Things that BC Liberal MLA Terry Lake hopes you won't become aware of --- BC Liberals backroom manipulators remain hopeful as well

Today Kamloops North Thompson  BC Liberal MLA Terry Lake is quoted as saying; "What we do see is, as we get closer to election, is that people are understanding what the BC Conservatives are all about ... "

MY hope is that people do indeed fully understand what the BC Conservatives are all about ... what we stand for ... and what we hope to bring to the political stage in British Columbia.  They are the things that Terry Lake hopes you won't become aware of --- and BC Liberals backroom manipulators hope that remains the same.          

That's because BC Conservative beliefs, principles and policies are totally opposite to how the BC Liberals have in reality governed:

BC Conservatives believe in clearly defined public policies and programs that are affordable and effective and for which delivery is accountable to all the people of British Columbia.  We are entitled to full knowledge of services rendered and their costs

BC Conservatives believe in managing the government to the highest standards of integrity and transparency

BC Conservatives believe that governments at all levels are responsible to serve and respect all individuals and their families

BC Conservatives believe that Members of the Legislative Assembly (MLA's) are primarily responsible to represent the interests of their Constituents

BC Conservatives believe in a rigorous system of law and order focusing on the rights of victims and the protection of the public

And BC Conservatives believe in smaller government resulting in more liberty and personal property rights, the encouragement of new enterprise and individual achievement striving towards excellence and prosperity

MEANTIME ... what would be our "understanding" of how BC Liberals do things?

With BC Liberals we have had cost over-runs on a number of projects ... the BC Liberal government has raised rates on the Medical Services Plan ... while managers and CEO's of government agencies and crown corporation have given themselves raises and bonuses, rates for ICBC, BC Ferries, and BC Hydro have all been jacked up.  WHY?

Remember that the BC government was going to will allow for naming rights to BC Place Stadium; Telus put in a bid for tens of millions of dollars and then the government rejected it.  WHY? 

Auditor General John Doyle holds the BC Liberals to account for spending waste -- then all of a sudden he is not going to have his contract renewed -- then he is -- then maybe he will be.  WHY? 

Stayed tuned Mel .. we'll continue to roll things out in the weeks and months ahead

The Armchair Mayor, Mel Rothenburger

Well know newspaper man, and former Kamloops Mayor Mel Rothenburger, penned his latest Armchair Mayor column on the weekend.  It was entitled, "Sorting out facts from BS not easy".

It was a good editorial, although I did mention to Mel that I did not agree with his opinion John Cummins was not taking a stand on issues. 

I told him that John has indeed been very clear on a number of issues, of great importance to the people of BC.  He will continue to do so in the weeks and months ahead leading to next May's general election.

Armchair Mayor Mel responded by stating to that he had:"

"... listened to Mr. Cummins' AGM speech, all 39 minutes-plus of it, and pretty much all he did was rehash old news stories about the Liberals and be very clear that the B.C. Conservatives would do things differently.  How? Good question.  Ajax? He's "not ready to weigh in on that."  Kamloops? As next spring's provincial election draws ever nearer, still no Conservative candidates for our two ridings, no one wanting the nomination, and no policies on local issues."

Normally I would have said we hadn’t heard the same speech; however I have it good authority that we both did (me in person -- and Mel via the internet). 

Regardless, I was there and heard it live .. and it was powerful and it was moving.

John Cummins pointed out some serious concerns we as BC Conservatives have with how the Liberals are governing -- and we are not the only ones having those concerns ... not by a long shot.

Big spending -- big government -- big deficits and BIGGER debts!  They all top most lists.

Government crown corporations and agencies with out of control management ... and need we mention Community Living BC again ... there's rising fees that we have no say in (I challenge you to look at the amount Medical Services Plan rates have increased over the past decade).

The stench of the BC Rail sale has never cleared, and no amount of Febreze is going to help ... Christy Clark is desperately tryng to straddle both sides of the Enbridge pipeline proposal, while at the same time 'playing politics' with the Alberta government in a phony game of hardball.

Taxpayers have no more money to give – either in taxes or fees – so don’t ask to squeeze us for any more

Months ago former BC Liberal Finance Minister Kevin Falcon was saying the government was going to have a difficult time meeting the numbers in what was already a deficit budget.

The wallets of taxpayers have NO MORE to give

The news media has been filled with stories today that indeed the financial estimates for the current budget do not look good – and we can expect the deficit to be higher.  Here’s just one of the news stories:

CKNW:
BC'S finance minister has released the government's fiscal update for the first quarter.  The deficit for the current fiscal year is projected to be higher than expected.  Falling natural gas revenues are blowing a hole in the provincial budget.

The deficit for this year now pegged at 1.14 billion dollars.  That's 173 million dollars more than expected.  The provincial government is announcing new spending cuts.

The government must find 241 million dollars in savings this year and 389 million in savings the following year and even with those, would still come in with a deficit this year of 1.14 billion dollars.

Premier Christy Clark however still says next year’s budget will be balanced.  She says this and yet we have had no indication, from past example, that she has any idea how that should and can be done.

Is Christy Clark still in some far away fairyland of non-reality?

Just yesterday her government tinkered with the proposed tolls for the new Port Mann Bridge saying they will now be $1.50 per trip for the first year (formerly had said would be $6 per trip).

She has continued to allow the executives and management, of crown corporations and agencies, to take big pay raises … AND undeserved bonuses.

She spends tens of thousands of dollars on photo-op after photo-op that are little more than self-promotion of the BC Liberal Party.

We still have a $6 million hole in government finances after the BC Liberals wrongly authorized payment of the legal bills for Basi and Virk in the BC Rail fiasco.

They turned down tens of millions of dollars, from Telus, for the naming rights to BC Place – that after actively courting them to submit what they were willing to pay to do that.

AND this Liberal government – and the NDP before them – have still never considered a full and complete bottom up look at all spending.  We, and government, have no idea if we are getting the best value for every department – every office – every employee and manager.

Integrity? The Investigators looks at the sale of BC Rail – and what happened?

CKNW’s “The Investigators” takes a look the BC Rail controversy, including the Basi / Virk court case.

The program was Written and Produced by Bob Mackin, with Narration by Jon McComb

The program features BC Conservative MLA John van Dongen as well as Alex Tsakumis, BC Liberal Leader / BC Premier Christy Clark, and political commentator Bill Tielmann. 

The program gives a good overview of the BC Rail file, as John van Dongen approaches the September 10^th court date.

To hear the full program click the following: http://www.cknw.com/features/the-investigators.aspx

Well this is it … post #500 on the Conservative Thoughts blog

Well this is it … post #500 on the Conservative Thoughts blog.  This blog first went online on December 20^th, 2010 … the first two posts were stories on the Board of Directors for the Kamloops South Thompson Constituency Association … and Kamloops North.  That was a year and a half ago.

Since then, I have written dozens of stories on John Cummins, Christy Clark, and Adrian Dix … along with dozens of stories on the BC Conservative Party, the Liberals, and the NDP.  Rather than look at those stories however, I thought I’d take a quick look though at some of the ‘topics’ that have received the great number of mentions during that time.

Here’s five of the topics that, in looking back, were mentioned and featured the most:

The HST … mentioned in 48 stories … including this one; “Now maybe we have what could be the real reason why it is taking so long to end the HST”

The Carbon Tax … mentioned in 39 stories.  Here’s just one of them; “In my honest opinion this program was poorly thought out, poorly implemented, and it definitely unfairly impacts the people of BC … depending on where they live”

BC Hydro … it was mentioned in 37 stories.  Here’s one you might remember; “BC Hydro used to say, ‘The power belongs to us’. If that’s the case, how come we don’t have a say?”

BC Rail … it was mentioned in 25 stories, generally referring to the Basi / Virk case, as this one did.   “The report Krog and Bond were referring to was just about future indemnity on legal costs”

Health Care … mentioned in 25 stories, including this one with regards to a bathing tub that IHA was shamed into repairing; “And this is something to be proud of?”

Finally, I thought it would interesting to take a fresh look at the ten most read posts, out of the 500 written to date.  Starting with number ten, here they are:

Need / want to know more on John van Dongen defection?

There has been NO shortage of stories, in the media, regarding John van Dogens, resignation from the BC Liberals -- and coming over to the BC Conservative Party.

Here is a small snapshot of what has been written since yesterdays announcement:

Brian Hutchinson: Politics gets viciously personal as BC Liberal crosses the floor

If long-time BC Liberal John van Dongen had second thoughts Monday before ditching his party and announcing he had joined forces with the provincial Conservatives, they must have dissolved after former colleague Rich Coleman opened his mouth and ...

Defector MLA hires lawyer to probe BC Rail case

Veteran MLA John van Dongen arrived at the legislature Monday prepared for battle, and his paired public defection and attack on Premier Christy Clark's leadership weren't the only weapons in his arsenal. While standing to announce his new allegiance ...

Mud-splattered Liberals face byelection war

John van Dongen's shocking defection from the governing Liberals to the upstart Conservatives on Monday triggered enough mudslinging to stage a monster truck rally at the legislature.

Van Dongen leaves BC Liberal caucus to join upstart Conservatives

… resigned his party membership during a bombshell speech in the legislature. An hour later, he appeared at a press conference with Conservative leader John Cummins at a nearby Victoria hotel.

Veteran BC politician John van Dongen leaves Liberals for BC Conservatives

Veteran BC politician John van Dongen stunned his government colleagues Monday by resigning from the Liberal party and joining the upstart BC Conservatives. Van Dongen, the representative for Abbotsford South and former solicitor general, ...

Van Dongen held key cabinet jobs

Before his defection Monday to the BC Conservatives, John van Dongen, MLA for Abbotsford South, was one of the longest-serving Liberal MLAs. He was first elected to office in a byelection in 1995 and ...

Van Dongen serves notice he is ready to battle old colleagues with defection

As BC Liberal MLA John van Dongen got to his feet in the legislature for a "personal statement" Monday afternoon, his soon-to-be-ex colleagues in the government caucus braced for bad news. Van Dongen had given them advance notice of his intentions.

Van Dongen ditches BC Liberals, joins Conservatives

A longtime BC Liberal has left the ruling party to join the Conservatives, citing concerns with the party's leadership. Abbotsford South MLA John van Dongen announced his decision in a speech in the legislature Monday. "I can no longer carry on with my ...

Van Dongen crosses the floor over Clark's leadership

Former BC Liberal cabinet minister John van Dongen has defected to the BC Conservatives, exposing a significant fracture in the BC Liberal coalition under Premier Christy Clark's leadership. Mr. van Dongen stood in the legislature on Monday and said he ...

BC MLA rips Christy Clark in jump to Conservatives

Former BC Liberal cabinet minister John van Dongen, who quit the party to join the BC Conservatives on Monday, says there are still questions about possible behind-the-scenes involvement of now-Premier Christy Clark in the scandal-plagued sale of BC ...

Voters not surprised MLA jumps ship to BC Conservatives

The dust is settling on a dramatic defection in provincial politics. But John van Dongen may not be the only Liberal MLA you'll see cross the floor to join the BC Conservatives. While party leader John Cummins isn't saying much ...

Another recent BC Liberal defector is making a bid to be a BC Conservative ...

Fresh off of John Van Dongen changing sides, another former BC Liberal will launch his bid to be a BC Conservative party candidate. Rick Peterson was among a handful of people who backed Kevin Falcon in his leadership bid, who recently also jumped to ...

Saying Libs 'Headed for Failure,' van Dongen Defects to Cons

Abbotsford MLA startles legislature with attack on Clark. 'He'll lose to us,' Coleman fires back. By Andrew MacLeod, Yesterday, TheTyee.ca Abbotsford South MLA John van Dongen, no longer a BC Liberal. Pair of ridings once 'very safe' for BC Liberals ...

Twitterverse lights up for Clarks not a throne speech, throne speech, on the Bill Good Show

BC Premier Christy Clark

Today Christy Clark paid a visit to the Bill Good show on CKNW 980, to outline upcoming plans for the BC Liberal Government.   

As expected the #bcpoli Twitter feed lit up with the comments of news people, and political pundits alike, commenting on what she had to say.

The following is a small snapshot of what I thought were the “Best Of” those comments – of which there were literally hundreds and hundreds:

CHILDCARE:

We need a childcare plan in BC. The cost of childcare in BC is too high for families

BC LIBERALS and the BC NDP:

Both of those parties are the same old and they need to be replaced

CALLERS ARE BC LIBERAL PLANTS:

Anyone else feel like they're listening to @billgood980's private lobbying session with @christyclarkbc as the #fauxthrone speech?

Oh BC Liberals, your plants to @CKNW call-in line are SOOOO obvious. The pat talking points kinda give you away..

Sounds like call-ins so stacked @BillGood980 has 2 pose most questions

RECENT POLLS:

Amusing to listen to the premier dance around recent polls. Earth to Christy: your party is way behind right now.

She should call the by-elections and lets see what those 2 polls look like

Premier Christy Clark says you cannot judge these things by polls that go up and down....when was the last 'up' poll?

Note to the BC Liberals … “Take a stand ---and lead”

Earlier today Liberal MLA John Rustad (Nechako Lakes) posted a link to a news story, on his Facebook page.  The opinion piece, “Fact finder might help resolve education crisis”, was written by Jon Ferry and is in today’s Province newspaper.

The story is a good read, and to me it offers a clear confirmation that our elected government is failing to do what we elect them to do … govern.  But as Jon Ferry points out in his piece, there may be a lack of willingness to do what must be done.

The BC Liberals have gone steadily downhill in public opinion, and that began just a few short months after they elected Christy Clark as their leader.  They have lost 25% of the people who voted for them in the last election to the BC Conservative party … and a further 10% who have gone over to the NDP. 

One would tend to perhaps agree then with the comment of Jon Ferry when he says:

"The Christy Clark government, however, is now so wounded in the opinion polls it may be unwilling to provoke a political backlash by appearing too draconian."

I am a member of the BC Conservative Party, so one would be correct in thinking I would not readily offer any advise that might help them (not that they would listen), but here goes anyways

Do I have to be ‘cranky’ and ‘angry’ to support these principles and goals?

Okay I made a mistake … it wasn’t “cranky old men” that former Reform MP Chuck Strahl said the BC Conservative Party with filled with … here is what he actual said:

“ … adding that the BC Conservative Party is riddled with “cranky ... angry” people who have no credible policies to govern the province.”

This is me (Alan Forseth) -- does this look like the
face of anger and crankiness?

Now I ask, does this look like the face of someone cranky and angry?   Okay I admit I do have a bias – it’s me, and I  obviously do not agree with Chuck Strahl.

Still, for the life of me, I cannot understand why he, along with other Reformers like Preston Manning and Stockwell Day seem to have nothing but glowing comments to make about Christy Clark.

The BC Liberal government, led by Christy Clark, is in many ways everything the Western led reform movement was against – and why it actually came about.   

Let’s take a quick trip down memory lane

In the late 1980s and 1990s, federal conservative politics became split by the creation of a new western-based protest party, the populist and social conservative Reform Party of Canada created by Preston Manning

Federal conservatives became split (sound familiar on the provincial level?).  And this was created by who? Preston Manning!  And yet he speaks out against BC Conservatives who are led by a former Reform MP; John Cummins.

THIS WEEK … in BC Politics

This week’s wrap up of the political news begins with a story that appeared in Thursday’s Globe and Mail entitled … "Patrick Kinsella is the ultimate Mr. Fixit".    

For those not aware, this is the same man with direct and long ties to the BC Liberal Party ... and the sale of BC Rail.

Other past headlines about Mr. Kinsella included --- "Hiring of Kinsella was bad optics, BC Rail trial hears" --- "Kinsella trumpeted insider status to BC Rail, court hears" --- and --- "Court orders some Kinsella records released, but restricts access to others"

The Mr. Fixit story begins with the following paragraph:

“ … Patrick Kinsella, the quintessential insider in B.C. politics, arranged for representatives of a mining company based in Pemberton to meet on Dec. 1 with Premier Christy Clark and Energy Minister Rich Coleman …”

Now, here are some of the other stories that made political news in BC this past week …

Liberals under heavy pressure in two formerly safe Fraser Valley ridings

… both Adrian Dix’s NDP and John Cummins’ Conservatives have already declared their candidates for the ridings of Port-Moody Coquitlam and Chilliwack-Hope, the Liberals have yet to name their line-up for the contests …

Every British Columbian deserves a real choice

This morning when I opened the email account, where most of my political stuff comes and goes from, I discovered a message about yesterday’s blog.  The story, as you will recall, was on BC Rail and the Basi / Virk trial.  This is what the writer had to say:

You know, for me, the agreement to pay $6 million in legal costs in exchange for a guilty plea was the straw that broke the camel's back.

Until then, I was like most federal Conservatives, not completely thrilled with the BC Liberals, but willing to hold my nose to avoid splitting the vote and having the NDP get in power (the enemy of my enemy is my friend).

I remember the day the news broke last fall, I was attending a professional development seminar in Kelowna (yes, even __ x y z __ have Pro-D days), and the seminar leader was discussing investing.  He mentioned a term called the "puke point", which is basically the point at which you can't stand to see your portfolio losing value anymore so you "puke" it all up and sell everything.

During the coffee break for that seminar, I grabbed a copy of the Globe & Mail and read the article about the deal which had just been announced.  That was my "puke point" with the BC Liberals - the deal just reeked of hush money.  That's where I said, vote-splitting or no vote-splitting; I can't in good conscience vote for a government like this anymore.

I don’t know about you, but the words of this writer really resonated in me … especially two of them … “Puke Point”.

How arrogant and out of touch with voters would a party, it’s executive, cabinet ministers, and leader have to be for people to reach their “Puke Point”?  

Why would their MLA’s continue to sit at the caucus table of a party that people can no longer support because they have reached their “Puke Point”?

The report Krog and Bond were referring to was just about future indemnity on legal costs

Are you old enough to remember the story of the little engine that could --- or have you seen the Walt Disney movie "Dumbo", where the work train is taking circus animals to the next town?   

Up the hill it goes saying … "I think I can … I think I can”.  Once to the top, it then heads down saying "I thought I could … I thought I could …”

I bring this up because the whole BC Rail and Basi / Virk Trial is rearing its ugly head again … and at the end of the day this may be a mantra that goes round and round in Christy Clarks head ... albeit with slightly different words.

I think I can … I think I can … keep the whole Basi / Virk mess hidden

I thought I could … I thought I could … keep the whole Basi / Virk mess hidden

How far back does this whole thing go?  Years … and years … AND YEARS. 

John Cummins is saying and thinking the kinds of things that are resonating with British Columbians

There have been numerous media stories on the latest poll which was conducted by Angus Reid … one of those was in the Vancouver Sun.

Latest Angus-Reid Poll

This story, as has been noted by other media organizations says that, “… the BC Liberals have dropped 12 percentage points since March, when Clark was sworn into office.”

It also indicates that, “In the same seven-or-so-month period, John Cummins' BC Conservatives have gained 13 percentage points, giving the party its highest level of support in recent months.”

Good so far … but here’s the part that I disagree with:

“Benefiting from the right-wing split, the New Democratic Party now enjoys a nine-point lead over the BC Liberals, up considerably from March when Angus Reid found the Liberals to be leading by five percentage points.”

There is NO right-wing split that is benefiting the NDP.  The fact of the matter is that the NDP only gained a paltry 2%.   And why is that important?   It’s important because you should know what the margin of error in this Angus Reid poll is.  The details at the end of their report, which can be found by clicking HERE, says that the sampling variability is +/- 3.5%.

• that means that instead of being up 2%, the NDP could actually be down -1.5% from the last poll. 
• it means the BC Liberals Party could actually be DOWN a FURTHER 3.5%
• and … it means the BC Conservative Party could in fact 3.5% higher

That however is PURE SPECULATION on my part --- and really that is what polls are.   Polls are a brief snapshot for a very specific period of time … and they represent what people felt at that exact moment.

Here’s the real reason why I think this poll is important however.  There have now been 4 consecutive polls conducted by the Mustel and by Angus Reid --- ALL OF THEM have shown the BC Conservative Party climbing in support.

John Cummins … “We will stand up for children and not the special interests”

In the Victoria Times Colonist this morning was the headline; "Hydro paid bonuses for non-existent profit --- Auditor general's report discovered millions of dollars in deferred debts”

Wonder of wonders ... we have a batch of executives paying themselves big fat bonuses based on non-existent profits.

The practice of pushing billions in debt into the future, instead of counting it on the books each year, means Hydro shows profit where none exists and lacks a plan to pay its future bills, said Doyle.

"I haven't made that correlation yet," Energy and Mines Minister Rich Coleman said when asked if the Hydro executives deserved their bonuses based on the information in Doyle's audit.

Coleman said he's reviewing the auditor general's report. He has defended the use of deferral accounts as a way to prevent rate increases for customers by smoothing out turbulent financial times.

While the BC Liberals plan is to review the report, John Cummins BC Conservatives have come out clearly saying, 'the deferral system is being used to move money around, within the corporation, to make it appear profitable on the books.'  These deferrals have gone from $200 million ... to $2.2 billion … and by 2017 they are predicted to reach $5 billion.

 

Cummins said, “This money is going to have to be paid back. What taxpayers need to ask themselves is how? On the backs of citizens of this province, that is how.”

We keep hearing about one disaster after the other in government ministries --- agencies -- and crown corporations.  WHY? 

Can't Trust Dix -- Perhaps. But we do know we CAN'T trust the BC Liberals.

My what a surprise --- we have more attack ads from the BC Liberals -- who as many are well aware would have a very hard time standing on their own record. 
 
After all, let's just have a quick reminder as we take a trip down memory lane ... the HST ... the sale of BC Rail ... huge pensions for government execs ... bigger and bigger government debt ... the Basi - Virk trial ... etc).  

Christy Clark's BC Liberals are steadily losing support, and continuing to attack others with misleading facts and figures.  Regrettably, this will only result in a public that thinks, and cares, even less of the whole political system. 

Shame on you Christy!!

Click HERE for the latest attack campaign from the BC Liberals.

I could say more, however a Letter to the Editor in the Langley Advance said it best ...

I noted two news stories of interest in the papers today.  In the Victoria Times Colonist a headline stated, “$782-million sewage fix left in limbo  -- Treatment system falls two years behind as B.C. and Ottawa play waiting game” … while the Vancouver Courier had a headline saying, “Basi - Virk first anniversary renews calls for inquiry -- B.C. Liberal government paid $6 million legal bills”

Two different stories, but both again highlighting the discontent of British Columbians.

In the Times Colonist news story, writers Kim Westad and Rob Shaw, have indicated the sewage treatment system is going to be at least two years behind schedule.  Why???  Apparently the provincial government has not committed in writing to funding the $782-million project that it ordered must be done.  BC Liberal cabinet minister Ida Chong says that the federal government must commit to funding the project before it steps in, which according to the writers is a, ‘…change in policy that worries several members of the Capital Regional District board.’

The story goes on to quote Judy Brownoff, former chairwoman of the region's sewage committee,  as saying, ‘… Chong's comments are a change from what the CRD has been told from the start, and contrary to clear information from the federal government a year ago.’

So what’s the bottom line? 

BCLocalNews.com - Auditor wants BC Rail trial costs

BCLocalNews.com - Auditor wants BC Rail trial costs

This story has been a burr under the saddle of nearly all British Columbian's for a very long time now --- including many people that are Liberal supporters. Unfortunately the government has stonewalled on this from the start.

The whole BC Rail issue has been a fiasco from the start, and we as the taxpayers who are footing the bills, will never know the real truth about the costs of the Basi - Virk decision ... their real legal bills ... or the so called lease of BC Rail.

Fringe politics are for fringe parties – not a movement for the majority



- Jack Wiesgerber -
Former BC Reform
Party Leader & MLA



Anyone remember who spoke those words – and when?? 

They were spoken by Jack Wiesgerber on June 10^th, 1995 in Kamloops, and I was there.  He was then leader of the BC Reform Party, and those words are just as true today, as they were back then.

Not much later (1996) another BC politician, Gordon Campbell, spoke for the BC Liberal Party uttering the words “We must have the courage to change the way government is run”.

He spoke of having a, ‘common sense government’, but after a decade of government by the BC Liberal Party are we any closer to having common sense government?