25 Replies to “Advice For The Sask Party”

  1. …I’m not going to dazzle you with metrics, since you can google all that yourself, but talk to people in Saskatchewan…
    This is where I stopped reading. Am I wrong?

  2. I don’t buy it all, but this much is true: “The Saskatchewan Party needs some other stars.”
    Sadly, in election mode you’re wrong. Many voters don’t even know who their candidate is, they only know the name of the leader.

  3. Excellent article – I have just moved from Alberta to Saskatchewan on February 14 – Alberta specifically Calgary was becoming “too liberal” for me. I totally agree about the liquor stores – I just cannot believe what people pay for wine here. When I return to Alberta for visits with friends, you better believe I shall be “stocking up”. Also agree about needing more “stars” in the Saskatchewan Party. Other than that, am very pleased with my move – people are “super nice” here.

  4. Privatize liquor and beer, no brainer. Do it now.
    Next thing, make private hospitals and private billing for doctors legal. That alone will improve things tremendously in the medical field. Never touch socialized medicine,that’s a long game. Just legalize private medicine. Problem solved.

  5. Paying down debt is admirable as it was in Alberta, but what does anyone think will happen in a country of 10 provinces when 2 of those provinces have no debt and the 2 most populous drunken Dudley Moore/ Arthur type provinces, Quebec and Ontario who are running half a trillion in debt, will do if the stuff hits the fan, they will run to Harper and ask for more transfer payments from Alberta and Saskatchewan because boo hoo, they have no debt. Might as well put the borrowed money into roads and hospitals schools bridges etc as have a big Norwegian type bank account, Norways a soverign country Alberta and Sask are 2 on a team. They might as well be Crosby and Gretzky stuck on the same line as the Hanson brothers Que and Ont.

  6. Wall could win again. He hasn’t done anything to rile the unions.
    He hasn’t touched the ‘crowns’ of which there are what – 80? It’s an obscenity but just try and change one thing and you will invoke a response from the government unions and their socialist friends that may put you back on the opposition bench.
    Wall wont change anything. What’s the upside for him?

  7. They could always start with privatizing the diagnostic end of health care and get away with it. It takes forever to get a CT scan/MRI in this province. If we had private clinics to do this I would certainly take advantage of them.
    As for the “stars” they might shine bright but they’re pretty much unreachable.

  8. Alberta will send the queen of the airways. Ali oops
    every. Meeting I was in today have Alison Redfraud jokes,
    Ps none to do with her holding her pants with one hand, her huge Michelle style booty would be sexist to mention

  9. Carve this is stone: Cam Broten will lose seats for the NDP and may even lose his own seat.
    There are a few interesting points made, like 2 and 10, but the one about old grudges and the film industry are NDP B.S. The subsidies to the film industry were ludicrous. Period. And the unions hate any party other than the NDP with a fury that rivals that of a woman scorned. Making peace with them is as treacherous as trying to kiss a rattlesnake on the lips.
    The writer of the article likes to pontificate, that is clear, but the NDP stand as much chance of governing Alberta as they do of ever governing Saskatchewan again.

  10. Good piece. From the west, Hwy 7 is a joke, Semi’s everywhere, no shoulders, no passing lanes, God Help you.
    Perhaps the Hwys death count on Hwy 7 has not reached “action” number, or perhaps it’s because fatalities are out of province, but, for your own sake, avoid Rosetown to border on Hwy 7.
    Rural health-care and emergency services, best to pray and hope sky is clear, if you count on aged rural EMS fleet, and barely qualified personell, or the vaunted “first responders”, people with day jobs patching holes in EMS, best have your will in order.
    Much promise, much to do, but, the people who supported Sask Party, and kept the faith in dark hours, have been totally forgotten.
    IF a riding at risk, or a swing riding, mucho attention, otherwise, ho hum, you are in the pocket, no need to pay attention OR improve anything.
    NDP was a disaster for Sask as a province, no doubt. On the flip side, rural did have faith, their time would come. But, as history proves, once elected, focus on pop, seat numbers, and, forget who got you there.
    Lesson, it doesn’t matter who is in power, when it comes to rural, non urban, pay, shut up, travel, you have NO equity versus urban, they rule, and you have lesser value.

  12. Kate,
    “4. The Saskatchewan Party needs some other stars.” is now #2 The Saskatchewan Party needs some other stars.” I think someone reads your blog?

  13. If they loose their base, they might just loose some seats or maybe even the election. Broten has the unions and government workers all sewed up.

  14. Wall is one scandal away from losing. Same as Devine. They better keep their nose clean. Even then, the socialists are very good at manufacturing scandal, and making it stick.
    #10 won’t happen in the current political atmosphere. Doubt it could happen in Alberta if companies weren’t already invested. Saskatchewan missed the boat on that one.
    Saskatchewan can’t even attract much drilling, even in the current climate. 95 rigs up vs 388 in Alberta. 191 across the border in North Dakota.

  15. Too hell with that. If I want to see and hear a star I’ll go to the movies. Is it too much to ask of the public that they might want to elect politicians on the basis of how well they may or may not handle the sums in the ledger?
    The premise of the article is that government should have the answer to every problem when in fact too much government is the problem.

  16. Well written opinion. The Sask. party needs some younger MLAs or they’ll run out of intellectual capital and lose youth vote.

  17. “Broten has the unions and government workers all sewed up.”
    No doubt about that. However, that’s about all he has. Back in the days of Grant Devine, the province was still full of old, die-hard Tommy Douglas worshippers who faithfully hauled their grain to the Sask Wheat Pool, bought all their supplies at the local Co-op and spent their spare time tearing down PC and Liberal election signs. Those days are gone. Socialism has finally been beat down and Saskatchewanians are liking the new Saskatchewan.
    It would take a screwup of epic proportions to have any effect on the popularity of Brad Wall and the Sask Party.

  18. TC Douglas and Grant Devine were stars. In fact Grant Devine compared himself favorably to The Great Helmsman. When he did that I knew right there I didn’t know squat about Sask. politics.

  19. All of these suggestions have merit and need to be addressed. However, if you are looking at one that will resonate with the electorate it is number 9. The way alcohol is controlled and distributed in the province is archaic. The control aspect is a “hangover” from the days of the women’s temperance movement and prohibition. There is an overriding perspective that without government involvement the entire population would be either in an alcoholic stupor or recovering from one. The department itself is paranoid that every citizen would become a bootlegger if regulations and controls were relaxed. Elected officials are concerned that any changes will result in lost revenue. All of this is a toxic mix resulting in an inefficient organization out of touch with the realities of marketing and one in dire need of change. Having two or three “private” stores is a joke. What is needed is a special order desk that allows me to go on line and order any kind of booze from anywhere in the world, shipped at my expense and generating the tax revenue the crown is entitled to. Any organization or individual that wants to set up a store is welcome to do so. Shut down the liquor stores and let private retailers take over. All booze is subject to tax so collect the tax and get out of the distribution business.

  20. Whatever the veracity of the “points” in this article,the Sask party would be well advised to treat the new NDP Leader as if he was the greatest political leader in Canadian history,and prepare their campaigns against him accordingly.
    It never hurts to Overestimate your opponent, but it sure as hell DOES hurt to underestimate him.
    Right now,the CPC is making the BIG mistake of thinking all the same people who elected them in 2011 are STILL behind them 100%. Their ads currently running on Pierre Karl Peladeau’s Separatist-TV, “Justin Way over his head”, are feeble and aren’t resonating with scandal weary and pissed off conservative voters.
    While we Conservatives are waiting,and waiting….and STILL bloody well waiting for Harper and Our Guys to do some of the things we want done (Bill C-68 etc.,etc.), the Party/government seems to be ignoring US,while they try the same old scare tactics that worked on Michael Ignatieff, but will not work on the Messiah.
    Prepare for Mike Tyson, then if Peewee Herman (or should I say,”Patrick Brazeau”?) shows up, you’ll be in good shape.

  21. Those days are gone. Socialism has finally been beat down and Saskatchewanians are liking the new Saskatchewan.
    Well, nobody else is too optimistic about that. The proof is in the oil and gas activity compared to right across the borders.

  22. How about putting a non-socialist in charge ie not Brad Wall?
    Socialism has finally been beat down and Saskatchewanians are liking the new Saskatchewan.
    The new Saskatchewan is the same as the old Saskatchewan. Once commodity prices come back to Earth and the party ends, Saskatchewan is going back to being the socialist backwater it always has been. We in Alberta will gladly take your young people.

  23. I’m from Saskatchewan and have lived all my life here so let me throw out a couple of points:
    The economy is still doing very well and we well remember the decades under the NDP when we were constantly being told things are fine as they are so just accept your tax increase and we watched the debt go up to pay for endless stupid government programs.
    Cam Broten is still a Socialist/NDPer desite his new and shiny appearance.( As they say even a wolf in sheeps clothing is still a wolf.)
    Brad is still very popular in the province and is seen as a leader who is proud to be from Saskatchewan and does everything he can to promote Saskatchewan something no NDP leader has ever done.
    With the problem of grain transportation this winter Brad went to the feds. They reacted quickly and while the solution may make no difference in the long run but at least they responded. Trudeau senior merely gave us the finger and asked us why he should sell our wheat. Note that we elect only one Liberal and that is merely a long established bad habit, and no dippers. (We have long memories.)
    While I accept that the stupidity of many voters will eventually turn them back to the left I don’t believe it will be the next election. It should be an easy win for Brad. As for Spinal Taps comment, before calling us Socialists take a look at your own premier in Alberta. If Redfords not a Socialist then I don’t know what one looks like.

  24. Hopefully you’re right, but the history isn’t good. Wall is better than the alternative, no doubt. Still socialist lite but at least the ideology keeps him somewhat in check. Like it does with Redfraud.
    Alberta doesn’t have a history of seizing and socializing business and community assets on a large scale. Saskatchewan, like Cuba, does. That’s a handicap that’s going to take a long time to wipe from memory. A lot longer than one or two elections.

  25. With the problem of grain transportation this winter Brad went to the feds. They reacted quickly and while the solution may make no difference in the long run but at least they responded.
    And they responded with an anti-market dirigismo that would make Chavez proud. Oh and Redford is still right of Wall.

Proudly powered by WordPress & Skyrocket Themes

MENU

Navigation