I look at Calgary with envy. I wonder if you have any idea how weird that sounds to a Calgarian! It's good for Canada to have taken this atypical turn. Calgary

I look at Calgary with envy. I wonder if you have any idea how weird that sounds to a Calgarian! It's good for Canada to have taken this atypical turn. Calgary's reputation as a redneck enclave is a silly fantasy; it's really a complacent suburban enclave. What it does have going for it, on a good day, is a certain can-do energy. A lot of people here -- including me, and I never imagined I would say such a thing -- would actively support Nenshi in making some sane changes in this place. It would be particularly nice to break out of the stale liberal-conservative rut that this country has been mired in for so long. I was very surprised, on scratching the surface, to find that Nenshi is neither an ideologue nor a showboater. He seems serious. But by far the best thing for him to do is just be competent for a while.