Stand aside Mitch McConnell. I will introduce you to some really irresponsible Canadians.

In some recent posts, I have commented on dysfunctional political leadership in the United States. Specifically, I focused on their federal government, both Executive Branch and Congress. Sigh! Now, to be fair, I must point the finger back towards my own country’s federal government.

Please say hello to two really irresponsible Canadians, both Members of Parliament. On the left is Elizabeth May, a British Columbia MP and retiring leader of the National Green Party. Well, actually the Greens are not recognized as a party in Canada as they only have three seats. On the right is Yves-francois Blanchet, leader of the regional Bloc Quebecois. BQ has 32 seats all from Quebec. Since we have a minority government in Canada – Liberals are 13 seats short of a majority – we have to pay some attention to the fringe parties as they have more influence than warranted.

Anyway… Last Thursday, we heard these really irresponsible Canadians take a page out of Mitch McConnell’s Republican Party playbook. During April, Senator Mitch advocated state and local government bankruptcy instead of federal support to fill short term revenue gaps. Last Thursday, May and Blanchet similarly trashed Alberta.

Essentially, neither wants to see any Canadian government support for Alberta and its energy industry. May says “oil is dead”. Blanchet says Ottawa should not subsidize under-performing businesses, i.e. oil sands. (This last one is really funny coming from a province that lives on federal subsidies for under-performing businesses, not to mention transfer payments from Alberta.)

Sadly, we have a prime minister who does not really understand leadership. His main goal in life is simply not to offend any special or minority interest that may vote for him someday.

Really Irresponsible Canadians Ignore Reality

Most zealots put their cause first and ignore reality. Same with May and Blanchet.

Throughout its 153 year history, you will find that Canada has been a “hewer of wood and drawer of water”. In other words, Canada has built its wealth and standard of living on exporting natural resources, including energy and agriculture, and some manufacturing. Since 1947, petroleum has driven much of our economy, and this wealth has benefited all of Canada.

Yes, I know we need alternative fuels. But we are so far away from relying on renewable energy for our so-called “standard of living” that it probably won’t happen this century. Our only real renewable energy in Canada is hydro-electric in British Columbia, Manitoba and Quebec. But, you will find even these provinces use a ton of gas and oil. And hydro doesn’t actually create much wealth because we barely export any. (Interestingly, our aboriginals made a huge fuss against hydro projects, too, back in the day.)

So, as we try to rebuild our economy and life post-COVID, let’s build on, rather than trash, our strengths. And one of our strengths is energy. You can look up Blanchet and May’s comments for yourself. I am not going to provide them any links.