Many thanks to Naheed Nenshi for his shout out in the Alberta Legislature Tuesday.
Mind you, the NDP Opposition Leader was kind of complaining about me, but as Oscar Wilde famously observed, “There is only one thing in the world worse than being talked about, and that is not being talked about.”
This can be recast for the 21st Century’s digital era by noting that it’s better to be spoken of badly than not to be spoken of at all. Especially if one publishes an obscure political blog.
During debate on the United Conservative Party intention to guarantee its re-election by tossing out the recommendations of the bipartisan Electoral Boundaries Commission and setting up a stacked MLA committee to gerrymander the heck out of Alberta’s electoral districts, Mr. Nenshi declared that “there is not one person in public who has actually said that they’re in support of what the UCP is doing.”
“It’s remarkable, this incredible, wide range of folks who’ve written letters to the editor and op-eds and done interviews about why this is wrong,” Mr. Nenshi continued. “You know, David Climenhaga from St. Albert, who is always mad at me because I’m not left enough, says that this is just a plan to cheat, pure and simple.”
And so it is. You’re welcome!
To be fair, we have to do politics with the politicians we have, and there isn’t a single elected politician in Alberta that can be fairly described as “left” in their political inclination. Many of us would just be happy if Mr. Nenshi would take on the UCP more aggressively and do a little more than simply brand the NDP as the party that’s not the UCP.
However, that’s a discussion for another day – like, maybe, tomorrow, or the day after that.
Just now, I’d like to return to the only other time I have been mentioned in the Alberta Legislature and note that, even though almost 35 years have passed since that personal landmark, no one has yet proved me wrong.
Let us cast our minds back to May 7, 1991, when Ray Speaker, minister of municipal affairs in the Progressive Conservative government of Alberta, rose in the provincial Legislature in response to a member’s question about a story that had appeared the morning before in The Calgary Herald.
I’ll digress for a moment to note that despite a storied political career that included being a Social Credit and Progressive Conservative Alberta MLA, provincial cabinet member, and Reform Party Member of Parliament, Mr. Speaker, now 90, was never the speaker of a legislature. Pity.
Anyway, the question was asked by Ed Ewasiuk, New Democrat MLA for Edmonton-Beverly from 1986 to 1993, who was well known as an aggressive advocate for the rights of the poor and the working class.
“Yesterday the minister and his colleagues announced that they’ve finally started initiatives to provide housing in the inner cities, which of course are very necessary, although, I submit, inadequate to meet the immediate needs of the homeless in Alberta,” Mr. Ewasiuk said by way of introduction to his question to the minister.
Mr. Ewasiuk, who died in 2006, went on: “Behind the cautious optimism of housing advocates is the serious concern that the commitment to housing is only a shell game. While the minister was able to find $15 million for inner-city housing, he did so by robbing $14 million from the rural and native housing program of his department. … How can the minister say that social housing is a priority for this government when it has cut from one needy group to help another?”
Mr. Speaker got up on his hind legs – an impressive sight, as he was not a short man – adjusted the button on his suit coat, and responded, more in sadness than in anger as I recall the tone of his voice over my TV set, where that evening I happened to be watching the previous afternoon’s goings on in the Legislature.
“One or two days ago I raised the fact that often my research in this Legislature when I sat on that side of the House was from the daily papers,” Mr. Speaker said. “Often I found even as a member of the Opposition that that research was based on false information and I was misled in the House. We find that here again today…”
“I want to make it very clear,” he went on a few moments later, after a mild shot at “our learned colleagues that sit in the upper gallery,” a sly suggestion that those who toiled for what was still known in those days as The Press might not actually be all that learned, “that the article that was written by Mr. David Climenhaga of The Calgary Herald has more than one inaccuracy, and it is my intent to address those by direct letter to the author.” (Emphasis added.)
For the sake of time management, I will summarize the rest of Mr. Speaker’s argument more briefly than he did: It was simply a matter of priorities. Some things are priorities, and some things are not, especially when the principal object of a government is to balance the budget – as it was mostly agreed then in Alberta it should be, still is apparently, and no doubt ever shall be, world without end, Amen.
To facilitate such decision making, he explained, the government of the day drafted a priority list and it was from that list the necessary decisions were made. “There was not a loss of the dollars, just a proper priority reallocation, and I think that should be clear in this Legislature,” he concluded, and the story duly died.
In other words, I argued then and still do, the story was correct. Nevertheless, I waited for my letter from Mr. Speaker, and waited, and waited … and, indeed, I am still waiting.
I suppose this could all be laid at the feet of Canada Post, but I rather suspect there never was a letter, and there never was a letter because the story was right, just as Mr. Speaker’s backhanded admission illustrated, presumably unintentionally.
Naturally, I was and remain prepared to publish a correction should the missing letter show up and its arguments prove to be persuasive. As readers of these columns know, I am serious about that sort of thing. This is why, every dozen years or so, I find an excuse to repeat this offer – notwithstanding the risk of being sniffily called self-referential by a member of the Canadian Senate.
In the meantime, though, as we used to say back in the days of The Press, “David Climenhaga stands by his story: the Progressive Conservative government of Alberta, grown lazy and arrogant after 20 years in power, robbed Peter to pay Paul, and put out a press release to mislead the public.”
The Alberta New Democrats called them on it.
Plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose.
I have seen exchanges in the Alberta Legislature between Naheed Nenshi and Danielle Smith (when she does bother to show up). Danielle Smith flat out lies about Naheed Nenshi the NDP, and on other matters. She doesn’t answer questions. The Alberta Legislature hardly ever has sittings, because of Danielle Smith reducing them to so few. Danielle Smith hates being challenged. This is also why she held off the by-election for the riding of Edmonton Strathcona, until the last moment, so Naheed Nenshi couldn’t challenge her. You still see most of the media not challenging the UCP and Danielle Smith for their major mistakes, and they lie about the NDP and Naheed Nenshi. It’s a disgusting display of patriotism towards the UCP. Hardly anyone is there to correct these media columnists, or reporters, when they clearly endorse the UCP, while lying about the NDP and Naheed Nenshi. I remember how good columnists in newspapers were, long ago. It’s definitely changed, and not in a good way.
Going back to 1990 to illustrate the shenanigans of conservatives is eye opening stuff. Conservatives as a group are cheaters, liars, grifters and worse. The quote about conservatives abandoning democracy too is very telling. Theses people will sell anyone and anything to attain and remain in power. In my opinion, the UCP is a criminal organization led by a seditious tyrant, supported by weak minded sycophants. In spite of the utter incompetence of this group of trough eaters, Albertans support the cruel policies of this fascist cabal. All one needs to do is lift their head to see that many Albertans are exactly like the UCP. Smith represents Albertans very well since they are exactly like her. Nenshi? Nah he’s too this or that to be acceptable. Nice guys always finish last here especially in Flatland Alberta where conspiracy theories and MAGA rule the day. Face the facts, people! After decades of conservative rule, nothing is ever going to change here, except the destruction of Canada and all that it means to be Canadian if the UCP have their way. In other words, Albertans are enthusiastically choosing to support malfeasance, corruption, tyranny, and chaos, so either put up and shut up or get out – the Alberta way!
Nenshi must know it’s not just you, DJC.
The commenters here are pounding our fists on the table over his passivity as an NDPer as well.
So, he did the bare minimum and brought it up. So what?
When does he lead the march to Dixie Dani’s office to demand she retract this? Or at least join whatever pro-democracy groups are marching there? No?
Wanna know why you pizz me off, Neshi?
I’ve been to housing demos, anti-poverty direct actions and any other number of actions against the government here. Jack Layton showed up half a dozen times at Tent City Toronto in the fight for more housing while gunning for the feds and to actually ask the survivors what ideas they had he could implement. Practically every NDPer in Ontario showed up at the massive anti-war Iraq march. A fair number of MP/MPP NDPers show up at homeless camps, drop-ins, food banks, marches on city hall and send out press releases. They’d give rousing speeches and join the activity.
Meanwhile, you said a few staid words in parliament. Yay for you doing the bare minimum your *paid* job requires from an opposition leader…i think.
Meanwhile, Dixie Dani is turning one of our provinces into MAGA-lite which will destroy the entire country and you can barely work up a speech of condemnation and can’t be arsed to show up on national/international podcasts and social media shows as if they are somehow beneath your notice.
How many doors have you knocked on, personally?
And you wonder sir, why you’re not winning?
You have to *earn* the votes of the working class. Yes, outrageous I know. You have to convince the voters that you have the will to fix as much of the system you can that’s rigged against them.
You have to prove you’ll stand up to the oligarchs, the international corporations, the corrupt and the unjust no matter the cost.
You do that and you win. If not today, tomorrow.
It ain’t rocket science.
B: The NDP could find a cure for a debilitating disease, and the media will continue to ignore them, or lie about them.
@Anon,
I hate to sound like a broken record here but the facts are obvious. People like Bernie, Mamdami, AOC etc did not start out being covered by legacy media.
They went everywhere they could, even some of them on Fox News, to get the word out. Every activist knows you can never count on them to provide an alternative view. A politician who doesn’t know that in this day and age, isn’t fit to run for for office because they’ve zero understanding of the media landscape.
Everyone under the age of 60 (and a good many over) knows the legacy media lies regularly and ignores unconventional candidates or stories and that they’re all owned by the same corporate monopolies under different names.
That’s why the Tuckers and Hasans of individual media are racking up tens of millions of views when CBC and CNN struggle to get a thousand viewers on a livestream.
Nowadays it’s all the rage to rob Peter to pay a corporate entity for imaginary pharmaceuticals that never arrive, certainly not by Canada Post or any other prepaid cargo method. And then keep on robbing Peter. And there are no sequences because it’s all the rage to rewrite the laws retroactively. And smirk. And laugh all the way to the (offshore?) bank.
Yes, the UCP would not know what ethics was if it came up to them and smacked them in the face. But we miss the main point if all we do is pull our hair out at their behaviour. The UCP does all these things because they can. Our system of government creates a dictatorship every four years, very effectively shielding the officials from any form of accountability, during or after their term in office. So-called arm’s length officials responding only to the Legislature have no power whatsoever. The opposition has zero power also. Nenshi can jump up and down in Question Period until he’s blue in the face, but it accomplishes exactly nothing. The system of government that we inherited quite intact from the colony makes sure of that. The fiction that we have a democracy because of unspoken rules and customs can no longer stand. Alberta needs above all serious and profound political reform. In the meantime, Nenshi should go to the courts and challenge the UCP at every opportunity. I cannot understand, for example, why they refrained from any legal challenge when the UCP applied the infamous Notwithstanding Clause against the teachers. Nenshi seems to think he’s participating in some childish debating club, and that’s all it takes to convince voters so he can have a shot at dictatorship too.
@Alfredo, preach bro, preach…cuz I am with you.
Native folk do this all the time. Start up the court challenge then blockade/sit-in/camp and talk to every passing dog if needs be and the media doesn’t show up (which frequently, they don’t)
Smith isn’t just putting forth some annoying policy here. She’s actively gutting the place, economically and nationally. She’s actively destroying the rights of the working class. She’s actively destroying the healthcare system. She’s actively corrupt. She’s actively pro-American.
Nobody needs another wafflegab academic lecture. They need someone pushing against Smith’s powermongering before there’s nothing left of the Albertan democracy, frail as it may be at this point.
No offense here but Jack Layton wasn’t the foamiest beer in the six pack when it came to brains. What he *could* do, was put up a good fight, craft a quippy answer and forcefully put forth a case for whatever cause he was engaged in. Nobody needed him to be an intellectual policy wonk, those are easy to hire–they needed him to be the working people’s voice that rang out loud and clear. Broadbent was better and smarter but here we are.
For the love of Dog, Nenshi needs to watch some evangelicals, or radicals. or labour organizers or something similar to learn the rhythms, cadences and talking points that make for powerful messages across population boundaries and promote cohesion with a cause.
I’m beginning to think that any NDP leader that doesn’t have a history of labour organizing shouldn’t be allowed to run for leader of the party because that party has turned into a lib-light sh*tshow, all across the country both provincially and federally.
B: You seem to be missing the key issues. It doesn’t matter what Naheed Nenshi says or does, because the media will continue to lie about him, and they will continue to ignore him and the NDP, while not taking the UCP and Danielle Smith to task for their epic missteps. Prior to the last provincial election in Alberta, three years ago, the media lied about Rachel Notley and the NDP, and they did not hold the UCP to account for how badly they were running things. That’s why the NDP and Rachel Notley were defeated. Furthermore, Danielle Smith stalled the by-election for the riding of Edmonton Strathcona until the very last moment allowed for it to happen, and she made it so that the Alberta Legislature sessions hardly ever exist. The Alberta NDP could have any leader they want to, and they would still see the same things happening.
@Anon
Of course they lied. That’s what corporate news does best…*lies* in their own best interest. Do you really think most people don’t know this? So what? What’s your point here? That the corporate media is picking on the NDP? That they’re ignoring them? Of course they are. It’s not in their best interest to support the NDP. They might have to pay better wages, or adhere to the pollution laws or pay a reasonable amount of taxes.
The NDP can sit around whinging about it or they can get up, think outside the corporate box and fight back.
What’s your preference?
Search Hansard, you’ve been mentioned about a dozen times it looks like! https://search.assembly.ab.ca/laosearch.html?legid=0
Well, then! The only other time I remembered. DJC
David ~
“…Especially if one publishes an obscure political blog.”
There is nothing obscure about your political blog, Sir. Those of us not busy kissing rings or arses here in Ontario, hear you LOUD AND CLEAR. Please do not cease in holding these folk’s feet to the fire, regardless of which side of the aisle they occupy.
Thank you for your journalism, it matters very much to us all.
Keep the Heat Neat!
Thank you, Wes. You’re very kind. DJC
“because I’m not left enough”
More laughable rhetorical nonsense from a craven opportunist [similar if not identical to the sitting Premier] that lacks any real authenticity [again similar if not identical to the current Premier. Due to the fact that they were both harvested from the same petri dish, so to speak.].
But then again it is what is expected of any political operative [one that performs reflexively as desired due to a long schedule of operant conditioning] that is tasked with the responsibility of establishing the boundaries of what is considered reasonable or thinkable in society, as defined by the surrounding power/doctrinal system for what is essentially a 2 party system, with the 2 political parties being barely indistinguishable, by design.
In Alberta that means,
“An institution is captured when it becomes the instrument of private rather than public interests.”
And,
“From her victory night speech onward, Premier Rachel Notley assured her “partners in the oil industry” that everything would be “A-OK.””
So for Mr. Nenshi it naturally and predictably means,
“Our plan to advance Alberta’s energy sectors…”
https://www.albertandp.ca/building-albertas-energy-future
In the same way that, “We have always been at war with Eastasia.”, fighting perpetual wars for perpetual peace.
And where it has always been the case that,
“The conscious and intelligent manipulation of the organized habits and opinions of the masses is an important element in democratic society.”
As we are witnessing in the US, in regard to the Democrats of certain states, gerrymandering seems to be all the rage. The electoral giant, California, found a way to add a considerable number of congressional districts to the upcoming midterm elections. In addition, there are finding ways to ensure that certain California Republicans are erased from the face of the earth. It’s worked so well that Virginia has decided to get in on the act, stacking up the number of their own districts. Of course, this has lead Mango Mussolini to demand that the federal government (himself) control all aspects of the federal elections, including voting hours, polling locations, and who get to cast a ballot. Thrown in with the war for his own vanity that Trump is waging on the Strait of Hormuz, Donnie has become a very busy deranged toddler. So, while Sec. Hegseth, while entrusted by others to enact the Handmaid’s Tale in real time, has to serve his president and replace the joint chief because he has decided to grow a spine (what?!) and refuse to hand Trump the nuclear codes. In his rumoured fit of rage, Trump threw a tantrum and had to be strained by Secret Service agents and taken to a place of safety, for fear he might soil himself for the last time.
So as the US edges ever closer to Civil War Electric Boogaloo, one wonders if Alberta’s own Seepie bad actors are willing to go all in on this level of crazy? A quick peruse of David Parker’s own social media posting reveals he is having his own meltdowns. For one, Parker is trying to stop his brave Christian warriors from taking two weeks off from their sacred mission to record the aspirational one million signatures needed to declare the inauguration of the new Freistaat Alberta. (Just as A. Hitler would have intended) It seems that Parker pushed his people to give up their Good Fridays and Easter Sundays, and they want their payback. Parker blew his lid and was ready to excommunicate all of them from their places in the Heavenly Kingdom. In the end, two days rest was the compromise and Parker was disappointed in his soldier’s crusader energy.
In the meantime, Queen Danielle’s own efforts to gerrymander are going largely unnoticed. There are the usual Postmedia fellow travellers who have decided that the UCP has pushed their gerrymandering exercise way too far. Of course, these sycophants are fearing for their lives, because they know bad things can happen to bad actors. Now, PM Carney is pretty much a black box, and no one really knows if he’s inclined to make accidents with open windows happen to the obviously guilty morons in Alberta. But he’s from Alberta, and he’s likely travelled in certain circles in Europe, where dirty tricks happen, but are considerably bloodier.
So, maybe Danielle Smith should consider the embarrassing fall of Hungary’s Viktor Orbán as a template for her own fate. Surely being on the run is a bad idea, yes?
JM: If things get rough, I think a fate more like that of Carles Puigdemont is more likely than an unblushing defenestration. You know, access to excellent Belgian beer to help cope with Belgian boredom. DJC
We sometimes forget our politicians are human and I get the sense Speaker was having a bad day when he lashed out against valid criticism. He was ok to strongly argue for his self serving version of things as politicians often do, but where he went too far was to attack another, I feel more accurate interpretation. Perhaps that letter did get lost in the mail, but more likely after he cooled down he decided not to write or send it, or his aides did, to save him further embarrassment. Speaker’s lashing out was also a sign the long ruling PC’s were becoming arrogant and unable to accept criticism at that point.
The circumstances of the current mention are different, but getting noticed is again a sign your commentary remains effective and meaningful.