EnMasse

[DSquared]

I'd like to take an EnMasse straw poll here. Who do we want?
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This is pre-eminently the time, to speak the truth, the whole truth, frankly and boldly. Let me assert my firm belief that the only thing we have to fear is fear itself-Franklin Delano Roosevelt

[Vundo Draxon]

I picked Mulcair because he has more parliamentary experience than Topp, the best name recognition of the bunch, looks good on TV (trite, but it does help), and can connect on a personal level with both French and English Canada. I can see how he will irk some elements of the base, but at the same time I think it's more important to pick someone who can appeal to a broader audience than die-hard party supporters. That is, if the NDP intends on expanding rather than holding the line.

Niki Ashton has a LOT of potential, but being as young as she is, I'd be more inclined to give her a series of good critic/cabinet posts so that the next time around she is still relatively young (for a federal party leader) but will have had years to build a stunning profile. The Conservatives are strong under Harper today, but he can't stay leader forever and the current list of likely successors is terribly disappointing. If the NDP chooses another leader now who can do reasonably well until the end of the Harper era, then have Ashton as the next leader (with whom leading the Conservatives? Flarhety? Clement? Baird? Ugh!), I think the NDP could have a decisive advantage in the leadership department (depending, of course, on the quality of fresh leadership the Tories and Liberals can muster in the meantime).

[Vundo Draxon]

Rick's Rant on this subject

[Raos]

Thanks for reminding me just how much I dislike Mercer.

So his criticism pretty much boils down to "they're acting like adults, when we want to see howler monkeys slinging shit at each other, how dull!" And they keep agreeing with each other, rather than exposing deep divides in the party? Quelle horreur! It's almost like the NDP, as a political party, has a definite political philosophy and principles that the members (and specifically those running to lead the party with) are all on-board with. What a notion! Don't they know a political party is supposed to be a vehicle for the personal ambition of its leader, who's supposed to drive it to accomplish their own personal agenda? What are they doing being all "responsible" and "mature" and "democratic"? We want to see an epic clash of titans with special effects explosions and melodrama!

Fuck that. If voters need fireworks and theatre to engage with politics, they don't deserve good government; they deserve exactly exactly the dysfunctional system that they're getting out of Ottawa right now.

[DSquared]

[Senor Magoo]

IOW, keep following Jack?
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[DSquared]

So here is how I see the race breaking down:

In terms of the classic left-right battle within the NDP, Thomas Mulcair clearly represents the moderate, pragmatic wing of the NDP. He likely has the most support of any candidate, but not enough to win on the first ballot. The left wing is represented jointly by Peggy Nash, Niki Ashton, and Brian Topp. Brian Topp has run the most left-wing campaign of all the candidates, but at the same time, people have their reservations, which explains why he's not doing better. Peggy Nash likely leads the left flank, and this is probably where Topp's support will go. I suspect that between Ashton and Nash, the weaker of the 2 will back the stronger one.

Then there are the other candidates. Saganash said he would endorse which ever candidate comes closest to his vision, which based on what I have seen, would be Ashton. Singh represents the business view within the NDP, so likely he will break for Mulcair. This leaves Chisholm, Dewar, and Cullen as wild cards. Where will their support end up?
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This is pre-eminently the time, to speak the truth, the whole truth, frankly and boldly. Let me assert my firm belief that the only thing we have to fear is fear itself-Franklin Delano Roosevelt

[DSquared]

Since Romeo's name still appears on the ballot, my ballot tentatively looks like:

1) Romeo Saganash

2) Niki Ashton

3) Peggy Nash, although she has dropped quite considerably because she does not get Western Canada, and she could still fall off my ballot entirely. As for the remaining candidates:

Dewar: supported the Conservative bombing campaign in Libya, and has generally not been a strong foreign affairs critic. Under his watch, I have a difficult time telling the difference between NDP foreign policy and that of the Liberals and Conservatives.

Singh: running on a right-wing "the NDP must be more business-friendly" theme, at a time when people are losing trust in big business lobby groups. Also, we get the point that you like pharmacare. Are there any other issues you care to discuss?

Cullen: suggesting that the NDP formally co-operate with the Liberals during an election is a deal-breaker for me. That says to me he is not confident in the NDP's ability to form the government and beat Harper on its own. If the NDP leader doesn't have confidence in his party, how can he convince anyone else? He has also not considered other ramifications (i.e. blue Liberals voting Tory, Harper running against the "Liberal-NDP coalition") nor has he considered the fact that the way to beat Harper is to take votes away from the Conservatives. Ironic when you think that he's the only leadership candidate who has defeated an incumbent Conservative MP.

Topp: don't trust the guy. I thought the way he allowed his name to be floated as a front-runner right after Jack died was tasteless, and I really get the sense that he's telling us what we want to hear more than anything else. Also, he has never faced the public in a general election (even though Niki has done that 3 times and won 2 of those contests, yet she's not a serious candidate but I digress), which is important for a Prime-Minister-in waiting. What if he loses the by-election? What if he cannot find an MP who is willing to step down? How will he deal with the (legitimate) suggestion that he's carpetbagging a local riding?

Mulcair: clearly on the right flank of the NDP. While he has reached out to new constituencies, I get the sense that he expects the base to just support him, without giving much indication that he's prepared to do much to earn that support. (He was one of the few candidates to refuse to participate in a babble discussion, and he did not do a sit-down interview with Quebec MP Dany Morin.) His treatment of Libby Davies was shameful. What sticks out for me is that he talks about motivating young people, yet not only was he part of a government which moved towards making post-secondary education less accessible, he does not grasp the importance of people being able to find meaningful work once they're done their studies.
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This is pre-eminently the time, to speak the truth, the whole truth, frankly and boldly. Let me assert my firm belief that the only thing we have to fear is fear itself-Franklin Delano Roosevelt

[TS.]

I won't be casting a preferential ballot since I will be on the convention floor, but I will be voting for Peggy Nash as long as she is on the ballot. Though I may cast a first ballot vote for Nicky Ashton to indicate my view that she is the future of the party (just not the immediate present).
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"Question with boldness even the existence of a God; because, if there be one, he must more approve of the homage of reason, than that of blind-folded fear." - Thomas Jefferson

[cco]

TS, I will likely be at the convention as well (still trying to arrange for somewhere to stay). Though we may be in different camps on the floor, would you care to get together beforehand for lunch and/or drinks?

[DSquared]

Wish I could join you both. Enjoy your meeting.
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This is pre-eminently the time, to speak the truth, the whole truth, frankly and boldly. Let me assert my firm belief that the only thing we have to fear is fear itself-Franklin Delano Roosevelt

[TS.]

[The Evil Twin]

[DSquared]

[Senor Magoo]

[6079_Smith_W]

Generally speaking, I expect there are some people for whom not getting their wish IS getting their wish, because it can be taken as proof that it is all a rigged game controlled by the powers that be.

[Slumberjack]

[Senor Magoo]

[6079_Smith_W]

[Slumberjack]

[Slumberjack]

[6079_Smith_W]

Yes, I don't have a problem with people not taking part if they don't see the worth in it either.

I do have a problem when that is the default position in cases in which there is actually something worth fighting for. And there have been cases with far worse odds than this which have been successful because people acted.

I know we are of different minds on this; I don't expect either of us is going to change the others' mind, or stop.

But anyway, it will be interesting to see if there are any accusations of backrooming once this is done.

[Senor Magoo]

If you could, with a wave of the hand, eliminate every law, every statute or standard, every right and every gain that's come about because of this corrupt, rigged, failed, futile process you'd be looking at a few improvised shelters and little more.

I think the bigger problem is not that the process is "rigged" but rather that those who think so also seem to have some kind of passivity issue that makes them believe that the solution to this "rigged" system will come from outside somehow. Whoever gave us the rigged system must someday give us a non-rigged system for things to get better.

Actually, as soon as I hear people talking about politicians, "the system", "the elites", etc., as though they were talking about another species from another galaxy my alarms go off. There's something wierd to me about believing that these things are somehow foreign and external to us.
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[Slumberjack]

[Slumberjack]