The not so new normal
We live an existence of change and uncertainty. We should celebrate.
Categories: Business, Common Wisdom?, Media, Politics, Project Management, Technology Tags: clarify-ca, history, its-not-the-destination-its-the-journey, t, wisdommedia-com
LPC leadership race – I want some fire in the belly
Audio Podcast: some initial thoughts after the second Liberal party leadership debate in Winnipeg.
Definition?
I wonder if it is fair to say one is depressed when, in considering the future one’s brightest thoughts are a massive heart attack or a fatal accident?
Categories: Common Wisdom? Tags: carey-miller-communications-toronto, carey-miller-liberal-party, clarify-ca, explaining-its-not-the-destination-its-the-journey, interim-leader-def, its-not-the-destination-its-the-journey, its-not-the-destination-its-the-journey-meaning, the-meaning-of-its-not-the-destination-its-the-journey, www-clarify-ca
Silence is Not Golden
"You could not write that as a book. Nobody would believe it." I have said those words myself about circumstances which seem cliched or outlandish but are true. At this time of the year, with friends and their children on the March of the Living, I fully understand the conundrum.
The Odd New Meaning of Phobic
<Note: I am starting back up some content for this blog. More current content is coming.>
As I take in my steady stream of media, I find bothered by the repetition of some new words that seem to have meanings that make little sense. There are many such words but I am wondering today about the odd use of the word phobia, as in homophobia and Islamophobia.
On Twitter today I saw a tweet that TOBuilt, an interesting database of Toronto buildings, was shutting down. It is an interesting site which I have visited and I was surprised. Going to the site, I saw the following letter on the home page:
October 25, 2010: End of TOBuilt
Thanks for your support over the years. I no longer have time to maintain this site or keep the data up to date. I've struggled with a decision about whether or not to re-engage and become more active with gathering data and photographing buildings, but my heart has not been in it.
Tonight, with the election of Rob Ford, my mind has been made up about how to proceed. Our new belligerent, homophobic, liar of a mayor, and the fact that the city around me voted for him overwhelmingly, seals my decision. Torontonians have voted for four years of backwardness and chaos, and I at the moment I have no desire at all to even be in the city, much less traveling its breadth in a quest to document its built environment.
Thanks for your support over the years. Best of luck.
I was surprised at the action but not surprised at the vehemence. I have been hearing Rob Ford vilified during the mayoral campaign as racist, anti-immigrant and homophobic.
Phobia defines a fear. Many now seem to have conflated disagreement with fear. This causes a freeze on discussions which are in any way outside the PC.
What a shame.
Categories: Common Wisdom?, Politics Tags: liberal-debate-a-tepid-opening, mayor-phobic
Why I am Working on James Morton’s Campaign
Since May 2nd, I have listened to many explaining how horrible the cpc government is and how vital it is to the country that the Liberal Party come back. I believe they are sincere. My feelings are a little different. To me, the Liberal party of this century has taken navel gazing to such a high art form that its most advanced political members can do accurate freehand renderings of their intestinal tracts. Frankly, the loss of the Liberal Party of 2001 – 2011 would not be terribly significant.
So, I am asked, why do I expend time, effort and lucre for a party which, at this time, I would not mourn? I do so for two reasons:
1. The party has a foundation in history.
2. It's competitors are hidebound creatures of ideology whose long term success would be unfortunate for Canada.
At the Biennial Convention in January, we have the opportunity to make changes to the party and how it works. Frankly, I am not optimistic. Like so many elections, the candidates who are yelling for change are so tied up in internal Party politics that a dictionary definition of the word "change" should show their posteriors, walking away. Still, there are exceptions. In the race for VP (English) one is James Morton.
I have known James for some years. Not the closest of friends, I have had the opportunity to see James in action over decades, rather than months. I have seen a rational person with a defined set of beliefs who will work harder that one could ever expect. As a lawyer, he practices in both Toronto and Nunavut. Between his practices he is a senior volunteer for the Liberal party, he writes, lectures, is often heard and seen in media, he blogs and tweets and, somewhere during all this he has published almost twenty books.
James is a passionate Liberal. He truly believes that the party can have something to contribute to the Canadian political landscape. I have known James long enough to give him the benefit of the doubt. To that end, I have been happy to work with him, to help refine ideas which can help the Liberals regain some of their historical gravitas. James ideas and initiatives, while aimed at the Liberal Party, are those that apply to any large organization with many semi-autonomous local sub-organizations.
Of James' competitors, I am sure they are nice people. One is very new to the party. I am sure he is a good man but this is not the time to be learning the location of the washrooms. The other grew up in the party, rising from position to position as a youth. I am sure he thinks it is his turn. I think we should wait to bring the entitled types back until we want to sink the party again.
Its time to bring in people who have worked hard, are passionate but whose resume is not defined by their Ottawa work history.
Categories: Common Wisdom?, James Morton Campaign, Politics Tags: carey-miller-clarif, carey-miller-toronto, clarify, clarify-ca, clarifyca, finding-clarity, harrietha-leadership-campaign, its-not-the-destination-its-the-journey, its-not-the-destination-its-the-journey-chinese-prove, james-am-working-on, james-morton-liberal, james-morton-palestine, liberal-party-of-canada-record-on-israel, mortons-musings, why-i-am-working, why-is-james-not-working, ww-findingclarity-ca
