Long story short, for Adrian Dix to lay claim for the NDP having the lead role, in seeing this antiquated law removed, is disingenuous and self-serving

NDP leader Adrian Dix ... "Is this the kind
of leadership BC is looking for?"

Last night on the social media platform Facebook, BC NDP leader Adrian Dix posted the following comment

After considerable effort, Lana Popham, the NDP team and many others convinced the government to allow online wine sales and potentially open up opportunities across the country for small BC wineries. More work to do including pressuring Ontario to join BC and the NDP government in Manitoba and make it reciprocal. Good news though, it shows that we can help drive change even from the opposition side to help the BC economy. And congratulations to the government for listening.

To which I replied:

I think there were many more that took the reins on this one Adrian. You folks also had a role, but shame for what seems like to be taking the majority of the credit :(

I’ll give him credit as he did response to my comment by saying:

Completely agree Al.  For example have repeatedly recognized the roles of federal MPs of all stripes. We have been working hard too. Time to press Ontario and other provinces to act in turn.

Even still, I felt the need to state:

People were talking about this, and raising the issue for several years now. It has been the combined efforts of many people -- just saying.

Former Vancouver radio personality Terry David Mulligan

And it is true … there are a large number of people that have raised this issue of being able to buy and sell BC wines, and wines from other provinces, for personal use.  In fact the first I can recall was former Vancouver radio rock-jock Terry David Mulligan, who now makes his home in the Okanagan. 

But he of course was not ‘the’ first … and those in BC’s wine industry have worked for a long time to have a law that dates back to 1928, (which made it illegal to ship wine between provinces) ended.

Why do Young British Columbians Veer Left?

Today we feature a quest opinion piece from Jesse Donovan. 

Jesse Donovan is a Political Science student at the University of Toronto. He was born and raised in North and West Vancouver. Jesse has served in the Canadian Armed Forces since 2010, and he is currently, he works as a Summer Intern for the BC Conservative Party. 

Jesse is also the President and Founder of the BC Conservative Youth Association, a grassroots organization for young conservatives in BC.

In 2010, after nearly a decade of BC Liberal rule, the youth unemployment rate in British Columbia had reached a staggering 13.8 percent. This was the highest it had been in the past seven years.

Under the BC Liberal Government, young British Columbians have faced many obstacles to their economic success. High unemployment, slow wage growth, and a disproportionate amount of part-time labour are some of the severe threats to the financial well-being of young British Columbians. 

Under the BC Liberal government, young British Columbians have not only had to deal with high unemployment, but also incredibly slow wage growth. Between 2007 and 2010, the weekly wages of BC Youth have grown around 20 times slower than the weekly wages of British Columbians aged 25-54.

British Columbia is the anomaly among the successful Western Provinces. Young Canadians from Alberta and Saskatchewan have fared relatively well under their Conservative governments. While all Western Provinces experienced rising youth unemployment from 2008 to 2010, BC’s was by far the highest. Between 2008 and 2010, British Columbia’s youth unemployment rate increased by 5.8%. This is over twice as much as Manitoba’s increase and almost three times more than Saskatchewan in the same period.

Many young British Columbians are concerned and angry about their seemingly bleak economic future. They are right to be concerned and their anger is justified. There is, however, a worrying trend in how young people are directing these emotions.

The facts are the facts Kevin, and I stand by what I have said

Retiring BC Liberal MLA
Kevin Krueger

I have spoken on numerous occasions about the rapidly rising debt being created by the BC Liberals … and their ongoing annual deficits.  These are not imaginings, they are fact, however retiring South Kamloops BC Liberal MLA Kevin Krueger disputes this; as he stated to me earlier today.

The following is the conversation we had on this … as well as comments he made regarding BC Conservative Party leader John Cummins, and the experience we will be presenting to the voters in next Mays general election 

Kevin Krueger:

NDP debt was credit card debt - borrowed to spend on their friends, and operating. That is very different from debt for capital items: roads, bridges, hospitals, universities, schools... as most people's mortgage debt enables them to live in, and pay for, their homes - but credit card debts are high interest and destructive.

Our free enterprise coalition has had the courage to build what British Columbians need - name one construction project you think was a bad choice? We have also created the conditions for a thriving economy and great revenues to pay those capital debts off. The rating agencies give us Triple A - the highest possible. You B.C. Conservatives have a lot to learn, to be taken seriously at the polls.

Kevin ... I cannot argue with good capital spending ... however wasteful everyday spending is what I cannot agree with -- that is the day to day spending that is creating a never ending annual deficit. That gets added to the also increasing debt and we have a future bubble that will have to burst at some point.

Call it what you will, but debt is debt ... and all of it has to be paid for eventually --- and all of it will have accumulated interest on it.

Over a year ago, when the debt was still in the mid $40 billion range, the Canadian Taxpayers Federation stated we were paying over $6 million EACH DAY just to pay the interest on that every increasing debt.

That's worse than someone who is making the minimum payment on their credit card -- at least they are slowly (very slowly) making a debt in the principle.

In this case however the debt continue to pile up every day --- and somewhere down the line the creditors will say, "Enough, no more, start paying down the principle"

Sorry Kevin, but with all due respect, I cannot accept this government has been fiscally responsible. There is nothing responsible about saddling future generations with a legacy that is a mountain of debt.

Both of these things are happening with the Liberals, in the same way as they occurred under the NDP

Last night on Global TV news out of Vancouver, I heard Christy Clark talking about not wanting to go back to the horrible debt of the NDP -- and to the days when people were leaving the province for better jobs and lower taxes.

Is she serious?? Does she really have no idea what her BC Liberal Party's track record is??

She obviously is unaware, or pretends not to know, that the BC Liberals have doubled the provinces debt from $30 to $60 billion. She also seems to be unaware, or not to know, anything about last year’s Fraser Institute report that shows there are now MORE people leaving the province than are moving here.

Both of these things are happening with the Liberals, in the same way as they occurred under the NDP.

It is becoming more and more obvious neither of these choices are what BC needs.

Adrian Dix smiles a lot and doesn't say anything to ruffle feathers - but we are not hearing anything on how he will govern ... what his economic policies will be ... his taxation policies ... his plans to settle contracts with government unions ... etc.

There is only one real choice for smaller common sense government -- and that choice is the BC Conservatives!

I posted the above on my Facebook page last night, which elicited a response from soon to be retiring Kamloops South Thompson Liberal MLA Kevin Krueger who said:

To not do so will only condemn us to more of the same

Have you asked the question, "Will you become
a member of the BC Conservative Party?"

Several weeks ago I sent an email to several people who were not members of the BC Conservative Party – that I believed would be concerned about where we are headed in the next General Election.

Today I decided to follow up with them … here is what I had to say.

The next general election is just a little over 10 months away, and given everything that has happened over the past year, it is becoming more and more apparent that the BC Liberal Party will not win re-election. 

More and more, people are turning to the BC Conservatives, as a choice that will offer not just a commitment to being fiscally responsible ... but also to accountability, integrity, and respect.

We need all hands on deck to ensure the NDP do not win the next election, and that is why today I am asking directly for your support by becoming a member, and by offering whatever expertise and experience you have to help us build a strong campaign ... and support team.

In my honest opinion the BC Liberals have shown, over and over again, that they have not earned the votes of British Columbians ... and they will not get them next May.  There is an alternative however; that alternative is the BC Conservative Party.

Is it too much to ask that the Premier, sign the letters of response to questions posed to her?

Last week I made mention of a program at Science World, that takes science to kids across the province, was losing its government funding.  I encouraged folks to write to the Premier if they agreed this should have a second look.

I myself did write, and sent the following to Premier Christy Clark:

Ms Christy Clark

Premier of British Columbia

Several days ago came across a news story that said, "A popular program that brought science learning to hundreds of thousands of children across the province will come to an end after Premier Christy Clark’s BC Liberal government stopped its funding."

I find this surprising after you recently praised the work being done, and the importance of having children involved and plugged in to science.   I believe this program is important, and should be continued, and ask that you reconsider this decision.  Perhaps some of those bonuses currently being paid to CEO's and Execs of Crown Corporations and agencies could be used to fund this?

Sincerely … (my name, address, phone number, and my email was included)

Surprisingly, or perhaps not, I received a rather generic response back this morning – what was more surprising however was that this ‘generic’ response was unsigned! 

Is it too much to ask that the Premier, or whoever she designates to reply to her correspondence, sign the letters of response to questions posed to her?