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In June, the world's most powerful heads of state will gather in Toronto with the purpose of shaping their preferred global order. The Dominion will publish a special issue on the G8 and G20 meetings and protests. 
Duff Conacher is the Coordinator of Democracy Watch, an Ottawa-based group that has advocated for "democratic reform, government accountability and corporate responsibility" for a decade.
What can we learn from Paul Martin's past record on ethics and democratic reform?
That Martin has lied about maintaining high ethical standards, that he has broken ethics rules, and that he surrounds himself with corporate lobbyists, all of whom are representing corporations that have specific private interests that are not the public interest. And so he is tied directly to the private interests of several corporations in Canada.
In November 2003, Paul Martin will--barring unimaginable circumstances--be chosen as Canada's next Prime Minister. Legally and politically, this choice is not made by the Canadian public at large, but rather by a private club known as the Liberal Party of Canada. Even given that the Liberal Party has over 500,000 members (according to recent reports, a larger membership than any political party in Canadian history), most Canadians will not have a say in this decision. Indeed, it is already too late for anyone who wanted to vote in the party's leadership election -- to vote, members had to join by last June. And if you had the foresight to join the party four months before the election, you also have to pay a membership fee, and be prepared for a potentially long journey on voting day in order to cast a ballot.Whether it's the Alberta tar sands or our role in Haiti, The Dominion has the guts to look at Canada without the fairytales about our national virtue that comfort and blind us. Our country is at a crucial turning point and we need the brave writers at The Dominion to tell us the truth about where we are heading. Truth telling shouldn't be such a radical act, but it always is. Only readers like you can keep this crucial voice alive and growing louder. Please, pitch in!