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Notes from a Garage

With John Gardiner

The National Energy Policy; the Canadian dream; and the poor people of Libya….

Tuesday, March 15, 2011

The price of gas makes me laugh. A couple of days after the big earthquake in Japan, the price of oil was going up because of the disaster, while a couple of days after that the price was going down because of the earthquake. Apparently, you can have your cake and eat it too. But only if you’re a large multi-national oil company. And, actually, anyone in Canada who complains about the price of gas at the pumps has only themselves to blame. And here’s why. Away back in the early 1970’s, Pierre Trudeau suggested that we needed a “made in Canada” oil and gas price. He argued that Canada was a net producer of oil and Canadians should reap the benefit of that. In addition, his government put together Petro Canada as an oil company that Canadians could own so they would have a real stake in the industry. Well, of course everyone knows what happened. The good folks of Alberta – proud Canadians all – had one of the biggest hissyfits in the history of this country, declaring that the oil money only belonged to them. The result was that we lost something called the National Energy Policy and the result of that is that Alberta has wallowed in wealth ever since while other parts of the country have had great difficulty. It’s a monster load of crap, people, and something that should have been corrected years ago. Can you imagine the competitive advantage this country would have over its trade rivals if we had a “made in Canada” oil and gas price instead of having to pay world prices? And because of the magnitude of the Alberta hissyfit, no Canadian government since Trudeau has had the guts to even propose it. Well, I wish this little piece I’m writing this morning would sweep across the country and wake people up. Tell the Albertans to go shove it. Somehow, the folks in Western Canada have conveniently forgotten that it was the people of Central Canada who kept them out of the poor house before they got oil rich. No, I thought we were all Canadians and we were in this together. Really tired of hearing about gas and oil prices when we have the capacity to do something about it.

Ya know, I don’t understand why the government can advertise gambling on TV and everywhere else, but it’s illegal to advertise cigarettes and other vices. In fact, every time I see a gambling ad, it makes my blood boil. I cannot tolerate a government that helps to destroy people’s lives. It’s interesting……the American dream is to work hard and get ahead…..the Canadian dream is to win the lottery and get ahead. No, I have no patience for this whole gambling thing and I have no patience with the government’s favourite vices approach. Government has no business in the gambling business….but it has no business in a lot of areas it’s currently involved in. I know there’s no popular support for ending government gambling because pretty well everyone in the country – except me – is standing in line to pick up their tickets. But I don’t see the sense in it……Seems downright deplorable to me….

I feel sorry for the people of Libya. They are doomed. The earthquake and tsunamai in Japan have pushed Libya almost completely out of the news. And without the media spotlight, people in the world won’t know or care what’s going on there. It’s too bad, but it’s the way of the world. The media moves quickly from one disaster to another and quickly forgets the one that came before. If you don’t believe me, check out my friend Philip Shaw’s favourite example of this – the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where millions of people have died in a brutal civil war, but people in the rest of the world don’t seem to care. Why? Because the media spotlight hasn’t come to rest on the Congo. And most people seem to believe that if there’s no media, there’s no problem. Myself, I feel extremely sorry for the people caught up in violence and bloodshed but without any support from the rest of the world. Tired of the selective goodness of the world. Time to make things right wherever they’re wrong. And you likely didn’t read that here first.

Well, we’re in for a great week of weather and I, for one, am entirely ready. Time to start getting the gardens in shape for another season. Hope you’re enjoying it….and remember…..”Hew to the line; let the chips fall where they may.”



John Gardiner is a 25-year-veteran of the community newspaper business, but he is also a prolific writer of moralistic short fiction he refers to as "emotional thoughtscapes" or "adult fables". Samples of his fiction can be found at:

He has also produced a noteworthy piece of humanist philosophy which can be found at: http://www.xs4all.nl/~aboiten/ad502.htm He welcomes comments on his work.