NES, And How To Fight Cynicism

On Nate's Climate Plan

“It’s gorgeous for George”

One of the worst things about me is my deep, pervasive cynicism, the product of years in the closet and years more in a state where victory was survival, not actual fulfillment. I know I’m too cynical, but sometimes it’s hard to genuinely believe in anything, especially in the profession we call politics. As someone who would skip class to go watch the House of Commons in high school, I came away with a deep reverence for the buildings and the history, but with damage to my sense that politics could be anything other than a cynical act.

This Liberal government federally has fed my cynicism – nobody who was attracted to the party in part because of the policy on electoral reform wouldn’t be – and it’s left me in this weird place. I’m said before – and even said it to the man in question – that I wasn’t originally a fan of Nathaniel Erskine-Smith, because I was so broken by cynicism that I assumed his independent thinking and willingness to vote his conscience wasn’t principle, but calculation. But somewhere along the line, I came to realize I was wrong.

The moment that clarified for me that I was for Nate, however, had nothing to do with politics, it was an F1 race – and more importantly, was the aftermath of George Russell’s glorious drive in Brazil. I knew I liked F1 as a spectacle before that, but the emotional uplift of that day made me appreciate that my cynicism was a hedge to make things hurt less, but was also holding me back from the best that was out there.

And holy fuck am I happy I came to realize that we can expect more, instead of always settling for less.

…

I’m thinking about the role of cynicism and the OLP leadership today for a reason – Catherine McKenna was in Toronto this morning to endorse Nate and to lend credence to his extremely aggressive climate and energy strategy, which in addition to being developed with experts and seeming (to my eye) to be the comprehensive and bold plan we need has the benefit of being ambitious at a time when too many are complacent. It’s a victory for the idea that we can do more, and that better is possible.

Every time I write about Nate, the obvious accusations that I’m somehow seeing the world through a biased lens understandably come, but they miss a fundamental point in their cynical understanding of the world. I am supporting Nate (sign up, why don’t you?) not out of self interest or for what that fact does for me, but I’m supporting him because for the first time in 8 years I’m able to look at a political vision and feel more than bland indifference. Tactical voting might be a necessary evil, but it’s not exactly good for the soul to have to vote for a candidate who does nothing for you.

Nate has actually inspired my deeply cynical ass, a task I didn’t think was possible, and that’s what a party without a guarantee of their own future existence requires. The OLP require a leader that doesn’t just engender apathy from key progressive voting groups such as the young and the left, and they need a leader with experience opposing bad Conservative ideas, not cozying up to Doug Ford.

But more importantly they need a leader who can put their hand up and say when they made a mistake and own it. If the next election pitch from the Liberals is going to be as much about integrity and corporate cronyism as many want it to be, then a leader who won’t defend the indefensible and will speak like a normal fucking human being seems like a much better fit than someone who has repeatedly had to pretend they did not say what they very clearly did.

Cynicism as a default is easy – it’s the coward’s way out, even if it’s often portrayed as deeper than it actually is. What we have as Liberals is a choice to make, between real climate action endorsed by a titan of the file and a Mayor who opposes density at transit lines. We have a choice between a leader who acknowledges the titanic burden in front of them and is methodically working to come up with solutions, and a leader who pretends that the status quo is fine and that the province doesn’t have a role to play.

The choice is between a leader who says what they mean and someone who very clearly tells us not to take any statement they make too seriously. A leader, or a disaster. Someone who wants to save the Ontario Liberal Party because they care about liberalism and making sure there’s an electable, left wing alternative to Doug Ford, or someone who’s only motive for running seems to be a fancier title, given the complete paucity of actual ideas or purpose in running.

In Nate, the Ontario Liberal Party has a leadership candidate who will do the hard work to make the Liberal Party a movement worth believing in again, an antidote to the overwhelmingly cynical nature of politics, and the pitch from his leading challenger. A year ago, I might not have been able to bring myself to actually believe in a politician again, and certainly not 3 years or 5 years ago. But that fact is an indictment of a political culture so divorced from its purpose that a candidate who is everything I’ve ever hoped for from an integrity and humanity perspective seemed too good to be true.

Nate’s the real deal, as this campaign is showing. He is the most serious person in the field, someone who can provide a province in great need of a genuinely progressive alternative someone to be proud to vote for. Whether or not he can undo everyone else’s cynicism is a question I can’t answer, but I do know beyond a shadow of a doubt that he should. He has earned my vote, and today’s climate announcement means he should have earned more than that – he should have earned our trust. He is the leader we need at a time when leadership is at such a premium. Thank God George won, so I came to realize it.