Music video laments Canada's political right turn.
by thewildcellist
"If Obama is a socialist, then Canada must be Communist."
Jan 232013
Canadian politics
Jan 212013
Alberta Conservatives not interested in public opinion regarding our water.
For more than four years, Albertans have been waiting for the government's promised consultation on water allocation in the province. But a leaked government document, released publicly last week by Our Water Is Not For Sale (OWINFS), suggests that what we will actually get will be much more a one-sided conversation.
Jan 212013
Michael Ryan was willing to respond to wife's abuse allegations.
by Stephen Kimber
In the third last paragraph of his 2010 decision finding Nicole Ryan not guilty of hiring a hit man to kill her abusive husband, Justice David Farrar notes he was “struck” by the fact the husband “did not take the stand to give evidence with respect to any of the assertions that were made against him.”
During the trial, Michael Ryan had been accused of putting a gun to his wife’s head, threatening to torch their home with his wife and daughter inside and keeping his wife isolated from family and friends.
Why didn’t he testify?
Jan 192013
Military intervention in African nation could lead to endless war.
from the Canadian Peace Alliance
The Government of Canada has recently announced that it is sending a CF-17 transport plane to northern Mali to add to the military buildup by the NATO powers in the area. The Canadian Peace Alliance is calling on the government to recall the plane and to cease any further contribution to the France-led mission.
One transport plane and a few Canadian "trainers" constitute just the thin edge of the wedge. There is a real fear of "mission creep" as witnessed in the Libyan situation. Canada's involvement as a junior partner to a NATO aggression in Africa could mushroom in the coming months and years. All this is being done without public or parliamentary debate. This unilateral support for war by the Harper government without consultation must stop.
Jan 172013
Younger children benefit most from therapy, yet many must wait years.
from the National Union of Public and General Employees
VANCOUVER, January 17, 2013 — British Columbians were dismayed to learn from a CBC Go Public report that families with autistic children have to wait as long as two and a half years for crucial speech language therapy.
Jan 172013
Provincial premiers might envy their success in deflecting Harper's steamroller.
by Gillian Steward
Since our prime minister is so intent on pushing through ambitious resource development projects, should it be any surprise that his grand vision would boomerang into an explosion of resistance from Aboriginal people?
Does it not occur to him that every time he makes public pronouncements about our resource riches being the path to prosperity, when he invites Chinese investors into the resource sector, that Aboriginal people might feel somewhat resentful?
Jan 172013
Federal Liberal lobbyists behind pre-election campaign for BC Liberals.
By Bill Tieleman
"Christy has not been given a fair shake. She has not been identified as a competent premier."
– Jim Shepard, Concerned Citizens for BC.
A political action group formed by a retired corporate leader will soon launch a $1 million "blanket coverage… full multi-media campaign" to attack the BC New Democrats and help re-elect Premier Christy Clark's BC Liberals, according to leaked documents obtained by 24 hours Vancouver and The Tyee.
Jan 162013
Veteran journalist sees First Nations rebellion as overdue.
by Linda Goyette
I am becoming more and more concerned about the harsh backlash among non-aboriginal Canadians against this peaceful protest movement. I’m not talking exclusively about virulent racial bigotry and hate speech, although it exists in dark places, but more about the willful denial of reality, the blindness to injustice — among many decent people.
These are the people I address tonight. I respect their right to a different opinion, but I hope they will hear me out.
Jan 142013
CEO lands in brand new soft job.
by Stephen Kimber
One of the enduring myths among those who bow down to the gods of the marketplace is that someone who screws up in the private sector — unlike the cosseted public sphere — will suffer inevitable, inevitably dire consequences for failure.
While there may be truth to that at the lower rungs of the corporate ladder, those at the top seem well insulated from the rigors of marketplace discipline.
Two-million to unsuccessfully contest the audit, $2 million for conduct unbecoming and $4.5 million more to cover disallowed fuel costs. That’s $8.5 million.
Case in point: Rob Bennett, until last week the president and chief operating officer of Nova Scotia Power, 2011 salary circa $1.15 million, up 23 percent from the year before…
Last month, the Nova Scotia Utilities Review Board issued its decision on NSP’s latest rate increase request. While granting three percent increases in 2013 and 2014, the board tore a strip off Nova Scotia Power management — which is to say, Bennett.
It disallowed $4.5 million in fuel costs the company had claimed in 2010 and 2011, arguing NSP could have purchased fuel more cheaply.
And it expressed its “dismay and concern” over the company’s “unreasonable… inappropriate… inexplicable… inexcusable” conduct during the hearings. After spending $2 million to hire 10 experts and filing over 1,000 pages of evidence to attack an independent auditor’s conclusions, the company — on the very last day of the hearings — revealed important information about its fuel market dealings, which, the board noted, added “significant time, cost and rancor, unnecessarily” to the proceedings.
The URB fined NSP $2 million for bad behavior.
Let’s see… Two-million to unsuccessfully contest the audit, $2 million for conduct unbecoming and $4.5 million more to cover disallowed fuel costs. That’s $8.5 million.
And don’t forget that during Bennett’s four-year watch, a $93-million heat recovery project went 40 percent over budget and the company had to swallow more costs because of delays in moving into its new corporate headquarters.
Did Bennett walk the plank for his transgressions? Fall on his sword in shame?
Not exactly. Last week, Emera, NSP’s parent company, announced Bennett would become its executive vice president and chief operating officer, a job that didn’t exist before it was created coincidentally just in time for Bennett’s soft landing.
Ah, yes, the private sector. Where the consequence of failure is… success.
Jan 102013
Transportation Minister denies any responsibility for crashes.
By Bill Tieleman
"@Surrey Police: #IceIceSurrey If ice is a problem, yo, you can solve it, check out this link while my DJ revolves it."
– Surrey, England police warning on Twitter.
Who knew that the $3.3 billion Port Mann Bridge was designed by slippery 1990s rapper Vanilla Ice? Not BC Transportation Minister Mary Polak, who will probably never listen to "Ice Ice Baby" again.