Reflections of an Old Man

Following massive injections of cash into the consumer economy these last 16 months or so, prices for goods and services across the board are rising. That includes the prices of energy products as well, like oil, maybe not so much gas. At the same time, another story is developing: Drilling for new oil wells is not picking up as has happened in the past when prices are rising. This may be in part due to companies paying down debts, rather than reinvesting in new hydrocarbon ventures as renewable energy sources come on stream. So, energy prices are likely to keep climbing, increasing their price component in just about every conceivable consumer product out there. That means sustained inflation which can settle into a vicious cycle of prices chasing wages.

I have lived the better part of my life in remnants of the British Empire: 21 years in Australia and 34 years in Canada. I swore allegiance to our Queen way back in OZ, and haven't sworn allegiance to anybody else since. Don't know what that makes me right now. There are many similarities between the two former colonies: Their governments and institutions and the inconvenient truth of displaced native populations. In both cases these peoples were not readily assimilated into the imposed colonial structures, government, legal or commercial on account of the fundamentally different mindsets of settlers and native people. So, indigenous folks were pushed aside into convenient spaces where they would have a minimal impact on the settlement process. During this time the mainstream population developed attitudes of superiority over these 'less than human' obstructions to 'progress' and a scheme was developed, both in Australia and Canada to remove young children from

For some reason humans are prone to hide in ideological rabbit holes, ignoring sensory impressions from the real world. It must be based on a sense of comfort derived from sharing the same hole with like minded folks, creating a collective fairy land. Very few people are prepared to stand their ground against the mindset of the flock, and put up with the consequences. The interesting thing is that some people with diametrically opposing beliefs with regards to an issue are happy to claim martyr status in regards to their own cause and proceed to try and kill each other with glee. What do they have in common? A desire to escape from the real world, for reasons not even known to themselves, in many cases.

I have been an observer of conservative politics in Alberta for a number of years now and have noticed the inability of people on that side of the political spectrum to work together in larger groups towards a common goal over time. Splinter groups invariably form and take off in their own directions in the mistaken belief that the rest will follow them, feeling comfortable in their own righteousness. The so called "United Conservative Party" here in Alberta was formed to topple the sitting NDP government and did so in the 2019 election under the leadership of Jason Kenney, our present Premier of Alberta. The party was formed from remnants of the Progressive Conservative Party and the Wildrose Party by people of rather nuanced convictions, but willing to hold their noses in order to replace the Notley government. Now the honeymoon is well and truly over with a small and arrogant clique of cabinet ministers pushing their own agenda and losing the support of conservative groups

The present furore over what happened in residential schools here in Canada brings back memories from my time in Australia, which had a similar residential school system. Living in the bush in North Queensland as a big city computer expat, I married a Canadian teacher from Alberta in 1977. She taught math and such in the local state school in Ravenshoe and subsequently got a day job teaching high school math in an Anglican residential school called "St. Barnabas" just outside of town. (Locally known as "St. Bananas : ) The school was run by a group of Anglican 'Brothers' when I first came into the community and I tried my hand teaching computers to a class of grade 10s without a lot of success. I am pleased to say that subsequently my better half had a lot more success during her period of teaching at the school. The kids in the school were enrolled with tuition and board paid for by their parents and guardians. They were a mixture of whites and Torres Strait Is