Honouring Newfoundland Writers #nlpoli
Most of you have probably never heard of a fellow named Alonzo John Gallishaw. John Gallishaw is best remembered in his native land for his brief service in the Newfoundland…
Ed Hollett
Moral victory: saying yes to less #nlpoli
A couple of years after his war with one prime minister, Danny Williams was locked in another war with another federal first minister. Williams was demanding compensation for yet another…
Mr. Williams Goes to Hell #nlpoli
The story of the 2004 war with Ottawa is the story of disconnects, mismatches, incongruities, of things that just didn’t add up. October 2004 is a good example. In the…
From agreement to disagreement #nlpoli
On June 4, 2004, Danny Williams delivered a keynote speech to delegates at the oil and gas conference organized annual by the association that represented offshore service and supply companies.…
S’truth #nlpoli #cdnpoli
New Democratic party candidate Linda McQuaig caused a bit of a stir in the first week of the federal election campaign when she said that in order to meet the…
The 2004 war with Ottawa revisited #nlpoli
The 2004 “war” with Ottawa over a version of federal Equalization payments to Newfoundland and Labrador is an early episode in the provincial Conservative administration. The confrontation helped propel Premier…
Diversity #nlpoli
Labrador economy must diversify to survive, say opposition parties. There is a CBC headline to conjure with. Pure political magic for the two parties promising something different from what has…
Essence #nlpoli
The Telegram has been running a series this week on the number of communities in the province where people can’t drink the water supplied by their local municipality. Regular readers…
Sucks to be us #nlpoli
Not so very long ago, provincial Conservatives were crowing about how they would be running all sorts of mining projects in Labrador using electricity from Muskrat Falls. These days, the…
Lions or jellyfish: a review
Historian Ray Blake’s new book Lions or jellyfish: Newfoundland – Ottawa relations since 1957 is likely to be be on many reading lists. It should be. Blake examines: the Term…
The name they fear #nlpoli
Cast your mind back to April 2007 In his ongoing penchant for fighting with everyone and for small-mindedness, Newfoundland and Labrador Premier Danny Williams decides he will only refer to…
Debate Quickies #nlpoli #elxn42
The first English debate is over. Here are some quick observations to help you cut through the huge amount of noise coming from the conventional media. Debate host Paul Wells…
PQ hung up over Old Harry #nlpoli
Pierre Karl Peladeau won’t say yes or no to development of Old Harry, according to ledevoir.com. Le Devoir interviewed the Parti Quebecois leader during a recent visit to the Magdalen…
Figuring out what the parties are doing in #elxn42 #nlpoli
If you want to get a really good summary of the contending election strategies at this early stage of the federal campaign, read Evan Solomon’s piece at macleans.ca. It’s simple,…
Minority rights in education #nlpoli
It’s one of those persistent comments. You don’t hear it or see it every day but, once in a while it comes back. Like in 2013 . Some guy used…
Half and half #nlpoli
On the first working day during August, 2015, the provincial government issued four news releases. Two announced funding from the spring budget. The other two warned reporters of two more…
This is your political life: Ross Wiseman #nlpoli
Anyone surprised by the news isn;t paying any attention to local politics at all. Ross Wiseman has his pension. It cannot get any fatter. He likely won’t get re-elected in…
The Friday before it starts #nlpoli
There are plenty of signs that the federal Conservatives will start the official campaign for the fall election earlier than scheduled. Earlier being as soon as Monday, rather than the…
More ways to lose than win #nlpoli
“What this province needs is not just someone with the brains to figure out what’s wrong with our economy,” future Premier Kathy Dunderdale wrote in 2002. “What this province needs…
As Karl’s mom would say… #nlpoli
The Conservatives came to power in 2003 promising to do things a new way. People thought that meant the Tories would do away with the practice of stuffing people into…