Does Alberta have a hidden retro-political virus?

The Conservatives have just won the by-election in Wainwright, Alberta. They ran a local teacher.

Let’s leave aside the questions about what kind of teacher would actually run for a government party that is in the middle of a legislative assault on teachers’ rights, wages and working conditions across the province.

Consider the election itself. The government has just hiked taxes on Albertans in the form of huge increases in Medicare and other fees. They are privatizing health care over the opposition of the majority of citizens. They gave themselves huge increases as MLAs and then told teachers they were broke.

Their tax breaks to corporations have placed the provincial budget in near deficit position. They have become indecisive – constantly flip-flopping on program announcements. Their leader is a mean drunk who refuses to apologize for his indiscretions, but who retains popularity by tearfully admitting (over and over) that he has a drinking problem.

The overall personality of this government is arrogant and spiteful in a petty and vindictive way. They have no vision, no new ideas and no allegiance to anyone but the wealthy and powerful and those who want to become wealthy and powerful. Their position on social justice and environmental issues is reactionary and willfully blind. They have withdrawn support for universities, colleges and trade schools to the point where tuition levels are barriers to people getting an education.

So how do they keep winning? Why do normally intelligent, sane, hard-working people walk into electoral stations and vote Conservative?

It’s possible that we, as a province, really are red-necked, hopelessly reactionary morons. The problem is that I don’t see evidence that that’s the way we are on a daily basis. This just seems to afflict us on voting day. Maybe it’s some new form of retro-virus that science hasn’t identified yet.

Whatever the cause, it’s way past time for a little political sanity to take root in Alberta.