Thoughts on BC Politics and More

LET ME GET THIS OUT OF THE WAY FIRST ... there is no disputing the fact that debt will increase more than ten times faster than what the Ministry of Finance claims will be our budget surplus.  Okay ... now on to yesterdays Budget Speech “Budget 2019 creates opportunities, makes life better for people”; so stated BC NDP Finance Minister Carole James in announcing Budget 2019 yesterday Right off the bat Finance Minister Carole James informed us that B udget 2019  would be creating opportunities for all British Columbians by delivering a new B.C. Child Opportunity Benefit for kids up to the age of 18, removing interest from B.C. student loans, reducing taxes for businesses, and investing in clean energy and climate solutions . ALL THIS while balancing the budget over the next three years --- well sort of because it depends on if your calculator is functioning correctly. Now I would be remiss if I did not point out the good in this new ...

OKAY ... there are three questions I'm wondering about, when it comes to British Columbians deciding on IF we change how we currently vote. And ... if we do, what that new system will be. Question #1 Why are we not getting an explanation of who will decide on the proportional representative going to legislature.   As it stand now, they won't be voter elected but potentially, at least, party hacks.   Right now many / most of us complain that our elected representatives DO NOT in fact represent us; instead represent they party they belong to.   Basically they do as they are told.   On the other hand, maybe they will be voter elected, perhaps by using the votes each has received, and picking the one(s) who received the most.   Then again it would be fair to ask, " Will they be an MLA from the region they were running in, or just a floating not responsible to anyone but the party they represent ?" Are those not good question...

UNFORTUNATELY, SOCIAL MEDIA FEEDS YESTERDAY (June 6th) WERE DISTRIBUTING THE IMAGE I HAVE INCLUDED WITH THIS POST, including the Facebook page for the BC Patriots .  Here's what it's important for you to know: I read multiple news reports across what would be considered reporting from the right, through to the left. Not one single one from the Toronto Sun, through to the Huff Post and CBC indicated the shooting which occurred had anything to do with serving pork during Ramadan. It's a shame BC Patriots posted this as it does not look good distributing what is obviously false in formation. A simple Google search for me was able to ascertain this in seconds. Don't believe me? Just type in, " four shot outside Pickering RibFest " and see for yourself. When I said ... PLEASE, DO NOT CONTINUE THE CYCLE OF THIS CRAP, AND AID IN PROMOTING B.S. LIKE THIS ... I was told , "You're wrong about the Sun".    In fact, I w...

Oh boy ... we are indeed in trouble on this one; Kinder Morgan has now set May 31st as a deadline to get things under way on the Trans Mountain pipeline.  And fair enough.  As you will note in the following, this whole project has drug on for far too long.  And through it all, the federal Liberal government of Justin Trudeau has been nothing BUT hypocritical in allowing dictatorships, with tin-pot despots at the helm, to ship tanker after tanker of oil to east coast refineries.   Business Council Of British Columbia : " The B.C. government's decision to prolong a process that rendered a verdict two years ago and move the regulatory finish line by imposing new barriers that would undercut its potential, threatens the credibility of our country's regulatory and project approvals systems and, by extension, the foundation of our federation ." stated Greg D'Avignon, President and CEO of the Business Council of BC Financial Post : As federal and pr...

EARLY YESTERDAY, I the following information out by email to several individuals -- letting them know we (the BC Conservatives) had every intention of being a viable alternative in the next provincial election in BC. I also posted a much briefer edit on Social media (Facebook and Twitter).  Here is the text of the email which was sent: Greetings friends ... I would like to let you know, if you are unaware, that just a few short months ago I rejoined and became a member of the BC Conservative Party.  Additionally, I attended a very successful AGM which was held a few weeks back in Langley.  I believe in small 'c' conservative ideals, and I believe that the well-being of our province will not happen with either our current GreeNDP government ... or with the Liberals, who are INDEED Capitol "L" Liberals in both name, and in governing style! This email is to advise you that initial prep work is underway to restart the Kamloops North T...

Just the other day, Keith Baldrey, in an opinion piece stated, " A number of party veterans I’ve talked to are somewhat worried about the party’s long-term prospects of stability ." And well they should be. It takes a lot to hold together a fractious group of people that really, other than trying to keep the NDP out of party, are not really comfortable being together in the same bed. Now don't get me wrong ... I am sure I'd be correct in saying that likely the vast majority of BC Liberal MLA's do truly want what's best for BC ... however if that is indeed true, how can any grouping of them stay together for long given the differences they also have in beliefs on ways, and how, to govern?  The current field of prospective leadership candidates do of course run the gamut from one end of the political spectrum, to the other -- Left to Right.  The problem is that, as stated, they have such diverse beliefs -- and at times it really must be like...

On Monday (October 2nd) I posted on social media, rumors that the BC Conservatives might be announcing an Interim Leader.  That did indeed come true at 7am this morning. The Executive and Board of the BC Conservative Party announced that Vernon City Councillor, and four term BC Conservative board member, Scott Anderson would take on the role. Vernon City Councillor Scott Anderson has been announced as the new BC  Conservative Party Interim Leader In an early morning media release, Anderson was quoted stating: " Having been on the inside through both the hard times and the good times, I can say with complete candor that I have never seen the party so united and energetic as it is now. My intention is to help brand the party as a home for all fiscal conservatives, including the thousands of former BC Liberals who were betrayed and left out in the cold by the recent Liberal Throne Speech ." He continued, " I believe that this is the time for ...

To fund or not to fund, That is the question. Whether tis nobler to fund, thine own election campaign, or drink of the trough called gluttony, called taxpayers money. No more; and by a sleep (or until the bill is passed), to say we end the heart-ache (to taxpayers). And the thousand natural shocks, as money is siphoned from General Revenue. 'Tis a consummation (of our money), devoutly being wished by the GreeNDP  who never once campaigned on it. With apologies, of course, to William Shakespeare.   I don't know where that came from, but there you go, my very bad poetry will be what gets things underway today. Last week of course came news that the GreeNDP led by Andrew Weaver --- Oooops I mean John Horgan --- (no, wait a minute, who is in charge anyway?) decided that taxpayers would fund political parties to the tune of $2.50 per vote received.   That, my friends, would amount to roughly seventeen million do...

What do I think about the taxpayers of British Columbia chipping in millions of dollars for the election campaigns of Andrew Weaver and his Green Party?   John Horgan and his NDP?   Whoever is the next leader of the BC Liberals?   Or even for the party that I support -- the BC Conservatives?   I was honestly speechless earlier on first hearing, and reading, the news!   Friends of mine on Social media certainly had thoughts; here's just a few of them: ... I'm pretty sure John Horgan explicitly said there is no way that a ban on corporate and union donations would result in taxpayer funded campaigns ..." " ... brutal ..." "... because its so much more important that they take from everybody, rather than just those who are looking for favours ... we are sooooooo screwed ..." " ... the bull shit NDP and Green conspiracy reveals its true nature in their campaign financing rules ..." "....

The other day a BC political acquaintance, Sean Upshaw, and I had an online / offline conversation.   This followed up on my blog post of Saturday July 29th entitled, " Well Christy Clark never did move there -- and poor Sean never had a chance to sell her a house either " Sean good naturedly (I hope) took exception to my title for the post and responded to me by saying: For the record, Sean Upshaw is not poor in anyway. I would have declined to sell her a house any ways as I prefer to work with people who are sincere. Having said that I wish her luck in her next endeavour. Maybe now the party to the right of centre can find someone who is not affiliated with Trudeau to lead them . Hmmmm ... I said to myself, 'Is he referring to the BC Liberals being right of center?? ... or ...?? '.   And so I asked him: I'm interested by the wording on your comment Sean ... the party to the 'right of centre' can find some...

Say What?  Former BC Premier Christy Clark who resigned on Friday July 28th as Premier and Westside - Kelowna MLA Early in the morning yesterday, I go outside to work in the yard and the next thing I know Christy Clark had resigned. Let me tell you, if I'd known sooner, that was all it took, I would have done it earlier. No surprise, but looking to social media, there was a mix of both good and bad, as people commented of Christy's departure.  Here's just a small sampling: Christy Clark resigning is good but a party is not *a* person. Every rotten decision & its harmful legacy belongs to BC Lib Party   Few understand the sacrifice & the "all in" commitment needed for public life. Christy Clark responded to that call: not once, but twice.   Christy Clark, and Gordon Campbell before her, hurt working class people in BC the entire time they were in office. Good riddance to bad rubbish.   Why should we say we thank someone...

The gnashing of teeth by our neighbours, next door in Alberta, continues frothing away yesterday (July 25th).   On the heels of the Progressive Conservatives, and Wildrose parties coming together on the weekend, the NDP's Sarah Marjorie Hoffman, current Deputy Premier of Alberta, and Minister of Health in the NDP cabinet of Rachel Notley Sarah Hoffman got herself in a lather against the forces of evil -- that being the new United Conservative Party. Rachael Notley's Deputy Premier, Sarah Hoffman, had this to say: blah blah blah ... all conservatives hate LGTBQ ... blah blah blah ... we / me / you will know it because he's a white Anglo-Saxon male  blah blah blah ... he held views that were anti LGTBQ previously, and so those will always be his beliefs ... blah blah blah ... I will rake the new United Conservative Leader over the coals because as a self-righteous leftie I am allowed to do this ... blah blah blah ... no one had better eve r ...

Wildrose Leader Brian Jean and Progressive Conservative leader   Jason Kenney May 18th announcing tentative deal to unite parties Next door in Alberta over the weekend, members of the Progressive Conservative Party -- and the Wildrose Party -- both agreed to a merger. And how was that hailed by the mainstream media, including CTV?   Their focus was on the paltry number (5%) of Progressive Conservatives who were 'lamenting the death of Alberta's historic PC party' . The former President of the party, Katherine O'Neill   spoke of a lot of grieving going on ... and that a lot of people were heartbroken .   It should however be noted that O'Neill left the party, after Jason Kenney's victory as party leader.   From what I have read, I take that to mean that she was far more progressive (left-leaning?) than she was conservative.   And therein, lies the rub, as it were, with attaching the word progressive , to the word conservative ...

UPDATE ... 8:15pm Thursday June 30th ... John Horgan, NDP Leader, has been invited to form government. Today in the legislature, a long drawn-out limp to the finish line played out for the BC Liberal Party.  It began this afternoon with parries between Weaver and Clark ... beginning with these words: A. Weaver: Yesterday the Premier held a press conference in the rose garden, where she stated: " This is isn't a working Legislature, and I haven't seen any evidence that it could work ." She further stated: " There's no effort on the part of either opposition party to work together ." Hon. Speaker, she implied that because her government, the government under her leadership, has been unable to advance its agenda — frankly, our agenda — the only option is to subject British Columbia to another election. For weeks, the Premier has delayed a confidence vote that she knows she will lose. Instead, her government has chosen to pl...