Tuesday, November 11, 2008

Liberal Leadership Convention - Pt. One in an Ongoing Series

First off, I would like to welcome every single one of my Liberal Prog. Bloggers and 308ers to Vancouver in late April. If you are planning on attending as a delegate or as an observer, please let me know because I would like to make sure I meet up with you while you are here. Mayhaps we could even strike an ad-hoc committee to do a detailed analysis of local wines and brews?

I waited until after the official announcement of the where and when of the leadership convention to comment on it. I am more than pleased that it is here in Vancouver, I've been invited to receptions by both Bob and Dom, but was unable to attend either.

I am tentatively supporting Mssr. LeBlanc, barring the arrival of a better candidate to the race and that Mssr. LeBlanc answers the email I sent his constituency office two weeks ago. I understand that things are busy for him, so I am willing to be patient, but it should not take more than three weeks to return an email.

I have been stunned by the "Audacity" of Lawrence Martin. (h/t The Diva Rachel) I am stunned because this opinion piece makes me wonder if Mr. Martin has ever *met* Mr. Ignatieff. If he had, he would not claim that he has anything close to charisma. Unless you think charm is speaking to people as if they are stupid imbeciles who can't recognize how great it is to be in presence of a man of his personal stature, then I guess you could call him charismatic.

Michael Ignatieff is "articulate and polished and suffers from no lack of erudition" but he possesses no gift for oratory. He possesses the tone, tenor and content of a history professor at an Ivy League university. I wonder how that happened?

He is not a "fresh face". He is four months older than my father, and at 62 he represents the generation past who's time is over. He will not be there to rebuild this party. His career arch cannot afford the next 3 to 5 years of being in opposition. And mostly, I see him as a US carpetbagger who hedged his bets to return to the country of his birth to be Prime Minister. He didn't sign up to be an opposition MP, and mark my words, if he becomes leader the LPC will suffer an even greater loss than the one suffered by Stephane Dion.

When that happens he will quit politics outright, move back to Harvard and try to gain some income to make up for the past few years of slumming it here in the Great White North.

I feel much the same way about Bob Rae as a candidate when it comes to age and experience, but I don't see him as an "Obama Figure" any more than I do Michael Ignatieff.

And before Scott Ross comes in here talking about the Greatest-ness of Gerard Kennedy, just stop.

I don't think he should be the leader either, but for very different reasons...
that I will share tomorrow.

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On a completely different note: In honour of the approximately 113,300 Canadians who have died in foreign wars and during peacekeeping missions around the world

We Will Remember Them.