Here's a few edits. big item is your incorrect use of apostrophes. You don't use one to make something plural. Also, you'll note that I trimmed down the sentences a lot; verbosity isn't necessary for eloquence. I also removed some soap-boxism, which would only detract from your actual points.
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Re: It's time for new direction

I would like to comment on Kyle Simunovic's letter "It's time for new direction". Kyle pointed out all the issues with the Liberals. Most of what was said wasn't anything new. Kyle then finished off the letter by suggesting people vote Conservative.

I want to respond because I feel Kyle failed to point out some of the issues with the Conservative Party. It would have helped readers if Kyle went into more detail about why people should vote Conservative. To just say, "Hey everyone, Liberals are bad, listen to me and vote for this party" doesn't make sense.

First, Stephen Harper has a problem on his hands. This is a much bigger problem then what McGuinty is facing with the backlash towards his Ontario budget. It's an issue even bigger then taxes. We all remember when the Chrétien government's decided not to enter the Iraq war (which I think is a defining moment in Canada's history). It is now supported, according to a recent CBC poll, by a staggering 79 per cent of the population. Other polls show similar results.

The record shows that Mr. Harper and his Conservatives wanted to enter that war. But, fearing that it would hurt him at the polls, Mr. Harper is now trying to squirm his way out of it by saying he only wanted increased moral support for the conflict, not military support. Such backtracking doesn't encourage me to trust him.

When the U.S decided to invade Iraq, public opinion poll showed a strong opinion that Canada should not support the war in Iraq. Since then, that opinion has only been validated. More and more Canadians believe we were right in staying out of Iraq.

Let's see if Mr. Harper was in line with the Canadian public by using some of his own words. "We support the war effort and believe we should be supporting our troops and our allies and be there with them doing everything necessary to win". "We should have been there, shoulder to shoulder with our Allies."

There's also former Conservative Party Member Keith Martin who said. "If Harper was prime minister, Canadian soldiers would be coming home from Iraq in body bags". There was also the pre-war press release from Mr. Harper's foreign affairs critic, Stockwell Day. The headline was "Canadian Troops Must Join Allies in the Gulf". It is on Official Opposition letterhead. Its also worth mentioning that Stockwell Day could be the New Conservative Party's Foreign Affairs Minister.

Shortly after the invasion of Iraq began, Mr. Harper co-authored an article with Stockwell Day that appeared in the Wall Street Journal. In the article they said it was a "serious mistake" for Jean Chrétien to leave Canada "outside this multilateral coalition of nations" against Iraq.

Keith Martin has also stated that almost everyone in the conservative caucus was pro-war, with the exception of himself and Reed Elley. "Our party even had signs up in the Commons behind our rows of seats. They said, 'We stand with George W. Bush.'"

Then there's the issue of more military integration. With Mr. Harper supporting integration of our military with the U.S, Mr. Harper as our Prime Minister will mean Canadian troops fighting shoulder to shoulder, side by side with American soldiers fighting U.S wars. That's disturbing.


Mr. Harper tries to squirm out of what he has said, even though it is very obvious what he has said and where he stood on these important issues. It's insulting that he would expect Canadians to fall for this. I have no problems if people vote Conservative because they understand the party and believe in the platform. But I do have a problem if people are voting for the Conservatives just to punish the Liberals.

   

I think Jesse edited very well for you Kevin, nothing to add on this one, but I will tell you that you consistently spell, 'doubt' wrong, you usually spell it 'dought' when you post on vive, just thought I'd mention it. FYI only, not trying to be critical.

   

Kevin, Good letter. I do have just a few things to mention. I'm looking at Jesse's edition when I talk about these things: 3rd paragraph, the use of then and than, (a hard one I know), "...problem than McGuinty is facing..." and again, "...even bigger than taxes." For me, whenever I need to use one of these words, I think ,is this a consequence or related to a time frame?, if so, then, or is this a comparison?, if so, than. 4th paragraph: you don't need an apostrophe after Chretien Government. And the first sentence in the last paragraph could be shortened and words moved around for impact?: Even though Mr. Harper has made it clear where he stands on these very important issues, he's now trying to squirm away from his own words. (Gives the reader a better visual of the worm he is.) (:, O:, O:, O:

   

Kevin, I was also wondering if the sentence. "It's an issue bigger that Taxes.", was supposed to be a play on words as you capitalized the T on taxes? Funny if it was.

   

Thanks Jesse,

You did a great job. As you probably noticed my english writing isn't that good. However I do give myself some credit cause it was much, much worse then this. I'm actually taking an english course soon to improve my writing skills.

Thanks Whelan,

Yes I normally spell it the correct way. Just sometimes speed typing you miss spelling mistakes.

Thanks 4canada,

I'm gonna take your suggestion and shorten that sentence. Also the capital "T" was just a mistake when I typed.

Kevin

   

Kevin, nobody's perfect and the fact that you are willing to speak out on these important issues, says more about you than any spelling mistake! Good for You, your community is lucky to have someone bring issues to the forefront.