jdobbin Posted March 21, 2009 Report Posted March 21, 2009 http://www.thestar.com/Canada/Columnist/article/605360 Chantal Hebert's column this week. It is hard to think of a Conservative minister who is more of a francophile than James Moore. Among Harper's English-speaking ministers, only he is proficient enough in French to dare go on Radio-Canada's most watched talk show, Tout le monde en parle.But a culturally clueless heritage minister does not come across as less ignorant for being able to exhibit that trait in a second language. Many commentators would have cut Moore slack for failing to come up with the names of Peter Mansbridge's Radio-Canada's equivalent, Céline Galipeau, or even the iconic Félix Leclerc, but to be unable to identify Atom Egoyan, who is perhaps Canada's most celebrated English-language filmmaker, does not wear well on the minister in charge of Canada's cultural policy. Plus for going on the French media, negative for not being up on areas of culture that might come up. No need to go over the Goodyear thing. He might be able to do the job but he will be under more scrutiny now than most science ministers will be. Many will looking for confirmation of a bias against science. Hebert also mentions the story about the gun lobby speech but CTV has more detail: http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/stor...19?hub=Politics askatchewan MP Garry Breitkreuz had been scheduled to attend the Canadian Shooting Sports Association (CSSA) dinner, where a rare Beretta semi-automatic handgun is being given away as a raffle prize.Opposition MPs criticized Breitkreuz's choice to attend saying it was an insensitive decision as Toronto faces problems with guns on the streets. Fair or not, the issue of guns, especially handguns, is always a hot topic. Last thing Hebert mentions is the story on David Dodge. Some Tory supporters here say he is just a Liberal or should shut up. The problem for Tories is he is respected and can't be too easily ignored. Quote
Keepitsimple Posted March 21, 2009 Report Posted March 21, 2009 http://www.thestar.com/Canada/Columnist/article/605360Chantal Hebert's column this week. Plus for going on the French media, negative for not being up on areas of culture that might come up. No need to go over the Goodyear thing. He might be able to do the job but he will be under more scrutiny now than most science ministers will be. Many will looking for confirmation of a bias against science. Hebert also mentions the story about the gun lobby speech but CTV has more detail: http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/stor...19?hub=Politics Fair or not, the issue of guns, especially handguns, is always a hot topic. Last thing Hebert mentions is the story on David Dodge. Some Tory supporters here say he is just a Liberal or should shut up. The problem for Tories is he is respected and can't be too easily ignored. I watched Don Newman today - hardly a Conservative friend you'll agree. His last segment with three journalists addressed the Goodyear and Dodge Issues. They were unanimous in saying that the question to Goodyear was not appropriate and that the resulting story was a cheap shot. It was also unanimous that they wewre all confused as to why Dodge shot off his mouth at this time. Their two salient points were that Carney was his groomed successor so why undermine him but also that Dodge had a much easier time and had never been faced with a situation las bad as this - so who says anyone is right or wrong. So they couldn't understand why he didn't just keep quiet - at least for now. Quote Back to Basics
August1991 Posted March 21, 2009 Report Posted March 21, 2009 (edited) My reading of Hebert (and Steyn and even Coyne) is that these generalist columnists are utterly confused by the economic situation. Chantal Hébert doesn`t understand economics and hence doesn`t really undertsand what is going on. She is forced to fall back on tired stereotypical comments. (eg. The Quebec Minister of Finance just presented a budget that changes considerably the game. Hébert didn't mention it. She is following behind the story.) Even Coyne, the supposed guru of market economics, has been caught out. IMV, most standard political columnists are far behind the commentary available on the Internet. ----- As to Harper's critics, I liked Obama's comment last night on Jay Leno about American Idol and Simon Cowell. A politician faces severe criticsm from all quarters. It goes with the job. Edited March 21, 2009 by August1991 Quote
jdobbin Posted March 21, 2009 Author Report Posted March 21, 2009 I watched Don Newman today - hardly a Conservative friend you'll agree. His last segment with three journalists addressed the Goodyear and Dodge Issues. They were unanimous in saying that the question to Goodyear was not appropriate and that the resulting story was a cheap shot. I don't know that the media should stop at what is appropriate. It might be a cheap shot but the minister could have answered the question better. He could have said that he had his religious beliefs but that it would not affect how science money was dispersed or how he did job. In that regard, he should have taken a page from Jake Epp's book. It was also unanimous that they wewre all confused as to why Dodge shot off his mouth at this time. Their two salient points were that Carney was his groomed successor so why undermine him but also that Dodge had a much easier time and had never been faced with a situation las bad as this - so who says anyone is right or wrong. So they couldn't understand why he didn't just keep quiet - at least for now. The view on the At Issue panel was that Dodge has always been a straight shooter and that he certainly has some views as to how the rails came off. Quote
jdobbin Posted March 21, 2009 Author Report Posted March 21, 2009 (edited) My reading of Hebert (and Steyn and even Coyne) is that these generalist columnists are utterly confused by the economic situation.IMV, most standard political columnists are far behind the commentary available on the Internet. I think the scattergun approach to "all media are ignorant" while saying there are on the mark commentaries from posters on the Internet ignores the fact that most studies show that bloggers usually get all their news from mainstream media. As to Harper's critics, I liked Obama's comment last night on Jay Leno about American Idol and Simon Cowell. A politician faces severe criticsm from all quarters. It goes with the job. It does. Some people manage it better. Edited March 21, 2009 by jdobbin Quote
Visionseeker Posted March 21, 2009 Report Posted March 21, 2009 I watched most of the episode and was feeling rather sorry for Moore. I have the utmost respect for anyone who strives to acquire fluency in any language. But I squirmed with every demonstration of just how culturally out of touch Moore is. The Egoyan moment actually made me "Gah". I think his performance furthered harmed the Conservative brand in la belle province and in francophone communities outside Quebec. Quote
noahbody Posted March 21, 2009 Report Posted March 21, 2009 Opposition MPs criticized Breitkreuz's choice to attend saying it was an insensitive decision as Toronto faces problems with guns on the streets. What an asshole. Seriously, that is a bit of a stretch. Quote
Progressive Tory Posted March 21, 2009 Report Posted March 21, 2009 The view on the At Issue panel was that Dodge has always been a straight shooter and that he certainly has some views as to how the rails came off. His experience makes him qualified to speak out about the economy, since Harper was trying to downplay just how screwed we really are, instead of taking action. Quote "For all our modesty and self-deprecation, we’re a people who dream great dreams. And then roll up our sleeves and turn them into realities." - Michael Ignatieff "I would not want the Prime Minister to think that he could simply fail in the House of Commons as a route to another General Election. That's not the way our system works." Stephen Harper.
Progressive Tory Posted March 21, 2009 Report Posted March 21, 2009 Some Tory supporters here say he is just a Liberal or should shut up. The problem for Tories is he is respected and can't be too easily ignored. It doesn't stop there. There is an almost full page piece by Andrew Cohen in our local paper entitled 'Citizen-Diplomats do it Themselves', where he criticizes the Harper gov't foreign policies, or lack thereof. It is very insightful and just reinforces what many of us already know. This gov't has become an international joke. And then of course Jason Kenney once again making an absolute fool of himself. Banning British MP a clumsy, dangerous move "Jason Kenney has gone over the edge. The increasingly erratic immigration minister made headlines last week when, in a fit of pique, he cut off funding to an Arab organization that helps newcomers learn English. Now, Kenney has banned British MP George Galloway from entering Canada, on the spurious grounds that he supports Middle East terrorism." I got an email regarding a petition that someone is putting together demanding that the Conservatives tell us where the three billion dollars went from last budget for infastructure, that was instead rolled into this budget as new money. It's missing. They want to know where it went, and so do I, so I signed. I also added that I would like a petition stating that Jason Kenney is no longer allowed to speak for us. I may go back and ask them to modify that to include all Conservative MPs. If they want to voice an opinion they must add the disclaimer. 'This message was brought to you by the Conservative Party of Canada and does not reflect the views of the majority of Canadians.' I wish they would just shut up. Quote "For all our modesty and self-deprecation, we’re a people who dream great dreams. And then roll up our sleeves and turn them into realities." - Michael Ignatieff "I would not want the Prime Minister to think that he could simply fail in the House of Commons as a route to another General Election. That's not the way our system works." Stephen Harper.
capricorn Posted March 21, 2009 Report Posted March 21, 2009 This gov't has become an international joke. You would hope. And then of course Jason Kenney once again making an absolute fool of himself. You must have a low opinion of the public servants working at the border agency since they were the ones to apply our country's legislation. Canadian officials have denied outspoken anti-war British MP George Galloway entry into Canada on grounds he poses a threat to national security.--- Velshi said the minister is refusing to override the decision by Canada Border Security Agency officials under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act. http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/article/605682 Border security officials deemed Galloway to be inadmissible under Section 34(1) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act. That act deals with excluding those who provide material support for terrorism. http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/stor...?hub=TopStories Imagine that. A Minister that allows public servants to do their job without interference. Quote "We always want the best man to win an election. Unfortunately, he never runs." Will Rogers
Progressive Tory Posted March 21, 2009 Report Posted March 21, 2009 You would hope. I guess Andrew Cohen got his facts wrong from the people who do know, and are experiencing the lack of respect Canadians now get overseas because of our ideologically driven gov't. As for Galloway, this comes from Kenney's office and Kenney is once again blustering over sheer nonsense. I wonder if Galloway had said that he sent fresh bullets to the Israel Defense Forces to kill more Muslim children in Palestine, if he would have been denied entry. He would have probably been given a parade. Quote "For all our modesty and self-deprecation, we’re a people who dream great dreams. And then roll up our sleeves and turn them into realities." - Michael Ignatieff "I would not want the Prime Minister to think that he could simply fail in the House of Commons as a route to another General Election. That's not the way our system works." Stephen Harper.
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