What happened to the Renaissance man?
Today, I caught the last half of 'Canada's Next Prime Minister', in which several university students were competing for a $50,000 prize by debating issues pertaining to our problems as a nation and how they would personally solve them. Initially, I was mildly impressed... but ultimately, I found that these kids were just articulate speakers with -- on the whole -- little substance to their opinions.
Whatever happened to thinking outside the box? Everyone today is bogged down with pre-packaged "tried, tested, and true" formulas -- what will work in politics and what will not. I didn't feel as if I was being exposed to inspiring opinions from a younger generation... I felt like they were regurgitating debates that have already been endlessly argued.
It's time to stop being taught how to think, and strip politics down to its basics. The person I found who had the most innovative ideas was an Aboriginal girl, who didn't win -- and with good reason, because she should have explained how to apply her measures a great deal more. Otherwise, her opinion was refreshing (she believed in a great deal of decentralization). This going against the "national unity = happy bubbly love!" everyone else tried to make central in their platforms.
That said, I agree with the person who won, as she showed more personality than the other competitors. And while I disagree with her opinions on how to deal with Canada's healthcare (and certainly she had the Conservative PMs supporting her), it at least showed that she wasn't fostering the rehashed "Pay with your health card, not your credit card!" statement.
Why am I ranting about this when I should be writing an essay...? o.o
Whatever happened to thinking outside the box? Everyone today is bogged down with pre-packaged "tried, tested, and true" formulas -- what will work in politics and what will not. I didn't feel as if I was being exposed to inspiring opinions from a younger generation... I felt like they were regurgitating debates that have already been endlessly argued.
It's time to stop being taught how to think, and strip politics down to its basics. The person I found who had the most innovative ideas was an Aboriginal girl, who didn't win -- and with good reason, because she should have explained how to apply her measures a great deal more. Otherwise, her opinion was refreshing (she believed in a great deal of decentralization). This going against the "national unity = happy bubbly love!" everyone else tried to make central in their platforms.
That said, I agree with the person who won, as she showed more personality than the other competitors. And while I disagree with her opinions on how to deal with Canada's healthcare (and certainly she had the Conservative PMs supporting her), it at least showed that she wasn't fostering the rehashed "Pay with your health card, not your credit card!" statement.
Why am I ranting about this when I should be writing an essay...? o.o