Are you old enough to remember a time when we respected our political leaders and their profession? I am.
Well, it’s not so much like that today. Certainly not often in the media, particularly social media whether of either left or right persuasion.So what has changed in the last decades? Some say politicians themselves have earned our collective disrespect through their own poor decisions or mismanagement. This may be true in some cases, but today we seem to be hardened and negative in our views of politics, people and the world in general.
We are so quick to express our negative views of individual politicians and less likely to compromise on those views. The rise of social media in recent decades has contributed to this negativity.
Our media has adopted a more partisan view in its reporting of newsworthy political events in Canada. My impression is that many media outlets expect their reporters/journalists to reflect either a “Conservative”or “Liberal” view in their reporting.
This constant barrage of negativity against our politicians is disheartening, to our leaders and to many of us.
On occasion it would be constructive to see a journalist applaud our leaders for their willingness to sacrifice their time, energy, privacy and sometimes personal relationships in pursuit of serving Canadians.
A final thought for all MPs in the House of Commons: Lighten up on the personal attacks and obnoxious language in the House. Extend some goodwill and reconciliation to your colleagues across the aisle!
