THIS is why...

To a lot of people in other parties, or not in politics at all, the admiration that I and many of my fellow conservatives hold for Prime Minister Stephen Harper is, well, bizarre.

The Stephen Harper that most people "know" (know being a loose term for perception delivered through most of the mainstream media) is not someone they can feel the can relate to.

To those people, I suggest you READ AND WATCH THIS story on ctv.ca.

If it doesn't sum up the Stephen Harper that i've been proud to support, i'm not sure what will.

How (not) to fail

Whether you live in a small town or a big city, and whether it is experiencing growing pains or economic or social downturn, you need to READ THIS.

Doug Griffiths is one of the smartest people sitting in our Legislature... a beacon of youthful energy and common sense.

Things like How (not) to fail are among the many reasons why, whether you're an ardent follower of Alberta politics or just someone who's concerned about our province's future, you should remember the name Doug Griffiths.

This and that

I've received a number of private comments that I haven't blogged in a while. For that I apologize... we're a little busy up here securing Canada's energy future and all.

Seriously though, i've been waiting for something big enough to warrant a rant. I have yet to stumble upon that, so instead I offer a smattering of opinions for your reading pleasure:

• I'm VERY happy that the Provincial Government is finally going to twin Highway 63. Infrastructure Minister Lyle Oberg and our MLA Guy Boutilier have delivered on a long-standing promise and I say three cheers to them. I also tip my hat to them for an excellent tete-a-tete with some local Conservatives late last week. It was informative and beneficial for all concerned.

• I'm not so happy, however, with some rumblings at Wood Buffalo Municipal Council surrounding a proposed project accomodation (read: camp) for construction workers who will be building the massive expansion at MacDonald Island Park. While the mental image of a stereotypical work camp in the middle of town is not appealing, I think there is a great deal of misinformation spreading around. This is NOT to be an open, free-for-all camp where any worker can bunk. It is intended only for the 250 people who will be working on the Mac Island expansion and WILL BE LOCATED on MacDonald Island, adjacent to the work site. Based on the reaction from some people, you would think that they're transferring inmates from the Bowden Institute up here. The facts are simple: There are no rental accomodations/hotels available for a sudden temporary influx of 250 workers for an in-town project. To accomodate them in out-of-town camps will add approximately $8 milllion in cost to the project. We need this expansion soon, and we need it with as little cost overrun as possible... some people seem intent on just the opposite.

• The men lost at hockey. Big deal. Gretz picked a crappy team and it showed. Get over it. Why? Because, in case you haven't hear, WE WON IN EVERYTHING ELSE.

Misplaced blame

I'm going to start off with a disclaimer: I'm a proud Western Standard subscriber.

I subscribe not just because the magazine has a conservative viewpoint, but because it seems to be unbound by the censorship and thought-policing that plagues so much of Canada's mainstream media.

The Western Standard has been very much in the news for two articles in its two latest issues: one on the Danish cartoons depicting the Prophet Muhammad, and the other about Premier and Colleen Klein and speculation on the Premier's retirement date.

In the past few days, the magazine has taken much flak from people who have climbed the lately-popular "mole hill of righteous indignation". They claim that the Western Standard is a racist publication. There have been protests and certain outlets have stopped carrying the magazine.

Only in Canada, folks.

First of all, I have a hard time with this suggestion that the Western Standard is run by racists. Its publisher, Ezra Levant, is a proud member of Calgary's Jewish community... which leads one to think that he may just understand the importance of tolerance. Ezra is many things... persistent... intense... staunchly conservative... but this man is quite clearly NOT a bigot, nor does he promote such attitudes.

What people are forgetting in all of this is that the Western Standard is NOT THE SOURCE of the offending material. Rather, they are merely passing it along because of they are part of greater public debates.

Now don't get me wrong, i'm not onside with those who did produce this stuff.

I don't find cartoons mocking a religious figure who is revered by millions of faithful believers to be tasteful... that goes for Muhammad, Buddha, Vishnu, Jesus Christ, etc.

I also find referring to Mrs. Klein as "just another Indian" to be very distasteful... particularily since Mrs. Klein and the Premier have always been very supportive of me personally, even when others were not.

But, as Ezra Levant points out in a well-written blog, if people want to get at the root of the problem, they should start taking issue with the person who drew those Danish cartoons and with the supposed "friend" of the Klein's who made the reference to Mrs. Klein. And i'm obviously not the only one who thinks so, as evidenced here.

Speaking of issues, you should pick up the latest Western Standard.

Three things...

I've been busy and sick this week, so not much time to post. I did want to make a quick comment on 3 things, though:

• Unless you live under a rock, you should by now know that the infamous cartoons depicting the Prophet Muhammad have been printed in the upcoming issue of the Western Standard. I had refrained from commenting on it earlier because, frankly, I didn't want to touch the subject. I was, at first, happy that Canadian media chose not to reprint the cartoons. In defending his decision to publish them, though, Western Standard Publisher Ezra Levant made some very good points. I'm now firmly undecided on the issue. Whatever peoples' stance is, I think we can all be glad that Canada's Muslim community has reacted in a relatively calm manner.

• Who the hell cares? I mean, really. Yes, its very unfortunate that the Vice President accidentally shot a friend and we're all glad he's ok... but where does the media get off bitching that Cheney didn't tell the media soon enough. If I were out hunting and accidentally shot my friend, my first thoughts wouldn't be "geez, I should get the press release started... I wonder how we're gonna spin this"... I think they would be more along the lines of "holy crap I just shot my buddy, God let us save him". Sure, he's the Vice President of the United States... but when it comes to personal things like this I think people would do well to be reminded that he's still human and that he still drinks beer out of the same hand that you and I do.

• Most importantly, though, a patriarch of my family was laid to rest in Sudbury today. My great uncle Rene Boucher succumbed to a long illness this past Saturday. He was a wonderful man with a fabulous sense of humour and musical talent to match. We all had the chance to see him in October when he was let out of hospital so he could be with us at my grandmother's (his sister) funeral and get once last chat with him. I'll sure miss the guitar at family reunions, but i'm sure that the jam session "upstairs" just got a whole lot more entertaining! Bon voyage mon oncle... votre repos est bien mérité!

A picture is worth 1000 words...

TGIF

Between coughing and weary bones I feel like i'm about 80 years old today, so today's post is going to be brief.

THIS is by far the best article i've read about the Emerson thing yet.

I'm leaving for southern Alberta tonight for a PC Alberta exec meeting tomorrow. Hopefully i'll have some news to report back from that.

Have a nice weekend!