Coincidence: HST version

nottawa reports it.

Then someone else does.

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Confederation 60: Federalism and the Newfoundlanders

The 60th anniversary of Confederation in 1949 is gaining a fair bit of attention but not nearly as much as it should.

The noisy minority

The one feature of the reporting and commentary seems to be the list of grievances, complaints and problems.  Now to be sure, this comes from a relatively small group of people to be found largely in St. John’s. They are the progeny of the crowd who, for their own reasons, have never gotten over losing the two referenda in 1948 that led to Confederation.

For the past 60 years this relatively small band has thrived on the belief that the whole thing was a plot and that all the ills of Newfoundland and Labrador can be placed squarely at the feet of “Canadians” and Confederation. They have thrived on the belief but not on the fact of the matters, and that is definitely not from lack of trying. 

There are three other reasons why they are such a small number, however, than the fact that they haven’t turned up evidence to back their claims.  There is a reason why the majority of Newfoundlanders and Labradorians do not give any support to their pseudo-separatist cause.

First, theirs is a negative message.  Not only does it claim this place is a mess, a claim that is hard to sustain for any length of time, it places blame for the mess squarely at the feet of Newfoundlanders and Labradorians for being too stunned – in the local meaning of the word – to look after their own affairs.

You’ll find no less an authority than Mary Walsh delivering just such a judgement in Hard rock and water, a fantasy film a few years ago that compared Newfoundland and Iceland. Most of the crowd that flocked to the showings of the film in St. John’s likely didn’t hear that part but it’s there if you listen. This is not to say Walsh is one of that small band, but her judgment is the logical conclusion one must come to from listening to the litany of grievances.

You’ll see the same thing in comments by the current Premier delivered in jest admittedly to a crowd of writers for Macleans back in 2004. The transcript is online, but here’s a synopsis from that first link along with the facetious view of the whole interview:

Understand that the editor’s question came after the Premier volunteered the opinion that the House of Assembly was “unproductive” and joked that if he had his way he would probably never call it in session. D’oh! That question came after the Macleans crowd asked the Premier why the provincial deficit was so big. His response was mismanagement over the past 10 years. There was a lengthy bit about the Stunnel; two sentences on the fishery. D’oh! The last question had the Premier calling for a seal cull. D’oh! The Premier made some misstatements of fact, for good measure (D’oh!) and a couple of big ideas got a handful of words, without explanation. D’oh! Take the whole interview and you have a bunch of poor, laughing drunks, complaining about having no money, who apparently can’t manage their own affairs, and yet who want to build grandiose megaprojects and kill seals.

There is a corollary to this that is worth mentioning in passing.  The story they tell is of a hard-done-by crowd victimised by the outside world and constantly needing a hand-out. it’s a cliche, of course, and one that they rightly find insulting but it is the essence of the story they tell.

Secondly, their message is almost invariably nothing more than a photocopy of something from somewhere else.  Masters of our own house, the constant airing of grievances, the list of demands, and the idea of getting into Confederation are all ideas advanced by the nationalist/separatist movement in Quebec. They are nothing more than a variation on the hand-me-down political ideas of copying the Irish or Icelandic models.  They don’t resonate with people who have a substantively different understanding of the world than Quebeckers, Icelanders or the Irish.

Thirdly, and flowing from that, their message has no vision for the future, no substantive way of correcting the pattern of behaviour they claim is responsible for the mess.  They do not speak to the people of Newfoundland and Labrador about their future in a way that people can actually relate to.

The time before Confederation is within the memory of people living today.  Even those of us first generation Canadians can recall how far we have come since the 1960s but except for those inculcated with what John Crosbie once called townie bullshit talk, our experience of the world is not driven by innate insecurity and feelings of inadequacy, individually or collectively.

And what’s more, the second generation Canadians now in adulthood do not recall the days of self-imposed insecurity.  Theirs is a world where it is perfectly natural for Newfoundlanders and Labradorians to be judged on their own individual merits. They are able to go anywhere in the world and succeed and, with few exceptions, they do.  Theirs is a world much larger than what can be seen from the nearest headland.  The revolution between the ears of the people of this place happened a long while ago.

The rolling of thunder

Confederation came quietly in 1949 but the reverberations from it continue to shake Newfoundland and Labrador.

The most obvious change after April 1, 1949 that most people saw was a change in their individual financial standing.  Not only did Canadian social welfare programs start to flow, but prices dropped throughout the former country as protectionist tariffs disappeared. Traveling to Canada no longer required a passport and leaving Newfoundland to work on the mainland no longer meant traveling to a foreign land. The walls that had once served to hold Newfoundlanders and Labradorians in came down immediately.

With Confederation, Newfoundlanders and Labradorians found a financial prosperity they had not known before but they also found a financial security. Economic problems in a town or industry no longer had to mean local disaster and the permanent departure of local residents.

Before Confederation, a community like Stephenville would have assuredly faced disaster. The provincial government, as it turned out, did not need to lift a finger and indeed its meagre efforts to respond to the closure did not spell doom for the community.  Residents who used to work at the paper mill found work easily elsewhere in Canada and could continue to live in their homes. It may not be ideal and indeed we may take it for granted but the experience in Stephenville in 2005 stands in stark contrast to the experience of communities in Newfoundland in the century and more beforehand.

The Newfoundland and Labrador government also benefitted as well from the strategic financial depth provided by Confederation.  Government had the room to explore and to make mistakes in economic development – like the chocolate factories and rubber boot plants and cucumber hothouses – without the fear such mistakes would translate almost instantly into suffering for ordinary Newfoundlanders and Labradorians. 

Confederation gave the provincial government a wealth of cash in addition to its own modest surplus from the Commission.  Schools, roads and hospitals came as a direct consequence.

The most profound change that came with Confederation, though, was the restoration throughout Newfoundland and Labrador of responsible government. That one change gave individuals in the province – Labradorians for the first time ever – the direct responsibility to elect the people who would represent them not only in the provincial legislature but in the national parliament as well.  No longer confined to dealing with only local affairs or with issues directly related to Newfoundland and Labrador, the people of the province could have a hand in shaping the policies of a country with much wider influence globally and much wider responsibilities than they had known before.

The path ahead

Newfoundland and Labrador today enjoys a measure of individual and collective prosperity earlier generations could only dream of. All is not perfect, but it is immeasurably better than it might have been.

It is immeasurably better because we have – individually and collectively – been able to apply ourselves to making it better.  We have made mistakes and learned from them and we have also enjoyed great success.  The current prosperity comes entirely from policies followed by successive governments in the 1980s and 1990s that are denigrated as give-aways only by the ignorant or the self-interested.

The broader foundation of economic success grew out of policies which took advantage of the move toward a global economy and free trade. The 1992 Strategic Economic Plan, which remains in place to a great extent, grew out of the ideas of two projects of public consultation, one in the 1980s and the other to develop the plan itself.  These were meaningful consultations in which many people had a direct impact on what the final documents said.

As we mark this anniversary it is worth considering the three fundamental changes needed to implement the 1992 SEP.  Those three changes are important because they are fundamentally related to the changes that began in 1949:

• A change within people. There is a need for a renewed sense of pride, self-reliance and entrepreneurship. We must be outward-looking, enterprising and innovative, and to help bring about this change in attitude we will have to be better educated. During the consultation process, most people agreed that education is essential to our economic development.
• A change within governments. Governments (both politicians and the bureaucracy) must focus on long-term economic development and planning, while still responding to short-term problems and needs. Government programs and services must place a greater emphasis on the quality of the services provided and on the client. Changes in education, taxation and income security systems are also considered critical to our economic development.
• A change in relationships. To facilitate the necessary changes in the economy, new partnerships must be formed among governments, business, labour, academia and community groups. In particular, better co-ordination between the federal and provincial governments in the delivery of business and economic development programs is needed to eliminate duplication and to prevent confusion for those who use them.

As we mark this 60th anniversary of Confederation, it is worth considering the extent to which current government policies fail to continue those changes.  It is worth noting that in the endless wars with outsiders, there has been a steady rebuilding of the walls and barriers we have worked so hard to tear down.  We worked to tear them down because they served only to restrict us.

It is worth noting that genuine pride, innovation and self-reliance can be stifled by a late-night telephone call and by the relentless personal attacks that come from merely dissenting from official views. By choking off healthy debate about public policy issues within Newfoundland and Labrador, by strangling any alternative views we serve only to return this place to self-defeating isolation.

Confederation gave Newfoundlanders and Labradorians the tools and opportunities to make for themselves a better place in the world. In 1949, we became once more masters of our own destiny and masters of our own house.

On this 60th anniversary of Confederation, we must be mindful of how far we have come and at the same time, be aware that if we are to continue to grow and prosper we must safeguard the foundation on which our current prosperity is built.

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Confederation 60: Statement by the Leader of the Opposition

Even as we sit here today, the bells of Parliament Hill in Ottawa are chiming the Ode to Newfoundland over the National Capital Region in celebration of the sixtieth anniversary of the Confederation of this Province with the nation of Canada.

In the 500-plus years of our history as a people, Confederation represents one of the greatest milestones that we have achieved in our Province, a union fostered by former Premier Joseph R. Smallwood, a founding father of Confederation who championed the cause as one of the greatest orators this country has ever seen or heard.

Since Confederation, we have seen greater prosperity for the people of our Province than ever before. I do not need to go through the entire list. They are already familiar to us: social supports for families and individuals, such as the baby bonus; income support and old age pension benefits; institutions of higher learning across the Province, such as Memorial University, trades colleges, and the Marine Institute; economic opportunities for our people, both here at home and across Canada as we industrialize through the development of hydro resources and iron ore mining, and further development of the pulp and paper industry; transportation links within our own Province, through the completion of the Trans-Canada Highway on the Island portion.

These improvements to our lives are very obvious to those who recall life in Newfoundland and Labrador before Confederation. But, Mr. Speaker, Confederation was not all about our wallets and what we can get out of it for ourselves. Confederation was also about what we brought to Canada: a proud people ready to contribute and to take our place within the larger Canadian federation.

In sixty short years, there is no doubt that this Province has left a mark on Canada, just as Canada has left a mark on Newfoundland and Labrador, and we can never forget the brave people of this Province who have fought and died fighting for freedom under the flag of Canada, just as their forefathers fought for freedom under the Union Jack.

My district in Labrador has particular attachment to Confederation, and voted overwhelmingly in its favour. Those referendums were the first time that the people of Labrador were permitted the right to vote during more than a century of Responsible Government in Newfoundland. For the first time, the people of Labrador felt that their opinions were valued, that they felt included which is why today they have a strong attachment and pride in our union with Canada.

Confederation is like a marriage: no doubt there are occasional spats and fights, we might take each other for granted from time to time and we have periods of not speaking to each other. But, just like a marriage, the relationship is based on lasting mutual respect for each others positions.

On this sixtieth anniversary, as the bells of Ottawa ring, I think all the people of Newfoundland and Labrador, and the people of Canada, should take a moment to reflect on how fortunate we are to live in a nation with publicly funded social programs, a country known the world over for champion freedoms and equality for all peoples and a country that promotes peace around the world.

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Confederation 60: Todd Russell’s statement in the Commons

Mr. Speaker, 60 years ago today just before midnight, Canada gained its tenth province and the people of Newfoundland and Labrador became Canadian citizens.

Today is the anniversary of our Confederation with Canada. The past six decades have brought great change. There have been ups and downs. But on balance, we are richer for being part of Canada and Canada is richer for our presence.

In my riding of Labrador the decision was clear. Voting in 1948 for only the third time in our history, my ancestors achieved a long- held dream. With 80% support, we chose Canada, and we still do.

March 31, 1949, gave new meaning to our country's motto: A mari usque ad mare, “From Sea to Sea”.

When the day breaks over Canada, it breaks a little earlier than it did on July 1, 1867, and we are all better because of it.

On this date we became part of this great country, this united country, the best country in the world.

On this date, Canada became complete.

Vive le Canada!

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Confederation irksome: CP coverage

From pseudo-separatist actor Greg Malone as told to Canadian Press:

"It's [Confederation’s] a total failure," Malone says.

"I think we need to be prepared to separate as much as Quebec is. I think we need to be that strong ourselves."

On the basis of what Greg evidently knows about Quebec, that would mean Confederation has been an overwhelming success for Newfoundland and Labrador.

And here’s another thing:  if he hadn’t already achieved some notoriety as a comedian would anybody be giving him the time of day, least of all Canadian Press?

For the fact checker:

Like Canada, the Dominion of Newfoundland had functioned much like its own country, with its own currency and passports. But tough economic times in 1934 forced the Newfoundland government to let a British-appointed commission oversee the region until the economy improved.

“Much like” suggests that Newfoundland really wasn’t “its own country”.  Before February 1934, Newfoundland was a Dominion like the others.

The tough economic times didn’t bring about the collapse of self-government in 1934.  Bankruptcy brought on by a decade and more of political mismanagement led to the surrender of self-government.

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Confederation 60: old stuff

1.  An old nottawa post that still rings true.

2.  “This day in history”, from Bond Papers, July 2008:

This was a truly democratic exercise in self-determination in which the fate of the country was placed, not in the hands of a few, but in the hands of the many. The issues were debated and widely discussed. The choices were clear and there were few restrictions on the campaigns. As it turned out, the first referendum showed an over-whelming preference for self-government.

The second referendum decided the form. In the event, voters settled for self-government through Confederation. It has been self-government, that is, government in which the people are responsible for controlling their own affairs, ever since. There are some who find that truth a tad inconvenient, but it remains a fact.

Responsible government returned to Newfoundland and Labrador in 1949 by popular vote. You don't need to argue about what happened after 1949 to celebrate what happened beforehand, culminating in the 1948 referenda.

Too bad Newfoundlanders and Labradorians don't know more about the events.

Even worse that Canadians elsewhere in the country know even less.

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The Annual Caribou Media Frenzy

The rival to March Madness and the seal hunt.

Submitted for your consideration, these extracts from the archives of the natural resources department:

2004: Minister disappointed in Innu response, and an update from an earlier statement.

2006:  Ministerial statement

2007:  Slaughter threatens Labrador caribou herd (also available en francais, no less)

2008:  Increased enforcement is apparently now protecting the herds.

This year  the annual caribou slaughter release is in March. Increased enforcement suddenly isn’t working quite as well as before.

At what point will the provincial government try and deal with this issue before the hunter’s hit the bush?

Just a thought.

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Jerome and his Amazing Technicolour Dream World

For the first time in four years, provincial government oil price projections aren’t lowballed. 

They did manage to lowball production levels but not by much.

There’s no secret stash of cash – like last year’s Equalization for the “have” province – that can emerge to make all the boo-boos go away.  This year is the current administration’s real budget.

And to make it worse, you have to wonder about their math skills.

Oil at US$70 a barrel, and with the Canadian dollar where it is would generate another $600 million in oil revenue above current estimates.

Just to put it in context, oil has spent the past three months at around US$45. The deficit is $750 on an accrual basis, $1.3 billion on a cash basis.

Jerome says that $600 million more would produce a surplus.

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Confederation 60: thunder

The accomplished fact of union shook the Newfoundland firmament like a clap of thunder.  From the very first morning that Newfoundlanders became Canadians it could be predicted with increasing certainty that the political weather of the new province was in for a seismic change and that government – the decisive barometer – would now, under the new dispensation, have to be reckoned with in matters great and small, filling more and more of the horizon of everyone, likewise great and small.

Herbert Pottle, Dawn without light, (St. John’s: Breakwater, 1979) p. 13

Whether or not government filled the political horizon as Herb Pottle predicted, Confederation did shake the people and society of Newfoundland and Labrador. 

The reverberations are still being felt.

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March madness

freenewfoundlandlabrador promoting the seal hunt (along with a raft of tired myths, fantasies and fables).

freenewfoundlandANDlabrador not.

Ok. 

So there really isn’t anything there at Free Newfoundland and Labrador but it’s a space occupied by Rebecca Aldworth, anti-seal hunt activist.

The word “and’ apparently makes all the difference.  Wonder if Myles and the anony-boys will be waging a jihad on Becca to try and get their name?

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But didn’t he approve the budget decisions in cabinet?

Some things make you wonder if cabinet actually functions like cabinet is supposed to function.

Former finance minister – and current justice minister – Tom Marshall is pleased that the government he is part of is putting cash into his district.

Either he is playing a huge joke on his constituents or he genuinely had no idea what was in the budget until he heard the speech or voice of the cabinet minister shagged up yet another story.

Either way it isn’t good.

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Red flags in front of the bull

The Telegram Saturday edition with huge attention paid to the 60th anniversary of Confederation.

1.  Before and after, the front pager which, in the online version includes links to George Baker’s 1970s era vinyl of some bits of the National Convention debates.  Not quite Jim Kirk does Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds but still worth the listen.

2.  A couple of retired reporters talk about covering the National Convention.

3.  A series of columns:

• Brian Jones – “Looking forward to 60 more years”
• Russell Wangersky - “Who put the con in Confederation?”  Incidentally, how come the awesomely amazing “balance sheet’ on Confederation the Spindy pumped out in 2004 disappeared from the now-twice-defunct newspaper’s website a long time ago?
• Pam Frampton  - “Life in Canada: a work in progress”
• Lana Payne - “Staying true to ourselves”

The editorial is worth checking out as well, not for the editorial itself but for the series of pseudonymous comments from someone or several people all of which repeat the same myths Wangersky mentions in his column.  perhaps some people hadn’t read that far when they made comments.

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Cougar S-92 timeline: TSB

The Transportation Safety Board released a time line for Cougar’s CHI91, the Sikorsky S-92 that crashed two weeks ago. Compare it to one published online at the time of the incident.  The TSB timeline is given in ZULU while the flightaware.com tracklog is converted from ZULU to Eastern Daylight.  Local time for the incident is ZULU – 3.5.

One of the questions the timeline raises is the search and rescue helicopter response time.  Not the Cormorant’s from 103 Squadron in Gander, mind you but Cougar’s own SAR helo.

If we take CHI91’s MAYDAY as minute zero, the figures get interesting.

Cougar should have an operations base monitoring the flight and its radio communications.  There would likely also be a  channel available so that the pilots can speak directly to the company’s maintenance and senior pilot team. 

With that said, Cougar Base at St. John’s airport should have been aware of the emergency no later than M+0, the same time that Gander received the MAYDAY.

The aircraft ditches at M+11.

At M+11 Cougar base advises that they will launch Cougar 61, the SAR helicopter.  The company had been operating as back-up to 103 and knew at that time that the air force SAR response was an additional one hour flying time away.

Cougar 61 does not launch until M+43.

Cougar 61 arrives on scene 18 minutes later. An aircraft 18 minutes flying time away takes 43 minutes to get airborne and that’s in a situation where the aircraft ought to have been ready as a matter of normal procedure and the despatchers knew from the outset that there was a potentially catastrophic problem with the aircraft.

We can say they knew it was potentially catastrophic because they know the importance of the main gearbox oil pressure to continued flight.  Heck, they would have known about the Broome incident that had led to the January Sikorsky directive.

This is one of many questions that the TSB investigation will undoubtedly address with typical thoroughness.

Nothing released by TSB on Thursday raised any issues with personal locator beacons or immersion suits.

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TSB concludes field phase, releases more crash details

Two weeks after the loss of CHI91 and 17 of the 18 souls on board, the Transportation Safety Board concluded the field phase of its investigation today by releasing some details of the crash.

Among the highlights:

• The cause of the gearbox oil pressure loss has been determined to be an in-flight  break of a stud in the gearbox filter assembly as previously released.
• The aircraft descended rapidly from 800 feet above sea level (ASL) in under a minute owing to an as-yet undetermined event. Estimated rate of descent is given as 1,000 feet per minute.
• The aircraft struck the water upright (belly first) in a tail down attitude.  This is different from earlier reports that the aircraft may have struck nose first.  That conclusion was apparently based on an initial assessment of the fuselage, as recovered.  The new interpretation is based on an examination of the entire wreck plus flight data. Some comment the day the main portion of the aircraft was brought ashore suggested that the tail rotor assembly (rotor plus vertical fin) had broken from the tail boom.  The boom was broken from the main fuselage.
• Two of the three flotation devices in the aircraft were recovered undeployed.  The only one to deploy appears to have been under the starboard pilot station (co-pilot position?).  The right forward floatation bag can be seen in a TSB photo of some of the wreckage released earlier this week.
• The timeline is very similar to the one previously posted here. The MAYDAY call came at approximately 5500 ASL which is at about 0817 hours Eastern Daylight Time in the flightaware.com tracklog.
• The aircraft experienced an unexplained loss of power while at 800 ASL.  This resulted in a lack of flight data from the aircraft’s onboard recorders.  The last two to three minutes of the flight have been reconstructed using other data, including  onshore radar records.
• The pilot did indicate his intention to ditch from 800 ASL.
• Force on the aircraft at impact is estimated at 20g.

More to follow.

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You can’t see if the tin foil covers your eyes

For those who don’t know,  the federal government has been working since about 2004 to extend Canada’s jurisdiction to cover the entire continental shelf, including the bits beyond the 200 mile exclusive economic zone.

News that France is trying to lay claim to bits of the shelf outside the Canadian 200 mile exclusive economic zone will come as no surprise.

The seabed involved is a potentially lucrative bit of real estate.  The French will try to press a claim based on St. Pierre but it will be tough to see how they could possibly make it fly, at least if you take a look at the current state of international law.

Now none of that will stop some locals who have an interest in fomenting unrest and fostering ignorance from claiming all sorts of vile things.  That’s what they do and then claim that their inventions are “truth”.

In any event, those links will take you to some facts that – as always – tell a completely different story than the one you’ll hear pumped out of a certain small but vocal minority.

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More pork posts

The only thing that really comes out of a pledge to have the provincial government try to take on some sort of international role is more plum pork patronage appointments.

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A tin foil hat donnybrook in the making

1.  Canada is working on a claim to the nose and tail of the Grand Banks under the law of the Sea Convention.

2.  France – using St. Pierre as the basis – want the same ocean territory under Law of the Sea.

3.  The nose and tail of Grand Banks are very important to Newfoundland and Labrador fishing interests, harvesters and processors alike.

4.  But Canada apparently doesn’t look after poor little Newfoundland and Labrador.  The tough little province that parts it’s hair down the middle must go out and fight with everyone for every scrap it gets.

Well, at least that’s the story some people keep pushing.

5.  And we we heard that the same day that the federal government started the racket with France over the nose and tail of the Grand Banks.

There was a run on tin foil at Sobeys last night in some parts of St. John’s as the faithful put on their battle armour for the fight of their lives.

They just have one problem.

Do they attack France for going after our fish or do they go after Ottawa for not fighting for Newfoundland and Labrador?

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Nothing could be further from the truth: Abitibi expropriation version

Natural resources minister Kathy Dunderdale answered a question yesterday on the offer the provincial government made for Star Lake.

Here’s her answer:

Mr. Speaker, some time ago Abitibi Bowater informed the Province that it was considering selling its Star Lake asset and invited the Province to make a bid. The Province through Nalcor did that, Mr. Speaker, and the bid was not accepted, in part due to an agreement they have with their shareholder on Star Lake who has the right of first refusal. It was certainly clear to us that Abitibi really was not interested in selling that asset to the Province. We made a fair bid, it was not accepted and we have moved on. It was not a matter of any great consequence, Mr. Speaker, and we were not trying to hide anything from anybody in terms of our discussions around the expropriation. It was completely new discussion at that point in time.

As a rule, when someone volunteers something that is not directly related to the question – especially if it is a denial -  then you can safely assume this is a sensitive issue.  Yu might even believe that the denial isn’t the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.

You could even believe that, in fact, nothing could be further from the truth than the denial.

That’s why this bit of Dunderdale’s comments sand out.  They don’t fit.  They are unnecessary and they are a denial of something that hasn’t been said, at least in the House.

… have moved on. It was not a matter of any great consequence, Mr. Speaker, and we were not trying to hide anything from anybody in terms of our discussions around the expropriation. It was completely new discussion at that point in time.

Odd are that the expropriation had a whole big bunch to do with that experience. So big a bunch and such a gigantic portion that until February, Dunderdale and her boss hadn’t said boo about the whole affair. The rest of us learned of it about February 20.

And of course, the fact is that Dunderdale’s department was and is trying to hide everything about the expropriation. Bond Papers readers already know that.

In fact until yesterday, the department wouldn’t even confirm the expropriation process.  Even then it only got a one liner in a news release that also looks suspicious, suspiciously like an attempt to appear to be doing something in the midst of a local political crisis.

Yesterday, was also the first time Dunderdale gave any accounting whatsoever of her secret mission to Ottawa, an issue we pointed out when it happened, over a month ago.

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His master’s voice

The Speaker of the House of Assembly is supposed to be a pretty powerful figure.  He certainly isn’t supposed to take direction from any one member of the legislature.

That’s what makes Roger Fitzgerald’s response to Danny Williams very odd.  Fitzgerald could have easily – and should have easily – taken the initiative on sending condolences on behalf of members rather than wait to have the suggestion made by someone.  Instead, this is what happened:

MR. SPEAKER: Further tabling of documents?

Notices of motion.

The hon. the Premier.

PREMIER WILLIAMS: Mr. Speaker, if you deem it appropriate, perhaps it would be in order for letters of condolences be sent out on behalf of all members to the families of the crew and the passengers of Flight 491 on behalf of all members of the House of Assembly under your signature, if that is appropriate.

MR. SPEAKER: It is certainly appropriate and the Speaker will take your suggestion under advisement and do as you directed.

Long after they’d finished the condolences and minute of silence, up pops the Prem with this comment.

Then Roger says he will “do as you directed”.

Do as directed?

Maybe we can understand now why Roger sided with the Provincial Conservatives in shafting the Liberals on caucus funding.  He was just following orders.

So what other orders is the supposedly impartial Fitzgerald taking from the 8th?

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Sound fiscal mismanagement

Not.

From nottawa, the first perspective on the provincial budget which is scheduled to to be presented on Thursday.

Take a look at the chart of capital and current account spending. 

Since when is increasing spending by 18% in a recession “sound fiscal management”?

Well, it isn’t.

The only people who would use those terms to describe the provincial government spending habits over the past four years are people who have never actually looked at what is going on.

Either that or they are sitting on the government benches or work for people sitting on the government benches.

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Related:

“We live in a fiscal house of cards” (March 2008)

“What goes up must come down” (March 2008)

Before you click to another page because this is all old hat, consider that in 2003, oil was around US$25 per barrel.  The only people who predicted that within five years oil would hit US$100 a barrel within five years were either in an insane asylum, considered candidates for a straightjacket or part of a very small group of oil pundits who had been faithfully predicting hundred dollar a barrel since the 1970s.  Eventually they had to be right, just like a psychic.

Ask around today and you'd have a hard time finding anyone who will tell you that we will see oil below US$50 a barrel in the near future either.

Odds are better, though, that oil will drop to US$50 and lower within the next decade.

Okay so it happened a little sooner than predicted.