My phone went off around 3AM this morning with various breaking news updates. I got up and having been battling the flu, had a drink of water, coughed up a lung and still probably didn’t feel half as bad as PC leader Patrick Brown did. I mean, talk about a
Continue readingTag: leadership
somecanuckchick dot com: A perfect example of Andrew Scheer’s leadership…
Step 1: Call a press conference. Step 2: Read from your prepared statement. Step 3: Answer a few softball questions. Step 4: On being asked a more nuanced question, panic and immediately exit your own press conference. Yes, the footage is from 2017; however, it remains a perfect example of
Continue readingBabel-on-the-Bay: Brought to you by Bollywood?
In reviewing the three leaders of the major political parties in Canada, we came up with what we consider the key question for Jagmeet Singh: Why? What is the new leader of the New Democratic Party out to prove? Was his taking the leadership of the National NDP just a
Continue reading52 Ideas: On Fildebrandt: I nominate Fildebrandt for the Canadian Taxpayers Federation 2018 Teddy Awards
For over two decades, the Canadian Taxpayers Federation has described what their vision of good public policy should be. One of the best symbols, descriptors, of their view has been the Teddy Awards. The Award is named for a former federal appointee, Ted Weatherill. Mr Weatherill had the unfortunate distinction
Continue readingWe Pivot: Horgan Insults Delgamuukw with the Site C Debacle
20 years ago yesterday came the Supreme Court’s Delgamuukw ruling, ensuring that this “Canada” recognizes pre-existing aboriginal sovereignty, especially in BC where virtually none of the land was ever ceded to the British Crown. This is a pathetic day for … [Read more]
Continue readingWe Pivot: Vancouver Will Now Segregate the Children of the Rich from the Poor
Vancouver is increasingly moving towards a financial caste system. It’s not like it hasn’t been going on for generations, but now it’s becoming entrenched in civic development policy. Instead of an intentional, well-led civic discussion about housing, justice, poverty, inclusion … [Read more]
Continue reading52 Ideas: Policy over Partisanship
Two decades ago, I was involved with a student newspaper. It was called the Calumetro and it was published by the Calumet College Student Government. It was one of many publications that enhanced the student experience of York University’s Main Campus and it taught me all sorts of things. While
Continue readingBabel-on-the-Bay: The Surrender of Socialism.
For what began as a socialist dream on the Prairies during the Great Depression, the Cooperative Commonwealth Federation (CCF) and its successor New Democratic Party (NDP) have seen little success on the federal sphere in Canada. The party might now be moving into its twilight. Unlike the pattern of the
Continue readingBabel-on-the-Bay: Chuckles’ Canned Conservatism.
In discussing the ebbing strength of the democracy of Canada’s Conservative parties yesterday, we never got to the major problem faced by the federal Conservatives. Their problem is one of leadership. If there ever was a good example of the mediocrity produced by preferential voting, the Conservative party faces that
Continue readingBabel-on-the-Bay: Will Singh say something serious?
With a new party leader established and MP Charlie Angus taking over the New Democratic Party house leadership, and Thomas Mulcair retiring, the new leader, Jagmeet Singh, is free to roam the country. He can meet Canadians everywhere and press the flesh at local labour halls. The only question is
Continue readingBabel-on-the-Bay: The problem for political pundits.
While waiting to hear the New Democratic Party leadership tallies yesterday, I was reading what Mainstreet Technology’s Quito Magi had to say about the race. Having worked with Quito in the past, I have often had the feeling that he should forego all this technology and make an arrangement with
Continue readingBabel-on-the-Bay: What ‘New’ Democratic Party?
We are hearing that ‘Love is in the air’ and the New Democratic Party of Canada is facing the future to the beat of new drums. Everyone anticipates that this new day will start with the election of the new leader of the party. And if you believe all this
Continue readingBabel-on-the-Bay: The Globe and Mail’s Ibbitson flunks math?
Reading a recent column by the Globe’s John Ibbitson, I was a little confused by his logic but I was even more concerned about his mathematics. He was forecasting a win by Quebec M.P. Guy Caron in the New Democratic Party leadership voting later this month. He very wisely gave
Continue readingWe Pivot: Trudeau’s Empty “Yes We Can” Moment
Obama’s “Yes We Can” mantra made many question, yes we can do what exactly? That was its brilliance. He became whatever to whoever. Trudeau’s commitment to a national inquiry on murdered and missing indigenous women has become the same emptiness, … [Read more]
Continue readingBabel-on-the-Bay: The Morning Line: Canada’s NDP Leadership
Our best advice to the New Democratic Party is that they forget the next Federal election and concentrate on finding a modern direction for their party. And we have no idea whose membership numbers we were looking at when we assumed that the NDP had closer to 200,000 members in
Continue readingBabel-on-the-Bay: What’s wrong at NDP HQ?
There was a promise that Babel-on-the-Bay would publish its Morning Line on the New Democratic Party leadership today. That is hardly possible when we have been stalled by the party not yet releasing its new membership figures. Without these figures to analyze and compute along with our knowledge of the
Continue readingBabel-on-the-Bay: Money matters maybe.
Never judge a political race by money raised. Whether it is an internal party race for a nomination or a leadership or party fundraising prior to an election, you have to remember that money does not vote. Case in point, the fundraising by each of the four candidates for the
Continue readingBabel-on-the-Bay: Jagmeet Singh: Not just a pretty face.
The New Democratic Party’s federal leadership race is getting a little more heated. With less than two months to go, the race has taken on some disturbing aspects of the last Conservative leadership in Ontario. It is turning into Jagmeet Singh’s race to win if he is using the same
Continue readingBabel-on-the-Bay: NDP searching for succour
Every once in while, we look in on the New Democratic Party’s sputtering national leadership discussion. It is really more of a crawl than a race. And when you look at the four remaining candidates in the selection process for this fall, you wonder why they are bothering. The basic
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: New column day
Here, on how the UK’s general election should remind us that we’re not beholden to establishment voices (whether in the media or within a party) in deciding who’s fit to lead us. For further reading…– I’ve already pointed out John Harris and Gary Younge have written about the rise of
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