Wayne’s Word
After a brief break, I am back with my blog. I actually delayed this until the election call which we all knew would come soon after the Liberal Party chose its new leader, and we were right. Initially, and as I have said before, there are bad things and good things about the aging process.
Morgan Freeman has captured this sentiment when he said – “Funny thing about getting older; your eyesight starts to get weaker but your ability to see through other people’s bs gets much better.”
I can add to this. Every morning I wake up, something different hurts. However, the older one gets, the more insightful and wise most people become. Also, I read recently that IQ can go up by 10 points after the age of 65. One thing I most appreciate, though, about aging is all of the past experiences I have lived through such as memorable times with family, friends, and with myself. Perhaps the most beneficial things I have lived through, though, include having a
more acute understanding of the times we now live in and the changes to our culture because I have lived through past events and influences which have caused these changes. To me, the most change has come in the area of culture, how we have moved from a predominantly stable Judeo-Christian culture to one much more volatile, unpredictable and divisive. Why is this? Let me begin by analyzing what culture is and what some of the different types of culture embody. Culture is a concept that encompasses the social behaviour, institutions and norms found in our society – it is the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, customs, attitudes and habits of the people in specific areas. (Wikipedia) Culture is vitally important because it is the lifeblood of a vibrant society or the poison of a sick society. It is the strongest part of a person’s life since it influences views, values, hopes, loyalties, beliefs, worries and fears, in fact our whole worldview.
Where does culture play out? This happens everywhere in our lives, in cubicles and offices, in homes, schools, sporting events and very much in all levels of government starting with the voting booth. We all have experienced different types of culture either through time or in segments of our daily lives. We have seen toxic cultures where people are pitted against each other, and thriving cultures where everyone is moving together in the same direction. Most of us have a sense of what creates good cultures – people operating from individual values that are focused on doing good things with proper motivation, people listening to others and caring for them, people focusing on the best for others rather than a self-centred focus. All of these things must be based on a solid base of values and beliefs. And we have seen bad cultures where the majority hold values regarded as morally wrong.
Now that we have discussed culture, I want to move into the main point of my thinking. Breitbart News is regarded as a right of centre news reporting agency. The Breitbart News states that “politics is downstream from culture”. The logical extension of this would be that if we want to change politics, we must first change culture. A very general example of this in operation would be in Western Society where Judeo-Christian beliefs and values long dominated the culture with the result that solid democratic governments were the norm in all Western countries. Over the last 50-75 years, we have seen a dramatic shift from solid democratic rule to something quite dysfunctional and fractured.
Some of the causes of this shift have been the shedding of Judeo-Christian beliefs and values by more and more people in the West, an influx of immigrants with other values, and a significant change within our education systems, at the primary, secondary, and post-secondary levels. A major change in these areas has been the adoption of a post-modern worldview – there is no such thing as absolute truth, or at least, man cannot know absolute truth. The logical extension of this belief system is into deconstruction of any institutions and foundational principles that espoused absolute truths and were based on these. One of these has been our political system. John Adams (2nd President of the USA) said about the USA, and by inference, all western countries, “Our Constitution was made for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.”
To summarize the point that I am trying to make then, we, in the west, need to restore or recreate a good and thriving culture based on religious and moral principles if we are to restore political systems which have become too invasive into areas not their territory, which have become dysfunctional and which legislate into existence rules and mandates which are contrary to common sense and moral values through relentless moral suasion. With respect to changing or restoring our culture to one which will foster a return to solid democratic government, let me begin with ideas from some other people who have addressed this issue.
Eric Kaufmann in The Third Awokening – We need to again initiate and defend free speech. Political neutrality at the administrative level needs to
be proactively enforced. Examples of this level include universities, schools, public media, and human rights bodies. The re-invention of history needs to
be resisted, including removal of statues, and renaming of streets. A moral jurisprudence needs to be restored – proportionality, precedent, principle,
and possibility of redemption. For example, race, gender and sexuality need to be de-centred, as do DEI, compelled speech and political correctness. All
of these, of course, call for a return to a moral culture based on absolute values.Vivek Ramaswamy – Political beliefs should become a protected right like religious beliefs and enforced in all areas of society including the workplace.
Ron DeSantis – Higher education needs to be reformed starting with political impartiality at the board level and presidential level. Tribunals should be put in place which resist compelled speech, enforce free speech and other rights and ban DEI/CRT. (Diversity, Equity, Inclusion/Critical Race Theory)
Jordan Peterson – Peterson, who just spoke in Regina on April 4, based much of his speech on his latest book, We Who Wrestle With God. In his speech, and in his book, he makes the point that the biblical accounts, while sometimes appearing simple, are, in fact, subtle and sophisticated and contain very important principles and lessons. My favourite example is one story of the prophet Elijah, who meets up with a widow and her son. After dialogue between them, the widow and her son, who barely have any food, are prepared to share the last of their food with Elijah. “We will eat our last and
then die.” I am going to challenge you to actually go into the Old Testament and read this story and see what happens. The lesson being taught though is
the absolute dependence of abundance upon proper moral orientation of all, regardless of status. There can be no wealth in the absence of true moral
order.
With all this said, here are some thoughts to take into the election campaign and your vote:
Examine the cultural worldview of those in our society, and your own. Everything you see and do flows through worldviews. (Make a note to read
Brian Tysdal’s new book when it comes out.)Speak credibly by proposing what needs to be done and not always critically.
Choose wise, understanding and respected people as our leaders (see Deuteronomy 1:13)
Vote responsibly, consider what is being done to protect free speech, other freedoms, our families, our youth and our women.
Don’t be a one issue voter, consider the big picture.
Vote for competent people, people of character, wise, honest and humble people.
Pay attention to life issues – abortion, suicide, assisted suicide, proper health care.
Encourage, no, demand unbiased reporting which is open and honest from all news outlets.
Note: Some of these thoughts are from Rob Parker’s book, We Have A Voice.
Let me conclude with this. This is a very important election as evidenced, in part, by the threat of Alberta, and Saskatchewan considering leaving Canada. For those of you who have a religious faith, which is Christian or Jewish, follow the dictates found in the New Testament, Romans 13. For these same people, and for the people of other faiths or no faith, let’s all do what we can to get the best people and party into the government which will lead us after April 28th . Please do something more than just the bare minimum. Consider what this will be. And finally, while this goes against the theme of my message, some of culture is downstream from politics, and so our new government will in some ways, at least, influence our culture. Therefore, do what you can to influence those in our next government to help return our country to one which has a good, thriving, positive and morally ordered culture.
Wayne Bernakevitch, husband, father, grandfather, retired business lawyer.
The opinions expressed in this blog are those of the writer and not necessarily those of RCAAN.
