Dear Alison...

When your bitumen belches carbon into the atmosphere, remember that Ontario is rapidly closing all its coal-burning power plants to reduce our pan-Canadian footprint for greenhouse gases. I don’t hear you thanking us for that.

Alberta owns the resources under its soil. But if this were a truly functional federation, instead of soaking up so much revenue today you’d create a sovereign wealth fund (as other oil-rich countries have) to minimize currency distortions. I don’t hear you talking that up.

Cohn's piece in The Star this morning is quite brilliant.

But So What?

Dalton McGuinty is right about the oil sands and its effect on Canadian manufacturers, says Andrew Coyne, but there's nothing anyone can do about it so we all might as well suck it up, or, better, move to Fort Mac with our shovels.

But if you let your resource extraction industries overwhelm your manufacturing sector, when the oil runs out you wind up with neither. And of course some things can be done about it, as this study suggests.  But these things would involve Alberta giving over some of its oil money to the feds and when you raise that possibility the talk out in Calgary switches from pablum about the national interest to what the flag for an independent state should look like.

And have I ever mentioned the irony of a columnist at The Post, which has NEVER turned a profit since the day it launched, lecturing anyone about the rigours of Capitalism?  That's like being given lessons in boating safety by the captain of The Titanic.

Should Ontario Capitulate To The West?

 Alison Redford thinks so; some guy from the Canada West Foundation thinks it isn't necessary.  Meanwhile, unbeknownst to the clowns on the Op-Ed pages of Canada's various right wing papers, Alberta has become the new Central Canada, and Calgary the new Toronto.   Cheerlead for the tar-sands all you want, folks, McGuinty's remarks are tapping into a simmering populist backlash.

Jesse Kline: Dalton McGuinty Should Let Alberta Steal Ontario Jobs

 In a more efficient economy, people would be moving westward to fill jobs. But Mr. McGuinty’s solution has always been to subsidize dying industries, a process which necessitates taking capital away from more productive uses. Perhaps that lesson was taught in Economics 102 — a course the Ontario Liberals would surely fail.

What we have here is politicians looking out for their own interests, instead of thinking about what is best for the country as a whole. It would be better for Ontario, in the longer run, if weak manufacturers were allowed to go out of business and the economy could shift those resources to more productive uses. But Mr. McGuinty is thinking about his own electoral success: The Liberals derive a huge amount of support from the manufacturing industry and its unions. Of course, these types of things are to be expected when we put important decisions in the hands of the economically-illiterate political class.

This argument is deranged.  The Premier of Ontario is not elected to send jobs West to Fort Mac so as to fulfill the tenants of some Econ 101 textbook.   That, surely, is the job of the Alberta Premier, a position Dalton McGuinty was not running for last time I looked.  And it is surely ironic to see yet another paean to unrestrained Capitalism being preached from the pages of a newspaper that has not turned one red cent of profit in its 15 years of existence.

Furthermore, the last time anyone played this "national interest" tune in Canada was during the creation of a little scheme known as the "National Energy Program".  I don't recall the folks in Alberta bowing before the "common good" back then; The West shouldn't expect anybody from Ontario to do it now.

Alberta's Interest Is Not Ontario's Interest Or The National Interest

Testify Brother Dalton:

Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty has rebuffed Alberta Premier Alison Redford’s plea to publicly defend the oil sands, saying the high “petro” Canadian dollar has “knocked the wind” out of exporters in his province.

[...]

“...if I had my preferences as to whether we had a rapidly growing oil and gas sector in the West or a lower dollar, I’ll tell you where I stand: with the lower dollar.”

Compare that with  "...the B.C. coastline belongs to Alberta" rhetoric emanating from British Columbia Premier Christy Clark.

The Drip Drip Drip of Bad News

Another poll that shows Tim Hudak's lead slipping:

 With Tory support at 35% to the Liberals’ 30%, the poll suggests Mr. Hudak would clinch a narrow victory to lead a minority government if Ontarians voted tomorrow.

Steve V will surely come along and explain this latest poll, but I'd say it bears out the old maxim that campaigns do matter (even if they're barely underway yet).  You can't hang onto a lead with news like this coming out every day:

Calling Sterling's treatment at the hands of Hudak's PC party "disgraceful,''[Ex-Tory Premier Ernie] Eves said: 'I don't care who hears this. The treatment that Norm got from his own party was not very polite, was not fair, it was not loyal, it was not compassionate and it was not very honest.''

After Eve's comments, the 200-member audience, which included former premier Mike Harris and federal Conservative heavyweight John Baird, applauded and cheered, according to the release.

[Chatham-Kent Essex Conservative candidate Rick] Nicholls said it was the first he had heard of the report and wanted to dig into it before making a statement.

[Halton MPP Ted] Chudleigh, in Chatham to street campaign with Nicholls for the upcoming provincial election, also declined comment.

Instead, Chudleigh, armed with a cardboard wheel, which he called Premier Dalton McGuinty's wheel of tax, said Ontarians are in store for more taxes if the Liberals are re-elected in October. A gust of wind blew the wheel over and it landed on Nicholl's head. He was not injured.

This, by the way, is my favorite picture of Ernie Eves.  When he first ran against Dalton...well, that was one for the ages.

Dalton McGuinty, You Magnificent Bastard: Part III

 I do a "Dalton McGuinty: You Magnificent Bastard" post whenever Dalton unveils a policy I think is  maudlin, stupid, chintzy, cheesy, or entirely unrealizable--but also a honkin' huge vote getter.  His plan to reinstate the house call, to spend more taxpayers' money coddling greedy geezers, is one such policy. 

On the other hand, this week Tim Hudak went before the AMO (Association of Municipalities of Ontario) and told them that, if elected, he was going to download $500,000,000 worth of costs onto them!  Every mayor in the land was there, and they all went home and told their local newspapers that property taxes would go up under a Hudak government.  That's like scoring a three-pointer in basketball...on your own team.

We also recently found out that Tim Hudak used to get small with MaryJane back in University.  But given these other events my theory is that he's still puffing, and that Liberal War Roomer Kinsella is his supply, and that Warren's cutting it with something harsh and dissonant. 

Ouch.

This poll is for Ontario, incidentally.

Lots of time to turn it around, and a series of decent economic reports like this should help with those trust numbers on the economy. Still a bit worrying, however.

On The Credibility Of Polls

This one has the McGuinty Libs and Hudak Tories virtually tied in Toronto.

And if you question the credibility, its by Forum Research who, according to their own website, conduct more than 600,000 surveys each year, or over 1,600 every day. So you know they can be trusted.

And, oh hey! This is the same company that puts Rob Ford's approval rating at 60%. But they do 1,600 of these suckers every 24 hours. They did 300 before you even ate breakfast. So who are you to doubt their authority?

h/t. PS. No, we're not married. Sometimes our interests converge. That's all.

Please Sir, I want More (Gravy)

Rob Ford extends his bowl. Read through to the end and you'll see that the provincial government isn't taking these requests too seriously. And I don't expect, no matter who winds up in the Premier's chair this November, that any one's going to willing to fork out to T.O. That's what you get when you start your mayoral term with all of your bridges already in flames behind you.

Lacks Substance

...the two most important words in this piece re the McGuinty Libs weekend policy confab. They refer to PCPO leader Tim Hudak, and suggest how the Libs will try and frame the election debate come fall. My two cents: this line of attack will be more effective than the Mike Harris crossed with a Neanderthal argument that some might prefer, just because Hudak will try so hard to evade the latter charge it will (indeed has already) hamstring any trademark Conservative policy initiatives that he might run on.

Three quick examples:

1) The HST; Tim opposes it but will not repeal (or even lower) it.
2) Green energy; its a boondoggle, but Tim won't tear up any contracts (though, on a more positive note, he may decide to put up a nuclear reactor in your back yard).
3) The Health Care Premium; Tim hates the "McGuinty Tax Hikes", but this is another one he won't rescind.

So it sounds as though Mr. Hudak is reduced to complaining about policies he will, if elected, do nothing to change.

My Mother...She Isn't Quite Herself This Morning

"One of the challenges that we have now politically is that prorogation has become a bad thing,” [Dalton McGuinty] told reporters. ”My mother is now aware of what a prorogation is and she thinks prorogations are bad.”


Dalton McGuinty

Coming Soon To Ontario

The story is here (and good on Dalton, by the way: close the car plants and those auto-workers can make turbines.). But in the picture they're actually doing it wrong!

H/T

HST Effects Already Wearing Off

And McGuinty continues with a narrow lead:

If an election were held today, the Liberals would likely take 38 per cent of the vote among decided voters, as compared to 45 per cent in January of last year, according to the poll.

Opposition leader Tim Hudak and his Progressive Conservatives would take 34 per cent of the vote, down two points since October, but up five per cent since last year at this time.

Expect him to take a bit of a hit in July when the tax kicks in, and then I suspect the HST will disappear from the provincial political landscape. And if there is no national election before July, I suspect it will become a non-issue federally as well. Too bad for the NDP.

Analysis: Sue-Ann Levy Was Too Gay For Toronto

A perspective I have not heard elsewhere, from Tristan Emmanuel (I think--he is not sole author at NA), Randy Hillier's PCPO leadership campaign manager:

In Ontario, pro-family and pro-faith advocates are questioning the Tory decision to run lesbian columnist Sue-Ann Levy. In a sharp defeat yesterday, Levy lost to Liberal candidate Dr. Eric Hoskins in the urban Toronto St. Paul’s riding. The question for both the Alberta and Ontario Tories is whether electoral success is really secured through a softening and moderation of traditional party policy principles or a return to principled, grassroots conservatism.

In my mind I see Dalton celebrating his 10th consecutive majority...

Journalist Asks: Will Ontario Liberal Troubles Harm Federal Liberal Election Hopes?

Answers: probably not.

Making Moves, Sending Signals

John Baird and Dalton's McGuinty's musings re a pedestrian tunnel to the island airport doesn't count for much as a discussion of real policy. Its all pretty blue sky stuff that may or may not happen somewhere way, way down the road (Adam Vaughan is surely correct that there is no way a tunnel will get built by 2011). But what it does show is McGuinty's willingness to cut Mayor David Miller loose politically. Dalton gave Miller The City Of Toronto Act, and all he got in return were hassles and piles of garbage. Don't expect much more in the way of financial assistance from the province over the next couple of years (and,it goes without saying, the Feds). Mayor Miller will end his 2nd term a very lonely man.

Two Environmental Proposals Up For A Vote At Liberal Convention

One resolution, proposed by the Quebec wing of the party, calls on a Liberal government to unconditionally commit to meeting the Kyoto Protocol targets, enacting legislation to reduce greenhouse gas emissions that would include 'establishing a carbon tax, a cap and trade system or a combination of both.

This one's not so good. Committing to Kyoto at this point is purely symbolic, and I'm not sure how effective the symbolism can be anymore. Copenhagen 2009 is the new game in town and things are looking a bit rocky. While I doubt that a pure collapse in talks is possible, you could wind up with something so watered down that the goals become purely aspirational, on a world-wide basis.

Why not commit to an aggressive Green approach in Copenhagen? Look forward, not backward.

As for the carbon tax, well you could change the phrasing to something like "and/or" and keep the tax as one possible policy tool. Or you could excise it entirely. As written, this sounds like its an inevitable part of the policy mix.

Another, proposed by the British Columbia wing of the party, calls on a Liberal government to consider 'all mechanisms of investment, incentive and taxation' to combat global warming and stimulate sustainable economic growth.

Love the "investment, incentive" part. The Federal Libs should be looking to Dalton McGuinty on this one. He has made a decision that our laid off auto workers are going to manufacture the machines that power tomorrow's green economy. Again, the reference to a carbon tax is optional, IMHO. Has it, in any form, been made toxic on account of The Green Shift?

I dunno. But I am glad to see that the party hasn't entirely given up on the issue. And I hope these resolutions send a signal to Mr. Ignatieff that he can't just blow it off. You wanna be Liberal leader, got gotta occasionally do something Liberal.

Note: Actually, Taylor has the entire Quebec resolution here. It is not as bad as I thought, although most of the points made above still apply.

Ontario Moves To Create Electric Car Infrastructure

California-based Better Place will establish a Canadian head-office in Ontario. They will build an electric car demonstration and education centre in Toronto to lay the groundwork to help get electric vehicles running on Ontario roads. By May 2009, the Ontario government will release a study which will look at ways to speed up theintroduction of electric vehicles including:

- Financial incentives designed to encourage the purchase of electric vehicles
- Preferred access to transportation grid to encourage the adoption of electric vehicles
- Forward looking procurement policies to speed government adoption of electric vehicles into fleet services where appropriate
- Coordinated public education and promotion of electric vehicles as a mode of personal transportation.

Better Place will build

...an open network of battery exchange stations and charge spots in homes, businesses and parking lots.

...which electric car owners will then subscribe to. Places to charge your Zenn, in other words.

You know, without a lot of fan-fare, the McGuinty Libs seem to be taking a lot of interesting if small steps in the right direction.

Because One Cheap Shot Deserves Another!

Jonathan Kay asks: Why are Dalton McGuinty and co. showing up at parades honouring Sikh assassins?

BigCityLib asks: Why is Stephen Harper allowing himself to be photographed with a representative of the notorious MQM?

LOOK!!LOOK!! A Conservative politician standing next to a brown guy with a beard, that knows another brown guy with a beard, that knows a brown guy that knows a brown extremist guy with a beard that committed crimes once thousands of miles away. He's so totally busted!

And here's another question: why is Jonathon Kay allowing bloggers who think the Holocaust was a barrel of yuks onto the pages of what purports to be a national newspaper?

Or: what is Jonathon Kay doing saluting neo-Nazis as free speech heroes? Riddle me that, eh?