‘Everyone in the world was beating their chest,” Prime Minister Stephen Harper observed, speaking of the Copenhagen global summit in one of his year-end interviews. “I never saw so much grandstanding in my life.”
Quite so. In contrast, Mr. Harper was himself never more eloquent than in the three days he spent in Copenhagen – when he said absolutely nothing. Surrounded by a madness of politicians (that is, by the fevered rhetoric of the leadership of 160 countries), tormented by the mendacity of environmentalists (that is, by the absurd naming of Canada, which produces less than 2 per cent of the world’s carbon emissions, as Fossil Fuel Country of the Year), Mr. Harper kept his head, a remarkable performance that proved him again – however else he may be judged – an authentic leader.
Rudyard Kipling once described this kind of self-control in poetic detail. If you keep your head even as everyone else loses theirs, you prove yourself. If you trust your judgment even as everyone else doubts it, you prove yourself. If you wait without getting impatient, you prove yourself. If you restrain from making yourself “look too good,” or making yourself “talk too wise,” you prove yourself. Relentlessly hounded by all the usual howling mobs, Mr. Harper proved himself in all of these ways in Copenhagen.
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Latest Nano’s poll indicates that among decided voters, the Tories still hold a solid nine point lead over the liberals.
Impressions of Ignatieff continues to decline! Will he become the second federal liberal leader, (Deyawn being the first) not to become PM?
http://www.nikonthenumbers.com/topics/show/151
Just read the Prime Minister’s Christmas greetings address in my mailbox. As Canadians we can THANK GOD ALMIGHTY for the fact that at present Canada is singularly blessed for his leadership. Similarly in Germany as Merkel deals with the economic downturn that was stoked worldwide.
At base, it will be restored when individual innovation and all kinds of entrepreneurship gets driven up. CEOs and banking officials, private enterprise must be part of the return to stability, investing in people first. When that occurs, profitability results.
Wishing each and everyone of the good community here, especially Jack whose eye scans the horizon for us with the threats AND the restorative possibilities to make order out of chaos.
In our hearts, even our collective hearts WE WILL MAKE IT A GOOD NEW YEAR.
The children dancing and singing together at Christmas just shone in my household. We may have multitude of questions right now while the answers evade us. But we can know one thing, LOVE is the ANSWER.
We had four hours of complete excitement in that a poodle dog of the family’s got off its leash and we all had to look far and wide for it. Ended up finding it and the six year old niece stopped crying. Oh my. Happy chaos.
Anyway, the cooking and the baking goes on, so I’m behind in the news except for scanning here and that terrorism problem is going to be solved. NP editorialist has explained Israel’s airline security system works as the model to be emulated.
Quickly, HAPPY NEW YEAR to all as the hours wind down. God bless us all.
Anna
Just to step back, let’s note this is a very good article about PMSH from none other than the Globe and Mail. Some of my blue Liberal friends have been telling me to read Neil Reynolds, now I understand why.
Also this one blows me away from MoDo in the NY Slimes… a quote:
“If we can’t catch a Nigerian with a powerful explosive powder in his oddly feminine-looking underpants and a syringe full of acid, a man whose own father had alerted the U.S. Embassy in Nigeria, a traveler whose ticket was paid for in cash and who didn’t check bags, whose visa renewal had been denied by the British, who had studied Arabic in Al Qaeda sanctuary Yemen, whose name was on a counterterrorism watch list, who can we catch?”
read the whole thing , especially the title:
As the Nation’s Pulse Races, Obama Can’t Seem to Find His
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/30/opinion/30dowd.html?_r=2&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
So maybe we need to watch for some changes in the MSM in 2010 … or is that too HopeyChangey?
This fellow is spot-on; we are so lucky to have PMSH holding the steering wheel through 2009 and unless the Iggster changes his mind again, 2010.
I can’t believe this guy writes for the G&M – have they become balanced while I wasn’t paying attention? Next you’re going to tell me that I should have accepted that “too good to be true” phone offer to subscribe to the Toronto Star.
What really made PMSH look good was how horrid and foolish the provincial “leaders” looked.
Re: #5 — “Yup”…it boggles the mind. Harper never said a word and all hell breaks loose.
Remaining silent has it’s good points.
I’ve tried at home but it never seems to help.
I tried it here
it told me :
Your comment was a bit too short. Please go back and try again.
#5 that and playing the piano was also a big help. And yet, a majority continues to elude him. I guess Canadians just dont trust any of the federal parties with a majority, just yet. I know I dont.
Hard to have a majority without an election, UV and the PM isn’t in a rush for an election. The opposition are doing such a great job of destroying their own credibility, the PM doesn’t want to interrupt them. Besides, the media (and the voters) would punish him for suggesting an election was necessary.
I don’t buy this “don’t trust him with a majority” nonsense.
Nobody actually votes for a majority or minority, unless there’s some big conspiracy going on where they decide who’s voting how.
Then again, I couldn’t believe this Reynolds guy is paid by the G&M.
#10 — That might be true Mac but another scenario could be Canadians dont want a majority Conservative Government either as my favorite (unofficial) federal political party, ‘the Undecided’ is still quite large. That may also be going through their minds.