Dave Basi and Bob Virk have been wearing the BC Rail chain for some five years now. They were Ministerial staff in the government in 2003 when BC Rail was being "sold" to what was supposed to be the highest bidder.
Its a thriller that one day could become a TV movie. Imagine hush hush backroom deals in smoky strip lounges, political interference matching Watergate, and the public hanging of two political aids only to discover they were acting with the consent of Cabinet Ministers and maybe even the Premier.
That could be the story when its all said and done. Gary Mason has more on how Pat Bell, the Minister of Forests and Blair Lekstrom, Minister of Petroleum Resources may have more to say about what happened and their dealings with rival CN bidder OmniTrax.
Mason's line is here and be sure to check out TheLedgeTrials, Laila Yuile, The Gazetteer and Bill Tieleman blogs for more on BC Rail.
Showing posts with label LIBcons. Show all posts
Showing posts with label LIBcons. Show all posts
Thursday, September 24, 2009
Campbell ready to sell Liquor stores?
Here we go again. There is a crisis in BC and the Government is in deep doo doo. What an opportunity for a right wing government to sell off government assets and guess who is there to help them. The Vancouver Sun. Hey I'm not surprised. These folks are just not playing straight shooter on this issue.
BC has one of the most well run liquor distribution systems in the world. The profits go to the government to assist in paying for health-care, educations, building new roads, fixing old ones, replacing schools with newer ones etc.
Its a darn good bargain for the people of BC. Alberta went the other way a decade or more ago. They decided to sell off government liquor stores. It was good at first for price watching public as prices for everything fell. That lasted all of 15 minutes. Today Alberta is littered with little corner liquor shops, selling some things as a loss leader, but largely charging the same prices as BC or Saskatchewan.
The Alberta experiment has failed. It has only hurt the people that work in the liquor stores. These people use to make a decent wage, have a pension and security. Today they make minimum wage, no pension and no security. The profit in privatizing liquor stores went to people that could buy the license. The savings that were heralded from the roof tops for consumers never happened.
Today the profit from liquor sales goes to the owner of the store. Like always, the little guy loses. The little guy pays the price. Now look at what beer costs you.
BC has one of the most well run liquor distribution systems in the world. The profits go to the government to assist in paying for health-care, educations, building new roads, fixing old ones, replacing schools with newer ones etc.
Its a darn good bargain for the people of BC. Alberta went the other way a decade or more ago. They decided to sell off government liquor stores. It was good at first for price watching public as prices for everything fell. That lasted all of 15 minutes. Today Alberta is littered with little corner liquor shops, selling some things as a loss leader, but largely charging the same prices as BC or Saskatchewan.
The Alberta experiment has failed. It has only hurt the people that work in the liquor stores. These people use to make a decent wage, have a pension and security. Today they make minimum wage, no pension and no security. The profit in privatizing liquor stores went to people that could buy the license. The savings that were heralded from the roof tops for consumers never happened.
Today the profit from liquor sales goes to the owner of the store. Like always, the little guy loses. The little guy pays the price. Now look at what beer costs you.
Monday, September 21, 2009
They're selectively picking things - Vander Zalm
BC Liberals desperate to turn the discussion from HST have decided its best to attack their opponents, not on the merits of their arguement against the HST but other things.
The Liberals put out a press release on Friday, Public Eye has it on their website, that goes on as to what a "bad" Premier Bill VanderZalm was.
Its a common tactic used by those in indefensible positions, try to turn the discussion to grounds you can win on, or discredit the messenger(s). The BC Liberals must have known how much opposition they would face with this decision. That is clearly why they did not announce this in the run up to the last election. Clearly they have decided to hunker down and ride this storm out, hoping to see the storm through.
So when you have nothing to use to protect yourself, you try to discredit those speaking against your position.
Look at this line, usually used to attack those reckless freespending socialists...
As Premier, Vander Zalm introduced or increased over a dozen taxes in nearly every budget that punished families and small businesses - including introducing the Property Transfer Tax and increasing the Small Business Tax to the highest level ever. - BC Liberal Press Release Friday, September 18, 2009 (from Public Eye)
I can't recall another time when Gordon Campbell or any of the current BC Liberals have ever attributed anyone other than the NDP with having raised taxes higher than you can reach! Carole James and the NDP better tuck that quote away for use later on.
Surely the signs of a worried Liberal government. If you live in the South Cariboo, election day squeaker, Donna Barnett says she will listen to constituents, however she supports the new HST. You might ask why she would be so fast off the mark.
I suspect it could have something to do with who benefits if the HST becomes law
. The Forest and Mining sectors look to reap 140 million and 80 million respectively. Needless to say these industries support the HST and contributed a great deal to Barnett's election campaign in May of this year.
The Liberals put out a press release on Friday, Public Eye has it on their website, that goes on as to what a "bad" Premier Bill VanderZalm was.
As Vander Zalm told Public Eye, "I guess when you can't win the argument (that) the HST is the wrong-way to go, that it's a bad thing you begin attacking and marginalizing and discrediting. And that's what they're trying to do. And, obviously, they're selectively picking things."
Its a common tactic used by those in indefensible positions, try to turn the discussion to grounds you can win on, or discredit the messenger(s). The BC Liberals must have known how much opposition they would face with this decision. That is clearly why they did not announce this in the run up to the last election. Clearly they have decided to hunker down and ride this storm out, hoping to see the storm through.
So when you have nothing to use to protect yourself, you try to discredit those speaking against your position.
Look at this line, usually used to attack those reckless freespending socialists...
As Premier, Vander Zalm introduced or increased over a dozen taxes in nearly every budget that punished families and small businesses - including introducing the Property Transfer Tax and increasing the Small Business Tax to the highest level ever. - BC Liberal Press Release Friday, September 18, 2009 (from Public Eye)
I can't recall another time when Gordon Campbell or any of the current BC Liberals have ever attributed anyone other than the NDP with having raised taxes higher than you can reach! Carole James and the NDP better tuck that quote away for use later on.
Surely the signs of a worried Liberal government. If you live in the South Cariboo, election day squeaker, Donna Barnett says she will listen to constituents, however she supports the new HST. You might ask why she would be so fast off the mark.
I suspect it could have something to do with who benefits if the HST becomes law
. The Forest and Mining sectors look to reap 140 million and 80 million respectively. Needless to say these industries support the HST and contributed a great deal to Barnett's election campaign in May of this year.From Elections BC, Barnett's Donation listBarnett's campaign donations list several key individual donations that come from those working for or are owners of forest companies. With that kind of investment in Donna Barnett, I dare say they will see a big return should Barnett support the HST in the Legislature.
$4,648.71 - West Fraser Timber, Imperial Metals - $1,500, Taseko Mines - $2,000. In fact Barnett received $41,758.71 from corporate donors.
Campbell's War on Sustainable Government
Part one
What the heck is going on in BC. Premier Gordon Campbell has pulled the wool over the eyes of the media and the public for eight plus years now.
Lets look at his record so far. He has run the largest three and by the time he is done, four deficits in BC history. He has accomplished this despite coming to office in 2001 with a one billion dollar surplus. Campbell talked about a structural deficit that lead to the huge deficit in 2002. What he did not mention was his move to slash taxes by very large numbers, to the extent that it crippled the government's ability to deliver on services to people, to maintain health-care and education funding.
This manufactured circumstance of lower revenues lead to the Campbell government claiming they had to reign in health care costs. He did this by gutting health care workers rights, reducing wages and benefits by 40 to 50 percent. It was one of the most aggressive attacks on workers benefits in Canadian history.
Cutting health care was not enough with shrinking revenues to balance the budget. Campbell had promised in the election not to raise tuition fees. He kept the promise for one year. The fees have risen every year since. BC went from having the second lowest tuition and post secondary fees in Canada to rivaling those in Alberta, Canada's highest cost education.
Further measures by the Campbell Government like cuts to the Corporate capital tax put another big hole on the revenue side of the ledger. This was a tax that applied to paid up capital in the province and was intended to address the companies that did big business in BC but had corporate head quarters else where. In the case of the banks, BC received nothing in income tax as they are all headquartered in Toronto. Ontario gained the income tax for banks on business done in all the other provinces, including BC.
If government can't support these issues then you pass it onto the individual. The liberals have systematically removed procedures from coverage on MSP. They have drastically reduced the financial support for seniors drug plans and for others.
MSP premiums are going up 6% this year. That's faster than US Health care cost increases! In future posts I will look at each of these items and add more with respect to taxation, or the lack of taxation and how the government agenda is one to privatize BC's public services like BC Hydro, BC Ferries, and the payoff of a big time liberal contributor with the sale of BC rail.
What the heck is going on in BC. Premier Gordon Campbell has pulled the wool over the eyes of the media and the public for eight plus years now.
Lets look at his record so far. He has run the largest three and by the time he is done, four deficits in BC history. He has accomplished this despite coming to office in 2001 with a one billion dollar surplus. Campbell talked about a structural deficit that lead to the huge deficit in 2002. What he did not mention was his move to slash taxes by very large numbers, to the extent that it crippled the government's ability to deliver on services to people, to maintain health-care and education funding.
This manufactured circumstance of lower revenues lead to the Campbell government claiming they had to reign in health care costs. He did this by gutting health care workers rights, reducing wages and benefits by 40 to 50 percent. It was one of the most aggressive attacks on workers benefits in Canadian history.
Cutting health care was not enough with shrinking revenues to balance the budget. Campbell had promised in the election not to raise tuition fees. He kept the promise for one year. The fees have risen every year since. BC went from having the second lowest tuition and post secondary fees in Canada to rivaling those in Alberta, Canada's highest cost education.
Further measures by the Campbell Government like cuts to the Corporate capital tax put another big hole on the revenue side of the ledger. This was a tax that applied to paid up capital in the province and was intended to address the companies that did big business in BC but had corporate head quarters else where. In the case of the banks, BC received nothing in income tax as they are all headquartered in Toronto. Ontario gained the income tax for banks on business done in all the other provinces, including BC.
So Campbell managed in 2001 to lay the ground work of undermining the government's ability to fund health-care, education and other government services. This is the first step often employed by right wing governments in the USA and now Canada, to remove government's ability to support improvements to health-care and education.
Premier Dave Barrett was slaughtered in the 1975 election in part due to the Social Credit promise to eliminate the Capital tax. The tax survived and has been place at various levels since 1975, with governments of all stripes relying on it to support government services.
If government can't support these issues then you pass it onto the individual. The liberals have systematically removed procedures from coverage on MSP. They have drastically reduced the financial support for seniors drug plans and for others.
MSP premiums are going up 6% this year. That's faster than US Health care cost increases! In future posts I will look at each of these items and add more with respect to taxation, or the lack of taxation and how the government agenda is one to privatize BC's public services like BC Hydro, BC Ferries, and the payoff of a big time liberal contributor with the sale of BC rail.
Friday, September 04, 2009
Its an old joke...but timing is everything
A man died and went to heaven. As he stood in front of St. Peter at the Pearly Gates, he saw a huge wall of clocks behind him.
He asked, "What are all those clocks?"
St. Peter answered, "Those are Lie-Clocks. Everyone on Earth has a Lie-Clock. Every time you lie the hands on your clock will move."
"Oh," said the man, "Whose clock is that?"
"That's Mother Teresa's. The hands have never moved, indicating that she never told a lie."
"Incredible," said the man. "And whose clock is that one?"
St. Peter responded, "That's Abraham Lincoln's clock. The hands have moved twice, telling us that Abe told only two lies in his entire life."
"Where's Gordon Campbell's?" asked the man.
"Gordon's clock is in Jesus' office. He's using it as a ceiling fan."
He asked, "What are all those clocks?"
St. Peter answered, "Those are Lie-Clocks. Everyone on Earth has a Lie-Clock. Every time you lie the hands on your clock will move."
"Oh," said the man, "Whose clock is that?"
"That's Mother Teresa's. The hands have never moved, indicating that she never told a lie."
"Incredible," said the man. "And whose clock is that one?"
St. Peter responded, "That's Abraham Lincoln's clock. The hands have moved twice, telling us that Abe told only two lies in his entire life."
"Where's Gordon Campbell's?" asked the man.
"Gordon's clock is in Jesus' office. He's using it as a ceiling fan."
Monday, August 31, 2009
Fudget Budget Liberal style
How to make a budget look good for a few months....
Forest fires seem to be getting worse in BC. In fact this has been known for many years. Climate change brings warmer temperatures and less rain/snow, increasing urban sprawl into forested areas and more importantly a larger degree of uncertainty. Look at the budget in BC and you will be surprised to see the Liberals were hoping this year would see climate change reverse itself.
The budget projected that fighting forest fires in BC would amount to about 52 million. That is 10 million less than the year before. As we all know, that is likely going to be less than ten percent of the money actually spent in this budget year.
see performance plan (page 12) for the Forest Service...
Some folks have been suggesting that the high priced help we have hired, ie all those civil servants at the top making two or three hundred thousand and some make much more than that, should have seen this was a mistake to allot only 52 million to fire fighting. My guess is that they did raise this with those making up the budget. The budget as it was, was going to come in at almost 500 million in the hole. If they allotted a reasonable number to fighting forest fires, like say 300 million, then where would they be with the deficit? It would be much closer to a billion dollars, not the more palatable number of 5 million short of a half billion.
The whole Liberal mantra is based on their perceived ability to manage our money. They had to mislead us in order to assure us they could and do better than the free spending reckless New Democrats.
Just for the record, The Liberals in BC have now had the three largest deficits in BC history and are headed to gain the top five places before they are done.
On a final note, as a former employee of the BC Forest Service and a fire fighter I do know how good they are at fighting fires. Initial attack and early detection have been areas BC has excelled at. This post in no way should be read as slagging the workers in the Ministry, who by in large are very dedicated to protecting and managing our Forest and Range resources.
Forest fires seem to be getting worse in BC. In fact this has been known for many years. Climate change brings warmer temperatures and less rain/snow, increasing urban sprawl into forested areas and more importantly a larger degree of uncertainty. Look at the budget in BC and you will be surprised to see the Liberals were hoping this year would see climate change reverse itself.
The budget projected that fighting forest fires in BC would amount to about 52 million. That is 10 million less than the year before. As we all know, that is likely going to be less than ten percent of the money actually spent in this budget year.
see performance plan (page 12) for the Forest Service...
Strategies
The following strategies are intended to address key Ministry priorities over the next three years:
1. Anticipate and manage impacts on forest and range resources from pests and fire.
2. Manage and mitigate the resource impacts from the mountain pine beetle epidemic.
3. Utilise cross agency collaboration and alignment on First Nations relationships, land use, and research and resource management.
4. Adapt British Columbia’s forest and range management practices
Some folks have been suggesting that the high priced help we have hired, ie all those civil servants at the top making two or three hundred thousand and some make much more than that, should have seen this was a mistake to allot only 52 million to fire fighting. My guess is that they did raise this with those making up the budget. The budget as it was, was going to come in at almost 500 million in the hole. If they allotted a reasonable number to fighting forest fires, like say 300 million, then where would they be with the deficit? It would be much closer to a billion dollars, not the more palatable number of 5 million short of a half billion.
The whole Liberal mantra is based on their perceived ability to manage our money. They had to mislead us in order to assure us they could and do better than the free spending reckless New Democrats.
Just for the record, The Liberals in BC have now had the three largest deficits in BC history and are headed to gain the top five places before they are done.
On a final note, as a former employee of the BC Forest Service and a fire fighter I do know how good they are at fighting fires. Initial attack and early detection have been areas BC has excelled at. This post in no way should be read as slagging the workers in the Ministry, who by in large are very dedicated to protecting and managing our Forest and Range resources.
Burger King Education
The Liberals are at it again. I recall when I was working for the BC NDP government, our efforts to "modernize BC Education" and to cut costs. We moved from 75 school districts to 60. That was likely as low as you can go and still have some democracy and local control over education.
The current m
using of the Minister of Education Margaret MacDiarmid reek of a seek and destroy mission. The Liberals seem adverse to democracy at any level and have been working to implement a business model of operations on the Province. Witness Health Care. The Liberals eliminated local elections, local appointees. They have CEO's that run the regions like fiefdoms of days gone by or as one would run a Burger King franchise.
Amalgamating school districts will see elections of local trustees impossible, see decisions made behind closed doors and no remedy in case of local conflict.
Now that's not all the good Minister has been up too. She has slashed, that's not quite right, she has eliminated priority maintenance, safety and energy and cost saving expenditures on infrastructure. The last time this happened was in 1991 when the then unSocial disCreditED government totally abandoned school infrastructure spending. They of course when down in flames in the fall election.
This time in BC, an election is not looming soon. It is over three years away. What to do in the interim?
Perhaps the HST will save our schools? If you believe that, the tooth fairy is also on the way!
The current m
using of the Minister of Education Margaret MacDiarmid reek of a seek and destroy mission. The Liberals seem adverse to democracy at any level and have been working to implement a business model of operations on the Province. Witness Health Care. The Liberals eliminated local elections, local appointees. They have CEO's that run the regions like fiefdoms of days gone by or as one would run a Burger King franchise.Amalgamating school districts will see elections of local trustees impossible, see decisions made behind closed doors and no remedy in case of local conflict.
Now that's not all the good Minister has been up too. She has slashed, that's not quite right, she has eliminated priority maintenance, safety and energy and cost saving expenditures on infrastructure. The last time this happened was in 1991 when the then unSocial disCreditED government totally abandoned school infrastructure spending. They of course when down in flames in the fall election.
This time in BC, an election is not looming soon. It is over three years away. What to do in the interim?
Perhaps the HST will save our schools? If you believe that, the tooth fairy is also on the way!
Thursday, August 27, 2009
Liberals just hate email
Just how long have Liberal insiders been trying to hide information from the public. It goes back to 2003 when then Deputy Minister to Premier Gordon Campbell said that he deleted emails so the media fishing expeditions would not produce anything.
In 2005 Sean Holman at PublicEye found this spicy email sent to Vancouver Island Health Authority communications folks. Seems they are concerned with the BC Opposition's use of Freedom of Information to request potentially embarrassing or incriminating emails. Oddly enough the email asking people not to put sensitive material in an email was leaked! I guess the Liberals were right to be worried...
Recently we learned that the Campbell government was ordered by BC Supreme Court Justice Elizabeth Bennett to turn over email which likely related to the scandal plagued BC Rail sale to CN Rail. The emails of Premier Gordon Campbell, most cabinet ministers and political staff are likely relevant to the defence in the Basi-Virk case and she ordered they be disclosed to the defence.
That has turned out to be a silly order by Madame Justice Bennett. See the emails are missing. Thats what we heard in July of this year. Then in Court in August, Madame Justice Bennett was told that they had found emails from 2004. The ones missing are from 2002 and 2003.
They were written over by mistake. It seems they had the emails a little while ago but have since lost them when a staff person inadvertently deleted them all during the election.
I'm sure it was a little mistake, not meaning any harm, heck anyone could do it, right Mr. Dobbell?
In 2005 Sean Holman at PublicEye found this spicy email sent to Vancouver Island Health Authority communications folks. Seems they are concerned with the BC Opposition's use of Freedom of Information to request potentially embarrassing or incriminating emails. Oddly enough the email asking people not to put sensitive material in an email was leaked! I guess the Liberals were right to be worried...
"...Even before the election, the volume of FOI requests at the Ministry from the opposition were increasing - and they were sometimes asking for materials from specific individuals (ie communications staff). This trend will likely continue now. The reminder is for us to use the phone a lot more than we have been. And no briefing notes on locally changed climates, please...If you don't want it on the front page of the TC, don't put it in E mail... ~ Suzanne Germain, Media & Issues Advisor Vancouver Island Health Authority (email leaked to www.publiceyeonline.com)This from the political party that promised to be the most open and accountable government in Canada. Since then we have learned of the extent they will go in order to prevent being open and accountable.
Recently we learned that the Campbell government was ordered by BC Supreme Court Justice Elizabeth Bennett to turn over email which likely related to the scandal plagued BC Rail sale to CN Rail. The emails of Premier Gordon Campbell, most cabinet ministers and political staff are likely relevant to the defence in the Basi-Virk case and she ordered they be disclosed to the defence.
That has turned out to be a silly order by Madame Justice Bennett. See the emails are missing. Thats what we heard in July of this year. Then in Court in August, Madame Justice Bennett was told that they had found emails from 2004. The ones missing are from 2002 and 2003.
They were written over by mistake. It seems they had the emails a little while ago but have since lost them when a staff person inadvertently deleted them all during the election.
I'm sure it was a little mistake, not meaning any harm, heck anyone could do it, right Mr. Dobbell?
Wednesday, August 26, 2009
You don't think the Campbell Libcons were lying do you?
The BC Liberals were caught flat footed after the election. Seems the first Campbell and Hanson knew things were going from very bad to down right disastrous was after the election, during which they said the budget deficit would not be more than the budget forecast of almost 500 million dollars.
Perhaps the Libcons should have read the paper, check out these headlines at Northern Insights, that any 'on the ball' government would have seen as a warning.
Now look, the deficit is headed south toward 3 billion!
You don't think the Campbell Libcons were lying do you?
Perhaps the Libcons should have read the paper, check out these headlines at Northern Insights, that any 'on the ball' government would have seen as a warning.
Now look, the deficit is headed south toward 3 billion!
You don't think the Campbell Libcons were lying do you?
Friday, August 21, 2009
Don't want no HST
I can't get the audio for this, its on facebook, right here!
Don't want no HST
Don't want the HST
Don't want no HST.
Now look at that Gordo. Man, he really blew it.
He made us bitter from the HST.
This ain't working. Campbell can go screw it.
Money they're sucking from both you and me.
Now what's he smoking? HST is stupid.
Let me tell you, us guys ain't dumb.
People wave at Campbell with their middle finger.
Telling him he can stick it in his bum.
It's 12 per cent to fix a broken old oven.
They're taxing pizza deliveries.
You're paying more for your medication.
It doesn't sound like harmony.
"Let's tax them." (Campbell)
What did you just say?
"Let's tax them." (Campbell)
I should have learned to be a politician.
I need a drink of Gordo's rum.
Look at that Campbell?
He's still smiling for the cameras, man.
Has he gone mad, son?
Who's up there? What's that?
It's freakin' Colin Hansen.
He's Campbell's organ grinder and his chimpanzee.
Oh. that's just perfect.
And that's the way they do us,
Stuffing their pockets with the HST.
Don't want no.
Don't want no.
Don't want no HST.
Easy, easy money for nothing.
A bunch of dicks to me.
We're all hurting.
Don't want no HST.
Now look at that Gordo. Man, he really blew it.
He made us bitter from the HST.
This ain't working. Campbell can go screw it.
Money they're sucking from both you and me.
Now what's he smoking? HST is stupid.
Let me tell you, us guys ain't dumb.
People wave at Campbell with their middle finger.
Telling him he can stick it in his bum.
It's 12 per cent to fix a broken old oven.
They're taxing pizza deliveries.
You're paying more for your medication.
It doesn't sound like harmony.
"Let's tax them." (Campbell)
What did you just say?
"Let's tax them." (Campbell)
I should have learned to be a politician.
I need a drink of Gordo's rum.
Look at that Campbell?
He's still smiling for the cameras, man.
Has he gone mad, son?
Who's up there? What's that?
It's freakin' Colin Hansen.
He's Campbell's organ grinder and his chimpanzee.
Oh. that's just perfect.
And that's the way they do us,
Stuffing their pockets with the HST.
Don't want no.
Don't want no.
Don't want no HST.
Easy, easy money for nothing.
A bunch of dicks to me.
We're all hurting.
BC headed to 3 billion plus deficit!
BC headed to 3 billion plus deficit!
Originally published at Queerthoughts
Yeppers, you read that right. Colin Hansen, BC's Robber Minister went into an election knowing the Province's projected deficit of $495 million was way out to lunch, yet he repeatedly said that the number was good.
Seems the deficit number was good for one thing only, the re-election of Gordon Campbell and his team of con artists. We don't have all the numbers yet but it won't be long before we do. A new budget is coming down in a few weeks.
We know now that Hansen must have known the budget target was not going to be met because Welfare numbers were soaring. In fact welfare numbers were going so high, the public relations Bureau (read govt PR hacks) told Social Services it could not post welfare numbers until after the election. That's bad news on two fronts. First the province is paying out more money and second the province is not getting any tax revenue from the people it is paying welfare too.
Next we have The Robber Minister telling the media today that income tax revenue is down a billion and royalties and stumpage are down another billion give or take a couple 100 million. Add to that the 400 million spent on Forest fires and we easily have a 3 billion plus deficit.
Then there are the Olympic costs that we haven't seen yet. Surely they will come in way over budget. The Vancouver Trade and Convention Centre expansion has come in at double the original cost estimates. All I can say is that its a good thing these Liberals can mange money so well. Imagine what it would be like if they were worse at it than they tell us they are?
Now the fun stuff. It seems Robber Minister got a call from the big Robber Minister in Ottawa right after the election. The Ottawa Robber Minister had the BC Robber Minister over the barrel. See, Ottawa knew BC was in big financial doo-doo. So according to Gordon Campbell Ottawa said, "Hey BC, here is 1.5 billion buckaroos (that's what Harper calls dollars), bet you can use that right now." Harper was right of course and the deal was so easy, all BC had to do was sign onto a new tax.
You know most of the story after that. The HST is coming as a result of either a quick urgent decision that would not allow for public consultations and or the result of outright lying during the election. The BC Campbell Libcons in their effort to "Keep BC Strong" brought in a big new tax on the spur of the moment or they negotiated it for some time and felt voters didn't need to bother with it until after they voted.
BC, guess what?
You have been
Hoodwinked, Sucker-punched and Tattooed.
see also...
NO BC HST
Raphael Alexander: The dog ate my reason for introducing the HST
One Way We Can Say 'No!' to the HST
Ontario sleeps, BC Boils
Biggest Tax Shift in BC History: Why Did Campbell Do It?
HST opponents launch campaign to stop the tax
Critic says Tourism BC's closure a matter of control
Campbell, giant among free spenders
Campbell, giant among free spenders
At least he is a free spender with your money...
"It's estimated that the Canada line is over 1 billion over budget, the convention centre was 500 million over budget, the Golden Ears Bridge was 300 million over budget, the Sea to Sky was over budget by 200 million $$$.... Would you call that a good job managing, how much would those revenues of helped the present state of the books?" - The Straight Goods, Powell River BC
That's one of the questions being put to the media to ask the Gordon Campbell Liberal government in Victoria. Why the heck are they getting a free ride as the good financial managers of our money.
BC Politics is always interesting, but often what is most interesting, is never reported. What is most important is rarely discussed.
So instead of taking on the Campbell government on HST and their lack of prudent financial management, the media is asking Carole James if she would scrape the HST if elected in four years. That's a helpful question. How about trying to make the guy who has the job accountable.
BC is headed for a deficit this year bigger than any the NDP ever had. The Liberals as this blogger here points out have posted the three largest deficits in BC history. They are suppose to be the money managers. Heck the over spending on the Canada line is four times the over estimate on fast ferries, The over spending on the convention centre is two times more than fast ferries, the over spending on Golden Ears bridge is 50 % more than fast ferries. In fact the Liberals have over spent by two billion dollars on projected costs and that doesn't include the Olympics.
Don't you feel better now that the recovering drunk driver is steering the ship while using ferries made in Poland or was that Germany instead of those whiny NDPer's. Don't cry too hard, the BC government spent almost a million dollars for four artists in Germany to design a big rain drop. Then they had it built in Alberta and transported it to BC, likely using Alberta truckers. (you can find this big drop, not in a bucket, but at the new way, way over-budget Vancouver Trade and Convention Centre.) Don't you think the BC government could have at least built the damn thing in BC.
It's not really a rain drop, its a tear drop.
Man its good to have our affairs conducted like a giant ponzi scheme.
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