Ruminating over Conservative Leader Erin O'Toole's campaign tag line

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      Do you know the most popular white supremacist slogan in the world?

      I didn't until I visited the ADL site this morning.

      Here it is: "We must secure the existence of our people and a future for white children."

      According to the ADL, it was created by The Order's David Lane, who died in prison in 2007.

      This slogan is alternatively known as "14 Words".

      "The term reflects the primary white supremacist worldview in the late 20th and early 21st centuries: that unless immediate action is taken, the white race is doomed to extinction by an alleged 'rising tide of color' purportedly controlled and manipulated by Jews," the ADL states.

      I stumbled upon this because I was curious to know if the Conservative Party of Canada's campaign slogan, "Secure the Future", had ever been used in other political campaigns.

      No doubt, Conservative spin doctors would insist it's a coincidence that their catch phrase includes two key words in the world's most popular white supremacist slogan (according to ADL).

      Earlier this year, O'Toole distanced himself from any charges of being linked to white supremacists when he kicked former leadership-race rival Derek Sloan out of caucus for accepting a political donation from a white nationalist.

      "Racism is a disease of the soul, repugnant to our core values," O'Toole said at the time. "It has no place in our country. It has no place in the Conservative Party of Canada. I won't tolerate it."

      Yet just last year, O'Toole refused to say whether he believes systemic racism exists in Canada.

      And as NOW Magazine political editor Enzo Matteo has pointed out, O'Toole "has himself adopted the Trumpian language of the far-right, railing against 'cancel culture,' fuelling suggestions that the Liberal government's pandemic response is part of a socialist 'Great Reset' and pulling out the dog whistle on China and the coronavirus every chance he gets".

      A former B.C. Green party leader, Stuart Parker, wrote a column on this site maintaining that O'Toole is sending dog-whistle messages to Incels with a recent announcement on poppers.

      Meanwhile, the Conservatives under O'Toole have made unprecedented pitches, by their party's standard, to working-class voters.

      They include increasing employment-insurance benefits for seriously ill workers to 52 weeks, ensuring access to EI for gig workers, and giving worker representatives a seat on corporate boards.

      With these promises the Conservatives have caught the Liberals and NDP flat-footed.

      Angry white males who've been dealt out of this economy have good reasons for feeling they may have found a friend in Erin O'Toole. The photo on the cover of his platform (above) helps reinforce that sentiment.

      It's worth pointing out that O'Toole is not wearing a suit in the photo. He's not wearing a tie.

      O'Toole prefers sneakers over shiny shoes worn by corporate executives and former Conservative leaders.

      What a coincidence—the previous sentence had 14 words.

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