Democracy Gone Astray

Democracy, being a human construct, needs to be thought of as directionality rather than an object. As such, to understand it requires not so much a description of existing structures and/or other related phenomena but a declaration of intentionality.
This blog aims at creating labeled lists of published infringements of such intentionality, of points in time where democracy strays from its intended directionality. In addition to outright infringements, this blog also collects important contemporary information and/or discussions that impact our socio-political landscape.

All the posts here were published in the electronic media – main-stream as well as fringe, and maintain links to the original texts.

[NOTE: Due to changes I haven't caught on time in the blogging software, all of the 'Original Article' links were nullified between September 11, 2012 and December 11, 2012. My apologies.]

Friday, October 04, 2013

If Harper wants to be PM, job comes with questions from journalists: Mulcair

EDMONTON - Federal NDP Leader Thomas Mulcair says if Prime Minister Stephen Harper wants to lead a modern democracy, he needs to realize that includes taking hard questions.

Mulcair, speaking to reporters in Edmonton, was reacting to a news report that the Prime Minister's Office was ready this week to ban from the PM's plane a CTV reporter who earlier asked a question of Harper at a no-questions event.

The issue became a fight between Harper's office and the news media over who gets to decide which journalists cover the prime minister, but the PMO made clear Wednesday that no one is banned.

Mulcair says the issue reflects an unwillingness by Harper to face critical questions, and he says it's an attitude that has filtered down throughout government.

He said Harper only showed up five times in the last five weeks of Parliament.

He says Harper needs to learn that connecting with Canadians has to be more than just photo-ops.

"Stephen Harper wants to be the prime minister of a G-8 country, to manage one of the most complex governments and economies in the world, and yet he wants to do it without talking to the public, without talking to journalists, and indeed without talking to Parliamentarians," said Mulcair.

Original Article
Source: nationalnewswatch.com
Author: CP

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