Quote:
Originally Posted by ScreamingViking
I think Jama is inexperienced. It's fine to have a strong opinion, but I think she was naïve about the best way of expressing it as a MPP (and being naïve isn't a rare quality amongst Ontario MPPs... nor party leaders!  )
I hope Stiles was blunt about the importance of handling such opinions differently while a member of provincial parliament in whatever initial discussion was had with Jama.
That said, she's certainly gotten her name out there. I hope she uses that for betterment. |
I have met with Sarah numerous times, she has even helped me with some advocacy in the past, but I really appreciate how Steve Paikin wrote about her comments:
https://www.sudbury.com/beyond-local...medium=Twitter
Sarah Jama is a hardcore idealogue with strong confident opinions that she holds close to her heart. She also likes to poke the bear. I respect her for not accepting the status quo on things, even if I don't always agree with her hard-line stances.
That all being said, poking the bear is fine when you aren't in a political party, but by the nature of being involved in politics, you must think politically. I think her comments overall are pretty mundane compared to most others, but the timing was not amazing, nor the lack of being clearly critical of Hamas at a time where Israelis in Canada were hurting.
I do not believe the centure nor removal are fair, considering unlike me, a white dude fully disconnected from the issue has time to reflect and respond, she has a personal connection that means it is a more emotional issue for her. Her comments were minor and quite restrained with that thought in mind.
Unfortunately the NDP leader obviously feels that Jama did not play the political game following the comments. I was honestly surprised that Sarah Jama ran for NDP, as she seems like a person that doesn't like to play the political game, and I thought that worked well for her. She is an advocate who likes to connect with the community, and as an MPP you have less control over what you can say and do. Many thought something like this would happen eventually because political partis are fundamentally designed to act as one large organization.
I'm curious what will happen next. I wonder if Jama will continue to pursue higher office, or will decide she's best had at the more grassroots level. That's up to her, but I think everyone made mistake along the way here, even if the result is beyond what should have been from the NDP. I'm also curious if there's more to the story.
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