Almost wants to make me add her to the Gaffe-o-Meter. Almost.

Via the always-attentive Calgary Grit, who rips off Stephen Colbert in his McKay v May matchup (it's really more Tale of the Tape than Better Know a District, but I'll forgive), I see that dimwitted Green Party leader Liz May says Canadians are stupid.

Well, I know one who is.
Comment posted by Don at 5:49 PM

 
The Quiet Restoration

Back in my university days, I counted among my friends an ardent, full-on left wing Quebec separatist. We tended not to talk about that particular leaning of his, because we knew it was a point of fervent, angry disagreement, and we weren't going to convince each other. However, we talked about it a little, because I was genuinely curious to understand the attraction of Quebec nationalism. He was certainly a believer that as "masters in their own house", Quebec would not have to play along with the right-wing-leaning Rest Of Canada he perceived the rest of us to be.

I think it's fair to say that the lie of that was readily exposed last night. Until now, the face of separatism has been the BQ and PQ, parties far enough to the left that the NDP don't seem to have the heart to really work against them, or (much to my disappointment) seriously contest the things they say and do. But while the ADQ might be willing to put away separation as a party plank (and who can't agree that it's good for the country that the only Quebec party outwardly advocating separatism was reduced to third party status?), they are built from a side of Quebec nationalism that my old university friend called a rump, or denied completely. Private health care, private schooling (read Catholic), "autonomy" (An independent Quebec within a united Canada, as the Quebec comedian Yvon Deschamps liked to say) - these hearken back to the Union Nationale.

The new ADQ caucus is unknown and untried. It's a new party, it's a "populist" party, and it's an ideological party, and those three facts in combination almost certainly guarantee that they'll have more flakes and nuts than a box of Muslix. For too many years now, the ROC's left has shied away from confronting Quebec nationalism head-on (witness Jack Layton wanting to tear up Clarity, check national unions not attempting to spread into Quebec, for fear of stepping on nationalist toes). Perhaps some inopportune words here and there from the new ADQ members, and we can finally mix it up.
Comment posted by Don at 4:26 PM

 
Comments are clearly dead

I'm going to give them until the end of the week to recover before I try the backup plan, because obviously, once Gaffe-o-Meter 3 starts, we can't have the comments falling down on the job.

And speaking of gaffes, and falling down on the job, do you suppose the people of Alberta will exact an extra penalty since this happened in the Premier's own riding? Guess there's no point in asking you, at least until the comments recover.
Comment posted by Don at 4:04 PM

 
Amateur Hour

Elizabeth May, leader of the federal Green Party, has decided to run in Central Nova, against the locally- and nationally-popular Peter McKay. She says the move will raise the profile of the Green Party.

I'm no friend of the Green Party. I think the last thing the left in this country needs is to split their vote. The lessons of the Reform Party should be obvious to all involved - how would the politics of the 90s have been different if Preston Manning had decided that the Tories had needed renewal from inside, and started organizing there?

However, I'm still willing to offer a little advice. Liz, are you a moron? Deranged, perhaps? Your party has some profile. What it doesn't have, the one thing the Green Party needs to be taken seriously, is a seat. Any seat. You might win Central Nova - I suppose it's possible. But what's the risk/reward ratio here? You're taking on a far more difficult battle than required, and if you manage to win, in a month people across the country are going to forget who you beat to win the seat. Or worse, if you win the seat in the face of a national Tory majority, people may even blame you for taking a moderating voice out of that caucus. And that's all under your bast-case scenario, that you win. The far more likely outcome is that you run a respectable second, and everyone ignores you and your party again until the next federal election.

You're a national party leader, Ms May. No one will blame you for parachuting into a seat. But by parachuting into this seat, all you're offering your party is more years in the wilderness.
Comment posted by Don at 1:37 PM

 
March Madness

Not the US college basketball, which I could care less about, and not even the homestretch of the NHL's regular season and the rush for playoff spots, which keeps my interest only marginally more.

No, I allude to the two most watchable events in sports.

First, the McDonald Labatt Nokia Tim Hortons Brier. This year's Coffee Cup tournament has been marked by complaints about the quality of the playing surface. Now, people have complained about the ice in Hamilton for years, but they generally haven't been talking about curling sheets. I'm sure it's the bad ice that's keeping the crowds away. I don't blame at all the broadcast contract which keeps so many rounds away from the eyes of basic cable subscribers.

Which brings me to the second event: the 2007 ICC Cricket World Cup. Canada has qualified again, and drawn themselves into a group with England, who I'm sure we can kick around - what does England know about cricket? Thing is, if the Canadian side does actually pull off this miracle, most Canadians will never get a chance to see it. The only broadcaster here is the Asian Television Network, who in turn is only offering the World Cup as a pay per view on their Cricket Channel. I might consider buying it, but I can't get it though a normal cable connection, so the pay per view price would only be a small part of the cost of buying a mini-dish from Bell and paying their subscription fee. Might as well fly to Saint Lucia and watch it live.

What are Canadian curling and cricket fans to do?
Comment posted by Don at 12:07 PM

 
Time to wake up this sleepy old blog

Noises of an election mean that the Gaffeometer III: The Third Iteration will be coming soon. I'm still on the hunt for Dion pictures - headshots, and no photoshop!

Guess I should determine where I need to send my $20 for Gaffeometer II: What's Scott Reid Worth?. Sounds like a weekend project.
Comment posted by Don at 5:33 PM