Since there’s been plenty of talk lately about caretaker governments and their duty to exercise restraint, I’ll raise one question as to the appointments made the last time a new federal government took office. The day he and his Cabinet were sworn in, and two months before Parliament convened following
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Accidental Deliberations: On simplified procedures
Following up on this post, let’s also note how the right answer from Canada’s opposition parties could combine with the seeming agreement between the major party leaders as to the “most seats first” principle to take nearly all of the guesswork out of a post-election minority Parliament. Again, the range
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Sunday Morning Links
This and that for your Sunday reading. – Following his resounding win to become Labour’s leader, Jeremy Corbyn describes the proper role of government as a vehicle for shared benefits: We understand aspiration and we understand that it is only collectively that our aspirations can be realised. Everybody aspires to
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Saturday Morning Links
Assorted content for your weekend reading. – Thomas Walkom discusses how Canadian workers are feeling the pain of decades of policy designed to suppress wages – and notes there’s plenty more all parties should be doing to change that reality. And Doug Saunders points out what we should want our
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Trampling the message
So apparently the Harper Cons are panicking mid-campaign and throwing out years of preparation to bring in an Australian consultant to better pitch their messages of the importance of familiarity and the dangers of changing horses mid-stream. Stay tuned for their new ad in which Stephen Harper takes up bullfighting
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: New column day
Here, pointing out that if the Harper Cons have little idea what they’re doing in Canada’s federal election, it isn’t for lack of advantages over their opponents in planning out a campaign. For further reading…– Alice Funke offers a thorough look at the new strategic challenges facing all of Canada’s
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Thursday Morning Links
This and that for your Thursday reading. – Robert Reich argues that the spread of inequality and corporate abuses is the result of deteriorating public morality and the expectation that self-interest will override any social goals: At a time many Republican presidential candidates and state legislators are furiously focusing on
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Wednesday Morning Links
Miscellaneous material for your mid-week reading. – Ian Welsh discusses how our problems with poverty and inequality arise out of artificial scarcity: We either already have excess capacity or we have the ability to create more than people need of all necessities. This includes housing, food and clothing. We still
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Tuesday Morning Links
This and that for your Tuesday reading. – Michael Hurley and Sam Gindin discuss the need for workers to organize to reverse the trend of precarious work, while the Star recognizes that the work is already well underway. PressProgress highlights the benefits of joining a union, while Tom Sandborn offers
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: On settled issues
As Dan Gardner points out, Stephen Harper is continuing to misrepresent the nature of Canada’s system of government. But he’s nonetheless made a noteworthy concession in doing so: PM: HERE’S THE QUESTION THOUGH. UM IS IT A CORRECT ASSUMPTION TO MAKE THAT WHICHEVER PARTY ENDS UP, IF WE’RE IN A
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: On changed messages
Paul Wells highlights the major change from the Cons’ messaging in 2011 compared to today, as the party which spent years doing nothing about obsessing over (and demonizing) the possibility of a coalition has suddenly gone mum except in front of the most partisan of crowds. But it’s worth noting
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Monday Morning Links
Miscellaneous material for your Labour Day reading. – Keith Doucette reports on Hassan Yussuff’s efforts to highlight the continued importance of the labour movement in ensuring a more fair society for everybody. And Josh Bivens and Lawrence Mishel study the disconnect between growing productivity and stagnant wages, reaching the conclusion
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: On anticipated departures
With Canada’s federal election still a month and a half away, it’s obviously too early to be concluding that it will end the career of any of our current political leaders. (And we should keep that in mind given that far too much commentary treats the question of whether leaders
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Sunday Morning Links
This and that for your Sunday reading. – Louise Arbour’s interview with The House includes both her compelling criticisms of both the Cons’ terror bill, and the Libs’ failure to stand up against C-51. And the Canadian Press reports on Justin Trudeau’s continued fecklessness, as he won’t even take a
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: On the rule of law
It’s for the best that the Cons’ use of secret orders-in-council is drawing some further attention. But the problem goes further than the Libs’ response seems to suggest – even if it’s obvious why they’re pretending otherwise. Here’s the Libs’ complaint about secret laws: Dion likened the secret OICs to
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: On judicious outrage
Following up on this post, let’s take a look at the flip side of the possibility that political parties can help themselves out significantly by taking umbrage with competitors’ treatment of them – which is the success (or lack thereof) of exactly that strategy over the past decade. As I’ve
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Saturday Morning Links
Assorted content for your weekend reading. – Andrew Jackson writes that the Cons have gone out of their way to destroy the federal government’s capacity to improve the lives of Canadians: When the Harper government took office, federal tax revenues (2006-07 fiscal year) were 13.5% of GDP, a bit shy
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Attack and response
Earlier this week, Andrew Coyne mused on Twitter about how parties seek to make hay out of attacks by their opponents, with particular emphasis on the Libs’ response to PC and Con attacks on their leaders in 1993 and 2004. But I’d think it’s worth noting some distinctions between then
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Thursday Morning Links
This and that for your Thursday reading. – Following up on this post, it was Terry Glavin who broke the story about refugee children dying after being refused admission into Canada. And the Guardian recognizes that the tragic image of Aylin Kurdi represents only a reminder of a a long-running
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: New column day
Here, condensing this post about the lessons the federal NDP can and should learn from past provincial elections. For further reading…– Michelle Gagnon notes that one area where matters don’t seem to be in doubt is Quebec, where the NDP looks set to hold or even build on its 2011
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