While the House Burns, Two Guys Bring Buckets
There’s a fire burning in Alberta, slow in some places, raging in others, and most days, it feels like the people in charge are too busy stoking the flames to care about the damage. But while the government fans the smoke of fake sovereignty and political theatre, two guys have shown up with buckets but we are going to need more buckets and people to carry them.
Because there’s a particular kind of madness unfolding here. The kind where a government that can’t deliver health care or transparency suddenly wants to deliver us from Canada. Cue the fireworks, the federal finger-pointing, and the WestJet seat-sale version of a sovereignty conversation. It’s tempting to ignore it. I did. For a while.
Because surely no one is actually buying this snake oil in bulk, right? But then you start to realize: while you were rolling your eyes, someone else was rolling out the velvet rope to their own little constitutional cosplay convention. And even if it’s a circus, it’s still dragging the whole crowd with it. That’s when it stops being funny.
Which is exactly why I want to talk about Thomas A. Lukaszuk and Ken Chapman, two guys who are doing the opposite of that. They’re not chasing a spotlight. They’re not selling us an identity crisis with a side of fake nationalism. They’re just trying to make things actually better. And let me tell you, in this province right now, that is borderline subversive behaviour.
Thomas came to Canada as a kid from communist Poland, grew up, served this province in a number of cabinet roles, including in education where, yes, we occasionally butted heads. But unlike the current crop of ideologues, Thomas showed up. He answered the tough questions. And when Russia invaded Ukraine, he didn’t just post a flag emoji, he got on the ground and helped send resources across the border via Poland. Real work. Real effort. No hashtags.
And Ken Chapman? Ken is the guy who keeps showing up to the fight with nothing but reason, research, and his belief that Alberta still has a soul. He’s been quietly leading @ Reboot Alberta for years, long before it was trendy to talk about democratic reform. And while dealing with serious personal health challenges, he’s never stopped trying to drag this province back toward something resembling sanity.
These two just teamed up again, not to win power or cash a consulting cheque, but to help us rethink what Alberta could be. Not separate, but smarter. Not angrier, but accountable. Not louder, but better.
Now, here’s the kicker: they’re doing this during a time when the UCP would really prefer you didn’t ask questions about, say, education, health care, environmental fraud, or pension theft. And if you think the sovereignty sideshow isn’t part of that, I have a privatized ER in Fort Mac I’d like to sell you.
Look, I still don’t believe Alberta will separate. But I do believe in sleight of hand. While we’re all shouting about flags and feds, the real damage is happening in the background. To kids. To seniors. To democracy.
So, if you’re asking me who deserves attention right now? It’s not the ones trying to pick a constitutional fistfight with a ghost. It’s the guys filling buckets while the house burns.
Their names are Thomas Lukaszuk and Ken Chapman.
And if the arsonists in charge want us distracted, maybe it’s time we stop watching the smoke, and start following the people carrying water.
Stay tuned to learn how you can help.
Nancy's Notes 