Latest news with #change
CTV News
a day ago
- Politics
- CTV News
Murphy's Logic: Concerns of younger voters should be taken seriously
I'm a boomer. Moreover, I'm now a senior. Those are terms that I've never cared for but … demographic definitions I cannot deny. A deep dive into the data from the April 28 federal election reveals people in my cohort strongly supported the Liberals. More younger voters supported the Conservatives. That's pretty much the opposite to the way it used to be. It's worth looking at why. The simplest explanation may also prove to be the correct one. Older voters wanted less change than younger voters and Mark Carney's Liberals represented just the right amount of change. Not much; a different face on a familiar body of policy. By definition, it was the small 'c' conservative choice. Every vote counts and the Liberals got the most, the party's best popular vote since 1980 – so they're entitled to govern as they see fit. But even as Conservative support dips in recent polls, the Liberal government should spend considerable time reflecting on why so many others – 41 per cent of the electorate and a great many younger Canadians – voted for change and what it is they want to change. They have legitimate concerns and complaints. It's a long time since a person like me bought a first house and back then, people like me assumed it was only a matter of when we got a first house, not if we got one. Nor did many of us live in our parents' basements, or couch surf because we could afford nothing else. If we had student debts, they were relatively modest, and our jobs were usually full time and secure and came with pensions and benefits, which many of us took for granted. That's not the way it is for many young people and millennials today. Many of them resent us and what we've got – many of us seem entitled and dismissive. We owe it to younger Canadians to listen respectfully to their concerns, to understand them and to insist that government address them. This is not the time for the kind of us versus them thinking and behaviour that often defines partisan politics.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Former Australian PM says Welsh roots shaped her
Former Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard has said her strong sense of Welsh heritage helped shaped her view of politics. Gillard was born in Barry, Vale of Glamorgan, and was only four years old when her family emigrated to Australia. The 63-year-old, who was the Australian Labor Party prime minister from 2010-2013 said figures such as Anuerin Bevan were "idolised" in her home and her parents instilled in her the idea that politics can affect real change. Ms Gillard recently sat down with Wales' First Minister Eluned Morgan who, like her, was the first female leader of her country. Neither of her parents spoke Welsh "apart from the occasional swear word", but had a "very strong sense of their Welsh identity," Gillard said. ''We always had this sense that our lives were formed in Australia, but we knew we had this heritage," she added. Gillard recalled that her father was particularly interested in politics and news from his hometown and he had a great impact on her career. ''He gave me the sense that politics really mattered and that it could change people's lives," she added. She remembered understanding even as a child the impact a "transformative figure" like Aneurin Bevan could have on people. He could "make people's lives better" and "I was obviously attracted by that", she said. ''But it was a long time before the penny dropped that I was the kind of person that could go into politics," she added. She recently reflected on this in an interview for her podcast with Morgan, Wales' first minister. ''We got to talk about life, the universe and everything, including being from Barry,'' she told BBC Walescast. She said that during her time in office she experienced many incidents of sexism and misogyny. ''I had expected a wave [of sexism] around me being the first female leader. ''I assumed, though, that that wave would break, that it would become normalised... and it would go back to politics as usual. ''So, I was taken aback by the fact that it never broke. If anything, the amplitude of the wave just got higher and higher.'' It was not until a speech she made in October 2012, that she felt able to lay out her experiences of sexism as a female politician. The speech, which called out the leader of the opposition for sexist comments about the prime minister, was shared around the world and seen by millions of people. But Gillard said she regretted not speaking out sooner and would advise any female leader today to "call it out" immediately. She believes it is important for people in a position of power to share their own experiences of prejudice. "Unless we call things out, unless we shine a light on them, human behaviour doesn't change," she said. Gillard said things have changed for a better in a lot of ways when it comes to gender equality, but social media has created a "toxic sewer for women". ''I think we have been having a far more robust and open debate about gender equality, particularly about sexual harassment," she said. She backed social media regulation as one way of helping to deal with this problem. Australia is set to ban children under 16 from using social media this year after its parliament approved the world's strictest laws. Gillard said social media could also have "huge benefits" but she was "extremely pro-regulation". "In the face of something that is mixed, good and bad, we regulate to try and get the bad out of the system." Welsh roots key to ex-PM's politics 'Grey suits are out' - The story of Wales' new first minister
Globe and Mail
4 days ago
- General
- Globe and Mail
Leading change requires a paradoxical mindset rather than either-or thinking
Interested in more careers-related content? Check out our new weekly Work Life newsletter. Sent every Monday afternoon. In his 1841 essay Compensation, Ralph Waldo Emerson wrote that 'an inevitable dualism bisects nature, so that each thing is a half.' Blogger Billy Oppenheimer recently surfaced that quote and elaborated: 'Dark can't exist without light. Left can't exist without right. Hot and cold. Pleasure and pain. Up and down. Man and woman. Odd and even. In and out. In motion, at rest. Sickness, health. Peacetime, wartime. Strength, weakness. Order, chaos. More, less. Yes, no.' They must be understood as connected and tackled together. 'What is lost in one realm is always compensated for in another,' says Mr. Oppenheimer. 'To gain something is to have given up something.' Transformation and change are supposed to provide clarity for organizations – a mission, a path forward. But they too can be riddled by contradictions which if unaddressed might add to the reasons so many change efforts go awry. Going overboard on one element and ignoring the other element in a quest for dramatic clarity can sink your efforts. In The Art of Change, Jeff DeGraff, a professor of management at the University of Michigan, and his wife, Staney DeGraff, a consultant, say the complexities of change demand a nuanced approach. Adaptability is key and that requires a paradoxical mindset rather than either-or thinking. You must be flexible and agile. You must understand and grapple with competing elements. They identify seven paradoxes that crop up repeatedly and pose dangers if ignored: Instead of rushing to solve urgent issues, they urge you to spot paradoxes you are facing and reflect on them. Look for experiments, small changes that you can learn from. 'By considering creative and hybrid solutions and implementing them with intentionality, you can effectively navigate paradoxes and drive meaningful change,' they advise. One of the paradoxes they highlight is about transcending limits while still being within them. They note that to transcend our limits, we always have to start by acknowledging them – the limits of our knowledge, resources and time. Once we acknowledge those limits, we can facilitate lots of experiences and experiments to learn from them. Perhaps there is another contradiction to consider there: In change, we usually think carefully beforehand, develop ideas that are really theories but become prescriptions, while in fact the learning and understanding (and best prescriptions) come after experimenting with change possibilities. Jason Fried, chief executive officer of Basecamp, raises another duality when he observes that one of the reasons companies have a hard time moving forward is because they've tangled themselves in the near past. They trap themselves looking for certainty where there isn't any, actional advice where there are only guesses. 'Eyes aimed backwards rather than ahead, staring at the dark, feet in their own concrete,' he writes on his blog. He stresses that isn't always wrong. If the process is highly mechanized or isolated, you can look back and find the exact moment when something went wrong. But he argues that most failed projects subject to retrospectives are searches for reasons where there are only humans to be found. We are plaintively searching for reasons where – here's another duality – there are only mysteries. 'A better path is to reflect forward, not backwards. Develop a loose theory while working on what's next. Appreciate there's no certainty to be found and put all your energy into doing better on an upcoming project,' he says. 'But how will you do better next time if you don't know what went wrong last time? Nothing is guaranteed other than experience. You'll simply have more time under the curve and more moments under tension to perform better moving forward.' Tina Dacin, a professor of organizational behaviour at Queen's University, raised another paradox when she looked at Lady Gaga's recent Coachella performance where the singer paid homage to past greats such as Michael Jackson and Prince as well as her different past selves. Prof. Dacin's research with colleagues has found leaders involved in stewarding change and transition in organizations are 'custodians' – people with a vested interest in protecting traditions, while also reimagining and renewing them over time. 'Such custodians in workplaces or social organizations facing disruption take valued remnants from the past and curate them to be accessible and relevant for the future,' she writes in The Conversation. But not just custodians of the past. In making change, she says, you must be custodians of hope. You must craft futures worth preserving. There's a bundle of dualities in there to consider as you reflect on the paradoxes of change. Cannonballs Harvey Schachter is a Kingston-based writer specializing in management issues. He, along with Sheelagh Whittaker, former CEO of both EDS Canada and Cancom, are the authors of When Harvey Didn't Meet Sheelagh: Emails on Leadership.
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
No Kings: Protesters line Park Avenue West in rally against President Trump
Gerald Vega might not have had much of a voice left after Saturday's "No Kings" protest on Park Avenue West. The 20-year-old president of the Richland County Young Democrats used a bullhorn to rally the crowd of about 250, who braved a rainy forecast to make their voices heard. "We're out here protesting what we believe to be the petty dictatorship and tyranny of President Donald Trump," Vega said. "We need to get our voices out there and say, 'This is not acceptable. We need change.''' The protests in Mansfield, Shelby and Ashland were part of a nationwide movement, coinciding with Trump's military parade in Washington, D.C. Their goal was to raise questions about the balance of power between the federal government and state and local authorities, as well as the rights of immigrants. More: 'No Kings' protests updates: Rallies wind down in Philadelphia, Los Angeles and DC With a wet forecast, not many people were at the Mansfield protest at the beginning, but the crowd continued to swell as the rain largely held off outside of a fine mist. "I'm pleased with the turnout with the weather," said Venita Shoulders, vice chairwoman of the Richland County Democratic Party's executive committee. "I was thinking, 'Oh, no,' but the people seem to want to be here regardless." The county Democratic Party, along with Democracy Speaks: Richland County, organized the protest. Shoulders spent much of her time directing people where to park as protesters lined the sidewalks in front of the Kroger complex and Taco Bell and across the street at the West Park Shopping Center property. "We want to be part of the bigger picture in terms of what's going on across the nation," Shoulders said. Vega has been politically active for about three years. He said his generation cares about the future. "Young people are very passionate," Vega said. "It's just about mobilizing them." As the protest got underway, a woman handed out small American flags to those attending. Lynn Vera lives in Fostoria and is camping in the area. Mansfield was the closest protest, so she decided to come. Her husband dropped her off. "He doesn't agree with me, not enough to step out of his comfort zone," Vera said. "It takes a lot to step out and tell people you don't agree with the administration's policies." Though she is a Democrat, Vera said she votes for the person, not the party. She did not vote for Trump either time. "He promotes lies. He promotes hate," Vera said. "By calling in the National Guard (in Los Angeles), I think he's trying to get us into martial law." Many of the protesters brought signs. Larry Foster's read, "The power of the people is greater than the people in power." Foster, who lives in Mansfield, said he disagrees with the mass deportation of immigrants, especially those who have been sent to prisons. He said immigrants play a key role in the United States with their work in the farming and textile industries, adding some have lived here for decades. "They're pulling them out of the fields," Foster said. "Who's going to pick the vegetables?" Like Foster, Dan Marion sympathizes with immigrants. "I don't have a problem with immigration (reform). I have a problem with how we're doing it," the Ashland man said. Marion said Trump needs to be held accountable. "I see an overreaching government that doesn't want to follow the Constitution," he said. The protest in Mansfield ran from 10 a.m. to noon, in part to minimize conflict with the downtown Juneteenth event. "We didn't want to disrupt our good friends at the Juneteenth celebration," Vega said. While many people honked their horns in support while driving past the protesters, not everyone agreed with them. One person in a black pickup drove past twice, gunning his engine and spewing black exhaust on the crowd. Another driver slowed down while someone in the backseat held a sign out the window reading "Trump 2024 Save America." The sign was met with a resounding chorus of boos. John Makley organized a similar protest in Shelby. He said people were "vile" with their postings on Facebook, but that generated more interest. Makley estimated about 70 people turned out for the protest at the Black Fork Commons. "For Shelby, that's pretty amazing," he said. The president of the Shelby Area Democratic Club, Makley also attended the protest in Mansfield. "I've never been a Trump supporter," he said, citing the president's cuts to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and food banks, along with his stance on climate change. Makley added that Trump's military parade "took money away from people who need support." "At least, in (Trump's) first administration, there were people who were concerned about repercussions and did believe in the law," he said. "This is not the America I grew up seeing." mcaudill@ 419-521-7219 X: @MarkCau32059251 This article originally appeared on Mansfield News Journal: Protesters take to the streets to rally against President Trump
CBC
11-06-2025
- Politics
- CBC
Is Ford's government conservative enough? One group says no
Doug Ford is facing a fresh call from within his party to be more fiscally conservative. As CBC's Mike Crawley explains, this comes from an anonymous group describing itself as a grassroots movement of conservatives who want change in the province.
