The Shotgun Blog
« Layton's wife may run federally | Main | If I can just stop laughing long enough to type this... »
Sunday, May 02, 2004
Ben Mulroney is his father's son and Kinsella is still a troublemaker
Ben Mulroney says in his Toronto Sun column that he doesn't care who has the answers to the question of how to fix healthcare, as long as it is fixed: "I'll repeat myself: Mine isn't a partisan position. My priority is the safeguard of our most prized national possession. I don't care if the solution to our health-care crisis comes from the left, right, centre, or is culled word-for-word from the Communist Manifesto. Fix it, and I'll be happy." To Ben, no one has the right answer: "My point is this, when it comes to health care, no single party will have the right answer. Each side will be equal parts right and silly." I've never gone for the right-answer-is-somewhere-in-the-middle routine, but I think Warren Kinsella's analysis of Ben Mulroney's column says more about Kinsella than it does about Mulroney:
"May 2, 2004 - It would be churlish - cruel, even - to suggest that a journalist of Ben Mulroney's immense stature receives his columns from his father's secretary, via the fax room at Ogilvy Renault in Montreal. The Sun papers - all of Canadian journalism, in fact - are honoured by his continued willingness to balance TV celebrity interviews with scintillating political analysis. How does he do it? And all whilst keeping his hair so neat and tidy? Let me say it, once and for all: Ben has his weekly Sun column because he is our generation's I. F. (Izzy) Stone. The fact that his father is the chairman of the newspaper's board is entirely coincidental.Ahem. In any event, in today's masterwork, Ben writes this:
'Obviously, to attack the Tories makes political sense for the Liberals. But what is politically effective is not always good for the country, and what this country needs more than an election campaign, more than attack ads and more than a Warren Kinsella-type ass-kicking is an open and effective debate.'I could not agree more. What a genius this fetching young lad is.
But - and I hesitate to raise this, so forgive me - what is Benji's view of his father's celebrated decision to, and I quote, "bomb the bridges" about his Liberal opponent in the federal election campaign of 1988? You know, the one that relied upon millions in business contributions, and shadowy 'independent' corporate coalitions, to deploy some of the most vicious attack ads anyone has ever seen in Canada: what about that? Given the junior Mulroney's newfound fondness for 'open and effective debate,' I can only assume he will now condemn his father's shocking descent into the political depths.
Here is Ben's personal email address, should you wish to urge him to take a stand on this important issue: [email protected].
Tell him Warren Kinsella-type Ass-Kicker sent you!"
Posted by Paul Tuns on May 2, 2004 in Canadian Politics | Permalink
TrackBack
TrackBack URL for this entry:
https://www.typepad.com/services/trackback/6a00d834515b5d69e200d83421917853ef
Listed below are links to weblogs that reference Ben Mulroney is his father's son and Kinsella is still a troublemaker:
» Cloak and Dagger from Bow. James Bow.
I received my first anonymous source today. Now I feel all cloak and dagger. So, my source says: This is an interesting coincidence. When you consider this. What is this? Well, it’s a biography for a partner of the lawfirm... [Read More]
Tracked on 2004-10-07 12:01:07 PM
Comments
Adornments to the grand tradition of Canadian letters.
Posted by: Jay Currie | 2004-05-02 11:45:43 PM
The comments to this entry are closed.