Middle Class, Middle Class, where art thou?

Dear Friends,

With US presidency campaigns in full bloom, and our own Bill 115, it’s hard not to think, breathe or talk politics these days.

According to an article I read in the September/October (2012) issue of Scientific American Mind, “When people feel safe and secure, they become more liberal: when they feel threatened, they become more conservative.”  

As a single grandmother of two, living and teaching in Toronto, Ontario, my level of anxiety is so high that I just might convert. I hate to think conservatives have tapped into psychology, to secure votes! But, no, wait! It’s our Liberal Premier that’s kicking me out of middle class!

Maybe he is secretly working for the Conservatives! Just like Ray, the New Democrat Premier who first betrayed our trust with his Ray days, then changed sides and joined the Liberal Party!

I must confess I never quite understood our Canadian politics. It seems that our three major political parties (one too many, if you ask me) keep switching gears to please the voters, instead of persuading the voters to shift their views.

Although I have no business putting my nose in our neighbour’s politics, (god knows there is plenty to talk about in our own backyard) l must admit, I understand their political structure much better: Democrats, Republicans. They each have their set-in-stone convictions. Their beliefs are so consistently predictable that they have become stereotypes. All nations kind of know what to expect from the party running the country.

Our Canadian politicians, on the other hand, are full of surprises!

Although I can easily list what the Liberals and Conservatives in the States stand for, I truly cannot do the same in regard to Canadian Liberals, Conservatives and New Democrats.

I’m sure it’s all much more complicated than I think. I confess, I’m a political simpleton.

My whole life I stayed away from politics. In my old age, instead of becoming spiritual, I have become politically vocal – accepted and filed! My whole life, I belonged to the school of “live and let live.” However, in my old age, instead of mellowing, I have become argumentative – accepted and filed!

Maybe, I should shift gears and become a professional activist, adopting “Middle Class” as my pet project! 
What have you accepted and filed today?