naheed nenshi for mayor.

- Naheed Neshi has officially become Calgary City Hall's unofficial watchdog (Scott Hennig sheds a tear).

- A group of citizens based in Okotoks want to stop the City of Calgary from having a veto on the regional planning committee. They've started a petition and are on twitter @NoCalgaryVeto. The petition is hosted on the website of Jody MacPherson, who is also the Director of Communications for the University of Calgary Faculty of Medicine.

- I remain skeptical about Alberta's new rebranding campaign, but Chris LaBossiere likes it and has backed up his argument in a blog post.

- Mark your calendars, Edmonton Litfest 2009 is being held from October 22 to 25, 2009.

- New Ward boundaries have yet to be approved, but two candidates are already preparing their 2010 campaigns for Edmonton City Council. Former Edmonton-Sherwood Park NDP candidate Brian LaBelle is planning to run in the Ward 2 area, and Transit Riders' Union of Edmonton organizer Brendan Van Alstine is planning a run in the Ward 3 area.

- The anonymous author of the Tiny Perfect Blog seems to thinks that I should be more critical of the Alberta Liberals. I guess from now on, I'll have to work extra hard to impress the all those anonymous bloggers out there.

ted morton gives you an offer you can't refuse.

Is Sustainable Resource Development Minister Ted Morton going duck hunting, or is he taking up arms to fight deficits in Alberta and Ottawa? Maybe he is he preparing for the battle against Liberal insurgents in Calgary-West? Or perhaps he is taking the cue of another former Wyoming resident...?

Actually, the picture was on a flyer advertising an upcoming "Golf 'n Gun" fundraiser for the Foothills-Rockyview PC Association (and in all seriousness, this is probably the coolest picture I've ever seen of the former University of Calgary academic).

mods and cons in calgary-west.

Does the struggle between supporters of Donna Kennedy-Glans and Rob Anders remind anyone else of the "mods" and "cons" in the Kansas Republican Party from Thomas Frank's book What's the Matter with Kansas?

And does this have anything to do with the homeless problem (h/t CalgaryGrit).

big loop v. big oil.

This could be straight out of Wild Roses...

...the fight involves a group of six ranchers calling itself "the Big Loop Group" and includes two oilmen who happen to have active ranches in the region fighting energy giant Petro-Canada. The twist to all this is that Curtis Bartlett and Bruce Chernoff have dealt with similar issues as stewards of oil and gas companies over the years, but in this case have switched hats and are looking at the issues from an environmental perspective.

See: Petrocant.ca

(h/t Kevin Grandia)

what's eating the alberta liberals?

The first sentence of a recent letter sent out by Liberal Leader David Swann sums up the state of Alberta’s Official Opposition Party:

“We need your help to keep the ALP office operating at a reasonable level, and ready to serve Albertans.”

Over a year after the last election, the Alberta Liberals are struggling to pay their bills. It’s hard to understand why a political organization that earned 251,158 votes in the last election would have such a hard time paying off their 8-year debt, now sitting at around $400,000. The once $1 million debt-load was largely the product of the 2001 election campaign under former leader Nancy MacBeth. The Liberals went from 16 to 7 seats in that election, including a loss by MacBeth in Edmonton-McClung.

Two leaders and four years later, Edmonton-Riverview MLA Kevin Taft led the Liberals to reclaim a majority of seats in Edmonton and gain a three-seat beachhead in Calgary. While PC leader Ralph Klein was unceremoniously shown the door in 2006, the Liberals had high hopes. Ed Stelmach was selected as PC leader, and the Liberals raised $1 million in 2007 and won the by-election in Klein’s abandoned Calgary-Elbow constituency. As the 2008 election approached, most people predicted the PCs would be re-elected, but with a reduced majority government.

On March 3, 2008, the PCs got their vote out, and everyone else stayed home. Well, that’s not really what happened, but it's almost true. The PCs surged from 63 to 72 seats, unseating Liberals, New Democrats, and Wildrosers across Alberta, but voter turnout dropped to record low levels. With only around 90% of Albertans registered to vote, the pathetic turnout likely sat under 40% of eligible voters (including 22 out of 83 ridings which had less than 40% turnout).

While the Liberals dropped to 9 MLAs in 2008 by losing seats in Edmonton and facing decreasing support in rural Alberta, they did manage to increase their seat and vote total in Calgary by electing two new MLAs. The election of Kent Hehr in Calgary-Buffalo and Darshan Kang in Calgary-McCall shifted the power base in the Liberal caucus to southern Alberta for the first time in recent memory (five MLAs from Calgary, three from Edmonton, and one from Lethbridge). In the contest to replace Taft, two Calgary MLAs quickly became frontrunners.

In December 2008, Calgary-Mountain View MLA David Swann won a first-ballot victory against fellow Calgary MLA Dave Taylor and former Edmonton MLA Mo Elsalhy to become the first Liberal leader from Calgary since Nick Taylor campaigned in that city during the 1970s (Nick Taylor was eventually elected MLA in the Westlock-Sturgeon and Redwater ridings north of Edmonton from 1986 to 1996).

Following his victory, Swann appointed Elsalhy to lead a committee tasked with proposing recommendations to renew the Liberal Party. Joining Elsalhy on the committee are Norma Block of Drayton Valley, Barry Cavanaugh and Stephanie Laskoski of Edmonton, Jade Boldt and Peter Willott of Calgary, and Zack Moline of Lethbridge. The committee has launched a website to jump start some discussion, and in a recent email, Elsalhy announced the launch of a survey for ALP members and non-members asking what Alberta’s Liberal Party can do to renew itself. At the Legislature, Swann has brought in former MLA Rick Miller as Chief of Staff, and Calgary Federal Liberal organizer Neil Mackie as Communications Director.

Can the Alberta Liberals renew by creating momentum, attracting new members, and paying down their financial debt? What will it take for the Swann Liberals to attract new strong candidates, as well as re-attracting the many former Liberal MLAs who have moved on to other levels of government (Edmonton City Councillors Linda Sloan, Karen Leibovici, and Ed Gibbons come to mind).

The Alberta Liberals are in a rough spot, financially and organizationally, and though it may be easy to criticize Swann’s choice to focus on open consultations rather than implement a pre-made strategy, consultation and dialogue are his style. At this point in the game, the Liberals have very little to lose, so my recommendations to them are to be bold, challenge their status quo, and turn things on their head, because if the current fundraising trends continue, the Alberta Liberal Party may not be in the position to do so after the next election.

Coming Wednesday: Tiny Perfect Alberta NDP

battle over bill 19 far from over.

Infrastructure Minister Jack Hayden may have convinced the AAMDC to vote down an a resolution opposing Bill 19 at their recent convention, but whatever influence Hayden has over rural Reeves and Mayors (Hayden is the former Director of the AAMDC and Reeve of Stettler County), it's not stopping a group of rural landowners in central Alberta in their steadfast opposition to Hayden's Land Assembly Project Area Act.

While Hayden's power of persuasion over rural politicians may be impressive, it doesn't mean there is lack of concern over Bill 19 on municipal councils. The Drayton Valley Western Review has reported that Brazeau County Council voted not to oppose Bill 19 because they believed 'their voice is too small to be effective.' As such they have left matters in the hands of the Alberta Association of Municipal Districts and Counties to give voice to the concerns of the residents of Brazeau County. The Western Review continued:

One councillor, Anthony Heinrich, does not feel this is the best course of action. He was disappointed that council would not be voicing the concerns of the ratepayers directly while seeking support from other municipalities and counties in the area, something that has been done in the past.

Heinrich says he is disappointed in the way the MLAs are dealing with this issue. At a meeting in Warburg March 10 with the Warburg Pembina Surface Rights group three MLAs; Evan Berger, Diana McQueen and Ray Prins listened to the concerns of those present. Heinrich says he thought the constituents were being listened to, but, after reading some of the comments made by McQueen in a previous article in The Western Review, felt that perhaps this is untrue.

He says it is possible MLAs are speaking truthfully when they give their word that no Alberta resident will be taken advantage of using this bill. However, he is concerned that these MLAs may not hold the positions that they currently do when an issue arises.

A group of landowners, including Green Party leader Joe Anglin, are continuing to host information sessions and public town hall meetings across central Alberta to raise awareness and opposition to Bill 19. The United Power Transmission Area Groups will be hosting two more town hall meetings in Innisfail and Crossfield on April 6 & 7:

canadians unsure about their oil sands reputation?

Just as the Government of Alberta launched a $25 million national and international rebranding campaign to counter critics of current oil sands development practices, the latest Nanos Poll suggests that many Canadians, including here in the West, still have mixed feelings about our oil sands reputation.

Here are the national results and regional breakdown:

Do you believe that oil sands development has a positive, neutral or negative impact on Canada's reputation abroad?

Canada
Positive: 26%
Neutral: 25%
Negative: 35%
Unsure: 14%

Atlantic Canada
Positive: 40%
Neutral: 25%
Negative: 24%
Unsure: 11%

Quebec
Positive: 14%
Neutral: 29%
Negative: 46%
Unsure: 12%

Ontario
Positive: 30%
Neutral: 24%
Negative: 29%
Unsure: 17%

Western Canada
Positive: 29%
Neutral: 22%
Negative: 36%
Unsure: 13%

alberta newspapers awash in national awards.

The mainstream media has taken quite a beating over the past year, and while it's really easy to focus on the negative (especially when people are losing their jobs), it's important to recognize some of the great journalists and newspapers that are continuing to report, write, and publish print news in our communities.

Earlier this month, the Canadian Community Newspapers Association announced the winners of their annual awards. Congrats to the Alberta award winners, which included the Wainwright Star Chronicle, Elk Point Review, Jasper Booster (which has since shut down), Vaxhaull Advance, MacLeod Gazette, South Peace News, Taber Times, Hinton Parklander, Peace River Record-Gazette, Bonnyville Nouvelle, Banff Crag & Canyon, Rocky Mountain Outlook, Canmore Leader, St. Albert Gazette, Okotoks Western Wheel, Fast Forward Weekly, SEE Magazine, Sherwood Park News, Sylvan Lake News, Athabasca Advocate, Strathmore Standard, Provost News, Wainwright Edge, Drumheller Mail, and Lethbridge Community College's Endeavour.

While they have yet to announce the winners, three writers, one photographer, one cartoonist, and a team of reporters are among the Alberta nominees for the 2009 Canadian Newspaper Association National Newspaper Awards:

Beat Reporting: Michelle Lang, Calgary Herald, for health and medicine coverage

Arts and Entertainment: Elizabeth Withey, Edmonton Journal, for stories of three Canadian artists, two in music and one author

Feature Photography: Ian Martens, Lethbridge Herald, for a shot of a full moon as a backdrop for a wedding photograph being taken by another photographer

Editorial Cartooning: John B. Larter, Calgary Herald

News Photography: Ted Rhodes, Calgary Herald, for a photo of a distraught woman who has just learned her son was the victim of a murder.

Breaking News: Calgary Herald team’s coverage of the Lall family murders

'select a goa priority.'

As part of the 'Freedom to Create' part of Alberta's new identity rebranding campaign, the Government of Alberta will now let ordinary citizens select which government priority fits with each Government media release.

Now, that's thinking out of the box!

getting what you pay for.

Elections Alberta (during 2008 election campaign)... $9.4 million

Office of the Auditor General... $21.5 million

Re-branding Alberta ("Freedom to Create. Spirit to Achieve")... $25 million

UPDATE: In retrospect, perhaps this post would be better summed up as:

The $25 million public relations campaign is an exercise in spin. I am proud to be Albertan, but I wish our elected officials would not have to rely on high-priced public relations consultants as a crutch to manage Alberta's identity. I wish for an Alberta where our elected officials had the courage to lead by and defend Alberta's national and international reputation through the strength of their actions. Alberta is an incredible province, with some incredible people, but the institutional mediocrity that has crept into our democratic culture has stymied our limitless potential. Alberta in 2009 is a great place to live, but it has the potential to be so much better.

provincial representatives minding [municipal] affairs [re: bills 202, 203, 204].

Municipal issues are a hot topic for MLAs introducing Private Member's Bills in this session of the Alberta Legislature:

Bill 202: Municipal Government (Municipal Auditor General) Amendment Act, 2009

Introduced by Calgary-Hays MLA Art Johnston. The AAMDC is waiting for more details, but the AUMA has written to Premier Ed Stelmach raising concerns about the "bureaucracy and increased costs, to both the Province and municipalities,” which they argue could be created if this Bill becomes Law. This Bill could also have the unintended consequence of creating increased tension between the province and municipalities, as many municipalities (including both the Cities of Edmonton and Calgary) already employ their own Auditors who report to the elected Councils. While I support increases accountability and transparency, I would hope that a new Auditor General would not face the same funding challenges that have plagued the provincial Auditor General over the past few months.

Bill 203: Local Authorities Election (Finance and Contribution Disclosure) Amendment Act, 2009

Introduced by Athabasca-Redwater MLA Jeff Johnson. As rules around municipal campaign financing currently vary from municipality to municipality, this Bill would bring law and order to one of the last frontiers of campaign finance in Wild Rose Country. Calgary Mayor Dave Bronconnier has recently introduced recommendations to change campaign finance regulations after his 2007 opponent, Alnoor Kassam, self-funded a $1 million dollar campaign against the incumbent Mayor. Increased consistency, transparency, and accountability on the municipal level is a good start, but there's still a long way to go.

Bill 204: Municipal Tax Sharing Act, 2009

Introduced by Edmonton-Centre MLA Laurie Blakeman. Especially important in areas of the province such as Edmonton's Capital Region, the creation of municipal tax-sharing agreements and formulas are a critical growth management issue in Alberta. I'm unsure how this Bill would complement the recently agreed upon 'peace in our time'* among the 25 Capital Region municipalities, but I've always thought it likely that provincial legislation would need to be enacted before we would ever see concrete action on this issue. Unfortunately, due to Blakeman's political geography in the Legislature (sitting in the 9 MLA Liberal caucus, and not in the 72 MLA PC caucus), it's very likely that Bill 204 will meet a similar fate to Kent Hehr's Bill 201 and be defeated.

Here's video of Blakeman introducing Bill 204:

*More on this later.

rumble in ryley ko? [the continuing saga of bill 19].

Some reaction from Joe Anglin on last night's hotly anticipated Bill 19 Town Hall in Village of Ryley:

For Immediate Release

March 24, 2009

Bill 19 was Drafted in Error?

(Rimbey, AB) Bill 19 – still looking for the right combination to debate Green Party Leader Joe Anglin over the proposed Land Assembly Area Act [Bill 19], the Hon Jack Hayden, author of the Bill, attended a public forum in Riley AB on Monday night to try his best to defend the Bill. Mr. Hayden accompanied with MLAs Mr. Evan Berger (Livingstone-Macleod), Mr. Ray Prins (Lacombe Ponoka), Ms. Diana McQueen (Drayton Valley/Calmar), Mr. Verlyn Olson (Wetaskiwin/Camrose), and Mr. Doug Griffiths (Battle River-Wainwright) failed to convince the crowd in attendance of the merits of the Bill or the proposed amendments, and may have embarrassed themselves.

Mr. Hayden told the crowd in the attendance, as the government has done at previous public forums, Bill 19 was needed because the Restricted Development Act was struck down in a previous court decision. When queried by Mr. Anglin over the referenced court decision, Mr. Hayden was informed that a Restricted Development Act has never existed in law in Alberta, and the Alberta courts have no record of a decision striking down any piece of Alberta Legislation called the Restricted Development Act.

Anglin went on to ask Mr. Hayden that if he could not produce a copy of a court case striking down the assumed Restricted Development Act, would he then agree that the premise for drafting Bill 19 was based on an error concerning a court ruling that doesn’t exist, and would he then withdraw the Bill because of this error?

Mr. Hayden did not respond to Anglin’s question, and the other five MLAs scrambled and shuffled paper. However, Mr. Hayden and the other MLAs in attendance would not comment further on the fact the Minister may have drafted Bill 19 in error – in view of the fact the courts have not struck down any legislation in Alberta called the Restricted Development Act.

-30-

Joe Anglin
Leader of the Alberta Greens
(403) 843-3279

social credit weighs in on oil sands debate.

For those who missed it (and I imagine most Albertans fit into this category), Social Credit Party leader Len Skowronski waded into the great Oil Sands debate in February by releasing a nine-point plan for Oil Sands development. Social Credit formed the Government of Alberta from 1935 to 1971.

fox news apologizes [re: mocking canadians in afghanistan].

On March 20, I posted a video clip of Fox News' Greg Gutfeld and guests mocking the role of Canada's military in Afghanistan. Today, Gutfeld and Fox News are apologizing for the comments.

From iNews880:

A Fox News host is apologizing to Canadians in the face of widespread outrage over comments he and his guests made on a late-night talk show.

`Red Eye' host Greg Gutfield says his comments `may have been misunderstood' and in no way were meant to disrespect `the brave men, women and families of the Canadian military.'

Fox News issued the Gutfield statement just after the Canadian government demanded an apology for what it called the `despicable' and `disgusting' comments.

bill 19 rumble in ryley [joe anglin v. jack hayden].

Recent amendments removing sections of the controversial Bill 19: Land Assembly Project Area Act have satisfied some critics, but others remain steady in their opposition to the legilsation. Central Alberta landowner and Green Party leader Joe Anglin still has serious concerns about the legislation and has in recent weeks organized Town Hall meetings on Bill 19 in Warburg and Ponoka which attracted the attention of four PC MLAs who showed up to defend their government's Bill.

In recent weeks, the Wild Rose Agricultural Producers, the Council of Canadians, Greenpeace, and the Sierra Club have also voiced their opposition to Bill 19.

Tonight, Anglin will face off against Infrastructure Minister Jack Hayden at an open forum in Ryley, Alberta:

For Immediate Release

March 23, 2009

(Rimbey, AB) Tonight at the Ryley Community Center the Minister of Infrastructure, the Hon Jack Hayden, will be discussing Bill 19, the “Land Assembly Area Act”, along with Joe Anglin, Advocate for Landowner Rights and Leader of the Alberta Green Party.

This will be the first time the Minister, and sponsor of the controversial Bill 19, will defend his proposed Bill. Mr. Hayden and Mr. Anglin will answer questions from the public at the open forum.

The public and press are invited to attend. The forum starts at 7: 00 PM March 23, 2009 at the Ryley Community Center (Corner of 51 Ave and 49 St) in Ryley, Alberta.

-30-
Joe Anglin
Leader of the Alberta Green Party
(403) 843-3279

no debate on public debate amendment [re: bill 18 & tilma].

They stood up to vote against it, but no PC MLA spoke up to explain why they opposed Lethbridge-East MLA Bridget Pastoor's March 18 amendment to remove Section 5 of Bill 18: Trade, Investment and Labour Mobility Agreement Implementation Statutes Amendment Act, 2009. In its current form, Section 5 will allow Cabinet Ministers to suspend or modify sections of the TILMA Act without seeking the approval of or having to deal with public debate in the elected Legislature.

Six opposition MLAs rose to speak in support of the amendment, while thirty-one PC MLAs, including Cabinet Ministers Iris Evans, Dave Hancock, Jack Hayden, Doug Horner, Heather Klimchuk, Fred Lindsay, Luke Ouellette, Alison Redford, Rob Renner, Lloyd Snelgrove, Ron Stevens, and Gene Zwozdesky didn't make a peep before defeating the amendment 31 to 6.

UPDATE: MLA Laurie Blakeman raised concerns about this section of Bill 18 earlier in the week:

sick to the gutfeld [fox news mocks canada's role in afghanistan].

Fox News' Greg Gutfeld and guests on a recent taping of his show thought it would be funny to belittle and mock the Canadian military's role in Afghanistan. Four more Canadian soldiers were killed in Afghanistan today, bringing the total to 116 Canadians who have died in the conflict.

What a sicko.

(h/t @ChrisLabossiere and @BPMDavidStone)

UPDATE: You can email Brian Lewis at FOX NEWS to demand an apology.

canadian taxpayers' federation silent on the auditor general's lack of funding.

Usually not shy to criticize government spending, the Canadian Taxpayers' Federation has remained noticeably silent following the news that Alberta's Auditor General Fred Dunn has delayed or cancelled 27 of 80 planned financial or systematic audits because of financial constraints.

As an articulate commenter on a previous post wrote, the Office of the Auditor General exists to provide "clear, nonpartisan feedback on the finances of the various functions of government. Their job is to provide what amounts to constructive financial criticism to governments about the way programs, departments and ministries spend money. The better the auditor general, the tighter the financial ship."

The Canadian Taxpayers' Federation lists dedication to less waste and accountable government as two of its main goals, so it seems to me that if there were one area of spending that the CTF would publicly support, it would be for the people who are in charge of the audits that create less waste and more accountable government.

bullshit detector reaches critical levels [re: auditor general].

Alberta's Auditor General Fred Dunn recently announced the delay or cancellation of 27 out of 80 planned system and financial audits due to budget constraints and yesterday, after opposition MLAs once again attempted (and failed) to increase funding for the Auditor General, the remarks of two backbench PC MLAs really caught my attention:

Calgary-Egmont MLA Jonathan Denis:

"Realistically everybody would like more money, I would like more money, but the reality is we froze our paycheques this year. This is the first time in 15 years we froze our paycheques. And similarly we don’t want to ge giving extra money to departments where that’s not required.”

Athabasca-Redwater MLA Jeff Johnson:

"We're in a time of great financial restraint," Johnson said. "I don't know how we (justify) going from $21.5 million to $25 million in one year...." "Nobody has enough money to do the job they'd like to do."

The mandate of the Auditor General of Alberta is to 'identify opportunities and propose solutions for the improved use of public resources, and to improve and add credibility to performance reporting, including financial reporting, to Albertans.' Ensuring financial and systematic efficiency through these audits is one of our government's most important responsibilities to the hardworking citizens and taxpayers of this province. Albertans should not have to wait until good economic times for the Auditor General to have the resources to do the most effective job possible.

downloading the tar sands (for free).

I posted this on Twitter yesterday, but just in case you missed it, Andrew Nikiforuk's book 'Tar Sands: Dirty Oil & Future of a Continent' is available as a free pdf download until tomorrow (March 20, 2009).

bush 43 dines in calgary.

Former United States President George W. Bush had lunch in Calgary today, and 200-300 protesters showed up outside the 1,500 person luncheon hosted by the Calgary Chamber of Commerce. At least three protesters have been reported as being arrested. According to the Toronto Star, the $400 per ticket luncheon will score Bush at least $100,000 in fees.

Gena Rotstein was at this afternoon's protest and posted a recap on her blog, and Aaron Braaten has shared his theory on the actual reason for Bush's visit to Calgary.

You can follow Bush's Calgary visit on Twitter at #gwbyyc and check out a photo gallery of the protests at CBC Calgary.

peter milliken visits alberta legislature. enjoys bipartisan brew.

- House of Commons Speaker Peter Milliken stopped by Edmonton yesterday as part of a Canada-wide Legislative tour where he met with Speaker Ken Kowalski and MLAs. I haven't heard whether Milliken discussed Kowalski's recent ban of online social media during Question Period (Milliken allows the use of blackberries, laptops during Question Period in the House of Commons). The Kingston Liberal MP also stopped by the U of A Conservative Club Pub Night for bipartisan beer and pictures.

- Bonnyville-Cold Lake MLA Genia Leskiw's private members motion to dissolve Provincial Achievement Tests for Grade 3 students passed in the Alberta Legislature. After a vigorous debate, Lewskiw's motion passed 29 to 18, but did not gain the support of Education Minister Dave Hancock, or most members of the PC Cabinet.

- The Conservative Party of Canada is changing their nomination rules, effectively protecting incumbent MPs from nomination challenges. These rule changes may abort Donna Kennedy-Glans nascent nomination challenge in Calgary-West. Kennedy-Glans had recently announced her intentions to challenge sitting Conservative MP Rob Anders.

- National Defence Minister Peter Mackay was in Edmonton yesterday to announce plans to spend $40 million on much needed infrastructure upgrades for Armed Forces bases in Alberta. Mackay announced $21 million to CFB Edmonton for housing and training facilities, $11 million to CFB Wainwright for water treatment upgrades, and $8 million for CFB Cold Lake.

- Two Alberta newspapers recently closed their doors. In what can be described as a really bad year to own a newspaper, Quebecor's Jasper Booster and Morinville Town & Country Examiner (formerly the Morinville Mirror) shut down this week.

alberta politics online.

The following post is an attempt to create a central location to track the online and social media presence of MLAs and Provincial Political Parties in Alberta. If you have additions to these lists, please post them in the comment section or email daveberta.ca@gmail.com. Thanks!
(Last updated on June 19, 2009)

Facebook (description)
Nearly all 83 MLAs have a profile or page on Facebook, but here are the main party leaders: Brian Mason (NDP), Ed Stelmach (PC), David Swann (LIB)

MLA/Party Blogs (description)
Doug Elniski (Edmonton-Calder), Doug Griffiths (Battle River-Wainwright), Dave Hancock (Edmonton-Whitemud), David Swann (Calgary-Mountain View), Wildrose Alliance Blog

Flickr (description)
PC Caucus

Twitter (description)
Cindy Ady (CindyAdyMLA)
Lindsay Blackett (@LindsayBlackett)
Harry Chase (@chasemla)
Jonathan Denis (@jonomla)
Doug Elniski (@elniskimla)
Kyle Fawcett (@kylemla)
Doug Griffiths (@griffmla)
Dave Hancock (@davehancockmla)
Kent Hehr (@calgarybuffalo)
Fred Horne (@FredHorneMLA)
Darshan Kang (@darshankang
Brian Mason (@bmasonndp
Rachel Notley (@rachelnotley)_
Janice Sarich (JaniceSarichMLA)
Ed Stelmach (@premierstelmach)
David Swann (@davidswann)
Dave Taylor (@calgarycurrie)
Alberta Liberals (@albertaliberals)
PC Caucus (@mypcmla)

MLA Websites (click here for 2008 campaign websites)
Cindy Ady (Calgary-Shaw)
Rob Anderson (Airdrie-Chestermere)
Laurie Blakeman (Edmonton-Centre)
Harry Chase (Calgary-Varsity)
Iris Evans (Sherwood Park)
Heather Forsyth (Calgary-Fish Creek)
Dave Hancock (Edmonton-Whitemud)
Kent Hehr (Calgary-Buffalo)
Doug Horner (Spruce Grove-Sturgeon-St. Albert)
Mary Ann Jablonski (Red Deer-North)
Art Johnston (Calgary-Hays)
Darshan Kang (Calgary-McCall)
Ron Liepert (Calgary-West)
Thomas Lukaszuk (Edmonton-Castle Downs)
Brian Mason (Edmonton-Highlands-Norwood)
Rachel Notley (Edmonton-Strathcona)
Verlyn Olson (Wetaskiwin-Camrose)
Bridget Pastoor (Lethbridge-East)
Alison Redford (Calgary-Elbow)
Dave Rodney (Calgary-Lougheed)
Peter Sandhu (Edmonton-Manning)
David Swann (Calgary-Mountain View)
Dave Taylor (Calgary-Currie)

Caucus Websites
Liberal Caucus, NDP Caucus, PC Caucus

Party Websites
Alberta Greens, Alberta Liberal, Alberta NDP, Alberta Party, Alberta Social Credit, Alberta PC, Communist Party of Alberta, Separation Party of Alberta, Wildrose Alliance

YouTube (description)

Joe Anglin, Green Party Leader, Laurie Blakeman (Edmonton-Centre), Dave Hancock (Edmonton-Whitemud), Doug Griffiths (Battle River-Wainwright), David Swann (Calgary-Mountain View), Dave Taylor (Calgary-Currie), Liberal Caucus, NDvids, PC Caucus, Wildrose Alliance

prins, mcqueen, berger, and olson legitimize opposition to bill 19.

A couple weeks ago, I wrote (somewhat tongue-in-cheek) about central Alberta becoming the revolutionary hotbed of Albert politics, but while it may not be an actual hot bed of revolution, politics in central Alberta have becoming increasingly interesting.

After Infrastructure Minister Jack Hayden introduced Bill 19: Land Assembly Project Area Act into the Legislature on March 2, 2009, the legislation has met strong opposition from landowners in central Alberta, including Green Party leader Joe Anglin. Anglin described Bill 19 as "a punitive Bill that is chock-full of consequences for any landowner or citizen who would defy the Minister of Energy," and is a member of a group of landowners who have organized town hall forums and information sessions on Bill 19 in communities across central Alberta. The opposition to Bill 19 appears to have caught the attention of the region's PC MLAs, four who have been seen attending these town halls to defend the legislation.

At a forum in Warburg, PC MLAs Ray Prins (Lacombe-Ponoka), Diana McQueen (Drayton Valley-Calmar) and Evan Berger (Livingstone-MacLeod) were in attendance, and yesterday in Ponoka, Prins, McQueen, Berger, and Wetaskiwin-Camrose MLA Verlyn Olson defended Bill 19 at an information session hosted by Anglin.

Rather than using the reliable 'ignore the opposition between elections' strategy that has served the PCs so well over the past 36 years, the very presence of these four PC MLAs have actually legitimized the opposition to Bill 19 in rural central Alberta.

this man wanted to be prime minister.

Former Edmonton Oilers owner Peter Pockington has re-entered the news after his recent arrest in California on charges of bankruptcy fraud, and his $1 million bailout by former Oilers and current New York Rangers General Manager Glen Sather.

Nearly 26 years ago, Pocklington was one of eight candidates to contest the leadership of the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada. Placing sixth on the first round of voting with the support of 102 delegates (3.41% of total delegates), Pockington threw his support to Brian Mulroney. Rumours from the convention floor said that Mulroney had promised to make Pocklington chairman of a proposed Royal Commission on Taxation in exchange for his support.

Mulroney defeated former Prime Minister Joe Clark on the fourth ballot, but thankfully didn't put Pocklington in charge of Canada's tax system...

be careful where you dump your wastewater.

- What is it about the current government and concealing information until after elections? In 2004, it was access to flight logs, and in 2008, it appears that the governing PCs didn't release information about charges that had been laid against Suncor in relation to the dumping of undertreated waste water into the Athabasca River. Meanwhile, on the topic of Oilsands, the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers have published a response to a recent National Geographic feature on Canada's Oilsands.

- While the Council of Alberta University Students met with over 50 MLAs at the Alberta Legislature this week to advocate on Post-Secondary Education issues, the Alberta College & Technical Institute Student Executive Council practiced a much less effective method of advocacy.

- Former Cabinet Minister and Medicine Hat Conservative MP Monte Solberg is once again blogging. After writing a popular blog during his time in the opposition benches, Solberg stopped blogging when he became a Cabinet Minister in 2006. After serving 15 years in the House of Commons, Solberg did not seek re-election in the 2008 election. Solberg also writes a regular column for SunMedia (h/t @BreakenNews).

- Following Michael Ignatieff's visit to Alberta last month, two Liberal MPs will be visiting the province. Beaches-East York MP Maria Minna will be speaking at a Calgary Liberal fundraiser on March 20, and Willowdale MP Martha Hall Findlay will be speaking at an International Women's Day Brunch in Edmonton on March 22.

last thoughts on neil waugh.

Provincial Affairs/Fish & Game columnist Neil Waugh was one of twenty staff laid off at the Edmonton Sun yesterday. A fixture of the Alberta political scene for decades, Waugh seems to have become one of the latest casualties of continent-wide media layoffs.

Though I wish him good luck in his future endeavors, in my humble opinion, Waugh was not an amazing political columnist, nor even a mediocre columnist. I struggle to name another mainstream political writer in Alberta who's columns were as qualitatively inconsistent as Waugh's. Perhaps he showed promise as a columnist at one point in his writing career, but over the past ten years, his columns had rapidly declined in their quality, and had come closer to resembling one-line rants rather than well-thought out columns.

I have had two experiences with Waugh that stick out in my mind. The most obvious was his January 2008 column that ingrained in infamy the quote "...Dave Cournoyer isn't some obscure fat frat boy with a sticky-up haircut" (or at least in the header of this blog). Though I appreciated the attention on the issue, I was surprised that Waugh didn't even attempt to contact me before accusing me of being part of an secret well-oiled Liberal Party conspiracy to tarnish the image of Premier Ed Stelmach (and as we all know, the same well-oiled political machine steamrolled to electoral victory in March 2008... oh wait...).

My second memorable Waugh experience sits more in the realm of bizarre. During a February 2008 media conference about the PC-connected Election Returning Officers, Waugh threw then-Liberal leader Kevin Taft a screwball question about Federal Liberal appointments to the Canadian Senate. Off-topic? Yes. Bizarre? Undoubtably.

ken chapman on the #ableg debate.

Ken Chapman offered some thoughtful comments on Twitter and social media technology in the Alberta Legislature on CBC this afternoon:



Also, I was interviewed by CTV on the story.

Follow the debate on Twitter at #ableg.

letter to speaker ken kowalski. re: online social media and the alberta legislature.

Dear Speaker Kowalski,

As an active participant in what you recently described as the “virtual wonderland” of the Internet, I am hopeful that Internet technology and online social media hold great potential to reconnect citizens, elected officials, and government in our province.

I would urge you to revisit your initial reaction to the use of online communications from the floor of the Assembly. I agree that Members should respect the institution and proud traditions of the Legislature, but it is important to understand the limitless potential that these technologies now play in connecting elected Members to citizens outside the Dome.

During the February 4, 2009 Members’ Services Committee meeting, you warned MLAs about taking the advice of “hotshot” staffers in their Caucuses who were pushing the elected representatives to become more Internet savvy. These comments lead me to believe that you may not fully understand the power of these technologies to reconnect citizens with their democratic institutions, such as the Legislative Assembly of Alberta. A democratic institution remains effective only as long as those occupying it remain relevant and connected to the citizens the Assembly exists to represent. With less than forty percent of Albertans having participated in the last election, this is a very real concern.

Online social networks, such as Twitter and Facebook, have developed quickly, and it is understandable that someone in the position of Speaker would not be fully exposed to their nuances. Instead of instituting a blanket ban on technology during Question Period, I would ask that you reflect on the changes in technology that have occurred since you first stepped into elected office nearly thirty years ago.

This technology has the real potential to engage citizens with MLAs on the floor of the Assembly.

If you are interested in learning more, it would be my pleasure as a citizen of Alberta to meet with you and offer reflections on my personal experience of how online social media and internet technology can re-energize citizenship in our province.

Sincerely,

David Cournoyer

Edmonton, Alberta

PS. I’ve taken the liberty of posting this letter on my blog, http://www.daveberta.ca, so that other Albertans can have the opportunity to join this debate online.

one big happy conservative family in calgary-west.

Candidate nomination season has kicked off in Alberta with Ezra Levant taking aim at Donna Kennedy-Glans, accusing her of being a "Liberal saboteur" and promoting "Marxist feminism." Kennedy-Glans recently announced her intentions to challenge incumbent-MP Rob Anders for the Conservative nomination in Calgary-West.

I'm going to bet that this nomination battle is going to get much nastier before it comes to a vote.

this mushroom better be on our new licence plates.

Ladies and Gentlemen, MLA Carl Benito, representing the simple people of Edmonton-Mill Woods, introduced Motion 502 on the floor of the Legislative Assembly yesterday:

Be it resolved that the Legislative Assembly urge the government to introduce amendments to the Emblems of Alberta Act to designate Leccinum boreale, also known as northern roughstem or red cap, as the official mushroom of Alberta.

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. It is my pleasure to rise and introduce Motion 502. I acknowledge that there are pressing economic issues that currently exist; however, this motion is important to my constituents and 2,500 Albertans who have chosen this mushroom to be designated as Alberta’s provincial mushroom emblem.

MLAs rising to speak to the motion included Neil Brown, Rachel Notley, Jonathan Denis, Genia Leskiw, Doug Elniski, Evan Berger, and Bridget Pastoor.

It passed.

edmonton ideafest a success.

Highlighting the power of online social media, Saturday's IDEAfest, which was largely organized through Facebook and Twitter, drew over 100 Edmontonians to the University of Alberta on a snowy Saturday in March. The event was open to the public, and saw three presenters in three different rooms present every half an hour on an idea or topic of their choice. A big congratulations to Michael Janz (@michaeljanz) for organizing the excellent day-long event.

There were many great presentations, but the two that stuck out in my mind were Andy Grabia's (@agrabia) presentation what the experience of listening music means to him on a personal level, and Alex Abboud's (@alexabboud) "15 Steps to Making Edmonton a Better City." Both were excellent, well-prepared, and very interesting. Other great IDEAfest presenters and participants included @zoomjer, @bingofuel, Colby Cosh (@colbycosh), @chrishenderson, Mack Male (@mastermaq), Walter Schwabe (@fusedlogic), Ian Bushfield (@thzatheist), Alain Saffel (@alainsaffel), Shawna McConechy (@out_inc), Cam Linke (@camlinke), @brendantrayner, and many more....

Thanks to everyone who showed up to my afternoon presentation, "The Fall of the Media Empires and Rise of Citizen Journalism." My presentation focused on the evolving nature of mainstream media, and the growing number of citizen journalists filling the gaps in community and political media coverage created by layoffs in the industry (which you can follow at @canmedialayoffs). Though some people may argue that examples like CanWest teetering on the brink of bankruptcy protection will herald the extinction to the mainstream media, I argued that the downfall of the major media corporations is simply an evolution of the media industry. I was glad to read that the event and my presentation were reported on in Sunday's Edmonton Journal (and I can understand why a CanWest-owned newspaper wouldn't want to include the main point of my presentation in their article).

While Chris Laboissiere (@chrislabossiere) and Ken Chapman (@kenchapman46) wrote some positive blog posts about the event, I was surprised to read a blog post by presenter Derek Warwick (@derekwarwick) in which he argues that the lack of gender or skin-colour diversity among the presenters was due to an "embedded racism" among those involved in the event. I should probably know better, but as someone who was involved in the event I feel the sheer ridiculousness of this accusation requires a response. Warwick's visual observation are fair, but his "embedded racism" theory doesn't seem to be grounded in any sort of reality. IDEAfest grew though a very open and organic word of mouth process (over 1,000 people were invited to the event over Facebook) and offered the opportunity for anyone interested to present on the idea or topic of their choice.

Anyway...

I could spend all day writing about the diverse range of topics and ideas covered in the presentations, but you will just have to come to the next IDEAfest (date to be announced) and enjoy it for yourself!

ideafest 2009: bright ideas on a snowy day.

IDEAfest 2009 started this morning, and presentations will be happening until 5pm in the Tory Building (Room B95) on the University of Alberta campus.

I've made a last minute change to the topic of my presentation. At 1:30pm, I will be presenting "The Fall of the Media Empires and Rise of Citizen Journalism." It should be an interesting day, and there are a lot of cool presentations coming up, including "Countdown to Copenhagen: International Climate Negotiations and the Quest" (10:30am) "15 Ways to make Edmonton a Better City" (11:00am), "Twitter and social media..." (11:00am) and "Underground Media and the Importance of do-it-yourself local media" (12:00pm).

Follow IDEAfest on twitter: #uaif.

mayoral ambitions take off in city centre airport debate?

- Cal Nichols has stepped down as Chair of the Edmonton Oilers to lead the Alberta Enterprise Group in its fight to keep the Edmonton City Centre Airport open. AEG was created in 2007 from of the ashes of the Grassroots Leadership Group, a corporate entity that essentially existed for the purpose of providing financial backing to Mark Norris' 2006 PC leadership bid (donations to party leadership campaigns are not tax deductible, but donations to GLG were eligible for tax deductions as business expenses). AEGs current President is former PC Party Director and Norris campaign manager Tim Shipton. With support coming from many well-heeled Edmonton business types, I wouldn't be surprised to see this group become a launching pad for a Mayoral candidate in October 2010.

- Bill 19: The Land Assembly Project Area Act, introduced by Infrastructure Minister Jack Hayden, is meeting some resistance in central Alberta. Leading the charge is Green Party leader Joe Anglin, who described Bill 19 in a recent media release as "a punitive Bill that is chock-full of consequences for any landowner or citizen who would defy the Minister of Energy." Over the past two years, Anglin has led a vocal group of central Alberta landowners in their fight against numerous provincial regulatory bodies and legislation. Former Green Deputy Leader turned Progress Party advocate Edwin Erickson joined the opposition to Bill 19 in an open letter.

- Federal Conservative nomination campaigns are beginning to ramp up in Alberta. In Calgary-West, Donna Kennedy-Glans will be challenging Rob Anders (and I wish her good luck). In Edmonton-East, it appears that Matt Altheim may be mounting a nomination challenge against MP Peter Goldring. Both Anders and Goldring were first elected to Parliament in 1997.

- Arthur Kent is continuing to publicly voice his disappointment in the current PC government. In a recent blog post, the internationally-known journalist and former Calgary-Currie PC candidate wrote that he believes Alberta will only regain its economic edge "once we deal with the disadvantage of a government that lets patronage trump free enterprise, and stubbornness get in the way of common sense." Damning words from a former star candidate.

ideafest 2009 in edmonton.

If you're looking for something (free and open to the public) to nourish your mind this weekend, check out IDEAfest 2009 at the University of Alberta this Saturday (location: Tory 95).

Based on the format of DemoCamp and BarCamp, IDEAfest 2009 gives interested people a chance to host their very own session (kind of like TED). 3 speakers every half hour, 3 different rooms. Choose the room that interests you.

For those of you lucky ehough to be there tomorrow afternoon, I will be presenting at 1:30pm on some of my personal experiences using social media.

political conversations thriving on twitter and blogs.

This week's FFWD Weekly has two interesting articles covering online social media in Alberta.

Alberta political conversation thrives on Twitter by Jeremy Klaszus covers some of the interesting political debates happening on Twitter. In a recent trend that has taken the Wild Rose province by storm, Twitter users from across Alberta have been "live-tweeting" commentary of the Alberta Legislature's daily Question Period. You can follow the live commentary by searching for the hash-tag #ABLeg using Twitter Search.

Alberta MLAs on Twitter include Doug Griffiths, Jonathan Denis, Doug Elniski, Kyle Fawcett, Dave Hancock, Kent Hehr, and Dave Taylor.

The Rise of Political Blogs by Trevor Scott Howell gives some good insight into the state of political blogs in Alberta, and includes interviews with bloggers Ken Chapman, David Climenhaga, Enlightened Savage, a member of the AGRDT crew, and yours truly.

david swann names neil mackie as official opposition communications director.

After recently naming Rick Miller as the new Official Opposition Chief of Staff, David Swann today named Neil Mackie as the Communications Director, replacing former Director Larry Johnsrude.

Mackie comes from Calgary with some interesting (and perhaps mixed) partisan roots.

Having served as President of the Calgary-Southwest Federal Liberal Association, Mackie ran unsuccessfully against former Calgary-West PC MLA Karen Kryczka in the 2007 Board of Education election, and is listed as having supported Michael Ignatieff during the 2006 Federal Liberal leadership race.

Mackie will be leaving his position as President of the Calgary-based Vincero Communications, a subsidiary of Ivrnet Inc. In the recent past, Ivrnet/Vincero have done political polling for Calgary-Currie MLA Dave Taylor during his unsuccessful Liberal leadership bid, and former Edmonton-Riverview PC candidate Wendy Andrews during her run against former Liberal leader Kevin Taft in March 2008. I'm told that while working with the company, Mackie also handled polling in up to 53 PC held ridings during the 2008 election, and in Calgary-Buffalo for the campaign of Liberal Kent Hehr.

Well-known politicos with Ivrnet/Vincero connections include its current Vice-President, former Calgary-Centre Reform Party MP Eric Lowther, and former Calgary Herald reporter David Heyman. Heyman was employed as Director of Communications for Ivrnet/Vincero before becoming Calgary Communications Manager for Premier Ed Stelmach.

auditor general delays audit into highwood communications.

Alberta Auditor General Fred Dunn has delayed or canceled 27 of the planned 80 systematic audits because of budget constraints (apparently, in Alberta, our politicians underfunds two of a government's most important responsibilities, Audits and elections).

Among the delayed includes a recently announced audit into the now defunct Highwood Communications that has been postponed until October 2009 (for more on Highwood Communications...).

Other important audits that have been delayed or canceled include investigations into the collection process of Alberta natural resource royalties (delayed indefinitely), post-secondary education facility capacity and utilization (canceled), post-secondary program planning (canceled), Sustainable Resource Environmental Management (delayed until 2010), and measuring the effectiveness of the fiscal regime of the Department of Finance and Enterprise (delayed until 2011). A full list can be found here.

(h/t Trish Audette)

judy wilson leaves alberta liberal caucus. former mla rick miller new chief of staff.

Following the recent trend of staff departures at the Alberta Legislative Assembly that have included Larry Johnsrude and Troy Wason, Official Opposition Chief of Staff Judy Wilson is now the departing the Dome.

After serving as Director of Operations at Government House for 13 years, Judy Wilson joined the Official Opposition caucus in 2007 as Chief of Staff under former leader Kevin Taft, and remained in her position after David Swann was selected as leader of the Liberal Party in December 2008. Wilson will be succeeded by Rick Miller, who served as the MLA for Edmonton-Rutherford and Finance Critic from 2004 to 2008.

Media Release

March 3, 2009

Alberta Liberal caucus sees change in Chief of Staff

Edmonton – Judy Wilson, Chief of Staff of the Alberta Liberal Caucus will be leaving her position, effective Friday March 6, 2009. Rick Miller, former MLA for Edmonton-Rutherford, will be stepping into that role.

“Our caucus has a new leader, and he has decided to take a new direction,” said Wilson. “I wish Rick all the best in his new role.

“I’m looking forward to new challenges and opportunities, and to having time to focus on other projects that are important to me – like the Student Refugee program at the U of A, and my Rotary club. I’ll have more time to devote to coaching my daughter’s soccer team,” says Wilson.

“I have appreciated working with Judy and all that she has contributed to our Caucus in her nearly 2 years here”, says Dr. David Swann, Leader.

Rick Miller will assume his new role effective Monday, March 9, 2009.

“I see this as an opportunity to contribute to democracy in this province, which has always been important to me,” said Miller.

“I feel very fortunate to be able to come into an organization where a strong, solid foundation has been built, thanks to the commitment and talents of Judy Wilson. I’ve known Judy for many years – we are in the same Rotary Club and worked together in caucus when I was an MLA. I have tremendous respect for the skills that she brings to any endeavour in her future,” concluded Miller.

-30-

One of the first challenges faced by Miller will be to boost the moral and provide internal direction in Alberta's Official Opposition caucus, which fell to 9 elected MLAs in 2008. Miller will also face the challenge of plugging leaks that have contributed to a rumour mill of anonymous gossip emanating from the Liberal Caucus over the past couple months. Many of the anonymous rumours surrounded Wilson's participation in conversations being held by various groups of Albertans dissatisfied with the state of democracy in this province (including myself and Jason Morris from Gauntlet.ca).

a year after alberta's 2008 election, it's easy to remain cynical.

On March 3, 2008, less than 40% of Albertans ventured into the March cold to exercise their democratic responsibility, and a full year later the debate around that election still rages.

There are likely many reasons why the large majority of Albertans failed to cast their ballot on that day, but one that continually arises in conversations is cynicism. It's hard to argue that any of our political parties gave Albertans a compelling reason to race to the polls in droves a year ago, and I don't believe that much has changed a year later.

Entering the second year of Ed Stelmach's first term as Premier, our province is facing many challenges. No longer rolling in the billion dollar surpluses that we had been told were thanks to the now dead Alberta Advantage, Finance Minister Iris Evans now tells us that this year's $1.4 billion deficit is 'market induced' (and not the fault of a political party which has been happy to take credit for Alberta's fiscal prosperity over the past decade).

Should Albertans blame the Stelmach PCs for the economic downturn? Of course not, because it's not their fault, but nor should Albertans praise them for the (also market induced) boom.

In their March 2009 edition, National Geographic shined a powerful international spotlight on Alberta's oilsands, dealing an unintentional blow to the yet to be launched replacement for the Alberta Advantage. The $25 million taxpayer-funded public relations campaign is set to brand Albertans with a new identity by combating international criticism of the oilsands. Do Albertans really need government-hired public relations consultants to determine our identity? Albertans are more than just a brand, and our identity will be determined by our actions, not by government-hired public relations consultants.

The death of the Alberta Advantage has led the Progressive Conservatives to once again return to the realm of budget deficits, and as the government cuts important programs like the $2 billion GreenTRIP funding for public transit in our cities, they are continuing to funnel $2 billion into a Carbon Capture and Storage project.

It wasn't that long ago that the governing PCs would claim and shame the opposition parties for wanting to spend Alberta back into a deficit. Now faced with a billion dollar deficit, the same PCs are willing to push aside 15 years of fiscal dogma to continue spending billions of dollars on an unproven technology, that if developed would put Alberta at the forefront of collecting yesterday's dirty pollution, while the rest of the world focuses on tomorrow's new and renewable energy.

Maybe Albertans are right to be cynical?