Ralph Klein is about to drop the writ for a provincial election in Alberta. The pressing need for this election can be discerned from the following Globe and Mail excerpt:
The election, expected to be called in Edmonton this morning for Nov. 22, comes just three years after the last one — timing that political observers says best serves Mr. Klein. With Alberta’s centenary next year, which will include a visit by the Queen, Mr. Klein is securing his fourth term at an opportune moment, before likely stepping down in late 2005 or 2006.
Thanks to outrageous oil revenues, Alberta is debt free and flush with cash. Does Klein have a vision to campaign on? Does he have any grand plans, such as overhauling the Alberta tax system, or massive investments in new public services or technical innovations?
Apparently not. According to the Premier, the government is on auto-pilot…which is about the best way to describe the most horrendous, myopic, stagnant Conservative government in Canada.
Conservatives want government to be just big enough to fit in a box, underneath the bed. Conservatives aren’t interested in building things, grand visions, new ideas, or innovation. All they want to do is sit back, shake the revenue tree, count the money, and coast along, letting fate take care of everything else.
Do Albertans actually like this philosophy of government? It boggles the mind!
According to Lisa Young, a political scientist at the University of Calgary, there is a “significant current of discontent in Alberta politics,” but “it has difficulty expressing itself electorally.” That’s certainly an understatement, considering that the Conservatives have ruled Alberta since 1971, with only 3 leaders…that’s 33 consecutive years, ladies and gentlemen. Even the Liberals only managed 22 consecuitve years in Ottawa!
“Vote for me, the government is on auto-pilot” isn’t exactly a stirring clarion call for an election. Klein could be honest, and use the slogan “Vote for me, I’m a red-necked, homophobic, homeless-beating son-of-a-bitch”, but I think he’ll pass on that phrase. Either way, it’s a government that’s run out of ideas and ambition, at a time when Canada is going through a substantial metamorphosis in terms of fiscal and social relationships between the Federal and Provincial governments. Alberta should be at the vangard of such changes, being a well-off, powerful partner in Confederation.
Instead, Ralph just wants to stick around long enough to have his cake with the Queen, then retire to the golf course…no doubt, eating Beligan waffles served up by Stephen Harper.
What a waste. The people of Alberta deserve better.
