... in his run at the PC leadership: she contributed 90% of his campaign expenses, as I recall. Her present candidacy obviously leaves MacKay without a funding base / organization for any shot at the leadership of the new party himself. Quelle curious twist of fate.
The older among us know Magna (a major producer of parts for the auto industry) and its founder, Belinda's daddy Frank, for his tooth-and-nail, decades-long fight against unionization of Magna workplaces.
Here's a Canadian Autoworkers Union article from 1999. (CAW used to be part of the UAW that represents autoworkers in the US, and is now an independent Canadian union; its leadership, e.g. Buzz Hargrove, tends to be loyal to / prominent in the NDP).
http://www.caw.ca/news/factsfromthefringe/issue14.aspIt had all the ingredients of Hollywood drama. It was a clash of titans: the CAW battling with DaimlerChrysler to force Magna International to recognize the union at a plant in Windsor, on independent confirmation that a majority of its employees had joined the union. There were flamboyant personalities: Buzz Hargrove, Frank Stronach, and some guy from DaimlerChrysler that nobody can remember.
There was nail-biting suspense: hours from the deadline, the union was poised to strike. There was the obligatory last-minute setback: the union backed away, and Magna looked like the winner. But then, at the end, a big dose of poetic justice: workers at the plant voted to join the CAW anyway. Just like Norma Rae, except without the hillbilly accents.
... Consider the circumstances of democracy, Magna-style. Only one side in the vote has access to the voter's list. With no spending limit, it can mail reams of material to each voter's home —at times even using courier services. The other side doesn't know for sure how many voters there are, let alone where they live. Anti-union advertizing is prevalent, but pro-union hats or buttons can be banned as a "safety hazard." The polling site is patrolled by private police. Anti-union "focus groups" are held during working hours, with compulsory attendance. Electronic signs flash "Vote No" messages right through each shift. Enlarged sample ballots, with a prominent X in the desired spot, are posted prominently.
This sounds more like an election in North Korea (where they also use secret ballots), than a true expression of democracy. Most importantly, the voters are repeatedly threatened, implicitly or explicitly, that their jobs will disappear if they vote for the union. For example, the plant manager wrote to all employees before the vote, wondering aloud why DaimlerChrysler would continue to buy Magna's seats if the company's non-union advantage was eroded. (To its credit, DaimlerChrysler issued a letter clarifying that its business with Magna would be unaffected by the vote, and this was probably important to the final outcome.)
Apparently Belinda S. is not a "social conservative" of the true Alliance sort. Another Globe letter-writer, a reader in San Diego, compared her to Arnold S. in that respect, and pointed out that there had to be very particular circumstances present for a celeb non-politico to secure such high office.
In Arnold's case, he didn't have to run the primary gauntlet, in which those in his party who opposed him on those "social" issues could have prevented him from becoming the party's candidate. Belinda doesn't have that advantage. I don't see her successfully beating back a strong, known-political-factor candidate.
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