PHOTOS: This scene is in Paris. It could be anywhere in our “globalized,” that is, neoliberalized world. (Photo: Eric Poulhier, Wikimedia Commons.) Below: Rundown but dignified Havana, high-profile U.S. economist Paul Krugman (Photo: Flickr, Commonwealth Club) and political economist Alan Nasser (Photo: Evergreen State College). Will Mexico eventually decide it
Continue readingTag: Alberta Politics
daveberta.ca – Alberta Politics: 12 Alberta MLAs to watch in 2018
Photo: Alberta MLAs to watch in 2018: Leela Aheer, Shaye Anderson, Deron Bilous, Joe Ceci, Rick Fraser, Sandra Jansen, Brian Jean, Danielle Larivee, Jessica Littlewood, Shannon Phillips, David Shepherd and Richard Starke. Despite its past reputation, Alberta politics has become extraordinarily unpredictable over the past twelve years. This makes forecasting the
Continue readingAlberta Politics: Those lame green coroplast arrows point to one thing: the UCP’s cozy relationship with the Canadian Taxpayers Federation
PHOTOS: United Conservative Party MLA Wes Taylor with his notorious green coroplast arrow. Below: An example of the fun made of Mr. Taylor by Internet wags; Porky the Waster Hater, the Canadian Taxpayers Federation’s mascot; Wildrose MLA Derek Fildebrandt and Wildrose Leader Brian Jean in happier times with their lame
Continue readingAlberta Politics: New Year’s bitter Twitter attacks on fact-checking economists suggest UCP will try to make 2018 the Year of the Big Chill
PHOTOS: University of Alberta economist and professor Andrew Leach. Below: Calgary-Fish Creek United Conservative Party MLA Richard Gotfried (Photo: Mr. Gotfried’s Facebook page), UCP Leader Jason Kenney, and University of Calgary economist and professor Trevor Tombe (Photo: U of C). New Year’s in Alberta blew in on a bitter winter
Continue readingAlberta Politics: Happy New Year! It wouldn’t be New Year’s Eve without AlbertaPolitics.ca’s Top Ten political predictions for 2018
PHOTOS: Will U.S. spear hunters like this guy still be able to come to Alberta after 2018? Your blogger predicts they’ll have to find ursine victims elsewhere. (Photo: Youtube screengrab, grabbed by the CBC and re-grabbed by me.) Below: Demonstrators on Cambie Street in Vancouver protest against the Kinder Morgan
Continue readingAlberta Politics: As the year runs out, here are AlbertaPolitics.ca’s Top Ten developing Alberta political news stories of 2017
PHOTOS: As time runs out on 2017, here are AlbertaPolitics.ca’s Top Ten developing new stories for the year. Below: Opposition UCP Leader Jason Kenney, NDP Premier Rachel Notley, serial conservative screw-up Derek Fildebrandt and Labour Minister Christina Gray. It’s easy to pick list of news stories that caused a big
Continue readingAlberta Politics: There was a whole lotta scrambling going on, 24/7 … can the 2015 PMO security breach whodunit be solved?
PHOTOS: Former Conservative prime minister Stephen Harper, at right, somewhere in Iraq in 2015 (Photo: Screenshot of Global News video). Below: The very model of a modern major general, although not necessarily a Canadian one (Photo: Wikimedia Commons), and the Canadian defence minister of the day with some ghostly military
Continue readingAlberta Politics: Today marks the 10th anniversary of AlbertaPolitics.ca – which presumably makes this blog an Internet institution!
PHOTOS: Part of the original header on this blog, back in its St. Albert Diary days, which ran from the last week of 2007 to mid-2009. The blog, of course, has continued under slightly different names to the present. Below: The first post, and my picture with Alberta’s two best
Continue readingAlberta Politics: Put the Christ back in Christmas? Never mind that! Keep the marks in the market! Merry Christmas!
PHOTOS & ILLUSTRATIONS: Early opponents of the War on Shopping fight back at Christmastime (Photo: Chicago History Museum). Today consumerism is the state religion of both the United States and Canada, helping to put the marks back in the market. Below: Sol Invictus. Any resemblance to the Statue of Liberty
Continue readingdaveberta.ca – Alberta Politics: Episode 3: Best of Alberta Politics 2017
In the latest episode of The Daveberta Podcast, Ryan and I discuss Kara Levis‘ entry into the Alberta Party leadership race, the results of the Calgary-Lougheed by-election, Conservative MPs being challenged for their nominations, and we reveal the winners of the Best of Alberta Politics 2017 Survey. With more than
Continue readingAlberta Politics: R U #Fildeforgiven? Never say die, Derek! It sounds as if Jason Kenney wants you back
PHOTOS: Once and future United Conservative Party MLA Derek Fildebrandt in a favoured pose. Below: Mr. Fildebrandt, nowadays the Independent MLA for Strathmore-Brooks, with UCP leader Jason Kenney. Both photos were grabbed from social media. Just when we thought it would never be safe to go into a farmer’s field
Continue readingAlberta Politics: Kent Hehr: He’s not necessarily an empathetic guy, and that’s not necessarily a bad thing
PHOTOS: Kent Hehr, back in the days he was an Alberta Liberal MLA. I have to tell you, Mr. Hehr is not crazy about this picture, probably because he regrets wearing that particular shirt. Below: The image Mr. Hehr would prefer to project; Niccolo Machiavelli, advisor to princes through the
Continue readingdaveberta.ca – Alberta Politics: Alberta Conservative MPs face nomination challenges ahead of 2019 election
At least three Conservative Members of Parliament from Alberta are expected to face challenges for their nominations ahead of the expected 2019 federal election (news of two of the nomination challenges was first reported by Ryan Hastman in the latest episode of The Daveberta Podcast). Calgary-Forest Lawn Former Progressive Conservative
Continue readingAlberta Politics: Derek Fildebrandt’s hit-&-run fine is only $402 but the political tariff is likely to be much steeper
PHOTOS: Derek Fildebrandt in a pose evocative of his next legal challenge, hunting without permission on private land. Below: Mr. Fildebrandt famously loading jerry cans full of gasoline in his now-notorious big red pickup truck the night before the NDP’s carbon levy took effect on the first day of 2017.
Continue readingAlberta Politics: Get ready for the kinder, gentler Jason Kenney as United Conservative Party leader pivots toward the rhetorical centre
PHOTOS: Get ready for the new, kinder, gentler Jason Kenney. Below: Alberta Premier Rachel Notley; Mr. Kenney, who is about to be sworn in as the leader of the Opposition, with his strategic mentor and inspiration, Stephen Harper (Photo: Jason Kenney Facebook account). His leadership of Alberta’s conservatives, and his
Continue readingdaveberta.ca – Alberta Politics: Vote in the Best of Alberta Politics 2017 Survey (Round 2!)
In our most recent episode of The Daveberta Podcast, Ryan and I asked you to help us shape our final episode of 2017 by voting in the Best of Alberta Politics 2017 Survey. More than 300 of you responded to the survey last week with your choices for the biggest
Continue readingAlberta Politics: As expected, UCP Leader Jason Kenney chalks up another convincing win in Calgary-Lougheed by-election
PHOTOS: UCP Leader Jason Kenney celebrates his victory in the Calgary-Lougheed by-election last night (Photo: CBC). Below: NDP candidate Phillip van der Merwe, Liberal leader and candidate David Khan, and Alberta Premier Rachel Notley, all their photos grabbed for simplicity’s sake from Twitter. Never mind Surrey and Alabama. Jason Kenney
Continue readingdaveberta.ca – Alberta Politics: NDP should recalibrate their line of attack after Kenney’s crushing landslide in Calgary-Lougheed
Attempts by Jason Kenney’s opponents to paint him as an extremist social conservative failed to stop the United Conservative Party leader from winning a crushing landslide victory today in Calgary-Lougheed. With 22 of 22 polls reporting, Kenney had earned 7,760 votes, 71.51 percent of the total votes cast in the
Continue readingAlberta Politics: Annus Horribilis 2017: Derek Fildebrandt ends his terrible, horrible, no good, very bad year with a bang … literally!
PHOTOS: United Conservative Party Leader Jason Kenney with Derek Fildebrandt in happier times. At the moment, Mr. Fildebrandt may be the bane of Mr. Kenney’s existence. One of them, anyway. Below: Elmer Fudd … the comparison to Mr. Fildebrandt is irresistible. And Mr. Kenney with Jason Nixon, the UCP’s House
Continue readingAlberta Politics: The politics of harassment-free workplaces – UCP House Leader Jason Nixon walks right into a trap of his own creation
PHOTOS: A steely-eyed Alberta Premier Rachel Notley meets the media in the Alberta Legislature yesterday in this screenshot of a Government of Alberta video. Below: United Conservative Party House Leader Jason Nixon and UCP Leader Jason Kenney, the subjects of her ire. Mr. Kenney faces the voters in a by-election
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