That’s how I had been looking at it. But stability even with a deficit would be better than what we have now. I’m really hoping the Tories can get things together and form a true alternative choice. If they step out and start criticizing smith like a government in waiting, at least we’d finally have some actual opposition.
Balancing the budget will require fundamental reform to delivery of provincial services. This will involve conflict with the public sector unions. The NDP dramatically over values public sector unions as stakeholders. I doubt any third party will ever achieve enough scale to matter.
Pick your poison, cut services or increase taxes. good luck with that. re: then entire mess all western democracies currently have. neither is politically acceptable to voters and therefore you are screwed.
As with Brexit, what could go wrong indeed? Let's continue to support Albertans regardless. Lived in Calgary as a kid, many weeks in Suffield and Wainwright in the Army. Family members still live there. How many more years of Smith?
We could negotiate those things if we wanted. We don’t want most of them. Which makes this a silly question. Not to mention we don’t have the same legal system as Quebec either.
As someone who also writes a few words for a living, the line about how the questions viscerally offend is more than just lively prose. Our bodies know attempts to obfuscate when we encounter them. If the premier wants a clear mandate (if ?) there were thousands of ways those questions could be asked with clarity. So my suspicious side wonders why they didn’t just write simple statements that most voters would understand on first reading—and what that says about what is going on behind the scenes.
We see this attempt to engineer the result BS almost every time a government is forced to, or browbeat into a referendum. The awkward word smithing brought to bear underlines pure self-interest, and I think it's pretty transparent. I also suspect in many cases it's even counterproductive to the goal, further proof these folks maybe shouldn't be deciding strategy for any of us.
The referenda, despite being nonsensical, serve four purposes :
1) flood the zone to distract from the possible separation question
2) up the stakes so that the Feds absolutely must follow through on the terms of the MOU as well as repeal the tanker ban. Anything that the Carney government does to impede energy exports will inflame emotions and turn all of the questions into "Do you hate Ottawa?"
3) delay a federal election call. See number 2 above. A Liberal majority in 2000 lead to the Firewall Letter. Rubbing Albertans' noses yet again in their electoral impotentcy risks an explosive outcome
4) maximize leverage during sensitive CUSMA negotiations. The last thing the Carney government needs is fractured unity. If the PQ wins the Quebec election, if will need to do something to quell Alberta separation. That something is very easy: take the electoral hit and expedite energy export infrastructure and remove federal barriers to increased energy production
The Smith government has its own motivations for the confuserenda, mainly placating the separatist wing and distracting from its massive deficit. But for the four reasons above, timing is in its favor so best to exploit circumstances. Potential blowback from other provinces isn't much of a concern as Alberta has never had allies apart from SK, and likely never will.
These are just additional rings in the UCPs antidemocratic, authoritarian and retrograde governance circus.
Over estimating oil prices and underestimating expenses is a chronic mistake that started with Getty. Yes Klein "fixed" it but left an infrastructure deficit that we continue to struggle with.
Unfortunately the consumption tax that would stabilize things, and let us put windfalls into the HTF, is ingrained as such an "enemy" of Alberta that we mere mention causes apoplexy amongst the chattering classes.
Those who whine about the HTF in comparison to Norways wealth fund need to understand that the general sales tax (VAT) is 25%.
A 5% PST in Alberta would go a long way towards getting off the roller coaster but we'd prefer to be angry rather than logical out here?
I suspect Smith is betting on rising oil and gas prices. Given geopolitical instability, rising energy consumption from AI and US shale rolling over, I would take that bet.
Topic came up at the dinner table last night. My son thought it was a great idea. I told him about what it does and doesn’t have the power to change and Smith’s complaining letter about the reduced immigration. He then called her a liar and the conversation was over soon after that.
It’s good marketing to people who are conservative. But it doesn’t stand up to the light of day for even 5 minutes and is just a waste of taxpayer money.
I think it’s also notable she wants to do it separate from an election - meaning the referendum itself is hugely expensive and is a waste of money.
For me, this reads like a risk-averse federalist critique. It seems to me that Smith wants a return to constitutional talks, but it looks nobody wants to do that for fear of what ... Quebec separatism for the thousandth time? What is happening in Alberta is a movement and I am anxious to see what their petition total is. I wouldn't even venture to offer a number.
Referendums signal instability to markets. Another thing that signals instability to markets is the instability of having a disunited Canada going through a national unity crisis. It is not a "dumb" political stunt with high risks. It's a negotiation pressure point to force federal reform. Does it stir up anger among the population? Probably. But the status quo is doing the same thing.
A return to the table is badly needed and yep it might upset Quebec. That does not take much work, in my opinion. There is huge risk for Canada right now at home and geopolitically. At the end of the day, it looks like Smith is saying that Alberta wants the same deal as Quebec. I wonder why Alberta shouldn't have the same deal?
We have to negotiate to keep this country together now more than ever. All its going to take to introduce utter chaos is Trump even musing about recognizing Alberta independence. That might happen and that scares the crap out of me.
A final note. I think a great deal of the vitriol aimed at Smith is because she is a woman.
The stakes are high and the Feds must expedite export pipelines and remove all other barriers to increased energy production as a gesture of good faith. Ten years of games have lead to this
She seems somewhat intelligent and well-spoken. But not too politically bright. The referendum is a hate producer not a steam reducer. Let off steam so to speak. Must be her media background that she actually thinks it will solve some issues and reduce tensions. It will be exactly the opposite.
I wish people would stop sniping at Premier Smith for “pivoting on Immigration”. What Alberta needs are the right kind of immigrants (including those from other provinces) who are qualified, prepared to work hard and make a positive contribution to society, and pay taxes. What Alberta does not need is a flood of unqualified, unvetted non-English speaking welfare hounds of the kind admitted under the Trudeau regime. So I don’t see a pivot here.
COULD WE JUST BALANCE THE GODDAMN BUDGET, PLEASE?! JG
Agreed. Unfortunately the NDP alternative is unlikely to do better
That’s how I had been looking at it. But stability even with a deficit would be better than what we have now. I’m really hoping the Tories can get things together and form a true alternative choice. If they step out and start criticizing smith like a government in waiting, at least we’d finally have some actual opposition.
Balancing the budget will require fundamental reform to delivery of provincial services. This will involve conflict with the public sector unions. The NDP dramatically over values public sector unions as stakeholders. I doubt any third party will ever achieve enough scale to matter.
Pick your poison, cut services or increase taxes. good luck with that. re: then entire mess all western democracies currently have. neither is politically acceptable to voters and therefore you are screwed.
As with Brexit, what could go wrong indeed? Let's continue to support Albertans regardless. Lived in Calgary as a kid, many weeks in Suffield and Wainwright in the Army. Family members still live there. How many more years of Smith?
Smith has many years ahead. The NDP has more or less been absent under Nenshi and will be dragged down further if Lewis leads the federal NDP
Sigh
We just need one referendum question:
"Should Alberta have all the same rights and privileges as Quebec currently receives?"
If Alberta was treated the same as Quebec there wouldn't be a separatist movement. A separation referendum is the most obvious point from A to B.
That Ottawa doesn't accept this just shows Albertans that they aren't as valued as Quebec unless they behave like Quebec.
We could negotiate those things if we wanted. We don’t want most of them. Which makes this a silly question. Not to mention we don’t have the same legal system as Quebec either.
As someone who also writes a few words for a living, the line about how the questions viscerally offend is more than just lively prose. Our bodies know attempts to obfuscate when we encounter them. If the premier wants a clear mandate (if ?) there were thousands of ways those questions could be asked with clarity. So my suspicious side wonders why they didn’t just write simple statements that most voters would understand on first reading—and what that says about what is going on behind the scenes.
We see this attempt to engineer the result BS almost every time a government is forced to, or browbeat into a referendum. The awkward word smithing brought to bear underlines pure self-interest, and I think it's pretty transparent. I also suspect in many cases it's even counterproductive to the goal, further proof these folks maybe shouldn't be deciding strategy for any of us.
The referenda, despite being nonsensical, serve four purposes :
1) flood the zone to distract from the possible separation question
2) up the stakes so that the Feds absolutely must follow through on the terms of the MOU as well as repeal the tanker ban. Anything that the Carney government does to impede energy exports will inflame emotions and turn all of the questions into "Do you hate Ottawa?"
3) delay a federal election call. See number 2 above. A Liberal majority in 2000 lead to the Firewall Letter. Rubbing Albertans' noses yet again in their electoral impotentcy risks an explosive outcome
4) maximize leverage during sensitive CUSMA negotiations. The last thing the Carney government needs is fractured unity. If the PQ wins the Quebec election, if will need to do something to quell Alberta separation. That something is very easy: take the electoral hit and expedite energy export infrastructure and remove federal barriers to increased energy production
The Smith government has its own motivations for the confuserenda, mainly placating the separatist wing and distracting from its massive deficit. But for the four reasons above, timing is in its favor so best to exploit circumstances. Potential blowback from other provinces isn't much of a concern as Alberta has never had allies apart from SK, and likely never will.
Also hoping Jason Kenny comments.
The Iron Lady and Atlee were right.
These are just additional rings in the UCPs antidemocratic, authoritarian and retrograde governance circus.
Over estimating oil prices and underestimating expenses is a chronic mistake that started with Getty. Yes Klein "fixed" it but left an infrastructure deficit that we continue to struggle with.
Unfortunately the consumption tax that would stabilize things, and let us put windfalls into the HTF, is ingrained as such an "enemy" of Alberta that we mere mention causes apoplexy amongst the chattering classes.
Those who whine about the HTF in comparison to Norways wealth fund need to understand that the general sales tax (VAT) is 25%.
A 5% PST in Alberta would go a long way towards getting off the roller coaster but we'd prefer to be angry rather than logical out here?
A PST would also change how we fared in the equalization payment calculations.
How? The appropriate change would be including below market electricity, tuition and car insurance as unused fiscal capacity.
Did she actually blame low oil prices?!
Omg, does the woman understand household budgets include both incoming and outgoing? Imma gonna guess every other Albertan does.
Maybe she's just dumb (as opposed to cynical, condescending, lol.)
I suspect Smith is betting on rising oil and gas prices. Given geopolitical instability, rising energy consumption from AI and US shale rolling over, I would take that bet.
I agree. The referendum
Topic came up at the dinner table last night. My son thought it was a great idea. I told him about what it does and doesn’t have the power to change and Smith’s complaining letter about the reduced immigration. He then called her a liar and the conversation was over soon after that.
It’s good marketing to people who are conservative. But it doesn’t stand up to the light of day for even 5 minutes and is just a waste of taxpayer money.
I think it’s also notable she wants to do it separate from an election - meaning the referendum itself is hugely expensive and is a waste of money.
That wasn't a run-on sentence. It was a long sentence, but it was grammatically sound.
It appears you disagree rather vehemently with the questions posed.
For me, this reads like a risk-averse federalist critique. It seems to me that Smith wants a return to constitutional talks, but it looks nobody wants to do that for fear of what ... Quebec separatism for the thousandth time? What is happening in Alberta is a movement and I am anxious to see what their petition total is. I wouldn't even venture to offer a number.
Referendums signal instability to markets. Another thing that signals instability to markets is the instability of having a disunited Canada going through a national unity crisis. It is not a "dumb" political stunt with high risks. It's a negotiation pressure point to force federal reform. Does it stir up anger among the population? Probably. But the status quo is doing the same thing.
A return to the table is badly needed and yep it might upset Quebec. That does not take much work, in my opinion. There is huge risk for Canada right now at home and geopolitically. At the end of the day, it looks like Smith is saying that Alberta wants the same deal as Quebec. I wonder why Alberta shouldn't have the same deal?
We have to negotiate to keep this country together now more than ever. All its going to take to introduce utter chaos is Trump even musing about recognizing Alberta independence. That might happen and that scares the crap out of me.
A final note. I think a great deal of the vitriol aimed at Smith is because she is a woman.
The stakes are high and the Feds must expedite export pipelines and remove all other barriers to increased energy production as a gesture of good faith. Ten years of games have lead to this
These Alberta referendum questions sound like they were written by the same person who does obituaries for Associated Press.
She seems somewhat intelligent and well-spoken. But not too politically bright. The referendum is a hate producer not a steam reducer. Let off steam so to speak. Must be her media background that she actually thinks it will solve some issues and reduce tensions. It will be exactly the opposite.
Well said Jen!!
I wish people would stop sniping at Premier Smith for “pivoting on Immigration”. What Alberta needs are the right kind of immigrants (including those from other provinces) who are qualified, prepared to work hard and make a positive contribution to society, and pay taxes. What Alberta does not need is a flood of unqualified, unvetted non-English speaking welfare hounds of the kind admitted under the Trudeau regime. So I don’t see a pivot here.