I found this to be an interesting and curious tidbit from the Prime Minister about Michael Ignatieff:
Harper told CTV Atlantic he met with Ignatieff last week, but said he still knew little about the former Harvard scholar and author.
"I've read very little of what he's written. I certainly know he's a noted academic," he said.
For his sake, I hope that he's got some people on the staff doing some research. As someone who has read very much of what he's written, I can say that Harper's going to have to bone up on some of the major issues of our times if he wants to go toe-to-toe with Ignatieff. I'm incredibly tired of the gutter politics that has dominated the past few years of Canadian politics, and the prospect of a Harper-Ignatieff intellectual showdown will only meet the lofty expectations if one guy gets ready for that looming battle. And even then, I'm not sure his ideas will surpass those of one of the greatest liberal academics of our time.
Showing posts with label Ignatieff. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Ignatieff. Show all posts
16 December 2008
10 December 2008
Two Years Later, They Get It Right...Sort Of
Today is a very good day for the Liberal Party of Canada. They have finally chosen the leader that they should have chosen after January 23, 2006. I was one step removed many years ago when I said that Ignatieff would be the next leader of the Party. For some reason known only to Liberals, they opted to go with Stephane Dion first. Many thought they'd hit rock bottom after the 2006 election. They thought they'd lost all the could, but then they lost a whole lot more. Today is Day One of the official rebuilding project.
The first order of business must be to ensure that the party faithful are assuaged and assured that the process by which Ignatieff became leader is legitimate. There is a lot of talk, from myself included, that the manner and form in which Ignatieff has taken the reins of the Party is not ideal, is not democratic, and is not transparent. I hope and believe that while happy to be the leader, Ignatieff truly did not want it to happen under these circumstances. And had it not been for the fever pitch that gripped Ottawa for the past three weeks, he probably would not have become leader until the scheduled convention in May. But Dion's final act of utter ineptitude has resulted in his immediate ouster and replacement. Some will liken this takeover in the same ugly fashion as the so-called "coup-alition" effort. That is something he'll have to contend with.
Another is the lingering and stale argument that Ignatieff's simply an egghead who has been out of the country for 25 years and is thus out of touch with what Canadians want. This is ludicrous. Anybody who has read anything written by Ignatieff is very aware that he's keenly in touch with what the Canadian public thinks about the major issues of our time, from human rights to good governance. He is a very smart man, and the string of anti-intellectualism coming out of the Conservative camp is indicative of their fear of Ignatieff's intelligence.
It is going to be a long haul for the Liberals to get back to government. As Kinsella often says, government defeat themselves. The Tories may be on their way to doing that, but they're not there yet; moreover, the Liberals have yet to sufficiently recover from their own terrible defeats in the past few years and demonstrate that they are indeed capable of handling the reins of power once again. But now that the Liberals have taken the first step by electing the right leader, that process may begin in earnest.
The first order of business must be to ensure that the party faithful are assuaged and assured that the process by which Ignatieff became leader is legitimate. There is a lot of talk, from myself included, that the manner and form in which Ignatieff has taken the reins of the Party is not ideal, is not democratic, and is not transparent. I hope and believe that while happy to be the leader, Ignatieff truly did not want it to happen under these circumstances. And had it not been for the fever pitch that gripped Ottawa for the past three weeks, he probably would not have become leader until the scheduled convention in May. But Dion's final act of utter ineptitude has resulted in his immediate ouster and replacement. Some will liken this takeover in the same ugly fashion as the so-called "coup-alition" effort. That is something he'll have to contend with.
Another is the lingering and stale argument that Ignatieff's simply an egghead who has been out of the country for 25 years and is thus out of touch with what Canadians want. This is ludicrous. Anybody who has read anything written by Ignatieff is very aware that he's keenly in touch with what the Canadian public thinks about the major issues of our time, from human rights to good governance. He is a very smart man, and the string of anti-intellectualism coming out of the Conservative camp is indicative of their fear of Ignatieff's intelligence.
It is going to be a long haul for the Liberals to get back to government. As Kinsella often says, government defeat themselves. The Tories may be on their way to doing that, but they're not there yet; moreover, the Liberals have yet to sufficiently recover from their own terrible defeats in the past few years and demonstrate that they are indeed capable of handling the reins of power once again. But now that the Liberals have taken the first step by electing the right leader, that process may begin in earnest.
28 March 2008
Very Poor Word Choice
"The statement directly attributed to me in this morning's La Presse is entirely false. I was in Montreal to raise funds to repay my leadership debt. I have worked tirelessly for our Party and our Leader and will continue to work with our strong Liberal team to ensure we win the next election. No one has the right to call my loyalty into question."
- Michael Ignatieff
I like Michael Ignatieff, despite accusing Israel of war crimes a couple summers ago. He remains among the brightest of the bright lights of liberal internationalism, even though he spends far too little time doing that sort of thing these days. But this, whoa. Every single person in this country has a right to question his loyalty to the leader of his party. They may not be credible, they may be flat-out wrong, but they still have a right to say such things. The Charter told me so. As long as people aren't calling his loyalty into question by doing so in a very defamatory or libelous manner, they've certainly got a right to wonder aloud whether or not Ignatieff is trying to pull a coup.
- Michael Ignatieff
I like Michael Ignatieff, despite accusing Israel of war crimes a couple summers ago. He remains among the brightest of the bright lights of liberal internationalism, even though he spends far too little time doing that sort of thing these days. But this, whoa. Every single person in this country has a right to question his loyalty to the leader of his party. They may not be credible, they may be flat-out wrong, but they still have a right to say such things. The Charter told me so. As long as people aren't calling his loyalty into question by doing so in a very defamatory or libelous manner, they've certainly got a right to wonder aloud whether or not Ignatieff is trying to pull a coup.
17 February 2008
Nice Moments
Today while standing on Spring Garden Rd. a large number of vehicles were driving along honking their horns in celebration. The first couple didn't have any markings or anything really defining about them, so I turned to Anna Lou and asked, "Did somebody win something?" Then I saw the first Kosovo flags. Yes, indeed, somebody "won" something today. That the people of Kosovo have declared their independence from Serbia today is an amazing fact. When you think back to the horrors of the late 1990s, resulting in the humanitarian intervention led by NATO (which the Russians attempted to prevent by vetoing a Security Council resolution at the UN--real proud moment in the organization's history) to protect them from further ethnic cleansing by the vile and thuggish Milosevic regime, it is truly a happy day for Kosovars today. It almost brought a tear to my eye to see Kosovars in Canada and their supporters being able to celebrate this moment, and I was happy to give a big thumbs up to the people as they drove past.
The NATO intervention into Kosovo was a marked shift in how we look at international relations. It was one of the first incursions into a state that was committing atrocities against its own people, and certainly the most successful, with the missions into Somalia and Rwanda being disastrous for the West. Since Kosovo, the concept of the Responsibility to Protect has been developed and fleshed out to the point that it is nearly accepted in international law. We have Michael Ignatieff, who has spent considerable time in Kosovo, to thank in part for advancing the idea. Tony Blair championed the concept among world leaders, demonstrating that liberals can and should stand up for liberal principles and apply them on a universal scale. In his lengthy career, which is marked by a strong interventionist set of credentials, Kosovo is perhaps his greatest accomplishment. Meanwhile, Ignatieff's work on the International Comisssion on Intervention and State Sovereignty is widely accepted and serves to put all states on notice that if they commit heinous acts against their own populations they will face consequences and be held accountable. What happened today demonstrates the long-term positive impact of what can happen when governments work in concert to protect civilian populations from tyrannical regimes.
In news far less important, Carey Price got his first NHL shutout last night. The young phenom was just that last night against the Flyers, making 34 saves and staving off a lengthy 5-on-3 disadvantage. Too bad the jerk Briere shot the puck into the crowd to deprive Price of his momento; he really enjoys earning those boos from the Montreal faithful. I had been bidding on an autographed photo taken the night of Price's first NHL win against Pittsburgh (plain white helmet and everything), and that I won it was a neat little thing. It'll make a fine addition to my collection.
And this morning we booked a bunch of stuff for our trip to Montreal!
The NATO intervention into Kosovo was a marked shift in how we look at international relations. It was one of the first incursions into a state that was committing atrocities against its own people, and certainly the most successful, with the missions into Somalia and Rwanda being disastrous for the West. Since Kosovo, the concept of the Responsibility to Protect has been developed and fleshed out to the point that it is nearly accepted in international law. We have Michael Ignatieff, who has spent considerable time in Kosovo, to thank in part for advancing the idea. Tony Blair championed the concept among world leaders, demonstrating that liberals can and should stand up for liberal principles and apply them on a universal scale. In his lengthy career, which is marked by a strong interventionist set of credentials, Kosovo is perhaps his greatest accomplishment. Meanwhile, Ignatieff's work on the International Comisssion on Intervention and State Sovereignty is widely accepted and serves to put all states on notice that if they commit heinous acts against their own populations they will face consequences and be held accountable. What happened today demonstrates the long-term positive impact of what can happen when governments work in concert to protect civilian populations from tyrannical regimes.
In news far less important, Carey Price got his first NHL shutout last night. The young phenom was just that last night against the Flyers, making 34 saves and staving off a lengthy 5-on-3 disadvantage. Too bad the jerk Briere shot the puck into the crowd to deprive Price of his momento; he really enjoys earning those boos from the Montreal faithful. I had been bidding on an autographed photo taken the night of Price's first NHL win against Pittsburgh (plain white helmet and everything), and that I won it was a neat little thing. It'll make a fine addition to my collection.
And this morning we booked a bunch of stuff for our trip to Montreal!
23 September 2007
I Don't Need Your Civil War
It isn't often that I feel motivated to comment on the status of my former political party. However, the last week has been absolutely disastrous for the Liberals, and it would be remiss of me to not comment on it.
The situation is now being described as a civil war by none other than Sheila Copps. I had the opportunity to meet Miss Copps in 2003 and I very nearly ended up supporting her for the Liberal leadership that year. I bring this up because it is evidence that I respect her opinion and her insights. There were a couple of policy disagreements between us that ultimtaely led in me backing the greatest footnote in Canadian political history, but that in no way limits my respect for her. When she says that the old rivalries are resurfacing with new faces, I believe her. She knows many more people in higher places than I ever did in the Party, so her words should be taken seriously.
So it is the case that in September 2007 the Liberal Party of Canada is still engaged in the same internecine struggles that were damaging it in the period of 2002-2004. Rumours abound of plots to overthrow Stephane Dion's leadership, many of those plots focusing on Michael Ignatieff, but some also fingerpointing at Bob Rae. It is not entirely surprising that the impetus for all of this is a poor performance in 3 Quebec by-elections. Dion is a Quebec man, and it was believed that his long experience with the Intergovernmental Affairs portfolio and his self-proclaimed championing of a cause important to many Quebeckers--the environment--would help rebound sagging fortunes in the province. It turns out that the opposite has proven true. Dion hasn't established his credibility on the environmental file, having been criticized by former Cabinet colleagues who noted his lackadaisacal attitude when he was Environment Minister, and it turns out that many people in Quebec don't really appreciate his handling of Quebec-Ottawa relations. Plus he had a terrible organizational approach to the three elections, losing a long-standing Liberal stronghold and garnering a popular vote in the teens over the 3 ridings.
Cue the plotting. Ignatieff came out of the Montreal Convention as the runner-up to Dion. He was unable to grow his support from his initial 30% range on the first ballot to win the leadership, and I personally doubt that he'll be willing to stick around in Canadian politics as an opposition party critic for a long time when he knows that he could go back to any university and be the head of its political science department. Those hallways are less cutthroat than politics--Canadian and/or Liberal--and I would not be surprised if he regularly hears offers from institutions looking to add his formidable talents to their university. So it's either aim for coup or go back to academia for him. By all accounts, it seems he's going to try the coup first.
However, all of this neglects to look at the biggest problem the Liberal Party faces today. It is not that it's the same cast of stale characters or even the lack of a serious policy platform. It is criminal that they haven't held a policy convention since February 2005, that they don't articulate a consistent set of policies that liberals can rally around, sure. The biggest problem with the Liberal Party today is that it is called the Liberal Party. The brand is broken, toxic even. Back when Paul Martin became the party leader, the membership ranks boasted over half a million. Today it is a fraction of that. I don't know the numbers, but there are no pronouncements of mega-majorities or standing-proud local organizations looking to sign up every human soul in sight (living or dead, eh Joe Volpe?), so it is safe to assume that people have tuned out the Liberals. The absence of a message helps, but the lingering hostility over sponsorship, the fighting, the Martinites, and so much more takes precedence. Back in 2003 there was some hope for Liberals to make breakthroughs in areas that they had been shut out of since the days of Trudeau. Those are long gone, and they're now on the defensive even in bastions like Toronto and Montreal. Announce that you're a Liberal in some places and people may hiss and bear pitchforks.
What can they do? Rebuild, top to bottom. Make concrete steps to differentiate themselves from the Liberal brand of the recent past. Transforming one's image is difficult but it can be done--look at Stephen, formerly "Scary," Harper and his continued success as Prime Minister. Drop the arrogance, drop the "blame the voters" mentality, don't accuse people who disagree with you of lacking a "social conscience," don't formulate talking points around George W. Bush. Talk about your vision, talk about liberal values, compassion, humanity, a "role of pride and influence in the world," things that people can support. If they don't, these civil wars will be without end, and every leader will spend an inordinate amount of time looking over his shoulder to find out who is plotting to put a knife between his shoulder blades.
The situation is now being described as a civil war by none other than Sheila Copps. I had the opportunity to meet Miss Copps in 2003 and I very nearly ended up supporting her for the Liberal leadership that year. I bring this up because it is evidence that I respect her opinion and her insights. There were a couple of policy disagreements between us that ultimtaely led in me backing the greatest footnote in Canadian political history, but that in no way limits my respect for her. When she says that the old rivalries are resurfacing with new faces, I believe her. She knows many more people in higher places than I ever did in the Party, so her words should be taken seriously.
So it is the case that in September 2007 the Liberal Party of Canada is still engaged in the same internecine struggles that were damaging it in the period of 2002-2004. Rumours abound of plots to overthrow Stephane Dion's leadership, many of those plots focusing on Michael Ignatieff, but some also fingerpointing at Bob Rae. It is not entirely surprising that the impetus for all of this is a poor performance in 3 Quebec by-elections. Dion is a Quebec man, and it was believed that his long experience with the Intergovernmental Affairs portfolio and his self-proclaimed championing of a cause important to many Quebeckers--the environment--would help rebound sagging fortunes in the province. It turns out that the opposite has proven true. Dion hasn't established his credibility on the environmental file, having been criticized by former Cabinet colleagues who noted his lackadaisacal attitude when he was Environment Minister, and it turns out that many people in Quebec don't really appreciate his handling of Quebec-Ottawa relations. Plus he had a terrible organizational approach to the three elections, losing a long-standing Liberal stronghold and garnering a popular vote in the teens over the 3 ridings.
Cue the plotting. Ignatieff came out of the Montreal Convention as the runner-up to Dion. He was unable to grow his support from his initial 30% range on the first ballot to win the leadership, and I personally doubt that he'll be willing to stick around in Canadian politics as an opposition party critic for a long time when he knows that he could go back to any university and be the head of its political science department. Those hallways are less cutthroat than politics--Canadian and/or Liberal--and I would not be surprised if he regularly hears offers from institutions looking to add his formidable talents to their university. So it's either aim for coup or go back to academia for him. By all accounts, it seems he's going to try the coup first.
However, all of this neglects to look at the biggest problem the Liberal Party faces today. It is not that it's the same cast of stale characters or even the lack of a serious policy platform. It is criminal that they haven't held a policy convention since February 2005, that they don't articulate a consistent set of policies that liberals can rally around, sure. The biggest problem with the Liberal Party today is that it is called the Liberal Party. The brand is broken, toxic even. Back when Paul Martin became the party leader, the membership ranks boasted over half a million. Today it is a fraction of that. I don't know the numbers, but there are no pronouncements of mega-majorities or standing-proud local organizations looking to sign up every human soul in sight (living or dead, eh Joe Volpe?), so it is safe to assume that people have tuned out the Liberals. The absence of a message helps, but the lingering hostility over sponsorship, the fighting, the Martinites, and so much more takes precedence. Back in 2003 there was some hope for Liberals to make breakthroughs in areas that they had been shut out of since the days of Trudeau. Those are long gone, and they're now on the defensive even in bastions like Toronto and Montreal. Announce that you're a Liberal in some places and people may hiss and bear pitchforks.
What can they do? Rebuild, top to bottom. Make concrete steps to differentiate themselves from the Liberal brand of the recent past. Transforming one's image is difficult but it can be done--look at Stephen, formerly "Scary," Harper and his continued success as Prime Minister. Drop the arrogance, drop the "blame the voters" mentality, don't accuse people who disagree with you of lacking a "social conscience," don't formulate talking points around George W. Bush. Talk about your vision, talk about liberal values, compassion, humanity, a "role of pride and influence in the world," things that people can support. If they don't, these civil wars will be without end, and every leader will spend an inordinate amount of time looking over his shoulder to find out who is plotting to put a knife between his shoulder blades.
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