The Crazy Rants of Samantha BurnsKook Or Candidate? You Decide, #1
Recently, I had the pleasure of interviewing some local politicians for the upcoming federal election in Canada, January 23, 2006.
Here, you as the reader will have the opportunity to read up on various issues in Canada and decide if the politicians' responses make them legitimate kooks or legitimate candidates.
The first potential MP (Member of Parliament) I have interviewed is Mr. Paul Warnett, an Independent running in the New Westminster-Coquitlam-Port Moody riding of British Columbia, Canada. Mr. Warnett's goals are as follows:
1. Restoring the faith of Canadians in our criminal justice system.
2. Criminals receiving a punishment that fits their crime.
3. A reduction in crime by investing more resources for rehabilitation for young offenders and first time adult offenders and keeping repeat offenders in prison.
1. According to your platform, you state that conditional sentences should be eliminated for all motor vehicle accidents that result in death. My questions to you: aren't conditional sentences a tool for the courts to use when they feel remorse? Also, should a person pay for life for one stupid mistake (albeit a terrible one)?
[Paul Warnett] Conditional sentences are used by the courts in a situation where someone is sentenced to less than 2 years and it is felt that serving time in the community rather than in jail is appropriate. Jail is rightly seen as harsher punishment. When death is caused by a motor vehicle the outrage felt by the victims and the wider community is too much to allow the offenders to serve their sentence in the community. If your significant other or parents or siblings were killed as a result of a criminal offence would you be upset if the offender did not see the inside of a jail? I would say the answer to that question would be yes from every single Canadian.
An offender should not pay for life for mistakes-they should pay for life for criminal conduct which are much different things.
2. How would you quantify how much is a minimum mandatory sentence for impaired driving causing death?
[Paul Warnett] 3 years is appropriate. It would be upheld by the Courts as constitutional and raise the sentences for the worst conduct by providing a floor for the "best" conduct.
3. Is throwing a first time offender in prison with career criminals really a good idea? Won't that encourage or cause the first time offenders to become criminally minded through association?
[Paul Warnett] It depends what the first time offender did. I believe we should have more rehab programs for young offenders and first time offenders to avoid them becoming hardended criminals.
4. What are your feelings on drug harm reduction (eg. safe injection sites, providing free drugs to addicts)?
[Paul Warnett] I don't have all the answers on hard drug policy but it seems to me that we should try to avoid users becoming infected with HIV and Hepatitis by providing safe injection sites so that when they are ready to stop using drugs they have a future.
5. They say that drug addicts can only be treated if they want to be treated. How do you propose we deal with addicts who do not want to be treated?
[Paul Warnett] We should try to convince them they should get treatment but otherwise hope they survive until they want to get treated.
6. The Marajuana Party of Canada wants to legalize the drug. What is your opinion on legalizing soft and hardcore dugs? Further, what is your opinion on decriminalizing drug usage?
[Paul Warnett] I believe it is time to legalize marijuana but no other drug. I would prefer not having to decrminalize marijuana but organized crime is being funded by the marijuana industry to such an extent as to cause turf wars and serious crimes occurring. We should regulate marijuana like alcohol except more stringently with age restrictions, no public consumption, drug impaired driving laws and government run marijuana stores that control the potency of the drug. The monies from the taxes collected would fund a lot of programs. Once this is done anybody with a grow op should face severe criminal penalties to crack down on importation to the U.S.A. There can be no excuse for a grow op once you can buy the drug from a store.
7. How do you feel about prostitution and how the present government deals with the issues within the sex industry?
[Paul Warnett] Prostitution will never go away. We can only do our best to remember that those on the streets are people who deserve protection from assaults and other crimes just as much as anybody else.
8. Where do you plan on getting the money to fund your ideas/changes?
[Paul Warnett] Fundraising has been my own personal monies, family, friends, neighbours and strangers. I raised enough to pay for my website, to distribute 40,000 brochures and for signs. I can always use some money and those wanting to donate can find out how at www.paulwarnett.ca.
9. How should we deal with the homeless?
[Paul Warnett] Those who do not want to be homeless should be provided affordable shelter. Those who want to be homeless or are unable to tell the difference between being homeless or with shelter we must deal with any drug addiction problems or mental health illness they have.
10. You state that there should be a presumption of impaired driving for those who flee the scene of an accident. Isn't presuming guilt contrary to our entire legal system in which one is supposedly innocent until proven guilty?
[Paul Warnett] There are many instances in the Criminal Code where there is a reverse onus. Drinking and driving is the only crime I know where if you avoid being caught for 3 hours there is no way you can be prosecuted since the alcohol levels diminish with time. The "smart" drunks know that leaving the scene of an accident is a way to avoid a drinking and driving charge that carries much harsher penalties than leaving the scene of an accident. It is not just an answer to say that the penalty for leaving the scene of an accident should be increased as those who are drunk and leave the scene should be punished more severely than those who leave the scene without being drunk.
11. What do you believe the root cause(s) of crime is/are?
[Paul Warnett] Poverty and lack of education are the root causes of crime although those circumstances are not excuses to commit crime. I distinguish myself from my Conservative opponents by wanting to make sure we do not develop a society that has everyone fending for themselves.
12. Wouldn't eliminating the general rule that credit for pre-trial custody be double time cause a slow down in bringing trials to completion so that cops/prosecutors can punish (in a round about way) those they believe are guilty, but have not been convicted yet?
[Paul Warnett] No. I believe that pre-trial custody should count as one for one time such that post trial custody would count the same as pre-trial custody time.
13. Independents rarely win a riding. Do you honestly believe you can win? What is your motivation for running?
[Paul Warnett] I can win. The momentum is building. I set myself apart because I do not consider myself to be a politician. The parties are trying to convince Canadians to care but the reality is that Canadians do care they just don't believe the parties are worth caring about.
I am a young lawyer whose healthy 57 year old mother was killed in an instant and I want to do what I can to avoid similar tragedies from happening in the future. The pain is too deep not to take a bold step to prevent this from happening in the future.
14. Can you give me an elevator pitch as to why people should vote for you?
[Paul Warnett] I am young, educated, well spoken, with fresh ideas and the ability to represent my constituency well because my training as a lawyer has taught me how to be an advocate. I am someone to vote for not against with a clear message on reforms to the criminal justice system and on other issues.
15. Conservatives are typically tough on crime. Couldn't someone voting for you be taken away from voting Conservative - a Party that could actually do something about these issues?
[Paul Warnett] Don't underestimate the power of an Independent particularly in a minority Parliament. I see myself as a bridge between the parties to bring about much needed criminal justice reforms.
16. What's your position on gun control and registry? If you are in favour of gun control, do you believe criminals will respect the law and not obtain guns through other means?
[Paul Warnett] I believe in an outright ban on hand guns if nothing else then to reinforce that handguns are objects to be shunned. Of course criminals are not usually using registered guns but the concept of a gun registry is not a bad one the problem is that it ended up costing 2 billion instead of 2 million dollars.
17. Have you ever participated in a protest? Do you feel they are effective ways to get messages across?
[Paul Warnett] I have never actively participated in a protest although I was at the APEC protest at UBC in 1997 milling about on the fringes absolutely freaked at the look of defiance on the police officers faces and also concerned about the protestors who were trying to break over the fence given the sharp shooters on the rooftops of the nearby buildings. Protests agains the war in Iraq were effective in the spring of 2003 by displaying Canadians' feelings of unhappiness about the prospect of going to war in Iraq.
18. Do you believe hate crimes should have tougher sentences or equal sentences to a person who commits an identical crime, but was not motivated by hate?
[Paul Warnett] Hate crimes should be punished more severely because hate crimes are directed at minority groups in our society who deserve greater protection.
19. Do you believe immigration is linked to crime in any way?
[Paul Warnett] Absolutely not.
20. How do you feel about Americans? Further, what do you think about Paul Martin using attacks against Americans to appear as a strong leader who does not bow down to US wishes?
[Paul Warnett] 50 percent of Americans wish their policies were more in line with Canadian policies and the other 50 percent of Americans I have trouble understanding. We should stand up to the Americans but we should not have our leaders appeal to uninformed anti-Americanism.
21. How would you respond to Tucker Carlson's characterization that Canadians live in igloos and ride dogsleds to work? referring to www.twbookmark.com
[Paul Warnett] I wouldn't respond. It is obvious he was looking to aggravate us so why get aggravated? Besides this was a comment made by a young guy wearing a bow tie.
22. Do you have any favourite blogs or websites that you read?
[Paul Warnett] Yours of course.
23. How can people contact you if they have questions or would like to aid in your campaign?
[Paul Warnett] More information on my campaign can be obtained at www.paulwarnett.ca.
Thank you very much for answering a few questions for my readers regarding your 2006 Canadian election campaign.
Comments
He talks from both sides on this one:
He wants a gun ban but admits that criminal wont honor it anyway. What's the point? Gun registries have been proven to be ineffective and he likes the idea if it weren't so expensive? Imagine cutting costs on something that doesn't work anyway.
I think he needs to work on his logic a bit before wasting his time trying to get elected.
Posted by: Mark B. | January 9, 2006 05:39 AM
To be fair, many Canadians believe in banning hand guns. Kind of a distinct Canadian attitude towards them... although I agree it's not effective at stopping criminals from having them [and I do not support a ban or a registry]. Then again, in Canada, the land of people overly polite and apologizing over everything, who knows... criminals might actually respect the law.
Posted by: MrBig | January 9, 2006 07:11 AM
If he were an American candidate running for my congressional district, he would not have my vote. He sounds no different from a Democrat.
"in Canada, the land of people overly polite and apologizing over everything, who knows... criminals might actually respect the law."
A criminal is a criminal, regardless of the society. I'm sure you're being facetious.
Posted by: FIAR | January 9, 2006 02:53 PM