The Future of Canadian Conservatism

On February 27, 2016 while the Conservative elites were at the Manning Centre Conference in Ottawa, I was speaking at the smaller but not less important FreedomTalk Conference in Edmonton. Both conferences were about the same thing: how can conservatives regain the upper ground. The following is an excerpt of my speech:

In the words of HRH Queen Elizabeth II, 2015 was Annus Horribilis for Conservatives in Canada. We lost federally and in Alberta, and today we do not have one government with the name ‘conservative’ in the country. The question is why?

Let us get something out of the way immediately I am not PC. That means not politically correct, not a pretend conservative, and not a progressive conservative. I am a small ‘c’ common sense conservative pure and simple.

In my view, as expressed in my book Conservatives Dead or Alive? I start with the theory that the day that Obama was elected President of the US, it was the day that conservatism began its downward spiral. The whole world backed by a liberal mass media embraced this man as if he was the second coming , awarded him the Nobel Peace prize without any known accomplishment, and embraced his policies as if they would fulfill his promise of Hope and Change.

Conservatives around the world and in Canada got themselves boxed in on every policies they put forward, the world wanted to mirror Obama’s policies, and conservatives to their detriment, in most cases, just went along to get along. But let us get to the more pressing issue of how conservatives could get the upper hand back. First we must acknowledge that we made mistakes and eliminate our weaknesses, and identify and increase our strengths, and second get out of the habit of shooting each other.

Having said that, I am more optimistic about the resurgence of Conservatives at the Federal level than I am for our provincial parties in Alberta.

Despite people like Dandt Tent and Andrew Coyne who continuously try to lecture conservatives on how they should behave, Federal conservatives have a solid foundation to build on and they also have an inept government with a neophyte and vacuous PM to deal with. What the party must do is to take their time and choose the right leader to take us into the next election.

 There are not too many changes to be made to the past policies but what is absolutely necessary is for the new leadership to articulate and explain to the public why they should be the alternative. More importantly they must attract the millennials, not with promises of more entitlements but with solid policies that will guarantee their economic future.

 In Alberta the rift among conservatives is theoretically huge, but in effect the so called PC and Wildrose have more in common that they have differences. The major obstacle to any unite the right movement in Alberta is the constant and persistent attempt by members of the establishment to insert themselves into the discussions.

There are so many organizations promoting themselves as intermediaries to get the parties to talk that in effect it is causing confusion among grassroots party members. Then we have Preston Manning injecting himself into the debate; this after having taken part in the destruction of the PCs and the betrayal by many of the Wildrose members when he supported their defection to the Progressive Conservatives under Prentice. Remember that Mr. Manning has tried to unite the right in the past and failed miserably each time and in effect it took years before Harper could remake the conservative movement and govern the country for ten years.  Despite accolades from many quarters, a close examination of Mr. Manning’s involvement in conservative politics shows that he has been a distracting rather than a positive force in Canada’s conservative movement. His latest foray into Calgary’s Municipal level was a disaster that left many right thinking Council candidates stranded when he folded under attack by Mayor Nenshi and apparently left for Australia in the middle of the campaign.

So what is the future of conservatism in Canada? In my view it is very bright provided we take stock and not make the mistakes of the past and fight among ourselves.

First we must remove any allusion of being Progressives but act more like libertarians

Progressive conservatism is an oxymoron. You cannot be progressive and conservative at the same time. Clinton,Sanders, Notley, Mulcair, May and Trudeau are progressives. Should conservatives adopt their policies? I sure hope not.

At the provincial level, any new name should only have Conservative in it and nothing else. We must distinguish ourselves by being compassionate conservatives not progressive conservatives.

A compassionate conservative believes in teaching a man to fish so he can feed himself for a lifetime and not be fed by government for a day and ever. This is the policy that creates dependency and entitlements, not independence.

 Social conservatives should focus on healthcare, education and security as the social goals and responsibility of conservatism. As for the issues of LBGT, same sex marriage and abortion they are wedge issues that the left uses every time that they want to get conservatives off balance and divert their leftist failures from scrutiny.

As law abiding conservatives we should respect the existing laws that have been adopted on these divisive issues, but we must fight to have our alternative point of view respected. It is the freedom of speech that we should be fighting for. A religious leader has the right to express his opinion. A politician has the right to have his values respected without being hounded by self-interest groups. For individuals to oppose a leftist point of view does not make them bigots, racists, xenophobes or homophobes. It just makes us different. Isn’t that diversity?

Conservatives must fight for a better health care system. Private care exists and it should be made available to any citizen if they so wish. Canada spends a large percentage of its GDP on health and yet we still have long wait times and excessive drug costs.

Our education system has been infiltrated by union activists who now dictate our curriculum. Our children are being indoctrinated in leftist thinking without parents having a say. The Conference Board of Canada gives us a “C” for the number, just 21.2 per cent of university students studying science, math, computer studies and engineering. The bigger question is what is the other 69% studying? Is Canada going to be competitive in a technology driven economy?

What good is social security if you are being attacked and cannot defend yourself?  To me a strong military and police force is at the root of a conservative government. The protection of its citizens is social conservatism.

The path to success is very simple. We must remove any allusion of being Progressives but act more like libertarians. We must embrace true conservative principles of small governments and less taxes, and free market principles. We should embrace some of the fundamentals of libertarianism such has the freedom of speech. And most of all we must adopt Reagan’s 11^th commandment: “Thou shalt not speak ill of any fellow Conservative.”

History has showed that the left always asks for compromise when there are in the minority, but never exercises compromise when they are in power. Conservatives can compromise on process and procedures but never on principles.

As I conclude, I would like to leave you with this thought and appeal. In the context of Alberta politics I would like to ask Mr. McIver and Mr. Jean which duo would you like to be remembered for : Harper/ McKay or Manning/Clark?

Remember that unity is strength; it is the only move forward.

How to ruin a country in 100 days or less

With a new government it is expected that changes will happen. However to make wholesale reversal of the previous government’s policies without any intelligent thought about unintended consequences can be downright dangerous and detrimental to the country. Justin Trudeau has done just that!

The election of a new Liberal government under the leadership of a neophyte is producing results that may ruin this country for generations to come.

Having been advised by Obama operatives during the electoral campaign, expect policies based more on ideology rather than common sense.

This new government will embrace multilateralism and make decisions to please the world rather than protect the country and its citizens. The UN will determine how we do things in this country. Starting with the decision to bring 25, 000 Syrian refugees without any planned strategy has already produced consequences that will affect both the refugees and Canadians. We have homeless and disaffected veterans and yet the refugees are being given priority on housing, healthcare and financial assistance, While Europe has started to see the negative effects of its policies towards refugees who may have been infiltrated by terrorists, Canada willy-nilly continues with its feel good policy which could endanger Canadian security. Furthermore a change towards citizenship that may no longer require refugees or immigrants to have knowledge of at least one of the official languages will put pressure on the work force and the education system.

As for the foreign policy with regards to the Middle East, this government shows that it has absolutely no understanding of the gravity of the situation. As a terrorism denier PM Trudeau’s  decision to repatriate the 6 CF-18 from the combat zone, and increase the number of boots on the ground is not only risky, but places more Canadians in arms way. Despite the fact that Iran and North Korea are collaborating on missile and nuclear build up, the government has decided to start diplomatic relations with the rogue state of Iran, in the hope that Canada will benefit from trade deals. This has already shown to be flawed as Iran chose Air Bus over Bombardier.

On the economy, we have yet to see a budget, but we know about the promise that Canada will produce deficits and create debt the size of which are not determined. With a global glut in oil and gas, this government has shown absolutely no backbone in promoting Canada’s resources. In fact Trudeau has chosen ‘resourcefulness’ over resources. The result is obvious: massive unemployment in the oil, and mining industry, and soon in other industries as a ripple effect. In a PR effort to look good in front of the world, Trudeau and a cohort of 383 delegates promised the world that he will change Canada’s policy to help climate change. Provinces that depend on the resource industry who have for years been the backbone of the country’s economy will be severely affected. Alberta, once the economic envy of the country, will become a have-not province, and Newfoundland may be bankrupt within years. Lives will be affected, but to this government the environment, foreign aid to the third world, and ‘selfies’ with Hollywood stars seems to be more important.

The promise of billions of infrastructure money to provinces to kick start the economy, does not include pipelines. This government does not understand that the oil and gas industry is still very important to the Canadian economy and will be required for many more years. To ignore the need for pipelines, both East and West, is purely based on ideological beliefs. In addition the new rules for consultation for pipelines are just rhetoric and postpone decisions that should be made now and not protect this government hate for carbon.

The change in policies regarding First Nations(FN) and Unions will no doubt kill any semblance of transparency that the previous government required from these institutions. More money will be spent on First Nations without addressing the real issues of dependency. Those in charge of the finances will continue to reap the benefits while ordinary FN citizens will continue to languish in poverty and squalor. Throwing money at the problem will solve nothing. A complete revamp of the Indian Act and the abolition of reserve policies are required. Like Quebec we should be looking at new agreements that will curtail any federal funds within 12 years.

Trade Unions, in many cases have outlived their existence. While the freedom of association must be guaranteed, the right to work should be put in place. No longer should union dues be used by union officials without the permission of the membership. A worker should have the right to designate where his/her dues should be spent. Unfortunately transparency does not seem to be high on this government’s agenda.

During the next three years, Canadians should take note of the changes that this government will put in place. Many of their decisions will be to affect the demographics, financial status, and electoral eligibility through gerrymandering tactics. Any change to a proportional representation electoral system will guarantee that a Liberal government will be for ever.  The positive part of this new government is that many of their promises will not be fulfilled, either because they do not work or because they were full of platitudes which did not make sense. The negative side is that many of these government policies may change this country for the worse, and it would not have taken them 4 years to do it. Hopefully in four years Canadians will remember that feel-good governments do not necessarily a country make, and the ‘selfie’ PM will be sent packing to a new drama gig, where he always belonged.

Multilateralism and the Terrorism Deniers

2016 started the same way as 2015 ended. There were terrorist attacks or warnings of attacks by terrorists in many parts of the world. As the final year of Obama’s presidency draws closer, the terrorism deniers will have their work cut out, but they will try to undo as many sovereignty rights as possible through multilateralism, , and there is no doubt that the year will bring more chaos, terror and deaths.

While many attacks are not reported because they happen in remote parts of the world or in smaller cities, they nevertheless occur. In the industrialized world we only make reference or report on incidents which directly affect us. In 2015 there were approximately 383 attacks conducted either by large groups or so-called lone wolves, all resulting in death and massive number of injuries.

The major attacks started in Paris on Charlie Hebdo, the satirical news magazine causing 12 deaths, which was quickly followed by the Porte de Vincennes hostage taking killing 4 people.

In July a so called lone wolf attacked a recruitment center in Chattanooga killing 5 servicemen. In November 2015 a coordinated attack in Paris killed 130 in a restaurant and at a concert at the Bataclan Theatre in Paris. In December in San Bernardino California, a married couple attacked and killed 14 people at a county health department's holiday banquet. Let us not forget the airplane bombing of Russian tourists in Egypt as well as the killing of tourists in Tunisia.

The above terrorism attacks were reported widely because they were in the western world or affected western victims; however the remaining hundreds of attacks were conducted in the developing world and the Middle East. Therefore for those who would refuse to acknowledge that there is a global war on terror, a simple analysis will show that the world as a whole is not immune from terrorism.

The question is why do we still have terrorism deniers among many world leaders? In my opinion the answer lies in a growing trend in multilateralism. This change occurred when Obama was elected and then without any accomplishments he was given the Nobel Peace Prize, because European countries felt that with him they would have a greater say in world affairs. Obama has been an apologist and appeaser, because he believes that the world will be better off without any super power, including his country the United States. Obama strongly believes that leadership should be placed in the hands of the United Nations. Obama, for the next 12 months will have a strong ally in Justin Trudeau, whose father believed in the concept, and is being advised by Prof. Roland Paris who “believes that Canada does have a role to play in promoting multilateralism, punching above our weight but also being mindful that there are finite resources.”
The problem with multilateralism, is that like Obama it requires leadership from behind and approval from many countries. It also results in a loss of sovereignty since many important issues may be left to a group or organization like the United Nations. In recent past the U.N, increasingly becoming anti-Semite, has been anything but effective at dealing with world conflicts. From a Canadian point of view, many future decisions will be affected by Trudeau’s willingness to be part of a world where some decisions will be dictated by constant deliberations among countries with huge conflict of interest. Many international organizations, in both the foreign affairs and sporting arena, have suffered from the increasing number of decisions made by corrupt officials. Many developing countries’ representatives are often open to bribery and in that case multilateralism becomes moot because the decisions are usually tainted at the onset.
The consequences of allowing decisions being made at the multi-national level through the U.N, because of the threat of vetoes by Russia and China, always end up in compromise which creates more chaos than solutions. Recent examples of failed decisions are the Iran nuclear deal, and now the North Korean H-Bomb. The use of political correctness language in multilateralism also prevents the identification of terrorism for what it is. The use of ‘so-called’ to identify terror groups like ISIL or ISIS, prevents the real identification of the root cause of terrorism. Terrorism deniers refuse to identify the threat as Islamic Jihadists. They ignore that the ‘I’ stands for Islam. Let me make it quite clear we are not fighting a religion but the war is about an ideology.  Not all Muslims are terrorists but all terrorists, in this war, embrace the Islamic faith

Making a stand against terrorism does not require multilateralism, it requires leadership, a character that Justin Trudeau lacks and will display for the next 12 months as he follows Obama’s foreign policy blindly. Even after Obama’s departure Trudeau will defer many decisions to the United Nations, and Canada would have lost its sovereignty on many important issues.

If this is what Trudeau arrogantly meant when he said: ‘Canada is back’ we are in for a long four years.

Climate Change: Mankind’s Greatest Threat

As a conservationist, I believe in climate change, man-made or not. Living in Calgary where the weather may change every five minutes, unlike Leonardo DiCaprio I know that a Chinook is not global warming; and that el Nino is a natural occurrence.  However, I now recognize that the assertion by terrorism deniers’ that climate change is the world’s greatest threat is real; and this is why:

After the failures of the Kyoto Protocol, some 200 countries comprising 40,000 delegates, including 380 from Canada attended COP21 in Paris in 2015. The Montgolfier brothers would have been ecstatic at the amount of hot air produced at this conference. With great fanfare, the participants signed an agreement to reduced GHG emissions to somehow prevent the average earth’s temperatures rising more than 2C higher than pre-industrial levels. To take effect the agreement needs ratification by at least 55% of the signatories, and will come into force in 2020, when ironically most leaders who signed the agreement will certainly be out of office.

Once again, this agreement has no teeth, and pledges from 186 countries were achieved because the system is essentially voluntary. While emitting carbon dioxide remains optional the only binding part of the agreement is that nations will do more planning.

 As industrialized countries shift their production to developed countries there will in effect be no change in GHG emissions since most countries like India and China make greater use of coal than Canada, the U.S and European countries. Global CO2 emissions have risen by 42% since 1990, and it is unlikely to decrease very much under the new agreement.

Let us look at why the climate change rhetoric is now the world’s greatest threat. First, the Paris agreement is likely to be the most expensive treaty in the history of the world. Based on several peer- reviewed energy- economic models, the total cost of Paris — through slower growth in gross domestic product from higher energy costs — will reach $ 1 trillion-$ 2 trillion every year from 2030. The International Energy Agency estimates the magnitude of subsidies for renewal power — which still doesn’t eliminate the need for baseload power — could top $3 trillion over the next 25 years.
Second we have the agreement to spend $100 billion, including Canada’s pledge of $2.65B.on climate aid to help the developing world. This is the most useless wealth redistribution policy put together by a number of leftist who want to feel virtuous. Worse, this will be administrated by the dysfunctional United Nations were money is usually squandered, and transferred to despots in the third world. While billions are starving and have no running water; spending billions to provide them with solar panels and wind turbines is the most dishonest way to get rid of poverty.

On the home front Alberta’s new NDP government plans to raise a carbon tax and reduce the use of coal in the province will no doubt damage the provincial economy. In addition the Trudeau government may well add to the problem with new taxes. Obama’s decision to ban the Keystone XL pipeline will further damage the economy. The irony is that the U.S will produce more oil as they lift a ban on oil exports.

Third we have the constant attack on free speech. Skeptics are always attacked and prevented from expressing their opinion. Ecojustice wants the Competition Bureau to stop Friends of Science (FoS) that has put up billboards in Calgary and Edmonton saying the sun, not human beings or CO2, is the cause of global warming. Their claim is that the information by FoS is misleading information. Yet they claim that the science of climate change is backed by 97% of scientists, while the American Meteorological Society and Netherlands surveys which were anonymous found nowhere near 97 per cent support for the IPCC conclusion.

Fourth, children are being indoctrinated instead of being educated to learn about all the facts. They are subjected to views put forward by the climate change religion comprised of  high priests Suzuki, Al Gore et al, who  ignore that the climate has been changing for billions of years, long before fossil fuel became the major source of energy. Rising sea levels are nothing new, the Bible and other ancient texts reports show that there was a major flood; that glaciers have been melting for centuries, and climatic changes happened pre the industrial revolution.

Solutions abound. Alternative sources of energy should be explored and brought on stream, but the main problem will be storage. We should invest in research and new technology. We must not ignore that we are a carbon-based specie, and that economic growth was largely achieved through the use of fossil fuels. A zero –carbon economy will not be achieved for at least 90 years, if not longer. Conservation is the answer, and it should be done through positive incentives, not punitive taxes and ridiculous subsidies which promote crony capitalism and minimize economic growth.
By stealth we are about to lose  fundamental economic and speech freedoms. Yes, climate change has become the greatest threat to mankind, not because of fossil fuels but due to political rhetoric and self-righteous politicians in search of a legacy.

The Rise of theTroglodytes

Ever since the conservative era of the eighties, the left had been chomping at the bit to get back into power. Stuck for years in the caves of oblivion the socialists changed their names to progressives. Enter Obama, the savior of the left. With his slogan of ‘hope and change’, he gave all leftists the confidence they had been so lacking for years. As a result the left has risen from its ashes and now populate virtually every country and Canadian province. The consequences of this conversion are being felt on a global scale. However, buyers’ remorse is gradually but surely increasing everywhere.

The International arena

The election of Obama, a socialist and terrorism denier, emboldened politicians around the world to move left and with disastrous results. The global economy is still stagnating as the U.S economy stalled for the past seven years. His mantra of income inequality resonated with many politicians, unfortunately the poor got poorer.

Europe turned left despite the recent election of Conservatives in England. Merkel of Germany once thought to be a centre-right politician soon changed her views when it came to bailing out Greece and accepting hundreds of thousands of refugees, without thinking about the security of Europe. France’s Hollande, tried to redistribute wealth by taxing the rich, but that did not work too well. In the U.K the rise of socialist Corbyn is already showing signs of taking root as a two-year commission, chaired by the former senior judge Baroness Butler-Sloss and  involving leading religious leaders from all faiths, called for public life in Britain to be systematically de-Christianised.

The worse part of Obama’s presidency must be the great divide caused by political correctness and his reluctance to recognize the true global threat of terrorism. The former has percolated into the media and increasingly into the education system. It has threatened freedom of speech and created an environment where everybody seems to be offended by everything. No longer can the establishment or individuals be challenged for their views for fear of being labelled a racist, bigot or xenophobe. Today discourse on any subject is immediately analyzed in terms of race or discrimination. However, it seems that this distinction does not apply to the left; they can say or do anything and are never called to the mat. The left is always right and the media has virtually allowed them to become experts on every subject from economics to climatology.

The leftist agenda has not only increased but has taken root in our education system, as increasingly our children are being indoctrinated. Today universities are supposed to provide ‘safe space’, sleeping and resting places, and dogs for stressed students. Students at an early age are being coddled and good teachers are being punished for being disciplinarians and allocating marks according to performance. No longer do we support achievement. Even in sports there seems to be a reluctance to acknowledge that elite athletes exists and should be looked at differently. With the rise of so-called social justice, everybody seems to be given a pass. We must have a Mincom; and no longer should success be rewarded by large salaries. The entitlement society has arrived and it has an effect on every aspect of today’s life.

 

The Canadian dilemma

This socialist trend can be seen in Canada. As of December 2015, there is no government in Canada with the name ‘conservative’. Alberta one of the staunchest conservative provinces went to the New Democrats and the country went back to the Liberals. The consequences of these two elections are already displayed by the dictatorship and arrogance of the left’s policies.

In Ontario, as reported by the Auditor General, the Wynn government is fraught with scandals in every sector from healthcare, to the energy file. The government’s climate change policy has resulted in a 70 per cent rise in eight years for residential electricity prices and spending of $1.45 billion out in corporate welfare, made with little accountability. Canadians and Albertans should carefully watch developments in Ontario, because they may be a blue print for the Federal Liberals and the Alberta NDP, who are both hell bent into the redistribution of wealth through climate change policies involving new taxes.
The success of the Liberals and the NPD are in my opinion rooted in the fact that most Canadians do not understand the differences in political ideology. Most Canadians make voting decisions based on information provided by a biased media. Since there are no media outlets to the right, there is only one side of the story. Now that the Liberals are in power, it is becoming very clear that Canadians were duped and bought a pig in a poke.
The federal Conservatives lost the elections, not necessarily due to Harper’s leadership or   bad policies but rather a lack of good communication. The campaign should have focussed on conservative values and the achievements of the past ten years rather than Justin Trudeau. The other major adverse factor was that rarely do governments win four elections in a row – it was just statistically improbable under the same leader.
As for Albertans the death of the Progressive Conservatives started with the elections of leaders who were more progressives than conservatives. The right was fragmented when Allison Redford first decided that conservative federal politicians were not welcomed at the PC’s AGM. After her demise, the party still chose another progressive to lead them resulting in their complete annihilation at the polls and gave Alberta a socialist government.
In the federal election board members of some constituencies, and even elected PC members supported Liberal candidates in Calgary. I do not tell people who to support, but I believe that one should step down or resign as a conservative member before one supports a liberal candidate. The right is fragmented in Alberta due to the treasonous floor crossing by some members of the Wildrose, helped by none other than Preston Manning.
Any movement to unite the right in Alberta should, in my opinion, come from the grassroots. The establishment, past and current elected members of both the Wildrose and the PCs should sit out the initial discussions. There is too much bad blood and mistrust in politicians for them to lead any talks of a united right. We have four years to get ready to oust the NDP government. We should make sure that a new party is made up of true conservatives and not Pretend Conservatives (PC) because they are responsible for the demise of the party. If you govern as a liberal it is very easy for the electorate to move further to the left, and they did.
Only when conservatives at all levels unite and behave like small ‘c’ common sense conservatives again that Conservatives shall form governments and get rid of the troglodytes.