09/24/2008: "If you didn't have enough reason to vote "Not Blue" before...." I can't actually believe I'm reading this. If you didn't have enough reason to vote "anything but Blue" before, cast your wary eyes this way. Prime Minister Harper saying that "ordinary" Canadians don't care about the arts. Huh. Well, if that's true, it's because the government does a really, really shitty job of valuing the arts itself. It does a terrible job of educating Canadians about why the arts are necessary and an integral part of life. Maybe I just don't know what his definition of an ordinary Canadian is. My definition of an ordinary Canadian is someone who lives, works, and votes in Canada. And you're trying to tell me that the majority of people who live, work, and vote in Canada don't care about the arts? I find that hard to believe. I'm going to start asking folks I meet on the street if they care about the arts. Just to prove the android wrong.

Do you care about the arts? It's a yes or no question. No "Yes but we shouldn't fund it" or "No but I know other people do". Just tell me. Yes or no. Do you care about the arts?

Just in case the Toronto Star (whence that article came) doesn't archive their stories, it's available if you click on 'link' down below, there.

"Wow"       "A speck of dust in the eye; just only a speck of dust."

Ordinary folks don't care about arts: Harper
TheStar.com - Federal Election - Ordinary folks don't care about arts: Harper

Prime Minister Stephen Harper has sparked a culture war in the federal election campaign with a claim that "ordinary people" don't care about arts funding.

Under fire for his government's $45 million in cuts to arts and culture funding, the Conservative leader yesterday said average Canadians have no sympathy for "rich" artists who gather at galas to whine about their grants.

"I think when ordinary working people come home, turn on the TV and see a gala of a bunch of people at, you know, a rich gala all subsidized by taxpayers claiming their subsidies aren't high enough, when they know those subsidies have actually gone up â€" I'm not sure that's something that resonates with ordinary people," Harper said in Saskatoon, where he was campaigning for the Oct. 14 election.

Liberal Leader Stéphane Dion and NDP Leader Jack Layton accused their Conservative rival of treating arts and culture with contempt.

Dion said the Conservatives are ideologically attacking the arts.

Layton meanwhile predicted Harper would sell off the CBC and undermine Canadian culture if the Conservatives win a majority government.

But Harper shrugged off his opponents as elitists preoccupied by "a niche issue."

He said he has increased the overall budget at the Department of Canadian Heritage by 8 per cent, but had to trim some arts funding. "Ordinary people understand we have to live within a budget," he said.

Layton said Harper's comments were "bizarre" and showed how out of touch he is with art and artists, most of whom earn very little.

"If what he thinks is that arts and culture is about receptions, maybe he's been going to too many receptions," the NDP leader said in Drummondville, Que.

Dion was even more pointed.

"We need to stop this man. He wants to pit everyone against everyone, Canadians against their artists," the Liberal leader said at a North Vancouver film studio.

Rejecting Harper's suggestion artists are privileged, Dion said their average wage is $23,000 a year.

"Most of them need to rent their suit and beautiful dresses at these galas," he said. "We have a great arts and culture industry. We need to protect its freedom. This man wants to censor our movies."

That was a reference to controversial Tory-backed legislation to give the heritage minister power to withdraw tax incentives â€" vital for productions â€" from films deemed objectionable.

Dion said that proves Conservatives are the party of censorship while Liberals are the party of fun.

He showed a flash of humour after a sound stage tour of a TV production tentatively titled, Harper's Island, a comedy/horror show being produced for CBS Paramount.

"I'm told that it's a scary movie. Mr. Harper lives on an island and it's time to kick him off the island," Dion quipped.

Earlier yesterday in Quebec City, Layton pledged to reinstate Harper's $45 million in arts program cuts as part of a cultural cash infusion of $125 million a year.

He said an NDP government would allow income-averaging for artists so they could spread often irregular earnings over several years.

In contrast, he predicted a Conservative majority government would privatize the CBC.

In a play on the Conservative Party's French name, an electronic NDP ad running in Montreal's subway system shows a "Conservateur" logo evolving into "Conserva-tueur de la culture," or "culture killer."

Harper complained the ad "shows the extreme side of the NDP," but Layton said Tory cuts deserve "strong language."

Last night, the NDP leader attended a Montreal concert held to protest the Tories' cultural cutbacks. Bloc Québécois Leader Gilles Duceppe was also on hand to see performances by prominent Quebec artists, including singer-songwriters Michel Rivard and Ariane Moffatt, and folk group Mes Aïeux.

Layton and Duceppe shook hands but then sat two tables away from one another on a VIP balcony. Liberal incumbent Denis Coderre was seated one row behind, lending the star-studded event an almost all-party affair. The Conservatives were not officially represented.

WHAT THEY SAID

"People don't want sovereignty. They want respect."
- Claude Carignan, mayor of St-Eustache and Conservative candidate, on his party's appeal in Quebec
September 24, 2008
Robert Benzie
In Montreal
Bruce Campion-Smith
In Vancouver
Les Whittington
In Saskatoon

8 Comments

brielle128 , on Wednesday, 24th September:

I was reluctant to vote, or even speak, but you asked. I vote yes but we shouldn't fund it. But I will explain.

I am an artist, with history in clay, design, textile, canvass and human skin, music, culture and I forget a bunch more. But do I get government funding? Nope. Does it stop me from being an artist? Nope. I honestly can't see how people can demand the government fund them to simply create art. Its art for art's sake. If its good, and people like it they will pay for it. Thats funding. Just my 2 cents.

I think that Harper just is looking to fry bigger fish. If I had to choose tougher crime attention over the art funding I am afraid that would be my vote. You KNOW me...I am a granola eating, vw driving, freedom of speech and self hippy. But I can't justify to myself public funding for the arts. Maybe I am wrong. But its just what I feel. (no rotten tomatos please)

I'm not sure if this falls under the same category but I'll say it here so someone can clarify it for me. I have a rather large bone to pick with the CBC, television venue. I understand they are funded in whole by the government thus the title canadian broadcasting corporation. Why then, do they gain monies from private advertising? Isn't that a HUGE conflict of interest? Isn't it akin to accepting under the table money when you are already collecting some kind of government aid? They supported the
Olympics, Garnier, and other big money ads. This really bothers me.

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cenobyte , on Wednesday, 24th September:

It wasn't a funding question. It was "do you care about the arts?"

We've had the discussion about *funding* the arts ad nauseum. The point I'm trying to make here, though, is whether you care about the arts.

As for the CBC, I don't think it's a conflict of interest at all. Advertisers pay to promote their products on the air. Who cares if the station they're paying to advertise on is funded by the government or by private enterprise? CBC has a mandate to promote Canadian culture and Canadian television programmes; other stations don't (except for the altogether too lax restrictions put on by the CRTC). Even PBS down in the states has started allowing advertisers to purchase spots on their station. It's not like the CBC is promoting any one *political party* over any other as a result of their funding.

Harper's a dink. It's not about funding the arts *or* funding criminal reforms. The amount of money the federal government tosses at the arts is pitiful, and wouldn't pay for *one* new prison, much less an entirely new criminal justice system.

And, since you brought it up, 'arts funding' isn't just paying for arts supplies and equipment. You can do all the art you want, but if there are no venues in which you can sell your art or display your art, you're not going to be creating art for very long.

Anyway, the point wasn't to get into a debate about whether the government should or shouldn't provide arts funding. The point was to ask whether or not you care about the arts.

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brielle128 , on Wednesday, 24th September:

Ok now I get it. Its wasn't a funding question it was a simple personal opinion. I'll rethink this.
So, of course I care about the arts. In fact, the class most instrumental to keep me in school was band. When they cancelled that program in my old high school it broke my heart. Once something is gone, its virtually impossible to breathe life into it again. I lived, breathed and dreamed my band program. The program they have now in the schools is one that is private lessons with your own personal instrument. If you have one, they'll pull you from class, take you to another school that also defunked thier band program and get all of the socially and financially elite together and pretend they are the only ones with musical interest.
Makes me sick. Sick enough to go back and get my music theory and fundamental class so I can teach the bloody thing.

*rant over* (not even sure if this fits the arts discussion but it points directly to a YES vote)

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The Ms. S , on Wednesday, 24th September:

Yes, yeah, yay and aye.

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Parmeisan , on Wednesday, 24th September:

"...average Canadians have no sympathy for "rich" artists who gather at galas to whine about their grants..."

Hoooo boy.

OK, I *have* seen artists that annoy me by getting funding and wasting it. The one, for example, who spent a year "researching" something she already knew about, and then made a movie about it in a day. The government paid for her to live for a year and do something she enjoyed. That made me mad. BUT artists in general are poor and I would tend to agree that they should be funded in several ways. (Such as providing venues for them... or, wouldn't a school band program fit under the heading of arts funding? Or is that education funding?)

Anyway, if it's not obvious yet at this point, Yes, I care about arts. In my case, particularly the literary, but I think it's very important to have books, television, paintings, music and so forth in our society. Artists of all sorts provide a very important role.

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Coyote , on Wednesday, 24th September:

Yes.

No Caveats.

Yes.

Funding. Yes.

Artists should be paid a wage to create art. No restrictions put on their art.

They did a 'starving artists' display at the Fifth Parallel (That's the 'gallery' at the U of R) where to pay for the art you bought the artist food, or made a donation to the food bank.

I got a nifty picture of a line of newspaper boxes along a street in Toronto with a little slip of paper taped to each saying 'LIES' on it. I love that photo. It cost me breakfast for the artist's daughter. I also expressed to the artist that I felt all artists, regardless of their medium, should be paid to do their art. No ifs ands or buts.

There is a term I'd love for you folks to look up: Eudaimonia. While it can be a rather restrictive term I think the concept is quite neat. Oh and I learned it from a video game. A cookie to anyone who can guess what video game it was in. :)

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Aelius , on Thursday, 25th September:

First time caller, long time listener

Okay maybe thats a lie, I have posted a few times but for some reason I just felt like saying it.

I have a few opinions on this matter, and unfortunatly I can indeed tend to be long winded so you all must bear with me... or I suppose you could just scroll past in which case you wouldn't have to put up with it.

Anyways...

Yes, I support the Arts. Yes I think that funding to the Arts is important, I happen to have my salary paid by that funding.

Do I believe all art forms regardless of context should recieve support... no. I would liek to impart you with a story, about an artist in the States who spoke about her art form on a Bboard I read. Said artist killed a rabbit and claimed that it was Art, she then proclaimed that no activist could berate her because what she was doing was merely expressing her artistic nature.

Now perhaps this delves into animal rights etc. But I would more clearly like to point out the fact that I do not believe that just anyone off the street should be able to ask for funding by doing some random act and calling it art. I'm all for freedom of expression and all, but at this rate a bum is gonna throw his crap on a wall and then say he needs funding to further his art of 'wall crap'

But yes, I think its a joke that so many people in this country seem to think the arts are not important and we should stop funding them... rubbish. Yet some stupid football player makes a gajillion dollars a year for running around on a field... buggers.

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Woz , on Monday, 29th September:

Support - yes

Funding - No

I know you didn't ask about funding...

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