Conservatives: 154 New Democrats: 62 Liberals: 62 Bloc Quebecois: 29 Greens: 0 Independents: 1 Turnout: 62%…
Continue readingAuthor: mustafa
The Audacity of Hope
The extraordinary David Brooks, a must read of mine, describes some of the big plans that Obama has in store for the near future. They’re both audacious, and hopeful. Let no one say that Obama doesn’t deliver the style of Presidency he promised 2 years…
Continue readingThe "Business" of Development?
Amanda Henry muses on the issue of whether development work should be turned into a business, or whether it should remain a charitable, largely selfless activity. (Amanda also calls herself a "starry-eyed idealist" which I think does not do herself justice: an idealist she may be, but anyone willing to admit complete uncertainty because of the nuances of this debate is not "starry-eyed".)…
Continue readingFestivus Airing of Grievances: Harper
Happy Festivus. I have grievances to air about Prime Minister Stephen Harper. Stephen Harper has become just like his predecessors. On foreign policy, he has lost the moral foreground leaving a suspected Canadian terrorist, Khadr, to the U.S. and their…
Continue readingVaulting Ambition, Which O’erleaps Itself
Vaulting ambition, which o’erleaps itself And falls on the other. – William Shakespeare, Macbeth Health care reform has always been extraordinarily difficult in the U.S.—we saw how Bill Clinton fared with it. Big reforms in general are difficult: Bus…
Continue readingHurtling Forward, But What is the Destination?
With the last of Michael Ignatieff’s rivals dropping out of the race, he is now all but certain to ascend to the leadership. The Liberal Party will, it is widely agreed, now have a stronger and more credible leader to take on Harper come this fall. Ins…
Continue readingBarack Obama, Invading Iraq, and Judgement to Lead
"There is a choice that has emerged in this campaign, one that the American people need to understand. They should ask themselves: who got the single most important foreign policy decision since the end of the Cold War right, and who got it wrong. This is not just a matter of debating the past. It’s about who has the best judgment to make the critical decisions of the future." – Barack Obama, October 7, 2007 Barack Obama has argued many times over the course of the last two years that his opposing the Iraq War from the start showed his superior judgement, particularly on foreign policy, compared to Hillary Clinton, John Edwards, and John McCain. As he outlines in the statement above, he considered support for the Iraq War to be disqualifying. Currently Obama is considering extending Roberts Gates at the Defense department, and is considering one of John Kerry,…
Continue readingUpdated Election Prediction
My original crazy prediction of a Liberal resurgence and Bloc collapse will be totally wrong in all likelihood. I therefore give you my new (less) crazy prediction: Conservatives: 148 Liberals: 83 NDP: 32 Bloc: 43 Green: 0 Independents: 2 Turnout: 68% …
Continue readingResponsibility for the Financial Crisis
Much has been made of the White House’s supposed role in creating the current financial crisis. While I don’t understand the causes well enough to attribute blame, it should be noted that the administration did try to pass these changes 5 years ago and…
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