Thoughts on BC Politics and More

Politicians talk about a “new normal” following the relaxing of coronavirus regulations. There will be a “new normal” – for governments. We are weary of the continual bickering, posturing, promises and ongoing failures to put the interests and welfare of Canada and Canadians first in our governance considerations. Canadians were doing well caring for themselves, in spite of government meddling, and will do well caring for themselves as the coronavirus crisis passes. Our governments have no tools with which to eradicate or eliminate coronavirus. It is not the only uncontrolled virus we have to combat. The world will not stay “on pause” awaiting a coronavirus vaccine. There are better solutions. Government inaction was replaced with overreaction. Shutting down our economy and all social interactions was drastic and has serious financial repercussions. This aspect of the fallout was not given proper consideration when the decisions to shut down was made....

I had a brown ceramic Easter egg in my Mayor’s office ( 1996-2014 · Saanich ) to remind me about my ‘ no surprises ’ rule.  Visitors would ask about it and I’d just say it was a bit of décor but for me, it was a great deal more. When I assume a leadership role in governance of a public or private sector organization, I go through the briefings and hear all that senior management want me to know.  As it starts to wind up, I do work in a few rules that I like to have in place – one of them is ‘no surprises.’ If something has gone wrong, I want management to tell me.  In fact, if something is going wrong, or they think something might go wrong, I want management to tell me.  Under no circumstances do I want to be ‘out of the loop’ about an issue, incident, or something much worse that is within my oversight. Most often there is nothing for me to do – and in fact, doing something might even be inappropriate but I still need to kno...

Following the recommendations of an expert panel the BC NDP government is updating the labour relations code. The B.C. Green Caucus appreciates the work of the panel and supports their recommendations. In my second reading debate, I highlight the B.C. Green Caucus effort to address the issue of the historical pendulum swings in labour relations in British Columbia. The panel was clear that policy lurch is not in the interest of employers or employees. They stated emphatically in the executive summary that policy driven by the ideology of the political party in power hurts business competitiveness and upsets balance, certainty and predictability. In addition, I spend a majority of my time in this debate discussing the changing nature of work and remuneration in the 21st century. This goes hand-in-hand with the issue of policy lurch highlighted above. We cannot adequately address these modern problems with solutions from the last century. It's time for us to have a...

Emily and I live on Tsartlip in Brentwood Bay.  We are raising our kids in the backyard of the same 3/4 acre property that I grew up on. My sister and her husband (my wife's brother) and their three children live in the house we grew up in. My brother lives in a newly renovated cabin, once called "Eddie's Shack" and a woman and her young son live in the old cottage that once housed Mt. Newton Indian Sweaters. My two nephews live in the suite above my sister. Yup it is a full house. Our property is the same age as me. My dad was digging in a double-wide trailer on the lot when I was born. Our family has continuously lived there for the past 43 years. There have been a variety of people who have lived in the various empty rooms, shacks and sheds around the property over the years. Family and friends who needed a place to stay would float through and become a permanent part of the history of this place. Everyone on their own It's fascinating ...

This week the BC Conservative Party announced a new leader ... the Senate was holding community meetings on Bill C69 ... the federal Liberal government was ramming though another omnibus bill to hide things ... and we talked about independent journalism. All that and more ... including these next ten commentaries ... the most read of the week. #10    ADAM OLSEN”   Round-Up? Woodwynn was either organic or was on the way to becoming organic. The future of it was to achieve organic status. It runs next to Ḱ ENNES, an important watershed within Saanich and Central Saanich http://acuriouslookatpoliticsinbc.blogspot.com/2019/04/adam-olsen-round-up-woodwynn-was-either.html #9   Richard Neufeld: S ome Provinces are calling Bill C-69 unconstitutional and a federal infringement on provincial jurisdiction, and others calling for its outright defeat http://acuriouslookatpoliticsinbc.blogspot.com/2019/04/richard-neufeld-some-provinces-are.htm...

The Government’s Omnibus Bill, C-97 - Budget Implementation Act, 2019, #1 contains a National Housing Strategy Act which states: Whereas a national housing strategy would contribute to meeting the Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations ; And whereas a national housing strategy would support the progressive realization of the right to adequate housing as recognized in the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights , to which Canada is a party; The legislation sets lofty goals to improve the available housing in Canada but is silent on who will pay for reaching those goals. The federal government makes no commitment to fund its UN driven ideals.  In addition, provinces have jurisdiction over: The Management and Sale of the Public Lands belonging to the Province and of the Timber and Wood thereon; and Generally, all Matters of a merely local or private Nature in the Province. The fe...

Do you support large private corporations being given millions of your tax dollars on programs such as this one? This week’s report will be a short one. Chances are you have heard of the giant grocery retailer that is owned by Canada’s second wealthiest family, the Weston’s. Loblaws is a multi-billion dollar company that media sources reported, posted a $221 million net profit in the fourth quarter of 2018 The reason I mention this is the Liberal Government announced this week that it is giving Loblaws up to $12 million to help the for profit company to buy new, more energy efficient, refrigeration systems to help reduce Loblaws emissions. This announcement has been one of considerable controversy in Ottawa as both the NDP and the Conservative opposition strongly disagree. The obvious concern is that, when it comes to what Prime Minister Justin Trudeau calls “ putting a price on pollution ”, why does the average person have to pay when a multi-billion dollar priva...