----- Original Message -----
From: Dawn M. Nevills
To: PMO
Sent: Sunday, March 06, 2011 3:54 PM
Subject: CBC funding
Dear Prime Minister Harper,
It is with great concern that I have read of proposed cuts to the CBC - to the tune of some $16,000,000.00 - at a time in our national history when the kind of qualified, professional, and concerned approach to ethical journalism and public broadcasting which they embody, is a perceived, and respected, image of our nation, globally, in many quarters, as its sole, and valued, ambassador. I don't think you quite realize how true this really is.
When governments worldwide stifle and silence their own people, funding and person years do not cover instances of crime that occur, both within and without systems of public trust, and information vital to a sense of personal existence, and our knowledge, and perception of ourselves and our communties, at a local, regional, and national level, depend upon the presence of a voice, an examination, and a concern, embodied in public broadcasting, then gutting it at the source - contrary to the wishes of the people who fund it - is of grave concern, and must be reexamined, with impunity, and respect, for those same people whose trust is now being breached with its financial destruction.
Perhaps this government does not fully understand the scope, and respect, with which the CBC is regarded nationally. Whether this is a result of xenophobia, an absence of world experience, or an ignorance regarding the reality of public broadcasting - or, rather, its totalitarian control - or, worse, absence, in the public forum - is a mystery, and, I like to think, a misunderstanding and lack of appreciation for just how vital the presence of that voice, globally, is, for the continuance of those same governmental systems which supposedly administer its own funding on behalf of the people.
It is this last responsibility - "on behalf of the people" - which disturbs me the most. No where else in the world is the quiet regard, and deep concern for the respect for objectivity and ethics in journalism, held in such esteem as in Canada. This is something that needs support and encouragement - not castigation and funding cuts - in an age of "trash talk" and "pseudo-analytical laziness regarding rehashed feeder headlines, and their supposed importance in the sphere of actual issue" , instead of hardhitting, worldchanging coverage which exposes, discusses, presents, and examines with care, objectivity, bravery, and deep, deep regard for the responsibility that the profession has, for the way in which it brings issues to light, discusses them in the public forum, and presents them for further examination, by those able to make changes, further examine, or simply ponder them, towards the shared goal of our better, truly informed and enlightened, selves. WE are leaders in this area. Other nations look with genuine regard, and a sense of deep trust, during times of internal crisis, and upheaval, as a result, to our sense of balance, and the reality of the kind of "public protection" that it provides, within a world community which serves as a watchful, objective presence, in times of change, or during issues of conflict and confrontation; and as a very real symbol of hope, for a better day, and a better way, when formulating, evolving, and developing their own systems and checks and balances of public accountability, during those times. This is a very real, and very old, example of being free, and no one should regard it with greater seriousness, or greater respect, than a government who supposedly prides itself on being an example, and a product of, that way of thinking. Destroying its foundation simply makes no sense, both literally, and figuratively speaking, and without that "sense", we are all on a path to a very dark, and very troublesome time, in our history.
It is the CBC whose ethical consideration bring to light communities unprotected from corrupted officials; the CBC who reflects the talent, and the achievements - and the shared joy and sorrows - of these same small, and sometimes isolated places, which, together, make up our national character, in addition to the power, and presence, of our busy and successful cities; the CBC whose voice, globally, presents an objective, and thoughtful, picture of the issues and crises experienced in other places in the world - and our involvement in, and responsibilities towards, these same; the CBC whose sense of history, and sense of responsibility, still make it important to be ourselves, rather than a symbiotic, or metamorphosized, "gently, but subtly, inferior", version of, another nation's sense of itself; the CBC whose determination and bravery, question - and keep - our leadership striving to be an image of a nation whose historic, and respected role, nationally, is built on trust and ethics, in a time when all of that is being threatened by decaying moral infrastructures, filth and corruption in government, disenchantment and mistrust of the sacred role of public representation, and a kind of mockery of the real gift which is embodied in the concept, and reality, of a free voice, in the world of today. It is the CBC who does not decry success, and who chides those representative of the resentment of it, and the envy which replaces what should be admiration; the CBC who reminds us that we are the sane voice, oftentimes, in a melee of fawners, cowards, and despots, and that the world depends on us to remain so, when all else shifts, and is unreliable.
Gut this extension of ourselves, and you gut yourself. You are not qualified for this surgery, nor is it required. At what point did you decide the nation, and you, as a Canadian, did not deserve the best in public broadcasting coverage? Let me remind you that not only are you worth it - you are a PART of it.
Ask the frontlines of government where they can save money: I wager they will flood your desk with examples of cost cutting. The majority of them care very much about their country, or they would not be serving it. It's their money, too. Is this so monumental a task? Perhaps the CBC should ask them, instead. I would guess that they will present you with a summary of that informal request in a matter of days. They operate well in a crisis - this is their personal goal, to be there, and to serve, as an example of the best, presumably, after all - and since you seem bent on causing yet another crisis, every time you cannot use them as a built-in propaganda machine, this service might be of some value to you, as well.....and the nation, of course, who funds them. Somebody has to solve the problem......or at least, find the solutions....... let us talk amongst ourselves, in a free world, to find it, once again, in this round table we take from the best in history; this Canada that is ours, and loved, still.
Sincere Regards,
Ms. Dawn M. Nevills, B.A., Dip. Pol. Sci., Dip. P.I., Dip. Psych.
(address and particulars listed on original message)
