Thread by @Norlaine

It is becoming clearer to me that there are two ways people approach information. There are those that look at the evidence and, even if it does not suit the way they would like things to be, if the facts are compelling, they say, "Yeah, ok. I guess that's right." #cdnpoli 1/25

And then there are those who will look at an evidence-based statement, decide it doesn't fit their world-view, and refuse to look at any evidence. They set about trying to silence the conclusions. 2/25

As an example... Justin Trudeau raised the impact of largely male work camps on local communities. There is a host of evidence that this is true. 3/25
thestar.com/edmonton/2018/…

And not just in Canada. 4/25
hrw.org/news/2011/02/0…

Throughout history, military commanders going back at least as far as the Roman Empire recognised that large groups of men, away from home, were apt to behave badly. 5/25

There are so many studies now that clearly show that the presence of a mostly male workforce in a "man camp" has negative effects on nearby communities, that it is hard to fathom any possible contradiction. And yet... 6/25
winnipegfreepress.com/opinion/editor…

When PM Trudeau wanted to make "gender impact" a consideration in the location and structure of such camps, the oil and gas people, along with the CPC and UPC, exploded with outrage. 7/25
torontosun.com/opinion/editor…

I get it. Some guys maybe never worked in a camp where some of the guys did bad things. Fair enough. And maybe some guys knew some other guys were doing bad things but it wasn't them, so why should they get blamed? (Hint: maybe because they ignored it?) 8/25

And maybe some guys did bad things, but it doesn't count because they were in the camp and it's not like home. More like "what happens in Vegas..." and it's not who they really are. And having the finger pointed at them makes them uncomfortable. 9/25

And the wives who are outraged about their hard-working husband being painted this way, well, maybe their guy would never do anything like that. Or maybe they don't want to think about it. 10/25

The fact remains that there are guys in these man camps who are behaving very badly. 11/25
theintercept.com/2018/07/01/nuu…

12/25
bostonglobe.com/opinion/2016/0…

13/25
macleans.ca/news/canada/ar…

So who is it that is doing these things? All the dudes say, "Not me! Not anyone I know! How dare you!" The conservative politicians echo this, accusing the government of smearing all the hardworking men in the oil and gas industry. 14/25

The women who have worked at work camps who get quoted by the media say they have no experience of this. Yet I have spoken to many who have not had their words published who say the toxic masculinity in the camps is almost unbearable. 15/25
globalnews.ca/news/4837456/j…

Some have been victims of assault themselves. But they aren't being quoted because they aren't speaking publicly. Some still work in the industry because, you know, it's a job. Some have distanced themselves and don't want to relive the trauma. 16/25

Then there are those who cannot distance themselves because they man camps came to where they live. 17/25
nationalobserver.com/2017/09/21/new…

My point here: there are those who look at the evidence and think, "Oh, yes, there seems to be a real problem here." VS those who look at the evidence, or refuse to look at it, & scream, "Nothing to see here! Lies! It's all lies!" because the facts make them uncomfortable. 18/25

The question is, do we want to have government policy driven by facts and evidence? Or do we want it driven by magical thinking? The conservative parties across this country seem to feel that whatever they say should be accepted as truth... 19/25

Regardless of what the facts may be. "Non-cuts" to health and education, which are clearly cuts, clearly demonstrated by nurse and teacher lay-offs and over-crowded classrooms... 20/25

"Nothing to see here" about firing the investigator looking into Jason Kenney's leadership campaign. "I am a licenced insurance broker" - Andrew Scheer. "We won't reopen the abortion debate" - UCP, while letting backbenchers reopen the abortion debate... 21/25

There are people who look at facts and evidence and allow themselves to learn and reshape their views. And there are those who shout down anything that contradicts their views and opinions. Facts be damned. "Reality is what I say it is!" 22/25

Alberta is particularly prone, it seems, to widespread delusion, about every so many things: equalisation, the carbon tax, workers' rights, trickle down economics. So many willingly lapping up Jason Kenney's words as gospel. 23/25

I, for one, am wholeheartedly fed up with lies from conservatives, with slanted media, and with the absence of facts and evidence in our political discourse. @CBCNews @CBCPolitics, you need to do much better to showcase facts, and explain concepts. 24/25

Canadians, we all need to do better to vote for truth in government. These theocratic, anti-fact conservatives have to go if our country is going to progress, if our children are going to achieve their potential, if we don't want to be returned to a dark unscientific age. 25/25

It is no surprise that the conservative base has a large contingent of far right religiously-driven folks. B/c the conservative politicians require that their word be accepted on faith. We secular people aren't really that good at doing that, especially... 26/27

When there is contradictory evidence readily available. 27/27