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The Tao of Ralph

© David Russell

He's done it again.

For the fourth consecutive election, on November 22 Premier Ralph Klein of Alberta brought his provincial Tory party to a resounding majority in the Alberta Legislature. Oh sure, the size of the majority has been reduced - slightly. But that's quibbling: the fact remains 'Rowdy Ralph' has led his party to four victories personally, while his party is celebrating its tenth consecutive electoral victory in the nation's most prosperous province.

Naysayers may argue the Albertan Tories have primarily cashed in on the electoral dearth of serious strong alternatives and there's an element of truth to that notion: can you name the current Liberal or New Democrat leader in the province? For that matter, can you name any Grit or NDP member of the Alberta legislature for the past ten years? Twenty? Ever?

Fair rhetorical comment but ask yourself the similar question of Mr. Klein's own party: other than its legendary leader can how many other Conservative MLA's stumble immediately off the tongue?

What is it about Mr. Klein that endears him so to the electorate? What is that je ne sais quois quality - though he'd never call it that - that makes him so compelling a figure not only in provincial politics but also influential on the national stage?

On the surface it may be a cinch to define. Straight-talking to the point of boorishness, its easy to assert that Klein's willingness to say what he's thinking - or speak when he clearly hasn't been thinking - appeals to a populace, tired of the ethos of the eastern intelligentsia, who want their politicians to cut to the chase, eliminate the bull and say what they mean.

But that's an oversimplification not only of the man but also of the Albertan. To much of the rest of the country, Alberta is viewed through a Bonanza lens as some kind of wild west, comparatively lawless, cultureless wasteland. Klein, with his swaggering, bravado style (who can forget the talk of building a metaphorical wall around the ranch...er...province) and occasional apparent alcohol induced pronouncements - once making an impromptu stop at a homeless shelter on the way home from a dinner event and loudly slurring to a shelter's inhabitant to 'get a job!' - often does little to assuage the stereotype.

But Alberta is more than tumbleweeds and people who drive only really large vehicles and view Shania Twain as a serious artist. This is also the province of figure skater Kurt Browning, renowned Royal Ballet dancer Lynn Seymour, journalist Arthur Kent, folk singer Joni Mitchell, writers as diverse as W.P. Kinsella and Sharon Pollock, Emily Murphy and the rest of the Famous Five who blazed the way for women's rights in Canada.