The Debate


On the 18th of May, this institution was host to a debate between the local representatives of the major political parties of this once great province. Due to family reasons, the candidate for the Green party was unable to make it. In any case, the trio that appeared put on a good show.

The debate began with a short address by each candidate. The Grit, Adrian Heaps, encouraged students to take an active interest in politics, because it impacts our lives in so many ways. The Tory, Dan Newman, wasted no time in defending the widely criticised policies of his party. Too bad he decided to do this by throwing numbers at the audience, because most of what he said was lost on us. The New Democrat, Michael Yorke, got right to the point by highlighting the urgent need for change in the wake of the chaos that Iron Mike has ripped loose upon us all.

Following this, Dan Dumsha, the student council president, posed a series of previously prepared questions to the three hopefuls, intending to clarify the policies of each party for those of us gathered there. Each candidate was allowed to respond to the questions in turn. Right from the start, Yorke took every opportunity to emphasize the errors inherent in the Tory policies and explain why the policies of the NDP would fix each situation. Heaps, meanwhile appeared to maintain a clear head as he pointed out the advantages of having a Grit government. Newman, on the other hand, floundered as he tried desperately to rationalise the actions of the 'Harass' government in the face of Dan's questioning.

When Dan's supply of questions was spent, students were asked to put forth their own questions. This is where the real fun began. When the dust had settled, the ideologies of the three parties were crystal clear. The emotional high point of the event was when local drumming prodigy Chris Collins (from the Fender Benders), asked Dan Newman, flat out, to explain how exactly students with musical and athletic talents were supposed to benefit from the Tory strategy of turning schools into something approaching student factories. A thoroughly dumbfounded Newman clumsily tried to evade the question by restating how much money the Tories had put into education since '97 (conveniently neglecting to mention that aboot twice as much had been taken out of the education budget between '95 and '97).

Due to time constraints, the event had to be cut short before all the students had a chance to ask their questions. But the debate was nevertheless an invaluable guide to the platforms of the three major parties. Like the nationally broadcast one held later that day, this one ended with some heated words when Adrian Heaps put Dan Newman in his place when Newman tried to interrupt his monologue. If I may sum it up, Heaps (Grit) and Yorke (NDP) came out on top, while Newman (as you may have gathered from the tone of this column) was the clear loser.

And now... the Gonzo guide to picking a candidate: