UCP slams NDP over defending lewd books in schools
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Summary
The Alberta UCP is blasting the provincial NDP for trying to stand in the way of protecting children, as the province plans to ban sexually explicit material from K-12 schools. A report that came out this week is showcasing that Alberta s oil production has ramped up over the last decade while reducing emissions across various industries. Alberta Premier Danielle Smith and Ontario Premier Doug Ford also signed a Memorandum of Understanding to eliminate trade barriers between their provinces. While sports haven t been covered on the show in a while, the Edmonton Oilers were victorious in their first Stanley Cup final game, and polls are suggesting that national unity could be on the line. All that and more on this week s Alberta Roundup.
Transcript
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The Alberta UCP is blasting the provincial NDP for trying to stand in the way of protecting
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children as the province plans to ban sexually explicit material from K-12 schools. A report
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that came out this week is showcasing that Alberta's oil production has ramped up over
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the last decade while reducing emissions across various industries. Alberta Premier
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Danielle Smith and Ontario Premier Doug Ford also signed a Memorandum of Understanding
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to eliminate trade barriers between their provinces. While sports haven't been covered
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on the show in a while, the Edmonton Oilers were victorious in their first Stanley Cup
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final game, and polls are suggesting that national unity could be on the line.
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All that and more on this week's Alberta Roundup. I'm your host, Isaac Lamoureux. Let's
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hop into that first story now. The United Conservative Party is accusing the Alberta NDP of hindering
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efforts to protect children from sexually explicit materials in K-12 school libraries. This comes
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after NDP MLA Lori Sigurdsson criticized the province's plan to ban such content, labeling
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it as censorship. She said, quote, make no mistake, this actually is about banning books, and Smith's
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administration is not the first in history to target and ban books seen as contrary to its ideology in
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order to control public discourse. Darby Crouch, the UCP candidate for Edmonton Strathcona, called
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Sigurdsson out. Crouch said, quote, what the NDP calls banning books is what most parents would call
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basic common sense. We're talking about school library books that depict graphic sex acts, pornographic scenes,
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and other content that has no place in an elementary or junior high school. Why the NDP thinks children
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need access to this is beyond comprehension. The books in question contain shocking quotes and
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pornographic imagery for any age group, let alone children. The books in question are so vulgar that
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Alberta Premier Danielle Smith issued various graphic content warnings in her post to X. Smith said, quote,
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Albertans deserve to know what's really being shown to children in some of our K-9 schools.
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This isn't about banning books, it's about protecting kids from graphic, sexually explicit content that
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has no place in a classroom. The Alberta government confirmed that books such as Gender Queer, Flamer,
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Fun Home in Blankets, which contain depictions of sex acts, child molestation, and sexually violent
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slurs have been found in Alberta K-12 school libraries. Crouch said that what the Alberta NDP
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calls censorship, her party calls protecting kids and respecting parents. She said, quote,
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parents deserve better, they deserve to know what their children are reading in school,
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and that the content is age-appropriate. An online survey remained active until June 6th where Albertans
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could weigh in on what type of content should be available for school library collections.
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Even the survey came with a slew of warnings. A link was available to see some of the photos
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that were available to these kids in their libraries, and the survey's warning read, quote,
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Warning! This link contains graphic content that may be disturbing to viewers and is not
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appropriate for young viewers. Viewer discretion is advised. We'll see how the province proceeds after
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analyzing its survey data. Crouch is running in the Edmonton Strathcona by-election on June 23rd
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against NDP leader Nahid Nenshi. She had some harsh words for him. Take a quick listen.
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I'm Darby. I'm running to be your next MLA for Edmonton Strathcona. I also have the
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pleasure of running against NDP leader Nahid Nenshi. Now there are some key differences between Mr.
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Nenshi and me. When someone once asked him about living in Edmonton, he said, why would you wish such
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a fate as living in Edmonton on me? Could I do it part-time? If you ask me the same question,
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I'll tell you I'm not just visiting. Like so many young Albertans, I chose to make a life in Edmonton,
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to chase opportunity, and because the Oilers might actually win the cup. My opponent, uh...
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I'm not an Edmontonian. And in fact, it's going to take a lot to get me back into that jersey.
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Can't forget a few weeks ago when he covered up his Oilers jersey as he cheered for the Winnipeg Jets.
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Hockey love aside, there's so many real differences between us. I think the people
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of Edmonton Strathcona are not only incredibly hardworking, but they're some of the most creative
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and friendly people in Canada. Just like them, I think we need a government focused on keeping
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the cost of living down. Things like cutting red tape to build more housing and lowering personal
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taxes, so we all can afford doing more of the things that we love. And just like them, I think
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we all deserve safer streets, matched with more healthcare, funding for compassionate
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intervention, so we all can have a community we call home. Again, I'm Darby Crouch, and I'm
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absolutely proud to run as your United Conservative Party candidate in Edmonton Strathcona. And I will
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work for you every single day to make this place an even greater part of Edmonton. On June 23rd,
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please show up to the polls and cast your vote for me in this election. Thank you.
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The riding Crouch is running in against Nenshi is the Alberta NDP's safest in the province.
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Notley held the seat between 2008 and 2024. The last time the Conservative held it was Julian Kozak
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between 1971 and 1986. We'll see what happens in the upcoming by-elections on June 23rd.
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Now for our next story, we'll be looking at a recent report that came out on Alberta's oil
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production and emissions. The report, released Wednesday, showed that overall emissions in
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Alberta decreased almost every single year since 2015 after peaking in 2014. Between 2015 and 2023,
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holistically, the province's total emissions fell by 9 percent. Emissions have decreased in
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conventional oil, transportation, and heavy industry since 2015. They have also fallen in
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natural gas processing, methane, and electricity emissions. Despite the significant emission cuts,
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Alberta has boosted energy production by 20 percent since 2015. The province also eliminated emissions
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from coal-fired electricity more than six years ahead of schedule after the last coal-fired power plant
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transition to natural gas fuel in June 2024. Alberta Environment Minister Rebecca Schultz said
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the report proved Alberta continues to lead the way in responsible energy development. She said,
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quote, we don't need top-down policies from the federal government to do this and will continue to drive
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common-sense progress that benefit both our economy and the environment. Emissions from oil sands bitumen fell
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26 percent between 2012 and 2023, while production increased by 96 percent, reaching 1.56 million barrels
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daily as emissions continue to decline. Alberta had the highest absolute reduction of emissions nationwide
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between 2022 and 2023, after reducing emissions by 2.1 million tons. The report shows that Alberta is
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also succeeding in decoupling emissions from economic growth. From 2005 to 2023, Alberta's GDP increased by
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41 percent, while emissions grew by just 4.8 percent. Over that same time, emissions intensity per $1,000
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of GDP fell by 26 percent. Alberta introduced the first industrial carbon pricing and trading system
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in North America in 2007. Between its introduction in 2023, 254 million tons of emissions have been addressed
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by compliance measures beyond on-site reduction, including offset credits and technology investment.
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Earlier in May, the province froze its industrial carbon tax at $95 per tonne in response to the tariff war.
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Smith said the freeze came in response to concerns of business and industry leaders who warned that further tax hikes
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would harm Alberta's competitiveness and be detrimental to their businesses. Smith said, quote,
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Alberta remains committed to reducing emissions through the development and implementation of new technologies,
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not unrealistically high taxes, while responsibly powering the world for decades to come.
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Speaking of Alberta Premier Danielle Smith, for our next story, her and Ontario Premier Doug Ford signed a
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memorandum of understanding aimed at removing trade barriers between the two provinces on the 1st of June.
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Smith hailed it as a milestone for interprovincial commerce, while Ford broadened the effort by signing
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similar deals with several other premiers. Smith said, quote,
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together, Alberta and Ontario are taking a big step towards a more open, competitive and united economy.
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This agreement is about getting results, making it easier for people to work, do business and grow
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across provincial lines. It's time to stop letting outdated rules hold us back and show Canadians what real
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economic leadership looks like. The memorandum of understanding, signed June 1st at the First
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Ministers' meeting in Saskatoon, pledges to ease the cross-border movement of skilled workers and permit
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direct-to-consumer alcohol sales between Alberta and Ontario. The agreement also opens the door for
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Ontario to potentially join the New West Partnership Trade Agreement, which currently includes Alberta,
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British Columbia, Saskatchewan and Manitoba. Yes, this was the same conference where Ford called
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Kearney Santa Claus, but we won't dive into that on this show. Ford expanded the scope of interprovincial
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cooperation by signing agreements not just with Alberta, but also with Saskatchewan and Prince
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Edward Island. Ontario has now signed trade agreements with six provinces in total, more than any other
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jurisdiction. Two-way trade between Alberta and Ontario was worth $62.4 billion in 2021, while Ontario's
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total interprovincial trade reached $326.6 billion in 2023. Ontario's government framed the agreements
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as a key part of its strategy to build economic resilience in the face of growing U.S. protectionism.
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The province has also introduced legislation to Protect Ontario through Free Trade Within Canada Act
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to eliminate trade barriers and encourage labour mobility. Ford said, quote,
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it's just the latest steps we're taking to build a stronger, more competitive Canadian economy that
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can outlast President Trump's tariffs and whatever else comes our way. Now, hopping into something a
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bit lighter than normal for our last story today, which the shirt I'm wearing might have foreshadowed,
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the Edmonton Oilers triumphed over the Florida Panthers with a 4-3 overtime win in Game 1 of the
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Stanley Cup Final held in the province's capital on Wednesday. I'm guessing most Albertans watch the
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game, so without diving into too many details on the game itself, we'll talk about what winning the Stanley Cup
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might mean for all of Canada, not just Edmonton. Of course, the Canadian team has not won the Cup
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since 1993, which was actually before I was born. Edmonton has not won the Stanley Cup since 1990,
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despite the Oilers trading Wayne Gretzky just over a year before. A newly conducted poll by Ipsos
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found that 63% of Canadians say they're cheering for the Oilers, a six-point increase from last year's
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Cup Final matchup. Also, 56% believe the Oilers will beat the Florida Panthers, a seven-point
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increase from 2024. Ipsos' report reads, quote, the Edmonton Oilers winning the Stanley Cup would be
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a significant triumph for Canada, symbolizing national spirit and resilience. Almost 7 in 10,
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68% of Canadians now see the Oilers as Canada's team. Even Oilers players are realizing the importance.
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For example, Edmonton forward Evander Kane said, quote, playing for a Canadian team,
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the Cup having not been back to Canada in 30 plus years, it's something that I think we all
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understand representing the Edmonton Oilers. Being able to kick it off here is going to be
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pretty special, he said before the first game took place in Edmonton. The City was electric after
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Wednesday night's win. Take a quick look at some of the celebration. If you were in the City,
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I'm sure you felt it, at least felt some of that energy. And the City will definitely be
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on fire if the Oilers win the Stanley Cup. I mean, just to be a part of that, I might go out and walk
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the streets all night to experience the party that we so seldom get to experience at. So if I don't,
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if I don't show up for work the next day, I'm guessing I won't be the only one.
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The Stanley Cup Final is showing signs of rekindling unity, with 56% of Canadians saying they will pay more
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attention to this year's final than in previous years, as the stakes are now higher than ever.
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Over 8 in 10 Canadians, 85% said the Oilers winning the Stanley Cup would be a significant
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triumph for Canada, symbolizing national spirit and resilience. So I'm a bit curious if any parties
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will occur in other cities across the countries if the Oilers win the Cup, because it really
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might be Canada's victory. A previous Angus Reid poll from April found that 71% of fans said they would
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support any Canadian team in the playoffs, which was the highest percentage in a decade.
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But while hockey may serve to boost the national sense of unity, broader national pride has been
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more volatile. A recent Leger poll showed that Canadian pride surged during the election period
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in March, when it peaked at 86%, but fell back to 76% in Quebec and just 70% in Alberta following the
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re-election of a Liberal government. I'm wondering if winning the Cup could bump those numbers back up.
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That wraps up this week's edition of the Alberta Roundup. I'm your host, Isaac Lamoureux.
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Thank you for tuning in, have a great weekend, and God bless.