Why Am I Here?
After many years of dismay at the political situation in the U.S. , I reluctantly made the decision to leave my country. People in the U.S. seemed to be walking around oblivious to the coming oppression. I kept hearing, "that won't happen here." But it did. And it does. And it continues to happen. So I applied for Permanent Residency in Canada. It wasn't as far from the U.S. as I'd like to go, but it would do for the time being. I waited. I was lucky in that my application was approved in a mere 18 months.
Unfortunately, just before the approval of my Permanent Residency, Stephen Harper was elected as PM of Canada. I watched the campaign saying to myself, "don't they see that he's just Bush-lite?"
Even though Harper was elected, it has not dampened my spirit or admiration for my new country or the people in it.
Almost immediately after his election, Harper started pulling some of the same tricks Bush did. The point of this blog is to chronicle my journey as someone who has seen their country decimated by a leader doing things that the populace thought would never happen here. It is to give a warning. It is to journal my experiences as a new (or should I say, "faux") Canadian.
While the name of this blog is "An American Queer....", I do not think of myself as American anymore. The America I knew and grew up with is no more. It's not just that the current political administration seems to be trying to destroy everything I believe in and every principle on which the U.S. was founded. No, it's more than that. It's a mindset that has taken over in the U.S. It's a sense of feeling like an outsider in one's own country.
I was told, "Stay and fight." Fight for what? The opposition in the U.S. has long since rolled over and given into the fascist mentality of the Bush administration. The mainstream media is more obssessed wth Brittany than with the multitude of scandals and lies swirling around the Bush Administration. There are no signs that this is changing.
When I go to Canada, I feel much more in tune with the people. I feel I belong. So, I aksed myself, "why stay?" There was no good answer.
It was not an easy decision. It is not a decision that is right for everyone. I believe that it is right for me. As the weeks and months progress, I hope to chronicle my journey; offer insights; write commentaries, rans and diatribes. I don't expect everyone to agree with me, but I do hope that you will consider my writings to be thoughtful, well-researched and founded in fact. I hope it will provoke thought and make you evaluate and re-evaluate your own perspectives.
I'm glad to be here.
After many years of dismay at the political situation in the U.S. , I reluctantly made the decision to leave my country. People in the U.S. seemed to be walking around oblivious to the coming oppression. I kept hearing, "that won't happen here." But it did. And it does. And it continues to happen. So I applied for Permanent Residency in Canada. It wasn't as far from the U.S. as I'd like to go, but it would do for the time being. I waited. I was lucky in that my application was approved in a mere 18 months.
Unfortunately, just before the approval of my Permanent Residency, Stephen Harper was elected as PM of Canada. I watched the campaign saying to myself, "don't they see that he's just Bush-lite?"
Even though Harper was elected, it has not dampened my spirit or admiration for my new country or the people in it.
Almost immediately after his election, Harper started pulling some of the same tricks Bush did. The point of this blog is to chronicle my journey as someone who has seen their country decimated by a leader doing things that the populace thought would never happen here. It is to give a warning. It is to journal my experiences as a new (or should I say, "faux") Canadian.
While the name of this blog is "An American Queer....", I do not think of myself as American anymore. The America I knew and grew up with is no more. It's not just that the current political administration seems to be trying to destroy everything I believe in and every principle on which the U.S. was founded. No, it's more than that. It's a mindset that has taken over in the U.S. It's a sense of feeling like an outsider in one's own country.
I was told, "Stay and fight." Fight for what? The opposition in the U.S. has long since rolled over and given into the fascist mentality of the Bush administration. The mainstream media is more obssessed wth Brittany than with the multitude of scandals and lies swirling around the Bush Administration. There are no signs that this is changing.
When I go to Canada, I feel much more in tune with the people. I feel I belong. So, I aksed myself, "why stay?" There was no good answer.
It was not an easy decision. It is not a decision that is right for everyone. I believe that it is right for me. As the weeks and months progress, I hope to chronicle my journey; offer insights; write commentaries, rans and diatribes. I don't expect everyone to agree with me, but I do hope that you will consider my writings to be thoughtful, well-researched and founded in fact. I hope it will provoke thought and make you evaluate and re-evaluate your own perspectives.
I'm glad to be here.
posted by samintoronto @ 1:39 PM
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