HOUSTON, WE HAVE A PROBLEM

On Saturday, I was sitting in the dining room having a snack with friends. The doorbell rings.

Oh, look, it's not Revenue Canada. Well, that's a start.

But it is a guy with an official looking document. What is this, the annual Are You Allergic to Peanuts Survey?

Close.

He's campaigning for Gordon Campbell and the Liberals. Will I be voting for him, them?

Not likely, son.

But if you vote for Carole James the world will fall in to mortal peril from now unto perdition.

Right. Got it. Have a nice day.

And therein exactly lies the problem.

Today, the Premier and his Finance Minister, Colin Hansen, announced that it's Deficit Financing. The days of Balanced Budgets are now the stuff of porch swings and Doris Day-Gordon MacRae musicals.

O.K.

No reasonable person can fault this province for being a part of the real world beset by massive economic downturns. No great shame in biting this distasteful bullet and getting on with the job at hand.

But therein lies the problem,

What, exactly, is the job at hand? And who best to do it?

My problem is this.

Neither Gordon Campbell nor Carole James, neither the Liberals nor the NDP can find the right balance.

Campbell has shown, day after day, a mean-spirited elitist pro-business, anti-small guy attitude in almost every choice made. He is after the Big Projects and the Truly Big Monuments. He seems finally a man with little heart or human kindness. Certainly, he has paid scant attention to those among us who have less and need a little more.

I cannot vote for him, and I will not.

So.

Take Carole James...please.

Is there anyone in the provincial NDP caucus, James included, who has the faintest idea of how to read a spread sheet? Have they ever sold shoes at The Bay or run their dad's coffee shop, let alone managed a large corporation or hired and fired large numbers of people?

I have lived in this sovereign state for over 40 years now and I have seen only two parties - The Right, who build roads and bridges; and The Left, who tax and spend.

Will we ever have a New Politician in these parts? Will he or she arrive before May 12th so that British Columbians might have someone and something to choose?

Not likely.

So how shall we vote?

THE MATCH - ANOTHER TAKE

David
I have along with many others admired Feeders' tennis skills
But there is something rotten in the state of Federer
We saw two lessor players battle through a marathon that left us all
tired and worn
but when the last shot was called they walked to the net shook hands
and went to their chairs
neither fell down, neither cried, neither jumped up and down shouting
whoopee.............

I have at times suspected Federer of giving games to an opponent before
closing the set or match
He never seems to break a sweat, and does not want to .............

Underneath the skilled tidy blue and white perfection I think there may
lurk a monster.

We don't see this but I think he likes the "control" of himself, the
game, and the opponent.

He found that he could not control Nadal. The ultimate retriever!
Awesome ! Truly awesome.
then he could not control the game ........
and finally he could not control himself.
I think his tears were tears of shame. He did not play his best because
trying hard is not cool
and he was surrounded by champions.
Players who gave their all and did not cry when they were defeated
...........

All Nadal had to do was give Federer a breakpoint
Federer would stop playing. He doesn't want to appear to be working at
the game.
It is "cool" to let Nadal miss a shot

The fatal flaw in Federers' character

If I knew him better I might not like him

On the other hand maybe I am all wrong ............

.............Maurice

REPLY:

I think your analysis is spot on, Maurice.

His stubborn refusal to adjust to Nadal's shoulder-high spinning forehand to his backhand corner is now the stuff of legends.

As is his reluctance to go for his great inside out forehands until he is down 3 games or 2 sets.

He will either get it into his thick head that Nadal is an entirely different kettle of fish or he will perish behind his rigidity.

As for Rafa - what an admirable stalwart young man!

SO SWEET