Right Up Your Alley: Kamloops

Bob Raen's FUD on Harper's Parade

As discussed in this space a couple of days ago, the federal Liberal campaign hasn't demonstrated the nastiness necessary to effectively attack the Conservatives primary strength, Stephen Harper. I pointed out that the party needed a high-profile lieutenant to step up and start badgering Mr. Harper, and like Esa Tikkanen against Gretzky (or whoever), get him off his game. This morning, in a well-timed attack, Bob Rae stepped up and did just that.

Mr. Rae accused Mr. Harper of plagiarising a speech he made to the house of commons in 2003 when he led the Canadian Alliance.

The plagiarism is obvious, large portions of the speech were lifted directly from a speech by former Australian Prime Minister John Howard. In the wake of the allegation, Conservative campaign worker Owen Lippert resigned and assumed full responsibility for the act, stating that he alone was responsible.

This issue will probably blow over fairly soon, given that the chain of stupidity seems to end well short of the Prime Minister. However the Liberals don't necessarily need to prove Harper was in on the charade, the suggestion is enough to start raining FUD - that is Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt - all over Mr. Harper's growing personal appeal, and hence, the Conservative campaign.

Plagiarism certainly helps raise uncertainty about Mr. Harper's character, and doubt about his judgement in hiring assistants who would knowingly put him in such a compromising position. But Mr. Rae saved the element of fear for last, saying that the plagiarism "... speaks to the heart of what's deeply wrong with the Republican-Conservative government, of which he is the leader."

That's a reach. The chances that uncommitted voters will link Mr. Harper to Mr. Bush - just because an aid lifted a speech from Mr. Bush's ally John Howard - are remote. And the charge probably deflates some moral self-righteousness from Mr. Rae's bubble, given that while Mr. Harper was "hands off" the speech, one of Mr. Rae's own counterparts south of the border is guilty of much more serious "hands on" plagiarism.

American Vice Presidential candidate Joe Biden quit his own Democratic nomication bid in 1988 after being caught writing and delivering his own speeches, which were found to contain untruths and  passages lifted from a British politician.

If that element of the story plays out, politicians of all stripes will look bad. But as long as Mr. Dion stays out of the fray while Canadians discuss Mr. Harper in the same breath as Mr. Bush and Mr. Biden, the Liberal's come out of this ahead.

To share your thoughts about the Stephen Harper, Bob Rae, Stephen Dion, the federal election, Joe Biden, Plagiarism, politics, or anything else about this post with Right Up Your Alley: Kamloops readers, just click on "Comments" (below).

Under My Skin

Things get so crazy in the fall, doesn't seem to matter what a person is involved in, how large or small their family... it's just the busy season. Even weekends that looked laid back until Friday afternoon end up looking more like a 2-day scavenger hunt than anything resembling restful relaxation.

Despite (or in part maybe because of) the two concurrent elections underway, I haven't got the brain power for big ideas.  This last week, it's been the little things that gotten under my skin, hence this lengthy installment of Baker Likes/Baker Doesn't:

Baker Likes:

• It's a booth time! - As predicted in this space a year ago (September 8, 2007 - Expect highway tolls to be in play for next BC election), the provincial Liberals today removed the toll from the Coquihalla highway. Premier Gordon Campbell announced the move this afternoon at the Union of BC Municipalities convention in Penticton.

Throughout the week, it appeared that the Premier had been on the ropes over his carbon tax, with mounting pressure to exempt the North, or cancel the tax entirely. On Wednesday he "blinked" by promising to refund the tax to communities that become carbon neutral by 2012. He looked weak, even Carol James was feeling the wind at her back, crowing that Campbell was "... not listening" to the province's community leaders. Little did she realize it was all a set-up.

By allowing an expression of popular opposition (as opposed to official opposition) to wring this toll from his hands, Gordon now looks like 1). the belle of the ball (long, hard-wraught pun intended), and; 2). a good listener who understands British Columbians.

But in addition to the gifts he bore for municipal leaders, Mr. Campbell also delivered a lump of coal to Jack Layton, who he criticized for promising to tear up the softwood lumber agreement.

“Rip it up? Give your head a shake,” Campbell said. “We won't rebuild the forest industry by ripping up the softwood lumber agreement . . . It’s what’s keeping our forest industry going through what is probably the most difficult period in its history.” - The Tyee

Whatever your stripe, it's hard not to be impressed with that kind of masterful political play. Mr. Campbell drove one through the heart of his own political opposition with a solid forehand, then immediately spread the love around for the federal Conservatives with a surprising backhand to Jack Layton's head. But then again, the anti-Layton sneer works in Mr. Campbell's favour too; does anybody really differentiate between shrill provincial and federal NDPers?

• Sex on the hustings - OK, well maybe not sex on the hustings, but if a picture is worth a thousand words, certainly a lot of chatter about sex, judgement, and one Conservative candidate. Sharon Smith, who represents the Conservatives in Skeena-Bulkley Valley, was captured in a full-monty portrait by her husband after capturing the Houston, BC mayor's office in 2002. The picture was soon after published on the Internet by person's unkown, and even made a splash across the pond in the U.K. press. But everything old is new again in a federal election, so Mrs. Smith is once defending her birthday suit celebration. Between Stephen Harper and Mrs. Smith, have the Tories ever looked so sexy?

• A different kind of sizzle is what caught my eye at CTV.ca, where the network is demonstrating a deft touch with some online tools which this voter found fun and informative. The first, a Canada-wide election heat map, helps one visualize where the leaders are currently and where they've been over the course of the election. It was a neat feature during my first visit, but lacked the depth to pull me back in during subsequent visits; now, if it had provided a link between the leader's stops (represented by push-pins on the map) and the stories that resulted from those whistle-stops, I'd go back again and again. The second tool was better executed, it's a "Pick Your Party" race (at right). Viewers are asked to select from a sequence of unattributed quotes to determine which leader aligns best with your views. It had me guessing to the end.

• No oil please, I'm gassy - Nice to see that legendary oilman T. Boone Pickens continues to put his money where his mouth is with respect to moving America away from its dependence on (foreign) oil. Mr. Pickens just bought Canadian innovator FuelMaker Inc., which produces a natural-gas refueling station for the home, called the Phill. The appliance taps into the natural gas lines already in one's home, to leverage a relatively inexpensive but previously inaccessible vehicle fuel source. Critics suggest his motivation is all profit. Is that a bad thing?
  

• EI option for Self-employed - Prime Minister Harper's pledge to introduce parental EI benefits for entrepreneurs is a fresh and welcome initiative. While the devil may very well be in the details, feedback on non-aligned sites seems largely positive. The move will give many married voters another reason to vote Conservative, while simultaneously appealing to the 15% of the Canadian workforce that is currently self-employed, and which . While I generally prefer governments to limit their roles rather than increase them, family-friendly initiatives that help children spend more time with their own parents represent a welcome departure from the groupthink that encourages parents to place children in the care of others. 

Baker Doesn't:

• Dion goes to the bench - It's about time. Stephen Dion has finally discovered that if he can't win this election by himself, at least least he can lose it with help. One of Jean Chrétien's most dependable tactics was the deployment of lieutenants as foils against his foes. It gave him an opportunity to deliver different messages, but without the responsibility of consolidating those messages into a single unified thread. It also provided a lot of leeway for Mr. Chrétien to attack other party leaders, without the risk of getting muddy himself (not that he ever shied away from that).

But Mr. Dion is only getting it half-right... he's stumping along with them. It's an obvious mistake; he looks a wan in comparison, and is giving many card-carrying Liberals reason for regret rather than enthusiasm. The Liberal leader should assign one of the more aggressive members of the Liberal pantheon to shadow Mr. Harper directly, maybe one of them has what it takes to step up and become "The Grate One" of Canadian politics, à la Esa Tikkanen. The Republicans did it very effectively in Denver; the Liberals should be attacking the Conservative strength here in Canada, and the only way to do that effectively is with a team, not a one-man show. Mr. Harper is in the zone; the Liberals need to get him off his game before he runs up the score.

• 2 legit 2 quit - Why is it that when traditional media is under pressure, bloggers get the blame? This week local journalists gathered at a forum to discuss the present and future of journalism for the benefit of TRU journalism students. The Daily News reported that some of the collected professionals expressed concern that blogs have intruded into the news that people consume locally, like it's an either-or proposition. But if traditional media has lost its appeal, and blogs may be the usual suspect, the actual culprits may actually reside a little closer to home.

Take broadcast for example. Back in 2004, CNN reported on a Pew Research Center for the People and the Press study which revealed that "21 percent of people aged 18 to 29 cited "The Daily Show" and "Saturday Night Live" as a place where they regularly learned presidential campaign news. By contrast, 23 percent of the young people mentioned ABC, CBS or NBC's nightly news broadcasts as a source." Then, in May 2008 Pew told us that John Stewart has become the 4th most admired journalist (tied with legitimate anchormen Brian Williams, Tom Brokaw, Dan Rather and Anderson Cooper). What does it say about legitimate news media that news satire has become synonymous with news?

I personally have always been skeptical of what I read or hear on any news source. Rather, I read and listen to lots of news stories, editorials, and letters to the editor, then based upon my own experience of how the report of an event can differ from the actual event, I form my own perspective on an issue. Often the thing that drives me online to blogs (and other endpoints) is an on-going quest for more perspective, depth, or awareness of what others think. I do that, surely others do as well. In which case, the legitimate media should be adapting to the cause (evolving viewer/reader/listener/browser behaviour) rather than railing against the symptom (the growing popularity of blogs and other ultra-local/social media).

Despite the inclusive language of CFBX program co-ordinator Steve Marlow, I'm not convinced that blogging is journalism, although in the right hands it certainly can be journalism. But whatever it is, it doesn't require nor desire a nod from traditional media to be deemed legitimate; the consumer has already proclaimed this media 2 legit 2 quit reading. Hammertime!

To share your thoughts about the running man, Hammer, The Grate One, John Stewart, Colbert, Stephen Harper, Stephen Dion, Bob Rae, maternity benefits, the federal election, T. Boone Pickens, Gordon Campbell, the Coquihalla toll, politics,Sharon Smith, Kamloops media, or anything else about this post with Right Up Your Alley: Kamloops readers, just click on "Comments" (below).

Would you believe... Senator Emerson?

 Barry (Jul. 21): David Emerson will parachute into Kamloops

• Betty Hinton (Aug. 1): "He has no plans to [...] parachute"

Barry (Sep. 1): Would you believe there won't be a fall election?

• David Emerson (Sep. 5) will co-chair the Conservative's campaign
• Stephen Harper (Sep. 7) calls election for October 14

Barry (Sep. 5): How about Fred Bosman and Jake Ootes arm-wrestling over the second-fiddle solo?

Despite my contention that a hermit in a cave should be able to divine the affairs of men half a continent away, I have somehow been tripped up in my prediction that David Emerson would parachute into Kamloops for the upcoming election. While the prospect of Mr. Emerson's candidacy here might have been confirmed or disproved with an interview, I defend my right (or is it, responsibility) as a blogger to not pursue any facts that might get in the way of a good story. My specialty is speculation, not investigation.

Speculation is hard to resist when one encounters a talent as obvious as Mr. Emerson's, especially when it's wrapped up in such interesting circumstances; even the Edmonton Journal got in on the action, after a fashion. Now, in addition to his current role as co-chair of the Tories election campaign, the Vancouver Sun reports on speculation that Mr. Emerson may also be destined for the Senate.

What, and balance the other self-styled, senatorial, and increasingly partisan golden boy who divided his party in Vancouver? I'll buy that for a dollar.

To share your thoughts about candidate quotas, the October 14 federal election, David Emerson, Larry Campbell, the senate, or anything else about this post with Right Up Your Alley: Kamloops readers, just click on "Comments" (below).

Barry, Barry, Quite Contrary

If Baker is not careful, he's in danger of giving blogging a good name.

Kamloops News Editor Mel Rothenburger, 30-Aug-08

I've never been terribly comfortable with praise. So my first reaction upon reading Mel Rothenburger's most recent Armchair Mayor column, in which he introduced his new blog and provided a nod to mine, was to blush. Then I told my wife. And my mother. Then, à la George W. Bush after his 2004 re-election, I started looking for a way to spend my newly discovered editorial capital. It is my style.

So here it is.

The experts are wrong. Canada will not have a federal election this fall.

Everywhere we see signs of an imminent federal election. Prime Minister Harper asked Governor-General Michaëlle Jean to cancel her trip to China, so she would be available to dissolve parliament. Then Mr. Harper made the case for why an early election would not contravene Bill C-16, which fixed the next election date on Oct. 19, 2009. Both Jack Layton and Gilles Duceppe say the Prime Minister is bent on an election. Most major news services (Reuters, the Globe & Mail, the Toronto Star, etc.), it seems, agree that Mr. Harper engineering a fall election. Polls like this recent Angus Reid Strategies report tend to support the notion that the timing is good for Mr. Harper, given that Stephane Dion's star is waning even further. And most of the Ottawa press gallery seems convinced Mr. Harper is itching for a fight.

But would anyone really be surprised if Mr. Harper's was just using the press gallery to chum the waters and bate Dion into another collapse? He's a master of brinkmanship; think about the September 2007 throne speech and the Afghanistan crisis this past February. In both cases Harper managed to walk away with his government intact, while Mr. Dion looked weak and indecisive. And now that Mr. Dion has changed his mind and plans to meet with the Prime Minister after all, it looks to me like déjà vu all over again.

But what about all the TV commercials the Conservatives are running? Isn't that a sure-fire sign of a looming election? Think again; the Conservatives have been running election-style ads since they got elected. While the Liberals continue to bleed, the Conservatives have been so flush with cash since the last election that they've literally been inventing reasons to splurge on focused multimedia campaigns. Hmmm...

Haven't bought in yet? Here's where I go for broke.

David Emerson will run in Kamloops. I'm still partial to the concept because (despite what others may say) I thunk it (with riding-level specificity) first. Despite protests that Mr. Emerson won't run here, Kamloops remains one of just six ridings remaining in BC without a Conservative candidate. I like the odds. 

OK, maybe we won't bet everything on red; here's a push. If Harper does call a fall election, it will have less to do with this parliament than it does with the next one.

Why? Because there is no obvious or immediate upside to a fall election - which many (of the same pundits I summarily dismissed earlier) anticipate will simply lead to a "fresh" Conservative minority mandate - other than the effect it would have upon the internal politics of the Liberal party over the subsequent eighteen months.

Dion isn't just unpopular with Canadians at large, he's also unpopular with much of the Liberal ruling class. A loss for Dion this fall will precipitate a new Liberal leadership contest, re-energizing the bloodletting that has disrupted that party's focus to varying degrees since at least 2001. And while the Liberals eat their own, Harper will govern and engineer the terms of the next election without a real opposition (again).

By the time you read this post, I will probably already be looking for ways to remove these musings from the Google cache. But for at least the next 12 hours, I'm betting this government will live to see another election crisis. And that's the last of my editorial capital. Are we back to giving blogging a bad name yet?

To share your thoughts about contrary views, Stephen Harper, the looming election, Stephane Dion, the Armchair Mayor, or anything else about this post with Right Up Your Alley: Kamloops readers, just click on "Comments" (below).