Shadow Dances
The provincial government is going after the books of the Vancouver School Board.
The Premier in one of his most disingenuous moments, declared "It’s a question of making sure we are doing everything we can to provide for kids in the classroom.”
Hahahahaha...
What a card.
The revival of vaudeville right before our eyes.
The cement Mixer turns his steely eye to helping children.
Give us a Royal Canadian Break, puleeeese.
Of course, it didn't help that the Board chair, Patti Bacchus, has been openly critical of Margaret MacDiarmid, the poor soul posing as the Minister of Education in a province that is run entirely out of the Premier's office. That's Marg, up there in the corner.
But that's not the entire story of course.
Turns out that almost every school board in the province is ailing.
Not enough money.
Old story.
And while these boards may be right and the province may in fact not be funding at the levels necessary, there is a deeper issue at stake here.
Whether or not Victoria ponies up enough loot on any given day to properly provide buildings, books, chalks, computers, playing fields and dedicated teachers to create great learning environments for BC children, a simple question remains unanswered.
Do we need School Boards?
Do we need regional Health Boards?
Are not these bodies great places for sucking up money and energy?
Could we not fund schools and hospitals directly and demand that they be responsible citizens?
Could we not audit these direct suppliers of educational and health services?
How much do these Boards cost us all?
We know for a fact that in health care, the regional boards have created a maze and snake pit of cross-regional claims on patients with mental health and addiction problems. We know that treatment - and the patient - are often lost in the bureaucratic jungle.
It is the endless and fruitless processes of covering your ass that costs us all.
Maybe some day in a place only to be dreamed of we will have a government with the courage to send these boards into the ocean so that we can get on with teaching and practicing medicine.
9 comments:
The only thing possibly funnier was Colin Hansen's complaint that Bill Vander Zalm was not entirely accurate in portraying all the new things to draw sales tax when HST becomes effective.
Is it not the end when distaste turns to contempt and ridicule?
Oh and how the present government would love to "privatize" these two entities . . how they drool at the possibility . . .
I'm not sure what the answer might be but this isn't one of them . . . IMHO
Scrap all xchool and hospital boards.
Combine Van. N Van W Ban And Richmond. Combine the Trt Cities,and Maple Ridge and Mission.
Combine Surrey, Delta Langley,Cloverdale.
Imagine the savings.
13
The underfunding of the school system is a direct result of the growth of private schools. Can't let the Creme de la Creme have THEIR children mingle with the plebs immigrants and First Nation kids. Minister Lockwood-Smith of New Zealand ruined their school system to the point that parents revolted and he was FIRED to save the government from defeat. School system in England, New Mexico, Chicago, Pueblo Colo. and dozens of other places all have made the mistake that BC is about to make. New Zealand has taken ten years to return their school system to sanity. Meanwhile the local Unthinking Tank pushes the fools in Victoria to repeat the errors and disasters of other jurisdictions.
As someone who works in health care and sees a lot of the crap that's going on, I can tell you the separate health authorities do nothing but bicker with one another to say nothing of among themselves.
The horrific waste of having six separate authorities each with their own board of directors, CEO's, VP's, managers for the managers and directors, assistant managers for managers, supervisors for the "leads" and leads for the lowly peons who actually DO the work is unbelievable!! The public has NO idea of how many millions of dollars are wasted every day, when all it takes is One Central office. We are a province of only 4 million people...WHY do we need this kind of structure. WE DON'T. But it helps keep friends of friends of family employed in a very lucrative environment...the higher you go the less oversight you have. Totally the opposite of what "should be."
THE WASTE OF OUR TAX DOLLARS IS BEYOND MONUMENTAL!!!!
But, it's this waste they'll use when quoting all the reasons why health care in BC had to become private...it was just costing way too much money. There's nothing like causing the problem purposely so you can also come up with the pre-determined solution to said problem. Privatization.
And it all comes from Campbell's office, through his lackey Falcon. Such outstanding examples they are, of everything that's wrong with BC.
And don't forget Campbell's brother-in-law - the doctor who has his finger in Campbell's ear.
I believe the strategy for privatizing healthcare is ready but the Canada Health Act presents an obstacle. As soon as Harper's gang gains a majority that impediment will disappear.
"Patient-focused funding" encourages over-treatment and has other problems too. However, it is a good start to privatization. Funding will follow patients to community hospitals or private clinics and surgical centres.
It is not a meaningless act for Falcon to appoint as Chair of Vancouver Coastal Health one of the owners of private Cambie Surgeries Corp. Cambie of course with its Brian Day have been leading the public lobbying for private healthcare.
Once again you plead for more efficient socialism. Good luck with that.
Would it be socialism if a political leader proposed a course of action, led a public discussion to weigh pros and cons and acted according to common goals demonstrated by an electoral mandate? Anonymous 9:42, do you happily tolerate liars? Do you accept survival of the oiliest or strongest under pure unregulated capitalism? That was demonstrated by Mr. Paulson and his friends at Goldman Sachs?
They said one thing, "We sell great mortgage backed securities." They did something different, delivering worthless instruments they knew to be of little or no value. Sound like something a BC Liberal would approve.
My preference is something different than the Goldman Sachs Paulson paradigm. Moral and ethical behavior is not socialist. Were that my only choice, I might become one. But, it's not. I prefer an economic system that isn't very popular. It is competitive capitalism.
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