Over the course of two days, two Alberta politicians have stirred up controversy for comments they made on social media platforms.
On Tuesday, Deputy Premier Thomas Lukaszuk posted a comment on his personal Facebook page along with a photo of the Fairmont Hot Springs, the site of a recent slide. The comment read: "Fairmont in Hot Springs has a good deal on rooms today. If a little bit of mud doesn't bother you, book now!"
Lukaszuk later apologized on Twitter, saying he was out of the country and not aware of the scope of the situation.
Still, Premier Alison Redford says she's very disappointed.
Redford says it's not appropriate to make fun of such a situation. "I'm disappointed in it. He is away this week. I intend to have a conversation with him about it. I take this very seriously," Redford says.
She says all politicians have a responsibility to conduct themselves accordingly, and should know that people pay attention to what they are saying.
"That was a tragedy. It was a tragedy involving loss of life," she adds.
The slide forced emergency evacuations, and helicopter rescues, and came just days after another mudslide killed four people near Nelson, B.C.
"Even if it hadn't involved loss of life, it was still a tragedy. It is not appropriate."
Redford adds it's a lesson to all politicians.
On the municipal stage, an Edmonton City Councillor ruffled some feathers after lashing out on Twitter.
Dave Loken got into a Twitter war with followers who he says were "hiding behind annonymity taking cheap shots." He used profanity in his Tweets; accusing those followers of hiding behind monikers.
He later apologized, saying
Loken goes on to say,
In an interview with Global News, Loken reiterated his apology, but says he felt attacked on Twitter, and let his emotions get the best of him.
"The odd time, you let your guard down, and your emotions take over," he explains. "And, you know, that is what happened yesterday."
"I don't mind being criticized and I don't mind being challenged, and that's part of the territory in being a public official. What I do mind, is when I get personally attacked."
"If I’m going to get personally attacked, then I at least want to know who the attacker is. A lot of time on social media, you have people on there who have these fake monikers, they sometimes have real names, but you're not sure if it's a real name."
Loken says he'll still use social media because he feels it's a good way to share information and get the message out. However, some people online feel politicians should be more careful when they click.
Loken feels the benefits of social media outweigh the challenges.
"When I look at my followers list, I have a lot of good people on there that are really interested in what's happening here, that pose good questions, that are constructive, that never get personal, and that engage in a way that you should engage. So for that reason, I'm going to keep doing that," he says.
"I am going to stay away from getting dragged into the muck."
With files from Vassy Kapelos
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