Adios, Ralph

Today, Ralph Klein spends his last day in Alberta's legislature. I have never been a fan of Ralph (as he is known by friend and foe here in Wild Rose Country), but he was mayor of my city for nine years and premier of my province for fourteen, so the least I can do is wish him well.

Ralph was never strong on policy, but he was truly a man of the people. He had a feel for the grass roots that few other politicians can match. As mayor, he drank beer in the St. Louis Hotel with union chiefs, business leaders and the hoi polloi, and was always a man among equals. He was named a Citizen of the Year by B'nai B'rith and adopted into the Blackfoot Nation. With an apology and a sheepish grin, he got away with tomfoolery that would have cost other leaders their jobs. People liked him, I suppose, because he genuinely was one of them.

His last few years as premier have lacked direction and the province will almost certainly be better off without him, but ordinary Albertans will miss him.