Beyond The Commons

Aaron Wherry covers all the goings-on in and around Parliament Hill. Follow Aaron on Twitter: @aaronwherry

Categories: Beyond The Commons, Capital Read

NDP to win eight more seats!

by Aaron Wherry on Friday, August 14, 2009 1:45pm - 16 Comments

Ed Broadbent rallies the faithful in Halifax.

At the federal level it is the Liberals and Conservatives who mismanaged the economy and created the crisis of inequality by slashing programs and imposing regressive taxation. Their policies will perpetuate the status quo. Our task, once again, is to lead the struggle. We must restore the dream for social justice. But this isn’t just a dream. We now know it is both ideal and possible to create a Canada that is healthier in every respect; a Canada with more involvement by our citizens; a Canada where neighbours are seen as friends, not as competitors; a Canada in which babies born the same day in Cape Breton and Calgary will have equal opportunities in life. Our task as New Democrats is to demonstrate, show and persuade Canadians that with more equality this kind of Canada is possible. Let’s get on with the job.

Tags: Ed Broadbent, Halifax, NDP, NDP convention

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http://intensedebate.com/people/Crit_Reasoning Crit_Reasoning

a Canada in which babies born the same day in Cape Breton and Calgary will have equal opportunities in life.

Yeesh. This isn't the 19th Century. The baby born in Cape Breton will grow up to become an adult who can move anywhere he or she pleases, if the employment opportunities in Cape Breton are lacking.

Also, I'd argue that kids grow up in beautiful Cape Breton are in many ways luckier than kids who grow up in cities like Calgary.
http://www.intensedebate.com/people/Crit_Reasoning Crit_Reasoning

a Canada in which babies born the same day in Cape Breton and Calgary will have equal opportunities in life.

Yeesh. This isn't the 19th Century. The baby born in Cape Breton will grow up to become an adult who can move anywhere he or she pleases, if the employment opportunities in Cape Breton are lacking.

Also, I'd argue that kids who grow up in beautiful Cape Breton are in many ways luckier than kids who grow up in cities like Calgary.

http://demarchy.tumblr.com Justin Ling

Unless, of course, you don't have the money to move away and receive the same benefits as someone in, say, Calgary might. As a Caper, I know plenty of people who will be stuck here for most of their lives because they've been stuck in the cycle of repressive poverty.

wilson

Surely you aren't suggesting a 'culture of defeat'!!!!!

http://intensedebate.com/people/PhilCP PhilCP

Indeed, that will be an exceedingly difficult goal to reach. Consider that even today two babies born in opposite corners of Calgary are unlikely to have equal opportunities in life.

Are there some systemic barriers in place? Perhaps. Lets hear the details and see what (if anything) needs to be done.

http://intensedebate.com/people/Crit_Reasoning Crit_Reasoning

The first systemic barrier is money.

The second systemic barrier is a combination of innate variables that include level of education, peer group, intelligence, upbringing, core beliefs, culture, etc.

The third systemic barrier is social stratification, class discrimination, and all other forms of discrimination, which still exist (to a lesser extent) in society today.

http://intensedebate.com/people/PhilCP PhilCP

Sorry CR, I should have attached my reply/questions to JLs reply rather than to yours, as it was his thoughts that I was trying to get.

Not that I'm not also interested in your thoughts, of course…..

Garbage Catcher

I think he wants to make Calgary a beautiful island? Or perhaps he's suggesting that Jack Layton will use the power of his moustache to move oceans?

http://www.intensedebate.com/people/Crit_Reasoning Crit_Reasoning

a Canada in which babies born the same day in Cape Breton and Calgary will have equal opportunities in life.

Yeesh. This isn't the 19th Century. The baby born in Cape Breton will grow up to become an adult who can move anywhere he or she pleases, if the employment opportunities in Cape Breton are lacking.

Also, I'd argue that kids who grow up in beautiful Cape Breton are in many ways luckier than kids who grow up in urban settings like Calgary.
http://intensedebate.com/people/Ed_Sweeney Ed_Sweeney

I think he inadvertently let slip the new name in his opening line – the Social Democrat Party.

joops

Read Ed's interview in the Globe and Mail today – he has no desire to see the name changed. But if it had to be he would surely prefer the Social Democratic Party. He has written a lot on this over the years.

http://intensedebate.com/people/Ed_Sweeney Ed_Sweeney

I agree with Ed on both counts.

http://intensedebate.com/people/Crit_Reasoning Crit_Reasoning

That would actually be a pretty good name for the party, if they are serious about dropping the "NDP" brand.
wilson

'a Canada in which babies born the same day in Cape Breton and Calgary will have equal opportunities in life'

that's called wealth redistribution…equaliztion…NEP….
http://www.intensedebate.com/people/Ed_Sweeney Ed_Sweeney

Hmmm, when Broadbent lays it on thick like this it kind of tarnishes that fond nostalgia we have for him. By regressive taxation I think he means not-as-progressive-as-we-would-have-it. The class struggle rhetoric has lost its lustre, it needs to be updated. Of course, he is speaking to the troops, so the grey heads may dip into their wallets afterward. It serves a purpose.
hosertohoosier

Perhaps Broadbent was suggesting that if only places like Calgary followed the Cape (or other depressing fringes that vote for the left) they could enjoy the remarkable bounty of wealth that Capers do.