Dara Quast-Community Activist It is hard to decide what is more offensive in this latest development of the BC Liberals seeking financial support from Albertan businessmen. Is it the blatant disdain for the people of BC? Is it the dropping of the pretense that elections are about anything other than
Continue readingTag: Christy Clark
Politics, Re-Spun: Who’s Running BC?
It has been a month of amateurish politics starting with the government posting the auditor-general’s job. Then this week the government backed down several steps to keep from ejecting the well-respected A-G John Doyle from his chair with an attempt at saving face by changing the legislation surrounding his appointment.
Continue readingBigCityLib Strikes Back: Thanks For Not Helping
In Calgary, a group that includes at least one oil-industry bigwig and a former Progressive Conservative party insider held a private fundraiser to support the B.C. Liberals’ re-election bid. If Ms. Clark overcomes the odds and manages to stay in office, she could have some prominent Albertans to thank. Accepting
Continue readingNorthern Insight: Message to Christy Clark
Anita Roddick, businesswoman, activist and founder of The Body Shop, said that when leaders are not ethically sound, innovation coming from them, “Is only innovation on puffery.” Puffery, for people not paying attention to Terry O’Reilly’s Age of Persuasion, is, “exaggeration as to the degree of quality of a product.”
Continue readingNorthern Insight: After million spent on advertising
Today’s report from Statistics Canada: “In British Columbia, employment was little changed in December and the unemployment rate declined 0.3 percentage points to 6.5%. Compared with 12 months earlier, employment was little changed.”
Continue readingNorthern Insight: A message to Christy Clark and friends
An old Turkish folk tale teaches: The candle of someone who lies almost always burns just to midnight. After his candle goes out, nobody gives him any light. He remains without light. This story illustrates: A lonely princess, known by all, once had friends, family and respect but she sometimes
Continue readingPolitics, Re-Spun: Politics, Re-Spun Talks with Jarrah Hodge from Gender-Focus.com About Feminism and Work
On December 3, 2012 Politics, Re-Spun’s Stephen Elliott-Buckley spoke with Jarrah Hodge from Gender-Focus.com, exploring issues around feminism and labour, and: labour unions the BC Federation of Labour temporary foreign workers migrant Chinese coal miners [reminiscent of how Canada built its railroad] improving justice and equality in the labour movement
Continue readingCalgary Grit: 2013 A Make It Or Break It Year For The Liberal Party
Making predictions in a sport as unpredictable as politics is very much a fool’s errand. I don’t think anyone saw Dalton McGuinty’s retirement or Justin Trudeau’s left hook coming in 2012. Hell, even something as routine as an Alberta PC election victory turned into a whirlwind thriller. What we do
Continue readingNorthern Insight: Pay no attention to the men behind the curtain
Laila Yuile has a good piece today. She demonstrates an example of obedient political loyalty within the corporate press. A Times Colonist editor, who might be competent on matters of genealogy, failed miserably in writing an apologia for Premier Clark. Ms. Yuile dissects the defence and leaves it in tiny pieces. Alex Tsakumis earlier
Continue readingBryan Crockett: How Christy Clark can get reelected
When Christy Clark became the Premier of British Columbia, I, along with many other people, had high hopes. During the campaign and her first few months as Premier, she made herself seem like a centrist who could be a catalyst for meaningful, and much-needed, reform. But, somewhere along the line,
Continue readingNorthern Insight: No celebration of contract to foreign ship builder
Do you use electricity, live in a space that attracts property tax, purchase motor fuel or pay fees to park your chariot or ride transit after after actually paying a fare? Well, if you do any of those things, you’re putting money in the bank accounts of TransLink. However, while the
Continue readingNorthern Insight: Where does the money go?
Two years ago, Attorney General Mike de Jong picked his predecessor to lead the Missing Women Commission of Inquiry. Oppal was a safe choice politically, which is the reason BC Liberals made the appointment. Let’s not pretend they needed to pay millions to Oppal and friends to learn anything about
Continue readingNorthern Insight: BC Liberal truthiness
We face 26 weeks of taxpayer paid pre-election advertising promoting the BC Liberals. They’ll be using “facts” like this one, broadcast on Global TV November 9:
“We’re ensuring British Columbians have the skills they need to be first in line for jobs.”…
Cowichan Conversations: Van Dongen Goes After Christy Clark Over BC Rail Sale!
Richard ‘Hub’ Hughes-Political Blogger
The long awaited charge levelled against Premier Christy Clark over her role, as then Deputy Premier, in the BCR scandal has finally materialized.
Here is a report from the Vancouver Sun
John van Dongen, the former BC Liberal MLA who now sits as an Independent, has asked B.C.’s Conflict of Interest Commissioner to conduct a formal inquiry to determine whether Premier Christy Clark broke the law in her handling of the BC Rail issue back in 2003.
For the rest of Sun Reporter Johnathan Fowlie’s story click here.
Continue readingNorthern Insight: SNC-Lavalin & BC Liberal commonality
A reader of the piece about BC Investment Management Corporation’s holdings in unethical companies asked if the agency has a relationship with SNC-Lavalin Group Inc.
Unfortunately but not surprisingly, it does. And, it has been a costly relatio…
Continue readingNorthern Insight: "Amateurish and sneaky" according to Palmer
According to the Liberals, Lynda Tarras, head of BC’s Public Service Agency, conducted a thorough investigation into Ken Boessenkool’s admitted misconduct with another political appointee. Premier Clark’s Chief of Staff was not asked to step aside while government employees of lower rank investigated his behaviour. Vaughn Palmer of The Vancouver
Continue readingCowichan Conversations: Rafe Mair is Back In the Saddle and Ready To Go!
Richard Hub Hughes-Political Blogger Welcome back Rafe, I see that you have mellowed considerably during your time away. I sense absence did not make your heart grow fonder regarding the fracking dilema that we face in British Columbia. Perhaps it is that you do not understand the benefits of all
Continue readingBigCityLib Strikes Back: B.C. Is Special
From The G&M: The Conservatives have always seemed like a party that was a few slices short of a loaf. For years it hung around the fringes of the B.C. political scene, switching mostly unknown leaders between elections while fighting a reputation for attracting oddballs and religious zealots. To the
Continue readingNorthern Insight: BC’s critical leadership vacuum
When Gordon Campbell was Premier, advantaging insiders and friends became the BC Government’s raison d’etre. Liberals were damn good at it too. When that sated Premier moved on, he left behind a gang worthy of a Jimmy Breslin novel. If they could shoot straight, it would be right into their own
Continue readingdaveberta.ca - Alberta politics: Waiting for Christy Clark to go away. Will the BC NDP warm up to the pipelines?
Tweet“Frosty” was the word used to describe the meeting between Alberta Premier Alison Redford and British Columbia Premier Christy Clark in Calgary this week. The two provincial Premiers have spent the summer months clashing over the proposed construction of the Enbridge Northern Gateway Pipeline. Premier Redford supports the pipeline, Premier
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