Friday 5 May 2017

Once more with feeling

Commentator:  Blogger Guy:

  -  Here we are at yet another British Columbia election. So lets review what has happened under the present Christy Clark BC Liberal government.

BC Liberal Guy - Hey wait a minute, I can tell you're going to lambast Christy, you always do.

Blogger Guy - No, I'll be unbiased, only talk about what has happened, and give you a chance to respond.

BC Liberal Guy - I'll be watching you.

Blogger Guy - Please do. Let's start by talking about that secret Petronas deal in the North, which might be tied to the recent 6.2 magnitude earthquake up there.

BC Liberal Guy - Wait wait wait! You have no proof that there even is a North in BC.

Blogger Guy - Just listen a moment. Petronas built 16 unauthorized dams up there to give them more water for fracking. It is already proved that fracking causes earthquakes. Would you accept that?

BC Liberal Guy - I would have to consult with Bill Bennett, he's our Liberal MLA and Energy Minister who would have control of it.

Blogger Guy - He is not running again.

BC Liberal Guy - Really?

Blogger Guy - Some say because he was getting afraid of being caught doing something funny up there.

BC Liberal Guy - Hey, remember those fast ferries. Ho ho, what a disaster that was. Don't forget that was NDP!

Blogger Guy - Nice segue. Well those NDP ferries were built in BC and British Columbia workers got paid. Christy went to Germany and Poland for every one since, sending millions of dollars to foreign shipyard builders instead of supporting local BC workers.

BC Liberal Guy - We Liberals are going strong for jobs in BC. Why I'll have you know there are 4.6 million people in BC and Christy has created over 6 million jobs here.

Blogger Guy - Yes, I see math isn't your forté.  Does that include those mining workers imported from China who said BC Miners didn't know how to dig a mine? And no one knew if they were even getting a dollar a day because they were paid somewhere in China?

BC Liberal Guy - Them fast ferries couldn't make it to China.

Blogger Guy - Any thoughts about the Green Party?

BC Liberal Guy - That's why they're just green with envy.

Blogger Guy - I notice that when Christy is questioned about anything, she starts out by saying, 'That's why we are doing ...' and then goes on to some other subject?

BC Liberal Guy - Brilliant isn't it? Makes her look like she really is doing something.

Blogger Guy - What about that Mount Polley disaster that destroyed Quesnel Lake.

BC Liberal Guy - Hey hey, come on, that lake is still there.

Blogger Guy - And the BC Liberals, after getting nice donations from the company, have recently allowed the mine to dump toxic waste into the lake. Anything to say about that?

BC Liberal Guy - Those people there are tough. That's why we are helping them. If the Monsanto guy can drink Round-Up and not die, those folks can drink BC fresh lake water.

Blogger Guy - He has not been seen since, you know. Some people say that Christy Clark is trying to allow BC Hydro to be bought by private foreigners because she ....

BC Liberal Guy - That's why she is fighting to keep BC Hydro doing hydro stuff and water and ... you know.

Blogger Guy - We have been told that the Private P3 Power Projects that Gordan Campbell handed out to friends, is now costing the BC taxpayer millions, because of agreements he signed that pay them higher than BC Hydro charges and that BC Hydro is having to borrow millions to pay these privateers.

BC Liberal Guy - Pshaw. We're not Gordon Campbell.

Blogger Guy - Any response to Christy taking money from ICBC which was because people were driving more safely and created a surplus that many believe should have been returned to drivers as a lowering of insurance?

BC Liberal Guy - Hey, that's why she balanced her budget with that money.

Blogger Guy - And now our rates are going UP instead of down?

BC Liberal Guy - Onward and upward.

Blogger Guy - Really. Hmm, We had Laura Miller in our Liberal government before. Then she went to Ontario, and did whatever and got herself charged criminally in that Province with Breach of Trust and Mischief, and yet Christy hired her even knowing these facts? And Rich Coleman said if criminal deeds are done in another province it doesn't count? Are you okay with hiring (alleged) criminals?

BC Liberal Guy - Alleged is the second most used word in the BC Liberals' lexicon. And that's why we are going to have more words in classrooms this year. We're for the children!

Blogger Guy - Lots of people are wondering how she got a 12 million dollar war chest and they're calling it pay-to-play.from foreign investors.

BC Liberal Guy - Alleged. You see how we use it?

Blogger Guy - Really. Do you mind that people use the phrase Yoga Gate? Referring to the Burrard Bridge fitness fiasco?

BC Liberal Guy - No problem and you just clued into our next plan too, Lions Gate Yoga Day! I have been pushing for this one, and it'll be seen everywhere. Full TV coverage. On the center span of the Lions Gate Bridge on a Monday morning in September will be a combined production for fitness for all, AND a new Bollywood production and they're only charging us 20 million! Sit-ups in your sari.

Blogger Guy - Full coverage for sure, you'll have CNN just to cover the traffic by satellite!
I need a break. Here is a PSA for voting on May 9th -

We're Greener       -       We're Oranger       -       We're Blue - er


Blogger Guy - Back. So Mr. BC Liberal Guy. Anything to say about Christy selling Nestle our water for $2.25 for a MILLION liters, even after the CEO of Nestles said we need to privatize BC Water and it wasn't a human right?

BC Liberal - So we've got 225 million liters what's the big deal?

Blogger Guy - Math again, huh? Okay, I was going to review how Christy could have an LNG dollar surplus when there is NO LNG operating anywhere to bring in any dollars.

BC Liberal Guy - Well that's why she got those dollars from other parts of her government. She is the boss of it all, you know. That's how we balance the budget.

Blogger Guy - I'm not sure we are getting anywhere. Dare I mention the Health Care firings? Or the 6 million dollar Basi-Virk scandal? Or teenage deaths while in Ministry Care. Or Christy's million dollar photo-op 24/7 photographer. Or Rich Coleman giving his brother 12 millions .. or Americans paying somebody to be able to shoot our grizzly bears ....

BC Liberal Guy - Fast Ferries, fast ferries.

Blogger Guy - ... Or the triple deletion of emails to avoid any paper trail. Something that Laura Miller (allegedly) did in Ontario too. Sort of like Christy is taking her cue from Hillary Clinton.

BC Liberal Guy - Hey hey now, Christy is way ahead of Clinton with that kinda stuff.

Blogger Guy - Is that why you only meet at night on park benches to determine Liberal policy?

BC Liberal Guy - We love starry nights and the outdoors.

Blogger Guy - What do you say to the rumor that Clark is even now under RCMP investigation?

BC Liberal Guy - That's why we're family with the Mounties. Brothers in law from the BC Rail thingy.

Blogger Guy - What would you say to claims that there is widespread corruption in the BC Liberal Party?

BC Liberal Guy - Fast Ferries fast ferries.

Blogger Guy - That has become a Liberal chant, hasn't it?

BC Liberal Guy - I chant say. Haha, that was a joke, we're fun people.

Blogger Guy - And that concludes our brief review of the Christy Clark Government's performance over the last few years. We must thank the New York Times, the Washington Post, the Huffington Post and the Toronto Globe and Mail for information about the BC wild west which the Vancouver Sun and Province have no interest in.        

BC Liberal Guy - We have them guys in our pocket. Er .. I mean ... That's why we are helping people get um .... you know ... news.

Blogger Guy - Sure. We all get it, BC Liberal Guy, anything else you'd like to say to the voting public?

BC Liberal Guy - Yes, if you are a BC Liberal Christy Clark supporter, vote on May 9th. If NDP or Green you go to your polls on May 10th.

Blogger Guy - Good Grief.








 







Tuesday 23 June 2015

Chantix and BC Liberals

Eight firings of BC Health Ministry Employees. Devastating the ministry drug researchers. One was so humiliated he went into depression and took his own life. And now those who are interested say it is shocking that there are hardly any records to indicate what really happened. And not a soul within the cadre of insider Liberals will admit to anything? Can you imagine this 'I didn't do it' attitude in private business? Hard to imagine anyone voting for these people.
But same old works both ways, if the BC Liberal Government refuses to tell us what they are doing, then we begin to speculate.

One of the drugs that some researchers were studying when fired, was the Pfizer product Chantix.
You might have seen one of their advertisements on CNN. They are usually two minute commercials with about 8 seconds telling you the product drug will help you stop smoking, with the remaining minute and fifty-two seconds warning you about what the side effects of using it are. And they still need one of those 'fast speaker' guys to get it all in.

As it goes, one of the fired ministry researchers is suing the BC Government. He was researching the product Chantix, (varenicline) to find out, one, if it worked, and two, whether the BC Government taxpayer should pay for it through the Health Ministry.
The suggestion here is that big Pharma has a lot to gain by skewing the results of the research. And that the reason the eight ministry drug researchers, were fired was because of Pfizer's fear of their understanding of the product. And what might be concluded because Pfizer already knows things because of their constant dealings and rulings within the US FDA.
And because we have little knowledge or the advantage of checking the work done by these eight people, (due to the John Gotti methods of the BC Liberals to keep no records at all) or access to any conclusions the eight might have drawn about Chantix, the firings can only bring about speculation and what we THINK the Christy Clark led BC Liberals actually did. Although NO ONE seems to know exactly who might have issued the direction to fire these researchers. (and of course there are a few reporters right now trying to follow the money, you know, that fat brown envelope so often involved in conversations about BC Liberals) Were email destroyed again?

Maybe we need to make our case the easiest way possible, and that is to remind you about the product itself, in particular the so-called side effects of using Chantix.  Here are a few things you might have been reminded of on those US TV ads:

In addition to its needed effects, some unwanted effects may be caused by varenicline (the active ingredient contained in Chantix). On these they say contact your doctor or pharmacist promptly. 

They being careful not to use the word immediately, that may be reserved for other scary side effects - read on, folk,

- difficult or labored breathing, hyperventilation, tightness in the chest, Here are some more, with the note that incidence is unknown - Anger, anxiety, behavior changes, discouragement, feeling sad or empty, feelings of panic, irregular heartbeats, irritability, loss of interest or pleasure, mood swings, restlessness seeing, hearing, or feeling things that are not there, thoughts of killing oneself.
Smoke and die or stop and die?
Enough awready?

Here's more - Abnormal dreams, bloated or full feeling, change in taste, difficulty having a bowel movement (stool), dry mouth, excess air or gas in the stomach or intestines, general feeling of discomfort or illness, headache, lack or loss of strength, loss of taste, nausea, passing gas, stomach pain, trouble sleeping, unusual tiredness or weakness,

and less common - Acid or sour stomach, belching, body aches or pain, chills, cough, decreased appetite, dizziness, ear congestion, fever, heartburn, increased appetite, indigestion, itching skin or rash, loss of appetite, loss of voice, nightmares, sleepiness or unusual drowsiness, sneezing or sore throat, stomach discomfort or upset, stuffy or runny nose, trouble concentrating, unusual drowsiness, dullness, or feeling of sluggishness, vomiting.
Note that in fairness to the Chantix product, not ALL these effects may occur in everyone or be less than severe when or if they do. And anyone who has a vertigo lean towards hypochondria has a wonderful choice of complaints.

I know you didn't read them all and I'm not sure if lack of concentration is even on the list. If you're old like me, you probably have half of these symptoms anyway! And some of you may have decided to just keep on smoking as the lesser evil and hope for a lung cancer cure soon!

But the very fact that this could be the result of using the drug, and that Pfiser may have a huge interest in getting you, the British Columbia taxpayer to PAY for it through the BC Medical system speaks volumes for whatever sneaky tactic might have happened between SOMEONE at the Health Ministry OR the BC Liberal government and the Pharmaceutical Corporation Pfiser. It is the very reason that people are beginning to wonder if yet another and more serious scandal is arising within the BC Liberal party once again?

Please don't let them find out.
(I'm still on the BC Rail scandal where the BC Liberals, because they could not manage our economy, sold off OUR railroad to balance their books, then went and sent 430 millions dollars to the Germans to build BC Ferries!)

We need a public inquiry where people speak under oath, are questioned and cross examined. It may prove nothing but the fact that Christy Clark's government does operate like John Gotti's criminal organization, see no evil see no paper trail.

But wouldn't that be damning enough?

Why not just stop smoking cold turkey!  Once you've quit, you might find a cool side effect: that of being calm and collected in the voting booth!



Thursday 11 June 2015

Coast Guard?

This is what Prime Minister Harper said in the summer of 2012 when he dictated that our BC Coast Guard base on Kitsilano point be closed - "the closing of a Vancouver coast guard station is in keeping with his government’s emphasis on public safety."
And they closed it in Feb 2013. And they sold off the Coast Guard boat and the inflatables that worked with it. This reallocation is 'best for the public'. The Coast Guard station would be moved to Richmond and serviced by one lumbering Hovercraft that takes over 30 minutes to get around Point Grey to be of any good to distress calls from English Bay. And there is another Station in Stanley Park that would have the same response time going into Burrard Inlet and through Lions Gate before getting to English Bay. The very idea that the False Creek Station was closed indicates a lack of understanding about the Vancouver area geographics. Have the Feds ever even looked at a chart?

In summer, and indeed, most of the year, we have many many boats in English Bay, including these world traveling freighters. We are not the frozen port of Montreal or Halifax where people keep their boats moored for 10 months. Vancouver Coast Guard was the busiest base in Canada. And we have yet again seen the reaction from a Federal Government in Ottawa that has no idea what lies across the Rockies. And if they do know there is a thriving port here they choose to ignore us. Yet again. We wonder if they know there is an actual province out here! But then our BC votes don't actually count in Federal elections, do they?

Cutting costs has resulted in a delayed response to our oil spill. If the Kitsilano Station was still open at the entrance of False Creek it might have taken 5 minutes to have a boat checking out that spill. As it was in fact, no one was active for 6 hours after the spill was detected. And the City of Vancouver was not told that our precious waters were fouled for 13 HOURS! And then when the Richmond Coast Guard was contacted they responded that 'we don't do oil spills!'

So now Vancouver Mayor, Gregor Robertson is telling that the response is inadequate and shows lack of leadership with the Federal and Provincial governments. We think he should be screaming bloody murder!  Christy Clark, our beloved Premier, covering her own ample ass, and stuttering away when asked what her government has done so far, says Mayor Robertson 'doesn't understand how the 'unified command works'.  How much do you need to know about a toxic oil leak contamination our pristine waters?

Federal Industry Minister, James Moore, commenting from the high towers of Ottawa, says the spill is 80% cleaned up, but from aerial film, it looks like it is all over the English Bay, from Kitsilano to West Van beaches. Even into Georgia Straight. And it seems like 80% is the standard figure for media consumption. Moore says the West Coast people are making political jabs without having the facts. We wonder what you can see of our waters from 3000 miles away?

So we have people saving ducks on our shores.  We have agencies warning us not to swim in our water. Don't even touch it! Recently we had Orcas in English Bay, thrilling people everywhere. Humpbacks are nearby, our water is so clear and fresh. Now we have it spoiled. And the worst is yet to come when Prime Minister Harper pushed through the Northern Gateway oil pipeline and the Kinder-Morgan double pipeline to Burrard Inlet. And already those oil corporations have spun is with crap about how responsible they are. And how there is no danger to Vancouver area or our whole western coast.

What'll happen now? Minister Moore is telling us the ship owners based in bankrupt Greece will pay for it all. Sure. You cannot sweep oil spills under the rug, because they tend to seep through. We bet the taxpayer will be on the hook for this one for lack of Federal Leadership and the guts to enforce the bill. Business trumps everything in Conservative governments.
What will it do to Vancouver's image? Do tourists want to come to a place where people are warned not to go near the water?  Do they want to sit on a beach with oil rings around the rocks? Or dead oily birds washed up?

What about the provincial government? Clark's stammering response tells you a lot, she just wants out of here, maybe another trade trip to India.
Whatever happens in the next while, we need to pay attention. And see if the promises get followed through. We think Harper will simply tell media to stop reporting. And they will.
We think that appropriate action would be to refuse to elect toadies in the BC Federal Conservative Party that turn against British Columbians on the first plane to Ottawa. We need to punish them gravely.
And trusting Christy Clark with our beautiful city and coast is a non-starter, it is she that doesn't understand.

This spill is only a starter and is an omen of things to come. Does anyone still believe shipping companies can respond to a spill of bitumen in
You can take action, but you must have a memory of things when you go into that voting booth. That is where your power begins. Vancouver is a treasured jewel in Canada, and most of the people here think that way.  Get rid of those who don't understand.

addenda: James Moore has stepped away from politics, so we won't get answers there. But we all know he'll be back to try to recover the Conservative Party after Canadians toss out Harper. The suspicious thing here is that the Federal Government closed BC Coast Guard stations, while KNOWING they were going to open new ones on the East Coast. More votes there. Sort of pokes you in the eye doesn't it?

Tuesday 26 May 2015

Public Arte


The City of Vancouver Art Department Somebody has bought a piece of public art for 450 thousand dollars.  $450,000.00.  As usual they didn't tell you, the taxpayer, they had so much extra money around and bought it in secrecy. Now they need a place to put it. Oops wait, go back .... insert your own words for 'public art'.

Local artist Lyse Lemieux says, "This is a commissioned piece, the stakeholders have been consulted, so what they are suppose to be doing is accepting and saying yes to the fact that yes we want public art in that spot." Commissioned? To me that usually spells out, 'friend of somebody' with a finders fee commission.
The art is 15 meters tall and could seat 150 people at a time. Does this look like an accident waiting to happen to you too? Seems to me the cost of making this spindly cheering-section safe would be about the same as the initial purchase price.

They propose to put these bleachers at Emery Field in Hastings Park. The Park Board Artsy-Craftsy department wants it there. They love it. Are these people all on day passes from the institution?
But due to some backlash, because no one knew about it, they have deferred putting it there. Not buying it, that's a done deal, just wondering what to do with the thingy. I would cheer for 'Away'.
Couldn't the Parks Board have spent a little money to cut away all the blackberry bushes that have taken over grassy sections in our parks?

So here it is, sorry but I couldn't resist that urge to add my own wording, but perhaps they could talk to Best Buy and IKEA and get them to pay the 450K?


Or maybe they could integrate it with the PNE rides, and make it like an old Gahan Wilson cartoon where you climb up to the top and then fall off into oblivion? Or into one of those cheese shavers they have at Olive Garden?

Is whomever approved this the same guy from TransLink who loved and bought the $100,000. Main Street Poodle? A seven foot Dog on a Stick that woofs forevermore at Main and 16th?
By the way, why isn't the poodle in Shaughnessy, there are only rescue dogs on Main Street.



Poodlesicle?

Look on the bright side, at least it doesn't poop.
And let's hope the IKEA bleachers are easier to assemble than one of their mystic chairs.
Make your own fun comment about best buy.

They have ways of spending our money.



Wednesday 22 April 2015

Transit figures - basic UNmath?

So something doesn't quite add up here. 
The Translink Mayor's Proposal trying to get you to vote YES to spend 7.7 BILLION dollars for transit in the Vancouver Metro area, implies that the Federal government will kick in about one third of the costs for our transit system. (BC Provincial government to also do a third?) My basic math says that's about 2.3 BILLION dollars from the Feds. And that is not just for BC, it is for the Vancouver Metro area. Meaning TransLink, even if they are trying to avoid that thought connection.

try to find the mistake
But wait! The Federal government just announced their future spending budget for public transit. (after selling off shares of GM to get a balance) For the transit portion of the Canada budget, this is what they say: Their spending for Canada, (every province and three territories) starting in 2017 they will designate 750 MILLION dollars over two years and then 1 (one) billion.
This spending on public transit is for ALL OF CANADA!


If the federal Conservatives are re-elected this fall, the funding would be split amongst big cities and start to flow in 2017, at $250 million, rise to $500 million in 2018 and double again to $1 billion a year in 2019. (did you know that the cost of just tearing down the old Port Mann bridge is $250 million?)

So where does that leave BC? Vancouver Metro, expecting 2.3 billion from the Federal Government? Apparently Toronto which also has a major public transit proposal in the works, is ecstatic about the budget. Ottawa is also expecting lots of the dole too. And we haven't even heard the usual whining from Quebec yet.

So you KNOW that means they will get the lion's share of it. Keep in mind too that the Feds, even though they are suffering loss of public support over the Conservative government's indifference to the oil spill in BC, also just closed down another Coast Guard Station! And you are expecting them to give us 2.3 billion of a 1.750 billion budget? The Conservative's map west of the Rockies only says, 'There be demons here.'


Does anyone in BC except Jim Pattison, the BC Liberals and the so called Mayor's Council believe WE will get ALL the money the Federals have earmarked for transit?  Right through to 2019? UNmath if you do.
If the money were allocated on a per capita basis, B.C.’s share would be $32.5 million in the first year, $65 million in the second, and $130 million once the fund reaches the $1 billion mark. That's 227.5 Million. No, I'm not confusing Ms with Bs. But the TransLink people might be. Perhaps they are riding their own Skytrain up in the clouds if they think the Feds are going to give them 2.3 Billion with a B.
Expect them to toss us $500.00 for more bike lanes in Kerrisdale. Wide enough to accommodate those people's trikes.


 
This is basic UNmath folks, you NEED to vote NO to TRansLink in spite of their spending 5 million on spin and send them all back to the drawing boards, and ask them not to eat their crayons this time!




VOTE NO!



TransLink - One third?

Friday 27 March 2015

Actual Ballot

So here it is, finally, the ballot you've all been hearing so much about. The ballot that the Mayor's council is promoting for your Yes vote. The one that they have every breathing person they can solicit talking about. 
Just look at the wording and see if you agree with me that it is totally vague! And what is on this ballot that wouldn't be considered as the normal way of the corporations and government entities to do the people's business?  

It is as if they were so afraid to actually tell you what they wanted to do that they are now trying desperately to HIDE what they will do. It is to me, like they all got together and said, whoa, wait a minute, if we really make it clear they'll vote no! We need to discombobulate the public. They'll want closer inspection of that 7.7 Billion if we are too detailed. Better to generalize the whole thing and then get our shills to generate their own concept of what will happen, whether it is true or not!

Read for yourself - - - 




Do you see anything on there that wouldn't be on a progressive transit plan anyway? Did we need all that 6 million dollars of YOUR money for TV advertising and constant radio spots? Did we need to denigrate Jim Pattison's respectible reputation just to explain it all? Do we need every TransLink and BC Government insider to pimp this document? 

Are you any wiser? Except to know that this a plan that should have been in place WITHOUT a single additional penny from the taxpayer? Do you now know who this mysterious secretive Board of Directors are from TransLink? Do you know their names? Are you smart enough to know why we need TWO CEOs for TRansLink?  Do you now know who forms Jim Pattison's committee? Do you know their names? And do you believe that the present TransLink Management Carnival would even reveal to the Mayors how the spending is going so far?

Do you agree that the BC Liberals have totally NO control over what rightfully belongs to the people of BC? 

Add bus service? Maintain roads? Annual independent audits? There's a joke, how many audits have been hidden by this government in the past? Build a new Patullo bridge? Okay, let's do it, but how much is it going to cost everyone living south of the Fraser? 7.7 Billion? How about a price on that bridge alone? Yet more tolls by a government that has us already trillions in debt? We know now that the old Port Mann Bridge cost more to tear down than build it!
Build rapid transit along Broadway? What to where? One more bus to Arbutus Street? 
Make more bicycle lanes? Close Burrard Bridge completely so kids can meander on their tricycles? Where is the clarity?

If you think this hazy 'plan' is worth 7.7 BILLION dollars, you need to vote your mind. Clouded though it is. And we all know that by the time we face cost over-runs and politicians fondling that warm money it will likely be 14 billion before it ends. 35 cents a day? Try 35 dollars a day!

But if you are wondering how often and for how much you can be spun into paying more and more to these vagaries then you NEED to vote NO. Not a single one of those who are lined up to sway you mystically while sneaking their slender fingers into your pockets are deserved of getting this tax.
They all need to go back into a locked room and not allowed exit until they come up with something the public can trust. This looks like maybe 1.1 billion to me for this whole plan and the rest simply disappears. As usual. Is that okay with you?

I don't trust this incompetent lot with the wherewithall to think of a plan for BC's future transit, whether we expect a two million more imigrants or not. I guess they should be forewarned that it might be more crowded here than wherever they are coming from. This is perfection of government tricks. The BC Liberals can simply say, YOU voted for this, don't blame us. Even Jim Pattison can say, my job was to make sure TRansLink got that money, not how they spent it! Perhaps it is time for we taxpayers to demand due dilligence when spending OUR money.

Take back your government folks, send a harsh message to the yes screamers and let them ask for your vote next time. What really counts is YOU!


Vote Now and Vote NO! 





Sunday 8 March 2015

Now for the NO vote?



So they scammed Jim Pattison to be involved in TransLink's business. Strictly an image trick to get a yes vote?


Well there can be only more questions in his involvement ....
Can Jim Pattison have input on how the 7.5 billion is spent on the so called Mayor's Transit thingy multi-projects, otherwise known as the TransLink Transgression?
NO is that answer. Pattison's involvement is only to guarantee that this BILLIONS of taxpayer's  dollars (yours) once collected, doesn't go into that cesspool of the Provincial Government called 'General Revenue'.  He has virtually NO SAY in how or what it is spent on.
(considered with great respect to the man who brings us so much good food)

Say you give TransLink 7 billion of those dollars, and they say they are going to buy old Ferris Wheel carriages as the new seats for Skytrain, Pattison's only input is to make sure TransLink actually gets that money and not Christy Clark, or Todd Stone or Bill Bennett or Rich Coleman or any of those other Cabinet toadys with extra large inside pockets and lust in their eyes.

What they can say to Jimmy, is 'Okay Jim, thanks for your service, now take a hike, we have TWO CEO salaries to pay so butt out!' And those salaries alone take nearly a million a year right there, and CEO number two is only interim, we might need a third CEO by next year! This is like a Charlie Chaplin movie!

You will get your mail-in vote package soon. There are many other items to think about before you send in your reply/vote. For instance; If the original proposal was to have a tunnel under Broadway for the Skytrain, and now it has been changed to what they are calling only 'more transit', along Broadway, then how does that influence the total cost?
Would it be sane and rational to figure out the basic costs of that tunnel that is now off the table and DEDUCT those costs from the whole project? Does TransLink expect to say, they need all that money anyway? Wha?
Keep in mind of course, that everyone wants a quick route to UBC and it seemed to imply that was what they were thinking, at first, but then along comes the info that it was only going to Arbutus Street anyway. Who planned this? Who proposed that and why weren't they questioned on what was going on in those luxurious board rooms? Did TransLink hire these Board of Director people away from a carnival?
And we are not even sure how many boards of directors there are and who they are! Or what their pay actually is?

7.6 BILLION! Did you know the new wider Panama Canal joining the Pacific Ocean to the Atlantic Ocean is only going to cost 8 billion?  Are those tears of sadness or laughter?  Can we really connect two oceans for the same price as improved bike lanes?

If you think Jim Pattison is going to save everything think again.

Not to mention that this whole proposal is based on the future influx of more millions of people. They want YOU to make their arrival comfortable by paying everything for them now!
But their idea is all or nothing at all. We will punish you children if you don't give us what we want to play with.
Of course we want a new Patullo Bridge. Sure we want transport all the way out to Langley.  And more buses and Sea Buses running longer into the night. And Tap cards to work and fare gates that work.
So we have Jimmy as Captain Canada who will settle all your fears.  Or not. I thought he was smarter than to be blatantly used. Xena might have been better and she's fictional!  But maybe someone would listen when a banshee screams at them, they are not listening to the taxpayers!


What is fearful is that Todd Stone admits he can do nothing about BC Ferries and their excesses. We expect nothing more with TransLink. Or should that be nothing less? That is we expect nothing. We see that the BC Liberals are skulking away from this in the darkness of their own minds.

Are we going to fritter away 7.5 billion dollars on a few more buses, better empty bike lanes and mysterious transits from where to where? The public in British Columbia had their say in the HST fight, it is now time to rise again, and make our elected people AND our unelected people pay attention to what WE want.  We are tired of people who never faced a vote telling us to F.O.

If you ARE going to vote NO, then tell all your friends too. There is no need to trust people who have taken for their own gain in the past or to trust incompetents with that much money. They can easily go back to the drawing boards and decide exactly WHAT infrastructure project we need immediately and then force them to come to us and tell us what that one project would cost. ONE dollar at a time if need be.

Maybe we could start telling those millions or people planning to come here that they should shelter in place until this storm is over. It won't be long now.
The only thing remaining in this world of deception and distrust we call BC politics, is whether we will believe the vote count. Will we be sending our packets into oblivion? The only way to counter that suspicion, is to vote NO in overwhelming numbers.

This is important. Send in your NO vote.


VOTE NO!

VOTE NO!

VOTE NO!







previous post re TransLink -
  Heres-your-allowance-translink

Previous re Christy Clark -
  Four-years-of-Christy Clark

How it works in BC -
  BC ridiculous.com