882...I Love Brian Mulroney

Well, I don't, although I have a framed Aislin cartoon of Lyin' Brian on my wall with his hand over his heart, a tear in his eye and the Amurican flag as a back drop, but a lot, and by a lot I mean a lot of Tories sure enough do.

There was a a huge I Love Muldoon clusterf'ck in Montreal Thursday and Don Martin of the Calgary Herald was there. He waxed poetically about it with Adrian Harewood on CBC Ottawa's Radio One yesterday afternoon and he goes on and on and on about it in this morning's paper. Mr. Martin is a pretty cool writer in my view and he makes a few very interesting points when contrasting the most accomplished Conservative Prime Minister of the last century with the most accomplished Conservative Prime Minister of this century.

One of the things he pointed out on CBC yesterday afternoon was that the room was full of everyone who was everyone from the right side of centre, from Jean Charest and his Parti Liberal du Quebec to the Reformers and Canadian Alliance types from the West. That was Mr. Mulroney's secret: he truly did unite the right, right down to rightists that were and are Quebec nationalists.

"As one current Conservative MP accurately noted: 'There will never be a Harper 25. Mulroney did a thousand little things for his people and some came a long way to pay a hundred bucks just to show their respect and appreciation.' "

Scary as it might seem to those of us who are coming from the other end of the spectrum, if Prime Minister Harper could be a little more motivational and less confrontational inside his own party, he too could have a big ass majority like Muldoon's and do some serious long term damage.

Lee Richardson, an MP from Calgary postulated that "This event could be the pivotal point to bringing our people together again. Look around here at this amazing turnout. I think we can do it again."

Perfect, just what we need.

WFDS

867...Paradigm Shift In Alberta

Interesting by election result in the most conservative city in Canada, Calgary, yesterday.

Adam Daifallah, National Post writer posts a story from the southern Alberta metropolis recording the victory of Wildrose Alliance's Paul Hinman, winning in a riding held by the Alberta Conservatives for 38 years. The year they took the seat was the year they took power in Alberta, power they have not relinquished.

Mr. Daifallah seems to think that this win by the Wildrose Alliance may be the crack in the wall that will bring down the Conservative government.

WFDS

862...The BQ Blinks First

It was either Jack Layton or Gilles Duceppe that was going to save the Tories from another election. Gilles Duceppe, who has 16 MPs who need to hang in til middle of 2010 to get their pension, was the man who blinked first.

The BQ says it will support the Ways and Means motion because there is nothing bad in it. Just in case the NDP will also support the motion Friday because of the EI stuff they want pushed through.

This means that future Calgary realtor of the year [or should that be Realtor of the Year] Stephen Harper and the minority Conservative government will survive at least until the first week of October when the next Prime Minister of Canada, Michael Ignatieff and the Liberals plan to introduce a non-confidence motion.

WFDS

776...Rat Pack

You may file this in the part of your brain that stores vital cocktail party yet otherwise useless information: Alberta is the only province or state in the NAFTA 3 that is rat free. The four legged kind.

That was not so last week. According to CBC a single Saskatchewan rat had made its way to Calgary [more jobs, better opportunity, tastier garbage] and was ensconced in the Coventry Hills neighbourhood. The Alberta Rat Patrol trapped the little bugger and got rid of him.

Alberta spends about half a million a year on rat control but the effort most likely saves millions upon millions in potential crop damage, disease and so on.

Amazingly PETA, People For The Ethical Treatment of Animals, is silent on this issue.

WFDS

720...Wasted Summer Days And Nights

At least that is what L. Ian MacDonald [and, no, there is nothing pretentious about putting your first initial in front of your name] writes in the morning Montreal Gazette.

The former confidant of the United States' greatest Canadian Prime Minister, Brian Mulroney, Mr. MacDonald slags the Liberals and Canada's next Prime Minister, Michael Ignatieff, for being lazy and incompetent.

Mr. MacDonald makes one valid point:

Here's something else for the Liberals to consider:
With a new leader taking advantage of the worst economic downturn in decades,
they should be running 10 to 15 points ahead in the polls,
easily leading every region of the country except the West.
Instead, they're running no better than even with
the Conservatives, given polls' margin of error,
with both parties in the mid-30-per-cents.

As much as I want to believe that Mikey I. will be the next PM and that Stephen Harper will become the greatest real estate agent Calgary has ever seen, Mr. Tory Mouthpiece makes a valid point.

That is pretty much all that is in Sunday's Gazette. I just saved you a dollar, more if you live off the Island.

Thank me.

WFDS

494...Would Someone Please Call 911 For Me

Jason Kenney said something that makes sense to me.

I know, I know, but it was in today's Calgary Herald, Minister Kenney said Friday he wants more immigrants in Canada to learn one of the country’s official languages and expects them to better integrate into Canadian society.

That is uber reasonable.

“Our new focus is on integration. We don’t want to create a bunch of silo communities, where kids grow up in a community that more resembles their parents’ country of origin than Canada.”

To that end the man was in Calgary to inject 9.5 million into english as a second language courses in his hometown.

WFDS

487...Winnipeg City Of Champions

Ten years in a row.

Taking the title yet again, it is Winnipeg, known to many as Winterpeg, is yet again the 7/Eleven Slurpee capital. Ross Romaniuk in the Winnipeg Sun tells me that for the tenth consecutive year the Manitoba capital leads the world in Slurpee consumption.

With the highest average number of Slurpees sold per store, Manitoba has taken top spot over runners-up Calgary and southwest Detroit. Manitoba's sales of Slurpees were 20% higher than Calgary.

WFDS

447...It Is Also Stampede Sunday In Calgary

The Prime Minister and future Calgary realtor of the year, Stephen Harper, along with the next Prime Minister of Canada, Michael Ignatieff, have been out politicking like mad men at the summer fiesta.

Basically it breaks down like this:

Stephen Harper: We doing good.

Michael Ignatieff: They doing bad.

Garnered from various sources.

WFDS

436...At Least The Conservatives Hate Everyone

Back in January The Bloc Quebecois pointed to Stephen Harper's western connections as a reason Quebecers should shun the Conservatives, saying they shouldn't let "Calgary'' decide their future. The Bloc published an ad in eastern Quebec featuring a stetson above the words "We won't let Calgary decide for Quebec.''

Five months later the Tories counterpunch.

Jab, jab, jab, body shot.

Daniel LeBlanc in The Globe and Mail leads his story with

A pervert in a plaid shirt is luring a child in a park, but the Bloc Québécois will not do anything to stop him, the Conservative Party says in a new round of attack ads. The message, which was sent at taxpayers' expense in every single Bloc riding, features a blurry picture of a small boy leaving a park with an older man. The two are walking hand-in-hand, and a nearby kiddy swing is empty. “Your Bloc MP has voted against the protection of children,” the tag line states.

What the Bloc actually voted against was the removal of judicial discretion. “Minimum sentences have no dissuasive effect,” said Bloc MP and whip Michel Guimond.

Jab, jab, jab, body shot.

Of course when it comes to scaring the f'k out of the Canadian public about le law and le order Stephen Harper's Conservatives have never let empiricism, facts, get in the way.

WFDS

149...Rick Mercer, Radio, Q107 Calgary, 8 am Wed

Patti McNeil of the Q107 Terry and Patti in the Mornings show in Calgary has sent me a tip that Rick Mercer of Mercer Report fame and funny guy will be on her show tomorrow morning at 8 Calgary time which is 10 in Ontario.

I think the reason the time is higher in Ontario is because our government charges more taxes and is less pro business than the Albertan regime. Then again, I have been wrong before, eh?

http://www.q107fm.ca is the link to follow to hear Mr. Mercer being interviewed by Miss McNeil and her co host Terry DiMonte.

WFDS