Odd & Ends

1. Cherniak continues to be all hot and bothered about the Ontario Liberal funding scandal being labeled a "slush fund", so he keeps repeating over and over that there was no slush fund. Fine by me. Let's just call it an illegitimate, irresponsible fund for currying favour with a declining voter base which the Liberals once could take for granted, but now have to earn, I mean buy, its vote.

But it's not a slush fund.

2. Final thoughts on the Warren Kinsella affair.

First, on the apology on his blog:

After threatening to equivocate, Kinsella opts for high moral ground by listing potential excuses, getting in a couple of digs at MPP's who were outraged by his sexism (you know the NDP is just retaliating for his smear of Cheri DiNovo and that he still opposes her fitness for office over something that happened more than 40 years ago, more on Lisa Macleod a little further down) by leaning on his record of standing up for women, and even a character reference from one of his editors. You know, things he might have done were he inclined to equivocate, but since he's not going to equivocate Warren Kinsella does the honourable thing and admits "he made a dumb, sexist mistake." And thus, he falls on his own sword, martyred for the betterment of sexist males everywhere.

Although I believe his apology to be sincere, it is telling that not once does he acknowledge the immediate victim, Lisa Macleod, of this sexist incident. In fact, Kinsella apologizes to virtually every woman in the world, except the one he most injured by his insensitive mistake. In fact, all he can say about Lisa Macleod amounts to I don't know what she's so upset about, she should be more rattled by her colleague Randy Hillier.

I don't think Warren Kinsella is a sexist. He's certainly no knuckle dragging Conservative, but I also don't think he's ideologically committed to ending sexism and other injustices. This was a sexist act and all the more dangerous for its innocence and banality. Because the moment we really need to worry about is when people start turning a blind eye to this type of thing. That's my whole point. As a Liberal ideologue, his arrogant commitment to personal gain and winning, even unscrupulously, is simply deeper than any commitment to progressive politics, to the disenfranchised and marginalized, to the poor, to a more just and equitable society. I'm struck that in his apology what he seems most contrite about is not his offending Lisa Macleod and women everywhere, but that the cartoon was tactically a stupid move that backfired. It cost the Liberals points in the race for re-election and made Kinsella look bad.

Second, on Warren's publishing of received emails. 

How can it not seem as a withdrawal of any contrition?  Kinsella's dumb sexist act  was simply wrong. To initiate the topic with "Survey says" undermines any previous sincerity. Even if everyone who wrote in agreed with Kinsella, it wouldn't change the fact that his action was wrong. Social justice is not a popularity contest. The threat of a "tyranny of the majority", as Mill well understood, is a serious flaw in majoritarianism. Regardless, it is the right and decent thing to do to personally apologize to about the only woman to whom Warren had yet not apologized. I commend him for contacting Lisa Macleod.

Have a safe and enjoyable weekend.