They’ll be right eventually. Even as 2013 ended in a sighing consensus that Stephen Harper’s resignation is probably not imminent after all, a few political millenarians continued to insist—in the face of increasingly flat personal denials—that the Prime Minister is sick of the big job and ready to repair to a little house with a white picket fence. The latest example comes from Charlie Smith of the Georgia Straight, who observes that Harper has a past as a “quitter.” A quarter-century ago, you see, he quit Progressive Conservative staff work to become an opposition MP, then quit that job to head a think tank, then quit again to become a party leader.
In case it needs pointing out, the obvious problem with this interpretation is that Harper “quit” worse jobs for better ones pretty much every time. This sort of thing is more typically characterized as ambition than cowardice. But that’s the upside-down analysis Stephen Harper’s enigmatic character invites. More serious commentators spent 2013 playing similar games, on no better evidence. Harper was supposed to retire in the spring, then the summer, then for sure in the fall; based on my understanding of Last Days cults, I expect someone to claim any minute now that Harper actually has already retired in some nuanced, invisible way.
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Stephen Harper has no reason to quit while he’s ahead - Blog Central, Colby Cosh, Editor's Picks - Macleans.ca
In case it needs pointing out, the obvious problem with this interpretation is that Harper “quit” worse jobs for better ones pretty much every time. This sort of thing is more typically characterized as ambition than cowardice. But that’s the upside-down analysis Stephen Harper’s enigmatic character invites. More serious commentators spent 2013 playing similar games, on no better evidence. Harper was supposed to retire in the spring, then the summer, then for sure in the fall; based on my understanding of Last Days cults, I expect someone to claim any minute now that Harper actually has already retired in some nuanced, invisible way.
more
Stephen Harper has no reason to quit while he’s ahead - Blog Central, Colby Cosh, Editor's Picks - Macleans.ca