JILTED TORIES, BUSINESS BY BACKSIDE, AND THINK BOXLESS

Jim MacDonald's CP report on Fast Eddie Stelmach's Country Cabinet, published in this morning's Calgary Herald, should result in some genuine dread entering the mind of any thoughtful reader. There was something awful for just about everybody.

The loyal old guard PC's - Ralph's pals and Dinning's disciples - were reminded of their colleague Ty Lund's pain, no doubt that he wishes to share with anyone who will listen. Lund said 'it was a slap in the face when he was "booted out' of the new cabinet.' Furthermore Lund whined, "It's so unprofessional that it's pathetic."

On the Stelmach's side were the new powerbrokers, Vermillion's most famous ex-turkey farmer, Lloyd Snelgrove, the new Treasury Board Minister and the hirsute Ray Danyluk, the Pride of Elk Point and newly minted Municipal Affairs Minister.

Snelgrove's soothing words were: "If you think business is done at such a high level, you will never be successful," and "Business is done by the seat of your pants." This bodes ill for those Albertans who believe that a Government should prepare a plan for governing, and follow it. Isn't business done 'by the seat of your pants', the Ralph Klein School of Government. In Eddie's world what are Plans? Hell, we don't need any stinkin' plans. We need reinforced seats on our GWG's.

Danyluk's words were no less foreboding. He opined: "When I was a youth secretariat panel chair, I told my kids there's one thing that's very important and that's not to think outside the box, but just throw the box away." How does one interpret those comments? One reasonable view is that the Stelmach Government will spend a lot of time reinventing wheels. It won't do much good for the people, but it will provide a lot of employment for the new team's croneys.