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 Splendor Sine Occasu
Joined: 17 Jan 2004 Total posts: 6491 Location: Cariboo Regional District, British Columbia Gender: Male
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 Posted: 10/ 28/ 04 7:09 pm Post subject: Jensen's voice will be missed in updating tired NDP |
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Sorry, no link, but this appeared in Sunday's Vancouver Province. It appears as though the NDP are still the same old tired socialists despite the efforts of some to modernise it...
| Quote: | MICHAEL SMYTH - THE PROVINCE
Jensen's voice will be missed in updating tired NDP affiliations
October 24, 2004
Nils Jensen, the Victoria Crown attorney who staged a spirited bid for
the B.C. NDP leadership, has decided not to run in the next provincial
election.
That's a shame. Jensen is a rarity in this struggling outfit, a forward
thinker who realizes the NDP must break its incestuous relationship
with big labour before it can earn back broad confidence and trust from
voters.
Just look at what's happening in the Surrey-Panorama Ridge byelection:
Big B.C. unions are pouring money, resources and paid volunteers into
the campaign of NDP candidate Jagrup Brar. Liberal candidate Mary Polak
is having a field day exposing their shenanigans.
All this is happening under the watch of NDP Leader Carole James, who
talked about "modernizing" the party's relationship with big labour.
But talk is about all she's done. The party still accepts huge cash
donations from labour and "affiliated" unions still send automatic
delegates to NDP leadership and policy conventions.
Jensen had campaigned to change all that, urging the party to follow
the path of popular NDP premier Gary Doer in Manitoba. Jensen finished a
respectable third in the leadership race and earned the endorsement of
prominent New Democrats like former premier Dan Miller and former
cabinet minister Mike Farnworth.
Now Jensen has reversed his earlier commitment to seek a Victoria
nomination to run in the next election. He cites the usual "family reasons"
for the decision, though he made it clear in an interview with me that
he's not happy with the party's direction under Carole James.
Jensen said he would have moved quickly to cut the party's
constitutional ties to labour and would have stopped accepting union and
corporate donations immediately.
"There's a perception that the unions control the party's policy," he
said.
"Imagine if the Liberals suddenly announced that large corporations in
the province would automatically receive 25 per cent of the votes at their
policy conventions?"
Though Jensen is careful to say he supports James's leadership of the
party, he's clearly offside with her on many issues.
For example, he said he supports the Liberals' safe-streets bill that
cracks down on aggressive panhandlers and squeegee kids.
"I work closely with the police and I know they're frustrated," he
said.
"You can't just pretend these problems don't exist."
Many modern New Democrats support Jensen's views, but obviously not
enough of them to change the party's tired old philosophies.
And that's just how the Liberals like it.
Voice mail: 604-605-2004; E-mail: msmyth@direct.ca
(c) The Vancouver Province 2004 |
_________________
British Columbia will ever be a goblet to be drained by the East. - WAC Bennett, Premier of BC, 1952-1972
The flag when Canada was a true Free Dominion... |
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| kenan Joined: 21 Mar 2004 Total posts: 5914 Location: British Columbia Gender: Male
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| Posted: 10/ 28/ 04 7:13 pm Post subject: |
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Nils Jensen seems like a decent and moderate guy...not really a good fit with the socialist dinosaurs in the NDP who are still eagerly awaiting the coming revolution. It's a shame that Jensen is bowing out of politics altogether but it will certainly help the Liberal candidates in Victoria-area ridings who will not have to face him at election time. If the NDP keeps going hard-left, their chances of winning the next election are going to get dimmer and dimmer...and I'm fine with that 
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Splendor Sine Occasu
Joined: 17 Jan 2004 Total posts: 6491 Location: Cariboo Regional District, British Columbia Gender: Male
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| Posted: 10/ 28/ 04 7:25 pm Post subject: |
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I couldn't agree more.
_________________
British Columbia will ever be a goblet to be drained by the East. - WAC Bennett, Premier of BC, 1952-1972
The flag when Canada was a true Free Dominion... |
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| kowalski Joined: 15 May 2004 Total posts: 2935 Location: Seeking a safe seat. Gender: Unknown
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| Posted: 10/ 28/ 04 11:03 pm Post subject: |
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| Splendor Sine Occasu wrote: | | I couldn't agree more. |
The NDP needs a leader who is more in bed with 'little labour' who will send all work either abroad or to Quebec. Kind of like Martin or Campbell. |
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