After reflecting on Premier Danielle Smith’s recent words of chastisement, the bad boy of Alberta conservatism, David Parker, said in a tweet yesterday evening that he’s repented and “will not use personal insults in my public communications going forward.”
Having been publicly spanked by the premier for slagging federal Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre and his wife, I wondered on Feb. 29 if Take Back Alberta’s founder and abrasive serial tweeter would meekly do as he’d been told or if he’d grow even more defiant.
Now we have the answer.
“I have returned insult with insult and injury with injury,” Parker Xclaimed last night. “In doing so, I have brought disgrace to the name of Christ.”
This suggests Parker may still think he’s more influential than he really is. After all, Christ’s reputation has been well enough established for a few years now that it’s unlikely to be tarnished by the rudeness of a social media over-user from Central Alberta.
Be that as it may, “the only path forward is repentance,” he continued. “That means turning around and going the other way.” Hence the pledge to quit with the insults, which is certainly likely to be a good thing for Parker’s mental wellbeing.
Still, that must have been a heck of a can of whoop-ass the premier, or someone, opened on the previously unrepentant former self-described “Stephen Harper storm trooper,” who once boasted his TBA supporters had pushed out Jason Kenney and warned the replacement premier to be careful or “there would probably be a grassroots movement to remove Smith if she didn’t do what she said she’d do.”
After all, TBA supporters do nowadays control the United Conservative Party’s governing board.
Does Parker’s pledge mean he intends to be less ruthless in his targeting of political foes, or just that he’ll be more civil about it?
It’s hard to say from a careful reading of his statement. “I weaponized my words instead of speaking the truth in love,” Parker said. This sounds like an intention to continue saying the same things, just with better manners. (This is known as the love-the-sinner, hate-the-sin school of admonishment.)
“I am not asking for anyone’s forgiveness,” he also said. “Other people will have to decide whether they forgive me on their own terms.” Does one detect a note of haughtiness? An haughty spirit, as regular readers of this blog will know, goeth before a fall.
Does Parker still intend to have Take Back Alberta supporters take over Alberta school boards and run out superintendents and principals who will not do their will? That remains to be seen, I guess. But I wouldn’t bet against it.
Does he still want the leadership of Alberta Health Services to know that “We are coming for you, and we will not rest until your evil communist ideology is eradicated from the face of this province”?
Hard to say. That tweet has been sent down the memory hole, although it can still be found if you look, because the Internet is almost forever, if not quite eternity. Anyway, Ms. Smith seems to be taking care of that.
Internet chatter says Naheed Nenshi will announce NDP leadership bid next week
There continues to be chatter on social media about the second coming of Naheed Nenshi, the former three-term Calgary mayor who is expected to toss his cap into the Alberta NDP leadership ring next Monday.
This, presumably, means that Nenshi’s campaign team is busy stoking the fire to make sure his announcement – and the presumed acceptance of his candidacy by the Opposition party – is enthusiastically greeted when it’s made.
There are people in NDP circles who worry about the impact on the party of a candidate who not long ago at all wasn’t even a member, but at this point in the campaign it would be pretty hard to tell Nenshi he had to go away.
Meanwhile, despite a rumour to the contrary, Alberta Federation of Labour President Gil McGowan told me yesterday that he’s still planning to run. “The party is still vetting me,” he said. “I’m still waiting for the green light.”
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