We're pleased to pass along this release from Public Interest Alberta:

Public Interest Alberta sponsors forums on
Democratic Renewal in Alberta
 
It has been clear for some time that Alberta has a substantial “democratic deficit.” The question is what to do about it.
 
Public Interest Alberta (PIA) is offering citizens a chance to have a say and play a role in bringing about democratic renewal in our province. PIA is sponsoring eight regional forums around the province entitled, A More Democratic Alberta – Making it Happen.
 
The forums will feature a proposal for democratic reform that has been developed over the past year by PIA’s Task Force on Democracy.  The discussion paper proposes nine major areas of change in order to bring about a more democratic Alberta. Participants in the regional forums will have the opportunity to discuss in depth the proposals, and will also consider strategies and actions to help bring about the necessary changes.
 
To print a copy of the Democratic Renewal in Alberta Discussion Paper, please go to
http://www.pialberta.org/program_areas/Democracy. You can register for the forums on-line or by submitting the attached form with your payment to the PIA office. Registration is only $10. Please register early as space is limited.
 
The Forums will take place from 1:00 – 4:30 pm in the following cities on these dates:
·         March 3 -       Red Deer
·         March 10 -     Lethbridge
·         March 11 -     Medicine Hat
·         March 16 -     Athabasca
·         March 17 -     Edmonton
·         March 23 -     Camrose
·         March 24 -     Calgary
·         March 31 -     Grande Prairie
 
Specific locations for the forums can be found on the PIA website.
 
We would appreciate your support in helping to promote this event by sending this message to your co-workers, family and friends, and by providing a link to our website if you are able.
 
If you are not able to attend one of these forums, we hope that you are able to provide your input through our on-line discussion forum at
http://www.pialberta.org/program?areas/Democracy/democracy_discussion_forum

"When they emerge in dribs and drabs real time, the assaults on political accountability don't resonate," writes Calgary Sun columnist Bill Kaufmann in today's review of Democracy Derailed.

"Compiled in one place, they're a sordid litany of shame that anywhere else would make waves."

Read the full column here.

Alberta can launch an ambitious program to begin reducing carbon emissions by 2012 or be abandoned by a world economy that will no longer want the oil it produces, Liberal Leader Kevin Taft said Tuesday.

In his alternative version of the "speech from the throne" two weeks before the Stelmach government's actual one, Taft pitched a plan to capture carbon dioxide from the oilsands within five years and replace Alberta's natural-gas rebates with home retrofit incentives.

Read the article here (Journal or Herald subscription required).

Edmonton Journal readers can sample an extensive excerpt from Democracy Derailed on page A15 of Saturday's (Feb. 17) issue. Running under the headline "Hush in the air about deadly hospital cleanup," the article details the secrecy surrounding asbestos removal during the 2002 renovations of Calgary's Holy Cross Hospital.

Read the article here (Journal or Herald subscription required).

A new leader of Alberta’s government isn’t enough to right the ship for this administration, says Alberta Liberal Party leader Kevin Taft.

Kevin debunks Ed Stelmach's recent assertion that he's making significant changes to improve democracy in Alberta. "He would be laughed out of the room in any other province for that kind of claim,” he says.

“There may be a new engineer in the cab at the front of the train, but this track was laid for the last 35 years,” said Taft. “It’s going to go in the same direction it always has.”

Read the Lloydminster Meridian Booster article here.

"What a great glimpse into the nitty gritty of how democracy works in Alberta," writes Edmonton Journal writer Sheila Pratt in her review of Democracy Derailed.

"... Taft's slim volume provides plenty of examples of the pettiness and arrogance. He also provides a provocative critique of the dysfunction of a number of watchdog agencies, such as the public accounts committee and the internal audit committee, as well as restrictive freedom of information laws.

"These offer insights into how a one-party state ensures its own survival and keeps the tough questions at a distance."

Read the full review here. (Journal or Herald subscription required)

The Calgary Sun reports that the Alberta government spent $25 million on communications in 2005-06. "The bulk of that went to pay for a $15.3 million 100-plus member public affairs bureau, headed by a $190,000-a-year managing director," writes reporter Darcy Henton. In Democracy Derailed, Kevin Taft calls for the immediate disbandment of the Public Affairs Bureau, which is widely referred to in government circles as the Tories' "Ministry of Truth." Read the article here.

Dan Arnold's CalgaryGrit blog provides a breezy overview of the book (and sparks a serious flurry of comments). In the blog, Dan also muses about the unlikely possibility of a Democracy Derailed movie deal: "...how about an all Star Trek cast with Patrick Stewart as Kevin Taft and William Shatner as Ralph Klein?"

Noted blogger Daveberta has posted a positive review: "Democracy Derailed will hopefully raise some much needed attention and debate on some serious problems facing democracy in Alberta." Read his full review here.

Not surprisingly, the book is already raising hackles among some conservative-minded bloggers. Writes Werner Patels, "Oh my god! It's not enough that Alberta Liberal leader Kevin Taft keeps polluting TV news and the odd newspaper article with his non-starting non-thoughts on nothing. Now he's come out with a book full of his non-starting non-thoughts on nothing." We're taking a wild guess that ol' Werner hasn't read the book yet. Ah, well, in the spirit of democracy, we present this link to Mr. Patels's cogent analysis.

Coverage on the Calgary book launch by the Calgary Herald. (Journal or Herald subscription required)