Noteworthy: Don’t expect more voting power just handed to the big cities

By Bruce Penton on October 16, 2024.

Alberta’s growing population is creating the need for a readjustment of the province’s electoral map, says a recent story in the Globe and Mail. The trouble faced by Premier Danielle Smith however, is the growth has occurred mainly in Calgary and Edmonton, two cities that aren’t exactly favourable to the UCP on election day. The last thing Smith and the UCP want is more voting power in the cities.

If, somehow, some redrawing of constituency boundaries could add more rural seats, where Smith’s party is strong, instead of more urban constituencies, the premier would be a happy gal. That’s not the case however, and the rival New Democrats are rubbing their hands in anticipation, calling for a readjustment based on population.

If there was no ‘playing of politics’ in the redistribution arrangement, some rural seats would likely be enlarged, and perhaps reduced by one or two, while new urban constituencies would be created to justify the ballooning population in the province’s two largest cities.

No one is suggesting gerrymandering is on the agenda, but the word, or at least the concept, has probably been whispered in some quarters.

â€¢ No idea how long highway construction takes, but the twinning of Highway 3 between Burdett and Taber is moving along at a brisk pace. A recent trip to Lethbridge showed a great deal of activity over that stretch, and on the day I drove by, there was even some asphalt being laid on one section. Thousands of labour hours and months and years of work still lay ahead before the four-laning is completed, but the job is well under way and after years of talk, and it’s great of finally see some concrete action.

â€¢ Oct. 30 is the deadline for Hatters to volunteer for a number of boards and committees which deal with important aspects of the functioning of the city, and then report to council with advice.

There’s one opening on the Community Vibrancy Advisory Board, which meets at least eight times a year for about two hours. And what does it do? The city’s website says it “focuses on recreation, leisure, culture, arts and social matters in the community.”

If that’s not your style, there are four openings on the Medicine Hat Public Library board, or perhaps you’d be interested in one of two openings on the Police Commission. Many more openings on a variety of boards and committees exist. The entire list of volunteer positions available can be found on the City of Medicine Hat’s website.

â€¢ Cheap shot of the week from Vancouver’s Steve Burgess, writing in the Tyee after Justin Trudeau appeared on The Late Show with Steven Colbert and wondering if Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre might get a chance at showing up in front of an American audience: “The Conservative leader probably missed his best shot at American TV fame when Chuck BarrisÂ retiredÂ fromÂ The Gong Show.”

â€¢ Short snappers: The four most-visited cities in the world last year were Istanbul, London, Dubai and Antalya, Turkey. The Turkish city recently surpassed Paris and New York to reach No. 4 most-visited. … Here’s a dirty story: The Los Angeles Dodgers are selling bagfuls of “Shohei Ohtani stepped-on dirt” for $150. Get yours today. … Were he still alive, Canadian athlete and hero Terry Fox would be 66 years of age. He was 22 when he died, 44 years ago. … A winning $1-billion Mega Millions ticket has gone unclaimed in New Jersey for the past six months and the holder has only six more months to claim the loot. … Bet you didn’t know that looking up at the night sky has mental health benefits. Stephanie Vermillion, in a story in Outside Magazine, says our pupils get wider, the world looks big and our problems seem small. … Judging by the number of commercials breaking up the coverage, hurricanes are big business for CNN. … Golf data scientist Rick Gehman of Las Vegas was in Montreal for the recent President’s Cup and did a video of his experiences in Canada. One segment had him sipping a Tim Hortons coffee and he rated it only “4 out of 10.” Such boorishness. Our immigration people should make sure he’s not allowed to cross the border again. … Money may not buy happiness, or love (as the Beatles’ song stated), but it may be able to buy a baseball title. Among the four remaining teams in the Major League Baseball playoffs are those with the three highest payrolls (Mets, Yankees, Dodgers). The outlier is Cleveland, which is 23rd. … The name game: Somewhere in the world, there really is a wealthy investor named Rich Monopoli; also, there exists a former firefighter named Les McBurney.