Saturday Morning Links
Assorted content for your weekend reading. – Grace Blakeley points out the importance of putting our relief and recovery funding toward public investments, rather than the further enrichment of people…
Jason Kenney
The premier is disappointed? Where did Alberta’s Mr. Belligerence go when Donald Trump told 3M not to ship N95s to Canada?
Where’s the tough guy we got to know during the last Alberta election campaign, the Jason Kenney of the Summer of Repeal, the War Room and the War on Foreign…
Kenney dives into pipeline financing.
In a time when the rest of the world is expending all energy and funds into the war against the novel coronavirus, Alberta premier Jason Kenney is following his own…
Smoke and mirrors aren’t cutting it — Alberta’s health minister still needs to go
Despite a lot of smoke and mirrors, Alberta’s United Conservative Party Government has never dispelled the queasy feeling many Albertans have that Tyler Shandro’s personal business dealings render him unsuitable…
April Fool aftermath: UCP says it’s broke, AUPE job protections back on, spill reporting suspended, Greens choose leader, and more
Whether or not Bob Buckle meant it to be an early April Fool’s joke when he posted his deep thoughts on public education on social media, opining that “perhaps it’s…
Alberta government to strike new Blue Ribbon Panel on Blue Ribbon Panels
Alberta’s United Conservative Party Government plans to strike a Blue Ribbon Panel on Blue Ribbon Panels. With the global coronavirus pandemic and the worldwide collapse of oil prices, the United…
Layoffs one day, billion-dollar pipeline giveaways the next — it’s not easy keeping up with the Kenneys!
Keeping up with the Kenneys will make your head spin. Yesterday, the Kenney Government was justifying the layoffs of 26,000 public-sector education workers by claiming there are limits to Alberta’s…
War Room will return, vows energy minister Sonya Savage, after government slashes propaganda unit’s budget for three months
Is it possible the United Conservative Party has a conscience? I know, I know, this seems highly unlikely. Even if it were true, like the Grinch’s heart, it’s bound to…
Alberta government makes moves to lay off more public employees — this time provincial public service members
No one should assume Saturday’s mass layoff of 26,000 substitute teachers, teaching assistants and non-essential support staff at schools throughout Alberta is the last such action planned by the United…
Never mind the Kenney Government’s ‘Blueprint for Jobs’ — 26,000 jobs gone with the wind in a day
So, make that 26,000 Alberta jobs, gone with the wind! Now that some of the smoke is starting to clear from Premier Jason Kenney’s Saturday Afternoon Massacre of school board…
The Leader and His Team
It’s been a tough week for everyone; especially that “young, energetic and diverse team with deep experience” that Jason Kenney (his words by the way) appointed to Cabinet. Health Minister…
No warning, no consultation, UCP yanks school funding using COVID-19 pandemic as excuse, costing 20,000 jobs
Saturday afternoon at 1 p.m., Alberta school trustees learned funding about to be yanked by the provincial government with no notice or discussion with boards. Massive layoffs are expected to…
Saturday Morning Links
Assorted content for your weekend reading. – Derek Thompson reports on Denmark’s wage subsidies which are finally being mimicked by other countries including Canada. And Duncan Cameron points out how…
No one should fault Jason Kenney for his Hope Mission photo op — but that N95 mask is another matter
No one should fault Premier Jason Kenney too much for visiting Edmonton’s Hope Mission, having a few photos taken and posting them on social media with an uplifting message about…
Alberta Health gives way on docs’ billing for virtual services, but plunges ahead with controversial Babylon app
Bowing to pressure from the Alberta Medical Association and critics of the controversial Babylon “virtual care” app that’s created significant disruption to public health care in the United Kingdom, the…
Running a War Room in the age of coronavirus: Nothing much happening right now
For those of you worried about the prolonged silence from Alberta’s Energy War Room, it turns out the nine-member staff of Canadian Energy Centre Ltd. are just taking a little…
Episode 51: A new Alberta. Responding to COVID-19 and Oil Crash with Chris Henderson.
Wash your hands, don’t touch your face, stay at home. The spread of the COVID-19 pandemic and the plummeting price of oil has sent shockwaves through Alberta politics over the…
The Impact of COVID-19 on Democracy
James Madison said tyranny arises “on some favourable emergency”. The COVID-19 pandemic is today’s “favourable emergency.” It’s being used by unscrupulous politicians as a smokescreen for undemocratic behavior in Alberta’s…
If Health Minister Tyler Shandro were smart, he’d walk back that Babylon by Telus deal pronto
This whole Babylon smartphone app partnership between the Alberta government and Telus Corp. is starting to look like a major blunder. If he’s smart, Health Minister Tyler Shandro will recognize…
Saturday Afternoon Links
Assorted content for your weekend reading. – Adam Tooze writes that the coronavirus pandemic has offered a reminder that the economy (particularly defined in terms of shareholders’ interests) can’t be…