If you’ve been by the old Plains Hotel site on the corner of Vic and Albert lately you’ve perhaps noticed some signs of life (besides weeds kicking into growth spurt mode, that is). According to a news release from the city today, SaskPower is preparing to relocate a concrete “duct bank” that houses the high voltage cables that supply downtown with electricity. Depending on weather and construction conditions, the presser noted, the job would take five months to do.
To accommodate the first phase, the west-bound lanes of Victoria will be closed with Victoria east-bound becoming two-way as per the above diagram on May 21. As well, traffic northbound on McIntyre will be reduced to one lane for a quarter of a block. Access to Victoria and Albert for cyclists and pedestrians is supposed to remain, although detours may perhaps be required. The work needs to be done before construction can begin on the long-delayed-bordering-on-being-declared-legally-dead Capitol Pointe project; plus I imagine its an infrastructure upgrade SaskPower needs to do to accommodate increased power demands in the downtown.
With all due respect to Saskboy, the result of the Labrador by-election wasn’t newsworthy in itself. Incumbent governments traditionally fare poorly in by-elections, and the riding in question is a traditional Liberal stronghold, going to the Conservatives twice – in 1968 and 2010. If the Liberals didn’t win a traditionally Liberal riding, that would have been news. So, I was about to say something along the lines of “… nice, kids, call me when a Liberal wins in Alberta,” when …
(Conservative incumbent Peter) Penashue said he is not sure which issues cost him the job, although he blamed CBC News reports on his spending for having “defined me very negatively.” He was referring to a series of CBC News reports on his campaign spending since last summer.
“I tried to change that but the damage had already been done. I could say, you know there was that issue, that issue. People make up their minds and people make up their choices.”
Oh, really?
Gee, Peter, why single out the CBC when every other news organization in Newfoundland and Labrador was saying the same thing?
And here’s a head scratcher … the Liberals LOST the by-election, says Harper’s spokesperson.
“As we know, majority governments do not usually win byelections. In fact, Liberals have won the riding of Labrador in every election in history except for two, so we are not surprised with these results,” Fred DeLorey, the party’s director of communications said in a statement.
“What is surprising is the collapse of the Liberal support during this byelection. When this byelection was called the Liberals had a 43-point lead in the polls,” DeLory wrote.
“Since electing Justin Trudeau as leader and having him personally campaign there, they have dropped 20 points in Labrador. That’s a significant drop in only a few weeks,” he said.
“Labradorians were able to see firsthand how Justin Trudeau is in over his head.”
Christ on a crutch, Comical Ali’s got a job with Harper!
It’s not so much that the Cons lost the riding, but it’s their reaction to such a loss which indicates that Canada’s going to be in for at least two more ugly years of federal politics. Instead of learning anything from the loss, the Cons have doubled down on the stupid and mean, as if they have no other setting on the program which gives them the ability to impersonate human emotions.
Canada. Governed by 12-year-old schoolyard bullies who are in over their heads.
The second round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs are upon us. Here’s a handy guide to the next bit of ice hockey watchingdom.
(This week’s Aw NHL Naw also includes a secret message that I’m sending out to my freemason masters. Can you crack the code? Put some Dover’s Powder in your gin and give it your best shot!)
Congrats are again in order to the creative team behind the action-horror pic WolfCop. From an initial list of 90 entrants they’ve now made it down to the final ten who are eligible for $1 million in funding to expand their creative concept (a story about a police officer who becomes a werewolf) into a full-length motion picture.
You can find out more about the top ten finalists in the CineCoup contest here. From studying the CineCoup guidelines it seems like the next round of fan voting to whittle the list of ten down to five will take place May 30-June 2. So good luck to all involved.
Above is a pic of the lunch spread the Sask Hotel put on for attendees of the Mayor’s Housing Summit. It looked pretty awesome but I decided to bail on the lunch-hour keynote address and get street food instead.¹
I don’t think I missed much that’d interest me. Apart from the food.
The keynote was given by CBC’s Amanda Lang, one half of the Lang and O’Leary Exchange,²and was titled after her recently released book, The Power of Why. Sounds like one of those self-help books for business people. And it probably had less to do with housing in Saskatchewan than the standy-uppy thing in the Plaza at which I ate my hotdog.
So, yeah. Great looking lunch. Less-great looking keynote. A mixed bag, in other words. Kind of how I felt about the first day of the Housing Summit over all.
Of course my ambivalence might have been coloured by the fact that the day started out really, really well, and the second things started to drag a bit I snuck out. Maybe I’m putting too much weight on what inspired me to leave and not focusing enough on the stuff in the morning that I found inspiring.
From: Muriel Cross Sent: May 14, 2013 7:09 AM To: Editor Subject: Real life “Mad Men” ad man is a closet conservative
Former ad man and closet conservative, Leften Wright, addresses a world revolving around welfare, recycling, affirmative action, gay marriage, global warming, education, mosques in the neighborhood, racism and environmentalism in his new novel, The Handbook for Closet Conservatives: How to Succeed in a Liberal World.
Using wit and humor, Wright encourages readers to not be afraid to say what they think in a liberal world and outlines how conservatives can speak to controversial issues without golfing alone or being left out of the really good parties.
Can I send a review copy or set up an interview with Leften?
Thanks for your time,
Muriel Cross
Author Solutions, 201 S. Capitol Ave., Ste. 800, Indianapolis, IN 46225 United States
During summer, a lot of performing arts type groups that host events indoors from fall through spring take a break to allow everyone to recharge their batteries and take advantage of whatever warm weather comes our way.
Combat Improv, which features an assortment of local improv artists, is no exception. On May 15-16 the group is hosting its double deluxe Season Finale at Artesian on 13th. Doors open at 7 p.m. both nights, and the first performers will hit the stage at 8 p.m. Tickets are $5.
1 HE’S BACK! Everyone’s favourite singing, dancing, pontificating astronaut (Chris Hadfield) has returned to our realm. But then, you’ve already heard all about it.
2 PITY POOR TORONTO It’s okay. They’re used to it.
3 LABRADOR VOTES LIBERAL Conservative MP, and former minister of Intergovernmental Affairs, Peter Penashue has been given his walking papers.
4 BUYER BEEWARE A Utah couple found a huge bee hive behind a wall in their new home.
5 MARTIN SHORT TO WRITE MEMOIR FOR HARPER I totally misinterpreted this headline too, and was really disappointed when I figured it out.
6 SLEEP TIGHT A new virus is making a lot of people nervous.
The contentious Bill 85 — the Saskatchewan Employment Act — has passed a third and final reading in the legislative assembly, overhauling and melding 12 pieces of legislation into one omnibus law.
Two components of Bill 85 have been the subject of court battles for the past few years, as unions questioned the legality of both essential services legislation and the Trade Union Amendment Act. Unions have said they may appeal a Saskatchewan Court of Appeal decision upholding those laws to the Supreme Court of Canada.
Unions have also criticized the speed with which Bill 85 has moved through the legislature, as well as the number and content of regulations yet to be written.
Saskatchewan Government and General Employees Union (SGEU) president Bob Bymoen has said the new legislation will make it more difficult for workers to form a union, and will erode weekends and standard hours of work.
“There is no substantial improvement for workers’ rights in this bill,” Bymoen has said.
Now, there’s going to be mountains upon mountains of nuances that will be fleshed out when the regulations are written and parts of it will be good, so let’s not go absolutely nuts quite yet. Having said that, it’s safe to say that Saskatchewan workers and organized labour are now weaker and managers and businesses are now stronger. And sadly, that may well be what most Sask voters–who, I suspect, are ironically mostly NOT employers–want.
Shortly before the legislation was passed, Simon Enoch of the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives summed it up like this:
The government of Saskatchewan is currently undertaking a controversial overhaul of the province’s labour legislation into the mammoth omnibus Bill 85. But those that might be concerned about the rather rash decision to overturn 107 years of labour legislation in the period of a few months need not worry, because what the Saskatchewan government is actually doing is modernizing our labour laws. That’s a relief, “modernizing” has such a new shiny ring to it! Who could be against “modernizing” anything? This legislation must really be cutting edge stuff, thinking outside-the-box, labour legislation 2.0 and all that! So what innovative and pioneering changes are in this legal basket of advanced modernity?
Well the main change is that Bill 85 will reduce statutory protections for workers and undermine collective bargaining rights. That means that workers will have less protection in regards to work breaks, overtime, holidays, scheduling etc. In addition, given new employee categories contained in the legislation, many workers that were previously protected by a collective agreement may find that they no longer are.
Wait, this sounds very un-modern doesn’t it? When did workers in Saskatchewan last have the pleasure of not being protected by the eight-hour-day? That would be 1947, a timemost people would agree is not exactly “modern” (rural electrification would wait until 1949).
More later, and in Thursday’s the print edition — including what I promise will be a more flattering photo of Labour Minister Don Morgan.
No pick of the day today. Instead, here’s a heads up about a contemporary dance program that’s being held at Artesian on 13th on May 17-18. Both evenings, works choreographed by local dance artist Johanna Bundon will be presented. The first, Ru(Elles) will be performed by FadaDance (that’s a scene from the dance above). The second, Live Duet, will be performed by Bundon and co-creator Jayden Pfeifer. Both works explore the theme of relationships — romantic and otherwise.
Doors both nights are at 7 p.m., with the performance at 8 p.m. Tickets are $15.
The great Ray Harryhausen passed away this week. He was a master of stop motion animation and his influence was enormous on the film industry.
While he was known for all the great monsters that he brought to life in such films as Jason and the Argonauts, The 7th Voyage of Sinbad and Clash of the Titans when he was just starting out and in between jobs Harryhausen made five short animated films based on children’s fairy tales. The Storybook Review, The Story of ‘Little Red Riding Hood’, The Story of ‘Rapunzel’, The Story of ‘Hansel and Gretel’ and The Story of King Midas. A sixth one was started but never completed because Harryhausen moved on to a couple of Hollywood movies. The Story of ‘The Tortoise & the Hare’ was finally completed in 2002, almost fifty years later by a couple of fans with the help of Harryhausen, who still had most of the sets and miniatures in storage.
These shorts helped Ray Harryhausen polish his craft but they’re not as cool as his monsters. Still he will be missed.
This Canadian documentary examines efforts by General Romeo Dallaire, who was in command of a UN mission in Rwanda during the genocide that occurred there in 1994, to end the use of child soldiers in armed conflicts. The doc was directed by Patrick Reed, and it screens at the RPL Film Theatre tonight at 9 p.m.
I guess someone must have had a temper tantrum tonight. Pictured above is one of two garbage barrels that have been dislodged on the mall tonight and their contents strewn about by some a-hole who was obviously perturbed about something.
Given all the anti-science shenanigans that have been going on lately, with the federal government in particular seemingly determined to squelch any and all studies and scientific findings that clash with its agenda to exploit the country’s natural resources to the max, this is probably a more controversial event to consider attending than it should be.
But for people who are interested in science, it’s a great way to get up to speed on what sort of research is going on at the University of Regina. You can find out more details here, but the basics are as follows: it’s family-focused, it goes today from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., and most of the activities will occur on the main floor of the Research and Innovation Centre at the university.
If you’ve been by the old Plains Hotel site on the corner of Vic and Albert lately you’ve perhaps noticed some signs of life (besides weeds kicking into growth spurt mode, that is). According to a news release from the city today, SaskPower is preparing to relocate a concrete “duct bank” that houses the high voltage cables that supply downtown with electricity. Depending on weather and construction conditions, the presser noted, the job would take five months to do.
