01.26.2012 04:56 AM

Going for the bronze

Maybe it’s because I’m posting this in the middle of the night, or maybe it’s because I’m denser than usual, but I’m a bit confused.

My party is (a) still mired in third place and is (b) still nearly 20 points back of the Cons and is (c) still behind the NDP, who do not have a leader.

Like I say, I’m dense. Perhaps someone will fill me in on the way to the celebrations. Thanks.

19 Comments

  1. Archie says:

    Come now Mr. Kinsella — it’s not that you are being dense, it’s that you don’t like the notion of celebrating any upward movement in numbers that show some connection to a certain interim leader you don’t support or isn’t your man…that’s “transparent”

  2. Tony says:

    Warren, in Gods name, PLEASE stop linking exclusively to mobile versions of articles!

  3. Sean says:

    exactly!

  4. MississaugaLibPeter says:

    I was thinking the same friggin’ thing. It’s like the media have been hijacked by Rae partisans. Someone has to give these folks some smelling salts. We are far behind where we were even under Ignatieff except the last week of the last election.

    After Chretien, saviour Martin pulled us down. Saviour Dion pulled us further down (although I really can’t bash him since he was the accidental leader). Saviour Ignatieff kept the downturn going. And Rae really is still further behind than any of the aforementioned were just before an election was called – and now he is considered our saviour.

    The sad part is that Harper can prance around the world – Davos this week, China in two weeks – and act like it were his policies that placed Canada at the top of the industrialized world, when in reality he wanted us in Iraq, he would have allowed our banks to merge and who knows what else, and he had singlehandedly ended an incrdible streak of surpluses even before the financial crisis hit Canada. It is Quebec’s turn to provide the Liberals with a leader, it is time for us to redraft Chretien!

  5. Anne Peterson says:

    But Harris Decima has the cons at 32% and Ekos has them at 31%. Very selective quoting of polls I’d say. Polls schmolls.

  6. Glen says:

    Your personal feelings about Rae aside, there’s not a lot to argue with about in that story.

    Reports of a measly 3-point gain have you on the defensive/attackive?

    • Warren says:

      Undersell and overperform, pal. You should try it.

    • MississaugaLibPeter says:

      There is a lot to argue about – both the headline and the lack of complete reporting.

      http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/ottawa-notebook/the-bob-rae-bounce-liberals-continue-to-gain-steam/article2314904/

      THE FALSE HEADLINE: The Bob Rae bounce: Liberals continue to gain steam

      “Although the Conservatives and NDP are still number one and number two, the Grits are creeping up – the Abacus poll has the Harper Conservatives with the support of 37 per cent of voters compared to the NDP with 28 per cent support and the Liberals at 21 per cent.

      The Abacus numbers, meanwhile, are similar to those in the Angus Reid online public opinion poll, released Tuesday. It has the Conservatives at 39 per cent compared to the NDP with 28 per cent and the Liberals at 22 per cent support. Again, the Angus Reid poll shows the Liberals increasing their support at the expense of the NDP.”

      THE REAL FACTS:

      Election Results (May 2, 2011): 39.6 Con, 30.5 NDP, 18.9 Lib

      Start of 2011 Election: Abacus (March 28, 2011) 36 Con, 20 NDP, 27 Lib; Angus Reid (April 5, 2011) 38 Con, 21 NDP, 27 Lib

      Bob Rae has been interim leader for over 7 months, and the saviour has not done much statistically (the recent polls are all within the statistical range of error of the election results). Except for the final weeks of the last election campaign, IGNATIEFF-LED LIBERALS ALWAYS POLLED BETTER THAN RAE-LED LIBERALS HAVE.

  7. Ted H says:

    They are treading water, but not sinking. I guess that can be considered a positive status.

  8. Domenico says:

    Any sign of Dominic LeBlanc throwing his hat into the ring? For starters he is a Francophone, has never been Premier of Ontario, and lets not forget his great first name….

  9. Neil says:

    Ok, I will try.
    “These polling numbers represent a break from the long term trend. Instead of consistently trending down the LPC is now starting to trend up. This proves that there is life in the party and Canadians are starting to turn back to the party after a decade of looking away. It also proves that Bob Rae is the most skilled Canadian political leader in a generation and that the Raememntum is unstoppable.”
    Does that cough work…..? cough cough yeah I am having trouble cough swallowing that?
    I think I would be more comfortable with “DEAD CAT BOUNCE”

    • Warren says:

      How about this: “We don’t comment on fluctuations in polls, because it’s a waste of time. We will comment, however, on the shortcomings of this Conservative regime, which are significant. And we will continue to work at winning the support of Canadians.”

  10. Self-confessed Raelian says:

    I’ll admit Im somewhat disappointed…..I thought we might get a little bit more of a bump from the convention, but policy conventions arent that sexy, I guess…..

    To be fair, the Liberal hole was years in the making…..it would be good if we could wave a magic wand and return it to NGP status, but we are going to have to earn Canadians support, and this will take time.

    The convention was a good start, but much more work needs to be done, especially out West……

  11. C Smith says:

    Did you ever think that maybe the policies the Liberals have been proposing in the last decade no longer mesh with the mindsets of Canadian voters? Hence no growth momentum.

    I remember lots of high powered Liberal candidates talking about how “sound” the party policy for the last election was, and were genuinely shocked that it was not embraced by voters. That “shock” is what Liberals need to assess. The cognitive dissonance is the key. Liberals need a good SWOT analysis.

    To be more blunt: the ideology of baby boomers has taken a right turn and the lack of replacement voting by their children for “Liberal values” isn’t happening. They won’t vote, but if they do, it’s for ” the other”. The NDP outflanks the Liberals, not only on the left, but has leapfrogged over the Liberals in the centre left. The CPC appears to have the whole centre right spectrum to itself (as well as all the rest of the “right”).

    What’s left is a political oasis that is ever diminishing in size as the two parties drink on “Liberal Values”. The CPC takes the fiscally conservative mantle (while courting ethnic voters), and the NDP appropriates the Socially progressive tag (while boasting of fiscal responsibility). Little joining the dichotomy remains. Entropy prevails. And to further emphasize the point: this is absolutely intentional. Both the NDP and the CPC wish to destroy the Liberal party and will adjust their platforms, irrespective of ideological imperatives, to do just that.

    Maybe a re-think of what Liberalism means is due? And not the stuff that comes out of conventions (speaking as the former policy chair of a Liberal riding association). In fact, looking back at its original precepts would be a good start. Even Wikipedia has some food for thought there.

    Or maybe Liberals should look at the left-right continuum as a line diagram that no longer reflects the political landscape. Shifting the line into a triangle with Liberals occupying a distinct third pole of political thought at least offers a clear alternative to voters.

    But then, that requires some risky thinking. And upsetting some sacred cows. It may, in fact, force a renewed party “right” rather than left into the arms of the NDP. That’s heresy, so it appears to be easier to keep talking about the centre and Liberal values, all the way to extinction. Or to pray for the mother of all scandals to hit the CPC. What are the odds?

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