again, though I'm well aware that it's a right wing thing in Canada, I don't see why it is. After all, i'd generally think of the left as wanting to help the poor, not rich broadcasting agencies.
10 Charity is better than social security as a means of helping the genuinely disadvantaged.
More efficient, yes, in most cases anyway.
