Nothing is what it seems.

 

I feel like we are living in some weird, parallel universe today. Nothing makes sense. Nothing. Iran is attacked by Israel to dismantle a Nuclear program the United States intelligence said a few months ago hasn't been active since 2003. Israel gets its ass kicked by Iran. The United States lies to the media about bombers going to Guam (they came from the other way) and then bombs 3 "sites" that literally have no nuclear program in them. Anything that was there, was moved. Iran then attacks US bases in Qatar and Iraq, warned them about it, and no one is hurt or anything damaged. Then Trump declares all is good. 

I cannot make any sense of this. Are they just playing with the markets? Are the covering up the genocide of the people in Gaza with this distraction? Nothing we get is the truth from these people. Nothing. 

Why won't Alberta Separatists engage anyone but UCP members?

 

The Alberta Prosperity Project has been hitting the road across (mostly) rural Alberta for the past many months doing town hall meetings about Alberta separation and it's benefits. The meetings are mostly in small town rural Alberta and usually get decent attendance for a smaller community. When you draw 250 people in a town of 1000, that isn't a bad turn out. 

So who are these folks that are so mad at Ottawa, and so hard done by? Well, mostly they are people who are UCP members. The low hanging fruit. And they are angry. Within this movement, there feels like a great momentum. But there is a problem. 

First, they are not attracting anyone who is not "white". They are very Christian based. And at some meetings I have attended, openly racist. They are also very "family values", meaning if you walked in there looking even a little LBGTQ+ you are not going to be viewed in a good light. You might even be called a "libtard". At one meeting I was at, they did a quick poll of the room and over 70% of people in the room actually wanted to be part of the United States. 

Now I am not here to debate the merits of Alberta separation. There are pros and cons. Really depends who the reigns are handed to after separation. But I can't help but notice that the APP is not even making an attempt to reach out beyond their base. I mean, they need actual votes to make this happen. Are you going to see the APP March in any pride parades? Have they given presentations to ethnic groups? Have they attended any ethnic events? Have they attended any first nation events or given talks on reserves?

I could not find any examples of this. 

The separation folks need to pull their heads out of their rear if they actually want to win a vote, because they really have one shot at it. But they won't. The subtle racism and hate is just too deep inside that group, they cannot get honest about needing the votes. They would rather carry on talking about it than to let the "libtards" into their group. There are several within that groups who are actually talking about doing a ICE style deportation of anyone not "white" and forcing them into other provinces before a vote. There are some real radicals in this bunch. They want their perfect Christian white family values paradise. 

Life doesn't work that way. We all separate together or we don't. They will be crushed in a referendum vote. It isn't even a contest. 

Why are Utilities 3x more in Alberta?

 

Moving to Alberta was a dream of mine for a long time. Being close to the mountains, lower taxes, better weather and a longer golfing season, what is not to love? 

Well, it turns out the grass isn't always greener, is it? One of the first things I did in Alberta was get signed up for utilities and "locked in" my rates to what I was paying Manitoba Hydro, back in Manitoba. What a shock when the bill came in. Turns out in Alberta, you buy the power, but you also pay a ton of fees on top of it. Local access fees, transport fees, rider fees, fees for this, that and everything in between. In the time I have been here, I determined my gas and electricity are 3x more than I pay in Manitoba. My $9 gas usage and $25 of electricity is suddenly a $160 bill?

How is it, that this rich province, with all its gas and oil, makes us pay more for lighting and heating our homes than Manitoba? Manitoba gets their gas from Alberta! 

Well, it turns out that it is simply a matter of Alberta politicians selling their citizens to corporations. You see, the province of Alberta could run a utility like Manitoba, keep utilities low (just above cost) for its citizens, but no. Alberta can't have government running anything, they need to hand off things like this to private companies who can crank up rates and trap everyone into paying as much as they can squeeze out of them. 

I am not for "big government", but there are things the government can and SHOULD manage. Heating and electricity for its citizens is one of them. Also auto insurance. If you are going to mandate car insurance, the government should be the one providing the car insurance, not hold people hostage to private insurance companies with no regulation. 

It is time the people of Alberta be put first. 

The Edmonton Elks 2025 Name controversy.

 

In Edmonton, the CFL team changing it's name has been a sore spot for fans. It has been over 4 years now (As of June 2025) that the football team has been using the name "Elks", and the talk doesn't go away. The anger is still there on social media. Ticket sales are weak, and if you ask anyone around Edmonton about the name change, most people will grit their teeth. 

This spring, the team came out and said they are not afraid to use the "Eskimos" name, but were not changing the name of the team, officially. They wanted to honour history. The word "Eskimos" has been showing up....an old sign restored above the locker room, and the words "Edmonton Eskimos" put onto the fire truck. Fans in attendance at the last game stood and clapped as it drove on the field. The team officially applied for the "Edmonton Eskimos" trademark recently. And rumours are everywhere that the new owner will change the name back for the 2026 season, that it was too late getting approval from the league for this season. Many fans are pinning their hopes on this, and it is being repeated so many times on social media people are starting to accept it as fact. 

Let's look back at how this all started. There was concern that the "Eskimos" name was racist. How could it be racist when some Inuit people were OK with it? Well, we have to look a little deeper than that. The name is considered offensive to many because it was given by outsiders, and means "Raw Meat Eater" in Cree. It isn't just any "meat".....it was believed that people in the north ate dog meat. So if you call an entire group of people "raw dog meat eaters", it is quite offensive. It was also a blanket term for not only the Inuit, but the Yupik and Inupiat people of Alaska and Northern Eastern Russia as well. The few Inuit people that have said they are OK with the name, don't really understand its meaning. 

We need to be honest about the root of the name and its meaning before any debate can happen. Most people are not educated about the "Eskimo" meaning, and it is not their fault. Most Canadians do not know much about the people in the far north. We just didn't know. It isn't our fault. 

So just because something is offensive to some, does it mean that the name needed to be changed? The team could have just kept the name. It could have carried on with the Edmonton Eskimos name and not given a damn. But that doesn't change the fact that the name was offensive to some. It wasn't offensive to me at the time, I had no problem with it. Most people in Edmonton did not find it offensive....because they didn't know it meant "raw dog meat eaters". If you wanted to start a NEW sports franchise someplace, would you really choose a name that meant "raw dog meat eaters"? I mean, if you started a new expansion hockey team, would you want them to be the "raw dog meat eaters"? Imagine if Utah gave that name to their new NHL team....I do not think it would go over well. 

5 years ago, the team held a contest for a new name. They wanted to keep the same EE logo. The "Elk" was the #1 fan selection in the contest. The team added an "s" onto that and made the team the "Elks". People were quick to point out "Elks" is not proper language for multiple "Elk". Then again, we call the Toronto Maple Leafs the "leafs" instead of the "leaves" and no one has a problem with it. Older fans felt hurt. Perhaps they didn't understand that sadly the name was offensive. They didn't know that they were the "Edmonton Raw Dog Meat Eaters". 

So at this point the team still has a choice to change the name back, but should they?

First, going back to the old name does not mean a team is going to magically improve on the field. It will more than likely bring back some of the older fans to the game. At this point, it might mean a couple thousand more older fans a game, nothing crazy. You will not suddenly see the lower bowl fill up. It has been 5 years, those people are not coming back. 

The next problem is, changing the team back to a racist name. You can do it, but who is to say this controversy will not come up again? Who is to say sponsors will stay? Play Alberta is a big sponsor right now, that is a government entity. I cannot see them backing the name. Tim Horton's came back as a sponsor and made it clear where they stand. What if the TV stations decide to not broadcast the team because of a racist name? 

Are we ready to live with a cloud hanging over our heads or move forward?

My view is that the ship has sailed. This team has been the Elks for 4+ years. The old fans are not coming back either way. We do not need more controversy. For the last 4 years, tons of kids and younger folks who never followed the "eskimos" are now "Elks" fans. Of all the stadiums I have been too, the fans are younger in Edmonton, and they love wearing their "Elks" antlers. What are we going to tell these younger fans who only know the "Elks"? Are we going to crush their team name to win back the 70 year olds who the team pissed off with the name change? 

Yes, I know that if there was a vote of season ticket holders, 50% would want the old name back maybe more. But then we have a racist name again. Let's be honest, the name IS racist. Sadly, many are really attached to it. 

Denial of the "Eskimos" name being racist means that person is dishonest or uneducated. Nothing more, nothing less. It is what it is. 

I think honouring team history is fine, but I think it should be that....history. 

If the Edmonton Elks want to fill seats, they need to look long and hard at their sales process. What are they doing to introduce people to this great Canadian game? At this point, I imagine they make deals to give tickets to corporate sponsors, telemarket lists of old season ticket holders, and hope the phones ring for season ticket sales. 

It is not enough. They need to literally find people who have never been to a game, get them into a seat and the tailgate and cultivate a relationship with these folks. One on one. Basically, we need about 100 sales reps who work with 100 people. The tickets will be a wash after expenses are paid, but you will have a FULL stadium, you will have people buying food and merch. The team needs to do whatever it takes to fill the stands, even if they do not make money on the ticket sales, they will make it on the back end. 

I am sorry for fans who are hurt, you have a right to be hurt. This was your identity taken away. But that doesn't change the fact it was wrong. It is time to move forward as the Edmonton Elks. The Eskimos are history. 

The UCP is not a conservative Party.

 

I think it is fair to say that most people like some form of fiscally responsible government. Usually, they default to the party that called themselves "conservative", unless that party did something to really piss off the masses. But since moving to Alberta, I have come to the conclusion that a conservative party really does not exist here. In Alberta, the "C" in UCP might as well stand for corporate. 

Every single thing this party does is to protect and benefit corporations. Everything. They have no problem lowering safety standards if it somehow benefits a corporation, they do not care about rent controls to protect renters from greasy landlords, they do not regulate car insurance and they do not care about science and protecting water and entire fishing industries. 

The UCP is NOT out for the little person. 

And I am not convinced the NDP in Alberta are either, simply because I think the rot is so deep in Alberta it likely reaches them. They had 4 years in power, and it just seems they didn't move heaven and earth to correct a few things. 

Alberta is lacking a government with compassion. Recently, to eliminate "food waste" they cut out cookies and treats to kids getting Chemo....while cutting oil companies a $100 million royalty credit to clean up their own messes (which I am sure they will get around to, whenever they feel like it). 

It is so bad in Alberta, I almost can't even look anymore. Just take car insurance. The government mandates it, yet the only options are corporations and there are no regulations. They can do whatever they want to you, dictate what and how you pay and if you can even get insurance in the first place. For people with bad credit (often people who are poor), you are often forced to pay the whole shot up front. More than one driver in your home....suddenly it is a "risk" and you all pay more, even if you do not drive each others cars. It is not like this in other provinces. 

Utility bills....do not even get me started on how much people are being screwed over here. The costs are mind blowing for fees here. Alberta is 2-3x more than neighbouring provinces and the gas COMES FROM HERE. 

The benefit of Alberta is nice mountains, and decent roads, and so called higher wages. But those jobs are just not available anymore like they used to be. And after all the fees, and throwing in the real lack of education and health care options, Alberta is just a place for corporations to come and make money without consequence. 

Bitcoin - The real answer to inflation.

When you mention Bitcoin, you get various reactions from people....they associate it with something they missed out on, or even a scam of some sort. Unless you spend a little time looking into it (most people do not), it can be hard to wrap your mind around. 

Here are some things as Canadians that you need to know. 

1. Our currency sucks. It loses value every year because they print more of it. And it never stops. Bitcoin is a currency. There is a limited supply so the more popular it gets, the more purchasing power that currency has. You will lose some of your labours each year as the Canadian dollar is watered down. This is not an issue with Bitcoin. Long term you just get richer and richer with Bitcoin.

2. Bitcoin has been around since 2009. That is right, it is 16 years old. And it is growing. It is never going away. 

3. You don't need to own a whole Bitcoin. There isn't even one Bitcoin for every millionaire on this planet...not even close. You can literally own as little as 0.00000001 of a Bitcoin....meaning anyone can start with nothing. 

4. Shakepay is a great place to start learning about Bitcoin. You do not even have to buy it. You can simply shop with the shakepay app instead of your bank account and get 1% back in Bitcoin. A way to own Bitcoin without buying it. Simply sign up for shakepay add the Shakepay Visa debit card to your wallet on your phone, fund your shakepay account with a few dollars and use it for your next purchase ! Also you can open the shakepay app and shake your phone once a day for free Bitcoin! 

If you want to protect yourself from inflation, Bitcoin is the answer. 

 

Alberta Separation - Could it happen?

There has always been a segment of Alberta that has wanted to separate. It seems a sure thing that we will have a vote on it in the next year, after the UCP membership had the knives out for Danielle Smith unless she lowered the signatures required for a vote on the matter. 

We are now in a national unity crisis. 

I think the separatists have a really tough hill to climb, and they know it. Really, the odds of separation would have been better a decade ago. 70% of people living in Alberta are not even from here, having links to other provinces and countries, and they are LOYAL to Canada. The Alberta Prosperity Project has been putting on the miles doing meetings....mostly in rural Alberta where the low hanging fruit is, but they have not made a dent in the big cities. I attended their meeting in Lethbridge, and there were 240-ish people there. In a City of 100,000 with a much larger trading area around it, it isn't exactly a giant movement for separation. Now a 240 person meeting in say, Milk River, then it really seems like a popular thing....in Milk River. When they can pack out 5000 people in Lethbridge at the hockey rink....then we can talk. 

I think they have some valid points, such as getting Alberta out of the CPP but other than that they play on some myths and have no plan. Interesting thing....at the APP meeting I was at, it was asked by one of the leaders how many people would like to join the United States. About 60% of the room put up their hands. The crowd was informed that the United States, at the highest levels, have zero interest in having Alberta as a state, but would accept them going on their own. So if you want to be American....you actually have to move there. And I am sure the democrats will get in just as you pull up in the U-Haul. 

At this point, it is alot of noise and distraction...and the timing is perfect for the UCP as they have many scandals, and an upcoming teacher strike while they gut the health care system. 

Of course Alberta separation could happen. But they have a ton of work to do. When I see them holding Trump-like rallies in Edmonton and Calgary, then I will take it seriously. Until then, they do not have the support.