daveberta.ca - Alberta Politics and Elections

Thanks to the good folks in Councillor Don Iveson‘s office for passing along this message.

What is the Commuter Challenge? The Commuter Challenge is a national competition between workplaces and cities, encouraging healthier commuting practices by reducing the reliance on single occupancy vehicles for trips to and from the workplace.

Edmonton is competing for the distinction of being a leader in healthier commuting and we need your support. The Commuter Challenge is our chance to show how committed Edmonton is to sustainable transportation and share in some fun during Canadian Environment Week (June 1 to 7) and Clean Air Day (June 4).

All participating organizations in Edmonton will be recognized on the City of Edmonton website as well as the national Commuter Challenge website. Registration is open to organizations and individual Canadians can participate too.

During Canadian Environment week and especially Clean Air Day, employees are encouraged to register and submit their sustainable commute. Each person who walked, ran, cycled, rode transit or carpooled is counted as a healthier commuter. Employees who tele-work are also included. At the end of Canadian Environmental Week, the workplace with the highest percentage of healthier commuters is declared the winner.

Choices made by businesses, communities and individuals can lead to meaningful reductions in air pollutants and greenhouse gas emissions. Become a leader in supporting healthier commuting and make a contribution to cleaner air and a healthier city.

Visit Commuterchallenge.ca and Join the Challenge!

For more information on the Commuter Challenge contact Mary Modrovcic at Mary.Modrovcic@edmonton.ca or telephone 496-4013.

Visit Carpool.ca for information about carpooling and finding potential carpool partners.

At the same time as Qualico Developments is bidding to build Canada’s National Portrait Gallery in Edmonton (which I think is a grand idea), Qualico Communities is asking Edmonton City Council to amend municipal by-laws to allow the excavation of gravel from Edmonton’s River Valley. The proposed gravel pit site, located at the south end of 199th Street, has been designated as a Restricted Development Area by the Alberta government since 1974 and is protected by the City of Edmonton’s North Saskatchewan River Valley bylaw, which prohibits natural resource extraction projects that are not deemed “essential.” Approximately 21 times larger than New York City’s Central Park, Edmonton’s River Valley is the largest stretch of urban parkland in North America and one of Edmonton’s greatest treasures.

Fearing that the site will make convoys of gravel trucks a regular occurrence in their neighbourhood, local residents of the are showing up in person and online to voice their opposition to the proposed development. Though opposition to the gravel pit is clearly a case of NIMBY, I don’t believe (as Edmonton Journal columnist Scott McKeen suggests) that Qualico is the victim in this fight (I also don’t blame residents for not wanting a gravel pit in their backyard). With the community residents mounting a well-organized advocacy campaign…

…campaign handouts, with suggested content for protest letters. They’ve got a printed target list of politicians, civil servants and media outlets. They’ve got financial resources and a fundraising goal of $50,000…

…I’m more interested in seeing whether Qualico’s $5,000 donations to the re-election campaigns of Mayor Stephen Mandel, Ward 1 Councillors Karen Leibovici and Linda Sloan, Ward 2 Councillor Ron Hayter, Ward 3 Councillor Ed Gibbons, and Ward 5 Councillor Bryan Anderson were enough to influence Council to make an exception for Qualico.

The proposal, which will also need approval from Alberta Environment, will be presented to City Council in June 2008. In February 2008, Premier Ed Stelmach announced $50 million for the creation of the River Valley Alliance Park in the Capital Region.

As an open political addict, it’s been hard not to pay attention to the politics and elections gearing up south of the 49th parallel. To get my fix, I usually check out one of my favorite American politics/elections blogs – Swing State Project.

My American politics addiction began in a two-fold manner…

The first was because of the White House of President Josiah Bartlett in The West Wing. I originally watched the first four seasons as they ran on NBC and later finished off Seasons 5-7 after making the wise investment of buying the West Wing Box Set in 2006 (a great investment).

The second was in the Fall of 2006 while I was enrolled in Dr. Greg Anderson‘s American Politics course at the University of Alberta. The main assignment for the course was to research and write a profile/report on one of the election races that were held during the November 2006 U.S. Mid-term elections. I profiled the Missouri Senate race which saw Democrat Claire McCaskill defeat incumbent Republican Senator Jim Talent (it was a lot of fun to watch McCaskill come from behind and knock off Talent on election night).

Also, my friend James L. is a Senior Editor on the Swing State Project and gives some great daily updates on polls, races, etc.

UPDATE: Senator Hillary Clinton may be top dog in the Kentucky Democratic Primary, but Barack Obama beats Clinton and John McCain in Canada… even in Alberta and the West:

Even in the province where Mr. Obama was least popular — Alberta — respondents favoured him by a 28-point margin over McCain. Fifty-one per cent of respondents there supported Mr. Obama, and 23 per cent preferred McCain.

Mr. Obama was most popular in Quebec where 61 per cent of respondents favoured him, and was almost equally popular in Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and British Columbia.

Brad Wall’s governing Saskatchewan Party has announced that they will be introducing a Bill into that province’s legislature allowing for the election of Senators in that province. Similar elections were held in Alberta in 1989, 1998 and 2004, with only two Senators having been appointed – Stan Waters in 1990 and Bert Brown in 2007. Before I continue, let me preface my comments by stating that it boggles my mind that in 2008 – the 21st century – a 19th century style appointed Upper House of Parliament continues to exist. It also continues to boggle my mind that the Liberal Party of Canada – by their lack of action on an issue of democracy – continues to support the current-Senate style.

With 14 vacant seats in the 105 member Senate (and 29 expected by the end of 2009), the movement towards electing Senators is only one move that I believe should be taken towards reforming the Upper House.

Though some politicians are afraid of the reopening Canadian constitutional debates (something that the Federal Liberals are happy to call for now that they are in opposition), I think it is something that is needed, whether it be now or a decade from now. One only has to read Section 23 of the Constitution Act to see just how politics was done in 1867:

23: Qualifications of Senator

(1) He shall be of the full age of Thirty Years:

(2) He shall be either a natural-born Subject of the Queen, or a Subject of the or a Subject of the Queen naturalized by an Act of the Parliament of Great Britain, or of the Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, or of the Legislature of One of the Provinces of Upper Canada, Lower Canada, Canada, Nova Scotia, or New Brunswick, before the Union, or of the Parliament of Canada after the Union

(3) He shall be legally or equitably seised as of Freehold for his own Use and Benefit of Lands or Tenements held in Free and Common Socage, or seised or possessed for his own Use and Benefit of Lands or Tenements held in Franc-alleu or in Roture, within the Province for which he is appointed, of the Value of Four thousand Dollars, over and above all Rents, Dues, Debts, Charges, Mortgages, and Incumbrances due or payable out of or charged on or affecting the same:

(4) His Real and Personal Property shall be together worth Four thousand Dollars over and above his Debts and Liabilities:

(5) He shall be resident in the Province for which he is appointed:

(6) In the Case of Quebec he shall have his Real Property Qualification in the Electoral Division for which he is appointed, or shall be resident in that Division.

First of all, the idea that qualifications to being appointed to the Senate include owning property and being over the age of Thirty hurts my brain. What implications will this have for those running in Senate elections? As someone who is under Thirty Years old and doesn’t hold over four thousand dollars of personal property, would I be excluded from participating as a candidate?

I support the move by Stephen Harper’s Conservatives to allow for more elected Senators, but there is a broader discussion that is needed to be had. Does the constitution need to be reopened? Absolutely. The Canadian Constitution is a living document. This discussion should include discussing what purpose the Senate actually serves. Will an Upper House of elected politicians be any more effective than an Upper House of appointed politicians? (a cursory glance at the House of Commons would certainly have most Canadians asking this question). Is abolishing the Senate a more effective use of taxpayers dollars? Is there really a need for an Upper House?

How about the effectiveness of our current Parliamentary Democratic system of government? Would a change in the electoral system good enough? What sense does it make to still have the British Monarch as our Head of State? Does the Governor General actually serve a modern purpose? I’m not going to oppose current reforms, but as someone who sees an array of problems in the current political system, I’m having a hard time believing that anything less than a complete overhaul is actually going to make a real difference in the long run.

UPDATE: For more thoughts on the Senate debate, check out AGRDT, ES, and Wells.

A bit of Corb for the long weekend Monday.

I thought this was pretty neat.

(From Le Monde via Azeem Azar on twitter, via Tim O’Reilly’s blog and found on BoingBoing)

Centralization seems to be the word of the day as Tory Health Minister Ron Liepert has disolved Alberta’s nine-regional health authorities, as well as the Alberta Cancer Board, Alberta Mental Health Board and Alberta Alcohol and Drug Abuse Commission, into one super mega health board – the Alberta Health Services Board.

What does this mean? Other than having a lot of former Tory patronage appointees looking for new jobs, it probably won’t change a lot for most Albertans. The new interim board will be made up of six new appointees including former Tory MP Ken Hughes and Klein-era Minister Jack Ady.

I have a three mains thoughts on move:

– This mega superboard could potentially ease the flow of medical information across Alberta, making it easier for Albertans in rural areas to access medical facilities in urban areas and vice-versa.

– By removing regional authority over decision making, decisions affecting local health care provision could be affected by a far-removed board that may not be in touch with local needs.

– Having not been mentioned anywhere in the Alberta PC election platform two months ago, you really have to wonder kind of mandate the Tories think Albertans gave them for the next four years. 72 seats = blank cheque.

In the medium-term, I don’t think this will produce any large changes for Albertans who need access to the health care system. By dissolving the regional boards, the provincial government looks like it’s taking some direct responsibility over health care, rather than hiding behind the decisions of hand-picked appointed boards.

See AGRDT and the Edmonton Journal for more.

UPDATE: Bill Given has some thoughts on how this change could affect cities like Grande Prairie.

Calgary Sun columnist Rick Bell shows-off his superior skills as a political writer in this debate with veteran reporter Mike McCourt on CityTV Calgary:

Watch out Craig Oliver and Mike Duffy! Rick Bell is gunning for your jobs!

UPDATE: Someone with far superior political observation skills than I suggested that you take the following into consideration as you watch this video:

1. Rick Bell’s superior use of “air quotes” every “two seconds”

2. Rick Bell quoting some guy who was pr obably drunk and pissed off on election night as representative of the Alberta Liberal Party.

3. Rick Bell claiming he was “proven right” when he was equally critical of Stelmach. It’s easy to be “proven right” when you make every prediction possible.

Wouldn’t it be ironic if the Alberta Government were to hand out an annual award to the group that does the most to preserve wetlands for ducks?

Oh, wait… that’s exactly what they’re doing tomorrow…

Lieutenant Governor Presents Award to Innovator of Municipal Wetland Conservation Plan

Awarded annually and sponsored by Ducks Unlimited Canada (DUC), the Alberta Lieutenant Governor’s Greenwing Conservation Award recognizes individuals or groups who have demonstrated leadership in a project or activity which has contributed significantly to the public awareness of the value of wetland ecosystems and their benefit to the waterfowl, wildlife and people of Alberta.

You’d think they would have reschedule the ceremony for a few weeks given recent events…

And Alberta has an international image problem? I wonder why that could be?

You probably won’t see me write this very often, but good on Prime Minister Stephen Harper for his response to Stéphane Dion and Gilles Duceppe’s questions about Foreign Affairs Minister Maxime Bernier’s ex-girlfriend.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper dismissed concerns Thursday pertaining to the past relationship between Foreign Affairs Minister Maxime Bernier and a woman formerly linked to the Hells Angels.

Julie Couillard, Bernier’s former girlfriend, was once married to a biker and lived with another.

Liberal Leader Stéphane Dion and Bloc Québécois Leader Gilles Duceppe want to know whether the relationship was a security risk.

On Thursday, Harper called the two opposition leaders “a group of gossipy, old busybodies.”

“It’s none of my business, it’s none of Mr. Duceppe’s business, it’s none of Mr. Dion’s business,” he told reporters in Ottawa.

Maybe it’s just a slow news day in Ottawa, but I find it hard to believe that the most worthy issue that the Leader of the Official Opposition and the Bloc Québécois had to raise was about the Foreign Affairs Minister’s ex-girlfriend. Really, guys?

In his column yesterday, Graham Thomson wrote about a plan proposed by the Alberta Federation of Labour to forge a “United Alternative” between the Alberta Liberals and NDP to battle the 37-year old Progressive Conservative regime in Alberta. A friendly daveberta.ca reader emailed me a copy of the AFL memo proposing this a couple weeks ago, so I wasn’t surprised when it hit the mainstream media.

The AFL plan proposes that:

If you’re interested in a plan that theoretically might help the currently existing opposition parties win a handful of more seats in Edmonton, this plan is for you. I’m interested in a plan that will make politics relevant to people, which this plan doesn’t accomplish. Without relevant politics, it doesn’t really matter who has how many seats, and it is clear that the three current parties in the Alberta Legislature aren’t making politics relevant to Albertans.

With 42% voter turnout, it is clear that no candidate, MLA, or political party successfully engaged Albertans in the last election. This is what needs to be changed. As long as parties are more interested in winning seats than actually accomplishing good, I can hardly see anyone getting excited about electoral democracy. This is why I was interested to hear the work that Calgary-Mountain View MLA David Swann has been doing since the election.

Calgary Liberal MLA David Swann has been quietly meeting with MLAs and other interested people about starting a new party based on green politics, accountability and democratic reform.

Swann has held two meetings in Calgary over the past months that have attracted around 25 to 30 people, mostly Liberal and NDP supporters and some Greens, including rural land activist and Green candidate Joe Anglin. Swann has also held individual meetings with other interested people.

The purpose, for now, is to simply start a discussion among those who feel left out of the process of governance.

“How do we re-engage the citizens of Alberta?” Swann asked. “If the issues with the citizens of Alberta are not being reflected in either of the mainstream opposition parties, then we have to talk about the possibility of forming a new party. “

Swann said he plans to meet with former Reform Party leader Preston Manning to talk about his experiences starting a new party and about green politics and democratic accountability, favourite issues of Manning’s.

Now this sounds more like a plan to me.