Third (or fourth) party leader Raj Sherman crashes Premier Alison Redford’s party this afternoon. Sheesh! Ms. Redford must be thinking: “Oh butt out, Raj!” Below: Kevin Taft; Dr. Sherman – “Uh oh! Here he comes!” – accompanied by an uncomfortable looking local candidate Bruce Miller. (This photo by David Cournoyer.)
Continue readingAuthor: David J. Climenhaga
David Climenhaga's Alberta Diary: Be careful what you wish for: Wildrose may be on cusp of victory in Alberta campaign
Alberta PC campaign tactician Stephen Carter, left, illustrates for Premier Alison Redford and Deputy Premier Doug Horner how he plans to counter recent Wildrose Party gains. Alberta political operatives and their bosses may not appear exactly as illustrated. Below: the real Premier Redford, Wildrose Leader Danielle Smith and Wildrose strategist
Continue readingDavid Climenhaga's Alberta Diary: Where’s Ed Stelmach now that Alberta’s Tories really need him?
Ed Stelmach, back when he was still the premier of Alberta, looks ahead to a day when he wouldn’t have to put up with all the nonsense. Now that day has come, and it’s likely many of his Progressive Conservative caucus mates today view his time in office fondly! Below:
Continue readingDavid Climenhaga's Alberta Diary: Alberta Campaign 2012, Day 1: Fear & Loathing on the Shaganappi Trail
The “chicken ranch” proposed for Calgary back in 2003 by Danielle Smith, now leader of the Wildrose Party, may not have been exactly as illustrated. (You didn’t seriously think I was going to post a picture of a house of ill repute, did you?) Also not exactly as illustrated, below:
Continue readingDavid Climenhaga's Alberta Diary: ‘Everybody’s ready’ for an election call today … but is Alison Redford?
…Get set… GO! How the media sees the Alberta election race, starting today. On the right, Premier Alison Redford. To Ms. Redford’s right, Wildrose Leader Danielle Smith. In the background, NDP Leader Brian Mason. Alberta political leaders may not appear exactly as illustrated. Below: Alison Redford, Danielle Smith, Peter Lougheed.
Continue readingDavid Climenhaga's Alberta Diary: Thomas Mulcair: an NDP leader who passes the Ralph Klein beer test and Tory fear test
One hopes profoundly readers of this blog will indulge its author in running this photograph one more time, given the occasion. NDP Leader Thomas Mulcair, chosen by the party as its leader this evening, is like Ralph Klein a politician who seems to be someone an ordinary person could have
Continue readingDavid Climenhaga's Alberta Diary: Does ‘Daveberta’ blog author have a secret evangelical agenda?
Is that Daveberta.ca author Dave Cournoyer in this advert for Christian radio station Shine FM? Say it ain’t so! Below: A prototypical Christian rocker. While we wait nervously for the election call, ask yourself this: Does Dave Cournoyer, author of the Daveberta.ca blog, have a secret evangelical agenda? I know
Continue readingDavid Climenhaga's Alberta Diary: Goodbye sweet Prins – did he jump or was he pushed?
Ray Prins prepares to walk the plank, possibly with a little prodding by his premier. Unexpectedly departing Alberta Conservative politicians may be pretty much as illustrated. Below: Mr. Prins as he appears to his friends and family. Now hear this! Now hear this! All hands to Damage Control! All hands
Continue readingDavid Climenhaga's Alberta Diary: The Harper-Wildrose alliance: the elephant in Alberta’s conservative room
Stephen Harper and Danielle Smith discuss their infernal electoral machine as the elephant in the room looks on. Loony-right-wing Alberta politicians may not be exactly as illustrated. Below: Wildrose-Harpercon crossovers Tom Flanagan, Vitor Marciano and Ryan Hastman. There’s an elephant in the room whenever Albertans of a conservative political bent
Continue readingDavid Climenhaga's Alberta Diary: Lesson from Alberta: the need to cultivate the ‘professionally dirty mind,’ uh, clearly illustrated
Um… Nice hubcaps! Below: Proof that it could have been a lot worse! And why is Officer Annette smiling? To do one’s job properly, I have for years told my earnest journalism and public relations students, anyone who works with words and images must cultivate a “professionally dirty mind.”This does
Continue readingDavid Climenhaga's Alberta Diary: The need to cultivate the ‘professionally dirty mind,’ uh, clearly illustrated
Um… Nice hubcaps! Below: Proof that it could have been a lot worse! And why is Officer Annette smiling? To do one’s job properly, I have for years told my earnest journalism and public relations students, anyone who works with words and images must cultivate a “professionally dirty mind.”This does
Continue readingDavid Climenhaga's Alberta Diary: Albertans should worry when Calgary becomes the city Canadians love to hate
How other Canadians see the typical Albertan: rich, smug, condescending and irresponsible. Below: What they think of us as a result; Alison Redford; Dalton McGuinty. We won the lottery. Now we won’t stop telling everyone else how to run their financial affairs. And guess what? They don’t like it! I’ve
Continue readingDavid Climenhaga's Alberta Diary: Notwithstanding Dean Del Mastro’s wonderment, the robo-call dots are easy to connect
Dean Del Mastro on those robo-calls: Maybe a giant did it! Unnamed conservative voter-suppression operatives may not appear exactly as illustrated. Below: The credulous Mr. Del Maestro. Conservative robo-calls point man Dean Del Mastro prompted a lot of rude repartee in the Twittersphere yesterday when he suggested we should all
Continue readingDavid Climenhaga's Alberta Diary: Media focus on senior dumped at Emergency Ward signals more trouble for Redford Tories
Journalists focus on Beth Podgurny at yesterday morning’s news conference in Edmonton. Below: Grace Denver, her daughter Beth with husband Jackie Podgurny. As shocking as it is an ambulance crew was used by a for-profit Edmonton nursing home to evict an 80-year-old grandmother afflicted with dementia and dump her at
Continue readingDavid Climenhaga's Alberta Diary: Wildrose on a roll? The auguries may be in the flakes
Bookies take odds on Alison Redford and Danielle Smith. Actual Alberta political observers may not be as willing to put their money where their mouths are. Below: The four similar, but nevertheless questionable, polls. A string of flaky polls augmented by some flaky behaviour by Premier Alison Redford and her
Continue readingDavid Climenhaga's Alberta Diary: Pulp friction: Edmonton Journal quits toothless Alberta Press Council; Calgary Herald to follow
The future of the press in Alberta, what’s left of it? If you didn’t shoot that angel, your only option is to sue. Below: Edmonton Journal publisher John Connolly. If you have a problem with something written in the Edmonton Journal, you can forget about seeking help from the Alberta
Continue readingDavid Climenhaga's Alberta Diary: Will any of this stuff ever stick to Alberta’s Teflon-coated premier?
Finance Minister Ron Liepert, centre, lets a couple of oil drilling contractors know what he thinks of their political judgment. Alberta politicians may not be exactly as illustrated and may not always come in threes. Below: Gary Mar, Doug Griffiths and Alison Redford; Don Herring of the CAODC. So far
Continue readingDavid Climenhaga's Alberta Diary: What’s the matter with Gary Mar? The guy just can’t stay out of hot water!
Gary Mar: Now in state of suspension, he’s probably not smiling all that much. Below: the unforthcoming Rick Orman, private citizen. What’s the matter with Gary? Gary Mar’s a smart guy, brilliant even. Last year, he came that close to becoming the premier of Alberta. Despite the disappointment the former
Continue readingDavid Climenhaga's Alberta Diary: Alberta’s long political sitzkrieg gives way today to Tory blitzkrieg
Alberta Premier Alison Redford, second from left, gets ready to take the “air war” to the Wildrose Party’s Calgary stronghold with strongly negative radio ads. Alberta politicians may not be exactly as illustrated. Below: former Premier Ed Stelmach as portrayed in 2008’s Albertans for Change campaign; the premier’s chief of
Continue readingDavid Climenhaga's Alberta Diary: Travel and karate: the perfect ways to put Alberta politics in perspective
Karate: You need to learn it from someone who knows how … Sensei Kiyohide Shinjo instructs a young student in his Okinawa dojo. And you start by learning how to tie your own belt, without any help from the premier’s office. A little bit of travel can really put Alberta
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