CALGARY, Alta. — Dwight Newman is a law professor at the University of Saskatchewan, the author of an authoritative book on Canadian natural resources jurisdiction, and a senior fellow at the Macdonald-Laurier Institute in Ottawa.
A column he wrote for the Globe and Mail recently calmly explained why provincial premiers had no constitutional basis to do anything about the Energy East pipeline proposal. He added that attempts by the premiers of Ontario and Quebec to impose conditions were sad, disgraceful, and dangerous.
Later that day, premiers Kathleen Wynne and Philippe Couillard clarified their conditions. Contrary to reports, they were not concerned with upstream CO2 emissions. Perhaps they had read Newman's account of Canada's "remarkably clear" allocation of constitutional responsibility over pipelines. Perhaps Alberta Premier Jim Prentice's eastern charm offensive had worked.
Newman's remarks were not news to anyone who had read sections 91 and 92 of the old BNA Act or a landmark 1954 case on the division of powers between the two orders of government. His piece attracted over 300 comments and, by my count, about 90 per cent of them were hostile. More interesting, most of the commentators seemed to be literate and even sophisticated. One was signed, Hoy Polly, a bilingual Greek-English pun.
The first object of derision was the messenger. Newman was a propagandist for corporate Canada, a paid shill, and a pipeline lobbyist who advocated the right to pollute for free. It was "very American" of him "to go straight to the constitution."
"This guy teaches kids in Saskatchewan?" one contributor asked. "How did he ever become a law professor?"
He became a law professor by way of an undergraduate degree in economics and a law degree from the U of S. Then he collected three graduate degrees from Oxford, where he taught and was a Rhodes Scholar. Would that our law profs were so qualified!
Next was the Prime Minister's turn. Variously described as a childish bully-boy and a fascist, Dear Leader Steve is an Albertan, not a Canadian. Why? Well, he hasn't met with the premier of Ontario lately. He hijacked the federal government, turning it into "the errand-boy for Alberta," and treats other provinces as if they were foreign countries.
In short, "the present government is not a real government. They are lobbyists for the oil industry and at war with anyone who wants to protect the environment."
We also learned that pipelines are no better than railways for moving oil, that transfer payments come chiefly from Ontario and Quebec, that Laurentian Canada "will reap no benefits from this project." All three remarks are as demonstrably false as the statement that the Constitution is not clear about interprovincial infrastructure.
One delightful post, "speaking as a Canadian," declared that the real problem was that "it's their oil, not our oil. I'm happy to see their oil left in the ground until it becomes our oil sometime in the future. In the meantime, they should ponder the benefits of a sales tax to produce revenue, just like us." Another declared: "until we have consensus, the oil will just have to stay in the ground."
A more generous soul allowed as it was acceptable to build pipelines to bring western oil to eastern markets, but not "for the sake of allowing western tar-products to reach overseas markets."
There was some criticism of this "exercise in Alberta-hating" as well as some commonsensical commentary. For the most part, however, Newman's column changed no minds at all because, sadly, those minds were without shame. Too many Laurentians remain incapable of accepting changes to their accustomed position of power and domination. Too bad.
— Barry Cooper teaches political science at the University of Calgary.
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