Connect with us

Opinion

NDP and Greens formed government in B.C. The Alberta Liberals and the Alberta Party will merge? For 2019 election all four parties should merge in Alberta.

Published

14 minute read

The 30th general election of Alberta, Canada, will elect members to the Legislative Assembly of Alberta. It will take place on or before May 31, 2019.
We currently have the Alberta New Democratic Party in government. They went from being an opposing party with the Liberals and the Wildrose parties against the ruling conservative dynasty to forming government in 2015. What do we know?

From wikipedia;
The Alberta New Democratic Party or Alberta NDP is a social-democratic political party in Alberta, Canada, which succeeded the Alberta section of the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation and the even earlier Alberta wing of the Canadian Labour Party and the United Farmers of Alberta. From the mid-1980s to 2004, the party abbreviated its name as the “New Democrats” (ND).
The party achieved Official Opposition status in the Legislative Assembly of Alberta from 1986 to 1993. It was swept out of the legislature in 1993 and spent the next two decades in the political wilderness. While it managed to get back into the legislature in 1997, it never won more than four seats. Its time on the fringe of Alberta politics ended in the 2015 provincial election, when it won 54 of the 87 seats in the legislature to form the government of Alberta for the first time. Until 2015, Alberta had been the only province in western Canada—the party’s birthplace—where the NDP had never governed at the provincial level.

Not a lot there, and little about mission and visions on their website. The election is in 19 months so we may learn more about their plans for the future. The Calgary Herald has a poll that shows that if the election was held today, the United Conservative Party would handily win.

How does a former fringe party which campaigns on the left and centre combat the right wing remnants of the former conservative dynasty? Here’s an idea, unite the left and centre parties.
In British Columbia the NDP and the Greens have a union in government. The Alberta Party and the Alberta Liberal Party are almost a union in almost every way except by formality. Why not merge?

Let us look at the Alberta Party, the Alberta Liberal Party and the Alberta Green Party, their missions and see if there is any common ground. I think there is but it is up to politicians to decide to work together or go their separate ways.

Starting with the Alberta Party;

From Wikipedia:

The Alberta Party, formally the Alberta Party Political Association, is a political party in the province of Alberta, Canada. The party describes itself as a centrist and pragmatic party that is not dogmatically ideological in its approach to politics.
For most of its history the Alberta Party was a right-wing organization, until the rise of the Wildrose Alliance as Alberta’s main conservative alternative to the governing Progressive Conservatives attracted away the Alberta Party’s more conservative members. This left a small rump of more left-wing members in control of the Alberta Party. In 2010 the Alberta Party board voted to merge with Renew Alberta, a progressive group that had been organizing to form a new political party in Alberta. The Alberta Party thus shed its conservative past for a more centrist political outlook. The party has been cited in The Globe and Mail and The Economist as part of the break in one-party politics in Alberta.

From The Alberta Party website;

Vision;
We will form a government committed to diversity, integrity, transparency and collaboration. As leaders of positive change, we value inclusiveness, ideas over ideologies, and champion economic, environmental and social responsibility.

Mission
We will:
Model responsible and ethical government.
Generate and implement practical, constructive solutions through listening, citizen engagement, evidence-based policy and building common ground.
Tackle tough issues facing Albertans by examining root causes and maintaining a long-term view of prosperity and sustainability.
Act as guardians of the public interest.
Conduct ourselves in an open, transparent and accountable manner.
Steadfastly refuse to engage in short-sighted, politically motivated, partisan politics.
Provide economic, environmental and social leadership in order to benefit Alberta, Canada and the world.

The Alberta Party is committed to building a policy framework that is based on the following six key values:

1) Prosperity
We believe that private enterprise and entrepreneurship are the keys to our economic success. The government should foster an environment which facilitates economic investment, reduces red tape and encourages creativity.

2) Fiscal Responsibility
We believe that government must use public dollars as effectively and efficiently as possible. The government should balance the books and set aside money for a rainy day. This is best accomplished through long-term planning, common sense and transparency.

3) Social Responsibility
We believe every Albertan deserves the opportunity to succeed. Our government should aspire to provide excellent and innovative public education, public health care, and infrastructure, as well as a compassionate helping hand in times of need. We believe this can be accomplished through responsible use of public funds.

4) Sustainability
We believe that sustainability must be a core value of government. Rethinking unsustainable practices, making strategic investments in research and technology, and implementing smart policy choices will protect and enhance our environment for future generations.

5) Democracy
We believe that public business should be conducted in public. Government should ensure that the legislative process is open, fair, transparent and inclusive of the people it governs. Our government should foster debate, actively engage citizens, and make itself accountable to the people it serves.

6) Quality of life
We believe that a great quality of life requires strong communities. Through support of recreation, sports, arts and culture, government can help to build strong and vibrant communities.

Let us look at the Alberta Liberal Party;

From Wikipedia;
The Alberta Liberal Party is a provincial political party in Alberta, Canada. Founded in 1905, it was the dominant political party until the 1921 election, with the first three provincial Premiers being Liberals. Since 1921, it has formed the official opposition in the Legislative Assembly of Alberta several times, most recently from 1993 until 2012.

From the Alberta Liberal Party website;

The Alberta Liberal Party has been working for Albertans since 1905 and we believe that we must champion our strong values in government. We are fiscally-prudent, a party that proudly supports socially progressive change, and that cares deeply about our stewardship of the environment. We believe that it is our duty to run effective and efficient governments, that respects the autonomy of the individual, and that safeguards the environment. This way we build both a strong society and a vibrant economy.

1) Equal Opportunity
Liberals oppose both privilege and prejudice. Everyone should have as equal as possible an opportunity to participate in society, enjoying equal rights and freedoms, and sharing responsibilities.

2) Free Enterprise
Alberta Liberals have faith in the free enterprise system. Through it, the widest number of opportunities are provided, the greatest number of needs are satisfied, and initiative is most rewarded. Nevertheless, the market system is not perfect. The government has a role to play in preventing exploitation, protecting consumers and preserving the environment. Government also has a role to play in facilitating economic development and competition, and serving public needs which the private sector cannot or will not meet.

3) Fiscal Responsibility
Alberta Liberals believe that government has an obligation to manage the affairs of the province in a prudent and responsible manner. Wasteful spending threatens essential government programs such as health care and education for today’s constituents, and fairness dictates that future generations not be burdened with our debts.

4) Environmental Responsibility
Alberta Liberals believe that the protection of the environment is essential to the longterm health of our planet and ourselves, and to our quality of life. Environmental policy must look beyond a traditional view of economics to reflect the cultural and spiritual importance of the environment in our lives. Responsible policy-makers must consider the environment a sacred trust.

5) Change
Liberals have always been reformers. We seek to improve the system as we search for ways of improving the human condition. We are not afraid to initiate change. Without compromising our principles, our search for solutions is driven not by rigid ideology but by the question, “What is best?”

Thirdly let us look at the Green Party of Canada;

From Wikipedia;
The Green Party of Alberta is a registered political party in Alberta, Canada, that is allied with the Green Party of Canada, and the other provincial Green parties. The party was registered by Elections Alberta on December 22, 2011, to replace the deregistered Alberta Greens, and ran its first candidates for office in the 2012 provincial election under the name Evergreen Party of Alberta. The party changed its name to “Green Party of Alberta” on November 1, 2012.

From Green Party of Alberta website;

Mission
To participate in Alberta electoral politics with the aim of having such a provincial government come to power;
To educate Albertans as to the need for a government committed to Green principles
The Green Party of Alberta is committed to the 6 principles of the world-wide Green Party movement:

1) Ecological wisdom
Human beings are part of the natural world and we respect the specific value of all forms of life.

2)Non-violence
We are committed to non-violence and cooperation between states, inside societies and between individuals

3) Participatory democracy
In a healthy democracy all citizens have the right to express their views and are able to directly participate in the environmental, economic, social and political decisions which affect their lives

4) Respect for diversity
We honour all forms of diversity – for example, racial, linguistic, ethnic, sexual, religious and spiritual – within the context of individual responsibility toward all beings.

5) Social justice
We honour all forms of diversity – for example, racial, linguistic, ethnic, sexual, religious and spiritual – within the context of individual responsibility toward all beings.

6) Sustainability
We recognize the limited scope for the material expansion of society within the biosphere and the need to maintain biodiversity through the sustainable use of renewable resources.

Each of the party has differences in goals and priorities but they have enough similarities. Is it enough to form a coalition or corroborative government? Can they step away from egos and work together to offer an option to the United Conservative Party? Will we be sliding into another 40 year conservative dynasty? We will find out in May 2019.

Follow Author

Censorship Industrial Complex

Australian politicians attack Elon Musk for refusing to remove video of Orthodox bishop’s stabbing

Published on

Photo by Leon Neal/Getty Images

From LifeSiteNews

By David James

The video is available on YouTube but Australia’s political class is singling out and waging war on X owner Elon Musk for his refusal to delete footage of the stabbing of Orthodox Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel.

In a demonstration of governmental overreach the Australian prime minister, Anthony Albanese, has attacked Elon Musk, the owner of X (formerly Twitter) for not acceding to demands to put a worldwide ban on video footage of an attempted stabbing of a bishop in a Sydney church.

Albanese is not alone; virtually the entire Australian political class has joined in the attack. Tanya Plibersek, minister for Environment and Water called Musk an “egotistical billionaire.” Greens senator Sarah Hanson-Young described him as a “narcissistic cowboy.” Albanese chimed in by describing him as an “arrogant billionaire who thinks he’s above the law.”

Senator Jacqui Lambie went as far as suggesting that Musk be “jailed” for his refusal to bend to the demands of the Australian government.  

In response to Lambie’s comments, Musk declared her to be an “enemy of the people of Australia,” agreeing with another social media user who suggested it should be Lambie, not Musk, who belongs in jail.

The right wing Liberal-National coalition was only slightly less aggressive saying Musk was offering an “insulting and offensive argument” in his refusal to remove graphic footage of the stabbing. How Musk saying that posts should not be taken down is “insulting and offensive” was not explained.

The victim of the attack, Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel, an Iraqi-born Assyrian Australian prelate who is head of the Eastern Christ the Good Shepherd Church, has displayed a maturity and moral virtue conspicuously lacking in the political arena. Emmanuel recorded a message saying that he loved his assailant, and that he wanted the video to stay online, urging people not to respond to violence with violence.

After the incident there were riots outside the church, resulting in 51 officers sustaining injuries. A 16-year-old boy has been arrested and charged with a religiously motivated terrorist attack.

That formulation is inaccurate. There is no effective protection of free speech in Australia, unlike the US, which has the First Amendment of the Constitution. The Federal government is currently preparing a misinformation and disinformation bill to force social media companies only to allow content of which the government approves.

As Senator Ralph Babet of the United Australia Party observes it is a “censorship agenda” that will be pushed no matter which party is in power. “The office of the eSafety commissioner was created under the Liberal Party and is now being emboldened by the Labor Party,” he writes.

The public battle with Musk is better seen as an attempt by the Australian government to control what is on the internet. The newly appointed eSafety commissioner, Julie Inman-Grant directed X to remove the posts, but X had only blocked them from access in Australia pending a legal challenge. The government then demanded that the posts be removed world-wide.

That the Australian political class thinks it has the right to issue edicts in countries where it has no legal jurisdiction is a demonstration of the lack of clarity in their thinking, and the intensity of their obsession with censoring.

Musk accurately characterised the situation in a post: “Should the eSafety Commissar (an unelected official) in Australia have authority over all countries on Earth?” It seems that many Australian politicians think the answer to that question is “Yes.”

The childish personal attacks on Musk, typical ad hominem attacks (going at the person rather than the argument) are revealing. What does the fact that Musk is a billionaire have to do with the legal status of the posts? Does having a lot of money somehow disqualify him from having a position?

If he is “egotistical” or “arrogant” what does that have to do with his logical or legal claims? How does exposing Musk as a narcissistic cowboy” have any relevance to him allowing content on the platform? Wouldn’t a narcissist be more likely to restrict content? The suspicion is that the politicians are resorting to such abuse because they have no argument.

The Australian government’s attack on Musk, which borders on the absurd, is just one of many being directed at X. An especially dangerous initiative is coming from the European Union’s Digital Services Act, which can apply fines of up to 6 per cent of the worldwide annual turnover, a ridiculously punitive amount. The United Kingdom’s communications regulator, Ofcom is even worse. It will have powers to fine companies up to 10 per cent of their global turnover.

Western governments are mounting an all out push to censor the internet, and Australia’s aggressive move is just part of that. What is never considered by governments and bureaucrats is the cost of such censorship.

The benefits of “protecting” people are always overstated and inevitably infantilize the population. The price is a degradation of social institutions and a legal system that does not apply equally to the citizenry and to the government. It is a step towards tyranny: rule by law rather than rule of law.

Continue Reading

Business

UN plastics plans are unscientific and unrealistic

Published on

News release from the Coalition of Concerned Manufacturers and Businesses of Canada

“We must focus on practical solutions and upgrading our recycling infrastructure, not ridiculous restrictions that will harm our health care system, sanitary food supply, increase costs and endanger Canadians’ safety, among other downsides.”

This week Ottawa welcomes 4,000 delegates from the United Nations to discuss how they will oversee a reduction and even possible elimination of plastics from our lives. The key problem is no one has ever figured out how they will replace this essential component of our modern economy and society. The Coalition of Concerned Manufacturers and Businesses of Canada (CCMBC) has launched an information campaign to discuss the realities of plastic, how it contributes massively to our society and the foolishness of those who think plastics can be eliminated or greatly reduced without creating serious problems for key industries such as health care, sanitary food provision, many essential consumer products and safety/protective equipment, among others. CCMBC President Catherine Swift said “The key goal should be to keep plastics in the economy and out of the environment, not eliminate many valuable and irreplaceable plastic items. The plastics and petrochemical industries represent about 300,000 jobs and tens of billions contribution to GDP in Canada, and are on a growth trend.”

The UN campaign to ban plastics to date has been thwarted by reality and facts. UN efforts to eliminate plastics began in 2017, motivated by such terrible images as rivers with massive amounts of floating plastic and animals suffering from negative effects of plastic materials. Although these images were dramatic and disturbing, they do not represent the big picture of what is really happening and do not take into account the many ways plastics are hugely positive elements of modern society. Swift added “Furthermore, Canada is not one of the problem countries with respect to plastics waste. Developing countries are the main culprits and any solution must involve helping the leading plastics polluters find workable solutions and better recycling technology and practices.”

The main goal of plastic is to preserve and protect. Can you imagine health care without sanitary, flexible, irreplaceable and recyclable plastic products? How would we keep our food fresh, clean and healthy without plastic wraps and packaging? Plastic replaces many heavier and less durable materials in so many consumer products too numerous to count. Plastics help the environment by reducing food waste, replacing heavier materials in automobiles and other products that make them more energy-efficient. Many plastics are infinitely recyclable and innovations are taking place to improve them constantly. What is also less known is that most of the replacements for plastics are more expensive and actually worse for the environment.

Swift stated “Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault has been convinced by the superficial arguments that plastics are always bad despite the facts. He has pursued a campaign against all plastics as a result, without factoring in the reality of the immense value of plastic products and that nothing can replace their many attributes. Fortunately, the Canadian Federal court overturned his absurd ban on a number of plastic products on the basis that it was unscientific, impractical and impinged upon provincial jurisdiction.” Sadly, Guilbeault and his Liberal cohorts plan to appeal this legal decision despite its common-sense conclusions. Opinion polls of Canadians show that a strong majority would prefer this government abandon its plastics crusade at this point, but history shows these Liberals prefer pursuing their unrealistic and costly ideologies instead of policies that Canadians support.

The bottom line is that plastics are an essential part of our modern society and opposition has been based on erroneous premises and ill-informed environmentalist claims. Swift concluded “Canada’s record on plastics is one of the best in the world. This doesn’t mean the status quo is sufficient, but we must focus on practical solutions and upgrading our recycling infrastructure, not ridiculous restrictions that will harm our health care system, sanitary food supply, increase costs and endanger Canadians’ safety, among other downsides.” The current Liberal government approach is one that has no basis in fact or science and emphasizes virtue-signaling over tangible and measurable results.  Swift noted “The UN’s original founding purpose after World War II was to prevent another world war. Given our fractious international climate, they should stick to their original goal instead of promoting social justice warrior causes that are unhelpful and expensive.”

The CCMBC was formed in 2016 with a mandate to advocate for proactive and innovative policies that are conducive to manufacturing and business retention and safeguarding job growth in Canada.

SOURCE Coalition of Concerned Manufacturers and Businesses of Canada

Continue Reading

Trending

X