An old buddy often laments that he wished he had listened better to the old boys for those little tricks and tips about the ways of life.
We have added gals to that mix, recognizing that wisdom is not gender based and in truth, both perspectives are needed to get a rounded sense of the lesson being taught. Much can be learned from those who are our seniors if only younger people have the sense to recognize that our problems today are not one-offs.
Speaking with some old hands at the last Association of Municipalities of Ontario convention in Ottawa, we ended up concluding that the more things change the more they stay the same. Clichés are great because they are true. One fellow is retired from public works and the other has spent 30 years in the waste industry. They note even the personalities of politicians seem to be recycled. Some are eager for improvement while others are content reacting to problems.
As Americans head into their election this November, and with Canadians seemingly sure to follow the same course in the coming weeks, this is a good time for reflection on why things are the way they are. Stateside we view the generation gap between both presidential candidates and their vice-presidential picks as recognition that we are in the midst of a generational divide, where new ideas and the use of technology will collide. The divide here in Canada is less pronounced, but there is a general sense that we need to get serious about a number of issues and shake things up a bit.
The notion that our economy is starting to show a few chasms was highlighted again this week with more plant closures in Ontario. Free trade sees jobs at Deere and Company heading stateside and into Mexico. Other plants are idling down as demand for their product decreases. While history has demonstrated that business cycles are natural events, what seems to remain unchecked is the obvious – many of those jobs are gone and will not return. Surely government, and that includes all levels, has a role to play in retaining jobs and providing conditions that make it worthwhile for plants to build products here in Ontario. Shoulder shrugs are of little help to families, like in the case of families working at Deere, which provided employment to over 700 people in Welland.
The Listeriosis crisis in certain meat products that caused the death of numerous people is all the more tragic because our governments have willingly watched as the food processing network has gone from numerous regional facilities to mega-operations that serve our nation from coast to coast. Reductions in the number of inspectors has an eerily familiar ring to it. Regulation costs money – as the people of Walkerton ultimately found out after inadequate water testing regimens caused the deaths of locals.
Fewer processing facilities might have improved the conglomerates’ bottom line, but tell that to families befallen from a crisis where tainted meat literally slipped through the cracks – and onto people’s tables. Big has not proven itself to be better, or necessarily more efficient. Has anyone really examined the true cost and effect of mammoth operations to the economy? Free markets and the ability of companies to merge and grow should not come at the expense of taxpayers’ health, access to markets by farmers, and timely delivery of fresh food to the population.
A final example of an area where new attitudes are needed is in addressing the seeming inability of governments and crown corporations to work together and develop plans for infrastructure. Wrapped in the cloth of free enterprise, developers continue to maximize profits on everything from homes to factories. Rarely, if ever, have plans or strategies been adopted to link communities within municipalities, let alone with neighbouring regions into a grander scheme. Attempts at something larger, like mass transit, are often thwarted by rail agencies that have “jurisdiction” over most lines. Efforts to secure green space and make any new developments more livable and environmentally positive are scoffed at as flights of fancy. Winging it does not seem a responsible way to go, instead of making accommodations and plans for the future and maximizing infrastructure to the community’s advantage.
To us, the absence of this type of planning locks the future in the past, where agents of change are stuck building on past mistakes much of the time. We’ve seen it before and most of us will see it again.
