I wouldn’t have expected to end up concurring with Rob Silver’s analysis of the NDP leadership race. But there’s an awful lot of truth to Silver’s take on Thomas Mulcair’s strategy – particularly based on some of what Mulcair had to say in the lead up …
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Accidental Deliberations: On mutual interests
As a general rule it’s fairly safe to say Gerry Nicholls’ advice to left-wing parties is based on something other than a desire to see them succeed – and his latest is no exception. But it’s worth pointing out one entirely valid observation behind his …
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: NDP Leadership Roundup
A few very quick updates since my last commentary on the NDP leadership race…Martin Singh, Nathan Cullen and Paul Dewar are in, while Thomas Mulcair should be shortly (with Phil Edmonston’s endorsement). Brian Topp’s new endorsers include Libby Davie…
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Tuesday Afternoon Links
Assorted content for your afternoon consumption.- John Cole points to a study comparing economic choices between psychopaths and stock traders – with even more disturbing results than one might expect:According to a new study at the University of St. G…
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: On backup plans
As part of rabble’s discussion of what the NDP can do to increase its membership in Quebec during the course of the leadership campaign, one commenter has suggested a targeted donation system to reward candidates who sign up new members. And the idea m…
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: On civil campaigns
Needless to say, it’s a plus to see the NDP’s leadership contenders making sure to run a campaign that fit with a message of love, hope and optimism. But a word of warning: at least some commentators will be looking for any excuse to find just the oppo…
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: On poll positions
There have already been a few polls released surrounding the NDP leadership race, and there figure to be many more to come in the next few months. So I’ll take a moment to explain why I haven’t spent any time discussing the ones released so far – and h…
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: By way of comparison
Tim Naumetz points out what strikes me as a surprising trend of potential NDP leadership candidates expressing concern about the cost of participating in the race:“Money is a big deal,” Nova Scotia NDP MP Robert Chisholm (Dartmouth-Cole Harbor, N.S…
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: The cutoff point
Having asked the question on the weekend, I’ll provide my back-of-the-envelope answer as to how many votes I’d expect a candidate to need based on what we know now about the NDP leadership race (which of course figures to take a few more turns before i…
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Wednesday Morning Links
Miscellaneous material for your mid-week reading.- Munir Sheikh writes (PDF) about good data and intelligent government. I’ll add the subtitle, “and other perceived threats to the Harper Conservatives”.- Aside from the occasional expose on working cond…
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Monday Afternoon Links
Assorted content to start your week.- Once again, the NDP’s popular support is holding up in the face of plenty of predictions to the contrary. But I’m sure we’ll hear all about how the leadership race will do what the scrutiny of an election campaign,…
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: On strategic considerations
While most media discussion of the NDP’s leadership race so far has focused disproportionately on the effect of a couple of early endorsements, the obvious reality is that any candidate will need to win over tens of thousands of potential supporters in…
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Friday Afternoon Links
Assorted content to end your week.- Erin catches a typically-partisan response from the Cons to the prospect that a new U.S. stimulus package might contain Buy American provisions once again:What strikes me is that corporate Canada and Conservatives ar…
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Taking shape
With the NDP’s leadership rules now set, let’s take a look at how the race is shaping up. As best I can tell, the Mark’s list of candidates looks to reflect the group most likely to enter the race, featuring Brian Topp, Thomas Mulcair, Niki Ashton, Pet…
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Leadership 2012: Rulebook Review
As promised, let’s take a quick look through the NDP’s official leadership rules. On the whole, the regulations don’t look to particularly favour any one candidate – but they do include a few noteworthy twists which may help to shape the outcome.The So…
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Thursday Afternoon Links
Assorted content for your afternoon reading.- Andrew Potter comments on Samara’s most recent findings about federal politicians in Canada:Samara’s findings underscore the profound amateurism that permeates our national politics. When the vast majorit…
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Wednesday Morning Links
Miscellaneous material for your mid-week reading.- For those with a few months to kill between now and next March, now may be the time to direct a browser tab toward Alice’s NDP leadership site and start hitting “refresh”.- The Conference Board of Cana…
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Out of the starting blocks
Needless to say, the endorsements of Ed Broadbent and Francoise Boivin have made Brian Topp’s leadership campaign launch a bit more of a splash than might have been expected. But for those looking to declare the race over before it begins, let’s rememb…
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Leadership 2012: Group Decisions
This week figures to see the first official entries into the NDP’s leadership race. But it’s well worth noting some of the work being done behind the scenes – whether by the candidates themselves or not – to test the grassroots support for possible lea…
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Leadership 2012: The Week In Quotes
A few quotes worth noting from both candidates and non-candidates alike – feel free to suggest more in comments.Thomas Mulcair on his considerations in deciding whether to run:There’s an old saying that before you take the plunge, you have to make sure…
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