The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
Evan Smith loves to know what goes on politically outside of Canada and doesn't know why. Watching news on CNN, Smith was hooked to international affairs. He is especially intrigued by the saga in Iraq. "I always keep up with that," Smith says. "It's interesting how two cultures can just go at each other over the simple fact that they're not the same people. "Like Iraq, there's the Shia's and the Sunni's and the Kurds," he continues, "they just hate each other just because of religion. I just try to figure out why they do that." Smith then talks about the politics of the powerful United States and their intervening of matters in Iraq. "Everybody hates Americans," Smith says, as he thinks the U.S. was trying to help the situation there. Smith believes it was an unjustified war. "They went there under lies," he says. "All their intelligence was forged. "If I was in their position," he explains, "I think it's a good thing they got rid of Saddam Hussein, they just did it for the wrong reasons." What about the politics in Canada and the turmoil surrounding Prime Minister Paul Martin? "I don't really know much about Canadian politics," he confesses, "I know probably more about American politics." But what about the upcoming election in January? "I just started reading about it because having a new election," he explains. With a little added pressure, Smith gives in and talks. "I don't know, I think it's pretty selfish for the - it's pretty ambitious for the Conservatives, the NDP and the Bloc," he says. "They definitely have their own agenda," he added. "...I'm not really on anyone's side, but from what I've heard I think they're definitely not thinking about what the people want." He talks about how the people don't want to have a Christmas vote, or a Christmas campaign and they don't want to vote in winter. "They (politicians) didn't even care, they just went ahead and went with their no-confidence vote and now we have to have an election," Smith says. "The Liberals were saying, wait until the next Gomery report comes out," Smith continues. "I think what everybody wants is the real answers and the truth from it and stuff, so I think if they had waited until then and got their answers and then have an election after that, I think it would have been a lot more fair almost for the people." Having said that, he doesn't believe anything will change. He projects another Liberal government and it will be another minority. He also doesn't believe people will forgive Martin for what he's done. "It's just too obvious almost," Smith claims. "If Jean Chretien's inner circle knew all about the sponsorship scandal, how the finance minister, the guy who controls the money didn't? Even I think he had to know something." While Smith learns more about the politics of the world through the television, he stays under cover as a Bombers defenseman, but will place himself in the spotlight when the time is right. "I want to get my major in international affairs," he says. "Be an ambassador kind of, a diplomat. "I'm a pretty good people person," Smith explains. "I could talk to them so I think I could definitely be a politician."
