The Alison Redford transgressions thread. Update- Redford quits.

[saillias]

Nenshi was pretty emotional over this. Brought up a good point that the way she was raked through the coals, rightfully or not drives good people away from politics.

[Rerun]

nm

[Rathji]

Originally Posted by Rerun

Actually their contract is coming up for renewal and its been rumored that the federal goverrnment plans to cut the number sick days plus other benefits, significantly, in the new negotiations. People are worried.

As for what you say are the norm for benefits... I've worked for 30 years and have never gotten close to those kind of benefits. .... and I've worked for a few large corporations in that time.... 15 sick days a year (which I can carry over from year to year)... ya right...
With all the companies I've worked for, if I called in sick 15 separate times throughout the course of a year, I'd be looking for a new job.

I think the issue might be your job choices.

Day one of my entry level job I had 21 vacation days, 5 professional development days and 10 sick days. I started a month before the end of the year, and my boss came to me after 2 weeks and said you need to take the 1.5 (or whatever it was) days of vacation before the end of the year.

[Yoho]

Originally Posted by Rerun

Pride has got nothing to do with it.

They are union members. Their contract states they are allowed 15 sick days per year. They don't get a bonus if they don't use them all. They don't even get any recognition for only using a portion of their entitled sick days...and neither do the people who use every damn one of them.

Nobody cares. Therefore if my wife is feeling a bit under the weather, and she doesn't quite feel up to going into work, she doesn't. Nobody cares that she isn't there. Nobody acknowledges her if she sucks it up and goes to work even if she isn't feeling well..

Its a huge corporation and basically she's an employee number. 15 sick days are her negotiated right and she'll use every one of them if she feels the need.

Maybe it's just the terminology, if you rephrased it to 6 weeks vacation people wouldn't have such a hard time with it.

[Mr.Coffee]

Rerun you've done a great job of derailing so I'll just continue with it but I'm having trouble determining your point of view past all your condescension.

Is your position that you support the use of sick days or support the people that don't use sick days? Looks like you like both sides to this one and don't really have a point.

Or is it that you think people that are allocated certain sick days should use them to the fullest extent regardless of sickness because of entitlement, but you have respect for those that brag about not taking sick days?

So confusing.

[Rerun]

nm

[Rerun]

nm

[Mr.Coffee]

Also I guess I should contribute to this thread more constructively but basically Redford got what she deserved and I don't care if it seems witchhunty at all. In my opinion for those elected to the high positions of public office, we should expect the strictest application of ethical behaviour which obviously is not the case here.

I don't care if it's $1 or $10,000,000, when your elected leaders are behaving like Evander Kane on a Las Vegas balcony they need to get bounced asap, particularly when the money they're bankrolling their BS with has been part of an enormous surge in provincial debt. We need to tighten our belts not pretend we're in fataing music videos or more important than we are. There is no reason for the premier to be flying anywhere other than key business related trips of which flying to California and South Africa clearly are not.

I work in the private sector and I can tell you that the one time some moron at our company decided to expense an Xbox and try to slide it through he got his ass fired stat. And that's the way it should be. Our culture is gravitating into more and more of a weird mentality where expense accounts are used as if the employee is entitled and at its' heart the behaviour is unethical and arguably no different than theft. These are serious allegations in my mind especially when it's the premier and you can bet your ass that if the leader is doing it, the minions are probably 5x worse.

This is the government waste people hate and want changed. So good, get lost lady.

Agree with fotze 10000000x, where the fata are the decent people? Why can nobody who enters politics be a normal smart guy and not an immoral jackass? Nenshi might be one of the few guys that actually tried to do what he says and doesn't seem like the greasy underbelly of a troll under a bridge.

[Mr.Coffee]

Originally Posted by Rerun

Yes.

Not the greatest answer I've seen but I'll accept. Looks like you have some serious opinions on sick days.

[Resolute 14]

Originally Posted by Slava

I think it has to be in 2016 based on the legislation from 2011? I'm pretty sure there is a set range of dates for the next election to be held.

The 2011 legislation basically amounts to forcing spring elections if the government fulfills the entire term. The law still explicitly gives the Lieutenant Governor the right to dissolve the Legislature at any time. And since the Lieutenant Governor basically serves at the behest of the Premier, the PCs could call an election any time they wish.

[Rerun]

Originally Posted by Resolute 14

The 2011 legislation basically amounts to forcing spring elections if the government fulfills the entire term. The law still explicitly gives the Lieutenant Governor the right to dissolve the Legislature at any time. And since the Lieutenant Governor basically serves at the behest of the Premier, the PCs could call an election any time they wish.

I doubt that'll happen any time soon. The PC's will probably drag it out as long as they can.
Time is their friend. The public has a short memory.

[Fozzie_DeBear]

Part of EVERY governments problem compared to private industry is the lack of Darwinism...private companies will fail if they suck and the people and resources go elsewhere and better companies will, on average, be rewarded and do better

In Government the 'feedback' for success is MUCH less obvious than in the private sector. So less efficient operations can continue on....

Its a fundamental private/public difference...

[Nehkara]

Has the WRP cleaned up the socially conservative side of their party? I simply can't vote for a party that had so many of their members spouting socially conservative garbage.

I'm an NDP voter at heart but since the NDP will probably first be elected in Alberta in 2422, I'm open to suggestion.

[Fozzie_DeBear]

I can't imagine that the social conservatism of the Wildrose has changed all that much for better or worse.

[Rerun]

Originally Posted by Fozzie_DeBear

Part of EVERY governments problem compared to private industry is the lack of Darwinism...private companies will fail if they suck and the people and resources go elsewhere and better companies will, on average, be rewarded and do better

In Government the 'feedback' for success is MUCH less obvious than in the private sector. So less efficient operations can continue on....

Its a fundamental private/public difference...

In government (and by government, I mean the civil service) IS THERE actually "feedback for success"?... other than perhaps succeeding by accomplishing the job? Which in itself, isn't much of a feed back as most jobs can be accomplished given enough time and resources.

[corporatejay]

This Don Braid column is fantastic. I'm on record saying I think Alison Redford was a smart person with really good ideas, but probably the worst politician I've ever seen in action. Braid sums it up nicely.

She had so many of them, and pursued them with such unbending passion, that she neglected the everyday things — the connection with regular people, the concern for frugality in her work, the building of friendships in her party and caucus, the small gestures of respect, the kind attention to people she was forced to cast off.
She never seemed to realize — and her resignation speech gave no sign she’s starting — that to do the big stuff, a leader has to get those small things right.

http://www.calgaryherald.com/opinion...350/story.html

[smoothpops]

Originally Posted by Rerun

No... the point was about the largeness of government bureaucracy and how it can be reduced. Governments tend to employ twice as many people as the private sector does if both are doing comparable jobs. I was just giving an example as to why the government needs to employ so many people.

They don't call Ottawa "Fat City" for nothing.

So your whole point, is we need to punish government for your wife's terrible work ethic?

My mom workes for the city, never takes sick days and works her ass off. she picks up the slack for people like your wife, you should be proud. way to game the system and try and hold other people accountable.

Now can we go back to talking about the resignation today?

[Dion]

https://twitter.com/intent/user?screen_name=markusoff

Nenshi on whether he'd run for leadership. "Seriously? There will be lots and lots and lots of opportunities to talk about lots and lots and lots of different people. I can tell you regardless of whatever role I'm in personally, I will take a very serious part in this next election, always fighting for the interests of Calgarians and Albertans."

by jmarkusoff edited by mpotkins3/20/2014 2:33:37 AM 8:33 PM

[smoothpops]

Originally Posted by Mr.Coffee

Also I guess I should contribute to this thread more constructively but basically Redford got what she deserved and I don't care if it seems witchhunty at all. In my opinion for those elected to the high positions of public office, we should expect the strictest application of ethical behaviour which obviously is not the case here.

I don't care if it's $1 or $10,000,000, when your elected leaders are behaving like Evander Kane on a Las Vegas balcony they need to get bounced asap, particularly when the money they're bankrolling their BS with has been part of an enormous surge in provincial debt. We need to tighten our belts not pretend we're in fataing music videos or more important than we are. There is no reason for the premier to be flying anywhere other than key business related trips of which flying to California and South Africa clearly are not.

I work in the private sector and I can tell you that the one time some moron at our company decided to expense an Xbox and try to slide it through he got his ass fired stat. And that's the way it should be. Our culture is gravitating into more and more of a weird mentality where expense accounts are used as if the employee is entitled and at its' heart the behaviour is unethical and arguably no different than theft. These are serious allegations in my mind especially when it's the premier and you can bet your ass that if the leader is doing it, the minions are probably 5x worse.

This is the government waste people hate and want changed. So good, get lost lady.

Agree with fotze 10000000x, where the fata are the decent people? Why can nobody who enters politics be a normal smart guy and not an immoral jackass? Nenshi might be one of the few guys that actually tried to do what he says and doesn't seem like the greasy underbelly of a troll under a bridge.

So then what are your thoughts on the senate scandal? Are you calling for Harper's head?

[Rerun]

Will changing the leadership of this party change its fortunes and public perception?

Or is it kind of like driving a car with four bald tires and one of them goes flat and you pull out a fifth bald tire out of the trunk to replace the flat?

I've voted WR for the last two elections (despite some of the clowns they run in a few ridings) because I knew those clowns really didn't represent the thoughts and beliefs of the majority of WR party members. I voted WR because I believed, and still believe, that the CP's exhibited a sense of entitlement (much like the federal Liberal party of the Chretien years) and I was tired of their attitude. And frankly, I just haven't seen anything in the past two years of the Redford government that has changed my mind. In fact, its just reinforced it.