On a Clear Day You Can See Forever

It is all becoming clear now.

Here is how things work in British Columbia in the 21st Century.

RULE ONE PRIMO ABOVE ALL:

If you or your company/law firm/society/family contribute to the B.C. Liberal party in any way shape or form, then you get special appointments - like say - Special Prosecutor - that are among other things very lucrative.

1) How is this for irony?

Winston Blackmore, the ever-smiling "leader" of the polygamous Bountiful community (You might be smiling too if you could, with impunity, shtup every 15-year old girl who wandered within yodelling distance of your cave and then you could simply declare her to be another of your "wives.") wants to fire his own lawyer.

Why?

Because Blackmore has learned that his government appointed attorney, George K. MacIntosh has donated to the BC Liberal party and that his firm has donated more than $50,000 in recent years to the BC Liberal Party.

Mr. Blackmore, a paragon of civic virtue himself, asks, "How worse could this look?"

Adds Blackmore, “It already smells bad.”

When one of the creepiest guys on town ism pointing the finger at you, how bad is that?

2) Terrance Robertson, the Special Prosecutor, who first cleared Kash Heed of any wrong-doing and then stepped down from his position because of contributions to the BC Liberal party from his firm, is receiving almost $300,000 in fees for his work on the Winston Blackmore file - work, by the way, that resulted in his recommended charges being tossed by the BC Supreme Court.

This is a little akin to those Wall Street executives who bankrupted their own companies and their clients and took massive billion dollar bailouts from the public purse, but nevertheless paid themselves many millions in performance bonuses.

3) One year after taking the case as Special prosecutor in the Basi-Virk unending melodrama, Bill Bernadino donated $500 to Wally Opaque's Liberal election campaign.

But hey! No Problem, Buddy.

Just ask Bernadino his Special Self.

"There's no conflict of interest," he said. "I made a donation and I don't see anything wrong with that at all. I've carried on in my role as a special prosecutor."

I don't see anything wrong with this.

There is no conflict of interest.

Oh yes. We forgot.

During the one 15-minute Ethics lecture they gave at Law School oh those many years ago, Bill had a handball game scheduled.

* * *

For more on these matters, check out BC Mary's blog and BillTieleman's blog.

* * *

So there is the pattern writ large.

Donate and get on the train - The Gravy Train.

No matter what your political stripe - died in the wool Big Business, Free Market Enterpriser or Card-carrying Take to the Barricades Union Man or Woman - do you really want dedicated corruption in your elected government?

For certainly that is what the current administration of public trust is under Gordon Campbell.

An honest government - if somewhere on earth there is such a thing - would go, for example, out of province when,looking for Special Prosecutors.

An honest government would vet such appointments with a tooth pick and dental floss.

No payments, no contributions, no ties - OK.

But that is not the BC Way.

Not until the next election.

Everything in Life is a Song Cue

Demand Value

I had a haircut yesterday.

In a conversation about the price of haircuts, my barber, who charges me $14, told me that in the coming few years we will see no barbershops on the west side of town.

Can't afford the rent.

At 14 bucks, it's plain and simple.

The beauty shops/salons/stylists charge $40 or $50 for the same haircut, with a bit more fuss and bother. Maybe a shampoo and a bit of a head tickle, thank you very much.

Rents for small shops on West 10th Avenue are astronomical.

There is no help from City Hall.

All of which leads to the article below, focusing on the future of the Broadway corridor.

The only reasonable plan is above ground Light Rail Transit, already proven around the world.

But as we seem to be married and attached at the hip to Bombastier and its cement pylon loving partners, we can probably expect a Cambie Street repeat destroying one Mom 'n Pop Shop after another through the Greek neighbourhood and up the hill to the UBC gates.

Read the following and weep.

And then bombard your city councillors and Transclunk with demanding emails.

Demanding above ground LRT and protections for ongoing businesses.


Were City of Vancouver employees asleep during the construction of the Canada Line megaproject?

They say lessons learned from the Canada Line are important as they start working with TransLink on plans for the transit line along the Broadway corridor from Commercial Drive to the University of B.C.

But the principles put together by city staff for this process, recently approved by council, show that the main lesson to be learned has escaped them.

Construction of the Canada Line destroyed many established small businesses and gutted others. It was an unprecedented fiasco. Shockingly, only one of the city's 10 draft principles speaks to the issues that most concern small businesses.

It is vaguely and weakly worded as "minimize and mitigate construction and operation impacts." Wasn't this the same promise made to merchants along the Canada Line? We are not off to a good start.

If Vancouver wants to have the trust of its businesses, it is going to have to do much better than that.

The construction-related noise, dust, lane closures and traffic rerouting along the Canada Line were far more severe and lasted much longer than promised. Many customers avoided the area completely.

As a result, small-business owners along the construction corridor suffered sales losses averaging more than $100,000.

Efforts to stay in business went far beyond the ordinary and included taking out second mortgages, using retirement savings, laying off long-term staff and relocating.

The emotional stress defied quantification. As one longtime owner, who renewed her lease under the assurance that construction-related disruption would be minimal, put it: "This [my business] was supposed to be my legacy for my daughter. It was supposed to be my retirement. They are taking everything."

Did all of this hardship escape the notice of city staff? We know it didn't escape the notice of Vancouver's current mayor. He was an MLA at the time the Canada Line was being built and the most vocal politician championing the cause of affected businesses.

Where is he now?

The Broadway corridor project could affect hundreds of businesses as well as their families, staff and communities. Protecting the viability of businesses along Broadway corridor should be among the city's highest priorities and principles for the project.

The hardworking individuals who support families and communities in Vancouver deserve nothing less.

The way small businesses were treated around Canada Line construction remains a black mark on the reputations of all governments involved in the project, including Vancouver.

Broadway is an opportunity to do things differently. This starts by acknowledging that the costs to businesses along the Canada Line were unacceptably high.

TransLink is now starting its consultation around the Broadway Line. Any hope they will hear small business? If past experience is any indication, we better get ready to shout.

Laura Jones can be reached at laura.jones@cfib.ca.

INTRODUCING . . .

Laura Jones, of the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, makes her debut today as a regular columnist for The Province. Jones's column on issues affecting small businesses in B.C. will run in the Money section every second Thursday.

© Copyright (c) The Province

A Fair Comeuppance

"The Lancet" is considered the world's leading English language medical journal.

Here is it's pronouncement on Stephen Harper.

"The Canadian government does not deprive women living in Canada from access to safe abortions. It is therefore hypocritical and unjust that it tries to do so abroad."

The numbers:

70,000 women die from unsafe abortions worldwide every year.

350,000 women die during childbirth each year.

9,000,000 children under the age of 5 die each year.

Mr. Harper has put together a summit focusing on women's health.

He should stick to his agenda and keep his personal backwoodsie philosophies out of the picture.

Watchdogs with No Bite

It is supposed to be re-assuring that Environment Minister Jim Prentice says there is no need for a moratorium on future offshore drilling in Canadian waters while the world tries to figure out what went wrong in the Gulf of Mexico.

He says we will rely on Canada’s ‘strong regulatory environment’ to ensure disaster in the Gulf is not repeated here.

Truly?

Well, what does he have to say about this?

It has been revealed in recent days that the U.S. government has its share of watchdogs allegedly being paid to oversee all safety concerns for their off-shore drilling operations.

The only problem with that program is called Corruption.

Investigations have revealed that many of these "overseers" have been bribed with money and sexual favours to turn a blind eye to procedures that are speedy, convenient and one step away from disaster.

Will the Canadian watchdogs have teeth?

Or just deep pockets?

Keep Your Skillet Good and Greasy

An enterprising woman in Toronto has hired several female mechanics to join her in her new business.

The shop is called "Ms. Lube."

Of course, the folks who own the better-known Mr. Lube are not amused and they are suing.

If only they had a sense of humour and a little grace and the good sense to know that this can only help their business in the long run.

If only they could keep their oil rags from getting in a knot.

No doubt it will only be a matter of days before some yutz will come along looking for employment and claim discrimination before a human rights tribunal because he is a man looking to get dirty amongst the women mechanics.

Lawyers and tribunals should all be given tickets to comedy shows. They could pass them out to many potential clients with the advice, "Go find your ability to laugh again, you goofball."

Sublime

Happy Trails To You

The Premier is a renowned C.F.

Control freak.

Nothing gets past him and nobody says or does anything without his Holy Blessing.

Independent Operators in the BC Liberal government - not there are any or have ever been any or ever will be any - go straight to the back of the bus.

They get dropped off at Palookaville toot sweet.

How then is is possible that:

- a law firm that makes regular contributions to The Party gets to have one of their own as a Special prosecutor? Try about $50,000 in recent years.

- one Solicitor-General, John van Dongen, has to resign because, although he is the region's Top Cop, he has lost his driver's license to speed? 2009.

- another S-G, John Les, hs to resign because of possible shady land deals? 2008.

- a third S-G, Kash Heed, has to resign twice in three weeks, because of possible election campaign irregularities? 2010.

How are these things possible, we find ourselves musing over the back porch at twilight, with a man Who Knows Everything, Who Sees Everything?

So far the only answers that emerge are these:

1. His Granite Face doesn't really know everything and see everything.

2. He does know everything and he does see everything and he just doesn't give a damn, Scarlett.

3. He has pre-scripted all of the above a) to keep everybody on the edge of their cheap seats and b) in the most recent fiasco, to get all the original charges against Kash Heed's gang of ethnic-baiting rabble-rousers thrown out.

Diabolical.

No.

Even Gordon Campbell is not this clever.

The truth may be something closer to this.

Conflicts of interest and rules of behaviour simply don't impress the Premier very much.

If I want to appoint a Special Prosecutor, frankly I don't waste much time worrying about how many dollars that guy's firm may have given me over the years for my own election war chests.

If I want Kash Heed or anyone else that I favour this week as my Minister of Cups and Saucers, well then I will bloody well appoint him.

Everything is Vanity and Vexation of Spirit.

The truth is closer to this.

Gordon Campbell's run as Premier of the Province of British Columbia is coming to an end.

His tattered skirts are showing and in the not too distant future someone else will have the opportunity to mismanage our affairs on a grand scale.

Falcon? Vulture? And the Difference Is?

That Prince of Warm Heartedness, that purveyor of Public Kindnesses, Kevin Falcon, the man posing as the Provincial Health Minister - I say, posing, because an actual real human person occupying that title would demonstrate some actual interest in HEALTH - has hit rock bottom with his latest profundity.

"B.C. instituting fees for convalescent care

Charges will fill gap between palliative and respite care, minister says"

You have to read this announcement and then think seriously about the implications.

These are fees for the dying and the elderly and their families.

We out here in the thoughtless boonies who clearly are too stupid to understand the good and mysterious workings of our glorious government have a small appreciation that governments are always on the lookout for more revenue.

Fair enough.

I guess.

But the elderly, the dying, the barely recovering and their families?

Perhaps Mr. Falcon knows no people over the age of 40.

Perhaps his parents and grandparents have long since thrown off this flimsy veil for a far, far better world elsewhere.

If we may be so bold...

Old people don't make a lot of money.

The elderly and the dying are not raking it in, folks.

So it is to these vulnerable, weakened people that we turn for more loot?

This administration is finished.

No one with any conscience could possibly vote to stomach another season of these ghouls.

Scary Great Beautiful Combination

Update

Kash Heed resigns - again

Victor's comment, posted below, was written before this morning's announcement.

The Special Prosecutor, Terrance Robertson, who cleared Kash Heed in the elections matters just happened to work for a firm of lawyers who made contributions to Heed's campaign.

Heed was correct in stepping down...again.

But here are a few nagging questions that remain.

Is is possible to run for office and not know what your campaign manager is doing?

If he is not aware, why not?

Is the Premier not aware that the Special Prosecutor works for a team that makes campaign contributions to the man under a potential cloud?

If he is not aware, why not?

And the biggest question of all - the one that must be asked at the moment that Old Granite Face re-instates Heed long distance:

Is Kash Heed, good or bad, innocent or guilty, the ONLY person in the province capable of being the Solicitor General?

Can we function Heed-less?

Victor Comments on The Return of Kash Heed

So, Kash is back in Cabinet.

Does Ministerial accountability mean anything today?

He may be pure as Caesar's wife (although not as pretty) but I would
have applauded him if he had said that he would abide (like the Dude)
on the back bench until this unpleasantness passed.

This man will keep watch over us to protect us from every nefarious
scheme, every crook, who may bring harm to us.

And he couldn't scrutinize 3 people in his campaign office?

There is much more to this. He won his seat by playing one race
against another.

My wife is Chinese. She arrived here 10 years ago, struggled to start
a business and now employs Canadians. Like me, she is disgusted with
the hypocrisy of Canadians who, on one hand, bleat about
multiculturalism while endorsing political campaigns that pit one
culture against another.

The fact that the Premier re-appointed Kash Heed, over the phone,
while attending observances in Holland for Canadian soldiers who died
by the thousands for democracy, says it all.

He has no honour. He profanes the graves he walks on.

Real Issue, Bad Law

Imagine you are walking down, say, Robson Street towards the Library.

A policeman stops you and demands your "identity card" or your "immigration papers."

You might think, "Did the Berlin Wall go back up? Is this the stasi?"

When I first moved to Vancouver in my early twenties and began driving taxi, I was always astonished to be asked by curious passengers, "What are you?"

Of course, I had a number of ready smarty pants answers.

But what they meant was, "What is your ethnicity?"

Coming from Winnipeg, where a question like that was moot and never asked because if you weren't Scottish, then you had to be Ukrainian, German, Jewish, Polish, or twelve other unacceptable pitiable things, I always found this inquiry alarming.

Long before we lived in Hongcouver or Shangcouver, this was decidedly BRITISH Columbia.

Now...

Place yourself if you dare in Phoenix.

Last week, Arizona Governor, Jan Brewer, signed a law which makes failure to carry immigration documents a crime. Further, the law directs police to question people about their immigration status.

Among other backlashes, conventions booked for Phoenix and Scottsdale have been cancelled and moved to other cites.

Baseball clubs are urging that the 2011 All-Star Game be relocated out of Phoenix.

There is no question that states bordering Mexico have serious problems with illegal immigration.

Among the several hundred possible remedies, this is close to the worst.

The very Americans who hold their rifles high over head shouting, "Over my dead body," are happy to have their fellow citizens stopped at the mall by officers of the state demanding ID because of the shape of your eyes or the colour of your skin.

Who Is Out of Control Here?

In the video below, a fan at a Phillies game runs around the filed like an idiot.

Par for the course.

It's a game. Beer is drunk, People are dopes.

But then comes Mr. Policeman armed with a taser.

Listen to the highly sophisticated broadcasters.

"He got him."

What is this? A video game for 9-year olds?

Can anyone say, "Robert Dziekanski?"

Was this poor sap running around the outfield armed? Was he threatening anyone? Did he pose some clear and present danger to anyone other than his own lonely goofy self?

No, no and no.

Over-react or what?

Who Is Out of Control Here? Part Duh?

Who Pays?

President Obama expects British Petroleum to pay for the Gulf oil spill clean-up.

Good luck on all of that.

Aside from the massive environmental impacts and the devastating loss of jobs, work and incomes, the scrubbing could cost upwards of $15 Billion.

BP is not alone.

They share the oil rig project with Transocean of Switzerland and Houston's Anadarko Petroleum.

Shares of BP, Transocean and Anadarko have plummeted since the rig exploded on April 20, killing 11 workers and triggering a massive oil leak. BP’s market value has sunk by about $30-billion since the accident. Shares of Transocean have dropped 21 per cent on the New York Stock Exchange and Anadarko’s stock is down 14 per cent.

How many lawyers occupying how many complete buildings toil for BP full-time?

Cleaning up the crude will be significantly easier that getting BP and its friends to pony up to the pay booth.

All of which raises a boatload of questions.

Starting with...what codicils are built into these drilling agreements in the first place regarding disasters?

The photo is of a giant containment device that will be lowered into the ocean to grab some of the spill.

Plain Speaking

Nancy Ruth is a Conservative senator and pro-choice feminist.

She worries that aid activists, pressuring the Harper government to include access to abortion in a G8 initiative, will only touch off a backlash.

She has some friendly advice for them.

"Shut the fuck up – on this issue,” Ms. Ruth said.

That's what she said and that's what the Globe printed on page 4 this morning.

HAHAHAHAHAHAHA...

It warms my heart to see that there are still a few people who speak English.

What is behind Ruth's warning, however, is troublesome.

It is but one indicator of how folks everywhere in political life in Canada at this date fear speaking up and speaking out lest Harper bite back at them where it hurts.

We share the same concern...while applauding Ms. Ruth for her clear messaging.

All praise Her Feistiness!

Asper-ated

I don't rightly care which "Family" completely controls all TV and newspapers in the country, believing as do that this kind of concentration of information assets is bad for almost everyone.

However, there are a few wrinkles in the Shaw buys CanWest story that interest me.

First is the claim that Shaw is betting that consumers will put increasing value on the ability to watch TV on their mobile phones, laptops and portable devices such as iPad.

Well...

A) I think they are right. If cafe life is any indicator, apparently everyone under the age if 35 is incapable of being anywhere without thumbing themselves to death, whether or not they are alone or with a companion.

This mindless consumerism frightens me.

Where did all these goats or TV's - Trend Victims - get this idea that they MUST live like this?

There are now more mobile phone and electronics shops in malls than women's shoe stores!

B) I will not be one of their eager new customers.

Just as I don't buy espresso in paper cups so I can walk down the street sucking on a plastic lid, I have no interest in watching TV on a screen the size of my wristwatch.

Drinking espresso means to me sitting down in a cafe with friends and talking and laughing or sitting alone and reading a book and watching the passing parade.

Watching TV means to me sofa, popcorn, pajamas.

Call me a Ritualist.

Call me not Shaw's Best New Bet.

* * *

The other thing that concerns me about this sale is the impact it will have on the City of Winnipeg.

Winnipeg is my old home town.

I still have friends and relatives there.

I go there occasionally for one reason or another.

The Asper Family is now officially out of business.

I don't know these people personally and I have no judgements or comments about them.

But I do know that they have had, over the past several decades, an enormous impact on the community with their business interests and their charitable contributions.

How much of that, I wonder, will survive?

R.I.P. Great Canadian Jazz Man

Shortness

A quick and short blogismatis this morning, folks.

a) I've got an early morning appointment, and

b) What can I say, let alone do, about the Greek economy, the Gulf Spill or bomb threats in Times Square? (Talk about a blockbuster show opening!)

Back with the usual complaints, kvetches, outrage and home-grown solutions to local problems tomorrow.