I’ve always liked this sculpture but I never really appreciated the meaning and thought behind it. Fugit Amor, or Fugitive Love, is a part of August Rodin’s La Porte de l’Enfer or The Gates of Hell. Fugit Amor represents the battle of love being lost. It depicts a fleeting love that slips through the fingers as if it was nothing but air, a tormenting lack of fulfillment as this website put it so eloquently.

At present, it’s representative of how I’m feeling right now. But I have to tell myself that there’s no point in wanting to be with someone that doesn’t want to be with me. I have to let her go and that’s exactly what I’ve been trying to do.

Thankfully, all of my friends have come to help me and guide me through my troubled times and I’m learning that while I was with her there were a lot of other things that I couldn’t cultivate in myself, and in my network of friends.

It becomes easier as time passes, but it will never be easy.

The Conservative candidate didn’t show up, the Liberal candidate would have been better off not showing up, the NDP candidate was on the ball but the Green Party candidate was best of show. What is Canadian politics coming to?

“Never wait for Tories” Stephen Lewis, UN Special Envoy for AIDS/HIV

Last night’s debate at the Royal Ontario Museum, scheduled to be broadcast today on CPAC was well organized. Political opportunism was at a minimum and the candidates, save those who didn’t show(CPC) and those who were unprepared for the hot seat(LPC), answered the questions that they were asked.

The first question was poignant. Stephen Lewis was blunt in asking the Liberal incumbent for the Scarborough riding “How do you justify not reaching 0.7% of GDP?” to which the liberal candidate stumbled blankly around the need for fiscal balance, and horrifyingly told the crowd “It’s not our job. That’s your job”. His face flushed red as he realized his error and Paul Summerville, the NDP candidate for St.Paul’s, could be seen taken aback in disgust.

The best response to the first question came from the Green Party representative for Ottawa Center. He suggested removing subsidies that are in place for the oil & gas and nuclear power industries and using that money towards foreign aid. The validity of his answer is at question, but it still received a great response from the crowd.

Personally, I don’t agree with the entire platform put forward by Make Poverty History. They have a tendency to over-simplify what is needed from Canada. 0.7% of GDP or $40 billion would be almost 12% of federal budget revenues. That’s a big chunk of a federal tax dollar that’s leaving the country. Also, removing multi-lateral debt is considerably more complicated as the money was loaned to third parties and then redistributed to the nations that received it.

The panelists used Scandinavian countries as models for their questions. Of the 4 Scandinavian countries mentioned; Denmark, Netherlands, Norway, and Sweden – each one is considered to be a rich nation with incredibly minimal debt and a large percentage of GDP coming from export. Unlike these countries, Canada spends nearly 17.3% of all tax revenue on interest payments alone. Not exactly a fair comparison.

“Fair trade trumps free trade” – David Chernushenko

The question period, brought with it some political opportunism, which was disturbing, considering the nature of the event. The second question was a would be intelligent question. A young woman got up, and asked what each of the political parties was doing to engage women in politics, what their plans are and how they are going to get more women in politics. The young women posed the question in a rather rude and pointed manner. The crowd, majority female, cheered. But did they really understand what the question implied? A woman that I was with pointed out the implication by countering with a question: “Why is it the responsibility of political parties to engage women in politics?”. In Canada, where any citizen, regardless of creed, color, or gender can make their own opportunities in the political spectrum.

“It’s over” – Paul Summerville

Although, looking back on the question mentioned above, it could have been relevant had it been changed slightly. “What can Canadian politicians due to reduce or negate the plight of women who suffer disproportionately from poverty in comparison to their male counterparts on an international level?”

Now that would have been an excellent question. In any case, hopefully, Canada will continue to have budget surpluses and we will, in 2015, be able to help make poverty history and meet our agreement of 0.7% of GDP. Fair trade really does trump free trade. Let’s make it happen.

1. Green Party candidate for Ottawa Centre, in response to a question about how to meet the demand for making fair trade a reality.
2. NDP candidate for St.Paul’s, in reference to the Liberal MP, John McKay, being put on the hot seat. The crowd jeered, taking it as a reference to Liberal governments chances in the upcoming election.