Time to Get Political July 18th 2025.

   Since I lost my original blog According to Ian a couple years back, (We all know that story) I have tried very hard to stay away from my unpopular political opinions.  Well.... unpopular in this neck of the woods for certain.  I tried to make As Ian sees It more family friendly.    It doesn't really matter cause I lost pretty much all my followers when I moved to Blogger.  As hard as that is on one's ego, I always did say that the blog was therapy I needed.    And I need this.  It is time to get a little political.  So here goes:

    I think we all have seen what political interference exists in this era of the world wide web.  And I don't believe for one minute that the interference exists only on the one side of this polarized paranoid rabbit hole we Canucks have followed the Americans down.  I hate political interference be it from Russia, China, USA, or Conservatives.    But I especially hate it from Liberals, and our Province's NDP.  Why?  Because I am both of those things and  I want my side to be the good guys.  I am not talking clips of actual quotes from opposing sides.  And you can tell by the photo atop this therapy session that I believe a picture is worth a thousand words.  But I do not like AI dubbed stuff.  I hate imagined headlines.  Good guys can't do bad guy stuff.  Simple as that.  And never assume that I believe my preferred leaders and their parties are exempt from the temptation of omitting some facts, or allowing the masses to believe obvious lies.    That being said:

    I am watching our current Provincial government steer us toward a goal for which they have no mandate.  Which will take years, cost billions, and create such polarization that we will never recover.... Maybe ever.   Our American neighbours have never recovered from a horrid civil war over a century ago. That is our Provincial governments chosen path.   And where they would have you believe the current bout of separatist propaganda is the result of a Federal election,  it is completely home spun.

   The United Conservative Party isn't.   It came about as the result of the Wild Rose Party and The Progressive Conservative party amalgamating in 2017.  The Wild Rose Party had formed in 2007.  The Progressive Conservative Party had been governing Alberta for over 35 years by that time.  So strong were the Alberta PC's that they won every election, usually without campaigning.  The most popular premier in the provinces history, Ralph Klein didn't even campaign in one of those elections.  He was already showing signs of Alzheimer's disease the last time he led the PC's to power.  But when he had to step down, struggles within the party started to surface.   Those who ran the party granted favours to those within who supported them.  It got ugly.  And the Conservative factors in the most Conservative area of this beautiful country began to war on each other.  The splits came rural and urban.  

  In 2015, the New Democratic Party of Alberta went from four seats to a 44 seat majority because the Wild Rose and Progressive Conservative parties split the right wing vote.  NDP in the most conservative part of our country.  Danielle Smith, our current Premier was leader of the Wild Rose Party and a few short days prior to the election, she crossed the floor to the Progressive Conservatives.   And there you have it.  Alberta's left wing government was the direct result of Danielle Smith.  

   Along came Jason Kenny.  An Ontario born, Saskatchewan raised, Ottawa adult who had an Alberta seat in the house of commons.   I don't know the connection there,  but in politics one is seldom needed.  Jason was snubbed in the federal Conservative party leadership race.  His out of joint nose lead him to Alberta where he undertook to UNITE THE RIGHT to ensure the people of Alberta would never have to suffer a left wing government again.  Jason Kenny did what he said he would do,  but it came at the cost of the Progressive Conservative party being ousted from all decision making rolls in the newly formed caucus. To be fair to Jason Kenny, he took over the province during the Covid pandemic.  It was ugly.  It wasn't popular.  And it split the united right in several directions.  To make things worse, Jason Kenny took a European vacation when the rest of us were required to stay home.  And as quickly as Jason Kenny became the saviour,  he got his marching orders.  

   But that unification at any cost,  led by a non Albertan who believed his time as the leader of Canada's most Conservative, wealthiest province would be the stepping stone to the P.M's office, gave the radical right the time and power they needed to take over the right wing in Alberta.  Firstly by manipulating the local constituency committees with  their own.   Secondly by putting an extreme right separatist leaning person in charge.  And re enter Danielle Smith.  

   Soon after Danielle Smith became leader the UCP formed it's second government.  Smith,  a committed anti vaccer, and promoter of all things against Federal authority, ran on a platform that did not include an Alberta pension plan or Provincial Police.  In fact the UCP openly announced they would not discuss either subject during the campaign.  An acknowledgement that would suggest to most that they were not asking for a mandate for such things.  To date the UCP who have initiated a Provincial Police force,  and are working tirelessly on a pension plan will not discuss these subjects with anyone who may possibly object.   

   Truthfully,  I think Provincial police are a foregone conclusion.  It is going to be ridiculously expensive, and it is going to take years.   The pension plan?  Well I think it will take longer and cost more.  to begin with I would think the law suits will take years.  But those seem to be expenses UCP governments don't worry about.  The possibility of a transgender child participating in competitive sports,  or people on assisted living receiving monies from the feds,  who has jurisdiction over fire fighters in a national park, and finding an easier way for a secession referendum to come to fruition.   Those are our real problems.  

   Now I am about to sound as paranoid as any anti vac statistic our premier can make up on the spot,  but we are watching the controlling interest of our Governing party divorcing us from Canada.  Danielle Smith is not playing to the radical fringe.  She IS the radical fringe.  And transparent, honest, open presentation of her desire to become a territory of the United states will not wash.  So with the help of a pretty small minority she is going to try to sneak us out the back door.  

   Separation support is here to stay.  In truth it has been here for decades and it hasn't really ever gone away.   The percentages say there are about 15% of Albertans who are hard core.  There is another 8 to 10% who are currently angry with the federal system and are protesting but when the chips are down would not support secession.  Smith and her cronies are working hard on building those numbers.  If it means the omission of certain reports, statistics, facts, and unfriendly survey results?  So be it.

   The UCP has many elected members with close ties to the Trumpets of the south.  The picture atop this page is my MLA and minister of the economic corridor who campaigned for Donald Trump shortly before campaigning for himself.  His campaign took much less time and barely required his attendance.  But the UCP inner circle learned many things from the TRUMP successes.  Misdirection,  making up statistics and facts on the spot.  Not answering questions from people you didn't instruct to ask.  And simply not listening.  And rule number one in the UCP playbook?  When all the smoke and mirrors don't work?  Go after Quebec and equalization payments.  Sometimes I think Albertans worry far more about Quebec affairs than they do Alberta affairs.  

    These days, my conservative friends are pretty silent.  The thought of another centre or left wing government here is so inconceivable that they are willing to pretend that what is happening.....isn't.  I just don't know how far Albertan's are willing to let the current government go before they say enough is enough.  And that really does scare me.  One thing for sure,  it will never be to this governments advantage to have Albertans happy and un-angry.  

   A right wing government who champions business large and small.  Has a leader who was a talk show host and supports a career politician at a federal level.   Fight a federal leader who grew up in Edmonton, has a wealth of private sector experience and a considerable personal wealth he obtained in the private sector.  Was appointed Governor of the Bank of Canada by a Prime minister most Albertans consider God.  Was appointed Governor of the Bank of The United Kingdom and held that office through Brexit.   Yeah, not our kind of guy at all.  Sounds like the very reason we should become either a land locked country surrounded on three sides by a country we just pissed off,  or a country that has always paid us far less than our oil is worth.  Who pretty much strangled our beef producers during a mad cow scare started by an American farming in Canada.  

  It is time for Conservatives in our province to tell our government to get a grip.  To behave itself.  To step aside and allow for a Conservative government that will care about Education, health, Social Services, and assistance to those who need their help instead of those who just want to be unhappy.   It's time to get political.