Business, Labour and Health Professionals all Support Hancock's Smoking Ban

The world of public policy can create some strange bedfellows. The support for Alberta Minister of Health and Wellness, Dave Hancock’s initiative to ban smoking in public and work places is a prefect example of this strange world. It is a perfect example of how people with significant differences can get together on issues and work them out.

Gil McGowan, the President of the Alberta Federation of Labour and Ken Kobly, the CEO of the Alberta Chambers of Commerce are both on side with the smoking ban. Their organizations are on record in support as well. The health and safety issues and even productivity issues are in the front of minds and are what drives such groups and individuals to get involved.

Go to Policy Channel (http://www.policychannel.com/) and watch the various video conversations with each of them and see how they articulate the importance of this public health

The coalition of some 15 different professional, health and advocacy groups are getting going on letting their spheres of influence know this new Minister is pursuing the smoking ban. The Pharmacists and the Doctors are actively reaching out and engaging their members and encouraging them to contact local MLAs to get more political support for the smoking ban. The Dental Hygienists and the Nurses are also significantly into the public policy and lobbying effort. Then we have the heath promotion groups like Cancer, Lung, Heart and Stroke all want to do their part to make this smoking ban a reality in Alberta.

Bottom line is also the bottom line. The health budget in Alberta is up over 10% this year again and now some 40% of the Alberta government’s total annual expenditure. That can’t continue and the politicians know it. The other big selling feature for them then is the smoking ban will result in few cases of smoking related disease. That will help reduce that portion of the tobacco related demands on the health care system…saving money too.

It is a win-win-win and an issue that brings so many different kinds of people together to help. They all want to ensure that Alberta gets into the health prevention and wellness agenda as well as the best acute care and other health services. It is an idea whose time has come.

RCMP Decide Stockwell Day's Nomination Payoff is Still OK

The RCMP have decided not to investigate further into criminal wrong doing around the $50,000.00 payment made to a former candidate so their boss, the HONOURABLE Stockwell Day, could run in a by-election in 2000 as the new Reform Party Leader.

This may be the right thing to do but will Canadians trust the process, the people involved and the decision not to proceed? The official reason seems to be there is no new evidence. Let’s face it this is their boss they have been investigating. It is not a position the RCMP can look good in, regardless of their decision. They should have had another law enforcement group do this revisit of the investigation, for the sake of Day, their own credibility and integrity and for the sake public’s trust and confidence in the RCMP… which is the real test in such matters.

One has to wonder why that never happened because the RCMP brass may have just squandering the last remaining bits of its credibility. The RCMP have not been the most credible of organizations as of last with the resignation of the former Commissioner over the Arar dealings, the allegations and conflicting testimony on allegation of pension funds misuse and nepotism by senior officials. And then we have their celebrated political interference in the last election when the made a public announcement about the Income Trust investigation. That was arguably the ultimate non-issue that showed no political wrongdoing months later but the damage was done and it helped tip the scales that finally put Harper in office.

We have this all in the context of the recent court orders for a new nomination process in Calgary West over the “Affair Anders.” – who is running for the nomination again . The first instance and appeal decision both concluded finding wrongdoing by the Keystone Kons in how they manipulated the Anders nomination process. The news reports are that the Kons are is still thinking of appealing their Alberta Court of Appeal loss. Does that mean Harpers Kons are seriously thinking of applying for eave to appeal to the Supreme Court on this?

Give it up already. The Supreme Court has serious business to attend to. That should not include nurturing the hubris of the Kons of Calgary West.

I bet the discussions over late night beers in the PMO are putting this all together. they must be concluding that as soon as they get their police representatives appointed along with “their guys” to the Judicial Review Committees, then the "appropriate" recommendations for judicial appointment will be forthcoming. They will then be able to ensure that they will have a free hand on these matters. Never again will they be embarrassed or bound by the rule of law or have to suffer or even tolerate an independent judiciary. Then they can stop the “meddling” around issues of fairness and transparency in their party nomination processes.

Democracy? We don't need no stinkin' democracy!

These are scary people.

Who Can We Trust on Climate Change

UPDATE APRIL 30 - LINK BYFIELD of the Citizens Centre for Freedom and Democracy says "Between Harper and Stelmach, We have been Sold Out on Climate Change.

UPDATE APRIL 28 - AL GORE SAYS HARPER GREEN PLAN IS A FRAUD INTENDED TO MISLEAD CANADIANS!

I was going to do a post today on who are we to believe on the environment. The mainline federal political parties all have some serious baggage but we need to think about the current changes we need to make to ensure our future as one of the survive species on this planet. Who in the current political culture is into that frame of mind? The Greens and Elizabeth May are for sure and Dion as a person is into this too obviously. I am not sure about Dion's party position though. Harper is not credible and Layton seems to be into the environment as a lever for policy influence more than an genuine engagement.

Instead of doing a post myself I ran across a really insightful and informative post on this topic. It comes from the blog Democratic Space. It is a worth a read.

The polls are showing we are so volatile as a public that they are useless in accurately predicting anything about our collective political future. In the meantime, without the silly seasons elections create, the conversations on climate change still have to happen. They have to happen in different context and the content has to change too. We have to engage more citizens and become broader and more inclusive and more informed on these issues.

Politics does not seem to be capable of ding this for us at this time. Too bad because all the decisions on these issues are going to be political at the end of the day.

Al Gore Sells Out in Calgary

UPDATE APRIL 28 - AL GORE SAYS HARPER'S NEW ENVIRONMENT POLICY IS A FRAUD! OUCH!!!!

Al Gore’s has just Blogged about his Oscar winning “slide show” presentation in Calgary this past week. Yes that is right Al Gore's "Inconvenient Truth" was welcomed in Calgary, right in the darkest heart of “the most carbon intensive sources of energy yet produced.” His presentation sold out in 3 days…hardly a cold shoulder to his core message I would say.

Gore is an admitted sceptic about Alberta and our commitment to CO2 emission issues but he admits “In Alberta they have devoted a lot more attention and resource to developing technologies to capture and sequester carbon….” That observation is true and more good news on CO2 efforts in Alberta is coming.

I agree with Al Gore that the issues are serious and solutions have to be found immediately. I saw him present his "slide show" about a year ago in Quebec. He had a few facts wrong about the oil sands and we had a chance to correct his presentation. I was sceptical about him too at first but for the full 90 minutes he spoke he had me on the edge of my seat.

One thing for sure that comes through loud and clear from Gore's "Inconvenient Truth" is that our values and behaviours have to be revisited and revised but as he says, “…the conversation has been taken to a higher, more productive level.” Nowhere is that more true that amongst thoughtful Albertans. Nowhere else can this oil sands emission challenges and the energy and water use problems and reclamation responsibilities associated with oil sands extraction be solved than right here in Alberta.

Albertan know and accept this. Now we have to get government and politicians in particular, to get it. They have to actually start seeing the parade Albertan and other Canadians citizens have formed around ecological issues so they can start leading from the front and not just be watching from the sidewalk.

McGovern Eviscerates Cheney

Tip of the hat of Ottawa Watch for the link to George McGovern and his great evisceration of Dick Cheney in the LA Times. A must read for any progressive thinker.

Speaking of progressives - I recommend you go to the link Canada 2020 on this Blog for some examples of quality insights and positive political thought that progressives are invovled in these days.