THE TIPPING POINT

Yesterday I wrote a thread about the tipping point of tolerance of inhumane abuse of power by UCP. Attached.

It was in response to the outrage about Xmas vacations and why people feel so angry and filled with rage.

I’m going to try to do a better job today. https://twitter.com/unrollhelper/status/1345595092539744256

On Friday January 1, 2021, Kenney gave a speech about the scandal his party is caught up in.

The hubris & contempt for the public was palpable. He showed up late, putting many on edge, & then proceeded to cover the butts of several MLAs & political aids who travelled over Xmas.

There would be no consequences. No laws were broken.

That sparked outrage and protest. And rightly so.

When a premier has the audacity to try to excuse a betrayal of public trust and minimize the contempt his party showed for public health, the public boiled over with rage.

Like an angry mob. Had covid not been rampant throughout the province, I would not have been surprised if the public would have demonstrated on the legislature grounds and the offices of UCP MLAs demanding resignations and to #DroptheWritAB. People were that angry.

Today, Kenney has offered on Facebook, the resignations and removal from positions of authority of several of those UCP politicos who chose to travel when a clear public health measure to restrict non-essential travel was in place in Alberta, Saskatchewan, British Columbia, ...

... the US Canada border is closed to essential travel by federal order and a new restriction on flights from the UK had been imposed (after most had already left the province).

But is the action offered too little too late?

I think so, and this thread makes the argument why.

So many were outraged yesterday and Saturday that rational consideration and critical thinking was impossible.

Now that we have all had a couple days to calm down & process our emotive outburst, many are beginning to wonder if their anger & impassioned response was too much.

So a more rational and critical examination of the facts are in order.

What triggered the outrage? Was it the realization that politicians consider themselves exempt from public health measures that protect the public?

Or was it the condescension and the clear and present belief that covid measures are merely voluntary demonstrated by those attempting to apologize?

Could it have been the indifference and absence of responsibility demonstrated by the premier in his speech on Friday?

Or the non apology apology (Sorry, not sorry!) from those who travelled?

Nope. We are conditioned from birth to tolerate and endure disappointment from leaders. They are only human. Some are really good at demonstrating their flaws. But we don’t excoriate people for mistakes.

We were provoked to rage by the realization of two things.

One: Every sacrifice you have made for the last 10 months has been made futile because the UCP have undermined it with this scandal and several other actions (or lack of actions) since the second wave of covid arrived.

Two: you’ve just realized that you and your loved ones (family, friends, neighbours) are expendable to UCP and completely immaterial to the people leading this province. You have been relegated to second class citizenship or lower.

As Canadians, we know through education and through experience that rights and freedoms are applied equally to every citizen.

But this scandal represents & demonstrates the UCP have no intent to govern each Albertan as an equal of their peers. Equal rights have been removed.

There are now, at minimum, two classes of citizens in Alberta. The privileged class, and the commoners.

Commoners are told what to do, the privileged (elites or patricians) get to decide and make the orders, but are exempt from those orders, by right of their privilege.

All citizens are free. It’s just some are more free and awarded more privileges, rights and freedoms.

That’s what your visceral reaction to this scandal was about. The realization that you are no longer equal.

Only some individuals warrant equal consideration. All others now no longer have the luxury of those rights & freedoms. That was the emotional response you had.

Now with a more calm approach, we can ponder the loss of those rights and whether sanctions applied are sufficient.

You can ask yourself a few questions to make your decision. And each individual must make their own decision. I’ve made mine. But I’m one person. Not the public. I’m not arrogant enough to presume to know the answer. But I am certainly attempting to influence it.

One: Are the resignations commensurate with the message that was provided on Friday? I.E. do the resignations and demotions restore covid measures to maximum effectiveness to protect public health? So they restore equality to all citizens?

Two: Have the explanations and resignations provided by Kenney and UCP restored your trust in this government to govern ethically? So you trust the government and demoted UCP MLAs and the political aids will do the right thing when unsupervised or when the directions are unclear?

Three: Did you know the govt has absolute power to repeal, alter or create ANY legislation, regardless whether it is related to the covid pandemic or not? Are you comfortable with impunity being granted to Cabinet Ministers during a public emergency? https://edmontonjournal.com/news/politics/alberta-government-to-repeal-bill-10-which-allows-ministers-to-make-legislative-changes-without-approval-in-spring

Four: Are you satisfied with the level of covid restrictions and their enforcement in Alberta to date? Are you prepared to tolerate several more months of restrictions since measures permit a certain level of disease transmission? Do you trust the measures are adequate?

Five: Are you satisfied with the vaccine distribution and administration? Estimates that the general population will not receive vaccines until fall 2021 were recently released. With a shuffle in Cabinet Ministers, that could be extended.

Ask yourself those questions. Then make the decision on whether you are satisfied with Kenney’s response. None of the MLAs have lost their seat. They lost responsibility. But they still are loyal members of the UCP caucus.

Other UCP MLAs with the same premier leading the team and the same plans and policies will fill the roles related to covid public health decision making and management in Alberta. Other than Huckabay, no one lost anything but a little public credibility.

I’ve been outraged. I’m calmer now. Rational, applying logic reason. Using critical thinking skills. This is what I think.

#TooLittleTooLate
#RESIGNKENNY #ResignKenney #ResignUCP #DroptheWritAB
#FiretheUCP
#FireKenney #IWillNOTAcceptFascism
#ableg

What do you think?

@threadreaderapp please compile

As if you needed more evidence. But, Kenney is who he is.
#FireKenney
#FiretheUCP https://twitter.com/benji_g_md/status/1346134212001189888