Carmen Stockton’s performance at Alberta Comedy Spectacular (June 2nd, 2012 – CBC TV and Radio LIVE recording)

LIVE comedy recording for CBC TV & Radio in Calgary
7pm Sat June 2nd, 2012

Check out my Comedy Central and Just For Laughs Comedy Festivalfeatured stand-up comedian friend Carmen Stockton’s performance at a LIVE recording for CBC TV and Radio in Calgary 7pm Sat June 2nd! See the poster for more info. Visit Carmen’s website for bio, comedy clips, and more.

LIVE broadcasting Premier Alison Redford at 2012 Alberta Election PC HQ

Last night after the 2012 Alberta general election winners were declared unofficially on TV, I went down to do some LIVE broadcast from the PC HQ in Calgary Metropolitan Centre (see also here, here, here). Yes, I am a freelance reporter, I don’t have expensive broadcast equipment but I was doing LIVE broadcast from the PC HQ in Calgary Metropolitan Centre using my mobile phone!

It was quite an experience and experiment in that I was holding not one but TWO cameras! One was my Galaxy Nexus broadcasting live on the WIND Mobile network using my unlimited data plan. In another hand, I was holding my digital camera capturing higher quality video for later use (which I am sharing with you here in this post).

I’ve now used the 2012 Alberta general election as the testing ground of my first LIVE broadcast. I will be doing more LIVE broadcast in the future. For one, I will make sure I link the LIVE broadcast page where readers of my articles can actually watch my video reports LIVE on my channel!

My personal favourite moments last night were the quieter moments of Alison Redford out of the spotlight – Alberta Election 2012 (PC HQ)

Alison Redford’s first post-victory media scrum – Alberta Election 2012

Premier Alison Redford’s victory speech – Alberta Election 2012 (from PC HQ)

Alison Redford at 2012 Alberta Election PC HQ Festivities

See my whole set of Premier Alison Redford at 2012 Alberta Election PC HQ photos here.

Elections Canada: Advance poll numbers (2,056,001 ballots cast) soar from 2008 – Vote on May 2nd!

May 2nd, 2011 update: May 2nd Election – How can I forget? #elxn41

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I am excited of this news and I am wishing/hoping for record voter turnout. Our democracy is stronger when more eligible voters care enough to vote. Vote on May 2nd if you haven’t voted in the advance polls already.

CBC News “Advance poll numbers soar 34% from 2008 – Friday, Monday busiest advance poll days ever” (emphasis added),

“More than two million Canadians turned out to cast ballots in advance polls over the holiday weekend, according to Elections Canada’s preliminary estimate, a 34 per cent increase from 2008.

Chief Electoral Officer Marc Mayrand said 2,056,001 ballots were cast during the three days of advance polls in a “higher than expected turnout,” compared to 1,528,780 advance ballots cast three years ago.

More than 676,000 Canadians voted on Friday and more than 823,000 on Monday — the two busiest days of advance voting ever, the agency said in a statement Tuesday.

And the final tally could be even higher. Mayrand said the overall figure is a preliminary estimate, and some polls may not have reported yet.”

VOTE Mob – University of Calgary

It is nice to read “U of C ‘Vote Mob’ riled up for Canadian election – Rally urges students to get involved in voting”. Check out www.studentsneedtovote.ca.

University of Calgary Vote Mob (Omni News)

CBC News, “Rise of the Vote Mob feature on CBC”

U of C Videos, “University of Calgary Vote Mob – Unstoppable!”

This Rick Mercer’s rant to get people, especially students, out to vote started the “Vote Mob” thing.

Former Alberta premier Ralph Klein, I will say hi next time

I should have said hi to former Alberta premier Ralph Klein when my better half and I saw him at a private garden party in 2009. He looked fine and was talking to some people so we didn’t want to interrupt. Today, I am deeply saddened to read that he is suffering from progressive dementia.

I may not agree with some of Ralph’s politics or policies, but I remember him as a premier who listened to Albertans when we voiced our disagreement strongly. He changed his policies and views on a few of the important matters.

Reading this makes me sad and realize the superficial nature of politics,

“Apart from that, there isn’t much going on for Ralph or Colleen Klein. The high-end consulting jobs and invitations to give national speeches have fallen away. So have friendships they thought were eternal. Colleen says they get virtually no calls from former or current MLAs or ministers.

“When you’re gone, you’re really gone,” she says. “You can almost hear the doors slam. People coming up in politics should be very careful not to let their lives go completely. You’ve got to have something to go back to.”“

Today, I promise myself, I will say hi to Ralph next time I see him. In fact, I am going to send Don an email ( dbraid@CalgaryHerald.com ) to find a way to contact the Kleins and send in my best wishes and warmest regards.

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April 9th 2011 update: I got a reply from Don. If you want to send the Kleins a letter, you can send it care of Don. I sent mine out today.

To: Ralph and Colleen Klein
c/o Don Braid
Editorial Dept., Calgary Herald,
215 16 St SE
PO Box 2400,
Station M
Calgary T2P 0W8

Here is Calgary Chinese newspaper report of the story, “簡欣患腦退化症“

Alberta Premier Ed Stelmach resigns

Whether you approve or disapprove of Alberta Premier Ed Stelmach‘s performance as premier, his sudden decision to resign comes as a surprise to many Albertans.

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Jan 26, 2011 Update:

An excerpt from “Stelmach’s exit muddies Conservative waters in Alberta“,

“The most pressing issue is the unreleased budget, over which Finance Minister Ted Morton had intended to resign on Tuesday. A fiscal hawk, Mr. Morton said tabling such a budget ran afoul of his political ideology, and planned to step aside in a meeting with Mr. Stelmach in Calgary Tuesday. That threat, and the potential fallout from a battle between the two, precipitated Mr. Stelmach’s sudden exit.

Instead of boarding an 11 a.m. flight from Edmonton to meet Mr. Morton and others for a Treasury Board meeting in Calgary, Mr. Stelmach called a sudden 11:30 a.m. press conference in Edmonton.

Mr. Morton was taken aback by that, and thought he’d be fired. Instead, Mr. Stelmach announced his own imminent resignation, a statement that shocked even close allies within his party.

“There is no doubt, no doubt that my decision today will come as a shock to many and a disappointment to my friends and Albertans,” the Premier said Tuesday.

But the battle is far from over. Both men need to find a resolution to the budget impasse. Mr. Stelmach pledged to push forward a budget without major cuts, almost surely at a large deficit that Mr. Morton won’t sign off on.

“Of course, he [Mr. Morton] is still not going to deliver that budget, so he still might get fired or he still might have to resign, or God knows,” one source close to the party said.”

Park Assist at Calgary Chinook centre

Dec 27, 2010 Update: “Failed Park Assist technology at Calgary Chinook centre”

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I was fascinated by the Park Assist technology when I first saw the system at Calgary Chinook centre’s new wing. I was told the system, when it is fully deployed, is capable of telling people where a car is parked given its license plate. According to Park Assist, its M3 Camera Vision System is “the world’s first single space camera guidance system” (press release). The following are two interesting interviews with Mr. Richard Joffe, Managing Director of Park Assist.

Interview @ Intertraffic Amsterdam 2010

Interview @ IPI show Las Vegas 2010

Speaking about parking technologies, feel free to check out “ParkPlus by Calgary Parking Authority – Reimagining the Wheels” for my review of the Calgary ParkPlus system and interview with Calgary Parking Authority General Manager Dale Fraser and Alderman Dale Hodges.

P.S. By the way, Park Assist will sometimes make mistake too as you can see in the following photo where the right parking spot is occupied but it still shows green.