TweetProviding a timely distraction for a government facing criticism over the sobering news stories of unreported deaths of children in the foster care system, Premier Alison Redford‘s Progressive Conservatives today suddenly introduced two pieces of legislation that could have a significant impact on labour relations in Alberta. The first piece of
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daveberta.ca - Alberta politics: Celebrating 42 years in power, PC Party expected to back Redford
Tweet This “teaser” video released before the Progressive Conservative Party Annual Meeting focuses on “trust.” There was no mention of the ‘Socred Retreads‘ in Premier Alison Redford‘s speech to Progressive Conservative Party faithful last night. Unlike her speech to her party’s annual general meeting in November 2012, Ms. Redford took
Continue readingdaveberta.ca - Alberta politics: A short roundup of municipal election races across Alberta
Tweet With a feeling of excitement in the air, Nomination Day came and went today as residents across Alberta officially became candidates in this year’s municipal election. With nearly 120 candidates registered to run in Edmonton’s municipal election, today’s event was busy. I was at Edmonton City Hall at this
Continue readingOPSEU Diablogue: Fraser got it wrong — StatsCan says little real difference in public-private absenteeism rates
Contrary to the much publicized Fraser Institute press releases accusing the public sector of abusing sick leave allowances, earlier today Statistics Canada issued a report suggesting there is in fact very little real difference in absenteeism rates between the public … Continue reading →
Continue readingdaveberta.ca - Alberta politics: Alberta politics last week
TweetAfter spending some much needed time relaxing in beautiful British Columbia, I returned to Alberta this week and noticed some of the political stories that occurred during my absence. Here are some of the top political stories from last week that caught my attention: Political games in High River Buckling
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Tuesday Morning Links
This and that for your Tuesday reading. – Tavia Grant reports on the most recent world happiness report from the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network. And David Doorey points out a rather striking similarity among the countries at the top of the list, while Dan Gardner highlights Stephen Harper’s longstanding
Continue readingAlberta Diary: Campaign Diary Volume 6: Still asking for money … in tiny increments
On hand: one cool election lawn sign. Needed: funds to help print additional copies. The pitch is simple: Small donations can help make a big difference! As previously noted in this space, a big part of running for public office is asking for campaign donations. Some people can’t stand it,
Continue readingAlberta Diary: The optics of politics in Alberta, or how to stay focused and in the picture…
Your blogger with the premier of Alberta. Somewhere below: Your blogger with a person who very well could be the next premier of Alberta. Or not. ST. ALBERT There’s something to be said for getting along with people even if you don’t agree with them. Seriously, you can get stuff
Continue readingAlberta Diary: Campaign Diary Volume 4: On dishing it out it print … and taking it
If you’ve dished it out in print, like this guy did from the look of him, you’ve got to be prepared to take it. In real life, that was Bogey in Deadline USA. Below: The actual author of this blog with Danielle Smith, just before she announced she was seeking
Continue readingAlberta Diary: Campaign Dairy Volume 3: My website arrives
Here’s a peek at the interior of DavidClimenhaga.ca – my campaign website. Below: Yours Truly, looking serious. It’s about the point in a campaign where voters start paying attention to who the candidates are and what each of them stands for. So I’m pleased to be able to tell you
Continue readingAlberta Diary: Campaign Diary Volume 2: Mapping St. Albert priorities while my web page dries out
A work in progress … a screenshot from my campaign website, as it emerges… ST. ALBERT, Alberta One of the small ripples and eddies from the disastrous floods that inundated Calgary on June 21 lapped up alongside my city council campaign in St. Albert. That is to say, the web
Continue readingAlberta Diary: Campaign Diary Vol. 1: The actual dark secret of democratic politics
The front page of Saturday’s St. Albert Gazette. A good first week of campaigning. ST. ALBERT, Alberta Well, I reckon the first week of my campaign for city council here in St. Albert has to be judged a success – at least by the measure of the excellent coverage I
Continue readingAlberta Diary: And now for something completely different: Why I’m running for city council in St. Albert
The campaign splash page, appearing at DavidClimenhaga.ca very soon. To be followed by more information. Below: Your blogger in full campaign mode, at the library, of course. Yesterday I sent out a news release stating that I plan to run for city council in St. Albert, the community where my
Continue readingdaveberta.ca - Alberta politics: Disaster tourism hits Toronto Mayor Rob Ford’s office
TweetFrom the Toronto Sun’s Don Peat: Alberta residents David Climenhaga and David Cournoyer stopped at the mayor’s office for pictures during a break in the conference they were in Toronto to attend. Both men run political blogs back in Edmonton – Climenhaga’s is called albertadiary.ca and Cournoyer’s blog is called
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Thursday Morning Links
This and that for your Thursday reading. – Paul Krugman makes the case for significantly higher taxes on the rich: What would raising tax rates at the top accomplish? It would, to some extent, mitigate the rise in inequality, which some of us consider a good thing in itself: You
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Monday Morning Links
Miscellaneous material for your Monday reading. – Yes, there’s plenty more on the Cons’ Senate scandal, with Tim Harper headlining the latest discussion: Mike Duffy is radioactive. The one-time Conservative cheerleader is now the poster boy for the filth which envelops the party brand. The man holed up on Friendly
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: The Dominoes of Democracy – Part 2
What is one of the chief effects of the Harper regime’s preference for an ideologically-based policy model over one premised on logic, facts and empirical evidence, as explored in my earlier post? The decline, perhaps even the demise, of a healthy democracy in which citizens are engaged and informed participants,
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: The Dominoes of Democracy – Part 2
What is one of the chief effects of the Harper regime’s preference for an ideologically-based policy model over one premised on logic, facts and empirical evidence, as explored in my earlier post? The decline, perhaps even the demise, of a healthy democracy in which citizens are engaged and informed participants,
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: The Dominoes of Democracy
Cause and effect. Sometimes the relationship is obvious, as in, for example, a cigarette left smoldering on a couch and the subsequent conflagration that destroys a house. Other times, to see the relationship requires some digging, some thinking, some connecting of the dots. To its shame the Harper regime, as
Continue readingdaveberta.ca - Alberta politics: Bad planning: Edmonton Arena funding and Calgary urban sprawl.
TweetWhile too much media attention was focused this week on the fate of a statue of a hockey player who left Edmonton twenty-five years ago for sunny southern California (and piles of money), City Council desperately tried to draw up a Plan B (or Plan C) to fund the proposed downtown arena.
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