September 6th
I’ve been told that over the past few weeks I’ve been a little harsh in my comments towards the City Council in my hometown of Timmins. That I am calling into question their leadership ability. Although I stand by the content of my previous blogs, the comments made by these individuals got me to thinking about leadership, specifically in the political arena, and whether or not the era of great leaders has come to and end.
The question becomes whether or not men like Churchill, Kennedy, Trudeau, Levesque and others would have been viewed as great leaders had they lived in an era where politicians must deal with a vast array of media outlets, social media networks and various communications tools that capture their every comment or action.
It has gotten to the point that by the time a candidate announces their plan to run for office, specifically on the national level, the media has gathered enough information to scrutinize everything from where they went to school, to what type of social life they have, to the different relationships they’ve had, to the people they had lunch with 23 years ago on a Tuesday in June. I acknowledge the fact that knowing more about a candidate’s previous professional, political and social activities will provide voters with some insight as to what they could expect from them as leaders. However, I would also argue that it does not really matter if they inhaled, if they failed Grade 12 biology, if they once dated the sister of a guy whose best friend’s brother got arrested for selling drugs in college. What I want to know is where they stand on the issues and how they have performed in their previous political offices.
My friends will tell you that one of my great frustrations with today’s politicians, be they municipal, provincial or federal, is that none of them seem to have the combination of intelligence, charisma, idealism, courage and political intuitiveness that many of the great leaders seemed to have. Quite frankly, I would be hard-pressed to name any current Canadian politician that has the qualities required to become a great leader. I will continue looking for that fresh new face with the qualities needed to eventually become a leader that voters will gravitate to and who will enhance our country’s standing internationally. When I think that I’ve found him or her, I’ll let you know!
Random thoughts
· Last week when Hurricane Irene was less intense than expected when it reached New York City I commented on Facebook about how Anderson Cooper would be disappointed that he’d gotten out of bed for this. Following is a video clip seemingly confirming my point. He actually sounds disappointed that the storm is not stronger! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ON_-Nz56hkk&feature=youtu.be
· Over the past several weeks I have found myself watching the odd show on HGTV such as “House Hunters” and “Selling New York”. It’s official, I really need a new hobby.
· The NBA is currently in a lock-out and last week, one of the players accused the owners of making it difficult for him to “feed his children”. This from a guy who entered the NBA draft right out of high school because he failed to meet the minimum academic requirements yet has made over $70 million, yup…$70 million dollars paid to him by these same owners, even though he could not spell alphabet if you spotted him all the letters in the right order. I know many men, including my Dad, who managed to feed their children even though they made less in their entire 30 year careers than this bozo makes in a couple of months…just sayin’!
· Is it just me or is Twitter still an under-utilized social media too in Northern Ontario. Everybody and their Grandmas seem to have a Facebook page but few people I know are on Twitter. If you happen to be on Twitter my account is @frankroch look me up! By the way, one does not send twits or twitters, one sends tweets.
· By the way, if you are ever interested in getting more insight and information on current social media trends, new applications etc, there is a weekly podcast that I listen to occasionally that is quite good. It is called “The Social Hour” and each episode can be viewed at www.twit.tv. No, the link is not a joke “TWIT” stands for This Week In Technology.
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