Kim Trynacity of the CBC will be one of the media panellists for the Alberta Election Debates to be televised on all networks this Thursday at 6:30 pm. On the CBC website she asked Albertans to suggest questions she should ask the leaders in the debate. The suggestions started rolling in on the Comments part of her Reporter’s Notebook on the CBC site.
Daveberta, Aaron Braaten and I will be blogging on the debate for the CBC website on Thursday night. I will be doing some commentary for the CBC on the debate and on-line commentary for the CBC on election night as well.
Reading the submitted questions on Kim's Notebook, I as struck by the range, complexity and context of the question suggestions in 2 days show me just how tough the life as a politician can be. We need to attract our best and brightest into public life. We need to quit degrading and debasing all politicians in gratuitous ways…but hold them strictly accountable and insist on performance. I know my cynical readers will be rolling their eyes by now. They will take the same stance towards politicians as the old lawyer joke that said it was 99% of lawyers that gave the rest a bad name.
If we continue devalue democracy by not participating in the political life of our province, and if we continue to debase our political representatives by cheap personal affronts we all suffer in the end.
For the most part this campaign has been more on issues than personalities. The critics who liken politics to a hardball blood sport are suggesting the issues are getting attention because of the “uninspiring personalities” of the political leaders in Alberta. I am OK with that because I think charisma-based populists politics is over rated. And before you ask, no Obama is not a charisma-based populist politician. He is much more than that – he is a transformative force of nature.
Excellent post, Ken. I whole-heartedly agree with your comments on the state of Alberta's democracy. I'm tired of hearing people lament that there are no inspiring personalities in Alberta politics, or that all politicians are corrupt so why bother voting? Its apathy like this that allows the actions of politicians to go unchecked, which in turn breeds more apathy. Its a vicious cycle, from which we need to break free.
ReplyDelete"I am OK with that because I think charisma-based populists politics is over rated."
ReplyDeleteDuh - you supported Dion.
"And before you ask, no Obama is not a charisma-based populist politician. He is much more than that – he is a transformative force of nature."
ReplyDeleteThat's meant to be ironic, right?
How is Obama going to transform the economy? Isn't he in the protectionist camp? If so, how is that good for Canada and why does any Canadian support him?
ReplyDeleteGood comment Frequent Viewer...all the US Presidential candidates from both parties are protectionists...Billary and Obama are almost anti-NAFTA.
ReplyDeleteCanada will have to be much tougher with the next President on NAFTA issues as the US goes into recession and get more fearful of homeland security.
Harper's capitulation to the US on softwood lumber does not set him up as the kind of tough PM we need for the next 4 to 8 years.
I think we Canadians need to diversify our markets and damn quickly.
UN Election Observers Required for Alberta
ReplyDeleteHow is it possible in a “democratic” society, that the Alberta P.C.’s (the Party and ultimately the Provincial Cabinet) can be allowed to get away with stacking the roster of riding returning officials for the upcoming Provincial Election? It was reported in the Herald on February 15, that Elections Alberta had confirmed that about half of the 83 riding returning officers to work on the election have past P.C. dealings. The potential for election rigging is dangerously possible, for example, as these officials are tasked to cast a deciding vote in a tie situation. It is unfathomable that this can be tolerated by Albertan. Surely a pure and unbiased election process is a fundamental democratic tenant that is important to Albertans. If we can’t rely on the current governing Alberta P.C.s to uphold democracy principals, perhaps we the people need to lodge a formal request for U.N. Election Observers to come in to protect us from potential foul play. The UN has excellent credentials in this regard as it has monitored elections since 1947, in the likes of Iraq, Suriname, Namibia, Cambodia, Central America, South Africa, etc.
Anon @ 7:27 - a tad over the top but you point is well taken
ReplyDelete"Harper's capitulation to the US on softwood lumber does not set him up as the kind of tough PM we need for the next 4 to 8 years. "
ReplyDeleteYep, the Liberals sitting on the darn issue for over a decade is a better approach. Sign... Jim Prentice was heavily involved in that agreement and I highly respect him. You should get your political blinders off once and awhile. The distortion in your logic is self-evident and does not help your case.
Harper took a bad deal on softwood so he coulld appear to be decisive and on top of the issue. Harper got hosed - and he knew it but politics trumped economics! He sold out the Canadian forestry sector to US protectionist interests without a second thought.
ReplyDeleteThe Liberals turned down better deals than Harper touted as a triumph. Haste and hubris made for a wanton waste...and it was all Harper - not Prentice at all.