Note before you Vote - Municipal Elections

Issue 6.5, Volume 2

A quick note before you vote...

Sorry, no on the streets edition or music; this is just a quick note heading into the mayoral elections today.

Before You Vote

...listen to my opinion

...but seriously

I’ll give you my opinion on the mayoral candidates, but the important thing be ultimately that you look at what every candidate stands for and vote based on that, even in your ward. Make the best educated decision you can about all the candidates you will be electing or making a decision on, the city’s future depends on it.

The Candidates

First, the Mayoral candidates. I will say I’m pro Iveson, but more specifically I’m anti-Diotte. So, while I’ll be casting my ballot for the former ward 10 councilor, I wouldn’t mind, say, if Karen Libovici won the race. I will say I feel like Iveson really champions the city; as my ward’s council member, he has been transparent and accountable, and had always responded to my requests. I feel he knows what the city needs and has the tools and earned the experience to know how to get it done. Diotte, on the other hand...I think he wants the city back to the way it was 20 years ago. I’ve heard a lot of facetious facts and interesting spins, and stuff that downright is ludicrous for an educated grown man to say or do. First of all, there’s the ‘do you smell that, it’s the arena deal, it stinks.’ tagline that he uses over and over again. I actually saw him use this in debate, it’s freaking horrible; it’s like watching epic fails. It’s a bad movie where you feel embarrassed for the main character. You might remember the dubious association of this tag line for the campaign video that Diotte shot at the Blue Plate Diner. The owners had asked that the video not specifically show details of the restaurant, but the video clearly did, and the restaurant took the brunt of anti-anti-arena protests and was shunned. The owners asked for the video to be taken down, and Diotte did what was exactly the opposite I would expect from anyone trying to garner the public’s support: he said NO! Eventually he took it down, after two weeks of bad press. Why would you argue with that? Other arguments are against bike lanes (I was initially against bike lanes but I’ve noticed they’ve been becoming more used and less confusing the more cars and bikes use them to coexist), against the airport closure (note the airport does not allow us to develop downtown buildings over a certain height, and takes up a significant portion of what could be a large residential area), pro urban sprawl (indirectly - Diotte thinks the suburbs are cheaper for people to live in and therefore to expensive to update the city’s core). Our outgoing mayor once called him an idiot on television. I agree.

What Is A Mayor For?

I’ve read a lot of rhetoric in people’s comments, and it’s clear to me that citizens don’t always know what municipal government is responsible for. Remember your three levels of government, municipal, provincial and federal? This isn’t meant to slam any of you dear readers personally, but it’s a good idea to think about specifically what we’re electing for.

Municipal

Roads and Infrastructure, Arts and Entertainment within the city, city planning, schools, trying to get funding from other levels of government, city public transportation, city recreation centers, property taxes, municipal bylaw enforcement, city crime enforcement, fire department.

Provincial

Provincial infrastructure (outside of the city), funding to schools, healthcare (including ambulance services), funding to cities for their infrastructure projects, provincial taxes if any (income tax, sales tax). Partial funding to post secondary institutions, provincial law enforcement and jurisdiction

Federal

federal income and sales taxes, partial funding to post secondary institutions, employment insurance, pension plan, military, federal law, jails, bureaucracy.

Ultimately what you can take away from this are the things the mayor is actually going to be able to take care of and what they aren’t going to take care of. Rejuvenation of the quarters, repaving roads, deciding on road projects, deciding on development permits - these are the things you can worry about. School closures, that’s definitely a city one. Crime inside the city, another city thing. What I’ve heard from arena neighsayers are that the mayor could have spent that money elsewhere like on healthcare. Well, no, unless you’re talking about any applicable provincial portion of it. Otherwise, the healthcare is dealt with by the province. I’ve heard criticisms about spending time building a highway to fort mac (63). Well, no, the municipal government feels it would be better for residents of Edmonton that commute and work there to have a better highway, so they’re lobbying the provincial government. I’ve heard lots against bike lanes. People fear change, I guess. The most ridiculous one I heard was to ‘widen all the sidewalks instead.’ Wow, okay, so how are you going to do this, spend billions of dollars buying and/or annexing a couple of feet of everyone’s property lines? And billions more on construction of sidewalks? You thought painting some lines and putting up some signs were expensive?

The Worst Thing That Could Happen Before An Election

Anything to do with the city that makes you wonder if someone isn’t doing their job. So this morning, all the left hand turning lights stop working, as well as lane indicator signals causing pretty much all my colleagues to be late or later than usual. I am lucky I live so close to work. This really can’t be attributed to any one candidate. But imagine that? Big city screw up; something you’d normally complain to your elected official about. But there’s no one to complain to today.

I BOUGHT MY ELECTRICITY, DAMNIT! ALSO: RACHEL NOTLEY AND THE END OF HEALTHCARE, MUSIC IS 10 YEARS OLD AGAIN, AND A 1981 CHEVROLET CAMARO Z28

Issue 2, Volume 2

Tuesday, July 10, 2012 to Tuesday August 28, 2012

I'd like to first apologize for the delay between issues, but hey, at least there are still issues. I couldn't resist the urge to write after recently seeing that the Slutwalk in Edmonton had its second annual event here. It was one of the topics of my first issue. Really I wanted to talk socioeconomics and show off strange vehicles that I saw. Brilliant dive straight to our On The Streets segment. You see, I originally just wanted to take a picture of any strange or unique automobile I saw. But this is getting a little difficult, because what do you classify as strange or unique, or just a 'blue chip' classic. There are a lot of classic muscle cars out there, and sometimes it's hard to argue what is truly unique, or what you could see at any car show, or car club get together. All of those are beautiful, but not necessarily rare.

Truly to get this photo I had to go to the extreme, which was to drive on the wrong side of the road up 107th street, against another rather bulky gentleman who stopped his truck to get out and look, almost spoiling my photo. No one really seemed to care too much about the Bentley Continental GT or the Lamborghini Guillardo Roadster sitting in the open bay. Why? Because it's rare to see a 1981 Camaro in this type of shape. This specific model can actually be purchased, and is in Wheaton's used car inventory for $18,950. This particular car features a few extras that the originals didn't have, like it's 388 stroked and bored small block, and the American Racing wheels (although mags like that were available at that time - but definitely not in that diameter). Aside from the perfect interior, and dazzling paint, this is one that takes me back to my childhood. My Kindergarten teacher actually had one of these, and at that time it wouldn't have been that old. Most people know the Chevrolet Camaro was introduced to compete with the ever popular Falcon based Mustang out of Ford for the 1967 model year. That first generation lasted until 1970 (.5) when this second generation was released. The car was slightly bigger than the 1967-70 cars, although you can see in the photos, about the same size, if not a little smaller than the current Camaro just ahead of it. They weren't rare cars by any means, and that's probably why most were left to rust and disappear, except for this example. Originally the cars rolled out with 350 motors, and there were SS options. Later those were dropped during the OPEC oil embargo and rising emission standards. Later, in 1977, the Z28 package was reintroduced. Where most Camaros were leaving the factory with 305 emission motors, these could be had with a 350, and 4 speed manual transmission. The very next year Chevrolet would come out with their next version of Camaro that was largely powered by 4 cylinder engines, again to compete with a much smaller Mustang as well. Truly this car borders on being classic, as well as an oddity to see one in such stunning shape. You know, for $18,000, if you were thinking 'Cruze' or of some crossover, this would be much more fun and exciting. 

I BOUGHT MY ELECTRICITY: ROLLING BLACKOUTS

Alberta's energy generation, all privatized now, is currently being investigated for possible collusion when electricity prices spiked due to "generators going down"  and "supply far exceeding demand" which prompted AESO to actually tell Enmax and other electricity generators to "Shed X amount (it was 40 in Enmax's case) MWh." The way to achieve this? Rolling blackouts. There are essentially three problems with this.

One, you pay to have electricity all the time. The first response I got from some of my office mates when I said this was a problem was, "Don't you pay for what you use? So you don't have to pay during a blackout because you're not using anything." Sure, for the amount of electricity you use portion of your bill. If you've ever read your bill, roughly up to 50% of it isn't actually what you use. A lot of it, aside from administration fees, have to do with delivery and access. That delivery and access is to ensure you get to use electricity whenever you want. Do you think the power companies are going to give you that money back for not being able to access your power? No, in fact, you're probably going to get charged more.

Problem two: the increase in electricity demand over supply in a deregulated industry causes electricity prices to jump; which are passed on to the consumer. Your energy is bought from generators in blocks, and sold to you at either a variable or fixed price, depending on what kind of contract, if any, you have with your electricity provider. If you're variable, you're going to feel the impact of that $11 to $1000 MWh price jump probably on your next bill, and you'll shit a brick. If you're in a longer contract, your next block of energy might be priced slightly higher to make up for that huge jump. So you're actually paying more to have less power.

Problem three: Alberta's electricity demand can exceed it's supply? Electricity is an essential service. We're not off the grid here. It's not 1812. It's 2012. I'm all for conservation, but electricity? Really? We can't generate as much electricity as we use? Anyone see a problem here?

Albertans should be angry. We're getting hosed regarding our electricity. And you know, water and electricity don't mix.

THE END OF HEALTHCARE: THE POLITICAL ONE-UP-MANSHIP THAT WILL DEFILE OUR SYSTEM

Rachel Notley is the NDP critic of human services. Unfortunately she didn't have the time to write back to this certain constituent. Which is too bad, because I stuck up for the Edmonton Strathcona NDP incumbant even after she didn't pay back her no-meet money, when everyone else did. In the meantime, what does she have to do with screwing our healthcare system?

First let's recap. Everyone was frightened that the Wild Rose party would destroy healthcare and the province in general, so they all voted for the PC in a strategy to keep the Wild Rose out. Meanwhile, post election, Alison Redford's budget based on the price of oil (which has plunged over the summer) has seen her not be able to deliver on many pre-election promises. For some reason Dr. Sherman has decided to perhaps step down from the provincial liberals, and the NDP have become the biggest critics of everything the PC do, whilst Danielle Not-a-threat Smith keeps looking stupider and stupider in her responses to every issue. 

What does this have to do with healthcare? Well Aside from twinning highway 63, which shouldn't be so hard, considering how quickly LA can rebuild entire freeways after earthquakes, healthcare is the single most important issue to Albertans.

Just a quick recap of what's going wrong here. Raj Sherman had proposed a tax based budget that would save money during surplus times so that funding for infrastructure would stay constant, because everyone has to pay taxes, rather than a budget based on oil revenue, which widely fluctuates based on the unpredictable activity of the commodity. But Redford went on an oil based budget again anyway, and she had made a lot of pre-campaign promises. Like saving healthcare.

So Alison can't afford to do everything she wanted. Better take care of healthcare, and take care of it quick. Those 130 family care clinics can't come fast enough. And at the expense of what? Well since we don't have much money, how about at the expense of existing programs? 

Interesting enough, the current physician deal hasn't been resolved yet. Even stranger, the doctor run Primary Care Network was given a great deal of money by the PC government before the election. Now, the Auditor General has smeared the Primary Care Network. Actually, if you read the full 60 page document, the Auditor General doesn't really say anything bad about the PCN. What he does say is that there is no statistically significant proof that it makes a difference, namely because Alberta Health Services and the Alberta Department of Health did not give them guidelines to report results. So really, it's kind of AHS and the Department's fault. So change things with the PCN? Sure, wouldn't be that hard? But politicians are stupid, so unfortunately maybe that won't have a chance to happen.

One, it's clear that the government wants to control costs by controlling physicians. If you put physicians on a salary and put them into a government run clinic, you can reduce costs, while easily being able to report outcomes any way you want to so they sound great. So the government really wants to build and open family care clinics.  Two, politicians like to argue against each other. So blindly, Notley goes on television and blasts the government for being completely irresponsible for giving the PCN so much money over so many years. What she doesn't get is she's directly siding with the PCs to build family care clinics. She's supposed to be a part of (not the official bust still) the opposition. She's supposed to play devil's advocate and say, well maybe the PCN is good, and maybe the FCCs aren't that good of an idea. But the chance to talk smack about the PCs was so tempting that she shot her mouth off without really thinking.

Apparently there's proof that the family care clinics work (because there were pilots you know, and they say people don't know about PCNs) and it's obvious the PCs will put them in place as quick as possible.

Unfortunately, it's a bad idea. Based on the current Alberta budget, it's another solution that is done when the province has money, so that all the staff and resources have to be purged when the province doesn't have money, just like how we keep hiring and firing teachers. 

What can you do? Visit your doctor and see what the PCN can do for you, become educated about the current healthcare system. Meet with your physician who is part of a local PCN to find out about a great workout routine and diet, so that when healthcare in this province totally gets messed up, hopefully you won't need it.

Editors note: shortly after this they cancelled the program I was working for with the PCN. Oddly enough, I applied to work for the PCI (Primary Care Initiative that looks after PCNs) and received an interview; indicating perhaps they still don't know what they're doing in terms of PCN vs. Family Care Clinics.

CELEBRATING 10 YEARS OF MISSING THE MUSIC WE LOVE

If you had been in a coma, let's say, from April 2002 to April 2012, and your whole world was music, you might be able to pick up where you left off from. Especially if I dropped tickets to Coachella on your lap. After all; you'd expect to see Dr. Dre working the stage with Eminem, although you might be confused at his aged appearance. At The Drive In? They were too good to be broken up for long. Sure Sparta and The Mars Volta were decent side-projects, but they weren't any At The Drive In. And Refused? Wow, you know I thought The (International) Noise Conspiracy was okay enough, but it's great to see them back as well. But wait, where are those fanastic young upstarts like Thursday? Broke up? That's too bad, I thought they were making headway with Full Collapse, but I guess they aren't that old. And Thrice? They were doing great with Artist In The Ambulance? No? Well, that's too bad, but I wish them the best of luck. That is, until someone picks you up from the hospital in their hybrid Honda Civic...and let's face it, if you were in high school at the time of this coma, you thought Civics were supposed to be race cars for some reason, and switched on the radio only to hear Somebody I Used To Know or We Are Young, and then discovered that Thrice and Thursday were really the 10+ year vets that had broken up, and ATDI was still a flash in the pan with a few reunion shows planned, but, "No plans whatsoever to record." In fact, that is completely off the table, especially with Mars Volta's latest release.

There has to be some way to save alternative rock. If you didn't catch that I was being cynnical regarding Fun and Gotye, then hear this: alternative rock is in a bad place. Not only are album sales a serious problem, even with the idea that going indie will work, because the fans that really love the album will go out and buy it. Marylin Manson was harshly critisized by Lamb of God for doing this, citing how few albums he had sold, and how they had felt they had sold more albums because of major label corporate backing, plain and simple. But they also indicated that this as an overall sad state for rock. That you couldn't just put out a product ad your fans would buy it anyway. Meanwhile, everyone is trying to be like everyone else who are trying to be different, and eventualyl all music will just be noise like Dubstep (which is okay now and then but not all the time) or will we form a new super-indie genre where people play horrificly bad music that sound like copies of childrens lullabies in major chord scales and all the world will kiss their asses and call it sponge cake? Can we save Alt Rock? (*and with the inclusion f Dr.Dre and old-school rap, good music in general)

Okay, well what about Refused? Are they down for saving the planet? Although tight lipped on the front of recording a new album, the Swedish group that placed #13th on Kerrang!'s most influential of all time, and was also rated as one of the most influential modern albums of all time by Alternative Press is on tour. They're still on tour. In fact, they'll be in Calgary in August. No word about an album, but The Shape Of Punk To Come is hard to ignore. Maybe with Refused out there again to influence people, we'll get some music back. I don't need 100 bands trying to sound like a cross between Neil Young, Radiohead, and Joy Division. Only with a dance beat. We need real music. New art for the real people...somethig lik that, I know you know what I mean if you just picked up that last sentence. Because not only are Refused great in what they do musically but they speak of socioeconomic societal injustices, and are generally socialist. This type of thinking usually resounds well for getting youth to initiate change in society and become politically active when it is rooted in influential music. So will Refused release another album, or are they just touring for a bunch of 30 year olds?
Status: Unknown, but good outlook. (See editor note exhibit A)
At The Drive In was quoted as pretty much saying their reunion gigs were for nostalgia only. So although they may have rocked Austin, and Indio, that might be all we ever get back from them. Bixler even cited that the chemistry of the group, although fun to play for nostalgia would be "like wanting to go back to your first girlfriend." In otherwords, 10 years has changed the band, and the chemistry to write together isn't there. You could have fooled me though, after watching the streaming performance. Tony and Cedric back together, a relationship that once went down like breaking up with your first girlfriend, was astonishing. Comforting words from one of my friends, who said, "it genuinely looked like they were having fun." And they did. However, with the new Mars Volta album, and both Bixler and Rodriguez going to support that, coupled with the talk about not having writing chemistry, and pretty much saying a new album is not expected, don't get your hopes up. Although, anything can happen. I didn't really expect this much. So hopefully, at least the reunion will bring attention to the kind of amazing things that can be done musically in post-hardcore times.
Status: Doubtful (See editor note exhibit B)Dr.Dre apparently had Eminem, and even a holographic Tupac join him on stage, although I still want to know how close him and Snoop is (joke) and who he's still cool with. Because really, what I expect, although he says he "ain't gotta make another album, [he] ain't gotta do shit" is just that, another album. At first, I thought Aftermath was going to drop with the Dr.Pepper commercial. Then I thought it ws going to drop after the single 'I need a Doctor' with Eminem. And then, Coachella. But no, still no album from Dre. Cube isn't really helping either. I know he's still releasing stuff, but...well let's face it, he lost cred by being in disney videos, unlike Dennis Leary, and he's lost a step like an old football player. He raps a little slower. Even if the message is more serious. And to be quite honest, Dr.Dre's part was kind of lacklustre in 'I need a doctor' and unfortunately I can't tell you the last time I heard what I would consider a really great and monumental hip hop album, like Chronic 2001. But, I understand Dre is busy, because he's got headphones to make, and Chrysler 300's to put soundsystems in. The problem is, while everyone knows Dre, they know of him. They don't know about the west side, and what went down there, or NWA, or why a '64 is important or anything like that. Hip Hop has lost its history, and that makes all the products in the world by Dre irrelevent, especially if they're Hannah Montana headphones made by Beats By Dre.
Status: Dre needs his new album to come NOW NOW NOW and it has to be good.

Thrice and Thursday? On hiatus. I think Dustin Kensrue put it best when he said he has three daughters under 5 at home and needs to spend time with his kids. But when does that really stop? Ultimately Dustin seems like he's a stand up guy, and I don't think he's going to want to miss any of his daughers growing up whilst on tour. So ultimately, I'm going to go out on a limb here and say that band is done. Listen to 'Anthology' off of Major/Minor. If a song that contains lyrics from all the songs your band has ever released doesn't say goodbye, I don't know what does. Hiatus is a nice way of putting, we're all still friends, we're not broken up, and we want to leave it open so that we can play or record in the future, but we have way more important things than this band right now. And those important things are likely to be important for a long time coming, because generally, you don't walk away from a solid music career for nothing. Hell, if you're the Deftones, and your bass player happens to be in a nearly-life-ending accident which leaves him with very little brain function or consciousness (prayers be with Chi Cheng), you actually scrap an entire album, telephone Sergio Vega, and record an all new album in a manner of months. Tour, wait for a year, and then start recording another one! So yeah, my opinion, Thrice: done. Thursday? Well they are on hiatus as well. A result of 'personal circumstances' that they won't get into, but talking about turning your band into a sporadic not for profit coalition sounds like you don't like the music industry and somebody (we all still get along, right?) doesn't want to tour and record anymore. That's okay, as unfortunately, both No Devolucion and Common Existence proved to be kind of a let down for me. It seemed that the passion was indeed gone from the band much earlier, and that this circumstance or struggle might have come a lot earlier. Either way, I don't expect to hear anything from them again except for one or two songs and an occaisional reunion tour.
Status: Not happening.

Finally there's the film Hard Core Logo 2. Why am I bringing this up? It's not a group nor an album at all, but a film. At the time the first Hard Core Logo was made, there was nothing wrong with Alt Rock, and it was extremely topical, because the current bands were really in to punk bands of the 80's and reunions and the difficult lives of musicians, etc. The film interpretation took some liberties. Is HCL2 just for thirty-somethings that remember the original? If you're not familiar, HCL2 is another film, mockumentary, done by Bruce MacDonald. He follows Canadian band Die Mannequin (real band - think "Do It Or Die and you'll remember) where the lead singer Care Failure indicates she was posessed by the spirit of Hard Core Logo's Joe Dick. I thought it was going to really blow, but the Canadiana wasn't bad, the music wasn't bad, the band wasn't bad, the story was a little contrived in the ending, but it was mostly okay. Again, the audience? Are there early 20 something hipsters enough to watch this and call it indie and love it, which will lead them back to the start, where alt-rock began?
Status: No Clue

So what will save alternative rock? I don't know.

Album of the summer:
I'd like to know what your album of the summer is going to be. It has to be an entire album. Send me an email, or tweet, or all the ways we have that we can be contacted.
Ed note A: We were able to see The Bronx open for Refused in Calgary, a fantastic pre-engagement party present given to me by my dear friend Grant. Refused was amazing. I was hoping I'd see some young people in the crowd. It was definitely people closer to our age (late 20's to mid 30's). This is a once-in-a-lifetime reunion tour that when Dennis Lyxzen said, "In 15 or 20 years when you tell people you saw Bronx open for Refused, they're not going to believe you." That being said, the day before, Sarah talked to a youngin' in West 49 who was attending the Edmonton date. He said he had been listening to Shape of Punk to Come since he was eleven or twelve. So hopefully some become more entranced. On the way down Grant said that I shouldn't be so hard on any sort of death on alternative rock, there's just a change in patterns, and right now the influence is 80's new wave. So I guess perhaps I more dislike this phase of music we're going through.Ed note B: Recently Tony Hajjar and Cedric Bixler sat down with Rolling Stone magazine, and indicated that they had been jamming, more than just their reunion shows, and suddenly the never has turned to never say never. They indicate that putting a lot behind them has lead to fun times on stage, and a new sound for At The Drive In. Will we ever get to hear this new sound? Maybe, maybe not. But as long as they're all still alive, and enjoy getting together to play, then there's hope.

NEXT ISSUE

-Breaking down the fringe; what's hot in theater

-Canadian's Massive Debt Load

-Summer Album Breakdown

THE POLITICAL ISSUE: Debate Score, Alberta Hates Gay People, Whatcott vs. Notely, The Shins and a Mercury Cougar PLUS what you didn't read in January.

THE POLITICAL ISSUE
Issue 1, Volume 2
April 17, 2012

A Note From The Editors


I believe that we have left the blog long enough that we can safely move on to volume 2. I was going to go a full year, but the delay in publishing to do work and being active, and our affiliate over at life without facebook (we weren't using facebook or using the computer very much for the last several months) had really sort of made this publication take a backburner position. That and not being able to make a proper list for the 'best of 2011' - which is included at the end of this issue, sans the 10 best albums of 2011 which is what was supposed to make the issue. Feel free to read the 'B' side of Volume 1 of OMPW after our political issue. It's spring again, we're facing an election, and the economy is changing. I can't see a better time to start Volume 2 of Out My Passenger Window. So without further ado, let's get to it.

On The Streets
Our on the streets section occurs somewhere behind 124th street, where a lowly 1970 Mercury Cougar has been left out in the snow (or what little of it we've had). In 1967, Mercury didn't have a car to compete in the pony car or musclecar wars. Borrowing from the Ford Mustang, the Cougar was extremely similar to the Mustang, initially sharing engine options from a 289 cubic inch V8 up to a big block FE series 390 cube mill. Later versions of the first generation car, which lasted until 1970, included the big 427 FE motor and the 428 cobra jet motor. The Cougar was supposed to be a luxury or up-branded and upscaled pony car. It would have things standard that were only optional on the Mustang. However, it's performance immediately changed its reputation. In 1967 and 1968, Mecury easily dispatched other Trans Am competitors in the SCCA trans am series with Dan Gurney. The car won Trans Am championships and as well, a NASCAR series especially designed for smaller displacement, smaller dimensioned cars. The Cougar took on the mighty Camaro and won with only a 289 cubic inch small block, before the mighty Boss 302 ever reigned supreme on the track in 1970. The XR-7 model could be seen as the 'GT' in the Mustang lineup, geared towards both luxury and performance. The car you're looking at must be extremely rare, as convertible Cougars were only available in the 1969 and 1970 model years. Effectively Ford Motor Company destroyed the great performance heritage this car had, and continued to develop it towards a luxury car. In 1971 the car grew larger, and larger still through the 70's no longer sharing a shape with the Mustang, but sharing it with the larger Torino/Montego instead. Finally it ended up on a fox bodied platform sharing architecture and body parts with the Thunderbird through the 80's and 90's, until finally becoming a small rounded coupe in the late 90's before the Cougar, and Mercury division, were killed off entirely due to cost saving measures. It's great to see this car. Unfortunately, there unquestionably should be a cover over it.

THE POLITICAL ISSUE

Alberta is facing an election on April 23rd, 2012. This time around, like the playoff hockey I've been watching, I don't remember a more exciting race, or one where there were unusual upsets and controversy. But unlike the playoffs, whoever wins the cup, wins the cup. Whoever wins this election holds the lives of millions of Albertans in their hands. Like hockey, I'm gonna break down a play by play of the debate.

THE DEBATE


An unprecedented amount of Albertans watched the debate this election season, with the changing of the PC's, to the presence of an even more right wing party in the Wild Rose Alliance, to Dr. Raj Sherman coming right out on television and calling his Liberal party a centrist party, distancing themselves from the left wing, the times, they are-a-changing. The PC party, being called, "Not your Dad's PC party, had to have Peter Lougheed himself get involved to defend Alison Redford. They've ruled the province since '71. Now people have a decision to make. But not a 'contentious one' if it is up to Danielle Smith, that is unless she has a referendum for one. I present to you, my take on the debate, impartial to any party.


Healthcare
The debate on healthcare is huge, due to the state of the system currently. While some haven't felt that Redford has done enough, and although it seems that Sherman has the answer as an E.R. doctor (yes, when he said he was, he actually was one, so that part is true, all Sherman Ego aside), Smith couldn't come up with a plan aside for having a potential third party system. Usually third party is a dirty word anywhere in Canada. Does the support of Smith show that healthcare really isn't the issue we thought it would be? In the healthcare discussion, the WR discussed the least about their platform for healthcare, where the PC's sort of reiterated what they already had done. In addition to this, they want to build something like 143 new clinics. The Liberals presented the most finite platform, with an increase in funding, especially to long term care facilities for seniors which would take them out of hospitals and free up hospital space.

Taxes
This is an important one. The Liberals want to increase taxes (and yeah, if you want to pay for essential services sometimes you need to do this) whereas any surplus we have WR would like to pay us per household in what has been dubbed 'Dani Bucks' - $300 per household. First of all, the Liberals. Now from an economist standpoint, what Sherman puts forward is what makes the most sense. He proposes a balanced budget based on taxes and not on money made from oil commodities. Anyone who has ever seen a Candex chart knows that oil as a commodity is extremely unpredictable. As well, tying your economy to anything that can be tied to economic cycles usually means we get exactly what we've had for years - cycles of prosperity and good times and cycles of emergencies, which is what Sherman argues with the fact we keep "hiring and then firing teachers" as the same goes with healtcare - we have times of expansions and upgrades - and then times of wage issues and strikes. Sherman indicates these would be modest increases to flatten out the cycles. Seems solid to me. The WRA was next to jump in indicating they were advocating balancing the budget, and this was a recurring theme throughout the debate. Although, I didn't get a sense of how the budget would have been balanced. Although Smith said she didn't want to ruin the 'Alberta advantage' - which I was also not really sure what she meant. Us having to pay more taxes to ensure essential services, I believe, is what she meant - that we're profitable, so we can balance our budget off of what we make from oil revenues. However, if we're paying this surplus to individuals how does that fit into the budget? This didn't seem to get answered. The PC's attacked this hard, and indicated they would not forego essential services or funding infrastructure expansion no matter what the cost. So we ended up with a glimpse of what the PC's wanted to do - which is present a budget that would fund things. I had the hardest time with trying to figure out the low PC support after the increase in support for schools and healthcare in their last budget that was recently passed that everyone seemed to be really happy with. So what did they do wrong? Well the NDP didn't point that out when it was their turn to go. Brian Mason indicated he would throw out the current budget, but his reiteration of what his party platform was became kind of murky. Let's just say the longer the debate went, the more I felt the NDP became out of touch with things.

WRP Platform
As a new party, I think most people were most intrigued to see what the Wild Rose had to offer, and so one of the questions was strictly about what their platform was. The first thing that came up, of course, was that Smith would not rule on 'contentious issues' as she has repeated over and over on television in the last few weeks. Her party is essentially under fire for some of the views her candidates hold, and the anti-homosexual and anti-abortion agenda that some of her candidates have shown. Smith has not outright condemned these members, and therefore it has raised questions of this party's moral extremism. So suddenly we are talking about having referendums to suddenly decide whether or not homosexuals should be allowed to be married, and that those would go in front of a judge. I felt it was a cheap shot that Smith used the right of women to vote as an example of how this is a good thing. Sherman was next to jump in and indicate that these issues have already been ruled on, why would we go back to them? The NDP had a chance to show up the Wild Rose by discussing standing up for people's rights. Ultimately this one ended with the question that what is exactly the WR platform about abortions and homosexual rights, and would they have a referendum to make gay marriage illegal here, while they could maybe be focusing on funding senior health facilities?

No - Meet Committee
Was this a game for Smith to win, or for Redford to lose? If she did, the no meet committee was the one that hit her hard. Unfortunately, some of her inaction or mis-action over the time as premier designate probably spoke louder than words in a debate ever could. In spite of what I'd call a pretty good budget that she had passed, the no meet committee hurt her before she could even get up to a podium. Ultimately, this is where the mudslinging took place, and the only question that really came out of it was one of political transparency. I don't feel there was any issue here to argue except the NDP took a giant shot when it came out that Strathcona Edmonton incumbant Rachel Notely did not pay back her no meet committee pay, unlike the PC party who were whipped into paying the money back (party whip - it's a real term people).

Liberals - Eliminating Funding For Private Schools
The next question was posed to Sherman, who in his platform wants to consolidate funding to public schools, in his words, it's public money, it should go to public education, and stop funding private schools. The NDP were first to respond, with a simple iteration that the NDP would make education a priority. I felt fairly disappointed. This response pretty much gave Mason the chance to sit on a bench and wait, because his response did nothing for the NDP. He had a chance to attack Sherman for a fairly ambitious plan for change, but instead put out a vague iteration of NDP values. It was kind of sad. Instead, Redford scored some points by indicating how well the current education system was working, and that the PC's would continue to fund education infrastructure - which is already in their budget, so there was nothing new there. The strange thing was the post-secondary tuition debate that ensued. Smith jumped in and indicated she would eliminate tuition fees. It wasn't clear how though, since she had been beating a balanced budget to death, not to mention post secondary institutions are private institutions that cost billions a year to run. Where would we get that money while paying out our entire surplus and not raising taxes? And this is my own personal question and where I felt that Smith started losing this debate by flip flopping her platform. It was, to me, like saying you could quit work and pay off all your debts without having any income whatsoever. The liberals promised free tuition and tuition decreases, but of course, Sherman had already indicated that would come from 'modest' tax increases.

Integrity
The question was then posed, first to the PC, about integrity. This is where I thought Redford beat down Smith, but the polls after indicated otherwise. First, Redford indicated that Smith had paid ex PC's hundreds of thousands of dollars to cross the floor. Smith agreed to doing this. Personally, I think that's not good. Paying people to be in a specific party seems like...well...what do those people believe in? Don't they want to be in a party that represents their beliefs? Or is it that they just believe in the almighty dollar? Later Smith would go on a pretentious rant about how she didn't have experience in x, and didn't have experience in y, etc. I thought that killed Smith, but, apparenltly according to Ipsos - Reid, she won the debate in Albertan's eyes? Sherman took the opportunity at the end to indicate that the PC's couldn't be trusted.

Wild Rose Energy Dividend
'Dani Bucks' came up in the debate. Smith answered by saying she believed that our oil surplus were 'Albertan's money and they should have it back.' Unfortunately, she then flip flopped, when she said they couldn't cut taxes, which was directly against an earlier comment about her cutting taxes. The PC, NDP and Liberals all agreed the money should be invested. Smith beat more on her balanced budget idea, but didn't really explain why the budget was currently not balanced in her eyes, or how she was going to achieve this.

NDP Balance Of Power
Mason was asked what he would do if the NDP should end up being the split and holding the balance of power. While I felt that he didn't really present the party's platform as what he would do or wants to do the Liberals and Sherman took the opportunity to drop a bombshell by calling themselves a centrist party citing the nasty divorce of two right wing parties. So apparently the Liberals are no longer a left wing party.

Editors Final Take
So as I turned off the television, I felt very afraid. I felt afraid of the fact that the Wild Rose Alliance seemed to flip flop, and didn't come out and indicate what they were going to do about this 'balanced budget' Smith kept pushing, as well as this referendum business. I had the most respect for the Liberals who presented clear ideas that made sense. Redford, I felt got in some pretty good shots, but I felt she could have indicated they passed a happy budget already. Finally, it seemed to me the NDP were just really out of touch, they didn't really put any points on the board. Quite honestly, I felt a lot of people were going to vote PC to strategically vote against the WRA after the debate, but I was surprised by the IR poll that came out immediately after where the WRA were described as winning the debate and being the popular party here. To me, there's not much solid or obvious about what is in the WRA's plan, just that people like them because they are right wing, and that's what we are in Alberta, but the PC's have lost people's confidence, so they can't vote for that right wing party anymore. It is clear to me what is totally wrong with the WRA, and you can read that in the other sections of this issue. Ultimately, the debate should have been about an hour longer, but I'm happy so many Albertans are getting involved and becoming educated.

ALBERTA HATES GAYS (and minorities)

Sentiments of Wild Rose Candidates Make Their Support Numbers Confusing

In the last couple of days you've no doubt heard the sentiments of some of the Wild Rose candidates revealed. Starting with pastor Allan Hunsperger, a pastor in a Calgary riding, who blog posted his personal views about Gays, and although the news items are easy to find in the Calgary Herald, I don't need to reiterate them here. Let's just indicate there was nothing positive there. Smith defended her candidate indicating it was free speech and opinion, and he is obviously allowed to have his views, even though they don't represent what he'd do in office. My first thought is one, I thought a person joined a political party based on their values and ideals because the party also represented those values and ideas. I happened to be wrong about that when Smith admitted to paying candidates during the debate to cross the floor to her party. In the meantime, I will join the critics in saying how can a person with this sentiment about Gays protect them against hate speech, bullying in schools, hate crimes, etc, when they believe that to protect them and love them the way they are is harm towards them? Regardless of what Hunsperger's political agenda is, his personal agenda is that gay people should be changed to straight people.

Then there's this (hat-tip to Kaleb D. for posting this which brought it to my attention) in which another Calgary Wildrose candidate Ron Leech seems to indicate a clear segregation of visable minority groups, and that his whiteness allows him to be a better overall leader. The funny thing about this is he indicates something like Muslims would be better at talking to Muslims; and while this might be true (as a 29 year old, most mid twenty to early 30 year old people could probably identify with me more than they could a 50 year old - and as a catholic most catholics could probably identify more with me than with a baptist), the idea that a white person could lead better than anyone (ie in his statements - As a Caucasian I can speak to all the community) is extremely racist. I wonder how Barack Obama would feel about that statement. I wonder how bad Dr. Raj Sherman would kick this guy's ass in a ring. Sherman looks like he could do some damage. 

And then there's the affiliation with Bill Whatcott, which we'll get to in the next segment. Doing a little sleuth work (hat tip to Jeremy C. for this one) on daveberta.ca, an independent political blog, it indicates all the Wild Rose Party's Candidate's alliances. Most to do with anti-gay or anti-abortion, pro-life extremist.

Towards the election there are going to be more of these, no doubt, surfacing, and from other parties as well, as the Wild Rose tries to cover it's ass by simply naming similar things other parties might have done, while Smith inexplicably defends the actions and views of these individuals.

Ultimately the question comes up in the end not necessarily about these candidates' views, but as to why they are so far ahead of the polls. Truly, Albertans can't be blind to these are they? We can make either two assertions about the people in our home province. One, they are totally ignorant. If that is not the case than it is Two, they agree with these people's views. That means Albertans hate abortions and gays. 

But you know, Wild Rose won't rule on contentious issues. They certainly wouldn't have an agenda on them.

Whatcott vs. Notley (and why you should care)

Infamous social conservative and Red State

You may have seen Kevin Smith's movie Red State, where a (spoiler) fundamentalist church terrorizes a town until the ATP finally gets into a huge firefight with them and takes them out (end spoiler). Bill Whatcott, polishing his gun collection on the John Stewart show frighteningly reminded me of Red State. It all started when Sarah and I had left one evening, and came back to our home with a flier of an aborted fetus on the front of it, calling out the local NDP candidate Notley. A quick background on Bill Whatcott would have informed me entirely, however, I didn't know how infamous he was at the time. I emailed Bob Layton from Global/CHED. Layton indicated that he didn't usually make pieces on individuals like this, because it gave them the media they were looking for, but he would look into it. My bud Jeremy C. took a look into it and came up with a lot of links, including the one above from daveberta.ca. Now, what is the deal here? One, it is creepy to have a person like this in your own back yard. To think he has stood on my steps makes me shudder. The fact he has a gun collection is even worse. The second is his political affiliation. At first, we couldn't really figure out why Notley? Was it because she was the former head of UNA and Whatcott claimed to be a male nurse (how could a person like this nurse - that requires caring for all types). But it was in Saskatchewan where his nursing license came under review. He has been in trouble with the law for his views and tactics dating back to 2001. Who has been helping him get off the hook? According to daveberta.ca, it is current Wild Rose candidate John Carpay. Just have a little knowledge who a party might be affiliated with before you vote for them.

I HAVE NO EDITOR

OMPW B-Sides

So I said I had an unfinished blog that I wrote that didn't come out. It is below, uncensored and unedited. Enjoy!

The Best of 2011

We're set to wrap up the year that was with discussion about news events, music, and all sorts of stuff that you might have forgoten happened, that I have something to say about. So, without further ado, your 2011 wrap up.

The Best News Items

Of course, this is going to vary depending on where you live, but over here in YEG, we have probably a few different things that hit us hard than some other potential news items.

Tsunami
Early in the year Japan experienced an offshore-earthquake and a subsequent Tsunami that it is still recovering and cleaning up from. While the catastrophic death and injury toll was one thing, we can usually expect a few natural disasters a year. It was the magnitude of this natural disaster that made the world pay attention. Not to ever rate the severety of a natural disaster where lives are lost; this one made the world switch on because of what it did to a highly developed and industrialized country. Not only did Japan's manufacturing market shut down, but the fallout from factories literally obliterated meant that the economic effects would be felt globally. Chrysler had to delay their production of the new 300 simply because the black paint they used came out of a Japanese factory. Speaking of fallout, it also damaged a nuclear power plant, of which the effects are still being studied, and thought to be far worse than what Japan initially told the world. The disaster raised the question again about the safety of nuclear power.

Human Rights
Starting with only the 2nd issue of this publication, we examined how Florida had decided to drug test welfare recipients. This sparked much debate regarding the right to welfare. This was impacted even more when things took a turn for the worst.

Double-Dip Recession
Things were already tough when we ran our (un)employment issue on June 13. In fact it was only about to get worse. By August, the second recession was in full swing, and with mounting unemployment and economic hardships globally, the 'occupy wall street' movement became the 'occupy everywhere' movement, and spread accross cities in the US and Canada. I don't want to brag, but our Edmontonian occupy protesters seemed to be the least violent, and most respectful of their space. Mounting tensions resulting from Greece's failing economy meant the EU had to create a bailout package. The US nearly defaulted on debt payments and had to ask for an increased debt cieling from their lenders and central bank. This caused their credit rating to drop from AAA to AA+, which seems like a funny arbitrary rating, but is actually quite serious. Unemployment was sky high right through to the end of the year.The second quarter results showed double digit inflation in food prices, gas prices, utilities and insurance prices. Therefore, although average inflation was only 3%, the stuff you actually buy on a normal basis had increased in price by 14%, and as much as 27% in some cases. Imagine that you paid $3.50 for 4L (a gallon) of milk last year. That price would be $4.45 this year. What?

Poor Students
In October, the BC Securities commission released their report indicating how badly-off our society is currently. It was revealed that the average post secondary graduate between 25-34 only makes $31,000 a year. It was also found that debt runs as high as $18,000 already by the time most people turn 20. In addition to that, student unemployment in this age range is as high as 14%. Some suggested student loan bailouts for an entire generation that is failing economically.

Shrinking Middle Class
Canada also released the wellness index towards the end of the year, indicating how 'well off' people generally are, not tied to the CPI or other economic indexes. It was found that while salaries haven't increased in relation to other markets, things like housing prices had increased a full 30%. So while we make comparitively the same, we pay 30% more to live. This added fuel to the fire regarding what the occupy protesters were talking about. The protest had all been over when this little tidbit of information came out, proving that we're working 30% harder just to keep our lifestyle the same.

The Death of Jack Layton
It was hard to say goodbye to a world-class politician. And even if you weren't a fan of the NDP, you had to recognize what a huge role in Canadian politics Jack Layton had played, especially in the last 10 years before his death, and in the last election, gaining huge momentum for the NDP and its egalitarian platforms. Even if you were a hardcore conservative, everyone benefited from Layton's presence, and he will be sorely missed. We won't soon forget the shots from the Olympics, while he watched our Canadian team from his local pub, with a beer in hand.

Kim Kardashian
While there was a royal wedding that so many followed, many more people tuned in to pay attention to Kim Kardashian's sham wedding and divorce. The ramifications of which left such a sour taste in most people's mouths to finally realize that following celebrities, especially those who are famous for nothing is a complete waste of time. In fact, Kardashian's BS was so hyped, it took our focus off of Lindsay Lohan, who apparently got arrested about 3 more times this year, and posed for playboy. I can guarantee right now that when I go to look at my site tracker, the most often search input into my google search bar from this page to the next one will be a search for 'Lindsay Lohan Playboy Pictures' - just wait. I'll give you the results as they come available.

Edmonton Infrastructure, Homicides and Sports
It was a crazy year for Edmonton in itself, actually. We followed homicide rates of 45, a record beating the old one by what 7, or 10? Something like that? Most of the murders were contributed to a homeless/drug user epidemic in the city. Attributed to homeless or drug users who are not of sound reasoning when the majority of these homicides occured. Aside from the homicides, we managed to approve a brand new Arena for the Oilers. This was much to the enjoyment and dismay of many people. We finished another wing of the Henday, we saw Scona Road get an overhaul, the completion of the 23rd ave overpass, and about 1000 other roadway projects because labour and materials were simply cheaper this year. We saw the argument over BMO 63 take place, the completion of the new EPCOR tower and a lot of other construction projects sure to change Edmonton's skyline. Finally, a replacement for the Walterdale bridge was discussed. Much to many people's chagrin, the Alberta Museum got stiffed by Rona Ambrose, so that won't be changing. And not to leave our Oilers as the only sports team talked about, our Capitals baseball team won a championship, and the Eskimos finally made the playoffs, but did not advance to the Western Final. Immediately after, Eric Tillman would destroy the team, and trade Ricky Ray to Toronto for virtually nothing. This was again, much to the dismay of many, and the enjoyment of others (namely Toronto).

New Music - The Shins - Port of Morrow

Band that debuted on the Garden State soundtrack outlived the film

This album is but a few weeks old, maybe a month, and the lead off single, Simple Song, has put itself in a lot of people's heads. The Shins officially started in 2001, making it over 10 years since their first single was done for independent label Sub Pop, after being asked to contribute a single to the 'single of the month club' - but at that time they were still relatively unknown. It wasn't really until 2002's Oh Inverted World made an appearance with the song New Slang on the Garden State soundtrack that really jumpstarted the band's international success. Port Of Morrow is officially their fourth full length album, and the first since leaving Sub Pop for their own label. That's right, The Shins are still one of the world's biggest independent bands. Port of Morrow takes a step up from where Wincing The Night Away left off, and although WTNA was a fantastic album, it doesn't seem to hold a candle to the songwriting portrayed here on their latest release, and that says a lot. Aside from Simple Song, notable tracks include For A Fool, which has a very nice lounge/blues vibe, 40 Mark Strasse, and the title track Port of Morrow, which is a fantastic song that you will hear some vocal elements that were present in Broken Bells. Really, this is one of those albums where there isn't a song you're going to skip, and that's why I'm talking about it. This is an album where I actually memorize song titles so I can go back and listen to them again. And on that front, for the tracks I have memorized and would go back and listen to, it gets a solid 8/10. There's only one or two songs on this album I haven't been interested in listening to all that much, but I still didn't skip 'em.

Next Issue

-The Car Issue - Sarah Holly Karb from LWOFB and I walk the Edmonton Auto show and give our best picks for 2012, so if you're going shopping know what to look for. Watch the hilarious video we shot as well!

-Volume 1 retrospective - check out a little ride through the first volume of OMPW, with our artwork and more!

Don't miss it!

PS - thank you to all our readers for putting us over 1000 hits, and making us the #1 source to search for a picture of an Ikea Stockholm coffee table on Google!

This Download has 24 minutes left...a Out My Passenger Window experiment

Our on the streets issue has no photo this issue! We WANT YOU to send us an interesting photo, along the lines of something we would publish, in this one time only reader submission. Why not?


Issue 14, Volume 1
Thursday, October 13, 2011


24 Minutes
This week I thought I'd challenge myself. Having a lot to put together for the metal issue, and a short time, it's still in the making. Instead of not doing anything, I thought I would write and put together a new issue the simple way - the way I would just write my thoughts down before I decide to have so many different sections. The time frame? Twenty-four minutes while I wait for my GT-5 upldate to complete. Here are the issues.

Change - And A Government, what that means?


Obviously one of the largest topics that doesn't include a knife, unless you're talking about a proverbial backstabbing one, is the discussion of 'Change' and a proposed provincial election. Already the Wild Rose Alliance is dissing Redford for not calling an election, and not making $110 million worth of school funding reversals happen. This I'm glad about, because that's impossible.

Change is thrown around at every election. But what can we expect from politicians? Can we expect change at all? Politicians are people who win, or are appointed to, their jobs. They then go in to work like every other person on this planet, and I'm sure a lot of them phone it in. If they really wanted to change things, we probably wouldn't have things like recessions. It is because they change things we have some sort of liability to the way things were. Most changes for the positive in good economic times turn out to be changes that screw us over in bad economic times. Take healthcare for instance. Tommy Douglas was a man that inspired change. Universal healthcare was great. The problem is it's a huge liability when it comes down to affording it during times when Canadians are out of work and have to draw assistance rather than give it.

There's also the hero/villain boom/bust cycle. See, any politician that is in power when the economy takes off and times are good for everyone looks like a hero. Be a politician during a time of recession, and even if you keep your province out of it (Alberta did the best of any province by the way, and if Canada did the best of any country through a recession than we obviously did pretty good - but we still had it hard) you're on the losing end. Any politician elected now is going to probably look like hell, and then not so bad, as their term extends out of a recession into somewhat of an economic recovery. It's like they're doing things, but really, they're not. It's the economy all along.

No One Wants To Hear About Your Cats


This isn't true. Sometimes we want to hear about your cats, but only in a very amusing sense, especially if it's followed by video of your cat doing something hilarious. Occasionally hearing about your cats is okay, given it's not the primary thing you want to focus on. So here's a guide about status updates:
-Don't talk about your fucking cats
-Don't talk about your religion or what you're doing with it
-Don't talk about your kids
-Don't talk about your divorce and/or child custody battles
-Don't talk about someone else's divorce
-Don't repeat the same type of post over and over again. For example, if you're a programmer, it's okay to talk about programming every once in a while, especially since your other programmer friends will get it (OMG PROGRAMMERS HAVE FRIENDS) kidding, of course. But if every post comes out to be something like "I spent all this time today reformatting my SQL to fit my DEV framework only to have by debug line code //you are not here and then I freaked out //RETURN and found out the database wasn't what we needed anyway. Or whatever.
-Facebook has this annoying deal of doing this thing where if you comment on someone's photo that has 'friends of friends' security clearance on it, I get to see it it my news feed, even though I don't know the person. I haven't decided if this is good or bad, because I've seen some fairly bizarre, and funny stuff of people I don't know at all. Have not seen nipples. So I guess it's bad.
-Don't write cryptic shit people don't get, because it's frustrating.

Here's a good rule of thumb: if it's none of your business, or if it's none of anyone else's business, or people wouldn't want it to be their business, then don't post it. If you got into an accident, are sharing an amusing link, especially SMBC comics, then it's all good.

INSTALLING
(this means I have some time left)

Idiocy in Idealism
I'm not going to comment on the occupy/99% thing here, this is fairly interesting, but I think it's hypocritical. I'm sure most of these people, given the chance to be in the 1% would. I'm not sure what they expect to happen either. A redistribution of wealth? Okay then. There is likely someone poorer than you too, so how about we make everyone in the 50%, including them, and use your 85% to get them there? I'm not specifically against this movement, I just get that this is part of the recession, and there are some economic changes that need to be made - like bailout packages. Back in the day, if something went bankrupt, it went bankrupt. You don't see Packards or AMC cars on the road. The idea is, in competitive markets, this should be great for competitors. That or people will want to get out of that market, because no one is buying what you're selling. Either way, it used to be the natural cycle of things. The problem is we let companies get way too huge, and form cartels, monopolies, and tacitly collude so they can screw us over. One company might have so many subsidiaries, that letting it die would put a ton of people out of work. It should have never been allowed to get that big in the first place.

Here's some other idealist isms that are driving me nuts right now:

Story of the Mermaid or the Whale
You've heard this one, where the gym says you want to be a mermaid or a whale, and the parable ends with it saying women want to be whales because their excess weight is love and experience. I have no idea how so many people thought this was a beautiful story and bought into it. What you need to do is let your body weight and idealism be about you when it comes to this type of thing. Carrying a lot of excess body weight (may not but) could mean that you are at risk of hypertension, diabetes, and a slow and paintful death So how about instead of thinking about being a mermaid or a whale, and if it means you're a mom, or have experience, or love to give, why not think about how you can be in a shape that allows you to be a strong, independent, loving woman for longer, and feel better about it.

Out Of Time


Letters To The Editor
rbw2@ualberta.ca

Upcoming Issues
-the Metal Issue - reviews, information, local bands and more!
-Halloween!

Our background is still pink due to October being breast cancer awareness month.

Fall Double Issue: End Of Summer - Travel Alberta (also) Alison Redford FTW, The Frosh 15 and Eating Right, Philip Baker is Back, and Movie Reviews?

Issue 13, Volume 1

Wednesday, October 5, 2011

Welcome to our fall double issue: one part is our feature on travel Alberta, our summer wrap up. The other part is our standard sociopolitical fare that we like to bring to you each issue. The video above is from Hot August Nights at Castrol Raceway, in Edmonton, AB. The race is among the biggest jet car meets in North America during the season. Castrol raceway is just one of the many things to take in during late summer, inexpensive excursions in Alberta.

Sidenote

Please note our pink header. We will run this throughout most of October for Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Recently, I had the opportunity to take part in Run For The Cure, in which 9000 people took part and raised $1.6 million for breast cancer research. In all of Canada, the total was over 170,000 participants who did either a 5km run, or a 1km walk, and raised over $30,000,000 towards breast cancer research. This month, please take a moment to think of all the women in your life, or yourself, if you happen to be female. One in nine women, or eleven percent, will be diagnosed with Breast Cancer this year. In Canada, that is a total of 23,400 women. Of those, 5100 will die of it. Statistics are courtesy of the Canadian Cancer Society. The death rate from Breast Cancer is the lowest it's been since the late 1950's. Screening is up, and catching it early is good. But what if we could make it such that the death rate was even lower? What if we could make early detection higher? What if we could educate as to prevent cancer? Please educate yourself this month, and donate when called upon. Thank you.

TRAVEL ALBERTA: SPECIAL FEATURE

Summer is pretty much over now. Although September usually signals fall, we had a lucky bounce of some good weather towards the end. We decided during this time (and this would explain the long absence in the magazine) that we would take the opportunity to go out and enjoy as much as we could on a shoe string budget. Here are some of the activities we took in.

Hot August Nights

Held at Castrol Raceway in Edmonton, AB, Hot August Nights takes place in late August each year, and is the biggest jet car drag race meet in North America. It also boasts funny cars and many other competitive race classes. If you've watched the video above, you know why it's a big deal. Many other cities in Alberta and small towns have tracks that run all the way to the September long weekend.

Sarah and I looking on in the grandstand.

Two Top-Alcohol funny cars line up in staging. Top Alcohol boasts about 3000hp and track times usually run in the 7 second range at over 200mph.

Yours truly with a Camaro Top Alcohol Funny Car. Back in the heyday of drag racing (early 70's) these cars were known as 'floppers) for their lift-top bodies.

Myself with 'The Burnout King' Darryl Webb and is Lucas Oil Corvette Top Alcohol Funny Car. Most pit areas are open during race events, giving you a chance to see the cars up close, and maybe even talk to your favorite driver.

Sylvan Lake

Sylvan Lake is almost the perfect Albertan lake to visit that is not in the mountains. It is off of highway 11 near Red Deer, so accessible to those who live in Edmonton and Calgary. The biggest attractions are the beach, and of course, Wild Rapids waterslides. It can be done in a day trip, or you can plan to stay a weekend there.

Summer storms are common in Alberta, especially in the evening due to daytime heating. We experienced a little rain on our way back, but it resulted in some great natural art displays.

Sarah and I in line for the slides at Wild Rapids water park. Admission is $30, but if it is a super warm day, go after 3pm, and you'll save $10 off the admission price. We did, and it turned out to be a blast.

Of course, taking gratuitous photos of yourselves driving is part of the experience. If you took a Jeep Wrangler like we did, you'd have the option of removing the top for your lake experience.

Ah, the good ol' open road. Before you hit it, make sure that your vehicle is in good working order. You should, by rule, get an oil change every 5000km-8000km depending on your manual and how hard you're driving your vehicle. Make sure your fluids are topped up, and that any unresolved issues have been taken care of. Make sure your tires and brakes are good. If you have no idea what kind of shape they're in; lay down the extra money to have your dealer, or a reputable shop do an inspection. Have them go through the inspection with you, so you become more knowledgeable. If your car is under warranty, I strongly recommend taking it to the dealership you got it at to have this done. Most passenger car tires should be inflated to about 35psi, even though max load is 44psi. Consult your manual, and your trip should be trouble free!

Drumheller, Alberta

Situated just South of Calgary, Drumheller is an easy drive. Cut into the bald prairie, the descent into the valley of the Dinosaurs is an interesting one, where you will go from wheat fields to hoodoos and badlands in a matter of minutes. There are actually a fair amount of things to take in while you're there, all for cheap.

For free, take this ferry over the Bow River. This cable driven ferry can be avoided, but when leaving Drumheller, it might be the easiest way to point yourself back in a northerly direction.

The Royal Tyrrell Museum has been a mainstay of Drumheller since the early 80's. It has been updated since, and is still a leader in the world in the science of paleontology. The museum starts with fossils and findings from the earliest known life forms, and displays many fossil findings and recreations up until present day, and takes an introspective look at the future. The Alberta Badlands, and southern Alberta have one of the biggest deposits of dinosaur fossils in the world, and researchers are still finding new species and cataloging, better giving an understanding of our past.

Historic downtown Drumheller will take up about 20 minutes of your time. Every street has a dinosaur. Ashlee got bit by a guard triceratops in front of an ice-cream stand. The one thing particularly interesting is how far back the origins of the town go; as far back as Edmonton or Calgary. It makes you curious how some areas developed into bustling metropolises, and some became the home of a dinosaur museum. Go figure.

Atlas Mine is a former coal mine, and there are many remnants of it, including the suspension bridge used to at one time to cart workers and coal across the Bow river. The government of Alberta has graciously preserved the site so future gawkers like Sarah and I have something interesting to look at.

Then there are, of course, the hoodoos. Sediment rock formations that have been carved by wind. The hard rock at the top remains, while the more brittle sandstone underneath gets whittled away, making these interesting rock formations. Some of the hoodoos on the provincial site were damaged, and roped off. However, you can still climb on most of them unsupervised. Be aware, there are rattlers and scorpions in this area, just as in any other badlands area. For this time of year (second week of September) the temperatures were soaring to 29 degrees Celsius.

Want some green with your brown? Drumheller also has a golf course where green fees are reasonable. Golf is a great way to spend a warm afternoon, even if you suck at it.

Radium Hot Springs, Invermere, Fairmont Hot Springs

Road trips are always about finding new things. If you've been to the Rockies, you're certainly familiar with Banff, Jasper, Hinton, Canmore, and more of the other tourist-y type destinations. About an hour past Banff (exit off of the Trans-Canada on to B.C. 93) you will come to the town of Radium, and its' hot springs. 25km away is Fairmont Hot Springs, B.C. with its' own attractions, and in between is the town of Invermere, featuring Lake Windemere. I know I said 'travel Alberta' - but if you're in Banff and bored of shopping at Lu-Lu-Lemon and eating at The Keg, why not get off the well beaten path, and just on to a slightly beaten one?

Lake Windemere is a beautiful mountain lake, and is great for having some fun on. Why not rent a boat? We were able to reserve, in advance, this Ski Centurion with a 345hp Mercruiser Scorpion and a Ballast system. Wakeboarding, waterskiing, and tubing were all on the agenda.

Of course, if you're not in to watersports, you can just take the boat out for a nice tour around the lake.

The coolest parts of the tour were the ones that weren't so commercial. While Radium operates a government pool hot-springs, Fairmont offers a private pool. On the other side of the private pool is the actual hot springs and waterfall, seen here behind Sarah and I. The nature hike around it is nice too.

How To Travel: Resources

• We travelled using RV, which is great, all except for gas. But if you're driving anyway, this may be the best thing. Alberta has the most RV's per capita of anywhere in the world, believe it or not. If you have a pickup truck, or even a small SUV crossover or minivan, you can usually find a used RV that will be fantastic (trailers are always cheaper than motorhomes, and most cars can tow a tent trailer). Campgrounds usually charge between $15 to $50 a night depending on what type of features you want. This includes things like 15 amp, 30 amp, or 50 amp power. For example, 15 amp will be great just to turn lights on and off, 30 amp will run an air conditioner or a microwave, and 50 amp will run all your RV's electronics together, while you also operate a small grow-op in the back of your F-150. There are other amenities available, such as potable water hook up, on site sewer hook up, cable television hook up, and phone jack. Most campgrounds now also have a wi-fi network you can hook into, like modern hotel chains.
• Sylvan lake can be done in a day trip. Any drag strip meet usually is local, and will require only an evening. If you live in Calgary, Drumheller can be a day trip, but if you live in Red Deer or Edmonton, make it a weekend trip. I would recommend a weekend or a long weekend to take in just a few of what Radium and Fairmont have to offer.
• Most of these places have hotels that range from dives to moderately priced, well appointed motel/hotels, to expensive spa-resorts.

Check out these resources for more information:

http://www.traveldrumheller.com/

http://www.radiumhotsprings.com/

http://www.fairmonthotsprings.com/

http://invermere.com/

http://www.sylvanlake.ca/home

http://www.gorving.ca/main.asp

http://www.castrolraceway.com/

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Alison Redford FTW - Second Ballots Are a Joke

I'm not going to divulge my political affiliation here, because I don't think it is relevant in this commentary. You didn't think everything would be just about having fun in your RV did you? Nope, I'm back to ranting about what makes the world go round; politics and economics. This one has to do with both. As you may know, Alison Redford won over Gary Mar to become the Premier Designate of Alberta, after the retirement of 'Steady' Ed Stelmach. Now, my first problem with Redford was the idea that apparently she could restore all education funding within ten days. So, then, my question is where does this money come from? Do we stop paving roads? Do we give up on healthcare? This indicates a lack of understanding regarding how the economy and government work. Well, maybe not how the government works. Outlandish promises that can't be followed through on seems to be on par for any government. Then there's the ballot process. Most people, I think, would agree that Steady Eddie did very little for Alberta, and that we're not batting as well as we could be, although we resisted inflation better than any other province in Canada. Stelmach became the leader of the PC party after coming on strong as most people's second choice. In this party race, Mar and Redford were too close to call in the second ballot, so they looked at people's second choices. That's right, Redford was more people's second choice. So everyone is pretty comfortable, maybe not thrilled, but comfortable that she's in power. The biggest problem with all of this, however, is the 'Premier-Designate' title. If someone who leads a province, country, state, city, what have you should retire, die, go AWOL, go to prison, etc, shouldn't there be an immediate election? What frustrates me is there is no immediate need to call an election. So if you weren't a part of the PC party, you didn't really get to choose who is now in premier. You had no say at all. You didn't even get the chance to relegate her - or at least elect your own - opposition. My take? Redford doesn't know what she's doing, and there should be an election. Straight to the point.

The Frosh 15 - Eating Right for Students

I was reading an article in the Metro (yeah that's right) a few weeks ago regarding the 'Frosh' or 'Freshman' 15 - the 15lbs that new students usually gain in the first year of their post secondary experience. Apparently it's quite common, the majority of students will go through it. There is many tips on how to eat right.

There is one problem: eating right costs money.

With rising tuition costs, living costs, text book costs, course costs, transportation costs, and most of all food costs - a 9% inflation of food prices over last year - how are new students supposed to afford to eat right? I do not generally see campuses trying to provide better meal options through the eateries in their yard, after all, business investments make student unions' and institutions money. There is no place on a loan form (if you can get a loan) that indicates you need more money because you want to eat healthy. Here is a sad fact: it costs more to eat better. Maybe what we need to keep this happening is to make post secondary institutions understand that, like residence and parking, food available to students should be an issue up there with everything else. I mean, do we really want our students having to pay their student loans whilst paying for their diabetes medication at the same time? It is a possible future reality.

Philip Baker is Back

You might remember this character, the gentleman who was the Dean of Medicine at the University of Alberta. This man ripped off an entire speech to give to the graduating class for 2010, and was caught, and kicked out as dean. Now he's back working his usual hospital rounds, as well, he will be reinstated at the University of Alberta, not as a Dean of Medicine, but he will be working there.

He should be cleaning floors.

I posit why the University of Alberta needs this person who so blatantly does not give a shit when they could easily give the position to someone else. Even scarier than him teaching new graduates, he's back practicing himself. Would you want someone that thought he was above (and could not take 10 minutes of time to write his own) plagiarizing a speech for a large event working on you if you were a patient?

Fire this guy for good.

Movie Reviews - We Got 'Em

I felt why not, I watch films, I know something about them, I might as well talk about them. Think about this as less reviews and more recommendations. I'm not going to suggest films or talk about films I wasn't excited about.

In Theaters: Drive

Drive is a film starring Ryan Gosling, Albert Brooks, Ron Perlman, and Bryan Cranston, directed by Nicholas Winding Refn, and is possibly unlike anything you've seen before. For those that think this is going to be simply a car-chase flick, you're totally wrong. There are a few fun car chases, but the film is really about the tension built around Ryan Gosling's character (Driver - like Ryan O'Niel in 1978's Driver) and his increasingly unpredictability when pressed by gangsters played by Brooks and Perlman. The film is a fantastic working product, as seamless as an iPod. But like PC users that suddenly use a Mac product, you might not immediately get it if you're too used to a PC. For example, there is not a lot of dialogue. You might be used to blahbity-blah-blah of Hollywood movies. We are a society used to being talked at, not necessarily to. Look at the constant news, constant shows where people can't shut up, the media we have access to all the time. When was the last time you were in a car with someone you particularly didn't want to talk to, and neither of you had the adult pacifier of a smart phone to dive in to. That's what this film is like in places. It helps to build tension, and keep the story flowing. Now, if you don't like gratuitous violence, you may not like this movie. It is, however, not any worse than any Tarantino film, and not nearly as cheesy. The complex situations that Gosling finds himself in are perfect to real life, asking yourself what you would do should you have found yourself in his situation. Scarier is Al Brooks' character. A cold and calculated criminal who seems like he could be your Dad. It's confusing; you want to like him, he seems like he could be likable, but he is, after all, a gangster, and you shouldn't like him or trust him. Ultimately this could be the greatest film of the year; winning the Cannes Film Festival award for Best Director. The soundtrack was great, and the modern interpretation of Driver was not lost on me, even though it did stray from that film (it is not based on that film, but does pay some homage). It is definitely not B-roll, but very artfully and skillfully put together such that every character and situation or scene is felt by the audience. Don't miss it.

On Video: One Week

One Week has been out since 2008; a story of a man diagnosed with cancer, that buys a 1974 Triumph Motorcycle and rides across Canada. Joshua Jackson plays the lead, and is a likable one. Canadiana reigns supreme in this independent film shod with cameos that only a Canuck would appreciate. The film also asks questions regarding one's own mortality. But it's not sad, as far as cancer films go. It's not funny like 50/50 tries to be. It's just real. It's available on Netflix, or whatever video store still exists near you.

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