Mr. Cameron said the Tory party, which has governed Alberta since 1971, seems to be "running into a wall at 100 kilometres per hour"

they're only going 100? Please press down on the foot a little more.

Eddie is a nice guy, but he's not a very bright guy, and he's chosen to surround himself with a poor set of advisers. He just does not understand the oil industry at all.

I'd normally be working this time of year, but I'm sitting at home. I don't blame this entirely on Eddie, but he has certainly exacerbated the problem. This newly-announced plan to sink (literally) billions of dollars into a carbon-sequestration is the icing on the cake.

I should renew my membership in the Alberta PC party just so I can vote against him in the leadership review. Hopefully, they take a serious view of the upsurging Wildrose Alliance, and shift Tory politics sharply to the right to counter that, otherwise he will lose the next election. It isn't just the hicks in the sticks that are looking to Wildrose, they are attracting the interest of people in the Calgary financial sector, too.

Jim Dinning is certainly enjoying this moment.

Jim Dinning should go down in history as the guy who got more Liberals to donate money to the PC Party than anyone else.

For those a bit confused; numerous Liberals bought memberships during the leadership race for the PC's for no other purpose than to vote against Ted Morton.

If you remember, Eddie was elected leader on the same day Stephane Dionne won the leadership of the LPC.

Both Eddie and Steffy were third choice candidates with the added twist that the PC's held an online vote that anybody who dropped five bucks for a PC membership was instantly eligible to participate.

This resulted in a lot of liberals who feared Ted Morton signing up as PC's to thwart the rightmost alternative.

Hence our liberal lite Premier and the rest is history.

As Albertans have done in the past so too will they do in the future. Wholesale change is on the horizon.

Syncro

Ardvark

I swear I was composing the above as you were.

Syncro

As much as I would like to use the great minds... line Syncro, the truth is the truth. Eddie is nothing but the second choice of the overwhelming majority of members, both PC and Liberal.

Well, we will see if the 'WR Alliance' can pick the right leader. Have not bought a membership in the party because I'm not sure of their policies yet. It seems that 'Albertas' people are like little kids holding their hands out demanding the things they want without looking at where its coming from.

I think the first mistake 'Steady Eddie' made when he got the vast majority was not making the wholesale change of his cabinet. He is making the same mistake as 'Don Getty' made.

May Stelmach be to the PCs what Harry Strom was to the Socreds, the end of another Dynasty. The Wildrose Alliance will have it's hands full cleaning out the rot. Advice to future leader, do it hard and fast. Shrink that puppy down. Make Saskatchewan look like a bunch of commies again.

Was ;0

Syncro

where Special Ed comes from is notably red. even more so than Redmonton. when I lived there in 1978 to 1980 there was a provincial election. The people around there were so rabidly left I was convinced that provincially we stood a chance of having a Dipper government. I believe that was one of the seats the dips won that election. But provincially of course it was nothing like that. Its been an observation of mine ever since then that the local fish pond politics are very important in any seat.
the local farmers in his area hated everyone. much like Eds fair share they were always under the perception that someone was getting a better deal then they were. Always demanding "compensation" for some wrong that they claimed . I heard the word "compensation" so much in those few years that it still rings hard in my ears.
Ed has been sitting with his kitchen table economists for 30 years.

he is about the same age as me. Im wondering if I checked him too hard into the boards years ago in the Bruderheim arena? or Waskatnau? or the home arena in Radwater. (thats how they said it)

Hey John G. Chittick, careful there, we don't need the commie lites back here in good old Saskabush.

If I recall my history correctly, one of the constituencies not far east from Stelmach's very nearly elected a COMMUNIST member in the 1935 election...

Yep here comes P.S.T...Calgary Herald Today: Alberta losing its tax advantage, may need sales tax: study BY DAN HEALING, CALGARY HERALDOCTOBER 14, 2009 12:02 PM

eddies giving a state of the union address tonight. Or rather he's trying to haul his political as$ out of the fire. And true too form he's reacting - and rather late at that - rather than being proactive.

Mr. Ed's problem is simple: he has no strong philosophical grounding upon which to make decisions. All of the hard work and niceness and meaning well in the world cannot make up for that.

to quote Yogi Berra "If you don't know where you are going, you might wind up someplace else."

Having typed the above, all of this becomes moot if Danielle Smith loses the leadership vote this friday/saturday.

Stelmach's ratings plummetting! So should he - from a gallows.

A younger friend is an oilfield
geologist who until 6 months ago was making a
very good dollar, by talent and hard work. I've known
him a long time - he's one of the best. Anyway, he
hasn't had any work in 6 months. He and his wife
think that Stelmach should be tarred and feathered,
while they come up with something really bad
to do to him. My wife and I
have volunteered to fly out to help keep the tar hot.

With creeps like Stelmach in power who needs
Elizabeth May?

Eds mistake has been surrounding himself with self serving advisors, and most of his MLA'a are only there for the money, not for the good of the province. Here we have a deficit budget, and our local MLA is running around buying votes with millions for golf cources and riding arenas. This province will be the envy of Canada once again if we oust these red Joe Clarkians. Get out and vote Merle, the Wild Rose is out for the good of all Albertans not just the names on the board of directors on the power companys. Oil runs Alberta, simple as that. Ed has driven the oil out with stupid decisions like cancelling seismic programs that pissed off friends of Eds along a lake, letting Mixed up Mel mess with the royalty framework, and wasting 2.5 billion on this SCAM called global warming. Choking the goose that layed a golden egg for Alberta every day was a stupid mistake, one these so called conservatives need to live with in opposition with their comrades the liberals and NDPeers

Gord T,

The Leadership vote is Saturday and for the good of all Albertans, we can only hope Ms. Smith wins.

An anecdote, my wife is somewhat apolitical (the mirror opposite of me) and even she has taken out a membership in WRA to vote for Danielle that is how PO'd she is at Red Ed.

Yes I know Natural Gas prices are somewhat out of his control, but capital flows to a stable environment and since we change royalties like "If it's Tuesday, this must be Belgium", we will not get the capital required to properly develop our NG or our oil resources.

'Our Fair Share" Eddie and his socialist buddies are pretty much done.....take a look around the oil patch...pretty much any small town in Alberta...and check out the unemployment...then check out Richie Bros Auctions.....this was a made in Alberta version of the NEP.....I never thought I would live through another....but we are

Congrats with those 35% wage and benefit hikes Ed
You MORON

Dyrholm all the way http://www.markdyrholm.ca

Don't say I didn't warn you way back. Bought off the teachers, gave themselves raises, acted Danny-lite on the oil & gas industry. Hey Ed, how's that shale gas play working for you now?

I can't believe I voted him as my #2. Chickens coming home to roost folks.

Let's see first Ed Stailmach sends a lawyer to the Steve Boissoin kangaroo trial to ensure his conviction. This lawyer (I cannot remember his name) argued that the right not to be offended trumped the right to freedom of speech. Then Lindsay Blackett who's in charge of the Alberta Human Rights Commission actually spoke out against this commission for its tactics and was told by Stailmach to keep his mouth shut. Then to add insult to injury Stailmach gives the Alberta Human Rights Commission a 1.7 million dollar raise. Ed Stailmach is a socialist left wing progressive nut job in disguise. That's why come next election if you live in Alberta vote this piece of garbage out.

I ain't no Liberal but bought a PC membership to vote ABD. My only pick was Morton as a signee of "The Alberta Agenda". I didn't give a second choice. There was a lot of "networkig" to get Ed elected. Newcomers were being told it was to keep Morton out. Hope they still have their jobs in the patch.

Joe Clark; Ted Heath; Davis; that federal idiot that is always praised by the Liberals as the Greatest Prime Minister Canada never had - Stanfield - because he was a LOOOOSER!

Conservatives should be Conservative - they don't get elected, or their election is pointless, if they just turn out to be socialists in blue suites.

Stelmach, take your bow, your curtain call.

Years ago,there was a saying along these lines---Please God,give us another boom,we promise not to piss the next one away---, well,we did it again. Oil plummets and AB.is back into dire straits. When the last PC leadership election was held we were riding the wave,yet not one of about eight candidates mentioned anything about a tax reduction. We are reaping what we have sown.

Years ago,there was a saying along these lines---Please God,give us another boom,we promise not to piss the next one away---, well,we did it again. Oil plummets and AB.is back into dire straits. When the last PC leadership election was held we were riding the wave,yet not one of about eight candidates mentioned anything about a tax reduction. We are reaping what we have sown.

The P.C. party in Alberta are in serious trouble with Red Ed in charge and they know it. I have lived in Alberta for all my forty-plus years and everyone here knows that the liberals/socialists bought up memberships in the last P.C. leadership contest to deprive Ted Morton( the only real Conservative in that race)from becoming Premier of Alberta. There is not much " Conservative " left in the P.C Party/Government of Alberta. The Wildrose Alliance,led by Danielle Smith,looms large on the horizon and this lifelong P.C supporter and voter thinks he'll have a good look at their leadership and policy. Stelmach," The Accidental Premier " has got to go !

He is on right now:

Good evening Albertans. Don't worry, be happy.

Thankyou and good night.

I'm enjoying red Eddy Melmac's melt down almost as much as watching his contemporaries Betkowski and Decore go down the flusher to political oblivion.

I refuse to donate any money to the federal Conservatives
until they get some credibility and change the party name to Liberal-Lite.

So , Stelmach spent 17 minutes saying nothing , then he repeated it once and then he recapped it twice and still never said a damned thing . What the hell was he trying to say ? He says something vague about in 3 years we'll be back in surplus and a few platitudes abot people moving here and spending money nut if I didn't know better I 'd think I was listening to Jean Chretien and Paul Martin promising free daycare and macaroni and cheeze for the third time .He's talking about natural gas prices coming back up . Dream on , Ed .

ldfarrer: What about Mark Deerholm?

I just read the whole platform of the wildrose alliance and i think i will give em a shot next election as red ed has lost my confidence.

Paul in calagary.

I'll take Populist Politic for $200 Alex

The reason no political party should allow just anyone to take out party membership and vote in the current leadership contest?

Joe.

What is Special Ed.

Special ed was a set of classes in school for "people who can't tie their shoes"

What a useless tool. He reminds me of my boss...

Don't know much about Alberta politics but speaking of the carbon sequestration nonsense, I suspect your Eddy is in a small part acting because of so much external pressure. National Geographic, Greenpeace, Dave "Dr. Fruitfly" Suzski and the rest of the bloodsuckers that have made environmentalism legal extortion have put a lot of light on the oil sands. In a similar fashion to the seal hunt, it's got international attention now.

It's a looney world.

I’m thinking Harry Strom
Albertans have previously thrown out the party that was entrenched for years, in a hurry.

1971 Election
Lougheed; from 6 seats up to 49
Harry Strom; from 55 seats down to 25

Thank god Saskatchewan had Tommy Douglas. We need more Tommy Douglas' today. Every Canadian should be thankful and fight to protect our universal medicare system. Medicare should be universal, accessible and totally publicly funded.

Where are all of his supporters that led him to the biggest ever majority in Alberta? I thought it was pretty obvious at the time that this guy was trouble. Heck, the first time I heard him debate with the likes of Ted Morton and Lyle Oberg, I thought 'this guy doesn't have a chance'. Once again the populace succeeds in voting in mediocrity. We are getting what we deserve.

Tommy Douglas was nothing but dupe and a Communist fellow traveller. The best part of Medicare is the wait times and the cure for the wait times being the morgue.

I'm late to this conversation, but I think that a point of this post was lost.

The first few words of Kate's post: "a cautionary tale for federal conservatives..."

Indeed. I am getting a bit uneasy with what I am seeing from the CPC, and the recent run of good luck with Iggy's incompetence seem to be feeding the egos and arrogance at the CPC.

Govern wisely, without excessive partisanship and waste, and the majority will be ours. Don't blow it away for a few photo ops!