PHOTOS: All that remains of Pacific Western Airlines sits in a grain field northwest of Edmonton. Below: Alberta premier Peter Lougheed, looking sort of visionary. On this day in 1974, the Conservative government of Alberta took over Pacific Western Airlines. The takeover engineered by Premier Peter Lougheed and his cabinet wasn’t exactly a nationalization, but […]
Posted inCanadian Politics
Shhhhhh! Don’t tell anyone: As PM, Stephen Harper’s economic performance is a bust!
PHOTOS: From the sublime to the ridiculous? Liberal Lester Pearson, the top postwar economic performer among Canadian prime ministers. Below: Stephen Harper, the bottom. Below him: Pierre Trudeau (second best) and Brian Mulroney (second worst). Below them: Unifor economists Jim Stanford and Jordan Brennan. One of the most effective ways to keep a population quiet […]
Posted inAlberta Politics
Former Wildrose House leader Rob Anderson to test blogging as a cure for politics
PHOTOS: Former Wildrose House Leader Rob Anderson in the steps of the Alberta Legislature in November 2014, joining union members protesting against Tory premier Alison Redford’s anti-union legislation. Below: Mr. Anderson with Alberta Union of Provincial Employees President Guy Smith and Liberal MLA David Swann. Below them: Former Wildrose Leader Danielle Smith and Independent MP […]
Posted inMedia
Upstairs Downstairs at the Edmonton Journal as Sun staff gets ready to move in
PHOTOS: The Edmonton Journal Building at 101st Street and MacDonald Drive in downtown Edmonton. It remains to be seen who will be Upstairs, and who will be Downstairs, when the staff of the Sun joins the staff of the Journal at the same address in the fall. Below: Journal Editor-in-Chief Margo Goodhand, Postmedia President and […]
Posted inCanadian Politics
Alberta shows why there will be no NDP-Liberal entente, Nathan Cullen’s mistimed musing notwithstanding
PHOTOS: Loose-lipped New Democrat Nathan Cullen – whatever was he thinking? Below: Alberta Premier Rachel Notley, former Alberta Liberal leader Raj Sherman, federal Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau and NDP strategist Ian Capstick. Whatever Skeena-Bulkley Valley MP Nathan Cullen was thinking when he flapped his lips to the delight of the conservative mainstream media about how […]
Posted inCanadian Politics
Two polls, widely different results, and Postmedia only reports one – what gives?
PHOTOS: “It is indeed Christmas in July for Conservatives!” Maybe it’s July, but is this guy really Santa Claus? Below: Pollsters Quito Maggi and Lorne Bozinoff. A Forum Research Inc. interactive voice response poll conducted on Tuesday of this week indicates 34 per cent of decided voters plan to vote NDP, 29 per cent to […]
Posted inAlberta Politics
Alberta’s NDP needs to react more quickly, plus throw the Tories under the bus where they belong
PHOTOS: Carbon capture: The oil company executive in the bow tie places the carbon in a bottle, which is then stored underground by his corporation for billions of dollars. Or something like that. If the bottle breaks, of course, we’re screwed! Actual carbon capture schemes may not appear exactly as illustrated. Below: Premier Rachel Notley, […]
Posted inAlberta Politics
Fast food and fair wages: What happens when a good idea from Alberta hits the big time in New York?
PHOTOS: New York, New York … You gotta love it! Below: Fast food, New York City style. Below that: New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo and Alberta Premier Rachel Notley. Alberta’s New Democratic Party government got a powerful boost from an unexpected quarter yesterday for its plan, which is controversial among certain well-heeled interest groups, […]
Posted inAlberta Politics
Lawyer, businessman and long-time Tory Douglas Goss steps aside as U of A board chair
PHOTOS: University of Alberta Board Chair Douglas Goss at the infamous Melcor Five news conference on May 1. Below: New University of Alberta President David Turpin, who took over on July 1, and former U of A provost Carl Amrhein, now the deputy minister of health in the Alberta government. Lawyer, businessman and long-time Tory […]
Posted inAlberta Politics
Alison Redford is back, relaxed and ready to rumble with anyone who blames her for her former party’s problems
PHOTOS: A screen shot of former Alberta Premier Alison Redford as she appeared in the CBC’s interview yesterday, relaxed and confident. Below: Ms. Redford on the day in October 2011 she was chosen as the Progressive Conservative Party’s leader and premier of Alberta, and on the day in March 2014 she was sent packing by […]
Posted inAlberta Politics
Tory sale of government air fleet was a terrible business decision, executed incompetently
PHOTOS: Not this Beechcraft King Air, maybe, but three a lot like it are now plying the friendly skies of North Dakota, which is a great deal for their new owner thanks to the generous former government of Alberta. Below: The unsold Alberta Government Dash 8, and former Conservative Alberta premiers Alison Redford and Jim […]
Posted inAlberta Politics
Can the Great Wall of Saskatchewan resist Rachel Notley’s wish to put democracy back into energy politics?
PHOTOS: Canada’s provincial and territorial premiers in Newfoundland, with St. John’s Harbor visible in the background (CBC Photo). One hopes they didn’t have to walk up that hill! Below: Alberta Premier Rachel Notley and Saskatchewan Premier Brad Wall (CP Photo). The acerbic public disagreement between Saskatchewan Premier Brad Wall and Alberta Premier Rachel Notley at […]