Norman Farrell
Did you know?
The Great Star Fleet At the turn of the 20th Century, the Alaska Packers Association assembled the largest fleet of privately owned sailing ships in the world. It was an…
Pro-media: watchdogs or lapdogs?
Katie Hyslop has a worthwhile piece in The Tyee about the British Columbia Investment Management Corporation. Teacher Decries Pension Plan's 'Unethical' Investments, The Tyee, Nov. 13/12 " Hutcheson started researching…
Wazzup, ferry riders?
A few days ago, Mary Polak's Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure announced the "B.C. coastal ferries consultation and engagement process". They invited, "input on considerations to achieve $26 million in…
A caution for Canada’s Conservative Party
Six CPC members of Parliament may be deposed if the Federal Court accepts allegations of widespread voter suppression during the May 2011 election. This action, to be heard in December,…
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…
Conservatives use truthiness liberally
For people who care about Canadian veterans, truthiness of the Conservative government is cringe worthy. Harper's crowd claims to be, "...unwavering in our devotion to making sure that Canadian veterans…
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…
Like Emily Litella, without the never mind
In fact, mid-day November 7, Obama leads Romney in popular vote by almost 3 million votes.
Ethical performance lacking at bcIMC
I've been comparing the British Columbia Investment Management Corporation to the Washington State Investment Board. They're very similar in terms of purpose and goals. Here are a few key stats:…
Vertical integration of Chinese forest industry
The Wall Street Journal reports the China Investment Corp. will acquire a substantial stake in Island Timberlands, which owns about 254,000 hectares of forest land, mainly on Vancouver Island. Soon,…
Money speaks louder than words
According to a March 2012 Canadian Press report, "British Columbia and five other provinces are teaming up to sue Canadian tobacco firms for health-care costs. "B.C., New Brunswick, Nova Scotia,…
Take from the poor, give to the rich
Further to my comments about homeowners subsidizing industrial power, here is an extract from the blog of Vancouver lawyer Jim Quail, Site C and the Kitimat LNG Export Terminal: Christy…
Time to reform government advertising
We’re presently bombarded with slick political advertising from two senior levels of government. Add industry advertising promoting natural gas as so marvellous a fuel that we should export it to…
Restraint is only for the little people
The fiscal year ended March 2012 was a good year in the executive suite of this BC public agency. These are averages of the five highest paid executives. One VP…
Nice work, if you can get it
Mark Blucher was appointed interim president and CEO of ICBC in October 2012. He fits the insurance company’s culture of bloated entitlement quite nicely. Blucher joined the company in August…
Designed to fail – REPLAY
From March 2011, in my humble opinion, this article is worth repeating: Overcrowding at Royal Columbian hospital led to shutting down microwaves in the on-site Tim Hortons doughnut shop. Emergency…
ICBC desperately needs real management
Ten months ago, I published Talking tough, empty words and empty head, a piece mocking Attorney General Shirley Bond in her role as lead ICBC overseer. Shortly after, Finance Minister…
One hand washes another
A principle of management states that senior staff lead by example when it comes to ethics and morality. Behaviours of leaders set the values that their followers use. Another certainty…
Rush to secure rewards
With only 27 weeks to oblivion, BC Liberals have limited time to pick forbidden fruit. We know about the failed bid to privatize BCLDB and the flood of high cost…