VICTORIA — Strangely, all those conservatives who are anxious to get us back to school and business as soon as possible didn’t seem to be very happy yesterday when B.C. Premier John Horgan called a snap election for Oct. 24. Supporters of B.C. political parties other than Mr. Horgan’s New
Continue readingTag: Dave Barrett
Alberta Politics: Investment advice: If you have the choice, don’t trust right-wing politicians with your retirement money
After my father died in Victoria in 2008 at the age of 91, my sister opened his safety deposit box and discovered $5,000 in shares in the British Columbia Resources Investment Corp., better known as the BCRIC, universally pronounced at the end of the 1970s as the “brick.” When I
Continue readingAlberta Politics: From the first nail in the Velvet Coffin to the death of Star Metro — the decline of Alberta’s newspapers
The bad news was delivered on social media yesterday by employees of Star Metro newspapers in cities outside Ontario. Whatever was behind the Toronto Star’s decision in April 2018 to hire real journalists and publish free print newspapers in five major cities across Canada, including Calgary and Edmonton, apparently it
Continue readingAlberta Politics: Alberta New Democrats ponder new name to reflect 21st Century political realities
PHOTO: AlbertaPolitics.ca has received this exclusive image of a pin mocked up with a new logo reflecting one of the new names under serious consideration by Alberta’s NDP. Below: Federal NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh and B.C. NDP Premier John Horgan. April 1, 2018 Alberta’s New Democratic Party is considering a
Continue readingAlberta Politics: I’m so proud to have known, voted for and written about Dave Barrett
PHOTO: Dave Barrett and the author in February 2008. The death yesterday at 87 of Dave Barrett, premier of British Columbia from 1972 to 1975, is a huge loss to all Canadians. While Mr. Barrett’s government served for a short time, it left Canada and British Columbia with a huge
Continue readingAlberta Politics: Finance Minister Joe Ceci’s call for no wage hikes for public-sector unions a risky strategy for New Democrats
PHOTOS: Alberta Finance Minister Joe Ceci at yesterday’s news conference in Edmonton (Photo: Government of Alberta). Below: Alberta Premier Rachel Notley, her former chief of Staff, Brian Topp, and former NDP premiers Dave Barrett (Photo: The Tyee), Roy Romanow, and Bob Rae (Photo: Wikimedia Commons). Alberta’s NDP Government can’t say
Continue readingAlberta Politics: Message to the media and conservatives about Alberta’s NDP: Read their lips, no early election!
PHOTOS: Opposition Wildrose Leader Brian Jean and Progressive Conservative Leader Jason Kenney. Below: A clear-eyed Premier Rachel Notley, former British Columbia NDP premier Dave Barrett and the late Jim Prentice, former premier of Alberta. TORONTO “Two years after Alberta NDP win, critics see signs of early election call,” a headline
Continue readingCowichan Conversations: Obituary: ‘Old Leather Lungs,’ one of B.C.’s most colourful politicians
Old time Socred MLA and Cabinet Minister Don Phillips was from another era, a time of flamboyant speakers and keen as hell debaters. On the Socred side, Phillips, Rafe Mair and Grace McCarthy would Read more…
Continue readingAlberta Politics: Go figure! Jim Prentice, failed former politician, resurfaces with sweet gig at Washington think tank
PHOTOS: Those were the days! This time last year, Jim Prentice was everyone else’s favourite Albertan, or so it seemed. Now look at him, already the last Conservative premier of Alberta. Below: Woodrow Wilson, the only American president with a PhD a…
Continue readingAlberta Politics: Second verse, same as the first! Notley Government decrees no change to Alberta’s royalty regime
PHOTOS: Alberta Premier Rachel Notley, surrounded by Calgary New Democrat MLAs in this screen shot of yesterday morning’s news conference in Calgary, announces her new government’s new royalty policy, which is pretty much the same as the old govern…
Continue readingAlberta Politics: Eight months of the NDP in review: Main themes pretty much as predicted on Day 2
PHOTOS: Premier Rachel Notley gives her victory speech on the historic evening of May 5, 2015, moments after the Alberta NDP’s victory was declared. Below: Former British Columbia NDP premier Dave Barrett, former Ontario NDP premier Bob Rae, later a …
Continue readingAlberta Politics: Hunting for hangover remedies with Bill Bennett and other tall tales from Social Credit British Columbia
PHOTOS: Former British Columbia Social Credit Party Premier Bill Bennett on the steps of the B.C. Legislature in Victoria. Below: Another shot of Mr. Bennett, who died on Dec. 3, looking a little shaggy; NDP Premier Dave Barrett; W.A.C. Bennett, B.C.
Continue readingCowichan Conversations: Three extraordinary, but forgotten years in B.C–!972-1975
I came across this Geoff Olson piece posted in the Vancouver Courier reflecting back on that amazing time in BC when we had a government that gave a damn. Premier Dave Barrett-1972–1975 Roberta tottered Read more…
Continue readingAlberta Politics: ‘Parson’ Manning, in the pulpit, preaches a formula of failure to Alberta’s New Democrats
PHOTOS: Preston Manning, Godfather of the Canadian right. Below: Alberta Premier Designate Rachel Notley, Liberal prime minister Wilfrid Laurier, Social Credit premier E.C. Manning and United Farmers of Alberta leader Henry Wise Wood. Preaching from the highest pulpit in the land, the opinion pages of the mighty Globe and Mail,
Continue readingAlberta Politics: And now for the hard part … getting businesses and right-wing commentators to curb their hysteria
PHOTOS: Alberta NDP premier-elect Rachel Notley at the centre of media attention. Below: NDP premiers Dave Barrett of British Columbia and Bob Rae of Ontario, back in the day; columnist and NDP activist Gerald Caplan. And now, the hard part … If you thought overcoming the supposed Progressive Conservative juggernaut
Continue readingCowichan Conversations: Canada’s Diminished Democracy Should Look Back To Our Past To Build Canada of the Future
Richard Hughes-Political Blogger The outrageous assault on Canada, on what used to be Canadian values, of our decency as a once respected nation, on our very democracy fuelled a fiery address from an old socialist warrior Stephen Lewis. (see post above) At 77 he still has fire in his belly and
Continue readingAlberta Diary: A picture of Tories gone gray: How much will Albertans spend on oil portraits of Alison Redford and Dave Hancock?
Premier pro tempore Dave Hancock’s official portrait imagined. Actual Legislative Building paintings may not appear exactly as illustrated. Below: Ed Stelmach as seen by Tunde Vari; Ralph Klein by Xin Yu Zheng; your blogger by Ryn Climenhaga. “I love scandals about other people, but scandals about myself don’t interest me.
Continue readingCowichan Conversations: Bob Williams on Voice of BC- Vaughn Palmer
Bob Williams Bob Williams was the intellect and a driving force behind the BC NDP government that ran from 1972 to 1975. In that short time that Dave Barrett government accomplished more than any government before of since. Corky Evans Mr. Williams is a Board Member of Vancity, one of
Continue readingCowichan Conversations: Don Maroc Applauds Corky’s Leadership on Preserving Farmland
Don Maroc Cowichan Conversations Contributor Thanks for this Corky, we need your strong, rational voice on this extremely important issue. We hope you won’t mind if we tidy up a few of your comments. You’re certainly right the Agricultural Land Reserve is unique, not just in Canada but the whole
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: On legacies
Obviously last night’s Nova Scotia election results represent a huge disappointment for the NDP. But they also offer some reason to discuss the brand being developed at both the provincial and federal levels. The working assumption for both the federal party and most of the provincial parties close to forming
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