"Canada. You're the nicest country in the world. You're like a sweet apartment over a meth lab."
-- Robin Williams on "The Daily Show with Jon Stewart"
"My view is that you don't take no for an answer. … We haven't had that but if we were to get that it won't be final. This won't be final until it's approved and we will keep pushing forward."
-- Prime Minister Stephen Harper on the Keystone XL pipeline.
Moments happen in the world while you're on vacation, and you sort of absorb them. And so it took a while to incorporate the two above quotes.
A woman mentioned that Robin Williams said Canada was an apartment over a meth lab, but didn't remember where she heard him make that analogy.
The beauty of being on vacation in Canada is avoiding the news about the U.S. shutdown. The meth lab observation feels more true with the shutdown now in effect.
The national parks are temporarily closed in the U.S., but Canada national parks are open. I wouldn't have been able to do the tour of the Prince Edward Island legislature in the historical Province House. While Cavendish beach wasn't collecting fees or providing services, you could still access the beach and, more importantly, restroom facilities.
Passport processing has slowed down. Border inspections have slowed. Dealing in business in the United States for Canadians and Canadian companies will be slow for awhile.
As much as Stephen Harper and the Conservative Party of Canada would love for the Keystone XL pipeline to be approved, they know the focus is off the pipeline thanks to the shutdown. The pro-pipeline forces aren't happy with the delay, and that delay just got a bit longer.
While Harper and his crew aren't responsible for TransCanada's screwup of the original route, they have really poorly handled everything else since. The best way to answer questions about the viability of pipelines is to address concerns to alleviate fears. On both sides of the border, the Harper government have been tone-deaf.
The folks living along the Kalamazoo River in Michigan and in the spill in Arkansas (both Enbridge spills) are examples of people concerned with a potential Keystone XL pipeline. Their fears have been ignored.
Pipeline maintenance can be as important as the pipelines themselves. Harper could have pushed those companies to address pipeline maintenance. Instead, they are trying to push through a Enbridge pipeline to the West Coast, a plan to run a pipeline east to Saint John, New Brunswick, and legislation to limit outside voices from weighing in on pipeline building.
You don't have to agree with those who aren't on your side, but you do have to respect them. The Harper government, especially Joe Oliver, minister of natural resources, still haven't learned that rule most kindergartners know.
Harper should fight for the Keystone XL pipeline, so the approach isn't so bad. But the timing is strange — much too late in the process. And if Harper had managed the situation smarter, maybe, just maybe, the pipeline would have been approved.
The southern half of the pipeline was approved sometime ago. Difficult to imagine that the pipeline won't be approved. The Obama Administration is being too patient on this decision, but the Harper Government has officially lost patience.
video credit: The Daily Show with Jon Stewart
Comments