Skip to main content

“I am a Canadian, free to speak without fear, free to worship in my own way, free to stand for what I think right, free to oppose what I believe wrong, or free to choose those who shall govern my country. This heritage of freedom I pledge to uphold for myself and all mankind.” ~~ John G. Diefenbaker

ADAM OLSEN -- When we win, do others have to lose? How do we handle the political outrage flowing freely and super-charged by social media platforms? How are we managing?


One of the primary realizations I've made in my brief time in provincial politics is how easy it is to slip into an unhealthy lifestyle. Without careful attention to my overall fitness, personal well-being quickly gets lost in the background noise. There is a lot of background noise.

Winning is the focus of partisan politics ... not winning together, but winning at someone else's expense.

There is an intense competitive desire to politically tear each other apart, rather than lift each other up. Constituency work can also be heavy. It's difficult to hear stories of your fellow citizens who have fallen through the cracks and know that political calculations, not compassion, are primary factors driving of the decisions to fix or ignore the problem.

This job ages you. It's hard on personal relationships, emotionally draining, creates a spiritual void and is mentally taxing. All of this can manifest in poor physical health and it affects how we govern.

How can we expect the outcomes of our democratic institutions to be healthy if we are not properly looking after the people who make the decisions?

So, as I have been outlining in these morning blogs, I've been working to improve my outcomes in the four pillars of my personal well-being - physical, mental, spiritual and emotional. So, I persist in my morning walks, yoga and meditation.

Love, warmth, free of pain and full of success!

In a recent guided meditation, I was asked to think about someone I love and to offer to them thoughts and feelings of love and warmth, wishing for them to be well, free of pain and suffering as well as achieving success and prosperity.

Then the voice suggested I take those thoughts and feelings and apply them to someone I don't like. Offer to them thoughts and feelings of love and warmth. Wish them to be well, free of pain and suffering and full of success and prosperity.

Finally, the voice suggested I apply those same thoughts and feelings to myself. Offer myself thoughts and feelings of love and warmth. Wish myself well, freedom from pain and suffering, as well as success and prosperity.

It was a welcome suggestion to remain mindful about how we show up, and what energy we put into the world. When we win, do others have to lose? How do we handle the political outrage flowing freely and super-charged by social media platforms? How are we managing?

No matter what you do, our modern world can easily overwhelm. Especially if we are not looking after ourselves and each other.
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

GORDON F. D. WILSON: When The Trick Masquerades as The Treat

Thirty-seven years ago, Halloween 1987, I became the leader of the BC Liberal Party.   British Columbia was badly polarized. Social Credit held one side and the NDP the other. It had been twelve years, 1975, since Liberal MLAs Garde Gardom, Pat McGeer, and Alan Williams had walked away from their party to join Social Credit, one year after the lone Progressive Conservative MLA Hugh Curtis had abandoned his party to sit with Bill Bennett, the son and heir apparent to long-serving BC Premier, WAC Bennett.   An unwritten agreement by the biggest Canadian political shareholders, the federal Liberals and Conservatives, decided that if British Columbia was to remain a lucrative franchise from a revenue perspective, they couldn’t risk splitting the electoral vote and electing the real enemy, the NDP, so no resources would be used to finance either a Liberal or Conservative party provincially.   “There are two sides to every street,” I was told by a very prominent Canadian businessman who cont
Post a Comment
Read more

FORSETH: As a BC Conservative member, and campaign worker, I will again state that the fact these errors were found -- AND brought to light BY Elections BC -- shows the system IS working

Sadly, two and a half weeks after the BC provincial election campaign, those who want to undermine our political process are still at.  PLUS, we also have one who doesn’t even live in our country, never mind our province. I speak of the buffoon running for President of the United States, who has poisoned the well when it comes to faith in the electoral process. Just today alone, comments such as the following, were being made of posts that I shared online: ... all the votes they keep finding has just favoured NDP on in all critical ridings and soon they will flip another riding in favour of NDP, Come on. ... Elections BC has ridiculed British Columbians, and I no longer have confidence or trust in their process and competence regarding the results Then there are others online, with comments like these – who are claiming fraud in the October 19th election: ... Who is the oversight for Elections BC? They should be investigated for election fraud! ... Fraudulent election ... should be red
Post a Comment
Read more

“With the talent and dedication of this caucus we will hold David Eby to account for his government’s out of control spending and ongoing failures in healthcare, public safety and addictions" — John Rustad

Today, John Rustad, Leader of the Conservative Party of British Columbia, proudly unveiled his shadow cabinet, a dynamic team of talented individuals ready to hold David Eby’s disastrous government accountable and present a strong alternative vision for British Columbia. “ Our shadow cabinet is a diverse and experienced group, committed to restoring prosperity, public safety, and affordability for every British Columbian ,” said Rustad. “ With experts in every field, we are focused on delivering real solutions for the challenges our province faces .” Rustad emphasized the historic appointment of Aaliya Warbus as House Leader. The shadow cabinet reflects the Conservative Party’s vision to build a brighter future for British Columbia. The appointments are as follows: Leadership Positions : Aaliya Warbus – House Leader Bruce Banman – Whip Sheldon Claire – Deputy Whip Portfolios : Tony Luck – Municipal Affairs and Local Government Sharon Hartwell – Rural Communities and Rural Development I
Post a Comment
Read more

Labels

Show more