Donny goes on to provide some very vague election math to prove his point on why a merger is a bad idea for Liberals and NDP;
"The reality, of course, is that a merger doesn't make any sense. Except in a few ridings, most of the seats the NDP holds are seats where the Liberals are the major competition. Certainly in Toronto and Northern Ontario, it is the Liberals and NDP that are fighting each other. Merging the parties wouldn't gain them an extra seat in either place."
I have some statistics for Don. In 20 (54%) of the NDP's 37 seats, the Tories finished in 2nd place. In 58 (75%) of the Liberals 77 seats, the Tories finished in 2nd place. Don's theory is that Liberals and Dippers mostly compete against each other and can't gain from a non-compete pact. Yet 75% of Liberal MPs finished with a Tory directly behind them. How tempting do you think it is to all those Liberal caucus members with a Tory breathing down their neck at the ballot box to absorb the NDP votes in their riding?
But this isn't just about protecting the 114 seats that they have, this is about trying to win more of the 194 seats that they don't have. The Liberals beat the NDP in 211 ridings, and the Dipper beat the Liberal in 97 ridings. A true non-compete would see the Liberals run 211 candidates to the NDP's 97. In 31 (21%) of the Conservative's 144 seats, the Liberal vote plus the Dipper vote is greater than the Tory vote. That's the math driving "Merger Mania", it wasn't secretly sparked by Kory Teneycke in a covert attempt to start an evil media network to destroy Canada.
In an article about a right leaning news network in Canada, Don spends 3/4 of his effort telling you why he doesn't like Kory Teneycke and why the Liberals shouldn't merge. When he says it is the worst thing for Canada, what he means is that it is the worst thing for the CBC. I'm sure he believes that what's best for the CBC is what's best for Canada, his network after all once applied to the CRTC to mandate mandatory inclusion of CBC Newsworld in all basic digital cable packages. Whether or not Canadians watch, they must be forced to pay for it. More competition will diminish their ratings and market share, and force the layoff of more union jobs. 90% of CBC employees are unionized. Unions generally oppose competition.
Granted Don seems to think that all the talk of Lib-Dip merger is coming from Conservatives, which the other Barton Show panelists disagreed with. Don is trumpeting a thinkly veiled conspiracy theory, and he is trying to tie Merger Mania into Fox News North all of everything instigated by a guy he doesn't like.
Don Newman and those EXACTLY like him in the media, live in a box.
ReplyDeleteA BOX of precisely their specifications, design and material.
If the corners of that BOX do not line up precisely the way that they intended, the BOX is flawed and absolutely must be put into those dull, boring, antiquated precise configurations that their dull, boring, antiquated brains demand.
They simply cannot think outside the box.
It's immensely beyond their journalistic intellect, primarily because they are not speaking as journalists. They are being paid and posing as journalists but speaking as private citizens with personal opinions.
Don Newman bores me silly.
ReplyDeleteThe big question is, is that a result of being employed by the CBC or does the CBC attract that kind of boring type?
O/T
ReplyDeleteI've got to say, I'm surprised at the polling on the "16 year old girl" question. I've never had a 16 year old that could sail that well but I've let a 16 year old girl x3 go and do what they excel at by themselves, some of it dangerous and it has helped make them independent, self sufficient women. I'm a worrier too and so it was very difficult but I trusted them and me.
I have surmised that these parents have a very talented, well trained young woman and know their daughter and her aptitude. She appears to have reacted well and done the right thing when her circumstances challenged as any 30,40 or 50 year old would have done under similar circumstances.
However,I also expect them to pay the costs of the rescue as I would have done for all of my children had they needed it.
I love it!
ReplyDeleteIf they were so confident in their position they would welcome the competition.
Instead, the sky will fall and Canadian society will be forever altered.
I hope so.
I do not know who Don Newman is. I don't watch CBC.
ReplyDeleteNewman isn't the least bit concerned that Fox would destroy the fabric of our country. He is concerned that a Fox news network would attract so many viewers that the CBC would become more irrelevant than it already is. Remember...that's where his pension comes from.
ReplyDeletehehe. An absolute gem of an article here Iceman. I learned new things and you smacked down old Don good and hard. I'd say you're about ready for prime time. Hope Quebecor will bring you on if any of this really comes true.
ReplyDeletePoor Don seems as washed out and irrelevant as the Liberal Party itself.
the truth and facts would be refreshing. newman offers up zero.
ReplyDeleteNice one Iceman. I linked up to you in my latest on this same topic.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.quebecor.com/Home.aspx?Culture=en
ReplyDeleteOOoooOOoo, "the horror, THE HORROR!"
Judging from their site's presentation, they seem tactful enough to pull it off. They're sure to out due in every category especially sophistication. I sure it'll eventually lead to replacement of the BBC (which is tanking) in terms of a global news source. Which is a possibility that remains uncontested unless the BBC decides to reform BACK into the once great news source it once was so many many years ago.
I often speculate on such eventualities.