Alberta Politics & Government Thread 3.0

[calgarygeologist]

Originally Posted by blender

Apples and Oranges.
The EA has been law since 1988, and it replaced the War Measures Act which was on the books for ages prior.

The EA has a very high threshold for its use. It has only been used once (Freedom Convoy 2022), and though there was a some debate about the justification, the threshold for use is very high.

There is no threshold limiting use of Smith's proposed law beyond cabinet deciding to use it, and there appears to be no limits to the types of things it s intended to be used for.

Also, the EA is designed to temporarily shift power to the federal government; a function that is necessary to maintain a federation. If the government of Canada is unable to take charge of the country during an emergency, then what's the point of being a country? Conversely, the Alberta Sovereignty Act is designed to do the opposite, to effectively counteract the Federal governments ability to be the the federal government.

Not the same in principle or in effect.

I don't even think that Smith and the government here even really need to pursue bill 1 to gain power to protect the province. We already have the notwithstanding clause built into our system which can be used at any time. We've already seen how it can be used effectively by Quebec to do whatever they want. Quebec calls that clause "the parliamentary sovereignty provision" within the Constitution.

[wireframe]

Originally Posted by iggy_oi

I miss crazy_eoj

I used to work with him. Seemed like a nice enough guy but then I saw his username in an open CP tab on his computer and ran back to my office. The crazies hide among us.

[blender]

Originally Posted by calgarygeologist

I don't even think that Smith and the government here even really need to pursue bill 1 to gain power to protect the province. We already have the notwithstanding clause built into our system which can be used at any time. We've already seen how it can be used effectively by Quebec to do whatever they want. Quebec calls that clause "the parliamentary sovereignty provision" within the Constitution.

I would agree. I was just trying to explain the differences between the two pieces of legislation as I see it.

[Dion]

Smith talks about the PC dynasty during the election in 2019

Notley campaigned on the legacy of Lougheed in 2015. She governed in his spirit throughout the past four years. She even mentioned him in the last line of her campaign launch speech. This has been deliberate branding and it’s the reason Albertans who remember his reign find themselves so torn.

Notley is, without question, the inheritor of the Lougheed tradition. That’s not to say he was a full on socialist, but Notley isn’t either. I think most Albertans have been shocked to see how pragmatic she has governed, particularly as it concerns natural resources.

However, Lougheed clearly did believe that government could be a force for good and that it should actively intervene to steer the economy. Those were the glory days of government revenue, where resource revenues peaked at nearly $10,000 per person. Lougheed presided over a seven-fold increase in government spending, led by health, education and social services. He also led a progressive agenda to tear down some of the remaining oppressive conventions of the Social Credit era around drinking and Sunday shopping.

On the business side, Lougheed is credited with saving Syncrude when it nearly collapsed in the mid-’70s and Alberta sold its shares in 1995 for a big profit, and launched Alberta firmly into the bitumen business, which now makes up the lion’s share of Alberta’s resource revenues. He was at the ribbon-cutting for the first ethylene plant in Joffre, launching Nova into creation as one of the world’s largest ethylene and polyethylene production complexes. Even Pacific Western Airlines had some small profits before the government sold it.

But as we discovered in the two decades following Lougheed, overconfidence can lead to financial ruin, and there is always a hangover after a bender.

No one brags about government trying to build cellphones through NovAtel, which cost taxpayers $614 million; or prop up pulp mills, which cost $325 million; or support Gainers, which cost $209 million; or the $440 million in the Swan Hills hazardous treatment plant; or MagCan, whose abandoned magnesium smelter site I drive past every day on my way home, which cost the province $164 million.

These government failures also paved the way for Ralph Klein, who I think of as the anti-Lougheed. He cut spending by 20 per cent, including the cherished areas of health, education and social services. He got out of the business of business and privatized registries, liquor stores, VLTs and electricity. He contracted out laundry services, road maintenance, driver training, to name just a few. When he got into surplus, he cut taxes. The biggest smile we ever saw on his face was when he held up the sign declaring Alberta debt free.

I believe Albertans want both. They want all the spending and Heritage Fund investment of the Lougheed era, all the low taxes and debt repayment of the Klein era. Trouble is, we can’t have both. This time, even getting back to balanced budgets has to be done without the benefit of a substantial boost from oil, natural gas or bitumen royalties.

There are tough decisions ahead. Are Albertans ready for it?

https://calgaryherald.com/opinion/co...ection-choices

[Yoho]

https://twitter.com/user/status/1598414242599804931

“ What you think you might know about Danielle Smith’s Alberta Sovereignty Act is probably wrong.”

[belsarius]

Originally Posted by Yoho

https://twitter.com/user/status/1598414242599804931

“ What you think you might know about Danielle Smith’s Alberta Sovereignty Act is probably wrong.”

Didn't you post this exact article yesterday from the National Post?

[iggy_oi]

Originally Posted by belsarius

Didn't you post this exact article yesterday from the National Post?

Yes, yes they did.

[Dion]

Originally Posted by Yoho

https://twitter.com/user/status/1598414242599804931

“ What you think you might know about Danielle Smith’s Alberta Sovereignty Act is probably wrong.”

Reposting stuff you posted a day earlier is my department. Don't be a Dion

[iggy_oi]

Originally Posted by Dion

Don't be a Dion

I’ve never had a signature for my posts but now I’m tempted

[Dion]

Originally Posted by iggy_oi

I’ve never had a signature for my posts but now I’m tempted

Just do it. I'd be honored

[Nancy]

Originally Posted by belsarius

Didn't you post this exact article yesterday from the National Post?

Software bug? I think this proves conclusively that Yoho is a Russian spam bot and not a real person.

[Johnny Makarov]

Originally Posted by belsarius

Didn't you post this exact article yesterday from the National Post?

Russian bot needs a system update.

[iggy_oi]

Originally Posted by Nancy

Software bug? I think this proves conclusively that Yoho is a Russian spam bot and not a real person.

Bots would be more effective, no?

I don’t think Yoho is a bot or anything like that, just another of political sensationalism fuelled by social media and click bait articles. Hopefully they eventually see the error of their ways because it’s impossible to find compromise between opposing views when one the views isn’t based on facts.

[iggy_oi]

Originally Posted by Dion

Just do it. I'd be honored

Just for the holiday season

[Dion]

Originally Posted by iggy_oi

Bots would be more effective, no?

I don’t think Yoho is a bot or anything like that, just another of political sensationalism fuelled by social media and click bait articles. Hopefully they eventually see the error of their ways because it’s impossible to find compromise between opposing views when one the views isn’t based on facts.

He trolls to get responses from us. He know what he's doing and is probably laughing at us right now.

[Yoho]

https://twitter.com/user/status/1598417559585697792

It will be a smart move to drag beloved Jagmeet and JT into this.

[flames_fan_down_under]

Dropping the Trudeau Notley relationship, spinning the classics on UCP FM Radio.

[Fuzz]

LOL. The UCP is absolutely desperate to make someone else look bad. It's pathetic. What a bunch of losers.

[Bring_Back_Shantz]

Originally Posted by Fuzz

LOL. The UCP is absolutely desperate to make someone else look bad. It's pathetic. What a bunch of losers.

UCP: "I mean, Sure we just introduced one of the stupidest pieces of legislation in the history of the country...but like...Rachel Notley said it was stupid and told on us!"

[Johnny Makarov]

Originally Posted by Yoho

https://twitter.com/user/status/1598417559585697792

It will be a smart move to drag beloved Jagmeet and JT into this.

Be better Bot.

There should be one of those "click on all sidewalks or busses" before you can post in the political threads.