(The following article is from the October 1-15, 2008, issue of People's Voice, Canada's leading communist newspaper. Articles can be reprinted free if the source is credited. Subscription rates in Canada: $25/year, or $12 low income rate; for U.S. readers - $25 US per year; other overseas readers - $25 US or $35 CDN per year. Send to: People's Voice, c/o PV Business Manager, 133 Herkimer St., Unit 502, Hamilton, ON, L8P 2H3.)

People's Voice Editorial, Oct. 1-15, 2008

Just two weeks remain in this short, strange federal election, and the outcome remains unpredictable. One thing is clear, however. The core sectors of the Canadian ruling class, tightly linked to U.S. and other global capitalist interests, are determined to win a majority for Stephen Harper's Conservatives. This outcome would accelerate Canada's integration into the U.S. Empire, with tragic consequences for working people.

     On the other hand, the opposition parties seem hobbled by minor so-called "scandals", and more importantly, by timid policy frameworks which fail to proclaim a real alternative to neoliberalism. All the major parties, to differing degrees, subscribe to the view that capitalism is the only possible economic system. Even the NDP, which advances some useful policies in this campaign, does not advocate public ownership of the oil and gas industry, a concept taken for granted in most countries and supported by a majority of Canadian working people.

     But cynicism is the completely wrong response. The political terrain and hopes of success for major people's struggles after October 14th will be affected by the composition of the next Parliament. Every seat closer to a Harper majority strengthens the hand of big capital, and every Tory loss is a setback for those who seek to make Canada the 51st U.S. state. We urge all-out efforts during the final two weeks to defeat the Tories, and to elect more MPs who can defend the interests of working people in Parliament.

     In the 24 ridings where Communists are on the ballot, a vote for these candidates is a powerful demand for fundamental economic and social change, and a step towards once again electing Communists to legislatures and to Parliament. When that happens, socialism will emerge as the necessary option for a sovereign Canada and a world of peace and social justice.