Can We Have A Do-Over?

One of the possibilities that can occur in an election is that a candidate could, although not being the first choice of the political party, 'come up the middle' and claim victory. There are two distinct times that I can recall this happening, and each one illustrates the good and the bad of this phenomenon.

In 1980, the city of Calgary went to the polls the select a new mayor. While already a growing Western Canadian city, about the only thing Calgary was known for internationally was it's famous Stampede. That year saw the incumbent Ross Alger run as the favorite, with his media-perceived primary challenger being future criminal Peter Petrasiuk. A combination of the two top runners splitting votes and the undercurrent of popularity resulted in a television reporter named Ralph Klein becoming the surprise winner that year.

Not only did the Klein victory set off a chain of events which led to global recognition for the city (such as the 1988 Winter Olympics), but it also marked the beginning of an amazing political career. Not only did Klein become the most popular mayor in city history, his path led him to become one of the most popular premiers Alberta has even known.

A dark horse victory doesn't always have the best results, however. Fast forward to this past winter. Alberta's ruling Progressive Conservative party suffered the process of selecting a new leader (and, ironically, Ralph Klein's replacement). While former provincial treasurer Jim Dinning was seen as the front runner, there was a strong segment of party faithful who supported social conservative Ted Morton. The result? Rural M.L.A. Ed Stelmach came up the middle and now sits in the Big Chair.

And since 'Steady Eddie' took the helm with his monotone public persona, Alberta has seen the economy continue to boom. Unfortunately, we have also yet to see a much-needed plan for dealing with the consequences of said boom. Rents are out of control, a new class of 'working poor' has emerged and is growing, infrastructure is crumbling, the province hasn't raised the insanely-low royalty rate from the oilsands.

Stelmach decided that the best way to fight another federal N.E.P.-style grab at Alberta's economy was to....do it himself? Under his watch, the provincial government has implemented it's own carbon tax on the oil industry.

When the federal government broke it's own promise and decided to include 50% of non-renewable resource revenue in it's new Equalization scheme, the voices of protest were heard from coast to coast. Unfortunately, those voices belonged to Newfoundland premier Danny Williams and Saskatchewan leader Lorne Calvert. Sad to think that Albertans would have to put their faith in a different province's socialist leader instead of their own Tory leader.

But in the face of this lie/money grab, Stelmach has barely raised an eyebrow, let alone his voice.

Perhaps we just aren't accustomed to Stelmach's style. Maybe he has a 'big picture' plan that we just haven't seen yet.

Or maybe, Stelmach is reeling - as shocked as we are that he actually won the top job.

Fear of a Hilary Planet

It's only the middle of 2007 and already there is election buzz happening down in the U.S. While the Republicans seem to be focused on the 'is Fred Thompson a go or no-go' issue, the Democrats are hitting their usual meek stride by offering voters not a choice of who would make the best president, but who would be the least-worst.

Barack Hussein Obama's run as media wonderboy fizzled out around the same time as his middle name became public. The other candidates are so non-existent in the American psyche that they need not be mentioned, with the obvious exception of Mrs. Clinton.

What would Hilary's America look like? Keeping in mind that it would be this generation's most well-known enabling wife in charge of the most powerful nation on earth, there is every reason to believe that a Clinton victory would be disastrous for the United States. Her image, already smudged by deciding to let her husband's inability to keep his presidential seal behind his zipper go by seemingly without penalty, has taken a further beating by what best could be described as hackneyed attempts at 'connecting with the people'. Her horrible attempt at a Southern accent (even though she used to have one!)at a town hall meeting made her look more than foolish; her attempt at rewriting history by doing her best to make people believe that she didn't really vote for war in Iraq when she in fact did, has chomped a huge section out of whatever credibility she still had.

And, let's face it: Hilary has already been president. You don't think Slick Willie was in the driver's seat for the full 8 years, do you? He was a little busy doing other things...

It is a given that the chances of the Republicans holding on to the keys to the While House are kinda slim, which means that a Hilary presidency isn't that far-fetched. Senator Thompson: are you listening?

Fred Thompson Fires Verbal Slap at Michael Moore

Why is Senator (and totally cool bad-ass character actor) Fred Thompson my choice for next American president? Here's why.

This response to that fat bastard Michael Moore's challenge to a debate is quickly becoming a thing of legend:

Canadians Ignorant re: Afghanistan War

Canadians support for our involvement in the Afghanistan war has fluctuated greatly since the campaign began. While everyone claims to 'support the troops', not all are in favor of the continued presence of our military in the war-torn nation. The great yo-yo of opinion dips when another fallen soldier comes home, and like clockwork causes one of the federal opposition parties to propose some half-baked cut-and-run idea like creating a time limit on a war. (STILL can't figure that one out, Stephane.)

The Canadian public, particularly the younger generation of voters who are coming out of the over-liberalized, leftwing public education system, are forming their opinions on a mix of false, misguided, or downright wrong information. Worse, many are completely oblivious to the facts regarding the war itself.

I have heard some interesting reasons for opposing our fighting this war: It's about oil; we weren't invited; the American's got themselves into this, therefore it's their war, not ours; their government (the Taliban) weren't that bad; etc.

Yikes. First, as opposed to the Iraq war, the conflict in Afghanistan has nothing to do with oil. This, sadly, is a strong indication of the willingness of people to link (or, in some cases, confuse) one war with another. For Heaven's sake, people - keep your wars straight!

Second, we were, in fact, invited. The overthrow of the evil Taliban terrorist government was ultimately followed by the first taste of free government the Afghan people have had for years. They invited NATO to help fight the bad guys.

Interestingly, since then, women in the country have obtained a level of human rights and equality which, while not perfect, is a quantum-leap ahead of the property they were once considered. When you look at the situation closer, you can see that by fighting the terrorists for control of the nation, we are actually fighting for Afghani women's rights. And the leftwingers are against this, why?

Finally, the anti-American slant on the 'it's their war' line is the least shocking. It has become something of a fad in Canadian culture to blame everything on the U.S. Trade towers got hit? Your problem, and probably your fault. Hunting the world's most dangerous terrorist? Your problem. Snowing in Vancouver in May? Damn Americans...

It is scary that the very people who, at the end of the day, decide whether to take the terrorist threat seriously are so ignorant on the subject.

Tories Turn Left and Lose Numbers

They were showing the top 50 most bizarre plays on some cable station last night, and one clip reminded me of Stephen Harper. The receiver had caught an amazing pass and was running hard towards the end zone. His smart moves and great speed caused him to pull away from his opposition. It looked like the play was a sure thing.

Then, inexplicably, he turned left. And he got tackled short of the goal line.

Advisers in the current Conservative party have enjoyed a reputation as smart political thinkers. To reverse the negative 'Bush Jr.' image of Scary Stephen Harper into a redefined image of a strong leader and good family man took considerable skill. To position the minority Tories to take a possible majority was unthinkable a short time ago, but for a while polls had shown that to be achievable.

Now, those same strategists are either being shut out of the decision-making process, or they have collectively misplayed their last few hands. The government has, over the past few months, all but abandoned their campaign platform in favor of taking centre-left positions on issues such as the environment and the economy.

The beginning of the current parliamentary session saw the minority Tories running the country like a majority, with opposition parties in various states of disarray and in no mood (much like the general Canadian public) to fight an election. Harper's crew got tough on crime. They solved outstanding trade disputes. They began to rebuild our much-abused military and renewed Canada's support for the war in Afghanistan.

Then, somehow, they lost control of the agenda. Moving into traditionally leftwing areas like global warming isn't the problem. Trying to out-socialist the socialists is. Environment Minister John Baird was dropped into the portfolio as a rescue for former Minister Rona Ambrose, who came under intense fire. Instead of standing by his embattled Minister, Harper pulled the plug on the Alberta M.P. and placed Baird, whose outbursts in question period could put an auctioneer to shame, in control of the government's Green Plan.

Between that and letting the non-issue of Taliban prisoners become an issue, poll numbers have started to slide. This isn't happening because the Canadian voters have suddenly changed their opinion of Liberal leader Stephane Dion. It isn't happening because Lizzie May's Green party has become a viable option. And it isn't because Justin Trudeau has arrived on the Liberal scene. The Tory slide is happening because they have become indistinguishable from the Liberals.

Given the choice between voting for Liberal liberals or Conservative liberals, Canadians will vote for the Liberals every time. Prime Minister Harper must get his government's focus back on the key issues that they ran on, and Canadians ultimately voted for.

Hot Economy = Wrong McDonalds Order

Have you gone shopping lately? How about to a fast food shack? Have you had to deal with the service industry in the last year or so in Alberta? If so, you have no doubt experienced firsthand the biggest and most glaring (and frustrating) downside of the booming Alberta economy.

With a provincial economy so hot that even moderately educated and mildly experienced workers can make in excess of $100,000 a year in the oilsands, those positions that they have left behind - cashiers, restaurant servers, and so on - have been filled by those who are generally unskilled. Small and medium business owners have been forced to hire those who they can get, instead of those who are the most qualified. Staff turnover is steady, and incentives for workers who actually stay at a job for a certain amount of time are now common.

Minimum-wage jobs are at the forefront of everyday life for most of us, as we deal with the service industry on a regular basis. The problem is, inept waitresses are also now the norm, wingnuts at the 7-11 guarantee that your time at the counter is double what it was a few years back, and good luck with that 'quick' oil change.

The last time a boom hit the Alberta economy, businesses were forced to promote employees faster than their training and experience would have normally allowed. The result was a generation of fish-out-of-water middle management that precipitated the layoffs of the 1980's and '90's. I remember the example of the Royal Bank in 1995: On a Wednesday, employees across Canada were treated to a video message of the C.E.O. announcing a billion dollar fiscal year profit. Two days later, on the Friday, 'centralization' was blamed for a large round of layoffs. The truth is, it was mostly a middle management purge. Nothing but a correction and balancing of the workforce.

If and when the Alberta economy cools, we can expect more 'corrections' to occur. Then, just maybe, we will get our Earl's order in under an hour.

...did they use recycled paper?

Frog-gate Proves: There Is No Real News Today

This week will be spoken about for eons. Our ancestors will talk of his time in history with awe. It will be, in fact, legend. As of right now, Canada has run out of news. Nothing of any importance is happening. Life is completely satisfying (or bland, depending on your point of view). The proof? The biggest news making story of this week is an unproven allegation of a racial slur. Against a hockey player. Who isn't guilty................. Sorry! I dozed off there for a second.

Shane Doan, honorable team captain of the current mishmash of players representing Canada at the World Hockey Championships, has come under fire for something he is being accused of saying over a year and a half ago during an NHL game. Doan says he didn't say it, and has maintained his innocence. Players who know him believe him. Those who don't know him, believe him. I believe him. But not our elected tall foreheads in Ottawa.

Today came word that an all-party committee (which once again causes me to shake my head with disillusionment and ask: What the hell is happening to the Conservative party?) has decided to summon the head of Hockey Canada to 'explain his choice of Shane Doan as Captain'. This begs a couple of questions, such as: Are these M.P.'s calling Doan a liar, and: What the hell do politicians have to do with Hockey Canada?

The issue is basic. A slur against the French - Doan has been accused of spitting out something along the lines of '...stupid fucking frog...' at a French-Canadian referee last year - is the Canadian equivalent of a slur against Blacks in the U.S. It crosses every leftwing-imposed line of political-correctness. We are a nation that is 50/50, French to English, in our laws and fabricated culture. Never mind that fact that only about 1/4 of all Canadians are, in fact, French.

Sound bite after sound bite had federal politicians of all stripes buying into this taxpayer-funded witch hunt. In fact, the only M.P. to speak out strongly against the insanity of the issue was Liberal Ken Dryden, and when Dryden is the voice of reason you know things are bad.

The latest rumour has Shane Doan being summoned before Parliament. He should respond by telling the adolescent politicians to kiss his ass, but he won't. Shane Doan has too much class for that.