Harper: Playing Hardball Credit: Art Threat

In an earlier posting, I had discussed why certain politicians are more successful than others and the influence of Machiavelli on modern politics. Stephen Harper was cited as one of those successful politicians: someone concerned primarily about his own interests and someone willing to do what it takes to succeed. The recent treatment of Helena Guergis for the missteps that she and her husband Rahim Jaffer are alleged to have committed implies self-centered and tough behaviour on the part of Harper. Harper decided to take merely the word of a semi-anonymous source to justify the call for a police and ethics probe and for turfing her from caucus. Although the allegations could be true, clear evidence does not appear to have been presented. Furthermore, at no time does it appear that Harper asked Guergis for her side of the story nor did he inform her about the nature of the allegations. This behaviour seems to bolster earlier descriptions of Harper as a cold opportunist, and someone not particularly fond of women. Many journalists have pointed out that this behaviour allows Harper to remove unequivocally a difficult cabinet minister from Government and from a relatively safe seat that the Tories will probably win again without Guergis.
(more…)

Churchill: A Great Leader, Reader & Writer Photo Credit: John Stodder Blog

More books are sold in Canada during the winter months than any other time of the year. It probably has to do with the frequent gift-giving occasions during that time of the year. Stumped for a gift idea, we will often resort to buying books. Most books, however, are probably read during the spring and summer months rather than the winter months. During winter, we are probably too busy trying to keep warm to read too many books.

It is around this time of year that I occasionally reread Winston Churchill’s second volume of his world War II memoirs, “Their Finest Hour”, which after some 55 years after its publication remains an inspiring narrative, composed by one of history’s greatest leaders. Despite the enormous trauma of war, he still found the time to read widely and write eloquent and copious memoranda on a daily basis.

We should follow his lead and try to write or read daily , despite the stress of daily life or the unpleasant cold of winter months. If one is interested in updating their reading lists, I have a few suggestions. In addition to Churchill’s memoirs, history and political junkies will enjoy “Vietnam, If Kennedy Had Lived” by James Blight et al, which was mentioned in an earlier blog posting. Another good book on JFK is Herbert Parmet’s biography “Jack: The Struggles Of John F. Kennedy”. History buffs will also enjoy “Napoleon & Wellington” by Andrew Roberts. This is a unique biography and is not strictly speaking a ‘joint’ biography. Unlike other books that have looked at the showdown between these two military geniuses, it focuses on what each General thought, wrote and said about the other.
(more…)

Sidney Crosby Seals Gold Victory For Men's Hockey: Who Cares? Photo: The Star-Ledger

Canadians can now stop the hand-wringing, and finally we can hoist the red and white high towards the clouds, but how large was our Vancouver Olympic victory really? We did win more gold medals than any other country in Winter Olympic history. In terms of sporting success and country size, our victory was actually much larger than most people think. With a population nine times larger than ours (which means a much larger young population base from which to select top athletes) and with significantly larger financial resources, the U.S. won only 11 more medals, and they actually won significantly fewer gold medals than Canada. Put another way, Canada won 0.466666′ gold medals per million people (the medal some people consider the only one worth winning), while the United States won only 0.033333′ gold medals per million people. Yes, the Americans won the most medals, but they did not win 9 times more medals which their population would suggest they should. Furthermore, most of these medals were not the more prestigious gold medal category. When factoring in population and financial considerations, some small countries actually do extremely well in Olympic events, even if the medals won are few in number. So given Canada’s small stature and her gold medal record, even when considering the home-field advantage, we accomplished truly Olympian athletic feats: we actually did more than own the podium.
(more…)

Machiavelli: Tutoring Canadian Politicians. Photo Credit: Din Merican

“Great men are almost always bad men.”
- Lord Acton

Fortune is a woman, and if you wish to conquer her, you must beat and coerce her. And she always smiles upon the
young man, because he commands her with the greatest audacity.

The Prince
By Niccolo Machiavelli

Because the great English historian had written extensively about liberty and federalism, it should not be surprising that Prime Minister Trudeau had read Lord Acton’s work. And because Machiavelli had written his political books in the early part of the 16th century, it should not be surprising that his work contained sexist and offensive passages such as the foregoing one. What might surprise some readers is the fact that Pierre Trudeau and other prominent political and military leaders have consulted Machiavelli’s books throughout the centuries for their sage advice.
(more…)

Just a short note about the Adam Giambrone Toronto Mayoralty campaign. As anyone who has been reading my blogs here knows, I have attempted to focus on the positive and interesting aspects of politics. Unfortunately, there are occasions when politicians do not meet me half-way. The collapse of Mr. Giambrone’s mayoralty campaign is somewhat an example of this.

To be fair, I don’t believe that Adam expected to become mayor. I think this campaign was designed to raise publicity and enhance his profile which in turn would help a future mayoralty campaign. It should also be pointed out that Mr. Giambrone is a young person. There are perhaps a few thirty-somethings out there who are experienced and competent enough to run a large city and are also shrewd enough to avoid scandal. However, there are probably not a lot of them. He is also guilty of what a lot of politicians and other members of the establishment are certainly doing.
(more…)

Galbraith & Kennedy: A chance encounter that almost changed the course of history? Photo Credit: CBC-TV

President John F. Kennedy has been dead for nearly 50 years. Yet his memory still shines brightly for many people. This is in large part because he was an attractive, charismatic leader in his day and because he did not grow old with us. Despite numerous attempts by revisionist historians to disparage his reputation, there are huge numbers of people around the world who still hold him in high esteem. Although tarnished slightly, for the general public, JFK’s place among the pantheon of American heroes is secure.

In my view, John F. Kennedy was in some ways a mediocre President. His pursuit of lascivious pleasures and his opinion of the opposite sex would have risked huge embarrassment in today’s politically correct culture. His legislative record of passing laws was dismal. His domestic policies were often not as brilliant and as progressive as our faulty memories would suggest. In the private arena of the White House, he was not always the calm, well-mannered individual his spin doctors made him out to be.
(more…)

Former Prime Ministers Brian Mulroney & Jean Chretien - Photo Credit: Canadian Press

Former Prime Ministers Brian Mulroney and Jean Chretien share many negative and positive traits. In fact, the similarities between the two is striking: both of Quebec working class stock, both possessing enormous drive and both doggedly determined to prove their condescending critics wrong, and both very vindictive individuals with an inability to forgive and forget. Both men were remarkable and very effective political campaigners and were viewed by opponents during campaigns as formidable political adversaries. Both married well, each married to a vibrant, warm, and talented lady, and both appear to have been loving husbands. Whatever you may think about Mulroney’s ethics and Chretien’s “ little guy from Shawinigan” schtick, it would have been a glorious and exciting match if these two were to fight each other for the Prime Ministership. But it was a contest that never happened.

What follows is a bit of counterfactual history. What if Brian Mulroney and Jean Chretien were to face each other in a battle for political supremacy? The synopsis that follows reflects my imaginings of what might have happened.
(more…)

Photo Credit: Blacknight Solutions

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times…The famous opening phrase to Charles Dickens’ novel “A Tale Of Two Cities” was applied to the times in which Dickens lived, but it probably also applies to all periods in history, including our own. This past year represents both the best of times and the worst of times for us. What follows are a few random snapshots of the past year, representing both the good times and the bad.
(more…)

Photo Credit: The Canadian Cave of Coolness

Recent elections and polling indicate that two great Canadian federal parties, the Liberals and the NDP, are in real trouble and could continue to face irrelevance or even extinction in future elections. These are the parties of titans like Laurier, J.S. Woodsworth, Tommy Douglas, Pearson, and Trudeau, whose names reverberate throughout Canadian history.

Is it now time for an old and little known political idea to be revisited? Should the Liberals and the NDP consider some form of partnership? Having endured numerous unsuccessful election results, the Progressive Conservatives and various conservative splinter groups successfully entertained the thought of union, creating the Conservative Party at the federal level. Would the same type of marriage work for Liberals and the NDP?

The marriage between the Progressive Conservative and the Reform political parties was like a marriage between a wolf and a domesticated dog. They share a common evolutionary history, although there has been recent branching off from the evolutionary tree. Whatever differences that do exist, they are still genetically similar enough that they can produce progeny and get along reasonably well. Thus, the marriage of the two parties could and did occur. This union, which resulted in the Conservative Party, required a lot of compromise and effort, but a relatively happy marriage ensued.
(more…)

Finance Minister Jim Flaherty
Photo Credit: CBC

Let’s get straight to the point. The deficit is an economic problem, but it is not as serious as many make it out to be. What may surprise many people is the fact that many business leaders and almost all neo-conservative politicians secretly agree. Don’t be fooled by Finance Minister Jim Flaherty’s recent rumblings about the deficit. His main concern is tax cuts and smaller government, not the deficit. In fact, a large deficit plays right into his plans for smaller government.

Let’s rewind our discussion back to the events in Ontario during the early 1990s when there was a severe recession and Mike Harris, who worked closely with Flaherty, was not quite yet Premier. Ontario was actually deficit-free for several years just before the recession of 1990. Recessions usually cause deficits, because the unemployment levels significantly reduce government revenue and because of the large costs of helping the unemployed. Based on the ideas of Keynesian macroeconomics, some governments try to end recessions by simulating growth through spending, further increasing the deficit. Ontario Premier Bob Rae, the leader of a socialist NDP government, tried this and so have most governments, including Mr. Harper’s, during this most recent global recession. Bob Rae eventually stopped spending and started reducing the deficit when he started receiving a lot of flak for the increased deficit. When Neo-conservative Mike Harris came to office, the deficit was already significantly way down. Mr. Harris and Mr. Flaherty continued the policy of deficit reduction, but not at a rate faster than Rae and that of other Canadian governments. The economy improved, not because of Harris tax cuts or deficit reduction, but because of low U.S. interest rates that created a large market for Ontario exports.
(more…)