You used to be cool and conservative. What happened?
A long time ago a young Peter Lougheed ran against the big government and the nanny like laws of the old tired Social Credit, you represented change and you meant it. You lowered the legal drinking age to 18 and trusted that Albertans could handle the responsibility. Today you have become a clone of that tired SC government you defeated by passing nanny state law such a Bill 26 which will allow the police to become judge and jury by seizing private property at the side of the road without due process and any effective right to appeal for doing something that is NOT even against the law. You told private business that they no longer had the right to determine the price at which to sell their own product by writing law setting a minimum price for that product rather than using numerous existing laws to deal with the perceived problem.
You defended Alberta against a federal Liberal government with their National Energy Program as an intrusion into our affairs and defended our resources. Today Premier Redford is encouraging her own version of the NEP and goes so far as to publicly defend those who are trying to shut down our oil sands and fund films with the same purpose with our tax dollars.
You used to believe in the most basic of conservative principles of not spending more money than we brought in, you even went so far as to pass a law to make sure that government could no longer do so, but turned around and rescinded that law before giving us 5 deficit budget in a row with another to follow ( The surplus stated for 2013-2014 is calculated to be approx 1/2 billion dollars and in spite of Bill 1, the results based budgeting act, un-budgeted promises from Redford totaling in the billions all but ensure deficit number 6 is on the way.) And while we are in a deficit position had no qualms at all about running a pre-election tour and a trip to Jasper for the PC caucus on our dime or breaching legislature privilege by running budget ads before it was even passed.
You used to actually listen to Albertans but now it is more lip service than anything else even though in every speech you are always saying 'Albertans are telling us' or 'Albertans want' but seem to be tone deaf when Albertans do speak out and tell you that something is wrong as with the MLA and committee pay structure set up by your gov't. Only acting after having your backs forced against the wall and not at the beginning when Albertans so clearly expressed their outrage. You didn't listen to us when we said we wanted you to look at the bullying and intimidation of our doctors and you didn't even listen to the doctors or to the HQCA (which you promised to implement the 21 recommendations of their report) and went ahead radically changing the way healthcare is done by promising 140 family care clinics just weeks after announcing the 3 pilot projects which have not even opened their doors and could not have been studied for their effectiveness, breaking the promises made.
You used to be confident in your message and record, so much so that you never even used to name your opponents in an election and always took the high road. Today in-spite of numerous promises to do take the high road you went on the attack even before the election using lies and have went so far as to play the race and the fear card about another party to try to distract from your poor record and save your self from losing power. You have more in common with the 2006 Liberal party than you do to any conservative one. What happened? You used to be proud of being conservative, not just in name only, and proud of your roots, but now you purchase full page newspaper ads attacking the party base and you go out of your way to attack one of the most popular premiers in our history at a time when he is unable to defend himself. Not cool.
You used to honest and accountable but now I am having a hard time believing anything you say. You promised change but yet one of the first things you did was gave Gary Mar and Kelley Charlebois jobs, continuing the ol' boy tradition.( BTW how did that Mar thing work out for you?) From intimidation of doctors, school boards, and municipalities, to promises on a fixed election date, a full health inquiry, not raising taxes, to passing law that hurts property owners and helps billion dollar power companies and law gagging Elections Alberta from disclosing ANY information about the numerous cases (well over 50) of illegal donations to the PC party, you have broken your word and lying is never cool. In fact during the debate Premier Redford was caught in a blatant lie on removing the cap on seniors housing and stood before the entire province and said she did not use the words, which she clearly did, and we can no longer trust anything you say.
Alberta PC's, you used to be cool and conservative by believing in small/less government, not spending more money than you had, and standing up for free enterprise and the freedoms of Albertans. Now you just stand in the way.
What happened?
Feel free to look over the blog for many more examples of the actual record of the PC's. It is a real eye opener and a great primer heading into the election on Monday as the PC's have clearly turned their backs on not only conservatism but also good government. They do not deserve your vote, we can do better than this.
4 comments:
They sold out their base for power and entitlements. They believed they knew better and forgot the basic rules of public service.
We see the same things with companies who were leaders and have been reduced to bankruptcy or bit players.
Voters needed an alternative, D. Smith Wildrose has provided it.
Dear Ardvark;
Your blog has been a daily hit as I follow the ebb and flow of what has been the most intense Alberta provincial election in my adulthood.
Local race sees a very well respected first time PC Canadidate up against an old-time PC opportunist as the WRP Candidate. WR should be leading but PC Candidates personal attributes may carry the riding for them.
The few people I speak with are genuinely torn as to vote for WR to get DS or vote for PC to avoid local WR Candidate.
My guess is that WR will carry the riding as most people don't know either Candidate personally. Either way the local result will be a real lesson in local vs. provincial politics.
Anony,
I guess I can't understand how an old PC-er would be considered an "opportunist"? I personally would think that a PC-er who left for the WRA would be considered principled because they couldn't stomach the direction the govt was going.
Just my thoughts....
Alison Redford is absolutely the reason the party is struggling and she surrounded herself with equally arrogant people. She needs to go!
What you are doing is comparing a liberal conservative to the progressives. Progressives and the root of there name comes from their socialist ties, same with the reform party they merged with. We haven't had a real liberal or Conservative government in this country for many a year, longer then most would ever chose to believe. In politics these terms all have meanings, and they use them as codes to communicate and identify themselves much the same as when you hear the term fellow traveler in the news. What is happening now is exactly what the weather underground said was the socialist plan in the 60's.
Research these terms and expose them to any one who will listen. Progress is not this way (left)
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