Do you have the misfortune of having that obnoxious, know-it-all nieghbour who messes up his own life on a regular basis, but likes to tell you what to do? Well, we seem to live in a country with that problem.
This week rumors circulated about the upcoming Keystone XL pipeline decision south of the border. This is the non-existent pipeline that the oil and gas industry says is the answer to all of Canada’s financial woes, and the environmental industry says is the worst idea since acid rain. Word has it Obama turning down Keystone XL.
But Obama, through his intermediary John Kerry, this week put his seal of approval on a deal with lunatic nation Iran that allows the Middle Eastern nation to continue its nuclear “power plant” program. Many critics, including Israel and several European nations, say the deal is flawed, won’t prevent Iran from developing a nuclear weapon and is likely just part of Obama’s “legacy” efforts. He’ll be leaving office soon and wants something to look back on with pride; Obamacare certainly won’t do.
The deal also includes the easing of sanctions on Iran’s oil and gas industry. So, in essence, Obama says no to Keystone XL as it’s an ecological disaster waiting to happen, but says yes to Iran, a nation that imprisons and executes women for expecting equality and human rights.
But the hypocrisy doesn’t stop there. Obama traveled to Kenya this week, the traditional homeland of his father. Apparently, it was supposed to be some sort of teambuilding exercise. So what did the president do after arriving?
He started telling the Kenyans how to run their country. Obama had numerous suggestions for the Kenyans on how to make their country more like the goo ole Ewe Ess of Ehh.
Typical American politician. Before you pass judgment on other nations, take a look in the mirror. Just in the last few weeks you’ve got a white supremacist walking into a church and massacring people, a religious nut murdering soldiers to apologize to God, a man with serious mental health issues buying a handgun and murdering two women for no reason at all and the list goes on.
Does this sound like the president, or nation, anyone should be taking advice from?
Election campaign full-press
There must be a federal election campaign going on. How can the average person tell? Well, the last week of June the Conservative Party was out in force in the Edmonton area with bags of money.
A plethora of funding announcements were made that week as Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s deputies, helpers, MPs and assistants spread out over the Capital region to in theory recognize the nation’s 150th anniversary, according to federal government press releases, but in practice simply grease palms coincidentally enough right before the looming federal election.
The really disappointing part of it is that Harper apparently is underestimating Alberta’s purchase price. He had Rona Ambrose and less remarkable representatives presenting such grants as $350,200 for two projects in the Edmonton area and just over $200,000 for a project in the Leduc area. Political glad-handing is supposed to be impressive, not chintzy. Maybe the prime minister didn’t hear about the Alberta provincial election results yet.
The pay-off is a time-honoured tradition of our democratically elected system of government, the time when taxpayers and voters can finally get people in Ottawa to listen to them and pay more than lip service to important issues in their local area. No one in elected office has done it quite as well as Alberta’s late Ralph Klein, who in 2006 approved a $400 cash gift to every adult Albertan. At least Ralph was honest and straightforward about it. Everyone knew what it was.
Still, it’s rather disappointing Prime Minister Harper would grease palms in his home province with such paltry sums of money, especially considering the extent to which Alberta’s infrastructure deficit has climbed. A few hundred thousand dollars is nothing compared to what municipalities need to build and operate recreational facilities.
Perhaps Harper is making the same mistake failed PC leader Jim Prentice made. Maybe he’s taking Alberta for granted