Categories: Coyne v. Wells, Video

Coyne v. Wells on China and last year's coalition madness

Our weekly video podcast.

by macleans.ca on Tuesday, December 8, 2009 9:45am - 17 Comments

Producer note:
Please excuse the video problems near the end, internet troubles led to some video degradation.
And a big thanks to our very own commenter Sean Stokholm for sending in some music!

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Tags: Andrew coyne, China, coalition, coynevwells09, paul wells, Stephen Harper

http://intensedebate.com/people/jolyon jolyon

As a populist, I thought your segue could have been Massey College types out of touch on foreign affairs and move on to how clueless elites were on domestic scene. We don't want to be in agreement with ChiComs – ever – because they are little more than organized crime gang. Canadian pols/msm getting bent out of shape when ChiComs scolded us was embarrassing.

I really enjoyed Topp's series last week. Reading about elites divvying up spoils of power without a care in the world how Canadians would view their actions was riveting and made my skin crawl at same time. I believe Canadians would accept a Coalition between Libs and NDP, as long as it not sprung on them as a surprise after Cons have already started governing, but there is visceral dislike of BQ across Canada that our elites/msm obviously don't share.

http://intensedebate.com/people/SeanStok SeanStok

"I wonder if the Coalition BQ would have gone better if they would have tried to take power right after election instead of waiting six weeks.."

I know what you mean. But to be fair, it wasn't until that point that Harper decided to govern as though he had a majority. There was no prior reason (without debating the merits of rallying a coalition in response to that particular FU) to challenge the convention of plurality forming government.

http://intensedebate.com/people/jolyon jolyon

I don't think coalition + BQ would ever have been acceptable to public but they would have had better chance of selling it right after election, I think. Dion announced his plan to resign as leader, and was about to get the bum's rush from party, by the time coalition was revealed and he's supposed to be our new PM. Talked about mixed messages – not good enough to lead party but certainly capable of being PM.

http://intensedebate.com/people/robert_mccl6309 Robert McClelland

The idea that the rules of our democracy should be subject to the whims of the populace is ludicrous. Apply this notion to a hockey game and you'll see. For example, lets say Montreal fans hate backhand shots so therefore any goal scored by a backhand shot in Montreal doesn't count as a goal. The rules need to be clear, concise and not subject to people's perception otherwise there's not much point in having any at all.

http://intensedebate.com/people/jolyon jolyon

"The wind does not break a tree that bends"

What you leave out of your analogy is the role of the referee, which I guess would be GG. And most people think GG made correct decision last autumn.

http://intensedebate.com/people/robert_mccl6309 Robert McClelland

So rules based on perception proves that rules based on perception are good. You're skating in circles.

Rob

Margaret Fuller was the one who was known for the phrase, "I accept the universe".
http://intensedebate.com/people/Inkless Inkless

Hey thanks Rob. As with so much else that I recall only vaguely, I was mostly just repeating something I heard George Will say once.
http://intensedebate.com/people/Crit_Reasoning Crit_Reasoning

Great Coyne v. Wells. Sure, there was the ringing phone and a few botched segueways, but it was one of those rare episodes where I found myself nodding in zen-like harmony with the observations of both talking heads on my screen.

Nice tunes, Sean! I'm listening to "Straight Razor Shave" as I type this.
http://intensedebate.com/people/SeanStok SeanStok

Thank you!

I kind of liked the phone ringing and stuff – part of the charm of these pieces is their ungussied nature. They really need to find a wedge issue, though. :)

http://intensedebate.com/people/Lord_Bob Lord Bob

I think they already did high-speed rail and post-secondary funding, so unless they do a vodcast on jazz music we may be in trouble.

Mulletaur

Coyne, seconded by Wells, vote for Door Number 2 : Coalitions have not been rejected wholesale by the Canadian electorate, they just didn't like the one on offer. I agree. The point about self-interest is an important one which goes to the heart of any competitive system, including our political system, proving once again that politics is never about ideology, principle, morals, etc., at least at the level of partisan politics. Politics is about power. The fact that our system produces good results in Canada is a tribute to our political culture, our political institutions and our character as a nation. We shouldn't expect our politicians to be choir boys and girls, just that they do what they think is in their electoral interests. The rest will fall into place on its own. It's when they become inflexibly devoted to some monotheism that we should start worrying …
Mulletaur

Oh, and I should add that the fact that Door Number 2 is not closed in future is a tribute to the flexibility of our political system, which is its greatest strength. In many other countries, the whole coalition thingy would have been dealt with by a constitutional court rather than something like the institution of the GG. Result : a politician thinks they have enough support to challenge the rule of law in a similar situation, and there's a coup d’état.
Paddy

When China executed British national Akmal Shaikh on Dec. 29 for trying to smuggle four kilos of heroin into the country, there was a massive outcry from British officials.

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Martin Pitcher

While I get annoyed at all the paranoia that seems to go hand-in-hand with parenting these days, I am certain I would be keeping my daughter home for a few days. Odds be damned, when something this horrific hits so close to home and threatens your children no less… I say indulge in your parental right to be overprotective.
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James D

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