This appointment of Stephen Hawking to Waterloo University Perimeter Institute is a perfect example of what Alberta ought to be doing. We have the resources and facilities to actively attract and engage the best and brightest minds in the world today to come to our universities and research institutes.
We are doing this in medicine and nanotech and some other areas but not nearly enough and definitely not aggressively enough. With the economic down turn there will be a lot of great scientists and researchers who will no longer have access to the kind of funding they need to do their work. They will be looking for new sources and new relationships. Those folks ought to be found and recruited to our province to pursue their work in this tough time.
Alberta’s hydrocarbon economy, no debt, capital investment that is in place and still being pursued, safe communities, and stable government provides us with the best prospects going forward in all of North America – at least for the foreseeable future – but not forever. We can’t presume that our growth and sustainability will be assured by continuing to try to perfect yesterday's hydrocarbon economy.
Carbon is not king anymore. There will be significant efforts to replace it and to neutralize its impacts on the planet. Albertans support those efforts because we are the highest CO2 emitters on the planet on a per capita basis and know something has to change. Alberta has a serious transition and transformation in its future that will be more dramatic and demanding than the advent of the oil sands. Are we ready for that? Are we designing our economy, ecology and society for that destiny? Are we adaptive, engaged and nimble enough to make the changes we need and to show the leadership necessary to make a difference? I think so but it is not a given…it takes an attitude adjustment. That it never easy but it will be necessary.
We now have a slowdown in Alberta, not a recession, and that is good in so many ways. The Alberta slowdown is due to the market responding to untenable high costs, lower oil price, uncertainty and turmoil in financial markets and increasing environmental regulatory requirements.
We needed a slowdown happen so we could catch our breath and to bring some cost control and sanity back into our economy and our society. We have to take advantage of this breather to reflect and rethink about what we are doing, where we are going and how we are going to get there as a province.
We still have a secure energy based economy that will serve us well for a good while longer….but not forever. So I urge the Alberta government to not only actively pursue people to come to our province to help meet the skills shortages in so many sectors of the economy. I also urge them to add a focused effort to seek out and recruit the best innovation and science minds in green industries and ecological technologies. We have the right mix of elements to entice them to come and set up shop in our universities and research institutions. We need them to also engage with our private sector corporations who are increasingly focused on profiting from sound corporate social responsibility practices.
There are going to be effective alternatives for fossil fuels in the future. Alberta better be actively creating that new future and not be passively indifferent to change. Otherwise we will be overwhelmed by it when it happens. We ought to be bring the most promising of these people from all over the globe to Alberta.
We need to prepare and position ourselves to be at the leading edge with thought leaders and leading researchers who a re crating that new world orders. We can supporting and sustain their work with our wealth and potential. That is the smartest way for us to go forward to get through these difficult economic times. We have something significant to offer them…funds and facilities through our publicly funded endowment programs.
What do you say Mr. Premier?
Thursday, November 27, 2008
Monday, November 24, 2008
CRTC-SuperNet-Telus and the Plight of Rural Alberta Connectivity
I am working on a project to get rural Albertans access to the SuperNet using the copper telephone wire that comes into our homes. It requires the cooperation of the owner of that wire who is Telus in Alberta. Telus has balked at consenting voluntarily. So there is an application being undertaken by the Internet Centre to the CRTC with a decision pending for private Internet Service Providers to secure this access to the Telus “unloaded copper wire.” Here is the link to the application documents if you are an insomniac.
I ran across an interesting interview with Simon Aspinal, the Managing Director, Internet Business Solutions Group for Cisco. He explains very clearly the reluctance of the Telcos to help and facilitate this change in communications culture of the new and emerging dominance of the internet espeically relating to video applications. Aspinal outlines the reasons why it makes good business sense for Telcos to adapt to the new internet video reality instead of still trying to fight off its inevitable and upsetting all their customers along the way.
The interview is a bit esoteric but it is very relevant given the powerful fibreoptics tool Albertans have built and paid for called the SuperNet. It brings great leverage and competitive capacity that cam make for an enticing business case for enterprises to set up in rural communities. The keys to thie innovation are high definition easy access simple to use cost competitive videoconferencing and very high speed internet. All this become a reality with the access to the SuperNet through unloaded copper telephone wire that is everywhere in Alberta.
It is not only Telus that is reluctant and resistant to adjust to the new reality of the internet Web 2.0 world. We see Bell and Rogers also using inappropriate business practices to try and control bandwidth for everyone just because a few bad apples are inappropriately using services. Net neutrality is the underlying issue here and the CRTC has said there will be a public hearing on the issues in July 2009. I expect to participate in those hearings to ensure private enterprise is not granted the power to interfere with my Charter Rights “freedom of thought, belief, opinion and expression, including freedom of the press and other media of communications; freedom of peaceful assembly: and freedom of association.” These rights have to trump the business purposes of Telcos that are trying to create a monopoly and unwarranted control over internet access.
I ran across an interesting interview with Simon Aspinal, the Managing Director, Internet Business Solutions Group for Cisco. He explains very clearly the reluctance of the Telcos to help and facilitate this change in communications culture of the new and emerging dominance of the internet espeically relating to video applications. Aspinal outlines the reasons why it makes good business sense for Telcos to adapt to the new internet video reality instead of still trying to fight off its inevitable and upsetting all their customers along the way.
The interview is a bit esoteric but it is very relevant given the powerful fibreoptics tool Albertans have built and paid for called the SuperNet. It brings great leverage and competitive capacity that cam make for an enticing business case for enterprises to set up in rural communities. The keys to thie innovation are high definition easy access simple to use cost competitive videoconferencing and very high speed internet. All this become a reality with the access to the SuperNet through unloaded copper telephone wire that is everywhere in Alberta.
It is not only Telus that is reluctant and resistant to adjust to the new reality of the internet Web 2.0 world. We see Bell and Rogers also using inappropriate business practices to try and control bandwidth for everyone just because a few bad apples are inappropriately using services. Net neutrality is the underlying issue here and the CRTC has said there will be a public hearing on the issues in July 2009. I expect to participate in those hearings to ensure private enterprise is not granted the power to interfere with my Charter Rights “freedom of thought, belief, opinion and expression, including freedom of the press and other media of communications; freedom of peaceful assembly: and freedom of association.” These rights have to trump the business purposes of Telcos that are trying to create a monopoly and unwarranted control over internet access.
Is Harper the New Mr. Dithers?
I am hearing mixed messages from our Prime Minister. He says the land is strong and our fundamentals are fine at election time. He says he will never run a deficit so long as he leads the country and his government is in surplus so don’t worry – vote for his sound economic management abilities.
Now he says private economic analysts say we are going to be in a “technical recession” as if his own government people didn’t know this, or he does not want to tell us he was advised of this reality by his administration. All of this is more Harper misleading machinations and mumblings and more of his patented politically misleading way of saying we are in recession. Who cares if it is technical or not?
He is reported to say he is “ready to open the government’s wallet t respond but not until February when the budget is due. He is now sending mixed messages concurrently in real time rather than saying one thing in an election and changing his tune later when the political gamesmanship is passed. This is because his ideological zeal can no longer manipulate the media by misleading advertising that diverts attention off the real issues and ignores the facts. That is because everyone knows he does that and we are all genuinely worried about what is happening. There is no map for this new economic territory that the Bush government has pushed on the world.
Harper is going to have to be more honest, forthright and frank with Canadians, even though it is so contrary to his political instincts. He is going to be politically hobbled and has to face the challenge of telling the truth this Thursday with his economic update. This is because Kevin Page, the Parliamentary Budget Officer saw to it last week with an announcement about the facts of the pending deficits to be sure they are known. Kevin Page, bless his heart, has pegged the good news next year at a $4B deficit; something Harper has said would not happen on his watch. The bad news, at least bad news for Harper’s ideological certitude, is that Page says the deficit could reach $14B. Ouch! Only question I have about the November 27th political melodrama is will Flaherty’s economic update be inconsequential or will it be nominated for a Pulitzer Prize for fiction?
Now we have our decisive and determined Prime Minister being vague about if there will be an economic stimulus and if it is to happen the timing gets dodgy too. Flaherty says last Friday that he will not deal with the economic issues of an economic stimulus until the February Budget. What gives? Obama is not even President yet and yet he is already announcing economic stimulus activities… already. Is this new dithering and indecisiveness of the Harper government the reason why we had an unnecessary inconclusive, expensive and rushed election? Say it ain’t so Mr. Harper.
Mr. Harper, we all know that you knew this economic crisis was coming, hence the early election notwithstanding your law to the contrary. The crisis started during the campaign but that was not why you lost a majority government. In fact the economic uncertainty was the reason why you did as well as you did. It was not anything you said or did during the campaign that is for sure. You and your party were perceived to be the better choice to manage during the coming uncertain times. You are not only letting us down and disappointing us again, you continue to mislead and play politics with our economic, social and environmental security as individuals and as a nation.
Don’t dither Mr. Prime Minister. It didn’t serve Paul Martin particularly well. We in Canada are in better shape than most but we can quickly decline into despair with your demonstrative indecisiveness. By th eway, our consumer and corporate confidence is at the lowest it has been since 1982. Enough said?
Now he says private economic analysts say we are going to be in a “technical recession” as if his own government people didn’t know this, or he does not want to tell us he was advised of this reality by his administration. All of this is more Harper misleading machinations and mumblings and more of his patented politically misleading way of saying we are in recession. Who cares if it is technical or not?
He is reported to say he is “ready to open the government’s wallet t respond but not until February when the budget is due. He is now sending mixed messages concurrently in real time rather than saying one thing in an election and changing his tune later when the political gamesmanship is passed. This is because his ideological zeal can no longer manipulate the media by misleading advertising that diverts attention off the real issues and ignores the facts. That is because everyone knows he does that and we are all genuinely worried about what is happening. There is no map for this new economic territory that the Bush government has pushed on the world.
Harper is going to have to be more honest, forthright and frank with Canadians, even though it is so contrary to his political instincts. He is going to be politically hobbled and has to face the challenge of telling the truth this Thursday with his economic update. This is because Kevin Page, the Parliamentary Budget Officer saw to it last week with an announcement about the facts of the pending deficits to be sure they are known. Kevin Page, bless his heart, has pegged the good news next year at a $4B deficit; something Harper has said would not happen on his watch. The bad news, at least bad news for Harper’s ideological certitude, is that Page says the deficit could reach $14B. Ouch! Only question I have about the November 27th political melodrama is will Flaherty’s economic update be inconsequential or will it be nominated for a Pulitzer Prize for fiction?
Now we have our decisive and determined Prime Minister being vague about if there will be an economic stimulus and if it is to happen the timing gets dodgy too. Flaherty says last Friday that he will not deal with the economic issues of an economic stimulus until the February Budget. What gives? Obama is not even President yet and yet he is already announcing economic stimulus activities… already. Is this new dithering and indecisiveness of the Harper government the reason why we had an unnecessary inconclusive, expensive and rushed election? Say it ain’t so Mr. Harper.
Mr. Harper, we all know that you knew this economic crisis was coming, hence the early election notwithstanding your law to the contrary. The crisis started during the campaign but that was not why you lost a majority government. In fact the economic uncertainty was the reason why you did as well as you did. It was not anything you said or did during the campaign that is for sure. You and your party were perceived to be the better choice to manage during the coming uncertain times. You are not only letting us down and disappointing us again, you continue to mislead and play politics with our economic, social and environmental security as individuals and as a nation.
Don’t dither Mr. Prime Minister. It didn’t serve Paul Martin particularly well. We in Canada are in better shape than most but we can quickly decline into despair with your demonstrative indecisiveness. By th eway, our consumer and corporate confidence is at the lowest it has been since 1982. Enough said?
Sunday, November 23, 2008
Alberta's Royalty Breaks Should Be Conditional on Reclamation Clean Ups
Here is a link to my recent interview on CBC Radio 1 Wildrose Country on Premier Stelmach's royalty relief for conventional oil and gas drilling effective January 1, 2009
UPDATE: NOV 24/08 The Stelmach government announces TODAY that the royalty break announced Nov 19 for new drilling for wells after Jan 1, 2009 has been revised. It now applies to oil and gas wells that have started prep work as of Nov 19.
The delay in the program implementation in the original announcement would have done more short term harm than long term good because all current work on drilling plans would have stopped until January 1. Duh!
They say this royalty break "is not anticipated to affect the estimated royalty impact of the five-year program announced November 19, 2008." OK. I still want to ensure Albertans as owners get the straight goods on just how much it will exactly impact these non-renewable resource revenues going forward. Will our government tell us that exactly - along with all other production based royalty revenue calculations as well? They have indicated with pending legislation changes that we will not be able to FOIP that information. Not accountable. Not transparent and not good stewardship.
Now lets make it clear that only companies that are currently active in meeting their obligations to reclaim abandoned oil and gas plays are eligible for the royalty assistance. We need those oil and gas companies to clean up behind themselves just as much as we need to keep drilling folks.
UPDATE: NOV 24/08 The Stelmach government announces TODAY that the royalty break announced Nov 19 for new drilling for wells after Jan 1, 2009 has been revised. It now applies to oil and gas wells that have started prep work as of Nov 19.
The delay in the program implementation in the original announcement would have done more short term harm than long term good because all current work on drilling plans would have stopped until January 1. Duh!
They say this royalty break "is not anticipated to affect the estimated royalty impact of the five-year program announced November 19, 2008." OK. I still want to ensure Albertans as owners get the straight goods on just how much it will exactly impact these non-renewable resource revenues going forward. Will our government tell us that exactly - along with all other production based royalty revenue calculations as well? They have indicated with pending legislation changes that we will not be able to FOIP that information. Not accountable. Not transparent and not good stewardship.
Now lets make it clear that only companies that are currently active in meeting their obligations to reclaim abandoned oil and gas plays are eligible for the royalty assistance. We need those oil and gas companies to clean up behind themselves just as much as we need to keep drilling folks.
Harper is Sounding Progressive Again - But Can We Trust Him?
It is reassuring to hear Stephen Harper aligning and reaffirming the APEC leaders’ decision NOT to resort to raising protectionist barriers to world trade. He is quoted as saying “Now is the time for opening doors, not erecting walls.”
Reports from CanWest reporter David Akin noted that Harper commented that “…the Great Depression was caused by countries letting banks fail, allowing deflation to run rampant and trying to balance their books at all costs, even if it meant raising taxes and slashing public spending.” Harper is reported to all of a sudden favour “unprecedented fiscal actions…to stimulate economic growth and ease tightening credit conditions.” As if he wasn’t already spending taxpayers money at an alarming rate leading up to the election.
So the economist in Harper is stimulus Keynesian after all, notwithstanding his rhetoric about no deficits and smaller government in the election just a few weeks ago. Gotta love it when politics turns to pragmatism and order and good government becomes a goal of the Reform/Alliance leadership.
It is an open question as to what Harper is really doing and if we can ever believe him at face value. He often says one thing for political purposes, including pandering to his base or to Quebec for personal power plays. And then he does another, often the exact opposite when it suits him…and it happens all the time. Canadians need a truthful and transparent Prime Minister who says what he means – the first time – and for the purposes of sound public policy – not just personal power and message positioning.
He said that he would control Alberta’s bitumen exports to foreign countries based on a countries environmental standards and record. It was a clear shot at pandering to the Bush White House and an attempt to marginalize China in the process. It was all tied to the Bush excuses to delay or not institute climate change policies in North America because of attitudes towards China on environment. Not good public policy in the context of Harper’s resent statements of not being protectionist or raising trade barriers in the face of the growing economic crisis that is enveloping the entire planet.
It is important to note that APEC is a group of 21 Pacific Rim countries whose economic leaders have been meeting since its inception in 1989 in response to growing interdependence among Asia-Pacific economies; APEC has become the premier regional forum for promoting open trade and practical economic and technical cooperation among Asia-Pacific economies.
Over the years, it has grown to a membership spanning four continents, and represents the most economically dynamic region in the world, accounting for approximately 40 percent of the world's population, 56 percent of world GDP and nearly half of world trade.
It is a very vital forum for Canada and Alberta and B.C. in particular given our orientation to the Pacific Rim. We need the Pacific Rim countries to succeed for them to produce more trade and investments in our provinces, as well as providing continental energy supply and security.
I hope I can trust Harper at his word for a change, especially when he makes such practical and positive statements about governments taking initiatives to encourage trade. It is not his personal default position and it means he has to revise his attitude about the best government is no government and the marketplace should prevail to solve the problems of the world. That acceptance of an activist role and responsibility for government is a tectonic shift for Harper. I hope he means it and it is not just another piece of his continuing political positioning and posturing that he will once again either ignore or reverse on a whim.
Reports from CanWest reporter David Akin noted that Harper commented that “…the Great Depression was caused by countries letting banks fail, allowing deflation to run rampant and trying to balance their books at all costs, even if it meant raising taxes and slashing public spending.” Harper is reported to all of a sudden favour “unprecedented fiscal actions…to stimulate economic growth and ease tightening credit conditions.” As if he wasn’t already spending taxpayers money at an alarming rate leading up to the election.
So the economist in Harper is stimulus Keynesian after all, notwithstanding his rhetoric about no deficits and smaller government in the election just a few weeks ago. Gotta love it when politics turns to pragmatism and order and good government becomes a goal of the Reform/Alliance leadership.
It is an open question as to what Harper is really doing and if we can ever believe him at face value. He often says one thing for political purposes, including pandering to his base or to Quebec for personal power plays. And then he does another, often the exact opposite when it suits him…and it happens all the time. Canadians need a truthful and transparent Prime Minister who says what he means – the first time – and for the purposes of sound public policy – not just personal power and message positioning.
He said that he would control Alberta’s bitumen exports to foreign countries based on a countries environmental standards and record. It was a clear shot at pandering to the Bush White House and an attempt to marginalize China in the process. It was all tied to the Bush excuses to delay or not institute climate change policies in North America because of attitudes towards China on environment. Not good public policy in the context of Harper’s resent statements of not being protectionist or raising trade barriers in the face of the growing economic crisis that is enveloping the entire planet.
It is important to note that APEC is a group of 21 Pacific Rim countries whose economic leaders have been meeting since its inception in 1989 in response to growing interdependence among Asia-Pacific economies; APEC has become the premier regional forum for promoting open trade and practical economic and technical cooperation among Asia-Pacific economies.
Over the years, it has grown to a membership spanning four continents, and represents the most economically dynamic region in the world, accounting for approximately 40 percent of the world's population, 56 percent of world GDP and nearly half of world trade.
It is a very vital forum for Canada and Alberta and B.C. in particular given our orientation to the Pacific Rim. We need the Pacific Rim countries to succeed for them to produce more trade and investments in our provinces, as well as providing continental energy supply and security.
I hope I can trust Harper at his word for a change, especially when he makes such practical and positive statements about governments taking initiatives to encourage trade. It is not his personal default position and it means he has to revise his attitude about the best government is no government and the marketplace should prevail to solve the problems of the world. That acceptance of an activist role and responsibility for government is a tectonic shift for Harper. I hope he means it and it is not just another piece of his continuing political positioning and posturing that he will once again either ignore or reverse on a whim.
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