, 05.21.2023 09:16 AM

KINSELLACAST 262: Political lunacy with Lilley, Mraz, Belanger and Keller! Also: Bleached, Banner Pilot, Coathangers, Together Pangea

55 Comments

  1. Martin Dixon says:

    Loved the Banger Pilot track. Nothing better than bass on lead. Togther Pangea a nice find too. I see a Replacements connection.

    Not sure why we, as Canadians, need to constantly reference T if we can’t understand the possibility of someone we think is a whack job might just win. We have had our own home grown example for almost 8 years now. He has pretty well provided cover for anyone up here no matter what we think of their views.

    PP does have a guy in his caucus that would understand better than anyone bail reform. Larry Brock. He is a former Crown Prosecutor. My peeps tell me that when he speaks on similar matters, people pay attention(from all parties). He has had to work his way back from the wilderness since he was one of only 9 MPs that did not support PP but he seems to be doing a good job with that. He was at a rally in Woodstock and PP introduced him as the “great prosecutor of Liberal corruption and censorship”. Two minutes in:

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PANuIWLMg2Y

    He would have way more background and experience as Minister of Justice than Lametti who is basically an egghead. Brock prosecuted the guy that robbed me while we were home while he was out on bail for about 27 charges. I kind of like the simplistic slogans.

  2. Peter Williams says:

    Let’s vote in Notley so
    1. she can run up another 70 billion in debt. This way we can spend our tax dollars on interest payments instead of health care.
    2. She can spend mega billions on solar panels and windmills, thus driving up the cost of electricity. Heating your home? Sorry the sun isn’t shining and there’s no wind. So no heat for you.

  3. Warren,

    Do Albertans actually think that Smith will get any better going forward? Just another pathetic exercise in dumbing down in politics. We get the government we richly deserve in this country. They were upset with Kenney. Wait until Smith gets seriously going with her own mandate. Alberta, prepare to be run straight into the ground if the UCP wins. But then again, apparently, you don’t care.

    • Doug Brown says:

      Can’t be any worse than the NDP was from 15-19.

      Smith is untested. Her government has made simple changes to improve EMS service levels that haven’t cost any money. The will be seen as a failure as it isn’t #progressive (i.e. increased government scope without measurable results because appearing righteous).

      Neither party has proposed a vision beyond pointing out each others’ outrageous and supposedly unacceptable view points.

      I honesty don’t care about politicians’ interpretation of history or society, other than they are wasting my time. Government is nothing more than a service provider of last resort, whose scope should always be minimized. Efficiency is its most important KPI.

  4. Warren,

    Himself TM doesn’t do anything politically that isn’t first and foremost in his own personal self-interest. He can feel the powerful and rising heat back home in Ottawa thanks to how this so-called government has consistently handled the China File. This is nothing more than calculated damage control. It won’t work. Most voters have finally had enough, so the Liberals become dispensable in the next election under his “leadership”.

  5. DeSantis showed his true colours when he bussed immigrants and asylum seekers to NYC and elsewhere. No money, no support, no health care, no nothing. Fortunately, God was watching and will course correct DeSantis accordingly in due course.

    • joe long says:

      NYC said they were a sanctuary city and would welcome immigrants. DeSantis believed them. What’s wrong with that?

      • Joe,

        What wrong with it? When you ship migrants to NYC, the sanctuary city, if you have any kind of a heart not to mention a brain, you at least help NYC financially to help cope with the influx of desperate people in search of a new life for themselves and their families. DeSantis is nothing more than a phoney, showboating POS.

        • Martin Dixon says:

          Ronald, he called their virtue signalling bullshit bluff. I have no issue with it. It is the NY/CA silk stocking socialist types that have basically turned the border into a joke and states like Florida are suffering because of it. Not to mention that the NAACP has basically declared the entire state is unsafe for blacks and gays(nonsense of course) so wouldn’t he be doing them a favour by shipping them out? Game theory question again. Is your dislike of Deasantis strong enough that you would risk him NOT getting the nomination over T? I think the question answers itself.

          • Martin,

            Virtue signalling is not the same as plain talk about what’s instinctively right. And then there are those who preach one thing which they themselves do not practice or do so only when it’s politically convenient. In short, Trudeau.

            Now to border security: here’s the wake-up call for conservatives. The so-called securing of the border is now and has always been a physical impossibility. It’s cost prohibitive, likely in the hundreds of billions without ever achieving the objective. In short, you can’t wall off those 1,900 miles of the Rio Grande. That’s why despite Trump’s bullshit, he, like all of his predecessors didn’t and couldn’t achieve so-called border security.

            As for the NAACP, they don’t exactly come off as non-partisan at the best of times. Enough said.

            Finally, the kind of Republicans I like are George H.W. and George W., neither of whom were assholes. Ditto for Reagan, Ford, McCain, Dole, Boehner, Ryan, McConnell, Liz Cheney, Kinzinger, etc. If DeSantis wins the presidency, I’ll accept it just like I did with Trump. But frankly, I would never, ever, vote for that guy. His true colours are not for me, to say the very least.

        • Peter Williams says:

          Ronald

          NYC made the sanctuary declaration. They can deal with it.

          Or is it, NYC Democrats want a big influx of immigrants as long as they go to some other state?

          • Peter,

            Well, we can at least agree to disagree.

          • Peter Williams says:

            Ronald

            You said when you ship immigrants to NYC you (i.e. State of Florida) should also send money to help out NYC.

            OK you convinced me.

            But then shouldn’t NYC use all the money NYC sends to Florida to assist Florida with the immigrants NYC (and other Democrat areas) have ‘sent’ to Florida, to care for the immigrants going to NYC?

    • EsterHazyWasKosher says:

      Wasn’t it NYC that was providing asylum seekers with free bus tickets to Roxham Road? https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/migrants-roxham-road-new-york-city-bus-1.6738824

      • Martin Dixon says:

        Right speaking of people who preach one thing and do another:

        “Mayor Eric Adams’s office says it does not finance tickets to Roxham Road, and does not help people cross the Canada-U.S. border. But people who want to go to Plattsburgh, N.Y., — which is near the Canadian border — can do so by bus.

        “Our goal is to help asylum seekers who wish to move to another location,” Kate Smart, a New York City spokesperson, told Radio-Canada.”

        Just another POS, speaking of POS.

  6. Johnston will maintain the level of respect, esteem and personal integrity that he enjoys and richly deserves. So…a full public inquiry is a definite. The next act will be trying to discover if any pressure was applied and by whom not to go that route and knowing you know who, well…there’s highly likely gold in them thar hills.

    • Martin Dixon says:

      Ronald, as far as I am concerned, he threw all of that out the window by accepting the position. A full public inquiry just means he will not lose any more respect. He basically breaks even on that. Anything less and he becomes a laughingstock so not sure what choice he has. He certainly deserves no points for it.

      • Martin,

        Some Trudeau Liberals probably thought that choosing Johnston was a lead pipe and predetermined cinch in their favour. They were wrong.

        Now, put the slipper on the other foot: imagine if the rapporteur was anyone else coming from the inner works of the Trudeau Liberal circle. What would happen? NO inquiry, that’s what.

  7. You know Warren, when strategic advice is given, one of the headliners is about the necessity of experts and other specialists vetting the leader’s speeches and position-taking before they’re delivered. Pierre apparently does not seem to share that concern.

  8. Joan Abernethy says:

    Poilievre’s ‘No More Woke’ video is very strong. Bold. Simple and voluminous.

  9. Curious V says:

    It shocks me that Danielle Smith will likely be elected the premier of a Canadian province. Alberta needs a lot less Danielle Smith and a lot more Rachael Notley.

    • Peter Williams says:

      Curious V
      Why do you like massive deficits?

      • Gord says:

        Like the ones the UCP ran until 2021 before oil prices rebounded after being in the tank the entire NDP term? You know, the biggest ones in Alberta history? After the UCP blew a hole in the provinces’ finances with a huge tax giveaway to mega corps that created not one single job? The UCP deficits that were way bigger than any run by the NDP? Those massive deficits?

        A comedian once said when somebody makes such an obviously asinine statement, you just have to ask yourself: stupid or liar?

        Which one are you?

        • Peter Williams says:

          Gord

          There was a pandemic during Kenny’s tenure. Perhaps you missed it?

          Alberta debt when NDP took over in 2015 = $11.9 billion
          Alberta debt when NDP voted out of office =$ 85.9 billion
          Four years of Notley.

          Alberta debt now March 2023 = $79.7 billion.
          Four years of UCP

          For Gord. 79.7 is less than 85.9

          Would the NDP have reduced debt? Doubt it. They’d continue to run more deficits, just like Trudeau.

          • Martin Dixon says:

            Contrast that with what happened in Canada and the US. The increases in spending are literally shocking. Look it up. The pandemic gets blamed and that is fine. The progressives used the crisis to do what they always do, they took advantage of it. But doesn’t that mean that maybe a buck or two should now get cut or maybe just reduce the rate of the increases which in the insane mind of some lefties is some sort of cut? Keep that in mind when watching the debt ceiling fight in the US.

          • Curious V says:

            Peter, oil collapsed long before the Pandemic – Notley had about 6 billion in oil revenue during her tenure – Smith benefitted from a 27 billion royalty take due to Russian aggression in Ukraine. Whenever conservatives brag about fiscal management it relates directly to the global price of oil, something they have nothing to do with.

          • Peter Williams says:

            Curious said Notley had $6 billion in oil revenue during her term.

            Actually non-renewable revenue from 2015/16 to 2018/19 was $16.3 billion.

        • Peter Williams says:

          As for corporate give aways: Trudeau (supported by NDP) is giving $14 billion to Volkswagen, a company that made 22 billion Euros (approx $28 billion Cdn) in 2022.

          • Curious V says:

            Peter – the Federal and provincial NDP have little to do with each other, no matter how often the UCP tries to connect them. Truth is, had the PC’s not merged with the wacky rose they’d be on route to a huge majority. The moderate wing of the UCP has been silenced and turfed in favor of wacko’s.

          • Peter,

            I have absolutely no problem with that. That’s how the game is played in North America. Just look at how many solid red Republican states have gotten foreign auto plants by proffering goodies to auto companies.

      • Curious V says:

        Daniel Smith benefits from 27 billion in royalty revenue, while during Notley’s tenure they only had 6 billion. Has everything to do with the war in Ukraine, the one Smith blamed on Ukrainian Nuclear weapons that don’t exist. As an Albertan I’m embarrassed that Smith even has a chance.

        • Peter Williams says:

          Notley could have imposed a sales tax/GST.

          Chrétien campaigned against GST, but kept it. Didn’t seem to hurt him.

        • Doug Brown says:

          Notley would have wasted at least some of that windfall by increasing the public sector burn rate (headcount and compensation).

    • Curious V,

      If I was an Albertan, I would take Kenney over Smith any and every day. At least Kenney is credible as premier.

    • Doug Brown says:

      Alberta needs a whole lot less spending by the provincial and federal governments and even less interference from the federal government. From an Alberta point of view, the federal government has never added much value. Since 2015, it destroyed value at the margins (i.e. the increases in federal spending, headcount and regulation have reduced quality of life in Alberta).

      Canada needs Notley to replace the recycled Trudeau persona that currently leads the NDP (the Trudeau persona itself being a third rate interpretation of the Obama persona)

    • Gilbert says:

      Rachel Notley is the last thing Alberta needs. Albertans know spending will be out of control and government will become too big if she wins again. She represents the nanny state.

      • Curious V says:

        Alberta needs less propaganda and spin and a lot more honesty, and pragmatism – they’ll get that if they elect Notley, but with Smith it’s just conspiracy theory, farcical spin with revisionist history, and pseudo science, wacko ideology and bullshit.

        • Doug Brown says:

          Sadly government by public sector union would be even worse than conspiracy theory, farcical spin with revisionist history, and pseudo science, wacko ideology and bullshit.

          The likes of the ATA, UNA and AUPE are completely detached from reality (i.e. their members are amongst society’s most privileged with their db pensions and almost guaranteed job security). Take Back Alberta will be easy to screw over. The NDP sold its soul to far darker forces.

    • EsterHazyWasALoser says:

      Ms Notley’s ability as a leader is about as credible as that of Bob Rae. We had one term of the NDP here in Ontario, and that was more than enough thank you very much.

      • Curious V says:

        NDP have offered fiscally responsible government in Canada in a number of provinces – BC, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, and Alberta – Notley wasn’t bad, she got caught in a downturn (oil collapsed). Smith’s claim to fame is a windfall of oil revenue from the war in Ukraine.

  10. Martin Dixon says:

    To everyone above, my guess is that if Smith wins, she will govern like Doug Ford. People need to calm down. We have survived 8 years of JT(ish).

    • Martin,

      With respect, you’re dreaming. Smith, on her best day, is a fool. How many times does she have to prove it to you, not to mention the people of AB?

      • Martin Dixon says:

        Also with respect Ronald, you fell for JT’s shtick(you were certainly not alone but it was people like you that helped put him in power) and misjudged Ford, so let’s see. She will either lose and we will never know or she will win and we will have a real life test. I am an optimist generally. I was even tentatively hopeful(not optimistic) once we were stuck with JT but that QUICKLY faded after he confirmed he was actually the “just not ready” spoiled brat everyone should have known he was. 7th anniversary of that just passed!

        https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elbowgate

        That “gate” seems so quaint in hindsight.

        • Martin,

          Fair enough. I started to think about detaching right after he made a complete fool of himself with that trip to India. But as you know, SNC did it for me, and I was gone.

  11. EsterHazyWasALoser says:

    Smith vs Notley = Webster’s definition of “A Hobson’s Choice”. An indictment on the quality of the current crop of political leaders in Alberta. Once we had Peter Lougheed; now…..

  12. Curious V says:

    Alberta will continue to exist on a revenue roller coaster, as mentioned Smith and Kenny benefited from Russian aggression in Ukraine, driving up oil prices. Also, Alberta doesn’t have a sales tax, something that would offer a bit of stability. Both parties resist a sales tax.

    • Doug Brown says:

      Both parties know a sales tax would be political suicide.

      I would support a sales tax, but only if it were used to retire debt and no revenue could be spent. Otherwise, most of the revenue would be captured by the public sector unions with no measurable improvement to service levels. I look back to Paul Martin’s “Healthcare fix for a generation” that pumped up salaries but accomplished little else.

  13. I did not support Ford. Then I saw what he accomplished and given the Liberal alternative, he would have had my vote in the last election. Ford quickly grew into the job. Smith, no way. Not ever.

    Quebec, Atlantic Canada, Ontario and Alberta are more often than not the Canadian sheep who mostly always vote the same way, thanks to the pressure of groupthink. In 2023, Ontario and Alberta still have more work to do on that front than the rest of us.

  14. Peter Williams says:

    From the Economist:
    Fiscal Fatasyland: When will politicians wake up?

    https://www.economist.com/leaders/2023/05/04/governments-are-living-in-a-fiscal-fantasyland

    “Around the world budgets are in a bigger mess than politicians are prepared to admit.”

  15. Martin Dixon says:

    What say you now Ronald? Too bad about that reputation of his you like so much. It is sad, actually. He is ragging the puck.

    And I am laughing out loud at his comments about who he interviewed. Read O’Toole’s article if anyone wants to understand why I said that.

    Listening to him talk now. Blah blah blah.

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