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On Aug. 23, Conservative leadership runner up and Libertarian Conservative MP Maxime Bernier resigned from the Conservative Party of Canada calling it “intellectually and morally corrupt.”

While I personally wished Bernier had stayed within the Conservative Party to advance these issues continuously within the normal party policy structure, I understand why he resigned.

Bernier had been receiving much pushback on any notion of discussing or debating supply management (a debate on such was pulled from the 2018 convention), and for his comments criticizing Justin Trudeau’s identity politics on refugees and immigration.

Maxime Bernier dared to state what many other conservatives have been thinking: diversity is not our strength, it divides us.

Bernier stated: “Trudeau’s extreme multiculturalism and cult of diversity will divide us into little tribes that have less and less in common, apart from their dependence on government in Ottawa. These tribes become political clienteles to be bought with taxpayers’ dollars and special privileges.”

Related story:

Maverick MP Maxime Bernier says racists have no place in his party

It is clear to any student of history or political theory that diversity will always result in identity politics which only creates further social conflict within a society.

According to a Nov. 12, 2017 report by the CBC of 1,500 Syrian refugees landed in Nova Scotia between November 2015 and July 2017. Of those, more than half — 894 adults and children — were on income assistance as of September 2017, according to the province’s Department of Community Services. Bernier also stated: “Cultural balkanization brings distrust, social conflict, and potentially violence, as we are seeing everywhere. It’s time we reverse this trend before the situation gets worse. More diversity will not be our strength, it will destroy what has made us such a great country.”

On Sept. 14, 2018 28-year-old Syrian refugee, Ibrahim Ali — who had only been in Canada approximately three months before he is alleged to have murdered Marrisa Shen, whose body was found in a Vancouver park — was formally charged with her murder.

I would also point out that in the course of 18 months one million people walked into Germany and they are still struggling with the result.

In August 2018 an Angus Reid Institute poll found 49 per cent of respondents would prefer to see the federal government’s current immigration targets of 310,000 new permanent residents decrease over time, while only 31 per cent found the levels of immigration to be “just right.” Only six per cent of respondents said they would welcome higher immigration targets.

Overall, it is clear that a nation with “no clear core identity” as our prime minister believes, will not be a strong nation because the backbone of a nation is shared values and identity which Canada does not currently have.

To those who would argue that Bernier will split the conservative vote, there is no point in winning if the conservatives will govern the same as the Liberals. Stephen Harper showed this with his disavowing of Bernier; Harper is a conservative only interested in promoting a cookie-cutter, neo-con policy platform. True conservatives will understand that the survival of identity is at stake and that the conservative party’s neo-con policies won’t cut it.

Maria McMaster

St John’s