Friday, February 29, 2008

Of diapers, thongs and coffee

I have a question for Ontario Liberal voters - Are you happy with your decision?

Today's Post discusses the flippant use of Michael Bryant's YouTube messages as a way to deal with potentially embarrassing questions on the Second Anniversary of the Caledonia dispute - Minister uses web to mark native protest.

This arms-length 'media relation strategy' was also used by McGuinty handlers during the last election to prevent unpleasant news clips from being aired on the evening news, although they weren't always successful.

While Warren Kinsella hailed MikeTube as SMART POLITICAL USE OF THE NEW TECHNOLOGY, opposition leaders saw it otherwise:

"I think the notion that the Minister of Aboriginal Affairs for Ontario would appear via YouTube to the public and to the media of Ontario and not make himself available to answer questions about this today is just typical of how this government handles things," Mr. Tory said.

"This government's all about sideshows, whether it's talking about wearing diapers as a means of trying to address the terrible indignities that are being experienced by some of our senior citizens, or now appearing via some You-Tube sideshow from Caledonia without being accountable. That's what they're all about. It's all about sideshows and not about actually doing anything."

So, Liberal Lemmings, is this the way you want your politicians to be accountable to you? - Through YOU-Tube???



Keith McArthur, senior director of Media Innovation at Veritas Communications tells us that "the YouTube strategy makes journalists' jobs easier, and helps politicians spread their message over the Internet through blogs and e-mail."

Well for sure, because then reporters only have to write down a link before heading out for their coffee break. (And be sure to make that a Timmies!)

And BTW, does everyone in Ontario have access to a computer? What about seniors?


Oh, yeah. I know let them eat Depends - Health Minister George Smitherman finally chokes out an apology for trivializing the plight of soiled seniors in nursing homes with his diaper stunt - and for those gruesome mental images.

Christiana Blizzard
reminds us that this isn't the first time Furious George force fed us more information than we needed:

...Look at his history of public confessions of things that are best left private. First there was a front-page picture of him weeping over the plight of abused people in long-term care facilities.

Then in 2006, he admitted to using "party drugs" at a time he was under stress because his father had been incapacitated by a stroke.

Last year, the openly gay minister mused in a scrum that he was considering wearing a thong to his wedding...

So I'm asking the people who voted Liberal in the last election, Are you happy? Is this what you were after?

I just want to know what the flick you were thinking.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Having suffered through the Mike Harris era, I'm very happy to have a productive Liberal government.

McGuinty has proven to be a solid premier. Smitherman's blunder aside, things are managed reasonably well in this province.

Your brand of partisanship is typical of the right. You can only accept your own version of the story. You only trust those who echo your beliefs. You refuse to consider a variety of sources when you form opinions. Conservatism is a glass half full mentality. It employs fear as it's chief motivator. It must be hard to live like that. You have my full sympathy.

Anonymous said...

the only person who could think that our lying jelly fish premier is solid and running a productive government is a partisan liberal hack; I guess productive now means raising taxes and bending over for teacher unions. Liberalism is a glass empty mentality that uses trickery and deceit. Must be hard to live like that.

Anonymous said...

"a productive Liberal government"

Hahahahahahaha.


You mean the way in which it was proudly announced that Ontario's graduation rate had increased? What smoke and mirrors. How many years given the looser standards is it taking students to graduate? 4,5,6,7?

The dumbing down of the curriculum coupled with all that cash showered on the system should see us well beyond graduating only 75% of our students.

Speaking as employing "fear as the chief motivator anon. 10:06 allow me to introduce you to the campaign that hung out the segregation label when choice for other religions was the topic of the day. That wasn't the NDP or Tories.

Fear(and spin) got McGuinty victory.

congratulations

Joanne (True Blue) said...

Having suffered through the Mike Harris era, I'm very happy to have a productive Liberal government.

What is the 'best-before date' on that argument?