If you have something to say...
Say it on the Huffington Post
If you have something to say...
Say it on the Huffington Post
B.C. Liberal party director Mike McDonald made an interesting point on Sunday. Not one to miss an opportunity for a partisan shot given the nature of his political post, McDonald tweeted: "Shocked at low NDP turnout in Fairview. Huge media, high profile candidates, less than 400 voted. NDP support not deep." Despite the dig, McDonald is on to something. But what he's on to isn't pretty and regrettably it ails all political parties in B.C.
The criticism of B.C. Premier Christy Clark's strategy regarding negotiations over Enbridge's proposed Northern Gateway pipeline is unwarranted. Clark has been clear on what the province requires in order to move forward with construction of the pipeline in Northern B.C. while her Alberta counterpart has given her little to work with. Clark said herself, it's her job to fight for B.C. and our environment. She's absolutely right, and we should all be in her corner cheering her on.
As many students enrolled in algebra class are likely discovering, numbers can be rather dry. But a proper understanding of them is indispensable to modern life. Without hard, reliable numbers regularly checked, much personal, business, and government planning would be akin to gambling: throw the dice, risk the cash and hope for the best.
You don't hear this stated much these days: The B.C. Liberals will win in 2013. You heard it here first. In one of the great resurrections in B.C. political history, on the evening of May 14, 2013 premier-elect Christy Clark will be grinning from ear to ear in front of a packed room of supporters in downtown Vancouver. She will thank her NDP opponent for running a spirited campaign, and graciously thank the voters of British Columbia for giving her a new four-year mandate.
The Northern Gateway is now becoming the National Nightmare. Canada has a new Two Solitudes in the 21st century. The dividing line is not the Ottawa River but the Rockies. It appears that in Alberta -- not just columnists but bloggers and tweeters as well -- seem to believe that if they just yell loud enough, that the people of B.C. will eventually realize their thought errors and join in supporting Alberta's manifest destiny.
The Council of the Federation meeting of provincial premiers -- which wrapped up last week in Halifax, Nova Scotia -- hit an important milestone: It placed the opportunity of the low-carbon transition and the imperative to finally do something about climate change squarely at the center of the Canadian energy agenda.
Well, the feisty dust-up between she-premiers Christy Clark of British Columbia and Allison Redford of Alberta has been a lot of things, but a feminine puff of perfumed air into our muddy phallocracy isn't one of them. When writing about a high-profile disagreement between two powerful women, one should always be sensitive, and avoid lapsing into lazy, sexist cliches. Unless, of course, you're a female writer.
Are Alberta MLAs superior to all others in Canada, who are paid less? Justice Major made a case for not placing too much emphasis on inter-provincial comparisons due to Alberta's unique economic situation. There is something to this, since our oil and gas sector wages are relatively high.
Kim Slater knows that Canada can reinvent itself, and shift from being a fossil fuel dealer to a clean energy leader. She knows her elected leaders can make it happen. But she isn't waiting for them to take the lead. In fact, she's starting without them, running across British Columbia to talk with Canadians about more sustainable forms of energy.
Today, Albertans essentially have a choice between two directions. The choice isn't big government versus small government, as some commentators have argued. Neither of the front running parties has any plans to reduce the size or scope of government. The choice is between centralization and subsidiarity.
By most reports, Alberta's Premier Redford is a smart politician, capable of moving beyond mere platitudes, but she is at risk of drinking the tar sands Kool-Aid too quickly in her mandate and resorting to the name-calling we have come to expect from Alberta's politicians.
Open partisan warfare between Democrats and Republicans, between the Obama administration and Congress, is underway and the latest clash is the Battle of Keystone, the fight over the Keystone XL pipeline.
If women are poised to play a bigger role in politics, I believe there will be a gender effect, but I don't think left vs. right is the best way of framing it. I agree that women will make politics more progressive, but this is not necessarily the same as more left-wing.
While Alison Redford succeeded in her stunning bid to become Alberta's first female premier, Ontarians still don't know which chocolate they'll be picking out of the box. This past week's leadership debate produced no new clear front-runner. Meanwhile, protestors against the Keystone Pipeline busily had themselves arrested at demonstrations on Parliament Hill -- with our own Maude Barlow reporting from the paddywagon about her handcuffing experience. Our intrepid HuffPost contributors are no strangers, however, to incarceration: We were thrilled to welcome Baron Black of Crossharbour -- Conrad Black -- aboard as a new blogger.
