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Retro Rankings | Birmingham 1998
By Jaz, March 11, 2015
It's Wednesday, in case you hadn't noticed, and on this particular Wednesday, the countdown to the ESC 2015 submission deadline is on!
In less than one week, all forty participating countries must have their s#%t together – at least to the point of handing their entries over at the Head of Delegations meeting. Did you hear that, Russia? If you don't want a repeat of last year when you made the deadline by a babushki's whisker, you'd better get Polina Gagarina's song sorted STAT.
I for one am struggling, waiting to hear the songs still under wraps (Israel and San Marino are causing me actual, physical pain). In case you're feeling the same way, I thought I'd offer a distraction in the form of something totally unrelated: another Retro Ranking! I recently ranked the Dublin 1997 contest for your reading pleasure (hopefully) and as I'm in a chronological mood today, I'm going to plod on with Birmingham 1998.
The last time the United Kingdom played host to Eurovision, Terry Wogan was co-emcee, Ulrika Jonsson fell victim to the noise level in the auditorium and Dana International took her sweet time changing outfits and getting back to the stage for her winning reprise. In amongst all of that were performances of 25 songs – songs that were, as is always the case in the ESC, good, bad and ugly (though being 1998, the 'ugly' really just refers to some of the costumes).
Watch this recap of the Birmingham entries if you need a refresher, check out my rankings below, then comment me with your favourites from the Class of '98! You know you want to.
#1 | The Netherlands (Hemel En Aarde by Edsilia Rombley) – Before she was On Top of the World in Helsinki (until she failed to make the final, that is) Edsilia moved, grooved and flawlessly key-changed her way through this irresistibly catchy number in Birmingham. There is nothing that doesn't work for me in her performance – 90s fashion notwithstanding – from her smooth and soulful vocals to the cute bits of choreography she does with her backing singers. Hemel En Aarde itself, though, is the pièce de résistance: three minutes of happy, funky pop that I could never get tired of.
She may have had the same haircut as most of her competitors, but Edsilia was superior in every other respect.
#2 | United Kingdom (Where Are You? by Imaani) – Ah, remember the days when the UK couldn't stop being a Eurovision success? No? Me neither. I was six-going-on-seven and had no idea what an ESC was when Imaani leapfrogged over Chiara into second place (at the very last moment) on home soil. Fast forward to 2015, when just getting on the left side of the scoreboard is a major achievement for the UK, and I now not only know what an ESC is (and then some) I also think Where Are You? is one of the strongest host entries ever. While very 90s in nature, it's aged pretty well. The mixture of dance music and Imaani's R & B-suited voice is powerful, and I don't mind that the song is repetitive because again, it's catchier than chicken pox.
#3 | Sweden (Kärleken Är by Jill Johnson) – I'll admit, I thought this was a bit bland at first. But over time, I've grown to absolutely adore it, if I may gush without you rolling your eyes and/or retching. Written in response to the death of Princess Diana, it's a song with emotional weight that you can feel especially in the choruses. It's almost an anti-Diva, being so soft and understated, and I just wish Jill's outfit had been chosen to match. The head-to-toe black and giant platform heels were more 'castoffs from Alla Pugachova's seemingly drunken performance at Eurovision 1997' than 'pretty, sentimental ballad'.
In case anyone died during her performance, Jill went all black to ensure she could go straight to their funeral afterwards (I assume).
#4 | France (Ou Aller by Marie Line) – This entry did not fare well in the contest, and I can only put that down to the voters and jurors having extremely poor taste in music. Or, you know, people just having different tastes to my own. Oui, Marie Line says 'ou aller' about six hundred times in 180 seconds, and oui, the song doesn't build up to much…but I love the sound anyway. It's a throwback to earlier on in the decade, and makes me think of Ultra Naté and Sonique. That in turn reminds me of my primary school socials, and they were good times. Très, très bien.
#5 | Ireland (Is Always Over Now? By Dawn) – There's not that much difference between this song and any number of the insipid love-related ballads Ireland sent to Eurovision in the 90s and early 2000s. Yet there is something about Ireland '98 that appeals to me. Dawn isn't a man with a questionable haircut and an ill-fitting suit, which sets her apart a bit (she's a woman with both of those things) and Is Always Over Now? is more pop and less lame/depressing than most of those man-ballads. Random query: is it just me, or does Dawn look like Kelly Clarkson?
Never mind…I just answered my own question.
#6 | Portugal (Se Eu Te Pudesse Abraçar by Alma Lusa)
#7 | Estonia (Mere Lapsed by Koit Toome) – They did reasonably well with a sleepy ballad the year before, so I guess Estonia's thinking here was 'if it ain't broke, don't send a dance banger.' Mere Lapsed could easily put you to sleep, which to some would be a blaring indicator of boringness. To me, it's melodically nice enough to set up camp outside of vanilla territory. Cruisy, easy listening like this can be a welcome vacation from the Dancing Lasha Tumbais of the world.
#8 | Cyprus (Genesis by Michael Hajiyanni)
#9 | Malta (The One That I Love by Chiara) – Chiara reached the bronze medal position for Malta in her first of three Eurovision attempts (and don't think she won't be back for more!). She did so with what I think is her best entry…on those days where I'm not leaning towards Angel. It's always her voice that's the star of the show, so much so on this occasion that you hardly even notice how hideous her snot-coloured suit-dress-thing is until she's stopped singing.
#10 | Poland (To Takie Proste by Sixteen)
#11 | Israel (Diva by Dana International) – I believe there were stronger songs – and definitely stronger vocal performances – in Birmingham than what Israel provided. Diva is a decent track and a high-energy winner, but I it's worn thin with me over the years thanks to self-inflicted overexposure. Dana herself, however, is fabulous personified and will never be passé.
The flamboyance of the feathers or this spangled silver number? No wonder Dana had a hard time deciding.
#12 | Croatia (Neka Mi Ne Svane by Danijela)
#13 | Switzerland (Lass' Ihn by Gunvor)
#14 | Germany (Guildo Hat Euch Lieb by Guildo Horn) – Never trust anyone who voluntarily wears crushed velvet. If they'll do that, they'll do anything, including scale the Eurovision stage as part of their act. I suppose that's just gravy on top of an already ridiculous package feat. a wild mane of hair, the world's thickest eyebrows, and Guildo (owner of said mane and brows) getting up close and personal with some (un) lucky audience members. The man could barely be called a singer, but you have to admire his showman qualities. He got the crowd going like nobody else.
#15 | Greece (Mia Krifi Evesthisia by Thalassa)
#16 | Finland (Aava by Edea) – Instead of using the Secret Garden approach of taking a few words and repeating them twice, Finland took a few words and repeated them for more or less the entirety of their allotted three minutes. It didn't do them many favours. Still, there's appeal in the mystical, folky vibes of Aava.
#17 | Norway (Alltid Sommer by Lars Fredriksen)
#18 | Spain (¿Qué Voy a Hacer Sin Ti? by Mikel Herzog) – 'Mikel Herzog' is clearly a stage name, because, unless I am much mistaken, this was Harry Potter representing Spain. It's a shame Ron and Hermione didn't help him pick out a more interesting song.
'Accio Eurovision victory!'
#19 | Turkey (Unutamazsın by Tüzmen)
#20 | FYR Macedonia (Ne Zori, Zoro by Vlado Janevski)
#21 | Slovenia (Naj Bogovi Slišijo by Vili Resnik) – There were so many overly-dramatic ballads like this in 1990s contests, it's hard for any in particular to stand out. This one's not terrible, but it's certainly not my cup of tea.
#22 | Romania (Eu Cred by Mălina Olinescu)
#23 | Slovakia (Modlitba by Katarína Hasprová)
#24 | Belgium (Dis Oui by Mélanie Cohl) – How on earth this made the top 10 is a mystery to me. I find it unbelievably irritating, in large part thanks to Mélanie's grating vocals. You want me to say yes? I don't think so. Quelle horreur!
#25 | Hungary (A Holnap Már Nem Lesz Szomorú by Charlie)
Now my #1 through #25 is out in the open, you know what to do…tell me how you'd rank Eurovision 1998!
Categories: Retro Rankings
Tagged: Birmingham, Dana International, Edsilia Rombley, ESC, Eurovision 1998, Imaani, Jill Johnson, Koit Toome, Terry Wogan, Ulrika Jonsson
MY 400th POST feat. two Scandi finals and a bunch of first impressions!!!
SUPER SATURDAY #5 | Guy Sebastian, O-M-Germany and Andra Chansen predictions!
4 Responses to "Retro Rankings | Birmingham 1998"
wschmidt1206 March 14, 2015
Hello, hello (or in Samir & Viktor-Swedish: hallo, hallo, hallo, hallo!!!!),
you know that I like your blogs a lot, especially your retro rankings of the good old Eurovision days, but this time I am absolutely thrilled by it, because with Birmingham 1998 you chose nothing less than my favourite ESC show of all time (you already know why ;)!).
I feel like you have written this blog just for me, am I right? If so, it is very kind and I am so thankful for this blog. No need to say that it is great pleasure for me to read this wonderful piece of a blog :-)))!
As you already know my list of all-time-favourite ESC entries, I can't promise you any big surprises here, but nevertheless this is my ranking of the excellent class of 1998 starting the other way round:
25: Hungary – Charlie: if one has seen it, one knows why this is at the very bottom! Absolutely agree!
24: Finland – Edea: that was not my cup of tea, although not too bad compared to some other Finnish entries!
23: Slovenia – Vili Resnik: not a good live performance and the song did not stand out, IMO!
22: Slovakia – Katarina Hasprová: I almost fell asleep with this one, and I like the Serbian "Molitva" a lot more than this.
21: Turkey – Tüzmen: too much folklore in that, the song did not appeal to me!
20: Greece – Thalassa: this is also one of the weaker Greek entries, but still not too bad to listen at.
19: Ireland – Dawn: that was not really a surprise, but the same stuff Ireland came in for the last ten years at that time. So it could have been another winning song!? No, not really, I'm glad it wasn't. But yes, she looks like Kelly ;-)! BTW when do we get to read the next doppelgangers blog? It is always big fun to read :-)!
18:FYR Macedonia – Vlado Janevski: an O.K. song, but then again not super memorable! I never remember it after having seen the 1998 contest again.
17: Switzerland – Gunvor: not the worst song in the whole competition, so it deserved at least a few points! But on the other hand her appearance in Birmingham during the press conferences was so arrogant that a lot of people wanted to see her falling. Plus her vocal performance live was not the best if I remember that right.
16. Spain – Mikel Herzog: I cannot tell why, but there's something about this song that I like, even after all these years. I think Mikel suffered from too many male ballads in the contest of 1998, so he did not stand out at this point.
15. Poland – Sixteen: a nice song and a good performance on stage, but it still wasn't THE evening of Poland. There is something lacking here to have the whole package.
14: Estonia – Koit Toome: another male (piano) ballad that did not stand out strongly. But I think it's a pretty good song that could become a timeless classic.
13: France – Marie Line: I like this one, too! It always reminds me of "Maldòn" by Zouk Machine which was a huge hit in France ten years before this contest. The song is catchy and gets you in a good mood, though.
BTW, "It feels so good" by Sonique and "Free" by Ultra Naté belong to my favourite list of songs of the 90's ;)!
12: Belgium – Mélanie Cohl: despite all the critics, I like this song! Mèlanie had something of the package that often won the contest. Her song was catchy and different from all those ballads, and I must state: I loved her smile! The only thing I would criticize is her much too tall suit.
11: Norway – Lars Fredriksen: another catchy song that was just right for May and the upcoming summer. Not the biggest song ever, but a nice melody you can sing along with.
And now THE 10 songs I really love very much:
10: Cyprus: Mihalis Hatzigiannis: one of the best entries Cyprus ever had in the contest. Mihalis is a great singer and still belongs to my favourite Greek Cypriot artists. I don't understand that this song did not end up higher on the scoreboard?!
9: Romania – Malina Olinescu: this song was not "love at first sight/listen" to me. But in the last years it grew on me really strong. Today I love this song and the whole performance. I think Malina gave so much heart into her song that it sometimes makes me cry because of her vulnerable presentation. She was very authentic, her lyrics were like a poem, and I liked her beautiful golden dress (I know not everybody did ;-)), but it fitted her performance in a good way.
8: Germany – Guildo Horn: I was so lucky to win one of the fan seats of the German delegation to support Guildo. So I was a part of "Team Guildo" and really happy to wave a German flag for him. That year was sooo crazy and there was such a hype about Guildo and his song all over Germany. I think one can say that he is "the father" of the fun entries at Eurovision and showed with his performance that Germans can be funny people, too. At least we surprised with this entry and no one expected it from us. The song itself is not the greatest ever heard, but with fun entries this is never the case, isn't it? And I still remember that I have never eaten more "Nussecken" and raspberry ice-cream than in 1998 ;-)!
7: Portugal – Alma Lusa: so good to see this song in your top 10, too. I only know people that would rank this one very low because it's too folky! It's mostly very difficult with Portuguise entries because they are often "Fado-related" and a bit depressive or they have the somehow exaggerated "Rumba" style which also does not belong to my musical taste. But Alma Lusa had the right combination – so I loved this one and still do. 🙂
6: Sweden – Jill Johnson: I love this one, too. Although it was a bit dark and moody ballad, I liked it from the first listen. It was also good that we heard it in Swedish, and not English, that made it far more authentic than the English version.
5: Israel – Dana International: 1998 was one of the very few years where I was completely O.K. with its Top 5 of the scoreboard result, but in a different order! The winning song by Dana was my number 5. Of course, Dana was THE story all over Birmingham that year, and that positive publicity helped a lot to win. I think this was not the win of the best song, but the win of THE artist, same as last year's Conchita Wurst. I see similarities there, although I still like "Diva" a lot more than RLAP.
4: The Netherlands – Edsilia Rombley: I love Edsilia Rombley (also "On top of the world"), she was my favourite Dutch Eurovision artist until last year Ilse DeLange took that position. "Hemel en aarde" is that kind of a soul song that I really love much. She also reminded me a lot of Oleta Adams and Brenda Russell who I adore. Maybe you also know her version of "Get here", which is beautiful, too.
BTW, a few years ago she did a great duet with Eurovision artist Ruth Jacott which is pretty good. If you don't know this one, I will send it to you just for a listen, if you like!
3: Croatia – Danijela: that was sooo beautiful in my eyes how Danijela developed from a "dark angel" to a "white swan", and it fitted the song perfectly. I loved her performance very much, and it also showed that you can have a good result with starting the show on position no. 1. In times of war on the Balkan this was also a "ray of light " with its message completely understandable for everyone, although sung in Serbo-Croatian. That at least deserved some douze points!
2: United Kingdom – Imaani: I absolutely believed in a double win of the UK that year. "Where are you?" is also one of my favourite Eurovision songs of all time. Artist and performance were perfectly chosen, the song sounded like a hit and hot rotation on every European radio station, and Imaani had the home advantage. Those were really good conditions to win again. Unfortunately she didn't, but coming in second is not a bad result, although the UK often suffered from this outcome. "Where are you?" still is a classic soul uptempo song that I could listen to every single day.
1: Malta – Chiara: so pleased to see this in your top 10 list from 1998! I know a lot of people that think this song is just another (lame lady) ballad, but not for me. It was my perfect soundtrack of this evening, and I love it so much. You already know that this is my no. 1 Eurovision song of all time and my MAGIC Eurovision moment, because of the atmosphere that was created on stage with all the chandeliers, and just having Chiara reduced to her song, and, of course, because of "The one that I love(d)".
I think this will always stay my favourite song because of its intense moment I had with it; but maybe that's just me being hopelessly romantic!? 😉
Enough from me for today! Thank you so much once again for this wonderful blog I already waited for! 😉
Until next time and have a good Melodifestivalen final night with the right winner,
Jaz March 14, 2015
Of COURSE I wrote this post just for you, Wolfgang! Well, maybe not 100%, but I did have you in mind during the creation process.
Poor Hungary. We all hate it. More than Europe did, it would seem.
I don't know about falling asleep to Slovakia…Katarina's screeching would keep me up for hours! There's something about the chorus that drives me crazy.
Poland was a bit lacklustre, but I still enjoy it. In a year of Guildo and Dana International, you need some more understated performers and songs to calm things down.
I'm glad to hear I'm not alone on Marie Line! Those two songs, Sonique's in particular, are two of my favourites of the 90s as well. We have excellent musical taste 😉
Yep, what Guildo lacked in a quality song, her made up for with personality. I love watching his performance just to hear and see how the crowd responds (I assume the loudest cheers were coming from you!).
I totally agree on Portugal. It was happy but not cheesy, and ethnic without being so much so that nobody else would 'get it'. Not that I don't appreciate it when countries like Portugal do send very ethnic stuff. In fact, I'd prefer that to what they're sending this year, which is pretty forgettable. That's how I feel now…I'll probably love it in a month or so.
Jill Johnson was the last person to sing for Sweden in Swedish, if I remember rightly. It's a sad stat. Unless Samir & Viktor win Melfest tonight (and I know neither of us want that to happen) this year will be no exception!
Edsilia is just amazing. I'd love her to come back to Eurovision with something as quality as 'Hemel En Aarde' because I didn't love her 2007 entry. She was too good for that! I would love to hear that duet with Ruth if you're up for sharing it with me.
Croatia = one of the best costume reveals in contest history! Simple but so effective. It's a shame they ruined the gimmick in 2011.
I'm so shocked by your #1…not! I wouldn't call Chiara's first attempt an LLB at all. She could sing anything and I'd pay attention to it though. She didn't fare that well in Moscow, but I would love to see her pick herself up and enter MESC again. It's been long enough, Chiara.
Thanks for the thanks (and, as always, continuing to read me!). Enjoy your Saturday (NF) night too. If MZW does take Melfest, I will be very happy, although to be honest, I could get on board with anyone except Hasse or Jessica. That's my devotion to Scandipop talking 😀
Ali Nella Houd March 13, 2015
Thanks Jaz. Not my favest year (did I just invent a word?), but plenty of colour, movement, controversy, scandal, and OTT-ness to enjoy and be entertained by there.
If you don't mind, I'll do it backwards, to add to the suspense (as l'enfant said to l'oiseau):
25 – Hungary. (Shazam!) Another Potter character singing at Eurovision: this time it's the Hogwarts caretaker.
24 – Macedonia (fmr Yugoslav Republic thereof).
23 – Slovakia.
22 – Spain.
21 – Ireland.
20 – Greece.
19 – Turkey.
18 – Sweden. I didn't realise what it was about till I read your post, but it still doesn't give it much of a boost in my rankings now I know.
17 – Croatia.
16 – Cyprus.
15 – Finland.
14 – France.
13 – Switzerland. I think it was the wink that cost her: so inappropriate to the song.
12 – Slovenia.
11 – Estonia.
10 – Poland.
9 – Israel. It is a good anthemic song, but if I had a choice I'd prefer to listen to 'Ding, Dong'.
8 – Malta.
7 – The Netherlands. Not as many of my buttons got pushed as yours did, but I still dig it.
6 – Belgium. Sorry, Jaz, but it's stuck in my head in a not-all-that-bad way. And she's got the whole Piper-Chapman-esque vulnerable thang happening there. What's a guy to do?
5 – Germany. I do enjoy the thought of all the OH&S bods in the wings having conniptions as Guildo launches into his Kong-like ascent.
4 – Romania.
3 – Portugal. Bagpipes will do it for me every time.
2 – Norway. Cute and catchy. And so's the song.
1 – UK. So classy.
But who would have thought in '98 that, in the 16 years that followed, the UK would get only one 'podium appearance' (a bronze, at that). I can't see any colour medal for them in '15.
Hungary is officially in nul-point territory with all of us! And yet, it still scored more than Switzerland. I can't believe I missed Filch performing for them in '98. If he'd had his petrified cat with him, I'd have picked it straight away.
Also, was that Professor Snape singing for FYR Macedonia?
Gunvor's wink makes me wonder if she was urging her friend to 'leave him' so she herself could shack up with the guy in question.
I'm both relieved and disappointed that the Birmingham set didn't give way when Guildo scaled it. That would have made excellent television. And may have given Germany some sympathy votes as the people at home watched Guildo waving weakly from his hospital bed, encased in a full-body cast.
I am happy to see Portugal so high in your ranking! It's a lovely song. It reminds me a bit of Lucia Moniz' entry, which is also one of their best-ever in my eyes.
The days of Imaani/Melanie are long gone, and I'm with you on the distinct lack of a podium possibility for the UK this year. But who knows, Electro Velvet may surprise with a strong finish.


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Perfecting Alberta, Part 4: Taxes
Okay, Nation... so, we've solved the healthcare issue, overhauled Alberta's educational system, and set up the economy to succeed. Now, as the government of the future, it's time to figure out how to PAY for all this.
That's right... it's time to talk Tax Policy.
Even in the Perfect Alberta, we still have to find a way to PAY for our fantastic quality of life and standard of living... and that means taxes.
How should the people and businesses of Alberta be taxed? And at what levels?
What I want to hear about, specifically, includes issue like Corporate tax rates versus small business rates (and what constitutes a "small business")... personal income tax, and if we should even HAVE one... user fees for optional services, versus mandatory fees (aka "taxes") like the recently-departed Health Care Premiums... and yes, energy Royalties.
Should we have hospitality taxes, for attractions and accommodations? Energy taxes on things like gasoline and electricity? Taxes that only visitors pay, while residents are exempt?
It's all on the table, Nation. You decide: How does the Alberta of the future pay the bills?
We've seen the folly in the last year of paying the bills with a bank account that is overwhelmingly tied to a single sector of the economy... how do we secure our finances for the next generation, and beyond?
Posted by Enlightened Savage at 11:17 a.m. 4 comments
Perfecting Alberta, Part 3: Economics and Industry
Keep the comments rolling in, Nation - the only way we can secure a more perfect future for our children and their children is to imagine that Alberta today, demand it of our leaders, and articulate it well enough that they can make it a reality.
Today and for the next few days, I want to hear your vision for Alberta's economic future. Now, we're not talking about spending, or savings, or the Heritage Fund today. Neither are we talking about tax policy. Rather, I want to hear about the REAL economy in Alberta. Businesses that Martha and Henry set up, and then go public with - or pass on to their kids.
Among the sectors that could be touched on:
Energy (traditional and alternative)
... and many more...
In our lifetimes, the traditional stockpile of petroleum is likely going to become less and less of an economic driver, due to reduced supply or technological advances leading to a reduced demand. How are we going to replace this gigantic piece of Alberta's economic pie?
So, I put it to you, Nation: How would YOU set up Alberta's economy of the future?
If you want to nationalize industry rather than leaving it up to the market, that's your choice... I'll warn you now, though, that I don't think Martha and Henry will go for it...
And thinking outside the box is okay, too... remember, at some point 60 years ago, someone looked at a bald patch of desert and had the words "Las Vegas" pop into his head...
Perfecting Alberta, Part 2: Primary and Secondary Education
Nation, I want to thank everyone for their contributions so far. This is a critically important time in our province's history, and these kinds of discussions need to be had in the public sphere for Albertans of ALL walks of life to read and contribute.
The fact that new posts are going up in this series should not stop you from continuing the conversations in previous posts. By all means, keep the conversation going!
The next stop on the "Perfecting Alberta Whistlestop Tour" is education, from Kindergarten up to an including Grade 12.
Albertan students routinely perform at or near the top in national examinations... so, by the most basic of measures, the argument can be made that our education system ain't broke - so why are we trying to fix it?
The reality is that this is the 2nd largest consumer of public funds in the province, after health care. There are places we should be spending more, there are doubtless places we should be spending less, and as far as test results go, I'm reminded of the old adage "Good enough, never is". The fact that we're above average shouldn't stop us from trying to do even better. Why settle for a B when hard work could get you the A?
From class sizes to pre-school, from charter schools to curriculum to splitting the ATA into 2 separate entities (union/certification body), from collective bargaining to results-based-pay, there's a lot to talk about when it comes to possible changes to our education system. One thing, though, is indisputable: Our educational system in this province is absolutely tied to our future as a place of economic and cultural and scientific strength. The lessons that our children learn in these classrooms determines the future for ALL of us who will live here in the future.
We can't afford to screw things up, making change for change's sake.
So, Nation, I put it to you: How would YOU shape our educational system for the next generation?
All legal options can be considered. (The constitution requires the maintaining of a Catholic school system, funded by the province, separate from the public system. Before anyone goes there.)
Fire away.
Posted by Enlightened Savage at 10:43 a.m. 18 comments
Perfecting Alberta, Part 1: Health Care
Nation, this type of thing is exactly what makes Blogs so much more powerful than the print media... the ability to have an interactive discussion.
Over the next while, I'm going to be using this space to facilitate a discussion among the millions of faithful members of the E.S. Nation about a variety of policy areas, all targeted towards one goal: Perfecting Alberta.
To better facilitate something resembling "real time" conversation, I have (after much hesitation) disabled the "moderated comments" function on the blog, so your comments won't live in cyber-limbo waiting for me to check my email. Don't make me regret it. :)
What I DON'T want is this: Attacking a contributor because of the political party you believe they support. Personal attacks. Partisan hackery (e.g. "my perfect Alberta: no liberals", or "to fix this, we just have to elect Brian Mason").
What I DO want is to hear the best ideas, from all sides of the political spectrum. We have an opportunity, through this medium, to come together as engaged citizens and re-make this province.
All ideas are on the table. I don't want to hear about what's wrong... I want to hear about how we FIX it.
First topic open for debate on the floor of the virtual legislature: Health Care. It's up to you, Nation. All legal options are on the table. How would YOU fix Health Care in Alberta?
Posted by Enlightened Savage at 4:34 p.m. 17 comments
City Council Continues the Snow Job
If there's an Alderman who needs replacing more than Bob Hawkesworth, I can't fathom whom it would be, Nation.
The Calgary City Council's Standing Policy Committee on Land Use, Planning & Transportation on Wednesday voted to recommend that the entire Council hold the line on what has got to be the worst snow removal plan in a major snow-bound urban centre since the Iron Age.
For those of you who have forgotten, the snow removal last winter was so woefully inadequate that the city issued a press release asking residents to stop calling 311 about residential snow removal. (For that matter, it was woefully inadequate the winter BEFORE last, as well.)
Their complete refusal to remove snow from their property, mind you, didn't stop them from issuing threats of fines to citizens who failed to remove snow from their own sidewalks within a couple of days of a snowfall. You lowly citizens have to remove snow, because if you don't, people could get hurt by slipping.
By comparison, of course, it's not humanly possible to get hurt on an icy residential street. You're only in a 1,000-pound vehicle travelling between 9 and 15 metres per second. The kids in that school bus or cross-walk will just have to suck it up and deal with it as you skid into them... after all, we'd have to raise taxes to pay for better snow removal. By far, the better policy position is to cross our fingers and pray for a Chinook that might take 3 to 4 weeks to get here.
Oh, and by the way - you can't plow your own street or alley. We'll give you a ticket for that. And no, we can't give you permission to do it before-hand, no matter HOW many winters you worked snow removal in Winnipeg - you might damage a fire hydrant.
Nation, I'm not worried about plowing into someone on Anderson Road - I'm worried about plowing into them on Woodpark Boulevard, or Bonaventure Drive, or Queensland Road. Residential roads, all. With hills. And crosswalks. And schools. And day-cares.
I can't wiggle my ears and make my car just APPEAR on a plowed major road, and neither can you - I have to drive on these icy, un-plowed residential roads to GET to the major routes. And stop (or TRY to, at any rate) at a traffic light or go through an icy interchange that was last sanded 72 hours ago to get ONTO the major road.
Firstly, I don't accept that it's all or nothing on this issue. I don't believe there's no happy medium between "$22 Million worth of crappy service" and "$100 Million where every street has a plow parked at the end, waiting for the first flake to fall". Hawkesworth seems to suggest there's no middle ground.
"I just don't see that citizens would want it, nor is it necessary."
- Ald. Bob Hawkesworth, on protecting the citizens of Calgary during Calgary's 6 month-long winters
Calgary police responded to over 180 collisions and another 20 injury accidents by 4:00 p.m.
EMS was so busy that they initiated a Red Alert for approximately 5 minutes around 1:00 p.m., and treated injured motorists in over 30 accidents.
"Between nine and 12 we had 40 calls and on a normal Sunday for a four or five hour period, we get one to two calls," said Paul LaPointe from Calgary EMS,"we of course have our normal call volume which we have day to day, so on top of that, we have all these motor vehicle collisions that we had to deal with."
- ctv.ca, Sunday, December 7th, 2008
And even if I DID accept Alderman Bob's "all or nothing" position, we're talking about a difference of $80 Million per year. That's $80 for each Calgarian, to make sure that every possible thing that COULD be done to protect us during the ridiculously long winters we get here, WOULD be done. We'd all save that on auto insurance premiums alone.
Where do I send my cheque?
Attachments: The agenda for the meeting where this was discussed. This asinine recommendation goes to full Council on September 28th. Pay attention to who votes to accept the recommendation, and remember that when you go to the polls next October. Or when you slide into a curb in your neighbourhood because you were driving a reckless 10 km/h on a road still covered in snow and ice 5 days after the snow stopped falling.
At the bottom of the document is the report itself, and a list of 4 attachments (major routes in Saskatoon are cleared within 12 hours of snowfall - Calgary commits to "through-plowing" 90% of them within 48 hours), which I've included below.
Attachment 1: Winter Maintenance Comparison: Calgary, Edmonton, Winnipeg, Regina, Saskatoon
Attachment 2: TAC Winter Severity Analysis for Calgary
Attachment 3: City's Ridiculous Push-Poll on Snow and Ice Control
Attachment 4: Chart of Residential Street Enhancement Options
Smith vs. Dyrholm, Today from that little speaker on your desk...
The 2 remaining leadership hopefuls for the Wildrose Alliance, Danielle Smith and Mark Dyrholm, will be taking questions and calls on the Rutherford Show on CHQR (770 on your AM dial) during the 11 o'clock hour.
Reactions and thoughts in the comments section of this post, please. :)
- E.S.
p.s. If anyone reading today was at last night's WAP Leadership Debate (when there were THREE candidates), I'd love to hear your thoughts and observations as well.
Posted by Enlightened Savage at 9:38 a.m. 5 comments
... and, just because I haven't been given enough to write about today...
... Rahim Jaffer has been charged (NOT convicted, CHARGED) with drunk driving and posession of cocaine.
Certainly not something you'd hope for.
Posted by Enlightened Savage at 2:59 p.m. 1 comments
Cabinet Shuffle... sort of...
Len Webber, the MLA for Calgary-Foothills, has been named the new Minister of International and Intergovernmental Relations for the province of Alberta (Premier Stelmach had been doing the job after Ron Stevens' retirement).
Also, a shuffle in the Parliamentary Assistants, as Jonathan Denis (who is NOT the Enlightened Savage), MLA for Calgary-Egmont, has been named Parliamentary Assistant for Energy, Cardston-Taber-Warner MLA Broyce Jacobs becomes the Parliamentary Assistant for Agriculture and Rural Development (ARD), and Battle River-Wainwright MLA/social media lover Doug Griffiths moves from his role as the Parliamentary Assistant in ARD to become the Parliamentary Assistant for the Department of Solicitor General and Public Security.
I don't know Jacobs personally, but I've met Len Webber, Jonathan Denis and Doug Griffiths, and found them all to be exemplary public servants, who put their constituents first. Congratulations, gentlemen.
p.s. Minister Webber - now we've REALLY got to get you using Twitter! My offer from the #PCPC still stands. ;)
The Morning After the Day After By-Election Day
Well, Nation... there was a little bit of an event happening on Monday night in the provincial constituency of Calgary-Glenmore.
The unofficial poll results from Elections Alberta are an interesting read. They're especially interesting when compared with the results from the most recent General Election in Alberta, in March of 2008.
PC (Stevens) 6,436 votes
Liberal (Roberts) 4,213 votes
WAP (Sadler) 1,025
Green (Bonokoski) 550 votes
NDP (Heffernan) 477 votes
45.5% voter participation
PC (Colley-Urquhart) 2,863 votes (down 56%)
Liberal (Roberts) 3,776 votes (down 10%)
WAP (Hinman) 4,052 votes (increase by 295%)
NDP (Carpendale) 148 votes (down 69%)
SC (Skowronski) 118 votes
ind. (Grochowski) 71 votes
Now, every single candidate deserves our thanks and respect for caring enough about the health of our democracy to put their name forward. I want to spend a little time, though, dealing with the "DRP factor" and the 2 parties of the left, and then talk about what went wrong (and right) for the parties of the right.
Overall, voter participation dropped by 5% between the general election and the by-election - which, truthfully, isn't all that bad, for a by-election. It's still embarassing as heck that Afghanistan can record higher voter turn-outs than Alberta while voters there are operating under explicit threats of murder and violence if they dare to vote - but that's a blog post for another day.
The NDP vote all but disappeared in this by-election. It COULD be argued, I suppose, that those votes might have been driven to Avalon Roberts of the Liberals by the "DRP movement" - but even if that WERE the case, Avalon's own numbers dropped by 10%. While the math may support "unite the left" strategies in some ridings, it's clear that in Calgary-Glenmore, the only thing that can get the Liberals elected is either a 3-or-more-way split of the conservative vote, or the conservative voters staying home, as they did in the Calgary-Elbow by-election in 2007. Similarly, the only thing that can get the NDP elected in this riding is if nobody but the New Democrats notices that there's an election happening.
Now, before we look at what happened a few days ago, I want to get a frame of reference. Let's take a (very brief) look at the Calgary-Elbow by-election of 2007.
Elbow had, in the previous General Election, re-elected Ralph Klein as MLA by a comfortable 2,000 vote margin over his Liberal challenger. Voter turn-out in 2004 was at 52.4%. In the by-election to replace Klein, held in 2007, voter participation plummeted by nearly 18%, down to 34.6% overall. The Liberal candidate lost only 2% of votes versus 2004, which means when one factors in the overall decline in participation, their popular support actually increased. By comparison, the loyalty of local voters to Klein rather than to the PC Party brand was evident, as the Tory candidate lost 42% of Klein's voters from 2004. The Liberal went on to spend 9 months as an MLA, before being ousted in the 2008 General Election (overall voter turn-out rose by 13.6%; Liberal turn-out increased by 16%, PC turn-out improved by 34%).
The Glenmore by-election is different, for a few reasons.
Firstly, in the 2007 by-election, Ed Stelmach had been leader of the PC Party and Premier for only 6 months. The PC's had replaced a popular local candidate who just HAPPENED to be a former mayor of the city, and Premier of Alberta, with someone who had good credibility among the local power elite, but little recognition with the common voter. The PC's took for granted that they would hold on to Ralph's seat. With "the new guy" in charge, and a lot of Calgary PC organizers still stinging over the defeat of Calgary leadership hopefuls Ted Morton and Jim Dinning, the voters let the PC Party know how they felt about how "their guy", Ralph, had been treated by the party. Mostly, by staying home and letting the Liberal candidate take the seat.
The 2008 General Election ends the Glenmore-Elbow comparison on one hand, and acts as the first book-end of the larger Glenmore story.
In the 2008 General Election, Ed Stelmach had been Premier for nearly a year and a half. Times were good, money was being spent on projects and programs that made people feel warm and fuzzy. Fall-out from the new royalty regime was purely hypothetical. All that said, though, the people of Alberta - and particularly the mainstream media - missed the charisma of Ralph. They thought of the new leader as a "come up the middle" choice for leader of the PC's, despite the fact that Stelmach was the FIRST choice of more party members than either Dinning OR Morton in the 2nd round of the race. The PC's were drifting, and vulnerable according to many.
So the election was held... and the PC's cruised to a dominating victory of Klein-esque proportions. In Elbow, which they had lost in a by-election 9 months earlier, voter turn-out increased by 13.6% overall, and for the Tories it increased by 34%. Even when you consider that a rising tide raises all ships, the Tory voters had come back to the fold in the General Election. In Calgary-Glenmore, 45.5% of the electorate showed up, and a majority of them voted for the PC candidate, popular incumbent and Stelmach's top lieutenant Ron Stevens. Province-wide, the"drifting, aimless, rudderless, leaderless, wishy-washy, over-the-hill" Tories won 72 of 83 seats. Stelmach had won the day by showing himself to be a cautious, thoughtful leader - not the firebrand visionary that many Albertans hoped to see, and not the shoot-from-the-lip everyman that had been Ralph at the start of his tenure, but the clear choice to lead the province through what might be unsure waters ahead.
In September of 2008, the bottom began to fall out of world stock markets and energy prices began to plummet. All of a sudden, the "rainy day" for which we had been saving was upon us. And then things got worse. Energy companies were closing up shop, or scaling back production. People were out of work. A global economic crisis was affecting economies all over the world - and Alberta was no exception. Indeed, the only thing exceptional about Alberta was the fact that, as a debt-free constituency with money in the bank, it was better prepared than virtually every other jurisdiction - with or without oil - to come out of this period of crisis relatively unscathed.
However, when people lose jobs, when their standard of living drops, when they get scared, they look for someone to blame. And the government of the day is an easy target. No sooner than the government had finished tabling its first deficit budget in years, opposition parties started referring to Stelmach as "in the red Ed". The PC's were (still) "rudderless and out of touch", according to newspaper columnists desperate to seem relevant and cutting-edge ("angry" sells more papers than "happy"). Suddenly, the money that was being spent on projects and programs that made everyone feel good was deemed by the public to be "unneccesary". Cuts were needed. The 2 biggest slices of the pie, Health and Education, are impossible to even TALK about cutting without whipping various unions into a frenzy of fear-mongering. Reports were coming out suggesting that energy companies, burnt once by the fact that their business landscape had shifted under their feet with Alberta's new royalty regime, were looking at drilling elsewhere. In the space of a few short months, Stelmach had gone from "King Eddie" to the media's favourite whipping boy - and there was a new force on the horizon.
The Wildrose Alliance, born from the union of the populist Wildrose Party and the conservative Alberta Alliance Party, was attracting interest from disenchanted Tories who wanted to turn the clock back to the time when the government ran a surplus, "progressive" was a code word for Liberal, and the metric system was a tool of communists like Trudeau. The growing perception of the PC Party as being "too inclusive", or a party of convenience lacking any real "conservative policies", drove conservatives concerned about their image to this new party. Many of these supporters were old-time Reformers, from the Preston Manning days. It sometimes bears repeating that while Reform never actually formed government - they DID force the federal PC's to change the way they did and viewed things, giving birth to the current Conservative Party in the process. One could argue, that was Preston's whole point.
The Wildrose Alliance has spent the summer trying to find itself. Or, more accurately, they're in the middle of a leadership contest. One of the candidates in particular, Danielle Smith, is seen as being a real threat to the Tories, as she shares many policies in common with your average Tory voter without the baggage of actually BEING a PC - which gives your potential PC voter a real alternative, for the first time in a VERY long time, that doesn't involve voting for a Liberal candidate or selling out your socially moderate views. Summer being the political vacuum that it is, the leadership race has gotten a LOT of attention in the media - people know about this party. The one thing they DON'T know - which makes this week's Glenmore result all the more surprising - is what this party is going to stand for 6 months from now. 3 possibilities exist - either the party will be a reflection of Danielle Smith (fiscally conservative, socially moderate), it will be a reflection of one of the other 2 leadership contenders (fiscally and socially conservative), or it will be in a state of turmoil, if the party membership decides that, on second thought, we don't want to move the party to reflect the chosen leader, we want the chosen leader to move THEIR positions to reflect the grassroots membership - which is code for "whatever special interest sells the most memberships before an important meeting".
Back to Glenmore. Ron Stevens, the Deputy Premier of Alberta gets a better offer. They want to make him a judge. Ron accepts, and we've got ourselves a by-election. Opinions are offered as to how the various parties will do - some analysis proves more correct than others. And at the end of the day, voters heed Wildrose Alliance candidate Hinman's call to "send Ed a message", when the voter turn-out drops by only 5% overall, but the Tories lose 56% of their support from 19 months ago. Klein couldn't have lost 56% of his support if he'd started mugging little old ladies in dark alleys. Message sent, and received.
What is the message that the voters have sent Ed?
In a nutshell, the message is Paul Hinman, and whatever he DECIDES the message is. That's the problem with the provincial ballot - you mark an "x", and the candidates get to read those tea leaves however they want.
Is the message "we don't like Ed"? If it IS, then the question becomes: Why? Because he's not from Calgary, like Ralph and Dinning and Morton? Because he's not a "city guy"? Because the cabinet doesn't have enough Calgarians? Calgary doesn't have a finished ring-road? Oil and gas producers are nervous? The government is in a deficit position? He's got a funny haircut?
The more important question, for Ed and for the PC's, is "what can we DO about that message?". Ultimately, even if you CAN distill this result into a particular message, and figure out specifically WHY people voted the way they did, on an issue by issue basis, what are the solutions? Will adding more Calgary MLA's to cabinet do it? Re-jigging the Royalty framework yet AGAIN? (by the way, even revisions in FAVOUR of the energy producers make them more nervous about setting up here, because of the frequent changes - we need to decide on a framework, and guarantee no changes for a set period of time. THAT will calm down the jittery nerves of the energy companies)
No matter what he does, Ed will never be a "Calgary guy" - he's not from here. There's no 2 ways about it. He can think like us, he can talk like us, he can dress like us, but he's not one of us. And you know what? He doesn't HAVE to be - nor should he be EXPECTED to be just like us to govern us. He should be judged on his ability to do the job - not on where he was raised. The irony is, that's the argument we were ALL, current PC or WAP supporter alike, throwing towards Ontario when they were refusing to give Preston and Stockwell and Stephen the time of day, because they were from "somewhere other than here".
Stelmach has a vested interest in this city - he has children and grandchildren living here. To suggest that he doesn't care what happens south of Red Deer is ridiculous. And yet... there it is. He's not from here. Is the message that the PC's should pick a leader from Calgary? I wonder how Edmontonians would react to our refusal to accept a leader not from our shining city on the hill...
Oh, wait, no I don't... I already know.
1992 - Ralph Klein comes from behind to win the PC Party leadership from rival Edmonton MLA Nancy Betkowski, and becomes Premier.
1993 - PC's win 17 of 20 seats in Calgary, 0 of 18 in Edmonton.
1997 - PC's win 20 of 21 seats in Calgary, 2 of 19 in Edmonton
2001 - PC's win 21 of 21 seats in Calgary, 11 of 19 in Edmonton.
The old adage that "all politics is local" certainly seems to ring true... While Ralph was in charge of the PC's, Calgary overwhelmingly supported the party, while Edmonton earned the nickname "Redmonton" by rejecting Klein the Calgarian for most of his reign.
Fast forward to 2008 - Ed Stelmach, from outside Edmonton, had been Premier for over a year, so it was considered a fair test of his leadership and popularity on a provincial scale. The result?
The PC's under Stelmach lose 2 seats (now 3) to the opposition in Calgary, but steal 10 seats from the opposition in Edmonton.
Since then, however, we've had the thrill-ride of the global economic crisis (which Eddie didn't cause), and the implementation, re-jigging, re-implementation and re-re-jigging of the new royalty framework for energy producers in Alberta (which Eddie DID cause).
Is Calgary-Glenmore the start of a trend? Will Ed Stelmach as leader of the PC's turn this into an "opposition town"? And if so, why?
If it's for reasons of policy, I can live with that. But if Calgary turns against Stelmach and the PC's because he doesn't have Klein's mailing address, charisma, or style - then that's, in my opinion, a shoddy way to determine your leaders.
There's discontent in Calgary-Glenmore. There's discontent within the city as a whole. The province. Even within the PC Party itself. Times are tough. People want to "send Ed a message". The Hinman campaign capitalized on this sentiment brilliantly, to their credit. This wasn't one or two polls going to Hinman - he won in 32 of 66 polls. Support for him was wide-spread across the riding. People were telling Diane Colley-Urquhart at the doors that they supported her for Alderman, and would do so again, but they couldn't cast a vote for the PC's under Stelmach. Other Calgary PC's have heard the same.
But if the voters want their message to be heard - they've got to first figure out what their problem with Ed is, and what it will take to make it better. Because "I'm angry, and I don't know why, but I don't like you" is a bad head-space to be in when you're choosing someone to manage a multi-billion-dollar corporation.
Before the economic crisis, Albertans decided they wanted Ed Stelmach and the PC's to run the province. Calgarians, at least those in Glenmore, seem to be having second thoughts. But they need to decide if their issues are based on policy, or on geography.
Ed's had mis-steps along the way. He's made mistakes. He's made gaffes. Such is life when your every word and move is public domain. It's not too late to re-focus, re-energize the troops, and come up with a well-articulated vision for this province. Because Ed Stelmach and the PC Party shouldn't respond to this by trying to tinker with the car stereo to win back 15% of the 45% of people who bother to vote. They should take this opportunity to overhaul the engine, set themselves up for the next 30 years, and try to appeal to the 55% of Albertans who AREN'T voting.
New Canadians.
Disenchanted, disenfranchised, disinterested.
Give people something to believe in. Give them the candidates they deserve. Tell them what their lives will be like in 20 years. Tell them about the Alberta their kids will inherit.
Shoot for the moon.
Live-blogging from DCU Campaign Headquarters
Nation, as you read on daveberta, I'll be live-tweeting and live-blogging the results for the Glenmore by-election as they come in. Updates will be posted at the bottom of this post.
As of 8:30, only the mobile polls have come in.
Colley-Urquhart (PC) 7
Roberts (Lib) 5
Hinman (WAP) 3
Carpendale (NDP) 1
Skowronski (SC) 1
Grochowski (ind.) 0
4 polls in
Colley-Urquhart (PC) 84
Roberts (Lib) 110
Hinman (WAP) 166
12 polls of 66
Colley-Urquhart (PC) 413
Carpendale (NDP) 26
Skowronski (SC) 18
Grochowski (ind.) 14
46 out of 66 reporting.
Colley-Urquhart (PC) 1821
Roberts (Lib) 2291
Hinman (WAP) 2632
Carpendale (NDP) 110
Skowronski (SC) 105
Advance and special polls not in yet - could make a big difference to Hinman and Roberts. Stay tuned.
Hearing Avalon Roberts has conceded to Paul Hinman, with only the advance poll waiting to report.
E.S. Nation Correspondents in Glenmore - Sound Off!
If you're in attendance tonight at the Calgary-Glenmore candidates' forum, post your thoughts and observations as comments to this post.
E.S. Nation Correspondents in Edmonton - Sound Off!
If you're in Edmonton for the Wildrose Alliance leadership debate tonight, post your thoughts as comments to this post.
T-Minus 4 Days...
(edited on Sept. 11 to correct a pretty big typo - content otherwise unchanged)
Nation, the Calgary-Glenmore by-election is entering its home stretch, and I thought now would be a good time to wade into the fray - especially considering that your humble scribe has his bachelor party scheduled for this Saturday, and may be... ill-equipped to blog on Sunday.
The Glenmore race has been heating up the internet since the moment it was announced - as a matter of fact, since BEFORE it was announced. I want to deal with each candidate seperately, since in a melee situation like the one we've had develop, keeping a balanced perspective can sometimes be problematic, at best.
In the interests of fairness, I'll talk about each candidate and their campaign alphabetically.
Eric Carpendale, Alberta's NDP
Carpendale has been nearly invisible to the public eye during this campaign. I drive through the riding every single day and have yet to see a lawn sign. Now, there may in fact be any number of good reasons for this - maybe the NDP is spending their money on things other than lawn signs in this race. Maybe Carpendale is knocking on every door in a suit and tie, and attending every school council meeting and community breakfast in the riding. But, in looking at the NDP website, you can't help but wonder if they're really offering him anything but token support.
In his effort to boost the NDP caucus by 50%, Carpendale is taking an odd approach - at least, odd for a New Democrat: He's criticising the Stelmach government's fiscal management. It's an interesting approach from the NDP, as it shows that they're capable of putting fire-and-brimstone ideaology on the back-burner for the sake of political reality: Fiscal management is a big deal, and a hot-button issue, in this riding.
Bottom Line: Carpendale is a young candidate who's been saddled with the unenviable task of appealing to an electorate that is looking for someone to replace their recently departed "elder statesman" of Ron Stevens. By most accounts he's an engaging personality one-on-one - he's a union leader, a father of 2, and a former member of the Canadian Armed Forces, for which he deserves the utmost respect. With some more polish he might be the future of the NDP in Alberta - but that future is not today.
Carpendale on Twitter
Diane Colley-Urquhart, Progressive Conservative Party of Alberta
Colley-Urquhart finds herself in an unfamiliar situation in Calgary-Glenmore. She's trying to make the jump from popular alderman to MLA, however many of the people who support her as an alderman are backing other candidates in this race - and that support, or lack thereof, has nothing to do with Diane herself. She's running for a party that just tabled a $6.9 Billion deficit and has a leader who is never going to be given a fair shake by the voters of Calgary because he's from "up there", and beat 2 Calgarians for the leadership.
Ed Stelmach could dive across an intersection to shield a baby carriage from an oncoming truck on MacLeod Trail, and he'd be criticized by locals for holding up traffic.
Diane has been hitting the doors of Calgary-Glenmore at a blistering pace, and has a pretty good sign prescence in the communities - once you get off the corners and the main arteries, you see as many of her signs on the cul-de-sacs and private lawns as anyone else's - and more than most candidates. She's a practicing nurse, so she's aware of the health care issues that are so important to residents of the riding, and she's got a solid fiscal voting record to stand on. Detractors have suggested that she'd be just another voiceless back-bencher, but there are ample reasons to believe that Diane's voice would be an important one on issues such as transportation and health for a caucus desperate to show it does, in fact, care about Calgary - and a cabinet role isn't out of the question, either. She is still serving residents of her ward as an alderman during the campaign, electing not to leave them without representation for the next year unless absolutely necessary, but is returning her salary to the city - so, she hasn't taken a leave-of-absence, but she's taken a pay cut of 100% during the campaign.
Bottom Line: She's hungry, and is drawing enthusiastic support from the PC ranks all over the city - people who know how to win. It will be a challenge to inspire voters to come out in a by-election and vote for the status quo, but such is the life of the by-election candidate running for the governmening party. If her volunteers pound the Get Out The Vote hard enough, Diane could find herself in a new job.
Colley-Urquhart on Twitter
Colley-Urquhart campaign website
Antoni (Tony) Grochowski, Independent
A veteran of municipal (mayor in 2004, ward 10 in 2005, seperate school trustee in 2007), provincial (for the SoCreds in 2008) and federal (independent, 2008) races in the past, Grochowski throws his hat into the ring this time as an independent candidate in Calgary-Glenmore.
An architect by training, Grochowski clearly has a deep desire for public service. He has in the past espoused views opposed to smoking bans, and in favour of Bishop Fred Henry's call for an end to funding Catholic school programs with gaming funds.
Bottom Line: Independent campaigns can win, but only if they're well-organized. Tony deserves all the credit in the world for running... but to be taken seriously, he's going to have to pick a single job he wants to win, and work on getting his message out to voters. This won't be it.
Antoni appears to have no social media or internet prescence for this campaign.
Paul Hinman, Wildrose Alliance Party
A former MLA for the riding of Cardston-Taber-Warner, Hinman has served as the leader of the Wildrose Alliance Party since its inception, and is currently serving as its interim leader until the conclusion of their leadership race.
Hinman's campaign has shown itself to be very capable and organized in the latter weeks of this race - while they got off to something of a slow start, they've more than made up for it since then with tireless door-knocking and a sign crew that seems to have a 4x8 sign on every corner - and more than a few private lawns, as well (go big or go home, I guess). The major theme of the campaign seems to be to capitalize on the discontent among Calgarians with the leadership of Ed Stelmach, as their campaign slogan even mentions Ed by name.
Wildrose Alliance supporters have been all over the internet, Twitter and the blogs, stumping for their guy - it's a good example of the kind of full-court press that other parties would be wise to emulate in the future (note to the parties: Hire a social media hotshot. Do what they say. Don't be luddites.). Like the early gold rushes, if you don't get your claim staked on the world wide web, someone else will stake it from underneath you. While Hinman is making some hay with his anti-Stelmach messaging, he's missing a particularly large plank of the Glenmore-centric platform by not talking about his proposed solution to the Ring Road debacle. Alberta-wide
solutions are good, but it's not a provincial campaign - it's a local one, and the people of Glenmore are electing a local representative to talk about their specific issues, not a new government.
Bottom Line: While Hinman has a natural ally in that the reality of by-elections suggests that the voter interested in change is more likely to come out than the satisfied voter, his campaign runs into a bit of trouble as a result of the current leadership race within his party. Albertan voters are used to thinking of their votes not as going to a candidate, but to the party under which that candidate runs. Hinman's campaign hasn't exactly discouraged this thinking, either, sugesting that a vote for Colley-Urquhart is in fact a vote of support for Stelmach. Where this comes back to bite them a bit is in the fact that, by extension then, a vote for Hinman is a vote for... whomever wins the WAP leadership race. Which, at this point, could mean either Danielle Smith, Mark Dyrholm or Jeff Willerton - 3 VERY different candidates, under whose leadership the party would end up occupying 3 very different spots of real estate on the Alberta political
spectrum. That uncertainlty as to what the party will stand for a year from now may force some potential WAP voters to shy away from voting for Hinman, for the time being.
On a side note, it still impresses the hell out of me that Hinman speaks Tagalog. It's a beautiful language that I'm trying to get a grip on, but that grip continues to evade me - well done, Paul.
Hinman campaign website
Avalon Roberts, Alberta Liberal Party
Dr. Avalon Roberts is a practicing psychiatrist and health care advocate with the Friends of Medicare, seeking election for the third time provincially (she has run twice before in Glenmore, as well as once federally in Calgary South West against that Harper fella). Her campaign is hoping for a repeat of the Craig Cheffins by-election victory in Calgary-Elbow, with the all-out war between the PC's and Wildrose Alliance facilitating a right-of-centre vote split.
Driving up and down the major roads in Calgary Glenmore, you'd think this was a three horse race for popular support. Indeed, Roberts has significant name recognition in this area because of her past political forays, and that recognition - combined with the growing focus of the Liberals on turning anti-Stelmach sentiment into capturing "Battleground Calgary", much as they were able to do with anti-Klein sentiment in Edmonton - could work in her favour here. There aren't a lot of Roberts signs on private property, but even when you're mad at the Premier for the very good and valid reason that "he's not from this city", putting up a Liberal sign in your yard is... a sketchy prospect, at best.
Roberts talks a lot about Calgary-Glenmore having "effective opposition" working for them in Edmonton... I don't know whether she intends that to mean that Ron Stevens, the Deputy Premier, was "INEFFECTIVE opposition", or that she thinks being across the room yelling at the cabinet benches is a better way to represent the people of Glenmore than actually being in the cabinet room, where the decisions are made - either way, it's a talking point that needed a bit more thought put into it before it became one of the central points of the campaign.
On the issue of the Ring Road, Roberts has remained publicly silent as far as I can tell. I'm particularly interested to hear her proposed solution to the issue, because of her involvement with the Weaselhead Society, which has come out strongly opposed to any contruction or road building that affects the Weaselhead natural area.
Bottom Line: Anyone who thinks Roberts can't win this race is fooling themselves. The Liberals are riding a high in this city since the last provincial election, and their supporters are VERY likely to come out in droves trying to wrest this seat from the Tories. The campaign has been a bit underwhelming overall, and a bit of a pall has been cast by the appearance in the past week of potentially illegal 3rd-party advertising on Avalon's behalf... but if the Colley-Urquhart and Hinman people back off the GOTV efforts even for a moment on the 14th, they might both be looking up at the next Official Opposition critic for Health and Wellness.
Roberts' campaign website
Roberts on Twitter
Len Skowronski, Alberta Social Credit Party
You can call the SoCreds a lot of things... but quitters, they ain't. I got my first glimpse of a Skowronski sign in this campaign on August 31st, on a patch of grass in a high school parking lot. Because those High School kids are VERY likely to vote Social Credit. :)
Skowronski is the leader of the Alberta Social Credit party, and has been since 2007. He has run provincially twice before - in 2004 in Calgary-Varsity, and in 2007 in Calgary-Bow. The campaign signs feature a modified Alberta license plate with the SoCred logo and the plate reading "R U Ready?" - a message that suggests the Social Credit revolution is upon us once again. In fairness, the party has made a lot of strides lately in terms of policy and party infrastructure - the problem they run into is with their brand. To most Albertans, Social Credit has gone the way of the T-Rex - a big deal at its peak, but a historical footnote these days.
The sad thing about Skowronski's candidacy is, he proposes a lot of good ideas, and common-sense democratic solutions to some of the issues facing Glenmore, and all of Alberta. His brand, though, has simply GOT to change. The same policies and ideas, presented by the "Moving Alberta Forward" party, would gain a whole new level of traction in the public consciousness.
Bottom Line: Good ideas, but lacklustre execution and a terrible branding issue leave the campaign fighting to avoid the embarassment of finishing dead last.
Skowronski campaign website (sort of...)
Calgary-Glenmore Candidates Forum
Southwood Community Hall
11 Sackville Drive SW
Seating is limited, so arrive early.
Bring an open mind. Leave your campaign signs at home. The object is to discuss issues and let the undecided choose, not to chant, cat-call and intimidate better than "the other guys".
Perfecting Alberta, Part 3: Economics and Industry...
Perfecting Alberta, Part 2: Primary and Secondary ...
Smith vs. Dyrholm, Today from that little speaker ...
... and, just because I haven't been given enough ...
E.S. Nation Correspondents in Glenmore - Sound Off...
E.S. Nation Correspondents in Edmonton - Sound Off...


text:
"""@package src.wi.forms.node

@author Krzysztof Danielowski
@author Piotr Wójcik
@date 17.10.2011
"""

from django import forms
from django.utils.translation import ugettext_lazy as _

from wi.utils import parsing
from wi.utils.forms import attrs_dict, BetterForm

class MountNodeForm(forms.Form):
    """
    Class for mounting node form.
    """

    def __init__(self, *args, **kwargs):
        rest_data = kwargs.pop('rest_data')
        super(MountNodeForm, self).__init__(*args, **kwargs)
        self.fields['node_id'] = forms.ChoiceField(choices=parsing.parse_node_names(rest_data),
                                                   initial=0,
                                                   label=_("Node"))

class NodeForm(BetterForm):
    """
    Class for creating a node form.
    """

    class Meta:
        """
        Fieldset names definition.
        """
        fieldsets = (('libvirt', {'fields': ('address',), 'legend': _('Libvirt configuration')}),
                     ('resources',
                      {'fields': ('hdd_total', 'cpu_total', 'memory_total'), 'legend': _('Node capacity')}),)

        def __init__(self):
            pass

    def __init__(self, *args, **kwargs):
        super(NodeForm, self).__init__(*args, **kwargs)
        self.fields['address'] = forms.CharField(widget=forms.TextInput(attrs=dict(attrs_dict, maxlength=45)),
                                                 label=_('Node address'),
                                                 help_text=_('Node address - IP or DNS name'))
        self.fields['hdd_total'] = forms.IntegerField(min_value=1,
                                                      label=_('HDD Total [MB]'),
                                                      help_text=_(
                                                          ' - total amount of storage for virtual machine images'))
        self.fields['cpu_total'] = forms.IntegerField(min_value=1,
                                                      label=_('Cpu Total'),
                                                      help_text=_(' - total amount of CPU\'s for libvirt'))
        self.fields['memory_total'] = forms.IntegerField(min_value=1,
                                                         label=_('Memory Total [MB]'),
                                                         help_text=_(' - total amount of RAM'))

class EditNodeForm(NodeForm, BetterForm):
    """
    Class for editing a node form.
    """

    class Meta:
        """
        Fieldset names definition.
        """
        fieldsets = (('libvirt', {'fields': ('address', 'comment'), 'legend': _('Libvirt configuration')}),
                     ('resources',
                      {'fields': ('hdd_total', 'cpu_total', 'memory_total'), 'legend': _('Node capacity')}),)

        def __init__(self):
            pass

    def __init__(self, *args, **kwargs):
        super(EditNodeForm, self).__init__(*args, **kwargs)
        self.fields['comment'] = forms.CharField(required=False,
                                                 widget=forms.Textarea(attrs=dict(attrs_dict,
                                                                                maxlength=256,
                                                                                rows=4,
                                                                                cols=20)),
                                                 label=_('Comment'))

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


This page is intended to become a repository for information regarding portable organs. The only info here now is the list of organs owned by page author Dave Amels. If this sort of thing interests you mail me at Dave@VoceInc.com.


text:
Q: Issue with depencies while running maven build, how can I fix it? I am trying to build Java project with Maven, but got stuck with this error. I've tried mvn -U clean install, tried getting repository folder from my colleagues, but nothing helps.
Here is the error message. It seems that there is no needed dependency but since it is not a direct dependency - I don't know how to fix it.
[ERROR] Failed to execute goal on project project-name: Could not resolve dependencies for project ru.company-name.jive:project-name:jar:9.0.7.1: Failed to collect dependencies at com.jivesoftware:jive-core:jar:9.0.7.1_1276_18c97f6 -> com.googlecode.owasp-java-html-sanitizer:owasp-java-html-sanitizer:jar:1.1 -> com.google.guava:guava:jar:24.0-android-SNAPSHOT: Failed to read artifact descriptor for com.google.guava:guava:jar:24.0-android-SNAPSHOT: Could not find artifact com.google.guava:guava-parent:pom:24.0-android-20170926.205728-110 in mygrid (http://repository.mygrid.org.uk/artifactory/remote-repos) -> [Help 1]
org.apache.maven.lifecycle.LifecycleExecutionException: Failed to execute goal on project project-name: Could not resolve dependencies for project ru.company-name.jive:project-name:jar:9.0.7.1: Failed to collect dependencies at com.jivesoftware:jive-core:jar:9.0.7.1_1276_18c97f6 -> com.googlecode.owasp-java-html-sanitizer:owasp-java-html-sanitizer:jar:1.1 -> com.google.guava:guava:jar:24.0-android-SNAPSHOT
    at org.apache.maven.lifecycle.internal.LifecycleDependencyResolver.getDependencies (LifecycleDependencyResolver.java:269)
    at org.apache.maven.lifecycle.internal.LifecycleDependencyResolver.resolveProjectDependencies (LifecycleDependencyResolver.java:147)
    at org.apache.maven.lifecycle.internal.MojoExecutor.ensureDependenciesAreResolved (MojoExecutor.java:248)
    at org.apache.maven.lifecycle.internal.MojoExecutor.execute (MojoExecutor.java:202)
    ...
    at org.codehaus.plexus.classworlds.launcher.Launcher.launchEnhanced (Launcher.java:282)
    at org.codehaus.plexus.classworlds.launcher.Launcher.launch (Launcher.java:225)
    at org.codehaus.plexus.classworlds.launcher.Launcher.mainWithExitCode (Launcher.java:406)
    at org.codehaus.plexus.classworlds.launcher.Launcher.main (Launcher.java:347)
Caused by: org.apache.maven.project.DependencyResolutionException: Could not resolve dependencies for project ru.company-name.jive:project-name:jar:9.0.7.1: Failed to collect dependencies at com.jivesoftware:jive-core:jar:9.0.7.1_1276_18c97f6 -> com.googlecode.owasp-java-html-sanitizer:owasp-java-html-sanitizer:jar:1.1 -> com.google.guava:guava:jar:24.0-android-SNAPSHOT
    at org.apache.maven.project.DefaultProjectDependenciesResolver.resolve (DefaultProjectDependenciesResolver.java:178)
    at org.apache.maven.lifecycle.internal.LifecycleDependencyResolver.getDependencies (LifecycleDependencyResolver.java:243)
    at org.apache.maven.lifecycle.internal.LifecycleDependencyResolver.resolveProjectDependencies (LifecycleDependencyResolver.java:147)
    ...
    at java.lang.reflect.Method.invoke (Unknown Source)
    at org.codehaus.plexus.classworlds.launcher.Launcher.launchEnhanced (Launcher.java:282)
    at org.codehaus.plexus.classworlds.launcher.Launcher.launch (Launcher.java:225)
    at org.codehaus.plexus.classworlds.launcher.Launcher.mainWithExitCode (Launcher.java:406)
    at org.codehaus.plexus.classworlds.launcher.Launcher.main (Launcher.java:347)
Caused by: org.eclipse.aether.collection.DependencyCollectionException: Failed to collect dependencies at com.jivesoftware:jive-core:jar:9.0.7.1_1276_18c97f6 -> com.googlecode.owasp-java-html-sanitizer:owasp-java-html-sanitizer:jar:1.1 -> com.google.guava:guava:jar:24.0-android-SNAPSHOT
    at org.eclipse.aether.internal.impl.collect.DefaultDependencyCollector.collectDependencies (DefaultDependencyCollector.java:291)
    at org.eclipse.aether.internal.impl.DefaultRepositorySystem.collectDependencies (DefaultRepositorySystem.java:284)
    at org.apache.maven.project.DefaultProjectDependenciesResolver.resolve (DefaultProjectDependenciesResolver.java:169)
    ...
    at java.lang.reflect.Method.invoke (Unknown Source)
    at org.codehaus.plexus.classworlds.launcher.Launcher.launchEnhanced (Launcher.java:282)
    at org.codehaus.plexus.classworlds.launcher.Launcher.launch (Launcher.java:225)
    at org.codehaus.plexus.classworlds.launcher.Launcher.mainWithExitCode (Launcher.java:406)
    at org.codehaus.plexus.classworlds.launcher.Launcher.main (Launcher.java:347)
Caused by: org.eclipse.aether.resolution.ArtifactDescriptorException: Failed to read artifact descriptor for com.google.guava:guava:jar:24.0-android-SNAPSHOT
    at org.apache.maven.repository.internal.DefaultArtifactDescriptorReader.loadPom (DefaultArtifactDescriptorReader.java:301)
    at org.apache.maven.repository.internal.DefaultArtifactDescriptorReader.readArtifactDescriptor (DefaultArtifactDescriptorReader.java:171)
    at org.eclipse.aether.internal.impl.collect.DefaultDependencyCollector.resolveCachedArtifactDescriptor (DefaultDependencyCollector.java:541)
    ...
    at java.lang.reflect.Method.invoke (Unknown Source)
    at org.codehaus.plexus.classworlds.launcher.Launcher.launchEnhanced (Launcher.java:282)
    at org.codehaus.plexus.classworlds.launcher.Launcher.launch (Launcher.java:225)
    at org.codehaus.plexus.classworlds.launcher.Launcher.mainWithExitCode (Launcher.java:406)
    at org.codehaus.plexus.classworlds.launcher.Launcher.main (Launcher.java:347)
Caused by: org.apache.maven.model.resolution.UnresolvableModelException: Could not find artifact com.google.guava:guava-parent:pom:24.0-android-20170926.205728-110 in mygrid (http://repository.mygrid.org.uk/artifactory/remote-repos)
    at org.apache.maven.repository.internal.DefaultModelResolver.resolveModel (DefaultModelResolver.java:176)
    at org.apache.maven.repository.internal.DefaultModelResolver.resolveModel (DefaultModelResolver.java:222)
    at org.apache.maven.model.building.DefaultModelBuilder.readParentExternally (DefaultModelBuilder.java:1070)
    ...
    at org.codehaus.plexus.classworlds.launcher.Launcher.launch (Launcher.java:225)
    at org.codehaus.plexus.classworlds.launcher.Launcher.mainWithExitCode (Launcher.java:406)
    at org.codehaus.plexus.classworlds.launcher.Launcher.main (Launcher.java:347)
Caused by: org.eclipse.aether.resolution.ArtifactResolutionException: Could not find artifact com.google.guava:guava-parent:pom:24.0-android-20170926.205728-110 in mygrid (http://repository.mygrid.org.uk/artifactory/remote-repos)
    at org.eclipse.aether.internal.impl.DefaultArtifactResolver.resolve (DefaultArtifactResolver.java:424)
    at org.eclipse.aether.internal.impl.DefaultArtifactResolver.resolveArtifacts (DefaultArtifactResolver.java:229)
    at org.eclipse.aether.internal.impl.DefaultArtifactResolver.resolveArtifact (DefaultArtifactResolver.java:207)
    at org.apache.maven.repository.internal.DefaultModelResolver.resolveModel (DefaultModelResolver.java:172)
    ...
    at org.codehaus.plexus.classworlds.launcher.Launcher.mainWithExitCode (Launcher.java:406)
    at org.codehaus.plexus.classworlds.launcher.Launcher.main (Launcher.java:347)
[ERROR]
[ERROR]
[ERROR] For more information about the errors and possible solutions, please read the following articles:
[ERROR] [Help 1] http://cwiki.apache.org/confluence/display/MAVEN/DependencyResolutionException

here is my pom.xml:
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<project xmlns="http://maven.apache.org/POM/4.0.0"
         xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance"
         xsi:schemaLocation="http://maven.apache.org/POM/4.0.0 http://maven.apache.org/xsd/maven-4.0.0.xsd">
    <modelVersion>4.0.0</modelVersion>

    <groupId>ru.mycompany.jive</groupId>
    <artifactId>ru-mycompany-core</artifactId>
    <name>ru-mycompany-core</name>
    <version>${build.version}</version>
    <packaging>jar</packaging>

    <parent>
        <groupId>com.jivesoftware.maven</groupId>
        <artifactId>jive-parent-pom</artifactId>
        <version>9.0.7.1-0</version>
    </parent>

    <properties>
        <final.name>${project.artifactId}-${build.version}</final.name>
        <build.assembly.format>jar</build.assembly.format>
        <build.version>9.0.7.1</build.version>
    </properties>

    <distributionManagement>
        <repository>
            <id>mycompany-artifactory-central</id>
            <url>https://repo.mycompany.ru/artifactory/jive-release</url>
        </repository>
    </distributionManagement>

    <repositories>
        <repository>
            <id>google-snapshots</id>
            <url>https://oss.sonatype.org/content/repositories/snapshots/</url>
            <releases>
                <enabled>false</enabled>
            </releases>
            <snapshots>
                <enabled>true</enabled>
            </snapshots>
        </repository>
    </repositories>

    <build>
        <finalName>${final.name}</finalName>
        <outputDirectory>${project.build.directory}/classes</outputDirectory>
        <plugins>
            <plugin>
                <groupId>org.apache.maven.plugins</groupId>
                <artifactId>maven-compiler-plugin</artifactId>
            </plugin>
            <plugin>
                <groupId>org.codehaus.mojo</groupId>
                <artifactId>aspectj-maven-plugin</artifactId>
            </plugin>
            <plugin>
                <groupId>org.apache.maven.plugins</groupId>
                <artifactId>maven-jar-plugin</artifactId>
            </plugin>
            <!-- Unpackages this Jive plugin. Used in conjunction with the -DpluginDirs= property -->
            <plugin>
                <groupId>org.apache.maven.plugins</groupId>
                <artifactId>maven-antrun-plugin</artifactId>
            </plugin>
        </plugins>
    </build>

    <dependencies>
        <dependency>
            <groupId>com.jivesoftware</groupId>
            <artifactId>jive-core</artifactId>
        </dependency>
        <dependency>
            <groupId>javax.servlet</groupId>
            <artifactId>${servlet.api.artifactId}</artifactId>
        </dependency>

        <dependency>
            <groupId>javax.ws.rs</groupId>
            <artifactId>javax.ws.rs-api</artifactId>
            <version>2.0-m10</version>
            <scope>provided</scope>
        </dependency>
        <!-- Jersey Client -->
        <dependency>
            <groupId>com.sun.jersey</groupId>
            <artifactId>jersey-client</artifactId>
            <version>1.18.2</version>
        </dependency>

    </dependencies>

</project>

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


text:
Vaccines and Bayonets: Fighting Smallpox in Africa amid Tribalism, Terror and the Cold War
Bee Bloeser has lived and worked in Africa, the Middle East and Native American nations and has supported her husband's public health work around the world. She lives in California.
SKU: 9781627878562 Categories: Biography & Autobiography, History, Medical
"At a time when vaccines are front-page news and a deadly pandemic is raging across the globe, Bloeser's memoir makes for riveting reading. . .a captivating family history and a reminder of how public health campaigns are still inextricably intertwined with politics. . ."
— Sasha Polakow-Suransky, Deputy Editor of Foreign Policy magazine
". . .a closely observed memoir. . .historically important. . .most remarkable when it recounts living in tropical, isolated and unfortunate Equatorial Guinea. . . sympathetic, vividly told and useful record of an unusually sombre moment in West African history."
— Adam Roberts, Midwest Correspondent at The Economist
". . . reads like a political thriller, women's history, and African adventure rolled into one. . . . Riveting."
— Pamela Alexander, Pulitzer Prize-nominated author
When the world's nations join hands to banish smallpox, the author's husband is posted to West Africa, initially to Nigeria. She eagerly follows him with two young children and wide-eyed ideals. What she finds during their two-year adventure deepens her love for the Africa she encounters, while its tragedies along with tripwires of international service erode her naivete. Later in Equatorial Guinea when attached to America's smallest embassy, her husband must partner with a regime known as "the terror." The people are brutalized, and journalists are banned. The author, one of only two American women in the country, keeps cryptic notes and hides them in a sock drawer, notes now a part of this memoir.
1977: The Year of Leaving Monsieur
Looking for Love in Strange Places: A Memoir for My Stepdaughters
A Dakota Woman
40 Seasons: The Life of a High School Basketball Coach


text:
Ridgeway Group signs 26 dealers up to Auto Trader i-Control
Ridgeway is the latest franchise dealer group to embrace the power of intelligent stock management thanks to Auto Trader i-Control.
In total, 26 Ridgeway sites across the South will shortly receive full training in the use of an intelligence tool that supports decisions to buy the most desirable stock, to price it correctly and to manage a forecourt intelligently in line with the live market.
There are now more than 750 franchise and non-franchise dealers using i-Control across the UK. i-Control tracks daily market movements, collating huge volumes of data taken from Auto Trader, dealer websites, auction houses and other sources. Using advanced algorithms, it supports dealers in managing their stock, helping select the right models for a forecourt and pricing to an ever-changing live market. User benefits include faster stock turn and improved profitability, as users source only the most desirable stock, price it competitively and manage their forecourts in the most effective way.
"Since we launched a pilot last year, I have seen a real change in many of my colleagues' approach to i-Control," said Jon Head, group operations director, Ridgeway. "To begin with some managers were not convinced, but now everyone can see the benefits. The entire Auto Trader team have been superb in supporting colleagues and explaining just how it can be used to boost their bottom line. I'm confident that i-Control will be a huge success and we are all raring to get started."
"I'm delighted to welcome 26 dealers in the Ridgeway Group to the i-Control family," added Sharon Randall, Auto Trader UK sales director. "Our aim is to help every one of these sites to hit the ground running and to use this powerful tool to its full potential. Starting with training, every step of the journey will be taken with the full support of our expert i-Control team. I look forward to hearing about improvements in profitability at Ridgeway sites from Oxford to Portsmouth in the months ahead."
The news that 26 Ridgeway dealers have signed up to i-Control comes following a 350% increase in the tool's uptake in 2014. That includes 80% of Lookers' sites which have signed up in the last year.
Auto Trader recently analysed 50,000 cars on its site to assess whether i-Control played a role in boosting full page ad views. The results showed that cars which were appraised and re-priced based on desirability, value rank and local competitor information received an average of 30% more full page advert views per car, per day over a month than those that weren't.
For all trade media enquiries, please contact:
Nigel Wonnacott, PR Director at JJ Marketing, on 07802 483 971 or nigel.wonnacott@jjmarketing.co.uk
86% of buyers research their next car in the evening


text:
Rosemont, Ill. - Rachel Fico pitched a complete game shutout and was the lynchpin of a 4-0 victory for the Chicago Bandits (16-3) over the Cleveland Comets (9-14) on Thursday.
Fico was dominant in the pitching circle, striking out eight batters. She allowed two hits the entire game and only three baserunners as a whole.
"[Amanda Chidester] did a great job behind the plate and calling a good game today," Fico said. "She changed speeds, she worked tunnels and she was able to keep my pitch count down by keeping the hitters off balance."
Not to be outdone, Comets pitcher Randi Rupp started the game off strong in a contest that began as a low scoring pitcher's duel. Through the first four innings, Rupp didn't give up a hit and allowed one baserunner.
The Bandits were able to open things up offensively in the fifth inning. Kristyn Sandberg got the first hit of the game for the Bandits with a double down the left field line. With a Gwen Svekis walk, Sierra Hyland came in to relieve Rupp in the pitcher's circle. After Nadia Taylor loaded the bases with another walk, Brenna Moss brought in two runs with a blooper single over third base. Jessie Scroggins batted in another run on a single to extend the lead to 3-0 by the end of the fifth inning.
Abbey Cheek hit a solo home run in the sixth inning to add another run to help seal the win for the Bandits. The rookie third baseman has now hit three home runs so far on the season.
The Bandits will look to extend their winning streak to 11 games as they continue their series with the Comets on Friday, July 5th at 7:35 C.T.
Abbey Cheek of the Chicago Bandits
Chicago Bandits pitcher Rachel Fico
Bandits Pull Away Late From Comets on Independence Day to Extend Winning Streak to Ten - Chicago Bandits


Inpatient rehab centers offer a structured program through which those with addictions are able to acquire both psychological and medical treatment for their illness. It is a more rigorous form of rehabilitation than outpatient programs, and in high-risk patients often has a better success rate. Even low-risk patients may find it easier to recover from their substance abuse problem through the stability of an inpatient drug rehab program.
From the moment they search out "inpatient alcohol treatment centers near me" or "inpatient drug treatment centers near me," potential patients at Elevate are able to go through a step-by-step program that is targeted towards helping them both achieve and maintain sobriety. Our inpatient alcohol rehab and inpatient drug rehab clinicians will evaluate the patient and the patient's needs, with the goal of assessing their current risk and getting them the inpatient drug rehab care that they need.
Once patients have successfully reached a clean and sober state, the next focus is on maintaining that sobriety. Patients will often check out once they are no longer considered to be a substantial risk of relapse, and we continue to help with optional sober living and aftercare programs, which makes finding an inpatient drug treatment center near them essential. Elevate's inpatient drug rehab centers proudly serve San Fransisco and the Bay Area.
Inpatient treatment is often used to reduce the medical risks associated with physical withdrawal. Physical withdrawal can be dangerous for patients with long-term substance abuse problems or patients who are abusing specific types of medications. If patients are not allowed to taper off their drug use, they may need to undergo medical supervision while they are going through withdrawal.
For even alcoholics, the process of withdrawal can be potentially fatal if it is not managed by a professional. Elevate's inpatient clinic will be able to watch patients 24 hours a day to ensure that any of their potential medical problems are addressed quickly.
Fighting through the initial physical withdrawal is often the most difficult stage for patients. If they have not yet stopped using the substance they are trying to recover from, it can be advisable for them to seek help from an inpatient clinic.
Drug abuse is a multi-factored illness. All factors need to be addressed to improve the odds of a patient's success. Inpatient alcohol treatment provides comprehensive, round-the-clock care, to better improve the chances of a successful rehab.
Those with addictions may find it difficult to remain rehabilitated in the same environment in which they previously did drugs. Many patients need to be close to their families, so searching out an inpatient drug rehab near them can be essential. Upon returning home, not only will they be subjected to the same stressors and triggers, but they may also be around individuals who previously facilitated their drug abuse.
Apart from the environment, patients will also need to to work with the inpatient alcohol rehab program to address the symptoms of their physical and psychological addiction. This often includes finding the source of the patient's need for drug abuse, which is often separate from their physical addiction.
The goal of inpatient rehabilitation us not only to rehabilitate the individual but also to make sure that they have the tools to succeed once they have left the clinic. Patients will be taught ways they can avoid their potential triggers, such as by calling their caseworker any time they feel themselves slipping.
After inpatient rehab, many patients will transition to outpatient services. They will still come in for medications, check-ins, and other services, but they will not stay in the facility. Follow-ups are incredibly important, as patients can use them as a tool to avoid sliding backward. Patients should address any concerns they have with their caseworker.
If necessary, a patient may need.to be transitioned back from outpatient to inpatient services. This can happen if the individual feels as though they are going to relapse or if the individual fails a drug test. This creates an important support network for the patient that they might not otherwise have access to.
It is possible for concerned family members to "commit" a relative to inpatient rehab, though the process is generally only possible if the individual has a significant problem. Judges will need to determine whether the individual in question could potentially be a risk to themselves or others.
To commit a relative to inpatient rehab centers, family members need to compile a significant amount of evidence regarding their substance abuse problem. It may be necessary to have testimony from a police officer, medical professional, or another authority figure. A judge will then decide whether the individual should be committed to an inpatient rehab center and for how long.
Commitment to an inpatient center is not a punishment nor is it a negative for the individual. Rather, it is geared at providing conscientious medical care to an individual whose illness may otherwise prevent them from seeking care.
For some patients, outpatient procedures may be enough to achieve successful rehabilitation. For others, inpatient procedures may be ideal. It all depends on the patient and their unique relationship with drug abuse. Going into an inpatient clinic can be potentially disruptive to an individual's day-to-day life, but it is also often the only solution for those who have failed outpatient rehabilitation in the past.


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