Notes from a scrum (III)

Yet another glimpse into Our Dear Alternate Reality, courtesy of VOCM’s wonderful foray into YouTubery. He says, of the Lower Churchill project and Quebec’s involvement:

If they don’t come on side, then we’ll do it without Quebec, and we’ll do it without the government of Canada. But that’s not the way a country should operate. Quebec should be working with us, the government of Canada should be working with us.

Now, that’s odd.

A body might be forgiven for thinking, lo these past four years, that Himself was determined to “go it alone” on what He has taken to calling “the Churchill”.

As Himself told the House of Assembly on May 8, 2006:

Mr. Speaker, in anticipation of this announcement today, I spoke last night with the Prime Minister to indicate to him that this was proceeding and exactly what we were doing. I spoke to the Premier of Ontario, Dalton McGuinty, to indicate that we were proceeding on a go-alone basis but that we would certainly be prepared to entertain the Province of Ontario as a customer. I spoke to the Premier of Quebec, Jean Charest, and talked to him about what our plans were. We discussed briefly his energy proposals, which were released just last Friday. He indicated to us that they had gone ahead with their energy plans on the basis that - they assumed that we were probably going to do the Lower Churchill project on our own.

Yet now Himself is fustigating and fomenting froth against Quebec and Canada for not participating in his little go-it-alone adventure. And herself, Minister Blunderdale, expressed frustration last week on VOCM that Quebec wouldn’t take an equity stake in the Churchill.

That is, a piece of ownership.

You would think that, in ratcheting up the language of “go it alone”, that that is exactly what He, and We, wanted.

As a three year old might say, “mine!”

Apparently not.

He doesn’t want to go it alone.

He never wanted to go it alone.

As Minister Blunderdale told VOCM on Friday, “we’ve got a path beaten to their door.” The They in question being Hydro-Quebec.

When it comes to the involvement of Quebec and Canada, what He, and consequently We, want, and now have always wanted, is to go it alone – together.

Come to think of it, it would make a great slogan for a slick promotional campaign.

The Churchill: Going It Alone – Together.

Hands off, M5.

Here’s the full video. The money quotes are about a minute in.