The Conservative Party of Canada yesterday handed Liberal Prime Minister Mark Carney an opportunity to do something bold that would be good for Canadian working people, improve the country’s labour relations climate, and likely be quite popular as well. It remains to be seen if Mr. Carney is liberal enough, as it were, to take […]
Posted inAlberta Politics
Did Danielle Smith’s separatist Alberta Next dog-and-pony show just go off the rails in Edmonton?
Despite the presence of members of the United Conservative Party’s MAGA base primed to cheer and boo in all the right places, it sure sounded as if Premier Danielle Smith’s separatist Alberta Next dog-and-pony show in Edmonton last night had gone off the rails. In spite of moderator Bruce McAllister cutting off the mic when […]
Posted inAlberta Politics
Alberta’s UCP government makes important breakthrough in Internet enshittification
With its BookVaccine.Alberta.ca website, which is confusing and upsetting significant numbers of Albertans fearful they will lose access to lifesaving COVID-19 immunization, Alberta’s United Conservative Party has made a significant breakthrough in the enshittification of the Internet. Hitherto, the concept more politely known as “platform decay” has been restricted to Internet businesses that have used […]
Posted inAlberta Politics
It must have nearly killed Danielle Smith to call for an end to Canada’s 100% tariff on Chinese EVs
It must have nearly killed Danielle Smith yesterday to come out and advocate for Canada to drop its 100-per-cent tariff on Chinese-made electric vehicles. Admittedly, Alberta’s premier did so half-heartedly. Still, the intent of her message to the masses was clear: Canada must remove the tariff on Chinese EVs in hopes the Chinese will drop […]
Posted inAlberta Politics
Danielle Smith’s bizarre and dangerous experiment in vaccine rationing begins
Alberta’s bizarre and dangerous experiment in vaccine rationing began yesterday with the appearance of a website where Albertans can register to be considered for COVID-19 immunization sometime in the fall if any vaccine is left. You might get vaccinated, or you might not. By the way, most of you who manage to get an appointment […]
Posted inAlberta Politics
Misleading leaked information about key witness in dodgy health care contracts probe smacks of political interference
If the already constrained investigation by a retired Manitoba judge into allegations of dodgy health care contracts pushed by influential figures in the Alberta Government is now beset by leaks from well-placed insiders in an apparent effort to discredit a key witness, that’s just one more reason why a real judicial inquiry by a sitting […]
Posted inAlberta Politics
Where’s the War Room – fearless adversary of the New York Times – now that the UCP needs it?
Where’s the Alberta Energy “War Room” now that the United Conservative Party needs it? Yesterday The New York Times published a major feature story on Alberta’s burgeoning measles epidemic – which sends a big, fat message from Wild Rose Country to the world saying: Don’t Come Here! We’re the Measles Capital of the Americas! The […]
Posted inAlberta Politics
Government lawyer will be in court today to intervene on the side of Alberta separatists
A government lawyer will be in court today in Edmonton to intervene on behalf of a group that wants Alberta to separate from Canada. A letter yesterday from a Justice Department lawyer to Mr. Justice Colin Feasby indicated he will be in court this morning to oppose the request by Chief Electoral Officer Gordon McClure […]
Posted inAlberta Politics
Alberta NDP will not formally participate in Forever Canadian petition drive
The Alberta NDP will not formally participate in the Forever Canadian petition drive. On Monday, I asked the Opposition Party how it expected to interact with former Progressive Conservative Deputy Premier Thomas Lukaszuk’s effort to ensure the question on a referendum on Alberta’s future in Canada reads, “Do you agree that Alberta should remain in […]
Posted inAlberta Politics
Beset by scandals, patriotic pushback, and new rivals, Alberta’s UCP wants us to be mad about … bicycle lanes!
Beset by allegations of health care contracting corruption, international coverage of a self-inflicted measles epidemic, anger at municipal political parties nobody wants, increasingly aggressive push-back against their separatist project, and a couple of former caucus members looking for a way to breathe new life into the corpse of the Progressive Conservative Party, Alberta’s United Conservative […]
Posted inAlberta Politics
Elections Alberta approves Thomas Lukaszuk’s ‘Alberta Forever Canada’ citizen initiative petition
No sooner was Alberta’s Chief Electoral Officer embroiled in a back and forth with Danielle Smith and her justice minister about his decision to ask the courts if a referendum proposed by a separatist group allied with the premier’s government is constitutional than Gordon McClure’s office announced it has approved a referendum question with a […]
Posted inAlberta Politics
Alberta premier and justice minister to chief electoral officer: Drop your plan to ask the courts about separation referendum question
Notwithstanding frequent protestations to the contrary, it gets harder by the day to believe Premier Danielle Smith and a significant portion of her cabinet and caucus are not fully committed to severing Alberta’s ties one way or another with the rest of Canada. At least, if they’re not, they’re playing an extremely dangerous game to […]