{"id":31784,"date":"2025-11-29T03:17:55","date_gmt":"2025-11-29T03:17:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/?p=31784"},"modified":"2025-11-29T03:17:55","modified_gmt":"2025-11-29T03:17:55","slug":"elephants-in-the-room","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/?p=31784","title":{"rendered":"Elephants in the room&#8230;"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped wp-block-gallery-1 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\"><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1000\" height=\"554\" src=\"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/S-C-holding-white-elephant.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-31802\" srcset=\"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/S-C-holding-white-elephant.jpg 1000w, https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/S-C-holding-white-elephant-300x166.jpg 300w, https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/S-C-holding-white-elephant-768x425.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 709px) 85vw, (max-width: 909px) 67vw, (max-width: 1362px) 62vw, 840px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-color has-link-color has-medium-font-size wp-elements-8eae3da57febd578de0b1013d3de2a24\" style=\"color:#890925\">Court Painter seems obsessed with painting more white elephants . <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-color has-link-color has-medium-font-size wp-elements-73520db74eb5b901991dd87e1ee51d3b\" style=\"color:#890925\">Meanwhile his trusty Press Attache AHM read and recommends this article by Max Fawcett where he sets up the premise that Prime Minister Carney knows the pipeline will never get built while achieving concessions that help advance his government\u2019s climate agenda far more than anything the previous federal government managed to achieve in, and with, Alberta.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1000\" height=\"658\" src=\"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Smth-carney-Elephant-target.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-31801\" srcset=\"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Smth-carney-Elephant-target.jpg 1000w, https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Smth-carney-Elephant-target-300x197.jpg 300w, https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Smth-carney-Elephant-target-768x505.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 709px) 85vw, (max-width: 909px) 67vw, (max-width: 1362px) 62vw, 840px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Premier Smith &amp; Prime Minister Carney appear to tussle in the elephant room.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-color has-link-color has-medium-font-size wp-elements-c44edfd7feefdc0c46b32c51f31a5945\" style=\"color:#b5160e\"><strong>Click link for National Observer November 27th 2025<\/strong> <strong>article<\/strong> by Max Fawcett<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nationalobserver.com\/2025\/11\/27\/opinion\/method-mark-carney-madness\">https:\/\/www.nationalobserver.com\/2025\/11\/27\/opinion\/method-mark-carney-madness<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full is-style-rounded\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"700\" height=\"624\" src=\"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/S-C-target-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-31800\" srcset=\"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/S-C-target-1.jpg 700w, https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/S-C-target-1-300x267.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 709px) 85vw, (max-width: 909px) 67vw, (max-width: 984px) 61vw, (max-width: 1362px) 45vw, 600px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h1 class=\"wp-block-heading has-dark-brown-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-c17e760a053c6fd8c0d25b72c89dc9e1\">The method to Mark Carney\u2019s madness<\/h1>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-color has-link-color has-medium-font-size wp-elements-5003b4a9d3c9a2d60b2476a9c39433de\" style=\"color:#9f0c04\">Excerpts from article:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-medium-font-size\">&#8216;This<strong> MOU <\/strong>strikes me as one giant wink to the climate community \u2014 one that commits Ottawa to supporting an oil pipeline <strong>Carney knows will never get built.&nbsp;<\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/bsky.app\/intent\/compose?text=So%20far%2C%20Mark%20Carney%20has%20gotten%20two%20standing%20ovations%20and%20lost%20one%20cabinet%20minister%20as%20a%20result%20of%20his%20%22grand%20bargain%22%20with%20Alberta.%20The%20best%2C%20or%20worst%2C%20is%20almost%20certainly%20yet%20to%20come.%20%20https%3A\/\/www.nationalobserver.com\/2025\/11\/27\/opinion\/method-mark-carney-madness\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-medium-font-size\">That\u2019s because Smith and whoever steps up as its proponent will still need to negotiate with impacted First Nations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-medium-font-size\"> They would have to negotiate with BC Premier David Eby, who will be looking ahead to the next election and the prospect of rallying his base around fighting back against another Alberta oil pipeline. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-medium-font-size\">And, most importantly, they will have to convince the oil and gas industry to invest in the sort of high-cost growth projects that would be needed to fill the pipeline.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-medium-font-size\">That isn\u2019t going to happen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1000\" height=\"727\" src=\"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Elephants-in-room-2pxm.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-31796\" srcset=\"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Elephants-in-room-2pxm.jpg 1000w, https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Elephants-in-room-2pxm-300x218.jpg 300w, https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Elephants-in-room-2pxm-768x558.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 709px) 85vw, (max-width: 909px) 67vw, (max-width: 1362px) 62vw, 840px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Court Painter&#8217;s pictorial rendering of the reasons an oil pipeline will not get built.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-medium-font-size\"> The oil and gas industry may have deliberately cultivated a reputation for itself as a place defined by risk-taking and swagger, but today\u2019s oil and gas sector is run by glorified spreadsheet jockeys who consistently shy away from even the smallest quantum of uncertainty. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-medium-font-size\">And while they might support the political ambitions of Premier Smith and the UCP, but they have a legal fiduciary duty to their shareholders \u2014 one that requires them to seriously assess the prospect of things like peak oil demand and its impact on any new projects they might want to build.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-medium-font-size\">The <strong>MOU<\/strong>, then, is textbook Carney. By telling a political adversary what they wanted to hear, he\u2019s gotten them to agree to something he needs. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full is-style-rounded\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"632\" height=\"632\" src=\"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/ele-target.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-31805\" srcset=\"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/ele-target.jpg 632w, https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/ele-target-300x300.jpg 300w, https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/ele-target-150x150.jpg 150w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 709px) 85vw, (max-width: 909px) 67vw, (max-width: 984px) 61vw, (max-width: 1362px) 45vw, 600px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>A white elephant<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-bright-blue-color has-text-color has-link-color has-medium-font-size wp-elements-8cc172c74b9a82e0ee86b3f338e72dcb\"><strong>He\u2019s effectively daring Danielle Smith to do the work required to get her coveted pipeline built, knowing full well she can\u2019t actually do it.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-bright-blue-color has-text-color has-link-color has-medium-font-size wp-elements-d2e50cc9d40b9c8ed67cabcfdc1a3832\"><strong>But Smith\u2019s concessions help advance his government\u2019s climate agenda far more than anything the previous federal government managed to achieve in, and with, Alberta.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-medium-font-size\">For a guy who wasn\u2019t supposed to be a natural politician, he\u2019s turning out to be pretty good at it \u2014 better, even, than the one he replaced.&nbsp;&#8216;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full is-style-rounded\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"544\" height=\"800\" src=\"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Negotiation-target.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-31797\" srcset=\"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Negotiation-target.jpg 544w, https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Negotiation-target-204x300.jpg 204w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 544px) 85vw, 544px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Alberta Premier Smith strikes a triumphant pose over a smiling PM. Carney<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1000\" height=\"748\" src=\"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Court-Painter-white-elephant.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-31806\" srcset=\"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Court-Painter-white-elephant.jpg 1000w, https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Court-Painter-white-elephant-300x224.jpg 300w, https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Court-Painter-white-elephant-768x574.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 709px) 85vw, (max-width: 909px) 67vw, (max-width: 1362px) 62vw, 840px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Court Painter resting after his prodigious pachyderm painting production.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Court Painter seems obsessed with painting more white elephants . Meanwhile his trusty Press Attache AHM read and recommends this article by Max Fawcett where he sets up the premise that Prime Minister Carney knows the pipeline will never get built while achieving concessions that help advance his government\u2019s climate agenda far more than anything &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/?p=31784\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading<span class=\"screen-reader-text\"> &#8220;Elephants in the room&#8230;&#8221;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"gallery","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-31784","post","type-post","status-publish","format-gallery","hentry","category-images","post_format-post-format-gallery"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31784","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=31784"}],"version-history":[{"count":18,"href":"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31784\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":31814,"href":"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31784\/revisions\/31814"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=31784"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=31784"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=31784"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}