iMatt :: The Blog of Matt Clare

By now you likely heard that the Supreme Court of Canada ruled to extend marriage rights to gays and lesbians in a unanimous opinion. I for one feel better about my own Canadian citizenship after the decision. (Parliament can allow gay marriage, top court decides, The Globe & Mail).

Why should two people that committed to each other, and who are that big a part of each other’s life’s, not be granted the rights that extend from marriage: property, health/survival benefits and other legal rights, to simple visitation rights if one is dying in a hospital? I don’t think the union needs to be called marriage, but since a log time ago religious marriage was codified in civil law, there seems to be little choice. Additionally, I’m glad that each religion is free to make it’s own decisions about if it is going to honour it or not. Both decisions are in the spirit of what the founder’s intent was when the charter was created.

Another bit of good news about honouring the rights of Canadians was Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty words about Debbie Peliti, who found $40,000 and turned it in to the cops and was given a $2,000 reward.

Peliti is on welfare, and a mother of six. Her welfare case worker had called and inquired about the reward, as her benefits ‘should’ be reduced because of her ‘earnings’. The NDP brought it up in the house and Dalton did the right thing and met her and told her she would not be penalized for her honesty.

Here is what I really made my drive back from St. Catharines today, quoting CTV’s T.O. woman to keep reward for turning in loot article:

…..He also said the former Conservative government’s vilification of anyone on social assistance created “a different impression” of welfare recipients.

“If Ontarians want to know what do people on welfare look like, what do people on welfare do, now you know,” McGuinty said.

“But for fate, we would be on welfare, so we’ve got a responsibility to lend a hand.”

Those words that Mr. McGuinty said on the streets of T.O, represent the biggest change I wanted to see in the welfare system in Ontario.

So, this Christmas, give the gift of acceptance to the otherwise unduly persecuted.

This entry was posted on Thursday, December 9th, 2004 at 23:51 and is filed under General, Politics. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.