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| Pictured: Kathryn Marshall who, upon seeing this photo, will be embarrassed only by the CBC logo above. |
I can't help it. When I think of laying pipe, I think of Kathryn Marshall.
That's in no small part due to the fact that as Ethical Oil's spokeswoman, she's a big proponent of Enbridge's proposed Northern Gateway pipeline. The project that stretches 1,177 km of pipes from Alberta to British Columbia was the topic of choice when Marshall debated John Bennett of Sierra Club Canada on the CBC's "Power and Politics" on the 11th of January, 2012.
As a true Conservative, she was short on arguments and long on talking points. The first of which was the insult she felt at the comparison between Bennett's assertion that the West's dependence on oil is akin to heroin addiction. But she left out the emphasis on addiction... an inadvertent omission I'm sure. The second... and last talking point was that environmental groups are funded by foreign groups with deep pockets that want to hijack the Canadian regulatory process that will... give a non-binding assessment of the project.
But simply reducing Kathryn Marshall's appearance to two talking points would be a disservice to her debating ability. Here are some excerpts of her more remarkable moments:
Marshall: 'Why are you taking foreign money to fight against Canadian interests?'
Bennett: 'We're not fighting against Canadian interests...'
Marshall: 'Yes you are.'
Bennett: '...No, that's your definition...'
Marshall: 'Yes you are.'
It needs to be stated that Marshall is studying to become a lawyer. If the University of Calgary hands her a law degree, then I think it's only fair that they also give one to every 4th grader in Canada.
Her finest display however was her refusal to answer whether or not Enbridge was a donor to Ethical Oil. The question by Evan Solomon was meant simply as a launchpad to the natural follow-up of: "Wouldn't that put you in direct conflict of interest with the environmental interests of Canadians?" Marshall refused to confirm that Ethical Oil - a small front group for oil and gas interests - is a front group for oil and gas interests.
Her constant refusal to answer the question which would allow for greater transparency is the very thing she was railing about when she was claiming that the Sierra Group is not honest about its funding.
She finishes the segment with "I'm a student. I do this because I'm passionate about it."
Yes, she's just a law student plucked out of academia due to her intelligence, debating ability and intellectual rigour. That or she's married to Hamish Marshall, Stephen Harper's former "manager of strategic planning". Either way: qualified!
Even Texas oil man George W. Bush compared oil to drug addiction --- and he should know something about both.
ReplyDeleteBush: 'America Is Addicted to Oil'
The biggest threat from the possible exposure that Enbridge funds EthicalOil.org is the Enbridge connection to Chinese human rights abusing companies such as Sinopec. Sinopec gave Enbridge $10,000.000 as part of a $100M fund to promote Northern Gateway. If Ethical Oil got any Enbridge money, that money is tainted and comes from a foreign source. As recently as yesterday, @Ethical_Oil tweeted that they are 100% Canadian.
Good find on the K Marshall H Marshal PMSH connection, BTW.
I'd say that this Ethical Oil is part of the political circus that entertains me rather than anything else. If there are genuine people that aren't affiliated with oil and gas that donate money to the blog, I feel sorry for them.
ReplyDeleteAgain, this is a non-binding regulatory review.
Christy Clark just hired Ken Boessenkool - a former lobbyist and advisor to Prime Minister Stephen Harper - as her new Chief-of-Staff. Objective number one would be to get a conservative message across to voters in a more palatable way than she's been doing. And is there any doubt which way the Premier will go in deciding if the Northern Gateway project should get the go-ahead?
Hopefully BCers will get a chance to go to the polls before that happens.