Thread by @steve_boots

The row with the Ag Producers get me thinking a bit about the way the Sask Party consults, or doesn't. And about how governments get out of touch. Let's talk about it. A thread...

I started teaching in 2007. The year Brad Wall came into power. And oh boy did he make promises. Check out the attached summary of the 2007 election promises. Balanced budget requirement (abandoned), tying civil service increases to population...

Source: ojs.unbc.ca/index.php/cpsr…

growth (we aren't even close), fixed election dates (surprise pandemic election, anyone?), and a ban on pre-election government advertising (I actually laughed out loud when I read that one). So how does a government completely walk away from everything it said it'd do?

In Sask we have what amounts to a two-party system. And it seems to follow a general trend. It happened to the NDP in the early 00s, and it's happening to the SP now. You get in power. Start enacting policy. But governing is hard. You can't make changes as easily as you'd hoped.

There are a lot of complex interests. So you make little compromises. And you make more over time. And they get bigger. The way that governments shape societies isn't just by sweeping change. It's by a million boring decisions made in committees and meetings.

And in those small decisions, it comes down to values. What does that person, in that room, think is important? What matters to them? And how do their values inform that decision? What base of knowledge are they working from?

Each of those discussions is informed by values. But over time politicians can wander further from their values as the system eats them up. So how do we get them to stay connected to their values, and the values of the community? Consultation. They're meant to meet with...

Constituents. Community groups. Sector leaders. Labour. All of the different stakeholders to help sort it out. Then they make value judgements with the knowledge and understand they've acquired. The Sask Party did this, once upon a time.

Those days are long gone. Now they only communicate with a small group of insiders. And that's a huge problem. Because it leads to bad decision making. Who you talk to will always inform the decisions you make. If you ask a police officer how to address crime, their answer...

likely includes more policing. But you can't only hear that one perspective. You've got to hear from justice advocates, social welfare advocates, and so many others. Our education minister makes decisions about schools without ever consulting teachers.

How is that even possible? It's like the health minister making decisions about treatments, instead of asking doctors. (I know teacher =/= doctors, but my point stands. Ask experts.) Our government has no interest in listening to anyone but themselves.

And maybe I'm an idealist about representative democracy, but I think a government should actually speak with and listen to its people.

@threadreaderapp unroll

One important detail I almost missed. If you're not careful, you start with diverse boards and committees, but slowly, over time, the only people you're connected with are insiders. So the only people you put forward are insiders.