Back.....

For those who regularly check this site, let me apologize for not posting here as regularly as was my pledge. There are interesting developments in the works related to both my professional and volunteer responsibilities which have proved to be very time-consuming of late. This may continue for a few more weeks but I am hoping a more normal pace will soon ensue.

In the meantime, a few quick hits that have caught my eye.....

Politicizing the Olympics - Politicians of all stripes can be seen at the Olympics. For better or worse, it is accepted that this is part of their job. When Prime Minister Harper did not attend the Opening Ceremonies of the Beijing Olympics, he was criticized for doing so. So while the attempt by the government to have Parliamentarians pay for their own tickets may seem egalitarian and a measure of restraint in these economically challenging times, I am with the Calgary Herald on this one. The Prime Minister should simply go and not make a show of paying for his own tickets. It's part of the job.

Political Games Coming - James Travers in his Star column today suggests that the opposition parties will put forward a question of privilege when Parliament resumes, alleging that the governments refusal to produce documents relating to the Afghan detainee question amounts to contempt of Parliament. I don't profess to know the intricacies of the procedural questions that emerge if all of the opposition parties join and pass such a motion, however if Mr. Travers logic is correct, it could back us into a spring election. My guess is that the Conservatives, in spite of a recent poll, might just be inclined to let the opposition back their way into an election, confident that in a campaign, they would more than make up whatever recent loss of support they had gained. Keep in mind how quickly the Liberal support fell when they determined last fall it was time for an election. Hard to believe they will make that mistake again this spring.

Vision and Cynicism - Last weekend I was among 100 or so Albertans who participated in a conference organized by the Manning Center on various issues facing Alberta. It was most interesting to listen to politicians and policy wonks of various parties address questions of vision by immediately jumping to policy. Sometimes the "vision thing" in politics can be over-rated and voters are simply looking for competent leaders and managers. But competent leadership almost always does emerge from a clear understanding of who we are and what we want to be. Being able to articulate that narrative and have it make sense to voters is probably more important in politics than the details of any platform proposal. I think it is safe to say (and intended in a non-partisan way with application to both our federal and provincial scenes) that for the most part, most politicians today are not particularly skilled at this piece of the game. Maybe that is part of why there is so much cynicism towards politics.