Severely Normal Albertans are optimistic by nature. As the recession dissipates we watch for clues that happier times are returning. Our Finance Minister, Joe Ceci is fond of using the term ‘green shoots’ as analogy of early signs of good times ahead. So how are those ‘green shoots’ doing? Well when you review the list […]
Month: July 2017
THE FROG ON THE STOVE – Canada’s global business competitiveness
OK so remember the parable about putting a frog in cold water and gradually heating the water? The parable say the frog fails to recognize the heat and is eventually cooked. Well apparently frogs are smarter than that and they do jump out. But the parable is still a good illustration of gradual negative trends […]
Who killed Pacific NorthWest LNG Project?
On July 25th Pacific NorthWest LNG (Petronas) announced they were not proceeding with a $36 billion dollar Liquefied Natural Gas project on the British Columbia coast. They cited low prices and market shifts as the reason. The project if built would have used natural gas from the the BC interior and Alberta Shortly after the […]
Local Government Laws Makeover
“Politics is the art of looking for trouble, finding it everywhere, diagnosing it incorrectly, and applying the wrong remedies.” —Groucho Marx Well, that grinding noise you have been hearing is not your transmission. That is the province working on revising the Municipal Government Act (MGA). This it the behemoth legislation (500 pages) that regulates our […]
United Conservative Party – the art of welding
Welding safety tips: wear a face shield, gloves, shoes, long-sleeved shirt and ear protection In a July 22 vote the Alberta PC and Wildrose parties (by a 95% majority) agreed to unite and form the United Conservative Party. . Bringing the two parties together is more a welding process than a marriage. There will be […]
Introducing Rick’s Blog
Hi Folks, I have been working on a blog to share my thoughts, analyses, opinions about Alberta and its politics and economy. The name, Severely Normal Albertan comes from the 1990s consensus built by then Premier Klein from the big tent filled with everyday Albertans. ‘Severely Normal Albertans’ are folks who would be happy to […]