A society marked by inequality, as the Canadian one has become, is a society that is profoundly unhealthy. The ramifications are far-reaching and can impact even those who like to hide in gated communities. Closing mental facilities as part of deinstitutionalization was one thing; failing to provide support adequate services for our neighbours who needed them was cruel and it fostered inequality.

The more equal the members of a community are, the healthier their community will be and the more prosperous the economy in which they share. Perhaps the most powerful description of such a society was provided in 1888 by the American writer, Edward Bellamy. In his utopian novel, Looking Backward, he envisioned the United States in the year 2000 as a thoroughly socialized society, in which the needs of all the people were met out of the industrial capacity of the country. His vision can still open our minds to a different way of doing things than we endure in our capitalist society today!

Governments can use fiscal policy to achieve more equality in our country. They could use progressive taxes on income, both personal and corporate, to raise the moneys needed to expand Medicare, for example, with dental care and with Pharmacare. (Once we know that infected teeth weaken the body, including the heart, we have reason to add dental care to our Medicare system.) With fair taxation, they could meet needs in other parts of our society. Each of us can point to areas where more funding would make a difference.

The harsh reality is that the selfish desire of wealthy people to enjoy their riches, without adding significantly to economic activity in our country, weakens our country and pushes it towards ruination. As a result of this shortsightedness, our governments increase inequality and the ill-health of the country grows. The wealthy clearly don’t care about the wellbeing of the country.

The saddest political reality is leadership that has conceded power to the wealthy and turned its back on most of the people. The tax cuts the wealthy enjoy both reduce the resources needed by governments to meet the needs of the people and load more taxation on all the rest of us, whether we are poor or in the middle class. Even the tax breaks for middle class families turn out to benefit those who are already wealthy far more than they help the rest of us.

Canadians have expressed their desire many times in public opinion polls that taxation should be fair, that Medicare should be properly funded, and that unemployed people should be got back to work. They recognize the creative role that governments need to play. How else can one explain the people’s choice of Tommy Douglas as the Greatest Canadian in 2004, as Canadians watched the levers of power in Ottawa passing from Jean Chrétien to Paul Martin? When will all the political parties respond to the popular will instead of listening to the selfish wealthy and the shortsighted corporations, as some have done for decades?

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