Firstly, let me apologize in advance for any left-leaning propaganda that follows. It's late and I'm tired. I just thought I'd take a little while try to sort out my thoughts by writing them down. This probably should be a draft but chances are pretty good I wouldn't finish it if I left it that way so I'm posting it anyway. Secondly, let me apologize for any incoherent rambling, but as I mentioned earlier, it's late and I'm tired.
All right, here's my take on what has already become an unpleasant situation. Being a resident of Vancouver Island, I am somewhat impacted by the goings on with the shutdown of the BC Ferries. I've been reading some of the opinions of "average" people on Canada.com, regarding the dispute, and am most disappointed by the lack of humanity displayed by onlookers. Everyone seems very quick to judge other people and their situation. I know everyone is entitled to an opinion but the amount of hatred that is being displayed disturbs me greatly.
Although I don't agree with the union "shutting down" the ferries, I also don't agree with the government imposing a "cooling off period", before any job action has taken place. Considering that the government went so far as to disassociate itself with the daily operation of the ferries by privatizing the corporation, it seems to me a little premature to be ordering a company's employees, not government employees, who haven't got a contract, back to work before they've even started any work slowdown or stoppage. If the government deemed the ferries an "essential service" it would seem to be a foolish thing to hand over the operation to a private company. Maybe the government should listen to it's own rhetoric and get government out of business. Let the new Ferry Corporation fend for itself, and learn, albeit the hard way, the ins and outs of labour negotiations.
It seems like our political pendulum is swinging to the right a little too fast. I'm all for private enterprise and would even aspire to one day own my own business but I still realize that a government isn't a business. It can't be run like one. Businesses aren't democracies. It is the goal of business to make a profit and grow the business. A government's goal is to provide services for the people who elected them. That's it. Government is there to take care of the things we don't want to take care of ourselves. In my view there are 4 categories of services that our society has come to expect our assorted governments to take care of:
1. Security and Rescue (Armed Forces, Police, Firefighters, Coast Guard, etc.)
2. Health Care (Hospitals, Doctors, Nurses, Ambulance Services, etc.)
3. Education (Schools, Universities)
4. Infrastructure (Roads, Highways, Railways, Waterways, Airports)
In the past little while our society has become so much more Americanized and "me-first" that we seem willing to hand over these services to the private sector with the promise of tax cuts resulting from the lower cost of operations. I don't buy that. Not only do I think that the private sector would choose to pad the profit margin rather than lower costs to the consumer, I don't want to be picked up in "Fred's Discount Ambulance" and carted off to "Jane's Drive-thru Hospital". I can't imagine the job of being a 911 dispatcher. Not only do you need to find out the nature of the incident and the location, but you would have to ask which health care provider you would like, which ambulance service is acceptable, and which brand of medication is covered by your insurance.
Some things need to be all under one roof. In my opinion, the infrastructure is one of them. If so many people depend on the ferries then they are a service, not a business, run them accordingly. What I find quite comical in this whole situation is that everyone seems upset at the amount of money the cashiers, cooks, and cleaners make. Well, I don't see the corporation wanting to stop serving food on the ferries? Why not? Why not clear out the cafeteria, buffet, kitchen and gift shops completely and make room for more passengers? I've talked to many people who would like the ferry to be more like a bus and not have any "frills". They just want to get to Vancouver. This won't happen because, once they've got you and your car on board for a two hour tour, they have a great opportunity to sell you something. They realize that this is the only place they can make any real money. The problem is, the union realizes it too.