This is the Orient Express…well not the original Orient Express with service from Paris to Vienna and the Balkans or its successor that travelled from Strasbourg to Vienna. Those trains are long gone. This is the Venice-Simplon Orient Express and Mr and Ms Soapbox are on board at this very
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Susan on the Soapbox: Round One! Thomas Lukaszuk!
“Diamond” Jim Prentice (don’t you just love the “Brian Masonism”) adopted a “nobody moves, nobody gets hurt” strategy for his leadership campaign…and it works for the 99% of his election platform. There will be no change to the energy policy (full steam ahead with expanding the oilsands), no change to
Continue readingSusan on the Soapbox: The Alberta Federation of Labour’s Litmus Test for Alberta’s Opposition Parties
“Sometimes telling the truth hurts…and it will hurt here.”—Rob Anderson, Wildrose MLA at the Alberta Federation of Labour Conference in response to a question about the legal right to strike* The Alberta Federation of Labour held a two day conference this weekend in Calgary. Ms Soapbox was extremely fortunate to
Continue readingSusan on the Soapbox: Jim Prentice: A Risk Adverse Banker Meets the Black Swan
Two energy company executives made a wager. The one who bet that Jim Prentice would never give up $3 million a year in exchange for power lost. True story. Mr Prentice On May 16, 2014, Mr Prentice entered the Progressive Conservative leadership race. After two months of dancing on the
Continue readingSusan on the Soapbox: Honour and Dishonour on the National Day of Honour
On May 9, 2014, amidst the pomp and circumstance of marching bands, dignitaries and aircraft buzzing overhead, Prime Minister Stephen Harper told the crowds gathered on Parliament Hill that the names of the 158 soldiers killed in Afghanistan would be engraved “on the hearts of all Canadians who cherish freedom,
Continue readingSusan on the Soapbox: Mr Hancock’s Cockamamie Apology
“I’m truly sorry that we allowed government to become a distraction from the vital work we’re doing on issues that matter to Albertans.”— Premier Dave Hancock to PC party supporters, May 1, 2014 Bill Clinton apologised for slavery, Tony Blair apologised for the Irish potato famine, Pope John Paul II
Continue readingSusan on the Soapbox: Obama Punts Keystone XL (Again) — Harper Learns a Lesson in Humility (Maybe)
“If you were a betting man (or woman) what odds would you place on President Obama approving the Keystone XL pipeline before the end of his term and why?” Ms Soapbox posed the question to a panel* discussing the future of Alberta’s energy industry. The panelists, bless their hearts, didn’t
Continue readingSusan on the Soapbox: It’s Time to Drag Redneck Alberta Out of the Closet
If a government wants to trample the rights of its citizens it can do so in two ways. It can violate our fundamental rights by passing legislation that invokes the “notwithstanding clause”—this allows the government to pass laws that expressly violate the fundamental rights guaranteed to us under the Charter
Continue readingSusan on the Soapbox: Motion 503: Calling all Hypocrites and Homophobes
In the same week that the Alberta government debated and rejected Motion 503, Rob Anderson, Wildrose House Leader, made an emotional plea to put an end to name-calling—specifically “Lake of Fire Party” and “homophobe”. It was a bizarre week. Here’s how it rolled out. On Monday, Liberal MLA Kent Hehr
Continue readingSusan on the Soapbox: The Carpay Decision and a Canary
One can’t help but feel Dr Allen’s pain. In fact many of us have felt Dr Allen’s pain, although not to such a debilitating degree. Dr Allen is a 36 year old dentist from Okotoks. In Dec 2007 he injured his back playing hockey. He spent all of 2008 and
Continue readingSusan on the Soapbox: The Premier’s Penthouse
“We run a $40 billion corporation that matters an awful lot to the people of Alberta and the economy of this country”—former Premier Redford in the Legislature, March 4, 2014 Excuse me??? The “government” is not a “corporation”, its premier is not the CEO and the cabinet is not the
Continue readingSusan on the Soapbox: Thank You Alison Redford
Alison Redford did two things right during her short stint as Alberta’s 14th premier. She jumped before she was pushed and she implemented an expense disclosure policy that, like ball bearings underfoot, created chaos by exposing the PC government’s culture of entitlement in painstaking and petty detail. The PC party
Continue readingSusan on the Soapbox: Alison Redford: The Puppet Premier?
On March 17, 2014, following Premier Redford’s tearful introduction of her daughter Sarah to the Legislative Assembly, the ND Opposition leader Brian Mason rose to ask the Premier a critical question:* “I regret having to ask this question, but it must be asked. To the Premier: do you have enough
Continue readingSusan on the Soapbox: TransAlta and the Court of Public Opinion: A $66 million fine or multimillions in profits?
Last month TransAlta kicked a damaging allegation into the court of public opinion: did it manipulate the electricity market by improperly shutting down six power plants during peak demand hours in order to jack up power prices and make millions in the process? There are only two things the court
Continue readingSusan on the Soapbox: Alberta’s “Traffic Court Reform”: One Step Closer to a Police State
Justice Minister Denis is touting “Traffic Court Reform” as a “citizen-friendly” dispute resolution process to “resolve” traffic tickets. It’s also the first step into a quagmire that erases our civil liberties in order to save money (and help the minister meet his 2014 budget targets). The Justice minister requested “feedback”
Continue readingSusan on the Soapbox: Breakfast with Hillary Clinton
Hillary Rodham Clinton was in Calgary last week to give the keynote address at a breakfast meeting of 2500 Calgarians who paid about $500 to hear her speak. Luckily my friend, the Zen Banker, invited me to attend as her guest. Hillary is like the Chloe Diamond—brilliant, mesmerizing, multifaceted and
Continue readingSusan on the Soapbox: The Edelman Trust Barometer: Who do you trust?
The 2014 Edelman Trust Barometer is here and it’s good news—unless you work in government or business in which case you’re facing what Edelman delicately calls “a significant trust deficit”. Edelman is a global public relations company that surveys trust levels across 27 countries by asking the public who they
Continue readingSusan on the Soapbox: Where are the Ethical Lawyers?
In the last three months Albertans have witnessed a shocking display of raw power. The Redford government calls it “delivering the responsible change Albertans voted for.” The rest of us call it the abuse of majority power to crush the rights of environmentalists, land owners and labour unions. Black November
Continue readingSusan on the Soapbox: “What Makes Canada So Great?”
Michaela Pereira, CNN television personality and news anchor (I use the term loosely) asked a member of the Canadian Olympic skiing team this question: “What makes Canada so great?” My immediate reaction was: What a goofy question. Luckily the Canadian athlete had more tact. He replied: “Teamwork”. He may be
Continue readingSusan on the Soapbox: CSEC Exonerated
Mr Jean-Pierre Plouffe, CSEC watchdog, has determined that CSEC is off the hook,it did not direct any activity at Canadians or persons in Canada. He’s hanging his hat on the distinction between “collecting metadata” and “tracking Canadians”. I guess if CSEC activity isn’t “directed” at Canadians, then CSEC bears no responsibility
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