03.19.2014 07:41 PM

Good luck in getting Keystone approved now

…you bunch of idiots.

.

75 Comments

  1. Alberta Sux says:

    Not building Keystone is a good thing. And forcing Redford to resign just goes to show there is no room for a “progressive” woman in Alberta or the PC party anymore. The gun-totin’, bible-quotin’ good ‘ol boys won and Alberta is still the redneck, mysogynistic, prairie backwoods it’s always been.

    • james Smith says:

      Please your ignorance is tiresome. Listen to that redneck Calgary mayor Naheed Nenshi’s comments tonight. Ms Redford had made some big mistakes and was not well advised and so she has paid the price.

    • Kelly says:

      Yeah, that’s why they elected such rednecks to run Calgary and Edmonton.

      Have you actually been to Alberta?

      • Alberta Sux says:

        Born here, raised here. Luckily I moved for most of my adult life and learned what it’s like to be a real Canadian. I’m in Alberta right now working to shut down the tar sands. It’s still the same redneck, backwoods province it’s always been. Run by bigotry, greed and big oil. The province that inflicts Harper, Rob Anders and Ezra Leant upon the rest of the country. Alberta is the antithesis of all things Canadian.

    • Al in Cranbrook says:

      Trying to imagine the hell to pay if someone spewed off like that about Quebec. You know?

      I’m not even going to bother with the anti-Keystone envirocrap.

    • Stuart says:

      Redford wasn’t forced to resign because Alberta is a “redneck, mysogynistic, prairie backwoods”. She was forced to resign because during a time of deficit spending when everyone else was getting wage freezes and being told to tighten their purses she wasn’t.

      Spending $45,000 of taxpayer money to go to South Africa for Mandela’s funeral was just plain ridiculous. Then just over two weeks after that came to light and she apologised, she spent $9,200 of our money to have a government plane pick both her and her daughter up in Palm Springs so she could fly back to Ralph Klein’s memorial service. And after an investigation over these things she’s having to reimburse Alberta $3,100 for improperly flying her daughter’s friends around the country?

      Then there’s the budget that was released this month. There’s a deficit of 2.5 billion and yet there was room for her office to get a 9.4% budget increase, including $300,000 for new letter writers?

      She isn’t leaving because there’s no room for a progressive woman in Alberta. She’s leaving because there’s no room for a leader who irresponsibly throws around taxpayer money. Hopefully that’s not just an Alberta thing.

      • Kaspar Juul says:

        Well what about our Dear Leader racking up bills to fly to hockey games then only paying the value of a commercial ticket to compensate? At least Redford paid it up unlike Prime Minister Cheap Ride

        • Greg from Calgary says:

          Well, then maybe all of Canada should hold him accountable like Albertans did Redford and demand Harper pay back any expenses or Gazebos that are a misuse of Taxpayers funds. I think this is an excellent example of not letting a party “rule” but instead, calling them to task.

          I wish all of Canada would do the same to Harper. If only for how they waste money on gazebos or partisan activities when, at the same time, they cut benefits to vets. Yes Steve and the crew love the troops when its a photo op.

          The backlash against Redford abusing the public purse and the system, there are more examples, is how all governments should be held to account by the public including the current cons.

      • Alberta Sux says:

        Ralph Klein wasted more money flying in empty private jets than anybody. But then he was a good ‘ol boy so nobody cared. Bedford us a woman and she gets run out. If that’s not mysogyny then what is.

        • Greg from Calgary says:

          Stephen Carter who was the her campaign manager and also behind the successful elections of Nenshi and Clark in BC was asked this. He said the fact people think she was run out because she was a woman is a “bullshit copout.”

        • MgS says:

          Klein got away with it for two somewhat questionable reasons:

          1. The “halo effect” from slaying not only the deficit in Alberta, but paying down the long term debt.

          2. Unlike Redford, Klein had the backing of the PC party apparatus.

          Unfortunately, Redford didn’t really have the support of the party apparatus, and she had alienated much of the very constituency that had supported her both in the run for the leadership, and then subsequently in the 2012 election.

          Redford may not have done anything worse than Klein did in terms of travel and perks, but it became a focal point for a growing sense of outrage by the public on a range of issues (which ones depends on where you sit at a given moment in time)

          Was she treated “differently” from Klein because she is a woman? I’m not so convinced about that. The PCs have a long history of eating their own the moment they develop a political liability. I’m not convinced that she is a “victim” of being female, so much as having developed a serious political liability, _and_ alienated the very coalition that had supported her.

    • Justin says:

      Whilst any regional differences we may have. I find there to be a double standard, it seems Albertans get their backs up and rightfully so when somebody insults them, but everybody seems to pile on when Toronto or Ontario is mentioned.

  2. smelter rat says:

    She just got “Tulked”

  3. Alberta Canada says:

    What is your reasoning coming to the conclusion that Redford’s resignation will stop Keystone from getting approval by the U.S.?

    • Ron Waller says:

      I was under the impression he was referring to the appointment of Joe Oliver as finance minister who is an avowed climate science denier. This just adds to Harper’s anti-environment image which makes it harder for Canada to export its resources.

      • Coelocanth_Jones says:

        Then again, the less reactionary, more articulate Greg Rickford is now Natural Resources minister

        • smelter rat says:

          Yes, well he articulated the lies about the Experimental Lakes closure very well indeed.

          • Coelocanth_Jones says:

            Not saying he’s any less a tory, just that he doesn’t burn bridges quite the way ol’ man Oliver does

    • e.a.f. says:

      because the Alberta politicians will now be busy trying to become leader of their party. Its all about politics right now, pipelines are on the secondary track for awhile. Who now speaks for Alberta? They don’t have a premier.

      • Alberta Sux says:

        Good. The busier they are the less time they’ll have to push pipelines and dirty oil nobody needs or wants.

  4. MgS says:

    I’m not sure how anyone could think Redford was going to be central to getting Keystone XL approved.

    The damage done by PMSH has already put the kibosh on that project until after next year.

  5. frmr disgruntled Con now happy Lib says:

    A bit more parsimony with the public purse might have been in order…….http://t.news.ca.msn.com/canada/a-look-at-troubles-leading-to-redford-resignation-1

  6. Greg from Calgary says:

    Glad to see steretypes are posted freely on this board. Can we add them about women or blacks or Ezra’s target Gypsies? Pathetic.

    • Alberta Sux says:

      Not a stereotype if it’s true.

      • Greg from Calgary says:

        It’s not. Tarring an entire people with your notions is just a reflection on yourself. If the province was the way you describe it Nenchi would have never won two terms.

        • Alberta Sux says:

          Nenshi is just the exception that proves the rule.

          • Greg from Calgary says:

            That’s your interpretation that isn’t born out by the facts. An exception would win one term. Again, all we have is your opinion.

            From the Merriam-Webster dictonary

            1ste·reo·type transitive verb \ˈster-ē-ə-ˌtīp, ˈstir-\
            : to believe unfairly that all people or things with a particular characteristic are the same

            Carry on!

  7. e.a.f. says:

    there have been concerns regarding Ms. Redford’s spending of public funds for some time. The South African trip was just one more example.

    Would the complaints and her personality have been an issue if she had been a man? Probably about her spending habits, but the personality issues, yes. What people like to call decisive leadership in a man is still regarded as being a nasty bitch in women.

    when people climb to the top of their game, it isn’t usually because they are such nice people. They now expect them to suddenly change their personalities? It may simply have been people didn’t like taking orders from Ms. Redford.

  8. Paul Brennan says:

    how and why do folks waste money like this ….easy to spend others money….

  9. Kre8tv says:

    Probably worth mentioning that an inability to neutralize her opponents in caucus had a lot to do with how this went down. It’s unfortunate. But politics seldom rewards the capable and good intentioned without first paying heed to the shrewd.

  10. smelter rat says:

    So Albertans are incensed about Redford’s spending, but happily give Harper a free pass on his? Got it.

    • Alberta Sux says:

      Stevie is a good ‘ol boy, Redford is a woman in the most redneck, mysogynistic, backwards province in Canada.

  11. Matt says:

    As a friend of mine who is from Alberta now living in Ontario said to me last night:

    “One down, Wynne to go.”

    Now, I’m no fan of Trudeau, but I would hope his team isn’t stupid enough to try and recruit Redford to run for the Libs.

  12. Lyndon Dunkley says:

    I was at a YWCA fundraiser last year with Redford and Gloria Steinem as the featured speakers in a “fireside chat” style. Steinem asked Redford what she would like to do if she wasn’t premier. Redford’s response was she would like to travel the world in some sort of human rights capacity. Nothing wrong with that response but not exactly the mindset one would expect from a conservative leader of the most conservative province in a centric country.

    I don’t follow Albertan provincial politics as closely as the myriad of far more interesting political situations in the world but I do seem to recall her election as leader was a bit of a surprise and was likely achieved through the votes of new, first time members who had never voted PC. It was likely believed by the more progressive factions in Alberta that it was easier to Manchurian Candidate someone into the PC party than to make the Liberals or ND’s electable here. Again, nothing wrong with using the system in place to achieve your own goals but it had to be clear to anyone with base intelligence that this was going to lead to significant problems with the remaining conservative faction in the PC party. Nothing to do with sexism, just the inevitably of a leader who’s core philosophical principles were at odds with the party and people she led.

    This will happen again in four years when Nenshi tries to do the same thing if he doesn’t go federal first.

    • WestGuy says:

      It didn’t take long for the whole “because she’s a woman” thing to start up. That might have some validity if she wasn’t a woman when she was elected party leader by the party and then elected premier by the voters, but she was, so it doesn’t.

      Redford was more of a left/centre leader, something we’re not used to in our Conservative party leadership and it showed. Where most Conservative governments in Canada see their primary opposition coming from the centre or left, the biggest source of opposition to the Alberta Tories was from the Right – The Wildrose Party. For the Tories to negate that opposition it would have had to move further right and there was a sense that wasn’t going to happen under Redford. The Wildrose was making points on the province’s use of debt financing for projects. Albertans worked hard to get its debt under control and any move to go back into debt didn’t sit well with most. There is a case to be made to debenture finance major projects like schools, hospitals and roads but the Tories did a bad job of explaining it and most people just lumped it into the “all debt is bad debt” category.

      Had Redford not resigned, the Wildrose would have likely won the next provincial election. They learned a lot of hard lessons the last time around and have been running a tight ship since then.

      • Alberta Sux says:

        If a man is a strong personality it’s OK. If it’s a woman, she’s mean, has temper tantrums and is a bully. Complete double standard. Redford is a victim of a redneck, sexist political insiders who couldn’t handle a strong successful woman in charge.

        • Greg from Calgary says:

          Well, Stephen Carter who, I dare say is probably a far better person when it comes to understanding the political landscape, calls bullshit on that.

        • WestGuy says:

          Danielle Smith is a woman. Where is her misogynist backlash because, according to your logic, there has to be one, what with her being a political party leader in Alberta.
          It is entirely possible that criticisms of Redford had nothing to do with her gender.

          • Greg from Calgary says:

            Redford’s criticisms began when she stepped away from the progressive agenda she was elected on. People outside the province forget how she turned on the unions who were a huge portion of getting her elected and agreed with her vision. Bills in Alberta that disallow unions from seeking arbitration means the gov’t can impose whatever settlement/wage freeze they like. It is even against the law to speak of an illegial strike. Not to do the strike, but just to speak of it. No free speech? Taking away all methods for workers to collectively bargin? If you declare war on the portion of the population which got you elected by taking extremely anti progressive stances then your time is soon up. They got her elected by effectively taking over the PC party and getting her elected leader. Then, progressives flocked to the PC party because, despite Raj Sherman who I think is a very capable Liberal leader and a principled politician, they saw this was their best chance to elect a gov’t which reflected their ideals.

            Instead she begins to go to war with them. So when she flies back on a private plane from palm springs while workers salaries are frozen and they risk breaking the law for even uttering the words “illegial strike” who is left to defend her?

            Stephen Carter called it right when he said bullshit about the women issue. She has not supported those who got her to the premiers office so when she screwed up she had no defenders all because of her own policies.

    • Matt says:

      Except Redford isn’t in any way a Conservative other than in name.

      She is a lawyer trained and groomed by the United Nations.

      The UN turned traveling the world on someone elses dime into an artform.

      • smelter rat says:

        Give your head a shake.

      • Lyndon Dunkley says:

        I think that’s a good point. In my circle, it wasn’t even so much who paid for her SA trip, it was more a question of why did she feel she needed to be there other than her own misguided sense of her importance.

        Did any other premier attend? Did she have a personal relationship with Mandela of which we weren’t aware? Or did she just need to shoulder rub in preparation for the next step in her career?

        • WestGuy says:

          I believe she helped Mandela draft the South African constitution so there was a valid reason for her being there. All of the people I talked to were proud of her connection to Mandela and no one I talked to (who knew about the connection) said she shouldn’t have gone. It was just the cost and the attitude toward that cost.

          • Matt says:

            Doesn’t explain why she felt the need to bill taxpayers for lavish accommodations and first class air home.

            CBC reported the Alberta PC’s are shitting bricks at what the expense tally will be for her recent India trip is going to be.

          • Lyndon Dunkley says:

            Of that, I was unaware and appreciate the correction.

      • Al in Cranbrook says:

        Yep!

        Speaking of “entitlement”, helluva an article and an insight into where it will get us to…

        http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/10390571/france-hollande-taxes-socialist-farrage.html

        “Entitlement” has become a culture unto its own right. And it is is as pervasive as it is insidious. To those wrapped inside of it, questions never occur to them such as, “How much will this cost?”, “Who is paying for this?”, and “Can we sustain this kind of spending?”

        Hence, “I have a RIGHT to…pick one, or pick all of ’em…a free education, a nice home, two cars in the garage, a big paying job, free medical, cheap energy to keep the lights on and the place warm, job security, and an old age pension to make sure I can keep living in the manner to which I have become accustomed to demanding a right to.

        And if I don’t get it, I’m going to march in the streets, smash windows, burn cars, and throw rocks at people! So there!

        Oh, and BTW…

        Screw Alberta/Saskatchewan and all the kabillions worth of taxes and employment they generate off their energy resources…’cause I also have a right to live in a perfect world that closely resembles Disneyland, but without ticket booth part.

    • Coelocanth_Jones says:

      I do remember seeing and reading news reports in 2011 wherein Non-Tories throughout Alberta bought PC memberships, just so they could vote for the next premier, and then threw out their membership cards as soon as they cast their ballots. Don’t know how much of a dent that could make, though

      • Matt says:

        There was an active campaign during the last Alberta election where the supporters of other parties were “holding their nose” to vote PC to stop Wild Rose from winning.

  13. !o! says:

    The Alberta PCs got too set in their ways. The party lost its dynamism with so many years of Ralph at the helm, and the steering wheel got stuck, they lost touch with their intellectual capital or grassroots infrastructure, so to speak. Old Boys club is pretty apt. I don’t think anyone doubts that the last election will probably be their last in power until they either completely rework themselves or merge/rebrand. Either way, things need a shakeup.

    I think there are some pretty clear parallels with the federal Conservatives as well. It just happened so much faster under Harper.

  14. John says:

    Gee, WK, now look what you started…

  15. e.a.f. says:

    it is kind of entertaining that while Harper had his limo flown to India and took a couple of hundred people with him on a junket to Israeli, no body wanted him to resign, but Redford has some travel plans others don’t agree with and she’s toast. Oh and then there was that MacKay fellow and the helicopters……….
    Ya, its o.k. if your a boy, if you’re a girl, not so much.
    When it comes to mean and nasty, well Harper sure beats them all and for just uncouth and foul mouthed, you have Rob Ford……..And now who was that M.P. who told another to “fuck off”……….
    You don’t elect party leaders because they are nice. You elect them because they are usually not that nice and can get the job done.

  16. Alberta Sux says:

    “Ya, its o.k. if your a boy, if you’re a girl, not so much.”

    Especially in redneck Alberta.

    • Greg from Calgary says:

      Stephen Carter who knows far more about politics than you do having successfully run Redford’s Clark’s and Nenshi’s campaigns calls that exact argument bullshit.

  17. steve says:

    How come the PM can double his cost of security but is still safe, an extra ten million a year should create some interest. Especially if the line by line breaks down as rumoured.

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