Electric Dirt Farmer » newfoundland and labrador

Newfoundland and Labrador’s Knight in a Dark Suit

the proprietor — Sun, 30 Jan 2005 22:10:00 +0000

It seems that the Danny Williams’ flag removal gamble has paid off. He got what he wanted: a meeting with the Prime Minister and, of course, the big boost to the revenues of Newfoundland and Labrador. Honestly, I’m not sure how much the flag issue helped or hindered, but now that the deal is done I don’t think it matters that much. What matters now, is how well the Premier takes advantage of the cash and whether his government can balance Newfounland and Labrador’s books.

I do suspect that the approaching session of Parliament and all the election talk surrounding it may have contributed to the Government finally agreeing to make the deal. The Opposition hadn’t yet done much with it, but this whole offshore royalties issue had the potential to give them some serious ammunition. There is some really contentious stuff coming up on the Parliamentary schedule and a lot of chatter about an election. In that environment, it’s important for the government to remove distractions that highlight any of the opposition parties; disputes between Canada and the provinces benefits both the Bloq and the Tories.

And, as a side note Newfoundland’s IQ Sportswear has brought back it’s Canadian swimwear line.

Flag Will Return In Newfoundland

the proprietor — Fri, 07 Jan 2005 03:45:00 +0000

I just read that the Hon. Danny Williams has announced that his government will reraise the Canadian flag in the near future, whether or not he’s able to achieve the deal that he’s been seeking with the Government of Canada. Williams said that the flags would be put back up because they’d made their statement and people were now talking about the issue.

… [O]ur problem is not with the people of the country. It’s with the prime minister, it’s with the leader of the country.

The message is being heard loud and clear. People are talking about it. They are reacting and it’s the subject of debate in the country. That’s exactly what we want to accomplish.

I suspect that the Premier also making a local political calculation. Newfoundlanders have a strong independent streak, but despite the narrowness of the Confederation vote back in 1949 I don’t think many would choose to break the union now. It’s in the best interests of the Premier to pick a fight with the Feds, but not to appear as a seperatist. Letting the flag issue drag out too long risked weakening support his real issue (offshore royalties) among the more patriotic citizens of Newfoundland and Labrador, and among other Canadians.

I just hope that the Premier is right. It’s possible that not everyone sees it this way, but I’ve often thought that one goal of equalization was to be uneccessary. Allowing the provincial governments to control all their offshore royalties strikes me as the best available way to achieve that. I could be wrong about this (economics is not my strongest area) but that’s they way I see it right now.

Newfoundland Resource Protest

the proprietor — Sat, 01 Jan 2005 00:25:00 +0000

Whatever else may be said about The Hon. Danny Williams, it appears he’s far from alone in his protest against the Government of Canada. It was recently reported that the municipal governments in St. John’s, Mount Pearl and Corner Brook had also removed the flag. And, today I read about a local company in Newfoundland had stopped sales of its Canadian themed swimwear.

The CEO of the company even posted a letter on the swimwear line’s website with some interesting comments. I won’t quote the whole letter (although I do suggest reading it), but I did want to include this portion:

I should temper this letter by saying that I completely understand that most of Canada does not receive a lot of education on Newfoundland. Being from Winnipeg originally, my move to Newfoundland in 1998 really opened my eyes. … This province has bent over and taken it from the feds for too long, and it is about time that someone stood up against it. I encourage everyone out there to read up on the subject, and not fall into the trap of believing stereotypes.

Of course, not everyone is happy about the situation. Many feel that it’s improper to use the Maple Leaf for partisan politics. But, regardless of what anyone thinks the national flag represents both the nation and the government. It’s difficult to truly protest the actions of the federal government while prominently displaying the chief symbol of its authority. (And, I must note, that it’s a little hypocritical for the leader of our present government to reprimand someone else for making the national flag a political tool. If it’s permissible to promote the federal government with the flag, I think it’s also okay to protest against that government with it.)

I may or may not post more about my own views of this situation, but at this point I will say that I’m happy to see the people of Newfoundland and Labrador asserting themselves about the offshore revenue issue. It’s clearly impossible to remove the Maple Leaf without angering many other Canadians. I would hope, however, that the majority will look past the flag and see the more important question. In the words of His Worship Andy Wells, Mayor of St. John’s, as reported by CTV.ca, “The majority of Newfoundlanders support Premier Williams’ position on this issue — it’s part of a larger problem we have with our whole relationship with Canada.”

Update (30 Jan 2005): The Unabashedly Canadian site was put back online as of 13 January 2005. The original letter was archived and I have changed the link above.