Proud solo dad to three amazing daughters, fan of the Edm Oilers and GB Packers, golfing, fly-fishing. My dog’s name is Milly.
Edmonton
Joined April 2009
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Robert Valpy 🇨🇦 retweeted
Perhaps Danielle Smith would like to explain how certain family members of Sam Mraiche were hired into procurement positions with AHS when they didn't actually have any experience in procurement?
Rob Breakenridge: Danielle Smith bans DEI hiring in the public sector, daring the NDP to oppose nationalpost.com/opinion/dan…
If this is real, how has Hollywood not jumped all over this?
June 6, 1944. An American paratrooper jumps into Normandy in the dark and lands on the roof of a church.
By the end of the war he had been declared dead, held a funeral he didn't attend, escaped the Nazis, and fought his way toward Berlin in a Soviet tank unit.
His name was Joseph Beyrle. He's believed to be the only American soldier to serve in both the US Army and the Red Army during World War Two.
Beyrle was from Muskegon, Michigan. He joined the 101st Airborne, the Screaming Eagles. His buddies called him Jumpin' Joe.
On D-Day night his plane was hit by flak and he jumped early. He came down on a church roof, slid off, and lost his unit in the chaos. For a few days he fought on his own, blowing up a power station and cutting German communications.
Then he was captured.
Here's where it gets strange. A German soldier ended up wearing Beyrle's uniform and dog tags. That German was killed. When the body was found, the Americans identified it as Joseph Beyrle.
The army told his parents their son was dead. His hometown held a funeral mass for him. His obituary ran in the local paper.
Meanwhile, he was very much alive, being moved from one German prison camp to another.
He escaped more than once. One time he and two other prisoners jumped off a train heading east. They thought they were heading for Russia and freedom. They got lost and ended up in Berlin, where they were caught by the Gestapo, beaten, and tortured.
In January 1945, from a camp in eastern Germany, he finally made a clean escape. He went east, toward the gunfire. Toward the Soviets.
When he found a Soviet tank unit, he walked out with his hands up, holding a pack of Lucky Strike cigarettes, and shouted the only Russian he knew. American comrade.
It worked.
He asked to join them. And they said yes.
For about a month, an American paratrooper rode with Soviet tank crews as they pushed toward Germany. He used his demolition training. He fought. He was reportedly welcomed by a Soviet officer who was one of the rare women commanding a tank battalion.
Then a German dive bomber attacked. Beyrle was badly wounded.
He was evacuated to a Soviet hospital. Soviet Marshal Georgy Zhukov reportedly visited, heard his story, and gave him papers to get to the American embassy in Moscow.
When he showed up, the embassy didn't believe him. As far as the US was concerned, Joseph Beyrle was dead. They held him under guard until his fingerprints proved who he was.
He made it home to Michigan in April 1945.
In 1946 he got married. In the same church where they'd held his funeral.
Decades later, in 1994, he was honored at the White House by President Bill Clinton and Russian President Boris Yeltsin for serving both countries.
And the last twist. His son, Joseph Beyrle II, grew up to become the United States Ambassador to Russia.
Readers added context they thought people might want to know
Joseph Robert “Joe” Beyrle had two sons. The elder son, Joe Beyrle II, served during the Vietnam War, but wasn’t a US Ambassador. That was the other son, John Beyrle.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_Be…
Robert Valpy 🇨🇦 retweeted
This crew in the Packers Lions game needs to be investigated and suspended after this game.
In 2024 Daniel Smith asked the feds to triple immigration levels to Alberta. Based on the referendum questions she is now blaming those immigrants for the mess her gov’t created in health & education. This feels so disingenuous, a blame-game straight out of the MAGA playbook.
Robert Valpy 🇨🇦 retweeted
We are in a global propaganda war, and our enemies are as we expected, but now necessarily our allies.
Especially if you're on this platform. The owner has his fingers on the scale and is decidedly pro-Trump and a new world order. Certainly anti-Canada as it stands.
Govern yourself accordingly.
Robert Valpy 🇨🇦 retweeted
When Rita Moreno appeared as a guest on The Muppet Show in 1976, she created one of the greatest musical comedy sketches in television history.
Attempting to perform the classic jazz piece "Fever" with charm and elegance, she faced her arch-nemesis: Animal the drummer.
What made this act a timeless masterpiece was Moreno's exceptional comedic talent.
Instead of being genuinely overshadowed, she used every annoyed glance, every calculated silence, and every explosive reaction to perfectly counter Animal's chaotic drumming.
Nearly 50 years later, this iconic confrontation remains a classic example of how a talented artist can transform high-level music into pure, unadulterated comedy. 👑😂
Robert Valpy 🇨🇦 retweeted
There are literally thousands of acres of undeveloped or under developed land in Edmonton. But that's not where the city wants to build multiplexes. Oh no. Edmonton insists on jamming them on single family lots in mature neighbourhoods. That is the issue. Not density.
Too many leaders in this country underestimate the economic, social, and cultural harm caused by their destructive “consensus” that pairs high population growth rates with strong restrictions on housing development and urban growth.
You cannot have both things together and still offer the next generation and newcomers a high standard of living. Pick one!
Robert Valpy 🇨🇦 retweeted
Edmonton needs more housing. But more density and better planning are not necessarily the same thing.
I live in Glenora. Behind our home, neighbours are challenging a proposed eightplex on a street originally built for single-family homes. Elsewhere in Edmonton, residents have described a single residential property being subdivided to accommodate two eightplexes. Sixteen units where one home once stood.
Where do the vehicles park? Can the streets and alleys accommodate the additional traffic? What about waste collection, drainage, privacy, mature trees and the impact on neighbouring property values?
These aren’t objections to growth. They’re fundamental planning questions.
And then there’s the question of public trust.
Before Council approved Edmonton’s sweeping 2023 zoning overhaul, a Pollara survey of 300 residents found that 62% had never heard of the proposed changes. Only 3% felt capable of explaining them.
Yes, the City conducted public consultations. But consultation and meaningful public understanding are not the same thing.
Every Edmonton homeowner pays property taxes based substantially on assessed property value. Whether someone owns a modest bungalow or a multimillion-dollar home, shouldn’t they reasonably expect the City to consider the financial consequences of fundamentally changing the planning rules around them?
Nobody has a right to freeze a neighbourhood in time. But residents should be able to expect thoughtful planning, transparent decisions and respect for the investments they’ve made in their communities.
I’m not opposed to infill. Next door stands a remarkable 1958 Modernist home that was facing redevelopment. I spoke with the developer, who listened, and the property was subsequently offered for preservation through renovation rather than demolition.
That’s what constructive engagement can accomplish.
Edmonton needs more homes, more investment and more opportunities for people to live in established neighbourhoods. We can pursue those goals while respecting architectural heritage, neighbourhood character and existing residents.
These objectives are not mutually exclusive.
Council had the authority to change the zoning rules. That doesn’t settle whether it exercised that authority wisely.
Good planning considers not just how many units can fit on a lot, but the long-term consequences for the people, infrastructure and communities around it.
Edmontonians deserve growth that makes the whole city stronger.
AI helped me research (I was lazy but still mad tonight) and sharpen this post. The views are mine. The real work belongs to the dedicated Edmontonians fighting to be heard. Credit where it’s due. #yegcc #yeginfill
🤖 Made with AI
Robert Valpy 🇨🇦 retweeted
Russ Vought, in his official capacity, has the power to interfere in elections by replacing nonpartisan election officials with loyalists, cut critical funding, and block independent election oversight.
Trump wants to rig the election, and he’s shouting the quiet part out loud.
Robert Valpy 🇨🇦 retweeted
Here's the deal. After the 2024 election, VP Harris sought legal advice from Marc Elias about contesting it. She knew it was rigged. He told her there was "no path forward," in the belief that votes can't be "manipulated." He's a stellar attorney with a solid reputation fighting Trump/GOP corruption. However, he's not an election or cybersecurity expert. A handful (or more) of those experts warned Harris that the votes were, indeed, "manipulated." I firmly believe there was also a 12/2024 CIA election audit performed that proved it was rigged, and Harris won by large margins. At least 3 whistleblowers have attested to that. Why would they, if it weren't true? Now, there's solid evidence, from private citizens who have been investigating this for 2 years, supporting that conclusion. We need to pressure not only Democratic lawmakers, but the media and everyone possible, to scream this from the rooftops! Musk and Trump are actively trying to rig the Midterms! thiswillhold.substack.com/p/… thiswillhold.substack.com/p/…
This is true! 🎉 Trump’s polls, likability and support have gone down the shitter where he belongs! #VoteBlue #BlueTsunami
Robert Valpy 🇨🇦 retweeted
I hope she wins every single dollar she is suing for. Shaming customers for sitting in the seat they paid for is stupid and so are the people who are shaming her. Your failure to book seats that benefit you and your family is not the fault of the customers who did.
Robert Valpy 🇨🇦 retweeted
Maybe I'm wrong, Ted -- I'm not a Harvard Law guy and all -- but maybe the reason Democrats didn't show up in Jack Smith's investigation of Jan. 6 is because Democrats weren' trying to overthrow our democracy on behalf of Trump?
Could that explain it?
