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SilkSerif

Silk & Serif

Silk & Serif a book blog developed by Debbie. We are dedicated to reviews, the book community and all things "bookish"! The main focus of the blog being Fantasy, Science Fiction, Romance and YA novels.

Currently reading

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Tragedy in the Commons: Former Members of Parliament Speak Out About Canada's Failing Democracy

Tragedy in the Commons: Former Members of Parliament Speak Out About Canada's Failing Democracy - Alison Loat, Michael MacMillan Thank you to Random House Canada and Goodreads for the chance to read this book for an honest review.
The think tank Samara brings us a thorough look at the current political climate on Capital Hill using the exit interviews of MPs from varying points in time. The authors go even further than regurgitating information and write their own opinions on the dissociation of MPs during their interviews, and calling for change in Canadian Parliament.

The book can be a bit difficult to get through, its a dry piece and unless the reader has an interest in politics, it probably seems completely unimpressive. Loat and MacMillan use the exit interviews to describe a political world that average citizens already understand: the system is broken, there is more political agendas in prominence than the needs of the constituents. The difference between this book and others than tell a story of a Parliament that has fallen away from its initial goals (to care for its people) is the use of identifiable proof. The Members of Parliament themselves speak of a broken system that is more concerned about another election, and individuals wanting plum seats on the Cabinet.

Although this book is not covering new ideas, it is refreshing to see the exit interviews of people who are well established in the political realm - as well as seeing these interviews from the point of view of those who study them. This research shows that a majority of the issues in Canadian government are fear of party leaders, reprimands for not following party demands and no training for new inductees. The lack of effort that MPs put towards fixing these problems is highlighted in their exit interviews as something done to them, or something that they had no control over.