From Betrayal to Forgotten in 24 Hours

The highly concentrated nature of media ownership in Canada often leads to some pretty interesting occurrences. For example, as our staff was researching and preparing the tone and theme of this entry, the national media was by and large reacting with shock to the Harper government's announcement that income trusts would come under new tax regulations that would staunch the flow of taxable revenues into private pockets. As long as the stock exchanges in Toronto were tumbling, the nation was interested in this story. Now, as the market begins to subside, the headlines are relegated to the back pages of the business section. Local papers, taking their cues from their corporate owners, are shifting emphasis too, and perhaps by Monday this story will be over.

However, is that really the case? Yesterday news outlets were quick to visit the Alberta energy sector where some analysts are predicting that energy trust unit holders stand to lose between $10 and $20 billion dollars. There are reports of Conservative Alberta tearing up membership cards, recalling donations, and demanding the resignation of their MPs. As of yesterday evening, the scene brought to mind images of the Albertan reaction to the Liberal National Energy Policy of the early 1980s. It took almost twenty-five years for a Federal Liberal to be elected in Alberta, the venemous reaction ran so deep.

Is this a new NEP? Any honest political analyst in Alberta will tell you that provincial voters are a conservative bunch, but do not come between us and our money. The problem with the NEP was not that it crippled the energy sector, global conditions took care of that, but rather our initial frustration was that Ottawa had the gall to attempt to limit the amount of profit Albertan energy companies could make. Few expected the coming collapse, or that the NEP would play a role in it. We were simply angry that the Liberals were "stealing" money from us.

At the time though, media ownership patterns allowed provincial media to devote more page space to provincial voices. If provincial news outlets let this story die on the vine, as it were, will the anger directed at the Harper government's seeming betrayal of an election promise and bleeding of portfolio value be able to generate a groundswell of political reaction? Will this encourage the Liberals to swing with the NDP in there attempts to topple the Conservatives in the coming weeks?

As usual, we are riveted.