Political Ramblings

Allowing All Albertans to Vote

2011-10-01T15:13:00.000-07:00

For the past week the radio station I listen to has PC Leadership Candidate Alison Redford campaign message that she would be bringing change if she becomes the next Premier of Alberta. In fact all three remaining candidates are claiming that which lead me to tweet the following yesterday:

"If the #pcldr really wanted to show they were interested in changing AB Pol they would let all Albertans vote & not just members. #abparty"

The Alberta Party was the first party in Alberta to suspend their policy book and start fresh by going to all Albertans for policy development. This was done through the Big Listen and allowed everyone to have a say and be heard without buying a membership. The first policy convention in November 2010 was open for all to watch and non-members were allowed to debate the policy ideas before the members voted on them.

Just recently the Alberta Liberal Party drop the requirement of being a member of the party to vote at their leadership race. This showed to be a success in engaging more people to voice their opinion and increased the voter turn out.

The Alberta PC Party is promoting to Albertans to vote for the next premier of Alberta and that all three leaders a promising change but have no accountability for it. I have been debating with others on twitter about why does the PC Party not do what the Liberals did and drop the membership requirement to vote for their next leader and therefore next premier.

Arguments have been that $5 membership is to cover the cost of the leadership race, membership has its privileges, people do not have the right to vote for other political parties leader. I was offered a Tim Horton's coffee and a free PC membership from debater, which I politely turned down as I am not much of a coffee drinker and I do not want to be a PC member.

My counter argument was the PC Party has lots of money compared to the Alberta Liberal Party but the Liberals were able to not charge people to vote so therefore cost was not a factor. Membership does have its privileges to put your name on a ballot but when voting for the next premier you would want to have a mandate from the people on who they would like to see as their leader. If you bill your party as the Big Tent for all Albertans to gather under who cares about the political allegiance a person may have. If you have strict rules like the Alberta NDP Party that does not allow their members to be part of another political party then you can say members only.

In my own opinion, the PC leadership Race is just a membership drive. Political Party Leadership Races have no rules then what a party sets for themselves. If the PC Party was interested in changing they could have dropped their membership requirements and allowed all Albertans to participate to show they are serious and that this is not just another empty campaign promise.

I would like to say thank you to all who debated with me on twitter. I may not have agreed with your point of view but I do respect your point of view.

Alberta Party at the Mill Woods Farmers Market

2011-09-16T11:52:00.000-07:00

For the month of September, the Alberta Party Edmonton Mill Woods Constituency Association has a table at the Mill Woods Farmers Market that takes place every Thursday in the parking lot at the Mill Woods Recreation Centre. Last night, I was a volunteer helping out and had a chance to talk to many Albertans about our Party and listening to their views on politics.

Lots of people I spoke with have heard of our Party but did not know much about us. Many were surprised to find out we were a centrist party built by people from all walks of life and from different political backgrounds. They were even impressed on how we were developing our policies by going to all Albertans via the Big Listen and not the traditional party political way.

We did not spend much time pushing our Party message but took the time to listen to everyone and what they had to say. People were asking good hard questions about our Party policies in regards to small business development in the oil industry, where our party stands on education (especially for those who have children with special needs) and views on people having large families.

During our discussions we advised everyone to see our website and polices. I advised that if there are any polices you do not agree with or where you feel we may have missed the mark then let us know. I used the example of our democratic renewal policy and how after we released the policy Albertans told us they would like to see Proportional Representation to be added to this policy. As a Party, we listened to the feedback and added Proportional Representation to democratic renewal policy development discussions.

Overall, I had a great time and I have to thank all our volunteers for taking the time to come out and help and everyone who stopped by our table. I really would like to thank the other merchants at the Mill Woods Farmers Market for all the fun and teaching us how to get peoples attention.

Alberta Party Leadership Convention

2011-05-29T20:20:00.000-07:00

Watching a dream become reality was the answer I gave when members of the Alberta Party asked me what I thought of the Leadership Race.

I was amazed how far this Party has come in such a short time. The number of people proud to be members of the Alberta Party, sharing political views and ideas on how to make Alberta a better place. The new logo looked great and the Big Ideas event was inspiring.

The funniest part of the night was how I was introduced to people as the old original member of the Party. Funny thing was I join the Provincial Board of Directors only one month prior to the new blood of the Party came on board.

In 2008, I met with the president, leader and two other board members of the Alberta Party and that meeting was informative as this was a party that was not sure what it wanted to do. In 2009, I was asked to join the Board of Directors and help build a political party from the ground up. We hoped we could start something in Alberta to engage Albertans and form government.

Now I stand here at the Shaw Conference Centre where we have four talented people fighting to become leader of this Party, selling shirts & buttons and sharing ideas. The Party membership is over 2,000 members and constituency associations are forming fast.

I am proud of what the Alberta Party has become, glad I did not have to sing a song when I stepped down as interim leader when Edwin won the leadership race in 2010 and I want to say thank you to everyone who worked so hard to make this Party what it is.

The only sad news I heard at this event was the passing of Howard Thompson who founded the Alberta Party. He was an extraordinary man and he will be missed.

My Reasons for Leaving the Wildrose Alliance for the Alberta Party

2011-01-16T09:16:00.000-08:00

I have been asked a few times as to why I left the Wildrose Alliance Party. The reasons I give here are my reasons alone and not an attack on the WAP or those who support it. The major reasons for my leaving the WAP was Paul Hinman's Leadership, the party's failure to keep the momentum of party building after the 2008 election and finally the party's shift from grassroots to conservative astroturf.

Paul Hinman became leader of the Alberta Alliance Party in 2005 and eventually the leader of the WAP when the two parties merged in 2008. The AAP failed to grow and was on the verge of falling apart in 2008 under his leadership. In my opinion, I lost faith in the leadership of the party when he won his leadership review in 2008 at the first WAP Annual General Meeting and decided to stay on as leader of the party.

Another factor for my leaving was just after the WAP AGM the momentum of building a party had suddenly ended in Edmonton. Meetings were no longer being called and no one was willing to work on creating a strong party. My phone calls to the Northern Zone Director in Edmonton were not returned or when he did answer I was given a promise that something was going to happen soon but after two months of nothing happening I gave up on anything being done.

During 2008 and 2009, I felt the WAP was moving away from a grassroots progressive party to a home for upset PC supporters who were not impressed with Premier Stelmach and his PC Government. I was told from party brass that the party line must be kept over the wishes of the constituents, secret meetings with other political parties during a leadership campaign, or general disregard to grassroots. I am not a supporter of astroturf politics and I had my fill of it on the Federal level.

All in all, I did not abandon the WAP for the Alberta Party but left another party that wants to do politics the old way but make it look like it is new and inventive. What I have seen what the WAP has become since I left was not the party I joined in 2008. The AP impressed me back in 2009 as a party that can make a difference now and not on an empty promise of when they become government.

As I stated before, this post is my opinion on why I left the WAP for the AP.

Laying the Foundations - Alberta Party Policy Conference

2010-11-14T21:33:00.000-08:00

In order to change politics in Alberta we need to change the way politics are done. This is not not done by doing politics the same as we had during the last 30 years. This is not done by electing a new leader of an established party that has been supported by big business while neglecting the people.

In order to change politics in Alberta we need to redesign from the beginning of how political parties are formed and elected. The Alberta Party in 2009 decided to exist in name only and rebuild itself from the ground up (which was not hard since there was no real structure to the party). This was by suspending the existing policies (to be voted on again at the first policy convention) and reforming the constitution of the party. Getting involved with great minds from the Reboot conferences has lead to a party that is charting a new course that main stream parties have failed to go.

Working with the Alberta Party as the Policy Chair our party Michael Walters suggested that policy discernment should be done at the policy conference. At first I was skeptical as I have participated in policy conferences before and that has never been done. I quickly changed my mind and supported this idea as if we are going to do this right we need to think outside the box.

Unfortunately I was not able to attend the Policy Conference in person this past weekend but I was able to participate via online as this conference was being streamed live. Here people can just click and watch this party discuss and debate policy in public and not behind closed doors. There were even non-party members at the conference offering their thoughts to the debate and discernment of our policies.

This is a first step in a new direction in building a strong foundation that will change politics in Alberta. We have a ways to go but the Alberta Party is growing and growing fast. I encourage those people who have not attended a Big Listen to do so.

Chatting Politics with a Friend

2010-11-09T20:56:00.000-08:00

I spent some time with some good friends these past few days. Had some good conversations and talked some politics.

I met with my closest friend this past weekend and spent many hours chewing the fat and drinking many cherry cokes. Now my friend is not a political junkie like I am but he is your average Albertan. He works, pays his taxes, votes and takes care of his family but when asked to buy a membership to a party he will just say "not interested".

I asked my friend what he thought of politics today. He felt politics today is an institution that caters to the businesses/lobbyists that have money and tell our government what they want. Our MLA's are more interested in keeping their jobs and towing the party line than listen to us, the voter. Our system is flawed and our government does not want to fix it as it is not in their best interests.

I agreed with him. I have been in the political game for years and it is the same thing after another. I seen people who are only interested in becoming an elected official for their own ego than to represent those that elected them. I seen party climbers step on anyone they can and jump from one band wagon to the next in hopes of getting a plum position within the party or government. I have heard from so many people in government that the system works and that you cannot reform the government.

I told him we can make a difference. We can change the way politics is done in Alberta. It starts with an idea. No matter how strong our government is or questionable it is the true power lies with the electorate. No matter how much money a party has it is the people who decide. An idea can make a small party a threat to the larger parties and for those larger parties to keep their power base will change their structure to mimic the idea of the smaller party.

When I look at the work the Alberta Party has done in the last year alone I see that people want change. It took a simple idea which was to listen to the people and give them what they want. Now the average Albertan is too busy, does not want to spend money on politics or even join a political party. To change politics in Alberta you have to go that extra step to meet with the people. The Big Listen allows people to join in a political discussion, be heard and at no cost to the individual. Other parties have tried to do this but they limit the talks to their party membership only. One party only wants to hear horror stories in regards to healthcare. I for one would like to hear some great stories of our healthcare, police and emergency workers. The stories of where someone went out of their way to help someone else. I am tired of opposition parties fear mongering to win votes.

My friend, like most Albertans, is the type that is cautious and is waiting to see what happens. The Alberta Party still has a long ways to go to convince people that we are listening and developing policies that they want. It is not going to happen overnight but it will happen.

It was a good discussion.

Growth of the Alberta Party

2010-11-07T20:51:00.001-08:00

We live in exciting times here in Alberta. For once politics does not seem one sided any more and people are getting involved. The Alberta Party (AP) just released their draft policy document earlier this week and I impressed by the hard work of all the people who contributed to building this. For me, it is amazing to see a party that only a year and half ago was nothing more than a debate society with a cool name to become a contender for the Alberta Government.

I remember when I had first gotten involved with the Alberta Party in 2008. Charles Relland hosted a coffee meeting where I met the Party Leader Bruce Stubbs and Party President Richard Kayner along with a few colleagues from my days in the Wildrose Alliance (WAP). All I can say about that meeting was that I was not impressed. Here was a party that could not even answer the question of what were they doing to build their party? This was a party that was only interested in merging with like-minded small “c” conservatives and really had no plans to build. Overall, I still bought a membership as I say potential but unless there was any real change in the party direction I would only be out $10.

Charles convinced me to join the Alberta Party Board of Directors and to help build a party that, he could see, will one day be government of Alberta. I attended my first board meeting in June 2009, became a member and shook things up. It was that meeting that the AP decided to move from a debate society to build a real political party. It took courage of the board to refuse a temping offer from the WAP to engage in merger talks as they were growing fast in numbers and popularity.

The months that followed a new interim leader was elected, plans for a leadership race announced, our membership doubled and we gain the talent of new progressive members on our board that always kept the party moving forward until we stalled in November 2009. The WAP momentum looked like they were going to take Alberta by storm come the next election and a few of our members were considering running for them. We even lost our frontrunner for leader of our party because of this. He felt that we as a party took to long to get out of the gate, we do not have the membership to build real policy and that the WAP lead was too great.

We gained new energy and momentum when members of our party attended the Reboot Alberta 1.0 in November 2009. It was there we met with a new progressive organization known as Renew Alberta who had the same goals as us. In December 2009 talks began and in January 2010 the AP board met with the representatives from this new progressive movement. In February 2010 the Renew Alberta group joined up with us and got us moving forward at a strong pace.

Over the 2010 year, the AP have grown in members and support, hired a party organizer, elected a strong board of directors and brought us the “Big Listen” which is the foundation of building a party that listens to the people.

I once stated to my friend Charles after the November 2009 meeting that it was not the party that got out of the gate first but the party the passes the finish line first that wins. I had the privilege to be there when it all started and that year and a half was tough work. The AP continues to pick up momentum, other political parties are copying our “Big Listen” and we are about to hold our first policy convention as a new party. As Party president Chris LaBossiere has stated “Never, & I mean NEVER have I been more optimistic about the future of Alberta.”

The Power of One

2010-10-29T15:04:00.000-07:00

Many times a person during an election would say "why should I vote as the candidate I want will not win", "does my vote really matter?" or "why bother as my vote will not make a difference". People are often left with a an empty feeling in politics that their voice, ideas and vote does not amount to much and thus cannot effect change. Established political parties like the Alberta Progressive Conservatives (PC), Alberta Liberals (LIB), Alberta New Democratic Party (NDP), and the Wildrose Alliance Party (WAP) have made it almost impossible to effect change for those who felt that they are not being listened to as those parties only listen to their party members.

I have been part of Federal and Provincial Parties and can say with experience that one person would find it very hard to make a difference but I never let that stop me. I got involved in politics to help create a better world for the next generation. I even ran for MLA on the platform of change in the 2008 Alberta Provincial Election.

When I joined the Alberta Party (AP) board of directors in June 2009, the board was divided on which direction it should go after the 2008 election. At that meeting the party as a whole wanted to build itself as a full functioning political party and no longer pursue mergers with other political parties. This was in response to the ex-Green Party members and Progressive Party members who wanted to merge with our party. In that same meeting we learned that some WAP brass were holding secret meetings with our party brass on talks of merging our two parties. This divided the board down the middle which ended with me casting the tie breaking vote of not merging with the WAP. The AP now was on it own and moving forward.

In November 2009, the AP was very small and our membership was not enough to develop a comprehensive policy base that would resonate with Albertans. I was interim-leader of the party and we now needed to think outside the box if this party was to survive or get swallowed up by one of the other parties. There are 3 million people living in Alberta and political parties may have just around 10,000 members on average to develop policy on. I realized that to make realistic policy development that would resonate with Albertans is to get your average Albertan an opportunity to submit policy to the AP without having to be a member. Of course this did not a favorable idea at the time within my party but that did not stop me from getting it passed in January 2010 when we were meeting potential progressive members from Reboot Alberta group and Renew Alberta Party for the first time. I still remember the progressive members telling us that this was a great idea and wondered why is it not on our party website.

I cannot take any credit for the development of the "Big Listen" as that was a creation by our new progressive members who join our board of directors and worked very hard each day to make it a success. I like that they took a simple concept of going to the people and listen to what their pressures they are facing, hopes for the future and what they are happy for now can lead to the foundation policy making we are seeing today that has the public working with our party.

The Big Listen has been very effective that the AP has moved from a debate society with party status to a creative, innovative and very progressive political party. We now see the other parties like the PC, LIB, NDP and WAP all copying the Big Listen in some way to duplicate the success the AP has achieved. This is the first time I can remember so many political parties in Alberta who want to listen to the public rather than dictate to them. This is similar to the Green Party movement that had both Federal and Provincial parties develop a comprehensive environmental policy platform to gain the green vote.

One person can make difference. One person can make a change. This is the power of one. I encourage all people to get involved and make a difference. If you think that politics and our system of government is not working than step up, speak out and work to fix the problem. We owe it to the next generation.

Stepping Down

2010-09-17T19:15:00.001-07:00

I have decided to step down from the Alberta Party Board of Directors effective immediately. My decision is based on personal reasons.

It has been great to watch a party that was more of a debate society to emerge as a major political party over this past year. Our membership has double twice over past year and a half. A party that has set the standard to listening to Albertans in a positive constructive way that other parties have tried to duplicate.

This was not done by one person but by a group of many people from different political backgrounds who want a better government. The next year will be very exciting for all as the Alberta Party holds its first policy convention this November and prepare for the next provincial election.

I will miss working with my fellow board members while I take this time off. It has been fun and exciting and I will look forward to watching the Alberta Party grow.

Policy from the People

2010-08-15T21:48:00.000-07:00

This weekend I spent many hours going through the policy suggestions and ideas that Albertans have submitted to the Alberta Party. I am amazed at how many people want to be heard and the increased attendance to the Big Listen Meetings to help guide this party on the path that Albertans want.

I have been part of the Canadian Alliance Party, the Conservative Party of Canada, Alberta Alliance Party and the Wildrose Alliance Party but all these parties had one huge problem when it came to policy development. Each of these parties wanted to represent all Canadians or Albertans but limited themselves to only developing policy from a small group of members that believed in their side of the political spectrum.

Talking with Albertans these past few months I hear the same story about the growing interest of the Alberta Party as being a progressive party. People like the idea that a political party is willing to sit down and discuss the issues with them and ask them to help create a policy base that truly represents them. People do not want a small group of party policy makers behind closed doors, writing what they believe is what Albertan's want and pass it at their next policy convention or Annual General Meeting and call it a "grassroots movement".

The Alberta Party is not a left, right or central party. The Alberta Party is a progressive party that is moving forward to create a better style of governance for the people. The Alberta party has changed from its original roots as right wing party but it has not forgotten their four main principles:

True equality for every citizen, with equal rights and responsibilities for all and  special privileges for none.
Liberty of conscience and religion and the right of every citizen to advocate, without fear of repression, public policies that reflect his or her fundamental beliefs.
A citizen’s inalienable right, individually and collectively, to own and dispose of property which cannot be confiscated for any purpose whatsoever without due process of law and fair compensation.
Elected representatives are accountable to the citizens with no individual, group or government above or beyond the law.

Our grassroots movement is simple, let everyone be part of the policy development process, give them their voice and listen to what they are saying. In these past few weeks when the Alberta Party asked for all Albertans to submit policy suggestions or ideas, the response has been overwhelming. Albertans want change and they are not afraid to tell us what they want.

If you want to be part if this progressive process please go to the Alberta Party Website at www.albertaparty.ca. There is an online Big Listen form you can submit or just send your policy ideas directly to the party at info@albertaparty.ca

New Alberta Party Website

2010-05-19T21:55:00.000-07:00

The Alberta Party has just launched their new website and it has been well worth the wait. First, I would like to thank all the volunteers that worked hard these last few weeks on creating a first rate website. Second, I encourage everyone to go see the new website an see what the Alberta Party is all about.

Misconceptions about the Alberta Party

2010-05-16T05:50:00.000-07:00

Read an article in the National Post regarding the Alberta Party and the Big Listen and not surprisingly I read how the Alberta Party was taken over. This just adds to the other rumors that out there that the Alberta Party was a hard core conservative party, left of center party or that we had forced a merger onto our membership. Of course these stories are generated by rival political parties and the media.

I met with the Alberta Party president Richard and the interim leader Bruce with other members of the AP Board in 2008 after the election. I, like a lot of Wildrose Alliance members, was discouraged with the results of the election and the WAP AGM that same summer. Many of us did not want Paul Hinman as our leader as we felt that the WAP movement was just going to end like the Alberta Alliance did the four years after the 2004 election. The AP at that time was looking at developing and building the Party to replace the PC Party.

In June 2009, I officially joined the AP Board of Directors where we turned down the proposal of merger from the WAP and established a policy where AP would no longer look at merging with other political parties. If another party wanted to join us they would have to buy a membership like everyone else.

Within a few months, we attracted like minded people who did not want to join the Liberals, NDP or the WAP. The leader of the Progressive group and former Alberta Green Party members became interested in our Party based on our principles and party structure. They purchased memberships and a few asked to join our board of directors. I became the new interim leader of the AP and as leader I worked on establishing a foundation to build a political party.

During the Reboot Alberta conference in November 2009, members of our Party met with like minded people who wanted a better Alberta and a better system of government. Fortunately for us we met with members of the Renew Alberta group (who like the Progressive Group was trying to start a new political party) and found out we have a lot in common with our principles and views. In January 2010, we elected a new leader, Edwin Erickson who invited the Renew Alberta group to our board meeting so they can see who we are. The members of the Renew Group decided to join our Party as members. Some of those members asked to join our board of directors, like any member of our Party, which we were happy to accept.

During this time our Party decided that you cannot create policy from a few thousand members or a handful of experts. Our Party has always been open and in keeping that in mind we decided to go to all Albertans to get their ideas for policy. Since the AP has been around for over 25 years and had been a small "c" conservative party in origin, the Party's board of directors decided to suspend our policies and officially sit in the center of the political spectrum which would help with the "Big Listen" campaign. Those suspended policies we be reintroduced and voted on along with all the new policy suggestions from Albertans at our next policy convention later this year. The AP will shift from political center when the membership establishes a new policy platform.

All in all, the AP never merged with any political party as the Progressive group and Renew Alberta group were never registered political parties. The individuals from these groups decided on their own to join the AP and bought their own memberships. Is the AP a right wing or a left wing party? We are neither since the AP has no policy platform, so for the time being we are officially in the center of the the political spectrum. All I can say is that the AP is a progressive party that wants to create a better Alberta and a better way of governing.

Alberta Senate Election Farce

2010-05-09T22:31:00.001-07:00

A few days ago, I received a notice from the Wildrose Alliance Party, even though I am not a member of their Party but somehow I still get this stuff, advising that our Premier has cancelled the expected fall Senate Race and extended the current terms of our current elected senators by another three years. WAP wants Albertans to take a stand to force our provincial government to hold these elections in the name of democracy if you choose to believe that tripe they are serving.

Personally, I am glad we are not having another senator election here in Alberta as I find this a waste of public funds when times are tough enough as it is for many Albertans. In my opinion, the Senate Elections here in Alberta have been a failure, as our current system does not recognize elected senators or the Prime Minster does not have to appoint them to the upper chamber. In fact, I gave up hope of our Prime Minister Stephen Harper ever changing the Senate, as it has been all talk and no action. I rather see the funds to run a Senate Election put to good use in the form of supporting our education system, which needs the funds.

Our Senate does need reform but I cannot see how an elected senate that does not have equal representation be more effective than the appointed one we have now. We need to establish a triple E senate (Equal, Elected and Effective) or just get rid of it. Talking to Albertans, because those of us in the Alberta Party actually do this, feel that the Senate needs a complete overhaul, which means changing our constitution in order to do it.

I would like to see a Senate that has equal number of elected seats for all provinces and territories. This would allow smaller provinces, the western provinces and Territories to have a stronger voice in the Federal Government as they have little representation in the House of Commons as it is based on representation by population, in other words Ontario and Quebec have the most representation.

In the past the Senate elections have not brought out large number of voters as most feel this is just a political stunt than real change. This brings us back to the party politics of the WAP and the PC’s who are the only political parties who would be affected by this Senate election. PC’s are worried they will not be able to elect a senator in waiting and the WAP want to prove that they could beat the PC’s and show Albertans they are a government in waiting. In the past, other parties such as the Liberals and NDP see this as waste of time and chose not run candidates.

These elections are one sided, pointless and no real change has come from it. We are not losing our democracy if there are no senate elections in Alberta as the Senate has been the same as it always has been since confederation. Senate reform will not come from Alberta but from Canadians telling their MP’s that we want change and if Mr. Harper cannot get the job done then we the people will vote in MP’s who do listen to their constituents and they will get the job done.

Wildrose MLA Offers to Resign

2010-03-18T21:32:00.000-07:00

I have heard some good jokes in my time but this was one of the best. MLA Rob Anderson offered to resign and run in a by-election. First the WAP want to tell everyone how the government was lying to you about the size of the Alberta deficit and now they want to waste taxpayers money on a media stunt.

Let's face the facts, we all had a chance to vote in the 2008 election and ended up with a government that we have today. Our economy collapsed, health care and education still in ruins and we are told we have to do with less everyday as our deficit grows.

Albertans had a chance to choose their next premier by buying a PC membership and ended up with Ed Stelmach. An election came and Albertans gave Ed Stelmach and the PC Party a mandate and a record majority government. You cannot blame the premier for what we did. We made this bed and we have to sleep in it.

When the two MLA's crossed the floor it showed two things in my opinion. One, those MLA's have no integrity, they will go where it will benefit them the most than they people who voted for them. Two, the party that took them has no more integrity than the MLA's that crossed the floor.

I feel that if an MLA does not want to follow the party they were elected to then they should sit as an independent and serve their constituents until the next election. We need to get our government back on track to get this province back on track. What Albertans need right now is a stop to all this nonsense of party politics and to get our government focused dealing with the issues plaguing Alberta.

As I said, MLA Rob Anderson offering to resign and run in a by-election is good joke and nothing more.

Big Listen - Be Heard

2010-03-15T20:52:00.001-07:00

As the Alberta Party Big Listen continues over the next few months not all Albertans will be able to attend the small kitchen/coffee meetings due to their busy schedule. I know from experience that volunteering in one or more groups, raising a family and work is tough to set aside time for yet another meeting. There are days like today that I was glad to come home, make supper, watch TV and spend time with my family and not have to worry about what happened outside my house.

If you do not have time or get the chance to attend a Big Listen meeting you can always do the next best thing which is contact the Alberta Party directly via email or by mail. After I posted my experience at the Big Listen meeting I received emails from concerned Albertans who wanted to be heard.

As I stated before, you have nothing to lose by sharing your opinion and you have the most to gain by doing so. The Alberta Party is an open party that wants to hear from everyone including those who belong to different political parties. We all want something better than what we have right now. If you do not stand up for anything than you will for fall for anything. The choice is yours.

Big Listen

2010-03-05T21:25:00.001-08:00

I attended the first Alberta Party "Big Listen" event here in Edmonton yesterday and I was impressed with the process. When the Alberta Party decided to go to Albertans for policy suggestions, to build a policy platform that reflects what Albertans want, it came apparent that you could not just announce that you want the people's input and wait for it to come in. You have to go out an engage with the people and listen to what they have to say.

The "Big Listen" focuses on holding small gatherings of no more than 10 people at a time. This makes it a personal experience that allows everyone to share and learn what others are thinking. I met people who are young and starting a family to those who are retired and those who are active in politics to those who do not wish to be a member of any political party.

I found it difficult to open up and share my ideas at first. I really did not know any of these people but as we started talking and sharing ideas it became easier and a lot of fun. Everyone had a chance to speak and was heard. This meeting did not focus on what the Albert Party wanted but instead focused on what the people wanted to talk about. There was no membership sales or push for people to be involved in the Alberta Party. All that was asked at the end of the meeting was if anyone wanted to host a "Big Listen" meeting to come see the host after the meeting.

To show that the Alberta Party was listening they asked everyone to who wanted a copy of what was discussed to provide their contact information. This process provides proof that the Alberta Party did record every ones views as they were presented and that they did not drop in any ideas that were not discussed.

If you have a chance to attend a "Big Listen" meeting I encourage you to attend. All it takes is 90 minutes of your time to share your ideas with other people like you who want to be heard. You do not have to be a member of the Alberta Party and you will not be asked to join or make a donation and the coffee is free.

Change, it's your Choice

2010-02-24T20:46:00.000-08:00

Met with a friend today who belongs to another political party who asked me how my Party, the Alberta Party, was doing. Of course we both laughed at the Jane Morgan's Blog about the Alberta Party and talked a bit about the "Big Listen" that we launched last week.

During our discussion I heard what a lot of people are saying about politics today. You cannot change it and when you give into it you will realize that it is the only way to get things done. Years ago the reform movement swept across the prairies that would change Ottawa for the better and it never happened. I was there when Stephen Harper said a promise made by the Conservative Party of Canada was a promise made and kept but how many of those promises did he break and where is the reformed government that was promised. In my opinion the federal reform movement failed.

My friend sat in the legislature as an MLA and currently works for his party and I value his opinion as he has seen our government process first hand and knows how the system works. I disagree with my friend base on that our provincial government system is outdated and is falling apart. The people feel they are not listened to by our government or major political parties and therefore quit.

When I ran for office during the 2008 Provincial Election I did a rant on Breakfast Television. All the candidates before me were going on how great their party was and what they could do should you elect them. I realized that I had one free minute to say what I really wanted and I may never get a chance to do it again. I went up and said that our government failed us and that the opposition parties were all too busy trying to get their next photo opportunity to care what you, the voter, wanted. I said I did not care if they voted for me but to stand up for something because if you do not you would fall for anything.

We can change government. We can make Alberta a decent place to live in by letting the people take back their voice in our legislature. This is the time where we make a difference, the kind that our children and our children's children read in their history books as a time when we stood up to a corrupted government and reformed it.

The Big Listen that the Alberta Party has offered to all Albertans is one of those first steps in changing our government. This is the first time an Alberta political party will build their policy platform that was created by Albertans who want a better government. Sure, other political parties will try to impress you with creating a panel of experts who would tell you what you they think you want but to me that is nothing more than a gimmick. Our current government uses that gimmick all the time and look where it has gotten us. Alberta Party suspended their own existing policy platform, which will be reintroduced at our policy convention to be voted on, so that there is a clean slate to start from.

I heard the people cry out they want change and now there is a tool for them to use to make this happen. The ball is in your court, you get to decide if you want to continue with what you have or take that first step and make your voice heard. You have nothing to lose and much to gain by getting involved with the Alberta Party's Big Listen.

Response to the "The Big Listen"

2010-02-21T20:07:00.000-08:00

I left the Wildrose Alliance Party because I felt they had lost their way. When I am told by a high ranking WAP executive that Party line must be followed no matter what your constituents want I knew it was time to leave. I am glad I left when I saw that WAP was no better than other political parties that came before them when their new leader Danielle Smith refuse to reveal her campaign donors or wanting to have the power trappings like the PC Party to entice MLA's to cross the floor. As I see it, the WAP is just the rebranding of the PC Party of Alberta and we will get the same problems we have now should they form government.

Friends of mine that were former Alberta Alliance and WAP members invited me to attend a meeting with the Alberta Party. When I met with the board of directors for the Alberta Party I was surprised at how open they were and that everyone was allowed to voice their opinions even if they were not directors or members of the Party. One visitor summed the Alberta Party as the only Party that is making a difference for Albertans now and not when they form government.

I found Alberta Party to be a home for me as they believe in listening to the people and reflecting their views. When WAP announced that their membership was over 13,000 members, members of our Party looked at our small membership and saw that you could not build a policy platform that reflect the true values of Albertans. I voiced that you cannot do it at 13,000 members either and worked with our Policy Committee and we developed the idea of going to all Albertans for policy suggestions.

Thanks to Reboot Alberta conference in 2009, Renew Alberta (a new political party) and Reboot Alberta (a political think tank) members met with Alberta Party members and took this idea further than what our policy committee for the Alberta Party ever dreamed of. Renew Alberta and Alberta Party joined forces to bring this innovative policy to the people of Alberta.

After the launch of the Big Listen to Albertans on February 19, 2010, I was surprised at how well it was received. From reading many responses from many bloggers one can see that Albertans are feeling hopeful that a political party is willing to listen to all Albertans.

How I see it, the Alberta Party is making a difference for Albertans now and not when they form government and no other political party can claim that.

Alberta Party Edmonton Regional Meeting January 28th

2010-01-26T20:28:00.000-08:00

The Alberta Party will be holding our next Edmonton Regional Meeting on January 28th at 7:00 PM at 9520 - 110A Avenue, main floor, Hutton Boardroom. Please let me know if you can attend. Please let anyone who is interested in coming that they are free to join us.

New Wildrose Alliance MLA's

2010-01-04T21:39:00.001-08:00

When I read the latest press release from the Wildrose Alliance Party (WAP), regarding MLA Rob Anderson and MLA Heather Forsyth leaving the PC Party of Alberta and crossed the floor to the WAP, I found it a bit disturbing that WAP looked no different from the PC Party they hope to replace. I found WAP Leader Danielle Smith’s comment:

"Anyone who would consider joining our party would have to be prepared to walk away from a substantial portion of their paycheque, their campaign war chests and some volunteers," stated Smith. "Since we are not the party in government, we cannot offer them a cabinet post or the trappings of power - even if we wanted to."

that a WAP government would be no different that the current PC Government. The WAP was to be a new political party that was to end political corruption but how soon will they be handing out plush positions to party supporters and special interest groups.

As for the crossing of the floor by MLA Rob Anders and MLA Heather Forsyth, I do not buy the excuse they were doing it to better represent their constituents from a government that has lost touch with its people. MLA Guy Boutilier has more credibility sitting as an independent than the two new WAP MLA’s as he is not going to be swayed by partisan policies but by the will of his constituents.

Personally, I feel that MLA’s and MP’s should not be allowed to cross the floor to join another political party. I feel that they should sit as an independent until the next election. Too often political parties parachute a candidate into a riding and disregard their own due process of selecting a candidate by the members of the riding.

In my experiences with both Federal and Provincial politics, I find that many members of political parties are not free to act or express an opinion freely within their own party. It is either you follow the status quo from the top or be removed from decision-making process.

These are my opinions and not that of anyone else or of any organization that I belong to.

Merry Christmas

2009-12-24T06:23:00.000-08:00

When looking back on the year 2009, one will have to wonder if the PC Government of Alberta was deliberately blundering their way through the year to make it onto Santa's naughty list. Was this a plan by our government to ensure we, Albertans, can wake up on Christmas morning to discover our government was able to secure an extremely large supply of coal at no cost to us to help generate cheap energy for our province? One can only wonder.

Merry Christmas.

New Leadership Candidate for the Alberta Party

2009-12-23T20:42:00.000-08:00

December 22,2009

From the Leadership Vote Committee:

Mr. Edwin Erickson has announced his candidacy in the election for Leader of the Alberta Party.

Nominations for the position of Leader of the Alberta Party will close on January 6, 2010 and the election will be held on February 6, 2010. To be able to vote in this election, memberships must be purchased by January 6, 2010.

For further information, please contact info@albertaparty.ab.ca

Leadership Vote Committee

Lest We Forget

2009-11-11T14:31:00.000-08:00

Statement from Robert Leddy the Interim Leader of the Alberta Party Regarding the PC Leadership Vote

2009-11-07T22:39:00.000-08:00

Political party conventions, such as the PC Party of Alberta this past weekend in Red Deer , do not reflect how people really feel about their government. The only event that does reflect how people feel about their government is an election. The Alberta Party is growing in members and support each day as Albertans are looking for a government that is responsible, reliable, representative and accountable. This is what the Alberta Party can and will deliver to Albertans next election.

For more information about the Alberta Party please contact us at info@albertaparty.ab.ca or visit us at www.albertaparty.ab.ca.

Recall Health Minister Liepert

2009-11-04T20:48:00.001-08:00

A good sound bite for the media is a call from the opposition parties for the firing of a cabinet minister when major mistakes happen, as for example Mr. Liepert and his handling of the H1N1 Vaccinations. We all know that the Premier Stelmach will stand by his minister he selected and nothing will happen.

What I would like to see is Albertans petitioning Premier Stelmach to replace Health Minister Liepert as we, Albertans, have lost confidence in the Minister's ability to provide appropriate healthcare for us. When you look at it, the government we elected are our employees and should they fail in their appointed duties we should have the power to dismiss them. Some people say they fear government retaliation should they support the wrong political party, I say the government should be scared of the people should they lose the people's confidence.

When I was with the Alberta Alliance Party I supported the policy of MLA recall. Newly elected MLA Paul Hinman stated, at a Danielle Smith leadership campaign event, that he told his constituents during the Calgary-Glenmore by-election that if a petition signed by 20% to 30% of his constituents demanding him to be recalled that he would step down. This has yet to be tested in Alberta but it is nice to see the idea of recall starting to be an option that Albertans want. The Alberta Party strongly believes in MLA Recall and is calling on the Alberta Government adopt MLA Recall to restore public confidence.

BILL “50” - The Great Power Transfer

2009-11-03T18:33:00.000-08:00

The Alberta Party is against Bill 50 and to help Albertans understand why, I have posted a copy of an article that was released by Joe Anglin of the Lavesta Area Group.

BILL “50” - The Great Power Transfer

By Joe Anglin

In all the hub-bub about Bill-50 very little is being said about the scale of this government’s unprecedented accumulation and consolidation of power.

For over one hundred years an independent regulatory board has had the sole authority and responsibility to approve proposed utility projects, based on the independent advice of engineers and experts. The mandate of the utility board was to act in the public’s interest. Now, Bill-50 proposes to transfer that authority from the Alberta Utilities Commission (AUC), to the government, under the false pretence that the situation has become urgent.

Whether or not the situation is urgent is irrelevant. The AUC already has the authority to approve any project without holding a hearing, and without giving any public notice if the matter is urgent. Under the current legislation the AUC can also combine hearings for any legitimate reason. There is absolutely no reason the AUC cannot convene a hearing immediately, combining the process to determine the “need” for new transmission lines, along with the process to determine where they would be located.

Bill-50 is completely unnecessary and unjustifiable! It is nothing more than the transfer power and authority to an insatiable government. Bill-50 should be withdrawn!

-- 30 --

Joe Anglin

Leader

Lavesta Area Group

(403) 843-3279

(403) 963-0521 (Cell)

H1N1 Vaccination Failure

2009-11-01T20:48:00.001-08:00

The way the Alberta Government has handled the H1N1 Flu vaccination has been less than stellar. When the vaccinations were first announced we were told high risk people should be the first to get vaccinated but the province would not turn anyone away who wanted one. Then we were also told that there was not enough of the H1N1 vaccine to meet the demands for all Albertans.

The Alberta Government knew that the H1N1 flu was pandemic and that chances are we would be hit hard in October. To help those with those most at risk the government should have had only the most at risk vaccinated along with their family members. Knowing that there was a shortage nation wide our government just kept vaccinating everyone who wanted it.

This government has dropped the ball on the H1N1 pandemic just as it has with the rent control crisis during the economic boom, royalties on oil and with the recession. Our government lacks the ability of future planning even when there are set rules established to do so, such as in case of a pandemic people at most risk will be vaccinated first. Our knee jerk reactionary government is not the fault of poor leadership by Premier Stelmach but the government as a whole. We need a government that can plan for the future and protect Albertans rights and health. Our government needs to be held accountable by the people.

As for the H1N1 Flu, listen to your doctor, take the necessary measures to prevent the spread of this illness and stay home should you get it. When more H1N1 vaccines are ready please let the high risk group get the vaccination first as this flu, like any other flu, can be deadly to them. The good news we have is that everyone should be able to get a vaccination before December but we have to be patient and hope our government learnt its lesson on why proper planning is an important exercise.

Alberta Party Opposes Bill 50

2009-10-26T18:38:00.000-07:00

Joe Anglin of the Lavesta Area Group was our guest speaker at the Alberta Party Annual General Meeting in Red Deer this past weekend. One of the main principles of the Alberta Party is the protection of property rights. Joe Anglin's presentation clearly shows how our government is slowly taking our property rights and right to be consulted away.

Bill 50 should be the final straw for Albertans with this government. First our government gets caught spying on land owners during the consultation periods and now government wants the duty of making the decisions without public input and we cannot take legal action to stop them. Our government fumbled the ball and all the infrastructure in Alberta is in poor shape and they want to leap before they look and we will be left holding the bill.

The Albert Party has made it a policy of our Party to oppose Bill 50 and call upon the government to withdraw the bill. The Alberta Party encourages Albertans to attend one of the speaking engagements and see what the government doesn't want you to know:

October 27th @ 7:30 p.m. Rimbey Royal Canadian Legion, Rimbey, 5019, 50 St Rimbey, AB

October 27th @ 7:30 p.m. Rockyford Community Centre Rockyford, AB

November 2nd @ 7:30 p.m. Crossfield Community Centre Crossfield, AB

November 6th noontime to 2:00 p.m. Gaetz United Church, 4758 Ross Street Red Deer, AB

For more information Contact

Joe Anglin

(403) 843-3279

(403) 963-0521 cell

Leader Lavesta Area Group

Below is an article from the Red Deer Advocate:

Bill threatens Albertans’ right to be consulted: Anglin

By Stacy O'Brien - Red Deer Advocate

Published: October 26, 2009 6:16 AM

0 Comments

Joe Anglin fears a provincial bill to speed up construction of new power line transmission will erode public consultation.

He said if the kinds of power line transmission lines that are planned move forward an average person could see their power bill double.

“We’re spending public money and there is absolutely no public input. That is fundamentally wrong. You have to have public input when you’re spending public money,” Anglin said, shortly after speaking at the Alberta Party’s annual general meeting at the Stanford Inn in Red Deer on Saturday. “Bill 50 allows the cabinet to approve (new transmission lines) without any due process.”

Anglin, who is the leader of the Lavesta Area Group, has been fighting the provincial government on consulting with the public about power line transmissions for years now. Anglin, who worked as a transmission engineer for Bell Systems for more than a decade, said he isn’t against transmission lines, but is against people not having access to due process.

Currently to move forward with creating new transmission lines, which carry electricity throughout the province, a plan would have to be submitted to the Alberta Utilities Commission and there are certain rules and regulations governing how the plan could move forward.

Anglin said under Bill 50 — introduced in the legislature in the spring — a plan wouldn’t be submitted to the commission, instead it would go to the minister of energy and there is no criteria for what needs to be in the plan.

He said under the new bill the minister could determine which projects are deemed critical projects and the minister would have the authority to approve any project without the necessity of a regulatory process or a public hearing.

“We do not need Bill 50,” Anglin said. “If this were a necessity and this were urgent we have the procedures in place to take care of this.”

Anglin said the only thing he can surmise is that the new transmission lines aren’t urgent, but that industry wants them created so the electricity can be exported down to the U.S.

But he pointed out it isn’t industry that would be required to pay the full cost of the new lines. Everyone’s power bill has a transmission line fee. Anglin believes the fee could go up substantially if the new transmission lines are created. “Industry will benefit, but we’ll be paying for it,” he said.

The provincial government has said an all-party legislature committee will give companies and the public a chance to give their opinions on Bill 50 during a meeting set for Nov. 4 in Edmonton.

Anglin encouraged people to phone and write to their MLAs and the premier about their concerns about Bill 50.

“The public has to demand that the public’s interest be re-inserted back into the legislation,” Anglin said. “These decisions should be made in the public’s interest...What we have to do is hold our current government accountable.”

sobrien@reddeeradvocate.com

Alberta Party Leadership Race

2009-10-26T17:47:00.001-07:00

"The Alberta Party will hold a Leadership Convention on February 6, 2010 to elect a new leader for the Party.

According to the Alberta Party constitution , a candidate for this position must be a member in good standing for 60 days prior to the date on which the Leadership vote is to be held; and will be required to submit a nomination form which includes 30 signatures of party members, and fulfill any other requirements determined by the Leadership Vote Committee

Ballots will be mailed to members who are in good standing as of January 6, 2010. Voting will be either by mail-in ballot or in person at the convention.

Further details will be announced in the near future with time and place."
Midge Lambert
Chair, Leadership Vote Committee,
Alberta Party

Alberta Party Annual General Metting

2009-10-24T20:46:00.000-07:00

It was a busy day at the Stanford Inn in Red Deer, Alberta today. The Alberta Party held its Annual General Meeting for 2009 to:

1 - Pick an Interim Leader

2 - Elect new officers to the Party's Provincial Council

3 - Decide when if and when we should hold a Leadership Race

4 - Decide when to hold a Policy Convention

5 - Decide on Constitutional Motions

6 - Decide on Policy Motions

The Party membership ratified that I, Robert Leddy, continue on as Interim Leader of the Alberta Party until the election of a new leader at the Leadership Convention on February 6, 2010. The main goals I have set forward for the Alberta Party is to keep increase membership, establish Constituency Associations, fund raise and promote the Alberta Party as strong choice for Albertans who want a strong and accountable government.

Since June 13, 2009 the Alberta Party has seen more development as a political party then it ever has since it started. Albertans are looking for a political party that reflects their ideals and want an dependable, representative, responsible and accountable government. The PC , Liberal and NDP parties are seen as old and stale while new parties like the Wildrose Alliance and the Alberta Party are seeing major growth. The Alberta Party has seen its membership double, quality leadership candidates who want to take this Party to the Legislature and Constituency Associations emerging.

In 2010 the Alberta Party will have a new leader and will hold a Policy Convention this Spring (details to follow). These are exciting time we are living in and I encourage you to get involved. If we do not stand up for anything then we will fall for anything.

Against any Merger with the Wildrose Alliance Party

2009-10-22T14:24:00.000-07:00

Personally I am am not a fan of the idea of a merger between the Wildrose Alliance Party and my party the Alberta Party. I feel that any merger at this time would be premature and pointless. I remember how great the merger was for the Alberta Alliance Party and The Wildrose Party just before the 2008 Provincial Election. Neither party was ready for an election or had any real structure for voters to take the merged party seriously. When I ran as a Wildrose Alliance Candidate I spent more time telling people we were not the Pot Party but a fiscal conservative Party.

When the Wildrose Alliance Party approached the Alberta Party last spring behind closed doors with our Party President and Second Vice President to discuss merger talks and the taking of the Alberta Party name as the new name of the merged party. In June 2009 the Albert Party said "no" to the merger base on the fact that the Wildrose Alliance Party had no leader, no defined policy and a poor constitution that governs their party. The Alberta Party was in no better position but we decided to move forward and develop our party. We are looking forward to having our Annual General Meeting and announce a leadership race for the Alberta Party.

Strangest thing has been happening this past few days since the election of Danielle Smith as the new leader of the Wildrose Alliance Party on October 17. 2009. Executive members of the Alberta Party have been receiving phone calls about a hostile take over attempt by the Wildrose Alliance Party at the Alberta Party Annual General meeting this October 24th. As the rumor goes, certain member or members of the Wildrose Alliance Party are planning:

1. Organize enough people to buy memberships to the Alberta Party at the Alberta Party AGM door and flood the event.

2. Once they have control of the meeting they will pass a motion that the Alberta Party will merger with the Wildrose Alliance Party.

If this rumor is true I would be shocked that the Wildrose Alliance Party would lower their Party to such a dirty tactic to remove a rival party to theirs. I know there are good people in the Wildrose Alliance Party that would not consider this tactic and I hope that all this is just a rumor.

Concerns with the Wildrose Alliance Party

2009-10-18T14:00:00.000-07:00

When you ask anyone what they think about politics the usual response is the politicians are liars who like to give themselves a pay raises and find comfortable jobs for family and friends of their political party. If you ask people if their government if honest and open the response is "no" and that government transparency is the same as welders glass.

New political parties are always about values and government reform and that once elected they would institute these new changes as their first order of business. They all challenge the government in power a corrupt and need to be tossed out but we all see the new party taking over not doing any better and in most cases looking like the same old party. This was seen with the case of the Chretien's Liberals and Harper's Conservatives.

In Alberta we now have the Wildrose Alliance Party with a new leader and new promises to replace PC Party of Alberta as the government but I still have my concerns. First, this leadership race handed ballots out to non-party members. Second, Link Byfield's involvement in Danielle Smith's leadership campaign. Link was on the executive of the Wildrose Alliance Party (as was stated on the party website during the whole campaign) which makes it look like Danielle Smith had the support of the Party elite. Third, Paul Hinman's attending the Danielle Smith Q &A in Edmonton earlier this month. We have the Interim Leader endorsing a candidate for leadership before the vote. Premier Klein did not even do this.

My concerns grew even more today after reading the article by Graham Thompson "Are Albertans Ready for the Change Wildrose Offers?" in the Edmonton Journal.

"However, Dyrholm's socially conservative position was undermined by the leadership vote that saw him get flattened by Smith--6,300 votes to 1,900.

Curiously, the party didn't want to release the results after Dyrholm conceded defeat; they were leaked online. Dyrholm said he wanted the results to be declared symbolically unanimous--but, of course, keeping it secret would have saved him from admitting he and his right-wing agenda were beaten three to one.

Despite promising a more open and accountable way of doing politics, the Wildrose party fell back into the same old way of doing things after Smith's victory. She refused to reveal her list of donors, saying she's afraid they'd be targeted by the government for retribution if their names were released. That might be true, but it also allows her to hide the identities of her benefactors. When reporters pressed her on issues, she was whisked away after four minutes, even less time than reporters usually get with Stelmach."

This is not a good sign for any political party that wants to replace the governing PC Party of Alberta. These are my concerns and not that of anyone else or that of any other political party that I may be a part of.

The State of the Province Address

2009-10-15T19:46:00.000-07:00

Premier Stelmach came into our homes last night to ensure that his government is on the right track and advise us that times are hard. To show us how serious he was we witness the freezing of wages for 6,500 senior bureaucrats for the next two years. The Premier even goes further to challenge the Teachers, Nurses and other public sector workers to do the same. Our government has already advised that they want the money they gave to schools back and are asking for a reduction in pay increases despite the contract the they signed in good faith to keep teachers from striking for 5 years.

Now in the next few weeks the government will decide that these measures are not enough and will force Teachers, Nurses and public sectors workers to take a pay freeze and reductions in pay. This governments record of spending has not improved over the past 20 years and a small freeze in 6,500 senior bureaucrats will not amount to much.

What Albertans needed to hear was our government taking measures that will set the example for everyone during these hard times. The Premier could have announced that he would reduce the size of government, freeze the wages for all government staff, reduce MLA allowances, stop paying MLA's for attending meetings,and reduce the pay increase the gave themselves last year from 30% to 10%. Maybe hire an accountant that knows how to reduce government spending and get this government on track.

What would have been nice if the Premier gave us hope. Hope that the worst of the economic storm is over and we are making gains. That making this sacrifice would allow government to launch programs to help develop and maintain local businesses. Help farmers and ranchers out that have been hit hard with the drought with more tax incentives. Lower our income tax so we have more to invest and spend to help our economy.

Economists have already stated that should the recession end tomorrow we will not feel the effect in the oilfield for 3 to 5 years. I am not convinced that the Premier and his government can reversed the $7 Billion deficit with the sacrifices they made. I have seen companies reduce their staff by almost 2/3 just to stay in business and these are the construction companies that the government has been giving infrastructure jobs to.

It was wrong for a government to give themselves a raise in a closed door meeting and not consulting the public. If we continue down this path we will have teacher and nursing strikes within a year.

I am not going on to say what the Alberta Party is going to do should we be elected government. I got involved in politics to make a better future for Canadians. I decided to stop passing the buck and get involved to make a difference. I am encouraging others to do the same by buying a membership in a political party or just vote. Stand up and make a difference because if we don't then we will fall for anything.

Alberta Party Annual General Meeting 2009

2009-10-13T21:08:00.000-07:00

The Alberta Party will be holding its Annual General Meeting for 2009 on October 24, 2009 at the Stanford Inn, 4704 - 50 Street, in Red Deer Alberta. All members of the Party are invited to attend the 2009 AGM. Memberships must be in good standing as of October 10, 2009 in order to vote at the meeting. Observers and Guests are welcome to attend.

A registration fee of $20.00 will be include coffee and lunch, with guest speaker, Joe Anglin. "Democracy and Property Rights in Alberta".

Please RVSP by October 18th to Fred Schorning.

Phone:403-225-4485

Email: info@albertaparty.ab.ca

Wildrose Alliance Memberships

2009-10-06T19:45:00.000-07:00

On October 4, 2009 the Wildrose Alliance Party (WAP) announced that they had over 11,000 registered members. For any new political party in Alberta that is great news. I remember the old days of WAP during the 2008 election and before the first Annual General Meeting having under 300 members and the member list was full of errors. The WAP has come along way the media attention they have is well deserved.

In my last post I questioned the validity of the WAP Leadership Race as I am a non-member but somehow I received a ballot to vote for a leader of a political party I am not part of. Chances are that if I received a ballot means others have as well. I am aware of other people who are non-members and received a ballot. I am not suggesting that someone or a group is trying to rig or fix the WAP Leadership Race but if this race ends in a very close finish then this could spell more trouble to the WAP membership in general.

I have been monitoring the WAP Leadership Race and received some interesting literature including emails from both Leadership Campaigns. I received one email from one leadership campaign team who compared this Leadership Race as the Vietnam War and that the opponent was the Americans and they were the Vietnamese and "we all know who won that war." This race has heated and I feel some members may have gone to extremes to help their candidate win this Leadership Race.

I am concerned that my membership in the Wildrose Alliance Party was not cancelled as per my written request on August 28, 2009:

From: robert-leddy@hotmail.com
To: info@wildrosealliance.ca
Subject: Resignation
Date: Fri, 28 Aug 2009 23:11:22 -0600

To whom it may concern,

I, Robert Leddy, hereby cancel my membership in the Wildrose Alliance Party effective immediately. In the next few days I will be ending my involvement on the Face Book Groups and the Blog.

Regards,

Robert Leddy
780-903-0878

On August 29, 2009 I ended the Facebook groups and posted a final entry on the WAP Edmonton Region Blog advising I quit the WAP. I do not know how much more clear do I have to be when leaving a political party.

As for the ballot, I decided it would be unethical to vote in an election of a leader of a party that I do not belong to. I had spoiled my ballot and advised other people who got one in error to do the same or just destroy it.

I am not looking for a fight with the WAP and wish them all the best. I am glad they are doing well and hope that they can keep this momentum. I am with Alberta Party now, where a lot of old WAP members had gone, working hard to bring a new government to Alberta.

Issue with the Wildrose Alliance Leadership Race

2009-10-04T20:30:00.000-07:00

Last summer I left the Wildrose Alliance Party. I sent notified the Wildrose Alliance Party via email and advise them that I was the new Interim Leader of the Alberta Party. I was sent an email shortly after my notification by Jane Morgan, Executive Director of the Wildrose Alliance Party, congratulating me on my new position.

For the past two months I have been contacted by the two leadership candidates Danielle Smith and Mark Dyrholm whom I expected are working from outdated membership lists. My greatest surprise was when the Wildrose Alliance Party sent me a leadership ballot.

I learnt from two former Wildrose Alliance Party members that they had received ballots from the Wildrose Alliance Party as well. How does this happen? Why are non-members of the Wildrose Alliance Party getting ballots to vote for a new leader of a party they do not belong to. If three people got ballots by mistake leads you to wonder how many ballots were sent to non-members.

An Alberta Party member contacted me earlier today and advised me that one of the leadership campaigns contacted had them. This member informed the volunteer that a ballot was sent to him by mistake and knows of seven other members of his Party that got one by mistake as well. He was advised by this volunteer to vote for their candidate or send the seven ballots back their office.

I now have to question ethical standards of the Wildrose Alliance Party and validity of this leadership race.

Instead of Protesting

2008-12-03T21:44:00.000-08:00

Since this month has started I have been emailed petitions and notices of rallies to protest this coalition.

I will not sign this petition, http://www.PetitionOnline.com/CANADIAN/petition.html, as no matter how much you do not like Mr. Dion and this coalition, you have to remember it is legal, its democratic and it is constitutional. Canadians voted for their representatives and the political party with the most seats form a government. We do not vote for a Prime Minister and should a government fall due to non-confidence in the House of Commons then the Governor General can ask the opposition to form government before calling a new election. A minority government has to be careful not to upset the opposition so a coalition does not form to replace them.

As for the Rallies to protest the coalition on December 6th at the Alberta Legislature, I will be declining as there are better things to do. The world will not end, I will have to go to work on Monday just like everyone else and I will still have to find an excuse for my wife as to why the Christmas lights are still not up on our home.

Canadian voters will not be the victims here should a coalition government take over but I will be taking the time out on December 6th to remember the Montreal Massacre where 14 women who were murdered at the University of Montreal's School of Engineering Building. These women were remembered by our federal government by the creation the National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women every December 6th and to overshadow that with this coalition anger will only make this day of remembrance of violence against women meaningless.

Options and Questions

2008-12-03T21:41:00.000-08:00

Eleven critical questions for Stephane Dion to answer

Posted: December 03, 2008, 12:30 PM by Kelly McParland

Full Comment, Kelly McParland, Canadian politics

There are a number of questions Stephane Dion and Jack Layton need to answer if they seriously hope to convince Canadians their coalition is a legitimate reflection of the popular will.

• How does the "permanent consultation mechanism" with the Bloc Quebecois work? How are we to know what demands the separatists have made, and which have been granted? Who will be involved in the consultation?

• Do both Mr. Dion and Mr. Layton have the authority to grant demands made by the separatists, as co-leaders of the coalition?

• On what basis will separatist demands be met? According to the best interests of the country, or the danger that a refusal might represent to the coalition?

• Shouldn't any demand that is good for the Bloc, and thus for the separatist cause, by definition be seen as undesirable for federalism, and thus for Canada?

• Where is the $30 billion for the "bailout" coming from? How was this figure arrived at?

• Why is the coalition proceeding with a bailout when the Bank of Canada said Monday that Canada's economy continued to expand, growing at an annualized rate of 1.3% in the third quarter, faster than expected, and the quickest growth rate of the year?

• How can the coalition claim the Conservative government has failed to adequately prepare for a recession, when the economy continues to expand? How can preparations for something that hasn't happened be judged to have failed? How can they be judged inadequate when the extent of the difficulty isn't known yet?

• Do the coalition leaders consider it always legitimate to replace a government if, in the eyes of the opposition, it has not prepared adequately for a problem that has not taken place?

• Green party leader Elizabeth May says she has spoken to Mr. Dion regarding a seat in the Senate, and a role in the coalition government. Considering Ms. May led a party that ran candidates in 307 ridings and was rejected in all 307, what would be the justification for rewarding her with a lifetime sinecure in the Senate?

• An appointment for Ms. May would appear to be a reward for agreeing not to run a candidate in Mr. Dion's riding. Is it the coalition's position that appointing senators on the basis of their personal deals with the Liberal party leader is an appropriate means of populating the upper house? Will Mr. Dion be appointing friends and relatives as well?

• If Ms. May is appointed to the Senate and given a role in the government, she will be an unelected member of an unelected government, appointed by an unelected prime minister. Can Mr. Dion explain how this reflects the will of Canadians as expressed in the recent general election? Can he explain how it furthers the interests of democracy to impose such a government on Canadians?

Kelly McParland
National Post

Options for Harper

"We will use all legal means to resist this undemocratic seizure of power," Prime Minister Stephen Harper said yesterday.

Here are the ten options the Prime Minister is likely reviewing:

1. Preemptively Remove Michaëlle Jean

This is the true nuclear option for Harper: a preemptive strike against Jean to remove her from office, and replace her with a governor-general sympathetic to the argument that the people should decide in an election.

The roots of this option are found in the last major constitutional crisis in a British Parliamentary democracy, the 1975 Australian constitutional crisis.

I'll let you review all the background in this excellent Wikipedia article, but the key passage for our purposes is this:

"(Governor-General) Kerr was unwilling to warn (Prime Minister) Whitlam that he was contemplating dismissing him, fearing that Whitlam's reaction would be to advise Elizabeth II, the Queen of Australia, to remove him as Governor-General instead - advice the Queen would be compelled by convention to follow. Though this might appear to be an unlikely proposition, it was constitutionally possible, and in the peculiar circumstances of the crisis could not have been ruled out."

Canadian constitutional scholar and former Liberal MP Ted McWhinney writes on its application to Canada in his excellent book, The Governor-General and the Prime Ministers: The Making and Unmaking of Governments. He concluded that if the PM requested the governor-general's dismissal:

"With the Queen's role reduced to a formal ratifying of the choice of governor general made by the prime minister, the Queen would surely have had to take the prime ministers 'advice' without demur. That [this] hypothesis could be seriously advanced by a reputable scholar suggests the need for further work and refinement on the constitutional checks and balances to govern the office of governor general, including the selection, continuance in office and replacement of the governor general."

So, the Governor-General has the authority to dismiss the Prime Minister BUT the Prime Minister may have the authority to dismiss the Governor-General first by requesting the Queen dismiss her.

Mr. Harper could advise the Queen that Ms. Jean should be removed from office, perhaps noting her past dalliance with Quebec separatism as grounds. He would then be free to appoint someone who would agree to call an election or prorogue rather than call upon Mr. Dion to form a Ministry.

The difference is critical here. In Australia, the issue was the Senate refusing to pass supply. Prime Minister Whitlam had a majority in the lower house, which is normally supreme in matters of confidence. But PM Harper does not have a majority in the Commons, has not tested the will of Parliament and an alternative administration enjoys a majority of support.

To call this option risky is a grave understatement. Not only would it threaten the role of the monarchy in Canada, but parliamentary supremacy back to the Magna Carta would be called into question.

2. Reschedule the Vote Again

The Government House Leader could move the date of the opposition motion back, in essence preventing any votes on matters of confidence indefinitely.

The challenge here would be the absurdity of the Commons paralyzed by debate on amendments to every motion attempting to force a confidence matter.

It would likely prove impossible for the Governor-General to not intervene and summon the PM to demonstrate confidence in the Commons.

3. Appoint opposition MPs to the Senate

This option has received some attention, but is unlikely to work.

In theory, the PM could stimulate the resignation of opposition MPs with the lure of appointments to the Senate, ambassadorial posts or other plums.

However, the Prime Minister's powers of appointment are contingent on having the confidence of the House.

Constitutional scholar Ned Franks was clear that it would be within the rights of a governor general to prevent the Prime Minister from exercising normal authority until the will of the Commons was tested, in the same fashion as the PM's powers are curtailed during an election.

4. Caretaker Prime Minister

An interesting option would be attempting to act as a caretaker Prime Minister.

Ned Franks has argued that the Prime Minister cannot use his powers of appointment without proving his enjoys confidence in the Commons. What about turning this weakness into strength?

In essence, the PM would argue that he should let the Governor-General off the hook, voluntarily reduce his powers of appointment and programme, and return to Parliament to work to find a coalition partner.

This has the added benefit of throwing the matter back to Parliament to resolve, and not leaving the decision with an appointed official.

And by reducing his powers, he is acknowledging a lack of a majority, without agreeing that he has lost the confidence in the House irrevocably.

Governors-general are loath to make a decision employing their reserve power, and this maneuver might win GG approval simply by delaying a decision.

5. Prorogue

The option that is getting the most attention is proroguing. This would have the effect of dismissing the Commons until a Jan. 26 Throne Speech, essentially rebooting the Parliament for a second try. As I wrote yesterday, there are risks with Governor-General refusing this option.

6. Apologize, fire Flaherty and reach across the aisle

This is another option I wrote about yesterday, and the one that might have worked if it had been attempted earlier. But each passing day makes it less likely the opposition will be appeased.

7. Request an election

There is an option that the PM first request dissolution and an election prior to the confidence vote, beating the opposition to the punch.

This option could have worked prior to the signing of a formal agreement with a joint programme,

But now there is an obvious alternate governing with the support of a majority in the House. It is unlikely the GG would grant dissolution without first asking Mr. Dion to attempt to form a government.

8. Convince Opposition MPs to Support the Government

There may be Liberal MPs uncertain about entering into a coalition with the NDP, particularly one supported by the Bloc.

There could even be a few New Democrats with apprehensions.

It's very difficult to tell, but there is the outside possibility that the Conservatives could find twelve votes on the opposition benches.

9. Seduce the Bloc to Support Conservatives

This is an extremely unlikely scenario, given the extreme vilification of the Bloc by the Conservatives over the past week.

But one way out of this crisis was to win the temporary support of the Bloc with a low-cost, symbolic gesture to Quebecois. This would be something along the lines of the nation resolution or an additional Quebec justice on the Supreme Court.

With Mr. Duceppe's signature on an accord, this option is now closed.

10. Step Down as Conservative Leader

Little binds the three opposition parties together.

There is a joint programme, but the real glue of this coalition is a unanimous belief on the opposition bench that Stephen Harper must go.

Were Harper to resign as Conservative Party Leader and an interim leader like Chuck Strahl, Jim Prentice or Tony Clement lead the Conservatives, it is entirely possible the coalition would fall apart and that person might be able to receive the confidence of the House.

It is clearly not in the political interest of the Liberals to form common cause with the Bloc or the NDP.

Their motivation is the belief that Stephen Harper must no longer be Prime Minister.

Such a move might avert political catastrophe for the Conservatives and for the Liberals.

My Letter to the Editor December 1st

2008-12-03T21:21:00.000-08:00

I wrote a letter to the Editor of the Edmonton Journal on December 1st when news of this coalition was announced.

"The opposition parties are not betraying Canadians by replacing the conservative governing party with a coalition government. All those MP's in Ottawa were voted in during the last election legally and they are our representatives. To refer the the Bloc Party as "the Devil" or a party out to destroy Canada would be erroneous as until a Prime Minister rolls the tanks into the province of Quebec to stop the Bloc Party from tearing our great nation apart then the Bloc are following the laws of our government and voicing the opinion of those they represent.

I ran for office during the last provincial election, served on federal electoral riding boards for both the Canadian Alliance and Conservative Party. Majority of the Canadians I talked to do not have a strong understanding of how our parliamentary system of government works and often confuse it with a Presidential system of government like that is used in the United States. Our system of government allows for the opposition to form a coalition government legally without calling an election. To call another election now during these unstable economic times would be wasting more tax payers money.

Current Prime Minister Harper created this situation when his conservative party broke the principles of their own fix election date law and called the unnecessary 2008 election which failed to get a majority government for his party. To make matters worse, having won a stronger minority government we now have a weaker conservative government that is unable to work with the opposition parties and is now scrambling when confronted by the opposition.

What Canadians want is strong leadership to get us through these rough times we are now facing and unfortunately we have none.

Robert Leddy

Edmonton, Alberta"