Colby Cosh: The flaccid state of Alberta's separation movement
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This forced a byelection and gave the allegedly resurgent Alberta separatist movement an electrifying opportunity to repeat history. Could the new-christened Republican Party of Alberta (RPA) duplicate the separatist coup of 1982 on the same conservative ground?
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The party sent its leader, the self-exiled UCP operative Cameron Davies, to contest the byelection. Davies, who had Kesler's endorsement, told the Post's Rahim Mohamed that he would be content with 20 per cent of the vote, given that the 'Republicans' only adopted their new brand in February. Speculation that the RPA might vault into second place was widespread, and, after all, the New Democrats have finished as low as sixth in Olds-Didsbury-Three Hills this century (namely, in 2004's election, in which the Separation Party of Alberta finished fourth).
Well, for better or worse, it seems it's not 1982, or at least not early 1982, anymore. According to unofficial returns, Davies and the Republicans drew a not unimpressive 2,705 votes, but New Democratic candidate Bev Toews pulled in 3,061, and the UCP's Tara Sawyer, an ex-chairperson of the Grain Growers of Canada, scooped up 9,363. With a 'Wildrose Loyalty' die-hard candidate in the mix, Davies came up short of his hopes with a vote share under 18 per cent.
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No doubt the Alberta Republicans will argue that this is a floor, not a ceiling, but the Olds-Didsbury area is their heartland, and byelections are ideal moments for protest voting if there's any appetite for it. Two other byelections were held last night in Edmonton ridings, and the Republican candidates didn't reach two per cent of the total there.
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There was a fuss last month when Danielle Smith's UCP government made changes to the statutory cutoff for 'citizen initiative' petitions that allow proposals for legislation to be put to a province-wide referendum. Smith explicitly promised that Alberta separatists would be given their day if they could reach the new, lowered cutoff for signatures.
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But they still need 177,000 Albertans to sign a petition asking for a referendum, and the underwhelming RPA performance in Olds hints that they might have trouble hitting even that mark. Premier Smith, whose numbers in the polls have enjoyed a resurgence lately, might actually have preferred the dimensions of that Sasquatch to turn out a little more threatening to Eastern Canada when exposed to the byelection flash.
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Colin Thatcher Saskatchewan MLA Colin Thatcher is escourted by police into the Regina Provincial Courthouse June 25, 1984 for the preliminary hearing for the murder charge he faces. Thatcher was arrested May 7 for the murder of his ex-wife Joanne Wilson in 1983. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Lorne McClinton The columnist went on to note that while that story shaped Saskatchewan's history, it wasn't necessarily his career highlight. 'It's the job itself. Its a million little things, a million little stories that you get to cover that just add up in time. It's a cumulative business as opposed to sort of one great event,' he added. Haters gonna hate Murray quickly got used to the backlash that comes along with professionally sharing his political opinions. It takes much more than the occasional death threat in the mail to frighten him, although he was far from oblivious to the criticism. 'We're human, negative feedback obviously irritates the hell out of people and probably irritates journalists more than they kind of let on,' Murray said. Over the years, many of his colleagues have found Murray's handling of hate mail to be a great source of entertainment. One of his favourite methods being to highlight all of the spelling and grammar mistakes and send the mail back to the disgruntled reader. Murray Mandryk (Courtesy: Hallee Mandryk) But contrary to popular belief, the 'Tin Man' does in fact have a heart – and this heart would occasionally make some days on the job more difficult than others. 'Where it kind of bothered me is when I was writing something crappy about somebody I truly liked, or truly thought was a good person or a good politician, and they just messed up or something happened where the circumstances got beyond their control,' Murray said. He went on to say that the responsibility of his position ultimately outweighed any personal feelings, but not without tugging on his heartstrings. 'You had to write that they screwed up and you had to live with the consequences that writing about them screwing up was going to be a big part of how they became defined ... sometimes that bothered me because it appears to me there was always a sense of unfairness about it,' Murray said. A tough old bird People as iron-willed as Murray are hard to come by. But he has kept writing through the deaths of many loved ones (including his beloved Shawna), and the difficult emotions that followed those losses. Throughout the seemingly never-ending chaos, journalism and the folks who dedicate their lives to it have remained the one constant in Murray's life. 'I'm pretty grateful that I've been able to work with all of them,' Murray said. While many arguments he ignited inside the walls of the Saskatchewan legislature were legendary, they paled in comparison to the debates within the walls of his home when another four legged creature was brought home. The stereotype of grumpy fathers falling in love with the pets they didn't want is supported by Murray's best friendship with a fluffy orange cat named Lola. Murray Mandryk Murray with the pets he didn't want but learned to love, Lola (Left) and Juno (Right). His desire to debate and talk about journalism extends far beyond ink on paper. It reaches his kitchen table, which is often occupied by an assortment of strays who show up for the promise of a home cooked meal – and who stay for the entertaining dinner conversation. 'I've always maintained the last few years of my life, I'm working with kids that are younger, smarter and more educated than I was when I started the business. But they're probably better technically at it than I am right now in a lot of aspects and they just don't know it,' he noted. The world keeps turning While Murray has witnessed a lot of change in the industry, the famously pessimistic old man has some optimism for the future of journalism. 'The people that are coming along now are really good. It's smaller, it's more condensed. And that's a problem' he said. 'But … I look at the people I worked with at the newspaper right now ... and I can't honestly say that I have anything to do with it, other than the fact that they're really talented people.' The political landscape has undoubtedly changed over the last four decades. Now, without Murray to spark the debates, it will fall to the public, to the people, to keep those conversations going. 'Your social media accounts … all you get is hits that basically reconfirm your own perspectives and biases. That's why I think, not only is it important to question your leadership, it's important to question all leaders,' Murray said. Murray Mandryk (Courtesy: Hallee Mandryk) 'No particular political party or government is ever 100 per cent wrong on 100 per cent of the things. Sometimes some of the things that that you think they're right about is not even in your best interest and is certainly not in the collective interests of what's going on in the world today.' Throughout his career, Murray's dedication to asking the hard questions remained as unchanged as his haircut. Now as he enters retirement, the path he has paved within the journalistic community is admired and followed by many, including the author of this article. 'Talented people just get into this business and they just grow. That's why it continues to survive and why it's needed, and there is some success to it. I just wish people would understand that better. I wish people understood how good these people really are,' Murray said. I've been lucky enough to learn many lessons from my dad. Watching his career has instilled a particular lesson that many journalists are already familiar with, but it's worth sharing to anyone who will listen. It can be scary to be disliked, but you should fear nothing more than the person you'll become if you let the unjust words and actions of others go unchecked.
