“The credit belongs to the [person] who is actually in the arena, who strives valiantly, who errs and may fall again and again, because there is no effort without error or shortcoming. Far better it is to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs, even though checkered by failure, than to take rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy nor suffer much, because they live in the grey twilight that knows not victory nor defeat.
- Theodore Roosevelt, 1899″
My name is Russell Scantlebury. I have been a member of the Party (either LPC(O) or LPC(A)) since 1994. Over that time, I have developed some strong beliefs about the Liberal Party. With leaders like Laurier, St. Laurent, Pearson and Trudeau, it is easy to see why our Party has been successful: we had strong and visionary leadership. This was so true that becoming the leader of the Liberal Party of Canada meant that one would automatically become the Prime Minister of Canada.
However, after the Royal Proclamation of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, our Party has been a bit lost. Instead of being a pragmatic party listening to the left and right, we have become a party of the left. Instead of remembering our proud history – a party that goes back to our first election in 1867 – we seem stuck in our present policies.
My hope is to create a weekly blog that will begin a conversation. Through this spark, our party will begin to discuss the parties’ needs. Therefore, the Liberal Party of Canada can once again become an important part of our political conversation. Consequently, the Liberal Party of Canada can become the leading voice on the issue of our country’s future.
52 Ideas 