Steelcitygrit [in exile]

Ruminating on all things Canadian and political.

 

Thursday, July 13, 2006

renewal, not deference!

This Stephane Dion comment, via Calagary Grit vis-a-vis Michael Ignatieff and climate change, caught my eye:

He’s thrown out some ideas, but he didn’t even include a single word recognizing the work which myself and the Liberal government did on the climate change file or on our 2005 climate change proposal. When I travel to the Bahamas, they recognize the work Canada has done on Climate Change. I think it shows incredible disrespect for a new Liberal MP to come in here and ignore everything we’ve done.

Regardless of who is giving and who receiving, this is a sentiment that bothers me. Renewal is not about patting ourselves on the back. Canadians at large will not receive us well if we self-censor any criticism of the government that they just relegated to opposition. This comment is particularly absurd in that it doesn't refer to criticism, but rather to a lack of gushing praise.

Generally, Dion has shown an understanding of this. I appreciate his other instances of combativeness in the interest of finishing with a stronger party. Ignatieff, on the other hand, has been careful to preface nearly every comment with deference to a Dryden on child care, a Volpe on immigration, etc.

This should be a no-brainer: embuing the '05 Martin government with sacred cow status is only going to hurt the leadership process and the party

5 Comments:

Blogger rob said...

Renewal doesn't mean forgetting about past successes.

12:56 PM  
Blogger SteelCityGrit said...

No it doesn't. And I think if a candidate was asked a question about the Liberal record on the environment, they would have an obligation to recognize Dion's laudable successes. But I do not believe that any discussion on environmental policy has to beging with a celebration of what has come before - especially on an issue that is only just gathering the momentum it requires

1:15 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Personally, I don't like ANY of the leaders up for Liberal leadership, I think the Liberals should put an ad in the Star and look for qualified people that way.

1:29 PM  
Blogger SteelCityGrit said...

Where was Kennedy when these battles were fought? Serving the Liberal cause in a differnt expression. That doesn't bother me. Listen - no longer am I defending "my" candidate. I don't have one - I'm adrift. There are plenty criticisms of Ignatieff that I would gladly concur with, but the ones that creep up just aren't compelling to me.

9:50 AM  
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3:30 AM  

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