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Attacks Against Party Leader's Christianity Continue

All main parties join in on unprecedented assault on Stockwell Day's personal beliefs

OTTAWA, Nov 17 (LSN.ca) - The fact that Canada's national television broadcaster, the CBC, attacked the evangelical Christian beliefs of Canadian Alliance Leader Stockwell Day has yet to be publicly perceived as scandalous. In fact, the attacks have continued as members of the opposing parties have added their ridicule of Mr. Day's belief in the Biblical account of creation.

In addition to the CBC political smear production "The Fundamental Day", Liberal House Leader Don Boudria has joined in the political low blows. Boudria was asked on CBC Newsworld today whether "someone's religious beliefs should be ridiculed?" He responded, "Well, because a person has religious beliefs that doesn't mean that you can excuse any kind of behaviour." He said of Day's creationist beliefs, "that doesn't make any sense." But when asked about the belief in the Virgin Mary, the "Catholic" Boudria denied his own faith responsibilities. He responded in the non-Catholic tradition of Canadian Catholic Liberal leaders of recent decades by saying "Well, I don't think that religion should interfere with my political life, it never has in the past and I don't think it should now." Then he distanced himself from Catholic doctrine in the "Virgin Mary" saying, "that is something that evolved over time, I have studied the history of religion and I know that certain doctrines were introduced at various times in the history of the church."

Also attacking Day was Liberal cabinet minister Elinor Caplan, who was unable to restrain her hatred of the party and its principles when speaking to a crowd in her Toronto-area riding a couple of days ago. Her venom included the sweeping and unsubstantiated assertion that Alliance "supporters are Holocaust deniers, prominent bigots and racists." Prime Minister Chretien actually defended Caplan's hate comments.

The Progressive Conservatives also pounced on Day's religion as PC candidate for Toronto Centre-Rosedale and open homosexual, Randall Pierce, said "Stockwell Day is unfit to govern because he can't separate his religion from his politics." (Xtra! Nov, 16, 2000)

NDP Leader Alexa McDonough also weighed in: "When you see the kind of super-religiosity and the kind of picking and choosing of principles that seem to characterize the Alliance leader, then people are right to examine very closely what those principles and values are that he holds dear - and what the contradictions very often are between what he spouts and what he practises." (Toronto Star, Nov 15, 2000) Day has rarely ever brought up his religious beliefs during the election campaign or during the leadership campaign, other than to refrain from campaigning on Sundays.

Bloc Quebecois Leader Gilles Duceppe was asked about Day's creationist beliefs and had to have the term translated into French before he fully understood what was being asked. He laughed loudly. "Oh you mean Darwin was wrong?" he asked. "I'm not a specialist on that but I think that Darwin was a great scientist." Toronto Star, Nov 15, 2000)

Day responded to the attacks saying faith "should not be used in any kind of detrimental way in an election campaign," but he refused to deny his faith. He countered, "I don't think I should have to debate the interpretation of Genesis any more than I would expect Jean Chretien or Joe Clark (both professing Roman Catholics) to have to debate the Catholic teachings on .. immaculate conception."

To comment on the campaign against Day's religious beliefs:

LIBERAL PARTY
The Right Hon. Jean Chretien
81 Metcalfe Street, Suite 400 Ottawa, ON K1P 6M8
Tel.: (613) 237-0740 Fax: (613) 235-7208


BLOC QUEBECOIS
Mr. Gilles Duceppe
1200 Papineau Avenue, Suite 055 Montreal, QC H2K 4R5
Tel.: (514) 526-3000 Fax: (514) 526-2868


PROGRESSIVE CONSERVATIVE
The Right Hon. Joe Clark
275 Slater Street, Suite 501 Ottawa, ON K1P 5H9
Tel.: (613) 238-6111 Fax: (613) 238-7429


N.D.P.
Mrs. Alexa McDonough
81 Metcalfe Street, Suite 900 Ottawa, ON K1P 6K7
Tel.: (613) 236-3613 Fax: (613) 230-9950


CBC Audience Relations If unsatisfied with the response contact the CBC Ombudsman at:

See the coverage from the Star and the CP at:
http://www.thestar.com/apps/AppLogic+FTContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Art...
&cid=974307950767&call_page=TS_News&call_pageid=968332188492&call_pagepath=News/News

http://www.thestar.com/apps/AppLogic+FTContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Art...
&cid=974337771340&call_page=TS_News&call_pageid=968332188492&call_pagepath=News/News

http://www.canada.com/cgi-bin/cp.asp?f=/news/cp/stories/20001115/election-135604...

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