The Tyranny of the Triggered

Modern society has become an ever expanding landscape of polarization and finger pointing that not only undermines our ability to discuss, but corrodes at the very foundation of our democracy.

The issue is so alarming, that it is no surprise when people feel out of place when it comes to supporting social causes, while avoiding the very groups that are currently pushing for them.

We currently live in an environment with two major forces: The Douche Bag and Snow Flake Left and the Ignorant and Racist Right. While these labels may seem harsh, and they are, they represent the physical divide that has widened the gap between opposing views and has inevitably decreased the size of moderate views based on logic and discussion.

Take this example, if you happen to not fully support a certain cause, the quickest and most common response is to be bombarded with accusations of being as vile and close minded as the worst of those who oppose the same movement. It is so bad that even questioning the motives of a group, while supporting the objective of the movement, can lead to such vile polarization, that its not uncommon for people to feel like standing aside and not bother at all.

The internet and social media was supposed to bring us closer together and provide us with the foundation of nonstop knowledge, however it has instead isolated us and put us in a position to not trust the very information we need to make important decisions as voters and citizens.

We Don't Talk Anymore

The main issue causing this polarization is that people do not really talk anymore. With more and more technology in our daily lives, we have become isolated and more sensitive as a result. It is now more common to find people who are triggered and in need of a safe space than to be ready for proper discussion with an intent to defend their position and their beliefs.

Instead, these very same triggered people now point fingers and throw ultimatums in the form of labels, while disregarding any and all discussion that may alter their own personal views. This isn't even isolated to one side of the political spectrum, as groups from both the left and right have begun taking this strategy.

Everyone is so busy pointing fingers and blaming others for being ignorant, that instead of moving forward and creating actual change, we are standing still with one hand pointed outwards and the other over our mouth from the shock of how triggering our opponent has been. In many cases, this opponent may have said something worthy of triggering the individual, but it seems like the very act of questioning someone in the form of a logical discussion has become just as bad now a days.

Take No Prisoners

The thing about polarizing views is that the objective is to take no prisoners. You are either with us or against us and in doing so, are always preparing for conflict. It is not surprising that people need a safe space, since who in their right mind wants to spend every waking moment fighting? Instead of talking about important topics affecting the current social and political landscape of our times, we seem to be spending more time creating enemies, instead of creating solutions.

The political repercussions of such an attitude is that we increase the amount of fear and thus hate that is created between groups. This isn't the kind of fear that makes people think about locking their doors at night, instead its the kind of fear that allows people to side step their own logic and reason and elect a billionaire, who blatantly lies to them about caring about their own lives and financial well being.

This kind of fear not only divides our society, but opens the possibility of allowing some of the worst types of acts from being committed.

How?

Well think about this for a moment, while people are so busy pointing fingers and giving into their fear, they stand divided and allow others with their own agendas to move forward with plans. While this may seem a little conspiracy theorist like, you need only look to what Donald Trump has done in the United States recently regarding the largest Tax Overhaul in 30 years. While the media did give it coverage, the majority of the air time was dedicated to Hollywood and the #MeToo movement.

Don't get me wrong, the #MeToo movement means well, but people should have been rioting in the streets over tax legislation that will inevitably add as much to the national deficit as both the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have since 9/11.

While the media is here to be a sober 3rd party that challenges the government and big business in an effort to inform us and serve a purpose, we can no longer trust them as this polarization has even affected their own ranks.

Remember Fake News?

The triggered have now dominated the conversation of today and while they mean the best in supporting their own agendas and hopefully helping others too, they unfortunately have created a divide so large, that progress and moving forward are no longer a guarantee that one can have from the idea of discussing opposing views and winning hearts and minds.

Instead, we are creating safe spaces, offending everyone and allowing the rug to be swept from beneath the electorate at the same time.

Talk more, get involved and when your friends and family say...Oh no, here we go again, regarding your discussion about politics and social movements, remind them of their duty to democracy.

Our system will not fall overnight, but if we continue to divide ourselves and avoid hard topics in an effort to not hurt feelings and trigger people, we invite the very cancer that continues to eat away at our institutions and invite the destruction of our very rights as free and informed citizens.

-The Political Road Map-

A Road Map for the Ontario PC Party

My phone went off around 3AM this morning with various breaking news updates. I got up and having been battling the flu, had a drink of water, coughed up a lung and still probably didn't feel half as bad as PC leader Patrick Brown did. I mean, talk about a rise and fall within hours, but an action that was required.

Throughout the day, I was thinking about the various elements now becoming a reality for the PC party, with an election only months away and the need for a new leader being imminent. The thought of the necessary actions to create a road map, that would not only guide the leaderless party, but also provide them with the ammunition to strike back and have a fighting chance in the June election.

Party Image

While Patrick Brown has declared that he will remain an MPP and fight tooth and nail to clear his name of these unfounded and false accusations, his choice to step down was a necessary one. Being a leader in the political realm, much like the regular world, requires having the stamina to make sacrifices that enable your party to continue. If Brown remained as the party leader, he would not only create an easy target in the upcoming election, but allow his opponents the chance to easily remove attention from what matters most, the party platform.

In politics, it is not uncommon for leaders to be vetted by their own party to ensure they do not have any loose ends that can come back to bite them. Patrick Brown has had some flip flop moments since his election as party leader, but the perception created by the accusation of sexual misconduct, coupled with the current social environment around the #MeToo movement, is almost as bad as having a party leader that comes out with a platform centered on terminating 100,000 jobs if elected.

In order to maintain party image, the interim leader will have to ensure that anyone chosen to take up the leadership role is not only well suited for the cameras and the party membership, but also ready to come in guns a blazing in order to keep the topic on the deficiencies of the current government and the intentions of a potential PC government, should they get elected.

"Keep your message strong and the electorate focused on your opponents past and your future, not the other way around."

Membership Consistency

While the timing of these accusations is quite convenient regarding the next election, it is important for the Progressive Conservatives to ensure their message remains in tact and consistent. Many strong party supporters may argue that this is nothing more than a political ruse by the Wynne Liberals, but it is important to keep the focus off that.

Why?

Lets face it, if Kathleen Wynne actually was involved in the accusations that led to the actions of today, the operation would most likely have created such a financial budget overrun and would most likely have resulted in a man coming out to make the accusations against the PC leader. Scandal aside, it is important to ensure the people of Ontario are reminded of how inadequate and untrustworthy the current government is and as such ensure justice for their own long list of misdeeds and mismanagement.

Image, Image, Image!

I would not be surprised if the next leader chosen will be a woman. Not for the sake of avoiding more scandal, but for ensuring that someone is chosen to not only strike back and defend the party, but also represent the changing political landscape we currently live in.

The Progressive Conservatives would be wise to emphasize and package their platform as the Politically Correct party in order to win support, but also combat the current government. Usually in an election, the incumbent government has the advantage, as supporters may not choose to vote or people may abstain in protest of the choices. 

The PC party will really have to beef up their platform, which may be a good thing as a result of this shocking incident. Patrick Brown has had many issues maintaining a strong and unified platform to run on, which regardless of scandal, is crucial when you are attempting to take back power and get your party ahead.

In closing, I think I was more shocked by the general comments indicating that this would result in an instant win for Kathleen Wynne. Not because it would make her look good, but because it would remove the only other contender that was available. In all honesty, while the Liberals have been scandal filled, the PC are not the only other choice, even though they traditionally are chosen to replace a Liberal government.

It will be interesting to see how the Green Party and NDP respond to this change with the PC party and position themselves in order to possibly take support away from both the Liberals and PC.

Regardless, the most important thing the PC party needs to focus on is maintaining is road map and ensuring its message gets out there. Lucky for the party, the electorate has a short memory span, so getting back on the topic of platform should not be an issue. In a world filled with social media and reality tv, our electorate has become accustomed to quick news and fresh stories more commonly than in the past, which could help the PC party weather this rough situation.

-The Political Road Map-

New Year, New Wage, New Me

Happy New Year to everyone!

You may be wondering where I have been for the past five months, since The Political Road Map has become quite lonely. I decided that I would try out working in print media and took a position with a local newspaper. The work is hard, the clientele dwindling, but it pays the bills. Oh yea...I also work on the weekends, so in total, working 7 days a week along with sleeping and eating and the holidays meant much less time for The Political Road Map, its sad I know..

Speaking of working, minimum wage has increased to $14.00/Hour in Ontario as of January 1st, 2018. 

At the very moment that this proposed legislation was announced, I heard nothing but non stop chatter about how business will be devastated and it is just so unfair for such a huge hike in the wage! 

Now that it has officially gone into effect, a mere 6 days into the change and I hear nothing but continued banter and complaining along with disgusting examples of how some business is reacting. Lucky for me though, there have also been even more examples of business doing the right thing. 

We live in a Capitalist system, so capital is a crucial element of our daily lives and as such the discussion over a minimum wage hike or living wage is not only important, its perfectly normal. 

The story of the Tim Horton's heirs giving their employees notice of sweeping changes has made headlines all over social media and frankly has been overworked, but I decided to include a partial copy of the letter below for reference purposes. 

Bad Tim Hortons! No Desert for you!

Running a business is not easy and while I have no direct experience in doing so, I do acknowledge that in a world where change is the only constant, one has to be prepared for anything, especially when taking their personal dreams and employing others to make it a reality. One should also realize though that the people allowing them to make their dreams a reality, also have dreams of their own.

With that being said, people need to understand that businesses need to prepare themselves for changes and should always have a rainy day fund, even though this is not the easiest thing to do. 

The reaction from an increased minimum wage not only has shown us how unprepared some "Big" business has been, but also how important the bottom line has become to private industry. While a business is in existence to generate a profit, it is blatantly evident that some businesses make the rest look awful by their reactions to anything that doesn't make them wealthier. The letter above is an example of measures being taken by a traditional Canadian business gone bad. 

Tim Horton's can cry all it wants about a minimum wage hike and may even further increase its prices, but let us all not forget that in August 2017, Tim Hortons already increased all of it's prices and the minimum wage increase was still five months away!

Let us also not forget that the above letter is an excellent example of how not to run a business. I may not own my own business, but I do work in a business and with customers on a daily basis. If you truly care about your customers, you will do anything necessary to ensure that the people who interact with your customers on a daily basis and who perform duties as your physical ambassadors to the customer, will be in a position of comfort in order to complete their work. The letter above indicates that these heirs, while wealthy, are not taking this into consideration and are only focused on the shareholders profiting from their franchise. 

If your employees are too busy worrying about paying the bills, while working over 40 hours a week and in many cases, such as myself, working multiple jobs, how can they be focused on A. Performing their duties and B. Providing an experience that makes customers want to return.

If a business is having problems justifying paying someone $14.00/Hour in order to ensure they can at the very least survive, that business needs to evaluate what performance markers are bringing on these questions? I can understand if you have underperforming employees that create more problems than they solve, but to punish all employees working in a minimum wage job as a result, is just bad business.

To allow your employees, both good and bad, to work while struggling monthly, is to literally say that they are not worth the investment. I can only ask...if your employees are not worth the investment, then how can your business be worth the investment, when your greatest allies cannot even survive on their own? 

Another strike against businesses that will now cut hours in order to compensate is the performance and efficiency of their daily operations. If you are sacrificing service due to employee wage, then your management requires better training. If you cut hours, it isn't due to payroll, it is due to performance and doing so only hurts your bottom line more as customers may think twice due to poor service or a staff suffering with low morale. You cannot increase performance in this scenario with less staff, you may get lucky for some time, but eventually this will catch up to you. Think Sears Canada and then read the last sentence again, it makes sense. 

Many Baby Boomers are currently arguing that Millennials are lazy and that if someone is working a minimum wage job, it is some how their own fault. This is not only ignorant, it is blatantly false and I will prove it right now!

See graphs below with numbers and figures:

A Comparison between Boomers and Millennials based on Race

The information above was conducted by the Young Invincibles think tank in Washington DC, that aims to educate young professionals on ways of not only investing their resources more efficiently, but also traversing a job market that is becoming one for the history books.

Millennials are now the most educated group of individuals in Canada and the United States that has the most amount of debt and the bleakest employment prospects as they graduate. 

Boomers on the other hand were not only more likely to work in a unionized environment, but also have more access to stable employment with little to no experience/education required and an economy that was not as inflated. 

If you are a young professional in need of employment, especially while attending more schooling to advance yourself, you join new immigrants and other groups classified as unskilled labour, who also have limited prospects for employment in this economy.

The issue is so detrimental that I even argue the resistance to a minimum wage hike is not only cruel, but further evidence of business asking for government welfare in their daily affairs. 

I understand that the issue is not one sided and has to be explained by perspective, but nothing ever introduced to humanity has transitioned flawlessly. While business that is big and small may be feeling uncomfortable now, we are currently experiencing short term pain for long term gain. 

Empowering workers to be able to sustain themselves and their families easier, allows them to reinvest back into the economy via consumerism. Sometimes people forget that while capital is crucial to Capitalism, Consumerism is the engine that keeps our system going. If we continue to incentivize business and forget about consumers/the general work force, we invite chaos as our system continues down a path of income inequality, that if left unchecked not only hurts your citizens, but also opens the door for someone like Donald Trump (Eek!). 

A word of wisdom to business of all sizes, if the minimum wage hike did not occur, you would still be looking for ways to optimize your services and increase your prices to keep up with rate increases for supplies from vendors. No business has ever decreased their prices in the event of a cheaper supply/cost to them, maybe more sales, but they always sell items at prices they can get away with. 

You may have created the company that employs people, but and this is a big BUT, your employees keep you in the position of employer. There is no better support than employment that allows people to live and become financially independent. 

So please...stop all the bitching and do your thing to keep people buying your stuff. If your employees live better lives, they can continue improving themselves and as a result reinvest in the places they work for. If you use the minimum wage as an excuse to further push your employees down, not only are going to increase your turn over, your going to decrease the satisfaction of your customers and lose out even more. 

In closing, lets review what the Political Road Map stands for, with a twist. 

Where are you? Where are you going? Is your government/employer heading in the same direction?

-The Political Road Map-