Arose By Any Other Name?
Ugh. CTV had a poll just recently asking, "Do you think Justin Trudeau will ever be prime minister?"
Maybe it's just me, but I find it unsettling, and a bit offensive, to think that someone can be automatically so successful in politics, not through anything they have ever done themselves, but simply by virtue of the circumstances of their birth, whether it be a well known name, wealth, insider connections or, given the highly correlated nature of these things, all three. I'd really prefer it if we could leave the aristocracy and all-in-the family political dynasties to the Americans.
Maybe it's just me, but I find it unsettling, and a bit offensive, to think that someone can be automatically so successful in politics, not through anything they have ever done themselves, but simply by virtue of the circumstances of their birth, whether it be a well known name, wealth, insider connections or, given the highly correlated nature of these things, all three. I'd really prefer it if we could leave the aristocracy and all-in-the family political dynasties to the Americans.
posted by Declan at
Monday, April 30, 2007
6 Comments:
Trouble is it may be hard to use as classification scheme that works. Look at the late "Dickie" Mountbatten uncle to our Queen whose favorite pastime was in dressing himself in front of big mirrors in all of his various uniforms. Yet he was paraded though a series of high offices and came away from it regarded as an all round "good chap".Yet it was all, and I do mean all, due to birth in his case. Is it true that the officers cheat, as depicted so tellingly in the Novel King Rat set in a Japanese prisoner of war camp (the officers had better rations by cheating on the weight of food they got). Well, of course they do. Yet it was worked out that they continued to get the extra weight even after it was found out.
Point is, we may have to contend with some principle of biology we have not yet understood, hateful as the idea may be.
By
Anonymous, at 12:51 AM
let's get rid of the monarchy. it's so archaic and undemocratic. then, let's put the trudeaus on all our currency and encourage every generation to run for office and head our government.
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ainge lotusland, at 5:28 PM
Anon - I think it's a product of currency, not biology.
Ainge - I like the idea of putting Trudeau on the currency, just for imagining the reaction in Alberta...
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Declan, at 11:19 PM
You remember the reaction they got when they tried renaming Mount Logan to Mount Pierre Elliott Trudeau?
Just imagine if they tried changing Fort McMurray to Fort Trudeau... you'd see Alberta vote 70% "yes" to a Quebec-style referendum.
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Sacha, at 2:49 PM
Fort Trudeau? I like it.
By
Declan, at 6:01 PM
Just think, if we got rid of the Quebec Nation then there would be no Trudeaus.
By
Anonymous, at 1:02 PM
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