1 to 11 weekly round-down

Well, here’s my take on what has been one heck of a week in Canadian politics…

1) Belinda Stronach:

Like almost everyone, I was surprised and shocked to watch this high profile Tory MP and former leadership candidate cross the floor to the Liberals and accept a position in Cabinet. Pure opportunism. She’s an ambitious politician who knows what she wants, and obviously saw this as the best way to get there (the PMO I’m assuming). The sexist outrage and blasts coming from Tories were unacceptable and only boost the case of why I don’t vote Conservative. The voters in her riding of Newmarket-Aurora will hold Minister Stronach accountable for her actions when the next election comes around. Now, can we have some civility, gentlemen? Which leads to...

2) Welcome to the sausage party!

With the departure of Stronach from the Tories, this now leaves Her Majesty’s Loyal Opposition with only 10 women and 88 men. Hmmm. This is quite a troublingly disproportionate number. Not to say the Liberals or ND's are much better...

3) Chuck Cadman:

The MP from Surrey North listened to his constituents. I’m sure it wasn’t easy for this former Reform/Alliance/Conservative to vote with the Liberals and NDP, but I respect him for not caving into the “protection offered” by Mr. Harper (he must be taking some lessons from Mr. Gagliano) and instead listening to his constituents. There should be more Independent MP’s in the House of Commons; it could cut down on the partisan hackery.

4) Gurmant Grewal, the new Ambassador to France

Opps, I jumped the gun on that one. I really didn't pay attention to this story, it sounded to "made up." Apparently there was a tape or something? Was anybody keeping tabs on where Rahim Jaffer's assistant was during this ordeal?

5) THE VOTE:

Yes, the vote that political hacks from Victoria to St. John’s tuning in to watch (yes, I watched it on the big screen on SUB stage). I’d never seen something like this before, so close, so dramatic, so intense, so fun to watch! 153-152! It’s like the Stanley Cup for political nerds!

6) Campbell gets it twice!

In BC, Gordon Campbell's Liberals were re-elected. No suprise. Carole James' NDP went from 3 seats to 33 seats. Wow. STV fails, democracy loses.

7) The Queen:

Yes, currently flying under the national news radar is Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, Queen of Canada. Her Majesty arrived in Saskatchewan on Tuesday and will tour around that province until tomorrow, when her and His Royal Highness Prince Phillip will spend the weekend relaxing in beautiful Jasper National Park. Following their weekend retreat, the Royal couple will visit Edmonton for a big 100 anniversary celebration party at Commonwealth Stadium (which I'm going to) and numerous tours around Canada’s greatest city. Next Tuesday, (still-) Prime Minister Paul Martin will be hosting a gala dinner in the honour of Alberta’s Royal visitors. I was lucky enough to be on the invitation list, so my lovely date and I are getting all spified up and going to have dinner with the Queen and 900 or so other lucky Edmontonians (I had to rent a tux :P). I will definitely let the blogosphere know how that goes.

8) Alberta Centennial Celebrations:

Well, what can I say, so far they suck. Other than the Queen coming for 3 days, I haven't heard of any other real celebration party. Saskatchewan looks like it's having more fun than us. We only celebrate 100 once, Ralph! The least you could do is spend some of that massive surplus to buy us some booze for a change. Such a money hog.

9) Candidate nomination mania!

Well according to this site, quite a few candidate nominations have occurred in preparation of a possible election (averted for now). From what I can tell, in my lovely riding of Edmonton Centre (the best riding in Alberta!), I know of three candidates: Deputy PM Anne McLellan (woo hoo!), Tory Laurie Hawn, and New Democrat Donna Martyn (who got thumped by Kevin Taft in Edmonton Riverview during the 2004 provincial election). I'm expecting a Green, at least an Independent, and probably a Marxist or "Progressive Canadian."

10) Oliver, the Liberal Heartland:

Today, I was pondering from my downtown perch when it dawned on me that I live in the Liberal heartland of Alberta. My federal riding has been Liberal since 1993, my provincial riding has been Liberal since 1993 (and NDP from 1986 to 1993). Both my MP and MLA are women (Anne McLellan and Laurie Blakeman). My polling district went solidly Liberal in both the last federal and provincial election. Of course, I'm sure that it has a lot to do with the large population of low-income renters, students, the large gay community, people who think for themselves, and no-good transients such as myself in the area.

11) The Federal Tories have updated their normally boring website into a more election style format. Did someone forget to tell them they lost today's vote?

And to answer your question. Yes, I am a political nerd.

Have a nice weekend.

D :)

n is for non non-confidence vote

woo hoo. I was right.

T-minus 10 minutes

well, 10 minutes until the non-confidence vote!

I'm heading down to the main level to watch the vote on SUB Stage.

My prediction, based on pure instinct, the government will win the vote. Cadman will side with the Liberal/ND/Parrish Coalition for Confidence.

I guess we'll find out in 10 minutes :P

D

T-minus 1 hour

Just over one hour until Judgement Day in Ottawa.

Belinda Stronach showed up for her first question period today as a Liberal MP and Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development. She was sitting in the second row beside Ethel Blondin-Andrew and Ken Dryden.

she's an independent...

"Come hell or high water, there's no frigging way I'm going to let one ovary bring the government down."

- The ever-eloquent Carolyn Parrish, Independent MP for Mississagua-Erindale

tony abbott, the reverend of rage

No wonder the rest of Canada think's we're a bunch of rednecks.

Members of Alberta legislature have spitting match over Stronach insult

Lorraine Turchansky
Canadian Press
May 18, 2005

EDMONTON (CP) -- What started out as a crude swipe at Tory-turned-Liberal Belinda Stronach morphed into a nasty confrontation between two members of the Alberta legislature Wednesday.

Tony Abbott, a rural Conservative backbencher who is also an evangelical Christian minister, found himself apologizing repeatedly for saying Stronach was "whoring" herself by defecting to the Liberals.

Abbott said he made the remark out of anger but decided to retract it after getting plenty of negative feedback from his constituents -- including his wife. read the rest here...

for shame

Like many Canadians, I was shocked and surprised to hear that Tory MP Belinda Stronach had crossed the floor and joined Paul Martin's Cabinet. But what shocked and suprised me the most was the wave of negativity, anger, and pure outrage that came from Conservative MP's, MLA's, and their supporters.

The comments, many, which came from Alberta Conservatives, were embarrassing and insulting not only to Ms. Stronach, but to all Canadians. Accusations that "she whored herself out for power," and that she is a "dipstick" are completely unacceptable and show a complete lack of class and integrity from the politicians who threw the insult.

Yes, Ms. Stronach is an ambitious and opportunistic politician, and the voters in her riding will hold her accountable for her actions. But, the sexist outrage that has been thrown at her by her former Conservative colleagues is unacceptable and disgraceful.

It is the perfect example of how little we expect of our elected officials.

Shame.

what goes around comes around...

I get the feeling this is how David Orchard may have felt...

my bc election predictions...

Based on pure instinct... here I go...

Seat Projections:

Liberal - 53 (46%)
NDP - 25 (38%)
Green - 1 (10%)
DRBC - 0 (3%)
Other - 0 (3%)

Predictions:

- Campbell will keep his seat in Vancouver Point Grey.
- James will win in Victoria Beacon Hill.
- The NDP will win nearly every seat on Vancouver Island (Malahat-Juan de Fuca will be a close NDP win against DRBC Leader Tom Morino) but be the minority in the Interior and the Lower Mainland.
- Green Leader Adrienne Carr will be elected in Powell River-Sunshine Coast by a very slim margin.
- The largest amount of popular vote will go to the Liberals.
- The STV Vote will be defeated.
- Expect a low voter turnout.

So... tonight, we will all see how acurately attuned I am to the BC political climate...

belinda the liberal

This is huge. http://www.cbc.ca/story/canada/national/2005/05/17/stronach-liberals050517.html

Belinda Stronach, MP for Newmarket - Aurora, has crossed the floor from the Tories and joined the Liberals. She is now the Minister of Human Resources and Democratic Renewal.

Prime Minister Paul Martin said:

"I am very pleased to announce that Belinda Stronach will cross the floor and has agreed to join the cabinet as Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development.

In addition, Ms. Stronach will assume responsibilities for democratic renewal and will help guide the implementation of the recommendations that flow from the Gomery Commission’s final report."

wow.

more commentary later.

poll results are in

LADIES AND GENTLEMEN!

LIVE FROM DAVEBERTA, HERE ARE THE OFFICIAL "UNRESPONSIBLE POLLING" ELECTIONS POLLING RESULTS...

THE QUESTION: If an election were to be held tomorrow, which party would you vote for?

Liberal - 35% (35 votes)
New Democratic - 26% (26 votes)
Conservative - 18% (18 votes)
Green - 15% (15 votes)
Bloc Quebecois - 4% (4 votes)
Other - 2% (2 votes)
Who ever Ralph Klein is running for - 1% (1 vote)

What do you think?

our glorious leader

Alberta. Home of the beautiful baldass prairie, Jasper, Banff, and Lake Louise, the mad cow, the giant perogy, the Calgary Stampede, the Senator-in-Waiting, and of course, the Lodgepoll Pine. This free spirited province flavours its politics as western populism, where the roots of the Manning dynasty and the Reform Party flourished in a longstanding democratic tradition of down to earth politics and social conservatism. And last but not least: Alberta, the personal playground of our glorious, blessed, and beloved Leader, Ralph Klein....

Klein no doubt enjoying 'personal time' away from dome: Regards question period a time for opposition to ask him 'stupid questions'
The Edmonton Journal
Sun 15 May 2005
Page: A6 Section: News
Column: Capital Notebook

When Premier Ralph Klein revealed Friday he was taking "personal time" instead of showing up this week for the closing of legislature, it marked the latest chapter in his long-standing lack of interest in house business and question period, its public highlight.

In fall 2003, he skipped out of Edmonton for trips to Ontario and England and missed about half of a skimpy three-week autumn session.

The opposition was miffed he was ditching his democratic duties -- and their chance to grill him during QP -- but Klein responded with contempt.

"My sole purpose to exist is not to satisfy the Liberals," the premier said.

"Their whole performance depends on whether they can grill me and try to embarrass me and to ask me stupid questions to which I'm expected to give intelligent answers."

For QP-watching junkies, the last one this spring will either be Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday, depending on how swiftly MLAs can go through the remaining legislation debates.

which province are you?

You're British Columbia. You're hip and happenin'
but also a nice person who isn't a snob. Career
is important to you but it isn't your whole
life. People assume that your life is perfect
and that you have it all, like you were born
with a silver spoon in your mouth. But it's not
true; you do have your own set of troubles just
like everybody else.


What Canadian Province Are You?
brought to you by Quizilla

an exciting business oppurtunity!

I'm very excited to let the blogosphere know about an exciting business oppurtunity which I may soon be part of! I have attached the email corresponse below, please feel free to read and be jealous of my soon to be overflowing bank accout! I will post any response which I receive!

Cheers.

D :)


To: daveberta@linuxmail.org
From: moeyademaa@adinet.com.uy
Subject: Business Proposal(Confidential)
Date: Date: Sun, 8 May 2005 18:34:47

From: Moses Eyadema
Av. Joaquin Vilumbrales,
3 Alcorcón - 28924 (Madrid) Spain.
Mobile Phone:+34686717232.
SAT TEL; +873 763 430 525.
SAT FAX: +873 763 430 526.

Dear Sir,

I am Moses Eyadema the son of President Gnassingbe Eyadema,the
president of Togo, Africa's longest-ruling leader, who died on -
Saturday February 05, 2005 3:29pm after suffering a heart attack.

I know this letter might come to you as a surprise but I honestly do
not intend to surprise you. I write this letter in respect of my
intention to invest the sum of US$56M (Fifty Six Million United
States Dollars) with you.

I escaped to Madrid, Spain because of the fear that I might be arrested
by my stepbrother Faure Gnassingbe, who is now the country's new
president.Actually his mother and my mother are not in the best of relationship because of
who among them will be the first lady Tussle and this ultimately affected
us their children. My father disclosed the existence of these funds to my
mother before his death.

My mother advised me to leave For Madrid, Spain where these funds were
deposited cash in a trunk box for safe keeping in a Storage Vault in Madrid Spain.

On getting to Spain where I have been living now then as a political
refugee I am seeking for a reliable foreigner who can come down to
Madrid,Spain for a meeting and to clear the funds in his name as the
sole beneficiary of the Consignment as I am afraid of being defrauded.

Honestly I contacted you because I don't want to invest this money in
Madrid Spain due to my status here as a political Refugee. And moreover
I wouldn't want to take risk because this money is all that my Mother and
I are depending on. My stepbrother Faure, who is now the present leader
of my country has seized all my father's assets and he left us empty handed
without knowing about these funds deposited here in Madrid. That is why
I decided that investing this money abroad should be the best investment
for me. I will be honored if I can be given the privilege of investing this money with you.

I expect you to be trustworthy and kind enough to respond to this
distress call to save My Mother and I from a hopeless future. And if
you agree, I hereby agree to compensate your sincere and candid effort in
this regard with Twenty percent of the total amount.Whatever your decision
is please reach me immediately, and keep this letter tight secret for the
interest of my Family. I will get your immediate response through my fax
number stated above.

Best regards,

Moses Eyadema


To: moeyademaa@adinet.com.uy
From: daveberta@linuxmail.org
Subject: Re: Business Proposal(Confidential)
Date: Date: Wed, 11 May 2005 18:31:23


Dear Mr. Eyadema,

I thank you very much for the email which you had sent me last week. I feel truly privileged that you chose to send this very important correspondence to myself, a lowly university student, when you could have sent it to possibly millions of other email addresses. I am always looking for exciting opportunities, and this seems like an exciting one indeed.

Being a prudent minded individual myself, I have taken the liberty of “googling” your address in Madrid. I was very surprised to find that this is also the address of Mr. Antonio Savimbi, (the exiled son of the late Jonas Savimbi founder of Unita - the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola), and Mr. Moses Kabila (the son of the late Democratic Republic of Congo President Laurent Desire Kabila "of the blessed memory").

I am glad to see that a young group of exiles such as yourselves have found comfort and companionship by sharing a flat in sunny Madrid.

Regarding our potential business deal, though I am not sympathetic towards the family of any tyrannical dictator, I am a liberal at heart and do very much feel the need to help my fellow man (or woman). This in mind, due to the risk involved in this venture, I’m afraid that a 20% gratuity will not be sufficed. A 40% gratuity would be more appropriate in my mind.

Please advise me of your decision at the earliest convenience.

Best regards while in exile,

daveberta

yeah trudeau!

hhmmmm. The article below sounds vaguely similar to what my friend, Howard, and I had written in our op-ed peice in the Hill Times a couple of weeks ago...

so, I agree. Good work for calling it how it is, Justin.


Quebec separation close, Trudeau warns, Criticizes Liberals

Joe Paraskevas
CanWest News Service

May 12, 2005

CREDIT: Marie-France Coallier, CanWest News Service

OTTAWA - Federal political life has become so concerned with mundane affairs
that it has blinded both voters and politicians to issues of real
importance, such as the growing appetite for separatism in Quebec, the
eldest son of former prime minister Pierre Trudeau said yesterday.

"I think we are far closer to the separation of Quebec than we have been in
a very, very long time, and I don't think anyone in Ottawa particularly, but
in the rest of Canada [as well], are either enough aware of it or ready to
properly deal with it," Justin Trudeau said at a Parliament Hill reception.

Mr. Trudeau, 33, did not say the rise of Quebec nationalism is due to the
alleged mismanagement in the former government's sponsorship program.
Instead, he suggested Canadians and their politicians have simply forgotten
what matters in political life. "We live in a very fast-paced, easy world,
where we're looking for immediate gratification, immediate satisfaction," he
said. "And the kind of politicians we have now are all about satisfying
those immediate responses. And that, while it satisfies you, allows for sort
of long-term hunger."

He did, however, criticize the Liberal government over the sponsorship
program, which was set up to promote the federal government in Quebec after
the 1995 sovereignty referendum.

Mr. Trudeau said the Liberals failed to renew their party since taking over
almost 12 years ago. By acting complacently through the 1990s, a time when
their opposition was also relatively weak and could not check government
authority, he said the Liberals gave rise to conditions that allowed the
sponsorship scandal to happen.

"[The sponsorship scandal] is a symptom of having had no real opposition for
a long time to be able to counterbalance what's going on in Ottawa and to
keep an eye on it," Mr. Trudeau said.

"People in power for too long tend to get a little bit sloppy. There's a
lack of rigour perhaps and a little looseness that happens around the edges
-- not at the centre, but around the edges -- that allows for things like
this to happen. It's unfortunate. It links back to the fact that
Confederation or Canadian democracy isn't set up to represent regional
interests."

He said the Liberal party should be included among the many aspects of the
federal political scene in need of renewal.

"I think there was an opportunity for renewal when [Jean] Chretien stepped
down [in 2003], and that was attempted but wasn't really taken on."

Asked about his own political future, Mr. Trudeau, a former teacher who has
pursued an engineering degree in recent years, demurred, saying he is happy
as chairman of the board of directors of Katimavik, the federally funded
organization that sends youth across Canada to do year-long volunteer work.

He declined to comment on the hostile climate that has enveloped Parliament,
as the Conservatives and the Bloc Quebecois try to bring down the Liberals.

He maintained that if Canadians are unhappy with the partisanship in the
Commons, they should consider themselves responsible. "It's vicious because
we've allowed it to become so; we as voters, we as citizens," he said,
adding he is not in favour of a spring election.

on a non-political note

Someone found my blog by googling: laval "nasty show"


wow?

how appropriate

Today's Word of the Day


resile \rih-ZYLE\ verb

: recoil, retract; especially : to return to a prior position

Example sentence:
The politician said he was sorry that his comments had caused offense, but he stopped short of resiling from his position.


Did you know?

"Resile" is a resilient word; it's been around in English since at least 1529. It's also a cousin of "resilient" — both words derive from the Latin verb "resilire," which means to "jump back" or "recoil." ("Resilire" in turn comes from "salire," meaning "to jump.") "Resilient" focuses on the ability of something to "bounce back" from damage, whereas "resile" generally applies to someone or something that withdraws from an agreement or "jumps back" from a stated position. "Resile" is a word that shows up only occasionally in U.S. sources; it is more common in British and especially Australian English.

hip to be right-wing?

Not in my books.

I thought this was good for a laugh or two. It looks the like Conservative Party solution to their youth problem: Don't give them any real power within the party, instead, give them a website.

Watch out! Here come the fiscally conservative radical youth of the CPC! :P

More commentary on this soon.

D : )

where art thou holtopia?

hmmmmm. You've been awful quiet lately. Perhaps a little two quiet...

Me thinks treachery is afoot.

Labour Majority

BBC has declared a Labour Majority victory. This is Tony Blair's 3rd consecutive majority.

As of 9:30pm Edmonton Time:

Labour: 331 (-36 difference dissolution)
Conservative: 159 (+23)
Liberal Democrat: 52 (+10)
Scotish National Party: 6 (+2)
Plaid Cymru : 3 (-1)
Repect: 1 (+1)
Independent Kidderminster Hospital and Health Concern: 1
Independent: 1 (+1)

Check out the full scoreboard

Best Quote of the Night

George Galloway (Respect Party Leader and newly elected MP for Benthal Green & Bow) to Tony Blair: "I've come back to haunt you."

check the stats

UK ELECTION FULL SCOREBOARD

BBC is so entertainingly British. I've never heard any Canadian politician talk about how "delightful" it was to campaign in my constituency.

How would you like to the Member of Parliament for Southhampton Itch? What a name.

'Edmonton' has gone Labour. I'll update when I find out the results.

8:28pm Edmonton time

Labour - 288
Conservative - 93
Liberal Democrat - 36
Other -11

Labour losses. Conservative gains (they won their 1st seat in Wales since 1997). Liberal Democrat gains and losses.

I'm quite enjoying Peter Snow's election swingometer

Check out the live results page

I'm sitting here watching the UK Election live on BBC (over the internet).

Tony Blair's Labour Party is looking for their 3 majority victory against a Conservative Party led by Michael Howard, and the Liberal Democrats led by Charles Kennedy.

So far, the results being reported (as of 5:55pm Edmonton time) are:

Labour - 32
Liberal Democrat - 2
Conservative - 1 (gained from Labour)

324 seats needed to form a majority government...

off

Well, for those of you who know what I've been up to lately, my little adventure has been called off.

THIS is where I was supposed to be going next week following my lovely London adventure. Getting blown up is not on my "to-do" list for this summer.

So, that means no London, Istanbul, Diyabakur, Irbil, or Athens for me this summer.

I was so looking forward to getting a good tan in the middle east. Quite seriously.

Vancouver Island sounds nice and safe to me right now.

lies! all lies!

Two smear campaigns from the opposite sides of the lovely BC Election

From the BC Liberals:

"NDP - THE REAL STORY"

From the BC NDP:

"The Amazing All-Purpose Fool-Proof Never-Fail LIBERAL TRUTH TRANSLATOR"

On another BC note - the picture of ND Leader Carole James on the pre-front page of the ND website has to be the scariest looking picture of her that I have ever seen. It's like she has a dark side... Darth Carole?

Sidenote: check out this website for a good laugh.

my pimped up sidebar

Check it out: Progressive Bloggers. Way cooler than the Blogging Tories.

london baby! yeah!

This is where I'm going to be in 12 days!

sweet.

a couple of days ago, it was +24C, today it's -4C with a cold wind.

I really dislike the schizophrenic weather here.

i like it, but will it work?

Harper, Martin, Layton, and Duceppe 'playing nice' for the camera's during the 2004 Leaders Debate


According to the Globe & Mail, Prime Minister Paul Martin and NDP Leader Jack Layton reached an "agreement in principle" meaning that the NDP will support the minority Liberal Government's budget when voting time comes. The NDP support came in exchange for the Liberals cancellation of promised corporate taxcuts (but not the proposed taxcuts for small and medium sized businesses).

Here is an exert of the "Agreement in Principle" from Jack Layton:

"It appears likely that we will have an agreement in principle reached with the government. Families will pay less for their kids’ education. Workers will get better training. We’ll reduce pollution. Build affordable housing. Protect pensions – and have a place in the world that makes us proud.

This likely agreement in principle also gives real hope that the child care money and first installment of the gas tax can start to flow back to communities. It also lets the investment in the Kyoto plan move ahead. The Liberal plan doesn’t keep our Kyoto promise. It has major flaws. But it is vital we move ahead and ensure even the most basic first steps are protected…from year one to year five."

As a Liberal with NDP tendencies, I like it! I like the idea of a Liberal-NDP Agreement and I like the idea of scrapping the corporate taxcuts.

But, if you take a look at the numbers in the House of Commons, it may not make a difference in the face of a Conservative/Bloc non-confidence vote. So far, what we know is that if the Conservative/Bloc Quebecois alliance pushed a No vote on the Liberal Budget, two of the Independent MP's (former Reform/Alliance/Tory MP Chuck Cadman, and former Tory/Liberal MP David Kilgour would also vote No.

A Liberal/NDP coalition (which would support the budget) would receive the support of Independent MP Carolyn Parrish.

So, according to the numbers, here is how things work out...

Will vote for the budget
Liberal - 132
NDP - 19
Independent - 1
TOTAL - 152

Will vote against the budget
Conservative - 99
Bloc Quebecois - 54
Independent - 2
TOTAL - 155

So, an Liberal/NDP Agreement may not be enough... depending on who shows up for the budget vote... interesting times ahead.

nerdlicious quiz

: ) I'm not a nerd! : )

Thanks to Robert at Five of Five for the nerdlicious link.

west coast synopsis

BC Party Leaders

BC Liberal Leader Gordon Campbell


BC NDP Leader Carole James



BC Green Leader Adrienne Carr

The British Columbia election is on and the parties and their leaders are on their way to May 17.

In the 2001 BC Provincial election, Gordon Campbell's BC Liberals crushed the NDP government of Premier Ujjal Dosanjh (now the Federal Health Minister and Liberal MP for Vancouver South), taking all but 2 of the 79 seats in the BC Legislature. Much of this was due to the unpopularity of former NDP Premier Glen Clark and his equally unpopular government. The 2001 election also saw a massive rise in support for the BC Green Party. Since then, the NDP have changed leaders (twice) and elected a third MLA in a by-election, a couple of BC Liberals have became Independent MLA's, and one former BC Liberal joined the Democratic Reform Party.

The weird part about BC politics is that the BC Liberals are closer policy-wise to the Federal Conservatives than to the Federal Liberals. From what I can tell, BC politics tends to be pretty polorized, swinging from the left to the right (between the left-wing NDP and the right-wing Socreds/Liberals) and generally skipping the middle-ground.

Also, in this election, the BC electorate will be voting on whether to accept or reject a new form of electoral system known as STV (Single Tranferable Vote). I know how STV works, but unfortunately, I can't explain it in a reasonable amount of space, so... here are a couple of STV links:

BC Citizen's Assembly

BC STV

STV for BC

Know STV

Good coverage of the BC Election can be found at the CBC BC Votes 2005 website. Also, check out the BC Election Prediction Project for some interesting riding predictions. If anyone has anymore good links, feel free to post them in the comments section.

If I lived and voted in BC: I would most likely vote either NDP or Green depending on the riding and candidate, the BC Liberals are far too right-wing for my liking. I also would vote FOR the STV preposal.

My BC Election Prediction: A reduced BC Liberal majority (40-50 seats), an increased BC NDP Opposition (20-30 seats), and perhaps some suprise upsets on the way from the smaller parties (1-3 seats). I also predict that the STV system will be rejected due to the simple fact that it's nearly impossible to explain it to the average person in less than 20 seconds (this is the advantage of First-Past-The-Post, it only takes 5 seconds to explain: "The candidate with the most votes wins"). This is unfortunate, because I do believe that a move to STV would be a good one for Canadian Electoral Politics.

the old poll switch

In the spirit of all the new Federal polls being released lately, I've set up one of my own (see sidebar). Vote early and vote often!

Here are the results of the previous poll:

Should MLA's who are under criminal investigations be allowed to run for re-election?

No - 47%

Yes - 19%

Only Tory MLA's from east Calgary ridings - 33%

Don't know - 2%

Total Votes - 43

"Instead of being viewed as a problem, borders must gradually be treated like organic bedding pots, where each local growth is the transformation with the bonding of Earth’s human garden of families."

For the weekend, I leave you with this. I thought it was quite an interesting manifesto.

Cheers.

D :)

THANK GOD! EXAMS ARE OVER!!!

Wow. That felt nice.

labrador update

Well, i'm sure that other blogs are covering tonight's TV address by Prime Minister Paul Martin. So, if you would like to read about that, there are blog links on the sidebar that you can link to. I'm going to write about something different.

Last week, the PM called a by-election in the currently vacant riding of Labrador. As I am a political science student, it's in my bizarre nature to be interested in such events. So, here I go:

LABRADOR SHOWDOWN 2005

The skinny: A by-election was called following the death of Labrador Liberal MP Lawrence O'Brien. Mr. O'Brien, who had served as MP for Labrador since elected in a 1996 By-Election, passed away from cancer last December.

2005 Candidates (so far):

Graham Letto, Conservative - Mr. Letto is the Mayor of the Town of Labrador City (yes, it's a town of a city).

Todd Russell, Liberal - Mr. Russell is the President of the Labrador Metis Nation (and has a way better website than Mr. Letto).

No word yet on who the NDP or Green candidates will be. The final list of candidates will be announced by Elections Canada in the upcoming weeks.

There wasn't that much information that I could find on this by-election. For up to date breaking news on the by-election, keep an eye on ourlabrador.ca. I do know that if a General Election is called before May 24, the by-election would be cancelled and it would merge into the General Election.

Interesting Labrador facts:

In Labrador...

...there are 27,865 people.
...there are 20,049 registered voters.
...it costs $30.00 to purchase a dog licence.
...it costs $3.00 to purchase a cat licence.
...the average winter temperature is between -10°C and -25°C.
...the average summer temperature is between 5°C and 15°C.
...95% of North America's Puffin's breed in the Newfoundland and Labrador region.


Past Labrador Election Results

1997
Lawrence O'Brien, Liberal - 6,182
Randy Collins, NDP - 4,615 (Mr. Collins is now the NDP MHA for Labrador West)
Mike Patton, PC - 842
Stephane Girardin, Reform - 573

2000
Lawrence O'Brien, Liberal - 7,153
Amanda Will, NDP - 1,284
Hayward Broomfield, PC - 1,254
Eugene Burt, Alliance - 677

2004
Lawrence O'Brien, Liberal - 5,524
Merrill Strachan, Conservative - 1,400
Ern Condon, Independent - 919
Shawn Crann, NDP - 856
Lori-Ann Martino, Green - 178

UPDATE: The NDP have nominated Ms. Frances Fry as their Candidate. Read the ND Press Release here.

fresh off les presses

My friend Howard and I wrote the below OP-ED peice which was published in this week's

Hill Times.

PM may have ordered Gomery Inquiry, but courage is now needed to reshape Liberal Party, and to ensure this never happens again

By: David ***** and Howard ******

EDMONTON, ALTA. — As young Canadians who have been involved in federal Liberal Party politics for many years, we believe we speak for a great number of Young Liberals who are absolutely flabbergasted at the allegations unveiled at the Gomery Commission. We share the frustration, anger and resentment that many are feeling. The implications of these allegations, if proven true, are far ranging, and will sow the seeds of discontent for many years to come.

The decline of youth involvement in Canadian politics has been an issue which youth from all partisan backgrounds have striven to deal with for many years. Whether it is low youth turnout in election voting or the growing age of the average Canadian party member, democracy is losing the battle. Youth members from all parties have dedicated countless amounts of time and energy trying to involve our fellow young Canadians in our parties of choice. If one conclusion can be made from these exercises, it is that the youth of Canada are disenchanted, disengaged, and distrustful of politicians and political parties. When allegations such as those presented at the Gomery Commission are revealed, it only serves to grow the rift between the political process and the youth of Canada.

Young Liberals are, in general, moderates who steadfastly hold strong to eternaloptimism, a hunger to maximize equality of opportunity for all, and a belief that government can be a force for good. When we hear allegations that senior party officials, whom we look up to, are acting in a way that benefits a few rather than the many, we get angry. Perhaps we are idealistic, but young people demand that our leaders set our sights a little higher, and exhibit a betterstandard of behaviour. Nothing less should do, and nothing less will do.

Canadians have had a few weeks now to absorb the enormity of the allegations of wrongdoing. What is absolutely clear is that it is essential that we find resolution to potentially one of the greatest betrayals of the public trust perpetrated against the Canadian people. The Liberal Party of Canada requires a fundamental change in its mindset, its philosophy, and its way of operating. Governing a country is a privilege bestowed by the people who entrust it to accomplish the great aspirations of the nation. Governing a country is not a divine right to rule.

The Liberal Party of Canada has reached a critical junction at which it has the option of sinking or swimming in the hearts and minds of young Canadians. In the past few years, it has been clear that this is a party in need of reform and redefinition. What is needed is a Liberal Party which is not solely concerned with following the ups and downs of the weekly opinionpolls to gain and maintain its place in government at the cost of liberal values. What we believe is needed is an association of Canadian liberals from across the country who are committed to Canadian liberalism in policy and practice; an association which truly heeds to the will of its members across Canada, rather than a select few party bagmen and backroom strategists.

The Prime Minister may have established the Gomery Commission to get tothe bottom of the rot, but courage is what is needed now to reshape the Liberal Party to ensure nothing like this ever happens again. The party cannot spin its way out of the present mess—there must fundamentally be a renewal that starts from within. We cannot wait until Mr. Justice Gomery releases his two reports this fall. Instead, renewal must start now, from the premise that the Liberal Party is a vehicle for setting before the electorate policies that will lead to a better country, instead of a vehicle for the lust of power. When we are privileged to be the governing party, we must always keep in mind that Canadians expect the party to implement its policies in a way that is accountable to and respectful of the Canadian citizen, voter and taxpayer.

There are many Young Liberals like us who hold, in the words of the late GeorgesP. Vanier, “An active desire to right, as far as it was in my power, the heinous wrong done.” The Liberal Party of Canada can dobetter, and it simply must do better.

David ******** and Howard ***** are long-time members of the Alberta Young Liberals.

http://daveberta.blogspot.com.

it's election time...

...by-election, that is.

The PMO has dropped the writ for a By-Election to be held in the Federal Riding of Labrador on May 24, 2005.

what day is it?

It's April 17... where did the month go!?!

Two final exams done last week, only two final exams left this week. More daveberta original political commentary to come after that.

What do you think? Election or no election? I've bet $20 on it being this year and $5 on it being in the fall. So, either I win $25 or $15. I'm set. :)

I added some new links to the sidebar for your blogging pleasure. Check them out when you get the chance.

Cheers.

D :)

budgetary observations 2005

Well, as promised, here is my recap of what went on at the Budget 2005 announcement at the Alberta Legislature this afternoon - a BIG THANKS to my favorite MLA for getting me a pass for the afternoon. : )

Well, this budget was labeled by the Tories as an investment budget, the first budget of the new debt-free Alberta. The air of excitement never caught on. These guys have been in power for 34 years and it shows. No new ideas...

So, instead of giving you budget details which you can easily find here, here, and here, I decided to give you a recap of my exciting adventure at Budget Day 2005 in Edmonton.

Enter scene: Cloudy spring day in Edmonton, Alberta. No sun, just clouds (it had rained the night before).

2:10pm - Left work, hopped on the LRT at University Station and waited 5 minutes for the LRT to show up...

2:20pm - Finally arrive at Grandin LRT Station, get off and run over to the Legislature Annex to pick up my pass for the Public Gallery. Got it! Yeah! Talk to some people I know and shoot the breeze for 5 minutes.

2:40pm - I run over to the main Legislature building with a friend of mine who works over there, get in (pretty lax security). On the elevator ride up to the fourth floor.

2:45pm - I join some people I know, in the Public Gallery overlooking the MLA's in the Assembly. The MLA's below are debating about snowmobiles or something... Tory MLA Wayne Cao says something about restaurants…?

2:50pm - Talk about an upcoming Federal Election begins amoungst us. Someone said they thought the Tories could win up to 5 seats in Quebec, someone else said they thought the election would be in mid-May. I still think it'll be in the fall.

2:55pm - Speaker of the House, Ken Kowalski calls for a 5 minutes recess before the Budget announcement by the Finance Minister.

3:00pm - MLA's start filling back in to their seats. ND MLA Ray Martin is in a wheelchair (I think someone said that he broke his leg - that sucks). More people begin filling into the Members and Public Galleries. I notice the disproportionately large amount of white haired men presumably over the age of 60 in the Galleries.

3:05pm - Finance Minister Shirley McClellan begins her speech. I notice that a rep from the Alberta Federation of Labour is sitting next to me and some folks from the good ol’ Parkland Institute are sitting in the row in front of me.

3:10pm – Promises, promises, promises…

3:25pm – Shirley McClellan is still talking. Tories cheer. Man, she's boring. I think the next time the Tories pick a Finance Minister, they need to pick someone with a little more ‘ompf’ than Mrs. McClellan. I think the perfect person would be...

3:30pm – Shirley McClellan is still talking and I think one of the old guys in the Members Gallery across from me has fallen asleep. I try to count the amount of grey haired MLA's in the Assembly. I lose count.

3:35pm – Shirley McClellan is still talking. I notice that one of my favorite Tory MLA’s has been conspicuously missing from his seat the entire time… hmmmm, very very very interesting.

3:40pm – It’s finally rapping up… Alberta Liberal Leader Kevin Taft responds to the speech, says he looks forward to the debate beginning tomorrow morning.

3:44pm – We all file out, I say hi to Dan McLellan from the AUPE. He doesn’t remember me.

3:48pm – I take the stairs down to the Rotunda to check out all the media scrums going on. There are probably a few hundred reporters, MLA’s and staffers, spies and Tory goons, and political hacks like me wandering around. I listen to some of the scrums - Education Minister Gene Zwozdesky, Health Minister Iris Evans, the Finance Minister, and the gang. ND MLA David Eggen has a nice tie (yellow and blue), I like it.

4:00pm – I’m really thirsty, need a drink. I go and find a water fountain. Come back and the orgy of scrumming is still going on. I bump into Edmonton Gold Bar MLA Hugh MacDonald. We say hi and he asks me if I’ve seen some reporter from the CBC, I say no, he continues his hunt.

4:07pm - I go and check out what Advanced Ed Minister Dave Hancock is saying (He’s organizing for a bid at the Tory Leadership). I get semi-accosted by one of Mr. Hancock’s goons; he wants to know who I am, who I work for, and why I want to listen. What a nice man. :P After my beating, I got to meet Mr. Hancock. He seems like an interesting person. I think he must have dyed his hair at least 7 different times and colours since being elected in 1997. Out of all the Tories here in Alberta, he is the only one which I (grudgingly) *like*… I move on…

4:12pm- I run into Liberal MLA’s David Swann and Weslyn Mather, the critics for Environment and Childrens’ Services. Nothing for their departments in the budget... I guess clean air and cute kids (see the picture in my previous post) aren’t good enough for this budget… I have a nice little chat with the two of them...

4:22pm – I continue to mull around and check out the scrums. Things are starting to wind down, still no Ted Morton. To bad, I wanted to say hi.

4:29pm – Things are really winding down. I’m hungry, time to go home and get something to eat. (I exit stage left)

END SCENE

alberta budget 2005

Alberta's Future?

"Mr. Speaker, Alberta and Albertans enter our second century with nothing to stand in our way. And the single, over-riding purpose of this year's budget is to invest in Alberta's second century - a century that promises even more opportunity for future generations of Albertans."

Alberta Finance Minister Shirley McClellan (2 hours and 46 minutes ago)

ouch

I took the test...

What Famous Leader Are You?
personality tests by similarminds.com

join the revolution! vote mp3!

Why can't our elections be fun like the one's in the UK?

From the Desk of the Temporary Leader of the MP3 Party

"Gentlemen,

This is not a discussion club for like-minded intellectuals!This is a very beginning of a proactive and practical organization that is seriously planning to take power in the United Kingdom.

Some of us are not very liberal, many are not very green. Generally, we are not especially nice and several are outright dangerous. We all have different ideas and beliefs. This is OK (for now). We will sort what is right and what is wrong on the way, but first let get things rolling, pots boiling, sausages sizzling....Let us became a Power, after that we would have plenty of time for intellectual discussions, arguments and bonding.

If you feel being a part of "mp3-generation", "mp3-community", join us now !!!

Let kick some shit together!!!

Ruslan G. Fedorovsky (temporary Leader)"

Check out the rest of them here

a look around the political block...

Well, what an interesting week in Alberta politics.

1) It looks like David Kilgour, MP for Edmonton-Mill Woods-Beaumont, is interested in rejoining the Tories. How many "cross-the-floor" monopoly cards does Mr. Kilgour have?

This contridicts rumours I have been hearing for a couple of months that he was planning on retiring before the next election. Maybe this is his way of distancing himself from the Feds and then retiring with somewhat of a good name? Though he's a Liberal MP, I have never really considered him to be a liberal, his right leaning views tend to clash with some of the basic principles of Canadian liberalism (he was a PC MP from 1979 to 1993, then crossed to the Libs). This aside, he has served the constituents of southeast Edmonton for 25 years and has obviously gained their respect (and votes!).

2) According to the latest EKOS poll (which has been covered in about 99% of Canadian blogs minus this one) was released recently, here are the numbers.

Canada-wide
Conservative - 36.2%
Liberal - 25%
NDP - 20.5%
Bloc - 12.6%
Green - 5%

The breakdowns has the NDP leading in BC, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba, the Tories leading in Alberta (no suprise), Ontario, and the Maritimes, with the Bloc taking a massive lead in Quebec.

This doesn't look good for the Federal Liberals no matter which way they spin it. Interesting times ahead.

3) The Alberta PC convention rapped up last weekend with internal infighting and political divisions displayed front and centre. Premier Klein told leadership candidates to "cool their jets." But, I guess if by "cool[ing] their jets" he meant:

-set up campaign websites (such as this one and this one),

-host networking parties (ie: free booze and food),

-take out newspaper Ad's (a la Mark Norris),

-and print up some buttons,

then the Alberta Tories are one big happy family. Let the entertainment begin! : )

4) The Provincial budget is being released on Wednesday (13 days after the fiscal year began) - as noted earlier, I will be there and will bring you all the good gossip - apparently the government will finally be raising the AISH subsidy (still not even close to living wage though), present the already promised money for education, and won't be dealing out any tax-cuts. So, it looks pretty lackluster so far.

This is all for now.

D :)

good morning mr. president...

wait a minute... when and how did that happen?

damn. I swear, God just does this to see my reaction...

any money for me, mr. klein?

I didn't think so...

I'm going to the Budget announcement at the Legislature on Wednesday.

See you there?

gossip from the alberta pc convention

Check out Daveberta's thoughts on the First-Ballot of the Alberta PC leadership race...

(Make sure to check out the updated list of MLA endorsements in the Alberta PC leadership race.)

Well, I promised it, and here it is - some gossip from my ‘source-on-the-floor' of the Alberta PC Convention at Northlands in Edmonton this weekend.

Apparently, other than the disturbingly large amount of delegates wearing 'Lyle Oberg for Leader' buttons, the Tories made some interesting decisions related to their 'youth' wing.

In order to address the lack of youth involvement in their party, Alberta PC delegates came up with a truly Alberta Tory solution. They have voted to change the definition of 'youth' from 14-25 to 14-35. So, that means, if you were a 35 year old Regular PC member yesterday - today you are now a member of the Progressive Conservative Youth Association...

Oh oh! but it gets even more bizarre - under the new category, 'youth' members who are +26 are not voting members of the 'youth' association even though they are technically members.... does this seem really weird to anyone else?

And just when you thought there couldn’t be anymore juice!!

The big 'renewal initiative' that the Tories undertook after being slapped around in the last election recommended that they hire a staff member to support the youth-wing with organizing, etc. Well, apparently the President of the PC 'youth' association got up to the mike and spoke vehemently against this motion - to the chagrin of the 'youth' membership which he supposedly represents... the motion was defeated...

Wow, these guys are better than pay-per view TV!

quick linkage

Mornin'

Shannon the Futon Revolutionary has some great posts about the Tory Leadership contenders. It's a good laugh to start out your day!

Cheers.

D : )

PS. I noticed that since I put the site metre up a month ago - over 830 people have visited. Wow. Thanks!

shameless plug

For those of you interested:

The Edmonton Centre Liberal Constituency Association

presents...

A Fabulous Fundraiser from the Friends of Laurie Blakeman

BECOMING SHARP

By David Belke

Thursday, April 28, 2005

Doors @ 7:15pm

Curtain @ 7:30pm

Shadow Theatre

10329-83 Avenue

Reception following the performance.

(Send me an email if you'd like to buy a ticket - daveberta@linuxmail.org)

spiritual reflection in the a.m.

It's about 1:56am and Pope John Paul II's funeral is about to begin in a couple of minutes.

They say that there are over 200 Heads of State and Government who have come to the Vatican to pay their respects. Millions of people in Rome and millions watching on television from around the world. Including me.

...the jackboot of the bourgeoisie...

The Alberta Tory convention is this weekend. Apparently, there are no hospitality suites allowed! Now, say my name was Josiah and I was a Conservative party member who was coming to the convention in Edmonton all the way from Cardston or Cereal or something, and found out that there weren't going to be any hosptiality suites simply because the 'illustrious and *benevolent* leader-for-life of my great great great government for the millennia' Party didn't want his rivals to shmooze and party it up - I would be very bent up in the wrong direction.

Does anybody else think that it is quite ironic that Premier Klein is the one who doesn't want the boozefest of hospitality suites to flourish and spread their wings of alcoholic bliss upon the PC Convention?

But alas, I am sooo glad that i'm not in that situation and that I belong to a Party who knows how to party it up with the best of them.

On another PC leadership related note, I thought this was fun and a little ironic. Go to google.com and type in "elect dave hancock'. I was as shocked as you will be...

Ah, and soon to come: my review of Summa Theologica by our good friend, St. Thomas Aquinas.

-Keepin' it real since 1983-

D : )

rah rah rasputin

According to the Canadian Association of University Teachers, 0.3% of University Professors count themselves as Pagans.

awesome book

I decided that today I would write a post not about Gomery, corruption, publication bans, or any of those other things that has ticked me off in the past few days. Instead, I'm going to write about a good book.

Last summer, in order to escape what had been some of the 4 most stressful and trying months of my life (I'm not going to elaborate on this), I spent a month doing some solo backpacking across Canada's Maritimes. I made my way across Gaspesie, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Newfoundland and enjoyed every moment of it. Sleeping in hostels, bus stations, airports, ferry terminals, on ferries, and meeting the most incredible people.

FYI Halifax is an awesome party town: 6 nights partying in Halifax here, here, here, and others that I can't remember = tonnes of fun, some very wild times, a game of frizbee at 4am on the front lawn of the Lt. Gov's residence, stealing street name signs - then losing them, and a huge dent in my bank account. And St. John's NFLD was just as good. George Street was awesome.

But, as much as it was a great time to party, it was also a very spiritual, soul searching time. There's nothing like meditating on an Atlantic beach (wear a hat, it's usually windy).

The entire trip was great, but the best part was being on a boat 10 feet away from 3 humpback whales - one of the most incredible experiences of my life. It is an incredibly beautiful part of our country.

While I was in St. John's, Newfoundland, I stopped at a used book store to find some interesting reading material (I had bought the DaVinci Code in Halifax, and had finished it by then). What I found was one of the best books I can say i've ever read. For $1.50 at the Afterwords Bookstore (I still have the receipt in the book) I bought 'History on the Run: the "Trenchcoat" Memoirs of a Foreign Correspondent' by Knowlton Nash, the former National Anchorman for CBC News.

In this book, Nash writes about his time as the top CBC reporter in Washington DC during the turbulent 1960's. The Kennedy's (John and Robert), Martin Luther King Jr., Lyndon Johnson, Richard Nixon, and Vietnam. It covers it all. What I found what touched me the most were the personal acounts Nash had with Robert F. Kennedy, including being one of the last reporters to interview him on his last trip to California, where he was shot and killed. It found it to be a very powerful acount of an important point in US history. I also liked Bobby Kennedy alot more after I read this.

So, if you are in the market for a really good book, check out "History on the Run" by Knowlton Nash. You won't regret it.

darkness on the horizon

If even half of this Gomery stuff is true, I am hugely disappointed.

Shame.

sunday night instant update

Reading: Summa Theologica by St. Thomas Aquinas
Listening: The rest of my life by Sloan
Drinking: Orange Juice (with pulp) by Tropicana
New Favorite Website: Dog Judo

my sister in rome

My sister just sent me an email from Rome... apparently it's nice, warm, sunny, and she's loving Italy. I am hugely jealous.

Cheers M! Can't wait 'till you get back!

D : )

sweetening the deal

TGIF!

I have again updated the sidebar to your right -->

I've moved the links sections around a little and added a bunch of new blog links (scroll down) - check'em out - half of them are interesting, the other half are filled with crazies! - you decide which is which.

I've also added a new poll - for those of your paying attention to this, this, this, and this, and of course this, this and this you will understand what I mean.

Here are the results of the former poll:

Question: When do you think Ralph Klein will retire?

Tomorrow - 7%

Summer 2005 - 2%

Fall 2005 - 21%

Winter 2005/06 - 7%

Spring 2006 - 14%

Summer 2006 - 12%

He should have retired ten years ago! - 29%

Ralph who? - 7%

Total Votes - 44

Hmmm. Interesting. Well... enjoy the new additions!

when politicians get desperate

This is what happens when a politician gets desperate to save his own skin.

Makes me wonder how this guy could get elected and re-elected four times in a row.

Only in Alberta. Only in Calgary. Bizarre.

seriously folks...

I keep on thinking that I am going to wake up and say "woah, what a weird dream. Thank goodness that would never happen in real life!"

I'm going back to bed.

my maple leaf

On a non-political note, last weekend, I did something that I had planned to do for the past five years.

Five years ago, I spent some time traveling across Europe (it was my second time there) and had the privilege of visiting Vimy Ridge. Vimy Ridge being the location of a major battle fought by Canadian troops in the First World War.

Any Canadian who has the chance to visit the massive monument, the preserved trenches, and scattered cemeteries with rows and rows of white tombstones, walks away feeling differently about life. I know that I had a hard time describing my feelings to my friends and family back in Canada when I got back – it was an emotionally charged and exhausting day. For me, it was a life changing experience to visit such a historic Canadian site.

The reason I brought this up is that when I was there, I collected a maple leaf from one of the hundreds of maple trees which were planted there. Since my return to Canada, my Vimy Ridge maple leaf has been kept safe in my 2000 edition of the Canadian Encyclopedia and then between two sheets of wax paper. This weekend, while at my parents house for Easter dinner, I collected my maple leaf, brought it back to my apartment, and framed it.

So, now, after five years, my Vimy Ridge Maple Leaf is proudly displayed on my living room wall.

I like it alot.

I love it when this happens, a positive article in the Edmonton Sun!!!

election anyone?

well, I hope not. Not in the mood one bit!

why can't these guys just get along???

for those of you interested in some elections of the provincial flavour, the BC Election Prediction Project website is up and running in preparation for May 17.

The current predictions are (currently in the Legislature):
BC Liberals - 33 (73)
BC New Democrats - 19 (3)
BC Greens - 0 (0)
Democratic Reform BC - 0 (1)
Other - 0 (2)
TO CLOSE TO CALL - 27
TOTAL - 79

my picks

Continuing on a lower post - I thought I would place some predictions for the rest of the vacant Senate seats...

My picks are:

New Brunswick (1)
Ray Frenette, Liberal Premier 1997-1998 (so says the Globe & Mail)

Prince Edward Island (1)
Stompin' Tom Connors, Canadian Music Icon (I think this would be cool.)

Quebec (3)
Carole-Marie Allard, former Laval Liberal MP (2000-2004)
Nathalie Rochefort, former Liberal MNA (my fun pick)
Daniel Johnson, former Liberal Premier 1994-1994

Manitoba (1)
Lloyd Axworthy, former Winnipeg MP (1979-2000) & AWESOME Foreign Affairs Minister (My pick - I LIKE LLOYD!)

British Columbia (1)
Mike Harcourt, former Mayor of Vancouver, and NDP Premier 1991-1996
David Haggard, former President of the Allied Workers of Canada, and 2004 Fed Liberal Candidate

PS> I have nothing but pure intutition to base these predictions on...

thank goodness!

It's about time!

16 vacant seats = 9 new Senators?

Is anybody wondering why Prime Minister Martin appointed 9 new Senators when there are 16 vacant Senate seats?

There are still vacant seats in New Brunswick (1), Prince Edward Island (1), Quebec (3), Manitoba (1), and British Columbia (1) = 7 Senate seats which are still vacant...

Just wondering if anyone else thinks this is a little weird.

Canada's 9 new Senators
(Name - Province (Party))

Jim Cowan - Nova Scotia (Liberal)
Romeo Dallaire - Quebec (Liberal)
Lylian Dyck - Saskatchewan (New Democrat)
Art Eggleton - Ontario (Liberal)
Elaine McCoy - Alberta (Progressive Conservative)
Grant Mitchell - Alberta (Liberal)
Robert Peterson - Saskatchewan (Liberal)
Nancy Ruth - Ontario (Progressive Conservative)
Claudette Tardif - Alberta (Liberal)

What's a Stephen Harper???

Well, tonight I'm going to post some comments about the federal Conservative Convention. I don't usually blog about federal politics, but for your enjoyment, I will make an exception.

I watched a bit of the CPC Convention this weekend via my laptop on CPAC (I don't watch TV and hence don't have cable). I was able to catch Conservative Leader Stephen Harper's speech to the Convention on Friday night and some of the policy sessions.

As usual... I have some thoughts about it...

1) "Promises made, promises broken" - Well, for those of you who don't get it - during Mr. Harper's main speech he harped back to the federal Liberal Convention a couple of weeks ago when Prime Minister Martin boasted the slogan "Promises made, promises kept" a ridiculous amount of times. Seeing as how I thought the Liberal version of the slogan was hokey enough, I found the Conservative version equally annoying (but I'll give them points for semi-cleverness).

2) Jane Taber of the Globe & Mail wrote an interesting article this weekend about the blossoming relationship of young love between Conservative MP's Peter Mackay and Belinda Stronach. Interesting article. It had me wondering, what is going to happen when Ms. Stronach becomes Prime Minister, will Mr. Mackay be in her cabinet? I think it could make for some interesting cabinet meetings.

3) Youth-Wing - I heard that the delegates at the convention voted down a motion to create a youth-wing within their party. One of the arguments against this motion which I heard were that some youth didn't want to be relegated to a "sandbox" in the party... I found this interesting. Now the CPC has a group of young MP's and I think this is great, but I would think that an official institutionalized youth-wing should be fundamental in any political party. As a younger person involved in political organizing (albeit for a different and much better political party), I do find it interesting... I think I may write more about this later...

4) Elsie Wayne - As lovable a Grandma figure as she looks, this former St. John MP still has a voice that can send shivers down my spine. As much as I disagree with pretty much everything she says and stands for, I kind miss seeing (no... hearing) her on the news.

That is all for now.

Cheers.

D : )

Dear Paul Jackson: Part II

Two days ago, I wrote another letter to Calgary Sun columnist Paul Jackson. This time, my letter was in response to Mr. Jackson's column Left in the Cold, which anyone with common sense should take issue with.

At first I thought that the ending may have been a little harsh, but I remain firm that I find Paul Jackson to be a very entertaining columnist.

Here it is...

'March 14, 2005

Dear Mr. Jackson;

I am writing this email in response to your column ‘Left in the Cold,’ published in the Calgary Sun on March 14, 2005.

I would first like to let you know how glad I am that you have decided to take the advice of my previous email and consult some “history books” when writing your most recent column. As you probably discovered, it is not a difficult or strenuous task. I encourage you to continue doing it!

I do have some questions about your most recent publication though. In this column, you state that the Liberals were punished during the 1921 Provincial election for an unspeakable deed which you wrote “was so terrible I can't even write about it here”. I agree, there is no doubt they were punished by voters (going from 34 seats to 15), but so too were the Conservatives (who lost all 19 of their seats in that election). So, based on your logic, the Conservatives must have also done something very bad. Please enlighten me.

Following your refusal to publish these unspeakable misdeeds of the former Liberal Government, you ask your readers to ask their great-grandparents for the answer. But, for the many Albertans like myself, who never had the privilege of knowing my great-grandparents, I would very much like to know what these horrendous events were (as I am unable to find them in my ‘history books’). I encourage you to write extensively about the evil misdeeds of former Premiers Alexander Rutherford, Arthur Sifton, and Charles Stewart, so that all Albertans (most probably whom have never heard of the three) will have the opportunity to be enlightened by your knowledge of political issues and events in Alberta from 1905 to 1921.

This aside, I find it very encouraging that you, the associate editor of the Calgary Sun, have decided to base your current political observations and opinions on events that occurred over 80 years ago. It is a very reverse avant-guard tactic. How chic of you, Mr. Jackson!

In conclusion, I would like to let you know that I am a weekly reader and find your columns to be quite entertaining, especially as a comic relief to the most serious and credible political columns of the Globe & Mail, La Presse, and the Toronto Star (and of course, Rick Bell).

Keep up the good work!

Sincerely,

David ******
Edmonton, Alberta


cc: Mr. Rick Bell
Ms. Licia Corbella
Mr. Guy Huntingford'

cool vid

Check out this great Star Wars vid. Thanks to holtopia for the linkage.

new poll, old poll

In the spirit of keeping daveberta up to date and interesting, I have changed the poll.

The results of the first 'unresponsible polling' poll are:

‘Who will be the next Premier of Alberta?'

SpongeBob SquarePants - 43%

Ted Morton - 17%

Jim Dinning - 13%

Mark Norris - 9%

Kevin Taft - 9%

Dave Hancock - 4%

Gary Mar - 4%

Stockwell Day - 0%

Iris Evans - 0%

Brian Mason - 0%

Total Votes - 23

Dear Paul Jackson: Part 1

A couple of weeks ago, I wrote a letter to Calgary Sun columnist Paul Jackson regarding one of his columns about newly elected Calgary MLA's Dave Taylor, David Swann, and Harry Chase. I've posted my letter and a link to the column, so you can also read it.

First Letter

'March 2, 2005

Dear Mr. Jackson,

Yesterday, I read your column “Taylor-made” published in the Calgary Sun.

Though I am very glad to see that you are impressed by Mr. Taylor, I take issue with your comments regarding Mr. Swann and Mr. Chase.

In the column, you stated that “[m]y preconceived ideas of David Swann and Harry Chase proved bang on, though. Simply put, on every issue whether Kyoto or health care, Swann and Chase are utterly out-of-touch with the average Alberta voter.”

Now, you may not agree with the type of politics or policies which Mr. Swann and Mr. Chase support, but to say that they “are utterly out-of-touch with the average Alberta voter” seems to be a pretty bold statement. Perhaps they are out-of-touch with the average Conservative voter (probably because they are Liberals), but considering that less than 50% of Albertans voted in the last election, it would seem to me that it would be very hard to clearly define what the opinions of the “Alberta voter” are. I highly doubt that the majority of Albertans have a monolithic unified stance on every issue. In fact, I would dare say that many Albertans have many different opinions on many different issues.

As the MLA’s for Calgary Mountain View and Varsity, it is not their mandate to be in touch “with the average Alberta voter,” but to be in touch with the average Mountain View and Varsity voter.

Also, your comment that “the provincial Liberals haven't been a force in Alberta politics since the First World War” is just blatantly false. In the 1955 election, Harper Prowse led the Alberta Liberals to an astoundingly large opposition for the time against Ernest Manning’s Social Credit Government.

In the late 1980’s and early 1990’s, the Alberta Liberals were on the verge of forming government. You may remember the 1989 provincial election which saw Ralph Klein nearly defeated by Liberal Candidate Gib Clark in the Calgary Elbow riding. In 1993, the Alberta Liberals, led by Laurence Decore, received 39% of the popular vote across Alberta and elected 32 MLA’s (compared to 44% and 61 seats for the Klein Tories). So, the statement that “the provincial Liberals haven't been a force in Alberta politics since the First World War” is just plain incorrect.

I hope that in further columns, you will not only take an objective journalistic look at your column, but also consult historical facts (All of the historical information I provided in this email can easily be found either on the internet or your local library).

Sincerely,

David ******
Edmonton, Alberta

cc: Mr. Rick Bell
Ms. Licia Corbella
Mr. Guy Huntingford'


Read the column here!

As of 12 days later, I've received no response from Mr. Jackson or the Calgary Sun.

(I've just written another letter to Mr. Jackson and will post it soon.)

all funked up

well, what do you think about the overhaul?

New colours.
New header.
More funk?

funk it up

Ignore the last post please... i'm back... i never really left...

I decided that I wanted to "funk" up my blog a bit, the funky '897' above is the result... once I finally figure out HTML, then watch out...

Now... to politics...

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Rich Vivone, the publisher of Insight into Government suggests that the PC Leadership race to replace Ralph Klein would be a little more interesting if 3 new people would join.

The names Vivone suggests are:

- Former Reform Party Leader Preston Manning.
- Current Finance Minister & Drumheller-Stettler MLA (since 1987) Shirley McClellan (awful, awful picture...).
- Calgary Southeast Conservative MP Jason Kenny.

I must say, I agree with Vivone. The current race, though it may have the potential to be nastily entertaining, looks pretty boring. Woo hoo. Jim Dinning... (insert extreme sarcasm here)

I get the feeling that Mr. Dinning is going to be the 'Paul Martin' of the Tory Leadership race - the former Finance Minister who 'tamed the budget' and 'will reinvest in our province' - the 'it's time to do politics differently' establishment candidate. (Plus, a minority government would do Alberta good!)

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The 26th Session of the Alberta Legislature continued this week with Premier Klein and Transport Minister Lyle Oberg ducking and dodging opposition questions about the Governments privately owned fleet of airplanes. According to Oberg, Ministers, who are all free to use the planes, operate on the honour system when filing in the flight logs.... no accountability, no transparency...only the honour system....

It got even more interesting this week when Liberal Opposition Leader Kevin Taft questioned whether the Government was using the planes to jet corporate lobbyists around the province.

According to Taft's Press Release:

"information obtained from the government’s flight manifests which details one R. Love flying from Calgary to Edmonton and Edmonton to Fort MacMurray on March 29, 2004. These flights were taken the same day as a press conference about the Fort MacMurray oilsands railway service in Fort MacMurray.

Rod Love was working as a consultant at the time for the Athabasca Oilsands Transportation Corporation. His primary role was lobbying the government to invest over $300 million into the project."

Of course, this is referring to Premier Klein's longtime political advisor and current Chief of Staff, Rod Love.

Wow, who knew that being Premier of Alberta meant you could fly your buddies around in taxpayer funded planes?!?!

Be back soon

taking a break from posting for a bit, hope to post more soon.

D : )

a magazine for young chaps...

Thanks to Holly for the link!

I thought that some of you may appreciate this.

wagging the dog...

wow, does this suprise anyone???

I know you're watching!

Today, at the risk being showed up by another wonderful blog (click here), I've added some new features to daveberta (consider it my centennial gift to you!).

One of the new features I've added is what I call 'unresponsible polling' (on the sidebar). I plan to change the topic every couple of weeks. If you have any good ideas for new polls, feel free to email me and let me know! Vote early and vote often!

Also, I've added a new 'counter' to my website. So, I know that you're watching! (or not watching :P)

For those of you interested in hearing about last weekend's Federal Liberal Policy Convention in Ottawa:
Nic at GoPolitical, and CalgaryGrit both have some great stories. Enjoy!

D :)

my geek factor

okay... some of you may disagree with this...

You are 9% geek

OK, so maybe you ain't a geek. You do, at least, show a bit of interest in the world around you. Either that, or you have enough of a sense of humor to pick some of the sillier answers on the test. Regardless, you're probably a pretty nifty, well-rounded person who gets along fine with people and can chat with just about anyone without fear of looking stupid or foolish or overly concerned with minutiae. God, I hate you.

Take the Polygeek Quiz at Thudfactor.com

tory rural caucus rules the roost

The first session of the 26th Alberta Legislature began last week with a showing of the deep split within the Rural and Urban MLA's in the Tory Caucus.

March 1 - MLA's from all parties acclaimed rural Barrhead-Morinville-Westlock MLA Ken Kowalski as the Speaker. But suprise came when the majority Tories dumped incumbent Deputy Speaker and urban Calgary McCall MLA Shiraz Shariff in favour of rural Olds-Didsbury-Three Hills MLA Richard Marz.

March 3 - The majority rural Tory Caucus denied the lone Alliance MLA, Paul Hinman, the permission to make a statment in the Assembly (All MLA's who are not members of the governing party or the Official Opposition require the unanimous concent of the Legislature in order to make statements, which is usually agreed to). The Liberal and ND Caucuses along with some members of the Tory caucus voted in favour of allowing Mr. Hinman to speak, but the loud shouts of "nay" from the majority rural Tory drowned out any "yea" sayers. It seems they are pretty committed to keep him from speaking in the House - to the detrement of the voters of Cardston-Taber-Warner, who elected him.

The strength of the rural Tories was bolstered following last November's provincial election, when Kevin Taft's Alberta Liberals routed the Urban Tories in Edmonton, Lethbridge, and 3 downtown Calgary ridings.

Tory Urban/Rural Split

Pre-2004 Election (73 Tory MLA's)
Rural MLA's - 36
Urban MLA's - 37

Post-2004 Election (62 Tory MLA's)
Rural MLA's - 32
Urban MLA's - 28

It seems like this could just be the begining of a nasty show-down between the 'city tories' and 'country tories' leading up to the expected leadership race to replace 13-year leader Premier Ralph Klein. Two of the rumoured front-runners in the race include the very urban former Calgary MLA and current Transalta Power Executive Jim Dinning; and the right-wing former 'Senator-in-waiting' and current MLA for Foothills-Rocky View Ted Morton (Morton ran on the slogan 'More Alberta, Less Ottawa).

Final Note - I attended the first Question Period of the new Legislature last Thursday and I'd like to thank Edmonton Rutherford MLA & Liberal Finance Critic Rick Miller for the kind introduction. Thanks Rick!

vote, stupid!

for all you U of A students out there - Student Union Elections are on Wednesday, March 9 & Thursday, March 10 - POLLING STATIONS ALL OVER CAMPUS! VOTE VOTE VOTE!!!!!!!!

Check out info on ALL the candidates and the Health Plan Referendum HERE!!!!

3rd all nighter of the week

well, this is looking like it's gonna be my 3rd 'all nighter' in a row this week.... can't...wait...until...saturday...when....i...can....sleep....in.....

most bizarre...

and the winner of the 'most bizarre thing I saw this week award' is...

Catch an Illegal Immigrant Day by the Young Conservatives of Texas....

mapping

i had to post this - it's from NATO's Public Diplomacy Division website - very cool interactive map! found it during my research on eastern european security issues.

taking a break...

taking a break from paper writing... almost done the one on regional and domestic security issues in Eastern Europe... another one due next week on John Locke and property rights... can't wait until they are done....

going to the first QP of the new Legislative session tomorrow afternoon. looking forward to it, should be fun to watch... I can't wait until Ted Morton says something crazy! it's only a matter of time and when he does - it will be posted on daveberta!

Cheers.

D : )

Opposition 21 / Gov't 62

Well, the new session of the Alberta Legislature began today with the election of a new Speaker. I haven't heard, but it was expected that long long long long time Tory MLA Ken Kowalski would be acclaimed as Speaker. Kowalski, who was elected the same year dirt was invented, is the current MLA for the riding of Barrhead-Morinville-Westlock.

This session will see a new beefed up opposition ready to take on the Tories! Kevin Taft and the Liberal Official Opposition have 16 members (3 incumbents & 13 rookie MLA's), Brian Mason's perpetual third place New Democrats will be bringing 4 MLA's (2 incumbents, 1 rookie, & a former MLA). Also joining the Legislature for the first time will be the Alberta Alliance, represented by Cardston-Taber-Warner MLA Paul Hinman.

Let's hope the opposition gets under the Tories skin!

This new Legislature has 21 Opposition members (out of 83 seats - the Tories hold 62 seats).

Alberta's new opposition MLA's are:

Liberal Caucus
Bharat Agnihotri - Edmonton Ellerslie
Dan Backs - Edmonton Manning
Laurie Blakeman - Edmonton Centre*
Bill Bonko - Edmonton Decore
Harry Chase - Calgary Varsity
Mo Elsalhy- Edmonton McClung
Jack Flaherty - St. Albert
Hugh MacDonald - Edmonton Gold Bar*
Weslyn Mather - Edmonton Mill Woods
Bruce Miller - Edmonton Glenora
Rick Miller - Edmonton Rutherford
Bridget Pastoor - Lethbridge East
David Swann - Calgary Mountain View
Kevin Taft - Edmonton Riverview*
Dave Taylor - Calgary Currie
Maurice Tougas - Edmonton Meadowlark

ND Caucus
David Eggen - Edmonton Calder
Ray Martin - Edmonton Beverly Clareview
Brian Mason - Edmonton Highlands-Norwood*
Raj Pannu - Edmonton Strathcona*

Alberta Alliance Caucus (of one)
Paul Hinman - Cardston-Taber-Warner

*Incumbent MLA's.