ECA Review 2019-01-10

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6 J a n u a r y 1 0 ' 1 9 H a n n a / C o r o n a t i o n / S t e t t l e r , A b . E C A r e v i e w Editorial Taking responsibility V I E W P O I N T S The opinions expressed are not necessarily the opinions of this newspaper. B. Schimke ECA Review Norway’s sovereign wealth fund, enacted 14 years after Alberta’s Heritage Trust Fund was established, is worth US$1.1 trillion. Alberta’s fund after 42 years is valued at US$13 billion. Norway restricts governments from using any more than four per cent of their oil and gas royalties on annual government expenditures. The fund is for future generations when oil revenues collapse. Recently some extra money has been pulled out and used to support the country’s transition to a fossil-fuel free society. “ Our province’s economy isn’t diversified, but neither are many of our households. Alberta’s Heritage Fund has been raided year-after-year and government-after-successive government. It’s been used to balance the budget, give Alberta’s good hospitals, schools, highways and low taxes compared to other provinces. And, of course, sustain our pride in being the only province without a sales tax. Today almost one third of all cars sold in Norway are electric. Norway’s goal is to end sales of fossil fuel vehicles by 2025. In Alberta we’re lead to believe that electric vehicles can’t operate in northern climates. Government policy is the motivator to change consumer behaviour. Battery-driven cars in Norway are exempt from most taxes and receive free parking and charging hence the increase in their popularity. Of course, that is the intent of a “ carbon tax. A consumption tax that was once favoured by right-wing parties as the market approach to pollution reduction. By changing behaviour of consumers, it would encourage risk-adverse, profit-takers to invest in emerging industries and away from carbon intensive industries. Today Arctic and coastal regions are the most affected by global warming. Canada and Norway are both coastal and Arctic countries but unlike Canada, Norwegians collectively are serious about their international responsibility to reduce carbon emissions and save their country for future generations. The board of the Norwegian Sovereign Wealth fund has recently announced they will over time divest from all oil and gas companies, including Norwegian energy firms. They want their fund and their economy protected from future oil shocks. In Alberta, we live the vicious cycle. When oil prices are high, oil companies pay huge salaries, give their employees shares in the company as bonuses and pension contributions and high wages which drives up the price of homes. When oil prices slump, Albertans associated with the oil patch not only lose their jobs, they lose value in their investments and their home prices collapse. The three most important pillars to financial stability are jobs, investments and real estate which in Alberta all increase and collapse simultaneously. Our province’s economy isn’t diversified, but neither are many of our households. Regretfully we’ve let so much cash slip through our fingers, provincially and personally, throughout the last four decades with little planning or concern for the future. We could learn so much from Norway, but, alas, we must first collectively believe that man made climate change is real and, second, that a sales tax is necessary to smooth out our boom-bust economy. Mail bag Still searching… Dear Editor, Early in December, I started my search for someone for whom I could vote: someone with integrity and honesty, someone not tainted by floor crossing and backroom deal-making. Reports of more shenanigans in the United Conservative Party (UCP) nominations in ridings across the province lead me to believe that integrity appears to be in short supply. However, to my list of qualifications for my choice of representative, I would like to add wisdom. Webster’s Dictionary defines wisdom as accumulated knowledge and intelligent application of learning. Federally, Trudeau and Scheer only present variations of very similar policies. Provincially, both Rachel Notley and Jason Kenney, after discussions with the oil companies, came up with the same ‘plan’ of reducing Alberta’s oil production. Would these be the same four company representatives that supported Rachel Notley’s carbon tax (one of whom promptly left the country)? Nothing new: the same old ideas of power-greedy elites, the ideas that got us into our current mess. Rather than intelligently applying learning and accumulated knowledge, these leaders are all politicians telling us what they think will be best for us. What we are missing is practical wisdom or experience defined by Webster’s as “knowledge and skill derived from being engaged in a particular activity”. Rather than having ‘dirty hands’ from party shenanigans and connections, I want a representative who is not afraid to get his hands dirty with good Alberta soil and oil. I want someone who will listen to other hard-working Albertans and then use that accumulated practical wisdom as a basis for cutting regulations or choosing and making policies. I am looking for a representative with integrity and practical wisdom… I’m still searching... Pat Holloway Castor, Ab. R R R R R Published by Coronation Review Limited 72 pt East Central Alberta EVIEW 60 pt 48 pt 36 pt PrairieView For real conservatives, 2018 a disappointment by Herman Schwenk We are at the beginning of a new year, 2019. Does it have a different ring to it than 2018? I think not. From a political point of view it will be a very interesting year for us in Alberta. If the current rules are followed there will be two elections for us to participate in. Schwenk There will be a provincial election by May of this year and a federal election in October. For us that are real conservatives, 2018 has been somewhat of a disappointment. The year started out with a new United Conservative Party with Jason Kenney as the leader. It looked like a new day for Alberta politics. LETTERS POLICY • Letters to the Editor are welcomed • Must be signed and a phone number included so the writer’s identity can be verified. • ECA Review reserves the right to edit letters for legal considerations, taste and brevity. Letters and columns submitted are not necessarily the opinion of this newspaper. Member of: Office Hours Mon. - Fri. 9 am - 5 pm R 30 pt Subscriptions: 4921 - Victoria Avenue $42.00 in Canada; $74.20 in US; Tel. (403) 578-4111 R 24 pt $135.15 Overseas. (All prices include GST) Mail: Box 70, Coronation, AB Canada, T0C 1C0 Website ECAreview.com He was talking about a party that was being driven by grassroots supporters rather than the top-down politics of the old PC Party. Well, surprise-surprise! It didn’t take long for the word ‘grassroots’ to be removed from their website. Somehow the party establishment is being controlled by remnants of the old PC Party. Turn to There, Pg 7 Alberta Press Council Do you have a concern or complaint about a newspaper article or ad? If after bringing your concerns to the attention of this newspaper, you are not satisfied, you may contact the Alberta Press Council at www.albertapresscouncil.ca or toll free in Alberta at 1-888-580-4104 for information. Joyce Webster Publisher/Editor publisher@ECAreview.com Bonny WilliaMS Circulation Manager “ It didn’t take long for the word ‘grassroots’ to be removed from their website. brenda SCHimke Editorial Writer TERRI HUXley Reporter 587-321-0030 news1@ECAreview.com Yvonne tHulien Manager office@ECAreview.com Gayle Jaraway Marketing 403-578-4111 advertise@ECAreview.com Lisa Myers-sortland Graphic Artist Judy walGenbaCH Marketing 403-740-2492 marketing@ECAreview.com “ R 18 pt
E C A r e v i e w H A N N A / C o r o N A t i o n / S t e t t l e r , A b J A N u a r y 1 0 ' 1 9 7 Legislature Emancipation = Motivated Creativeness² by Rick Strankman MLA, Drumheller-Stettler German-born theoretical physicist and Nobel Prize winner Albert Einstein was responsible for the theory of relativity (E=mc²). This along with quantum mechanics is considered one of the two pillars of modern physics. Einstein left us with more than his innovative approach to science; he also left us with many inspirational quotes. One of these most notable was, “Everything that is really great and inspiring is created by the individual who can labour in freedom.” Einstein witnessed first-hand how restrictive life without basic freedoms could be, and was forced to flee his German homeland in 1933. He understood from personal experience how the encumbrances, be they government or regulatory, stifled creative energy. His words are not just a statement about freedom; they encompass a larger meaning, the freedom of inspiration that drives innovation. In Alberta, we’ve witnessed the heavy-handed approach of government that fosters an ideology that closes its mind to the ideas that grow from the inspiration of freedom and creativity. In the past, Albertans have shown a self-driven ability to innovate and create if given the ability to act and think freely. In the near future, Albertans will have the task of choosing who and how this province will be governed. A look back on the road we’ve travelled is essential to understanding many of the issues that are negatively affecting our current social and fiscal situations. So where do we start? The process was illegitimate Cont’d from Pg 6 We don’t know if this is happening by direction from Mr. Kenney or if he has just gone along with the old PC Party hacks. There appears to be a deliberate move to purge the Wildrose out of the united party. In constituency after constituency all over the province the preferred candidate has been young people that were associated with the old PC Party. I asked a person who is connected to the current political establishment, why they would put so much concentration on young people instead of having some candidates with experience. The answer that I was given is that ‘if and when elected, the objective is to RULE not just govern’. In other words strict top-down control. It seems these people have not learned why the Wildrose Party was formed in the first place. If, in fact, this does occur by the time of the next election, there will be another grassroots conservative party in place. The candidate in the Drumheller- Stettler Constituency, in the opinion of many, was not elected in a fair contest. That campaign brought in over 300 people to a founding meeting, many by bus to vote for a predetermined slate of directors so as to have a controlled CA board that would favour their candidate. If you feel, in Alberta we have less control over the basic elements that contribute to the freedoms that allow us to be innovative and creative, we must demand more liberty from the people who govern us. The goal of having the independence to allow inspiration to develop organically must be a part of the electoral decisions we make. Our goal as stewards of the province should include making the most informed decision when choosing the leadership that will accommodate the freedom that inspires Albertans. Einstein expressed his understanding of what it takes to foster the innovation that comes with freedom. In recent years, the ability to unleash your creativity and innovative spirit has been stifled by successive governmental mishandling, that has resulted in government-imposed hardship on Albertans. Seeing beyond the old and tired ideology of branded partisan politics should take precedence over policies that put ideology before the welfare of Albertans. Einstein achieved his own emancipation leaving his troubled German homeland for the freedom of the United States of America. That emancipation motivated and allowed him to create some of his most important work, that to this day still benefits mankind. You could say his Emancipation = Motivated Creativeness² , E=mc 2 . Einstein was onto something that we all can experience by choosing representation that simply allows his other E=mc2 formula. That will inspire some really great things. Albertans have charted innovative The process was illegitimate but very successful for them. The Local Constituency Nominating Committee (LCNC) that is appointed by the board is supposed to be neutral. The chairman was a director of another political party during the nomination, a clear conflict of interest. They tried to get away with one or two voting polls in the second largest geographic constituency in the province. They were told they had to have six but they refused to advertise the times and location of the polls ahead of time. In my opinion, this was to discourage members from voting for the other candidate. Nate Horner personally told me at the founding meeting on May 17 that he was going to run a clean campaign when, in my opinion, he had already compromised his campaign. If the way this campaign was conducted is a clean campaign, I’d hate to think what a dirty campaign would look like. The Horner campaign thought all they had to do to be assured of a seat in the legislature was get the nomination by any means. Not so fast. There may be consequences. Many people in this constituency are upset with the way the nomination process was conducted and say they will not vote for Horner. courses and physically proven leadership skills in the past. During the next election cycle in Alberta, it is their utmost responsibility to achieve the freedom that Viewpoints Einstein so eloquently noted. The options for Albertans will be varied and their future will be directed by their actions. Doctors educated abroad can cure Canada’s healthcare woes by Sandra Banner Canada has fewer doctors per capita than almost every other wealthy nation. This doctor shortage will worsen in the coming years. Canadian medical schools aren’t producing enough physicians to meet the needs of our growing population. To ensure that patients receive timely care, government officials must welcome more physicians educated at international medical schools. The doctor shortage threatens our nation’s public health. Nearly 16 per cent of citizens aged 12 and older don’t have a primary healthcare provider, according to the most recent figures from Statistics Canada. In Quebec, over one-quarter of residents lack a primary care provider. Canada also lacks enough psychiatrists. Ontario, for instance, is short 200 psychiatrists. That gap will grow to 350 by 2030. The doctor shortage is particularly severe in rural communities. While 18 per cent of the population resides in a rural area, fewer than 10 per cent of the nation’s physicians practice there. A dearth of doctors makes it difficult for Canadians to obtain care. Only 43 per cent of Canadians can get a same-day or next-day appointment when they’re sick -- putting the country dead last in a study of 11 developed countries. One in five Canadians waits more than a week to see a doctor. The crisis will deepen as Canada’s population grows. Within less than two decades, 47 million people could call Canada home, up from about 37 million today. “ The Canadian government must do more to recruit doctors educated abroad -- particularly those who are Canadian citizens or permanent residents. At the same time, many of the physicians currently practicing in Canada will retire soon. About 40 per cent are 55 or older. Turn to Well, Pg 8 3” wide version REGISTER NOW: News Media Internship Program Work alongside the editors, reporters and photographers of the community newspapers in Alberta or NWT A ten-week internship through the C.A. Maclean Foundation is an invaluable opportunity to learn firsthand the importance of community journalism. Earn while you learn www.awna.com/camaclean 3.75” wide Now version accepting Clearview Awards REGISTER NOW: nominations! News Media Internship Program Clearview Public Schools invites nominations for the Clearview Award of Merit and the Work alongside the editors, reporters Clearview Star Award. and photographers of the community The Clearview Award of Merit celebrates the personal newspapers achievement in Alberta of or students NWTand staff, past and present, who have achieved excellence in A a ten-week particular internship field, for which through they the are C.A. recognized either provincially, nationally and/or internationally. Maclean Foundation is an invaluable The Clearview Star Award recognizes staff and community opportunity members to learn who first-hand have made the significant contributions to our school communities through importance volunteerism, of community as a community journalism. partner, or supported our schools at the school community Earn while level. you learn Clearview proudly honours its students, employees, www.awna.com/camaclean and community members with these two special awards. By recognizing excellence and recognizing those that support learning success, we celebrate our communities and our students, and future generations of students. The Clearview Award of Merit and The Clearview Star Award Full details and nomination packages can be obtained through the division website (clearview.ab.ca) or from the division office in Stettler (403-742-3331). Nomination packages should be submitted to: Peter Neale, Associate Superintendent Clearview Public Schools 5031-50th Street, Box 1720 Stettler, AB T0C 2L0 Phone: 403-742-3331 Fax: 403-742-1388 Nominations close Thursday, January 31, 2019 at 4:30 p.m. “
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ECA Review 2019-01-10

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