No Men Need Apply

Liberals plan to increase the number of women running for the party in the next election. To reach their self-imposed quota of 33% female candidates, it seems they believe the 'fairest' option is to simply bar men from running in certain ridings.

Apparently it doesn't matter that a man might be more qualified, better the right gender than the right candidate.

The most galling thing here is that Liberals appear to believe that women can't possibly be expected to win if they are competing against a man -- so their answer is to simply remove the competition.

Progressive thinkers might believe that this is necessary to increase the number of women running for and elected to parliament, but there are two bizarre principles being floated here. First, that there must be more women in parliament, and secondly, that the only way to get that done exclude men from the process.

For fifty years or more, dozens of women of all parties have proved their mettle by following the nomination process that's been in place and winning. Does the Liberal Party dismiss their successes as anomaly? Do they think this new generation of young women is frightened of politics? Or do they just think that women are too fragile to compete?

Women are not helpless and needy. We don't need to be led by the hand -- those who want to run, find their way. To suggest otherwise is to say that we need to be treated like children who don't know what's good for them or worse, like morons who haven't enough sense to see opportunities and seek them out.

Voters want competence from their candidates and parliamentarians. In the rush to push more women onto the political stage, Liberals seem willing to ignore quality in the name of number parity.
If they impose the selection of 80 more women candidates to meet their target, there's no question that some quality male candidates will be shoved aside simply because of their gender. And the Liberals think this is both fair and correct.

If they're going to force the numbers to fit the goal of 33% women candidates, why not go the extra step and in any remaining ridings, bar whites from running? If they truly want to reflect the diversity of the nation, impose quotas for all races.

Liberals pretend they believe in gender equality, but by not allowing the natural outcomes of the nominations process, they are telling women that they don't believe they are good enough to compete with men and win. Or maybe the ruling elites believe that the local Liberal riding associations are made up of misogynists who would choose a man over a women regardless of qualifications.

Call it parity, equality, or balance -- it smacks of paternalism and implies that without special assistance, most women couldn't cut it in politics. If that's the case, if females who are potential Liberal candidates require the manipulation of the selection process to ensure somethings as basic as their nomination, how suited are they for the job?

When equality is forced, quality is bound to suffer. The playing-field is already level. Women today are aware of their career options and should they choose the political arena, they should be playing the same game with the same rules as everyone else. And if Liberals think they can't -- it's the Liberals who are questioning the value of women.

We don't need more women in politics -- we just need fewer idiots.

canadianna