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Travel Day
Back tomorrow.
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Yet Again
An agreement was even closer this time. Just a couple words holding the agreement up. Oil prices went down. The Dow again went up. Peace was at hand after 12 weeks of a supposed four week war. This time it was really gonna happen even if it’s just a one page memorandum of understanding, it really was gonna happen for sure.
So the US bombs Iran last night and Iran is threatening retaliation again and Trump is saying all the uranium is gonna be removed. So we’re back at square one again. Oil prices are back up and, for now, for whatever reason, the Dow is still going up. Great for anybody with 401(k)s.
This time Trump throws in a new wrinkle by mentioning the Abraham accords, an agreement signed by some countries in the Middle East, recognizing Israel as a legitimate entity. This time, Trump is asking for other countries to join in such as Egypt, Syria, and Pakistan. He is suggesting that even Iran would sign into the accord. This is at a time when Israel and Iran are at war with each other, and Israel is increasing its attacks in Lebanon.
The next time this on again off again, circus happens, and it will, I just might use this same post and see if anyone notices,
That’s all I have for today.
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Games On
There are approximately 160 days until Danielle Smith’s referendum to have a referendum will be held, on October 19. The separatist movement is facing struggles right now. It started with the voter ID leak fiasco a few weeks back. There have been linkages to US right wing movements. Also, Danielle Smith’s announcement of a referendum to have a referendum has caused strife within separatist ranks. Many of the separatists wanted a referendum question immediately.
Meanwhile, there were a number of Canada unity rallies in Alberta during the weekend, including in Edmonton Calgary and Spruce Grove.
A look at social media appears to show a strong sentiment for the unity side and less support on the separatist side. That is not to downplay the separatist side at all. They are strong in their beliefs and will push for a yes vote on the October 19 referendum question. So anything can happen between now and then.
One thing that the Canada unity movement has going for it is the upcoming July 1 Canada Day. This is a gift falling into the unity movement laps and they no doubt take full advantage of it.
That’s all I have for today.
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Not So Easy
Back, in February 2022, Vladimir Putin decided to invade Ukraine. I still remember pictures of Russian tanks lining up on a Ukrainian highway on their way to Kyiv. Kind of a stupid move because they were easy prey for drones.
It is now four years later and Russia is facing drone attacks from Ukraine, even into Moscow. It is estimated that that 30,000 to 50,000 Russian troops are being killed or seriously injured each month. Not each year, but each month. This is far greater than what the US suffered back in Vietnam. Dissension is strife in Russia right now. There are shortages. The economy is hurting. Families are losing their sons and fathers at a horrendous rate. This is made worse by those military veterans coming back from the Ukrainian front. Many of them are suffering PTSD and many of them are going into crime. It is going so bad that Putin spends a lot of time in underground bunkers.
His number of public appearances has diminished.
Donald Trump attacked Iran in March of this year. We are almost into June. He thought that the war would be over in a couple days, especially after wiping out 48 members of Iranian leadership on the initial day of attack. He said at most this excursion would last maybe four or five weeks. It is now week 12. The Strait of Hormuz it’s still closed. Gas prices at the pump have skyrocketed. Soon shortages of oil related products are going to start hitting home. Furthermore, inflation is up to almost 4%.
This weekend, Trump is again saying that negotiations are progressing and an agreement is close. I’ve lost count of the number of times he has said this.
Let me get this out right now. Iran is a very bad actor. But, right now, they’re holding all the cards, it seems. It is possible that the current negotiations could end up with an agreement to end of war. But there is no way that this agreement will even come close to the agreement that Obama made a number of years ago with Iran. Trump will have to live with that. It will most likely cost Republicans the house and the Senate in November.
Donald and Vlad, this hasn’t been as easy as you thought it would be, has it?
That’s all I have for today.
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Jeffrey Rath
This is Jeffrey Rath. He is legal council for the Alberta Prosperity Project (APP). The APP are seeking separation from Canada. Members of the APP, including Rath, have sought support from US interests such as the Trump administration.
The text above shows how strident a separatist Rath is. He is known to make controversial, out of the park statements, such as the following,
“The Americans see it within their national interest both under the Monroe Doctrine, that has been around forever, and their new national security strategy to support Alberta independence and freeing the third-largest oilfield in the world from control by the Communist Chinese.”
Rath was also quoted as saying the following, with regard to meetings in Washington,
“To explore the benefits of either Alberta becoming an independent sovereign nation with economic union to the United States, becoming a U.S. territory, or pursuing full statehood.”
Rath’s company, Rath and Company, was involved in a dispute between the company and the TallCree Band, a few years ago. The company represented the Band in negotiations between the band and the federal government on an agricultural benefits settlement. The band claimed that the 20% contingency fee, charged by the company, was too high given the amount of work done by the company in arranging the settlement.
Given that the settlement totalled over $55 million, Rath’s company had a payday of over $11 million.
A judge reviewed the case and determined that the $11 million payment was much too high given the work that was performed. The judge noted that much of the work were emails that were ‘ created and signed’ by the company’s paralegal. As a result, the company actually received a substantially lower amount of payment, totalling $3 million, after the judge’s findings. The company appealed the decision to the Supreme Court of Canada, but that court decided not to hear the case.
This is an example of who will be representing the separatists in their fight for separation from Canada. The federalist side will need to be at the top of their game this summer because things are going to get down and dirty.
That’s all I have for today.
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Self-Made Mess
Danielle, you did this to yourself. Political commentator Andrew Coyne said it best and I am paraphrasing here ‘ when you ride the tiger sometimes you end up inside the tiger’.
Danielle made her address to the province last night, an address which she pre-recorded the night before. In trying to address the growing referendum boondoggle, she stated that it was not time to kick the can down the road and then she did exactly that.
When the Forever Canadian petition movement started, the intention was for the legislature to decide on the question. The separatists then got involved with their own petition, pushing for a referendum and tied Danielle in knots, given the legality of the separatist question and the legality of even having a referendum.
So Danielle tied herself in knots, and Alberta is going to have a referendum in October to decide whether there should be a referendum on separation. That’s right folks. A referendum on having a referendum.
Here’s the question that’s going to be voted on
“Should Alberta remain a province of Canada, or should the Government of Alberta commence the legal process required under the Canadian Constitution to hold a binding provincial referendum on whether or not Alberta should separate from Canada?”
You did not read that wrong. Albertans will be voting on this referendum to decide on whether a second referendum will be held.
If Danielle was hoping to appease critics, she got no help there.
Jeff Rath, lawyer for the Stay Free Alberta separatist group, stated
“She’s just alienated the most hardcore portion of her base…. The 301,620 people that signed the petition are smart enough to see through it, and she has just created an unstoppable political force in the province of Alberta that will be rallying against her.”
Yep, they want to kick her out of office. Cam Davies, leader of the Republican Party of Alberta, a separatist party, added
“A vote to have a vote is the literal definition of kicking the can down the road.”
Meanwhile, Naheed Menshi, leader of the NDP party, the official opposition party in Alberta, vowed,
“This spring and summer, we’re going to be knocking on doors, we’re going to be talking to our neighbours, we’re going to be mobilizing, we’re going to make sure that Danielle Smith and the separatists get the defeat they so richly deserve.”
Thomas Lukaszuk, backbone behind the Forever Canadian group, said it best,
“Danielle Smith decided that six months of a divisive campaign and economic damage to Alberta isn’t long enough. She wants to hold a referendum on holding a referendum to break up Canada.”
He is exactly right. Prior to Smith’s address last night social media has already been heating up on both sides of the question. Now, Albertans will be going through a long hot summer of divisiveness and discord, before the vote is held in October. Thanks a lot, Danielle.
That’s all I have for today.
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Smith UCP Referendum Mess
This is Thomas Lukaszuk. He was a former deputy premier of the conservative party of Alberta. He is the backbone behind the Forever Canadian group. . Last year, this group developed a question.
“Do you agree that Alberta should remain in Canada?”
Lucaszuk started a petition for the purpose of presenting the question to the Alberta legislature for them to vote on the question. He had the option of also having this go to referendum. He chose not to do that because he did not want to create tensions and divide the province. Under legislative law at the time, Lukaszuk how to get signatures representing 20% of voters, who voted in the last provincial election and he had to do this within 90 days. He ended up getting over 460,000 signatures far above the required number of signatures.
It was presented, after being approved by elections Alberta, to the legislature at the end of 2025
Alberta separatists wanted their own question. UCP premier Danielle Smith eased the path for the separatists by bringing in new legislation that for any petitions, only 10% of those who voted in the last election was required and the time limit was extended from 90 days to 120 days.
The question developed by the separatists was as follows
“Do you agree that the Province of Alberta should cease to be a part of Canada to become an independent state?”
This question, itself, was challenged for its constitutionality. Before a judge could make decision, Smith used her leverage to take the judge out of the equation. The question is also being challenged by First Nations in Alberta. A judge here ruled in favour of First Nations, but Smith appears to be ignoring that.
A committee was formed to look at the question developed by the forever Canadian group. The UCP has done a slow walk on this committee. Given a UCP controlled committee, Lukaszuk was not even allowed to speak on behalf of the forever Canadian group
The committee held another meeting yesterday. Prior to the meeting Lukaszuk was informed that he had five minutes to present his case. This is where the mess exploded. During the meeting, prior to any votes being made, the UCP issued a press release
“More than 400,000 Albertans signed Mr. Lukaszuk’s Forever Canadian petition. Combined with the reported 301,000 who signed the Alberta independence petition, this means over 700,000 Albertans want — and deserve — the opportunity to have their voices heard in a referendum.”
The meeting exploded into chaos. Rakhi Pancholi, Edmonton- Whitemud NDP MLA, announced during the meeting,
“I understand the UCP has already issued a release about a referendum being called and that’s already been released to media.”
The meeting went downhill from there. The meeting was abruptly ended with no vote held, meaning no recommendation on the referendum was made. The committee will be meeting again this afternoon.
Following the meeting, Lukaszuk who wanted to question, settled by the legislature rather than by the referendum route, stated the following..
“It was always abundantly obvious that this government wanted to have a referendum on tearing Canada apart by hook or by crook. And the process was fixed to such a point where they already had press releases ready.”
Where does this leave Danielle Smith in this whole mess? Tomorrow’s chirp will cover that.
That’s all I have today, though.
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Trump Party Now
If there was any doubt, it has been quashed, the last couple of days. The Republican Party is now the Trump party, without question.
Do you remember when Trump said that he could walk down fifth Avenue, shoot someone and get away with it? He is literally doing that now. His administration has set aside $1.8 billion to be allocated to people who have been wronged by the Biden administration. This includes the January 6 rioters, who Trump pardoned. This includes one of those rioters, who, subsequent to the pardon, was put in jail for life for sexually assaulting minors. This also includes Trump himself.
How will this money be allocated? Acting Attorney General, Todd, Blanche, former Trump lawyer, will set up a committee of five members, who Blanche will select, to determine who gets the money.
In addition to the $1.8 billion to be allocated, an agreement has been reached with Trump’s justice department and with Trump’s IRS that the IRS is forever barred from pursuing past income tax claims against Trump, his family and his businesses. Is your blood boiling yet? Mine is.
Will the Republicans, in Congress, have the guts to put a stop to this? No, they won’t. Why?
Trump wants individual states to change their district boundaries so that more districts are favourable to Republicans. This is called gerrymandering. One republican state, Indiana, said no. It is the state legislatures that determines boundaries, in their state. Indiana has a Republican dominated legislature. Seven Indiana Republican senators voted against changing districts boundaries . They had their primaries a few weeks back to determine who would run in the next state election. Trump supported candidates who ran against those Republican senators in the primaries. Five of those seven senators lost to Trump supported opponents.
Thomas Massie is the Republican congressman for the fourth district in Kentucky. Massie has led the push to have all the Epstein files released. He has won seven congressional elections, as a republican. He has been in the house for 14 years. He had his primary in Kentucky last night. Trump supported his opponent. The opponent won.
John Cornyn is currently the Senate Majority Leader in the US Senate. But he has battled with Donald Trump a few times. He will be having his primary next week in Texas. Trump is supporting his opponent. His opponent is favoured to win. Think about that. The Republican Senate majority leader will likely lose his primary.
With all the disasters and the scandals befalling Trump, right now, such as Iran, Epstein and this $1.8 billion settlement, Trump still has a devoted MAGA base. The primaries are proof of that.
The thing about Massie and Cornyn is that despite losing the primaries, they will still be hanging around until after November midterms. Trump should be wary of that.
Also, given that the Republican Party has turned into the Trump party, the midterms will likely be a disaster for that party. While Trump has a loyal. MAGA base, an increasing number of Americans, including independents are fed up with Trump and the Trump party
That’s all I have for today.
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Like Clockwork
Heard this before, and before, and before, and…
We were getting ready to do a very major attack tomorrow. I put it off for a little while — hopefully, maybe, forever — but possibly for a little while, because we’ve had very big discussions with Iran, and we’ll see what they amount to.”
The supposed reason for holding off the attacks, this time, was that a number of Arabian countries asked him to put off the attack and to keep negotiating. Whatever the excuse, this is becoming déjà vu all over again and again. Trump makes threats Trump backs down. TACO time again. For those unfamiliar with that term, it means Trump always chickens out.
Meanwhile, the average price of gas in the US today per gallon is nearly $4.54. Who knows what tomorrow will bring? This is turning into a very bad joke of a situation.
That’s all I have for today.
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Same Old, Same Old
Donald, I guess you made another threat on Iran, didn’t you? This is what you posted on your social media site, yesterday
“For Iran, the Clock is Ticking, and they better get moving, FAST, or there won’t be anything left of them. TIME IS OF THE ESSENCE! President DJT.”
Donald, you are right on one thing, the clock is ticking. But you’re the one hearing the ticking. You made a similar threat a few weeks back about ending their civilization. Now, this time, you are saying that there will be nothing left. If you carry through with your threat this time, does that mean Epic Fury is starting up again, after Marco Rubio said that it was over?
Donald, you’ve been played by two of the oldest civilizations around. Iran, of course. Also, China. You went to China with hat in hand, hoping that they would get you out of this mess. They gave you nothing other than saying they want the war to end too. It is true that China gets a lot of oil from Iran. But they have been stock piling oil for years. They have a long way to go before their reserves run out. Also, they’re turning into a green economy. A lot of electric cars over there Donald. Lot of windmills and solar panels too.
Iran and China, both, have been playing these games for centuries, while you are at most a novice. You’ve been used to running over opposition, weak opposition. Well, these guys are not weak.
During the so-called cease-fire, Iran has been building up its military resources. Including arms from China and logistical support from Russia. You remember Russia, Donald, your BFF Vlad. He’s having a bit of trouble in his country, too, Donald. He is living in underground bunkers now. I heard there’s gonna be a bunker under your ballroom.
All this of your own doing Donald. Make no mistake about it. Iran is a bad player a very bad player. But you have been treating your NATO allies, like Canada, like crap for years now. You decided to go into this war without consulting any other country and without a plan. Now here you are. Without any military support from your allies and without a plan and running out of military hardware.
Tick Tock, Donald, Tick Tock.
That’s all I have for today.
Bird's Chirp
So I don't have to put it on Facebook anymore….