Québec Politics...

[c9]

Paul wells says it best...

So today André Boisclair broke a month's silence on his "youthful" cocaine use (he used to enjoy the odd snort back when Lucien Bouchard was premier of Quebec) because he needed to rebut jokes that governor-general Michaëlle Jean made about him at the Press Gallery Dinner two weeks ago! ("Mr. Boisclair always follows the party line...")

Note to Parti Québécois: Pleeeeeeeeeeease vote for André Boisclair for leader.

Comments

[c9.livejournal.com]

Not at all. She mocked herself, and several politicians, in her speech. Paul Martin made nasty fun of himself and Harper. Harper made fun of himself and everybody. Jack Layton sang songs that mocked himself. That's the whole point of the press gallery dinner. Were she to make any sort of similar joke or even just politically comment outside of that event, that would definitely be inappropriate. But in this case, Boisclair is just whining.

[c9.livejournal.com]

I agree that maybe because he wasn't in the room, it would have made sense to leave him out of it. But the whole point of the Press Gallery dinner is to cross those lines, and make those ridiculous jokes. Insinuating that Stephen Harper is gay and into leather? That's pretty wild too. Inability to master a language sounds a lot like "Haha, you're illiterate." Not exactly acceptable humour outside the dinner either -- remember Kim Campbell's attack ad against Chretien's facial trouble? There are a TON of things that are said at the dinner that are not OK under serious circumstances. What you're advocating is that the dinner turn into inoffensive knock-knock jokes. That's an OK position to have of course. It's just not the same as "Michaelle Jean went too far but everybody else was fine."

[c9.livejournal.com]

Oh for sure, politics is all about agendas. But since the dinner is barely broadcast (CPAC, which very few watch) and barely reported, it's not playing for votes, which makes it a very different beast.