The Hook

Lib Fan is dreaming in Technicolour

There are only six women in cabinet. That is not even 1/4 of the positions. I don't think that qualifies as "a lot" of women.

As for "nobody does it better" Polak, she is nothing but a crass opportunist who built her political career on hating homosexuals in a riding that would elect a llama if it was running for a neo-liberal-con party.

Great! Just what we need, a minister just for the Olympics. Nothing like "pissing money down a rat hole" when we lead the country in child poverty.

I'm sure that the cost of the minister of the Olympics will not be counted as an Olympic expense, just like the Olympic Secretariat.

More creative accounting from the makers of the Vancouver Convention Centre, the BIGGEST COST OVERRUN IN BRITISH COLUMBIA HISTORY.

(At least until the true cost of the Olympics is figured out)

@bcliberfan......

Gordon Campbell quote "we must protect health care and education"

So lets put 2 new ministers in those portfolios,well,I guess it doesn`t matter what ministry they have,the ministers have but only a few lines.....

"Fast ferries" "The 90s" "incremental costs" "Highest funding ever"

Did I miss any,oh yea,almost forgot "It`s before the courts"

small correction, Moonbug...

For the Liberals, six women IS a lot of women. Any more, and they might start, well you know,getting all concerned about child poverty and homelessness and rising income inequality and the obscenely low minimum wage (more women than men are minimum wage earners.) Not of course, because women care more about these things than men, but because their little boys' club would just be skewed out of all proportion. All of that hearty backslapping and manly posturing around the Olympics and the self-congratulatory fetes would have to be toned down somewhat if the women actually participated - no, no, they keep them primarily as their personal assistants because women are sooo good at that kind of thing, donchaknow, and then of course there are those other benefits that properly liberally acculturated women can provide...

What kind of responsible government

increases the size of cabinet during tough economic times? How irresponsible!! Watch for the deficit to go sky high and for deep, painful cuts to our services.

And how hypocritical to ask employees to take unpaid days off when you pull something like this. Shameful.

BRING. IT. ON.

On behalf of the BCLib cause, BRING. IT. ON.

I'd like all you on the left to revisit your thoughts in six months and in twelve.

You will not see the HONOURABLE Mary Polak, MLA in a political grave, no you will see child poverty go down - yes, down.

You will see a successful Olympics.

You will see the BCNDP in more chaos.

You will see the Riding of Langley disprove these smears.

Just keep it coming. We love it.

Who?

So this is the best he can do? Oh, yes these are the ones left that are not been pursued by police, lawyers and private detectives. These unlike the criminal who runs this gang, must still be clean. Give them 6 months with the drunk, and we will see more cabinet shuffles, more scandals, and more lies. Same question to all you righties... If gordo is involved with the Virk / Basi thingie, or the BC Rail cover-up, would you still vote for him? I'm sure you people would.

According to my contacts,

According to my contacts, there are six to eight people from gordo's office are writing on a lot of things on blogs. Sorta makes sense. If you can't change their minds with bullshit, write it down.

Kam Lee

I am NOT one of those six to eight chaps.

Oh and look, there's going to be a new Premier IF our Premier Campbell is taken down by BC Rail.. Premier Polak.

NOBODY DOES IT BETTER.

BC Liebfan

Dont worry, he will go down. The birds are about to sing. Ask your ex-lieberal Cristy, and Garry F, and the rest. Yes you are one of his staffers. Another lie by you.

I don't care anymore. I got

I don't care anymore. I got my name removed for the voters list, will join the ever growing group of non voters in BC and will spend my money and time helping the federal NDP..

As long as Ms.James is staying on until next election, we have at least 8 more years of the BC Socreds or Liberals as they call themselves these days. Not that there will be anything left of BC in 4 or 8 years anyway..

So this is my last post in provincial politics.

Good luck, BC needs it.

Any cabinet with goofs like

Any cabinet with goofs like Kreuger in it shows us that Gordo liked to have folks who will obey him at all times. What other government has the deputy ministers dealing directly with a premier. That sure shows just what the Ministers do.

Please no Liberal Trolls

The new cabinet - same old, same old. One can only rearrange the deck chairs on the Titanic only so much. Same financial iceberg, same result, only the captain and the crew get gold-plated lifeboats.

And the rest go down with the ship!

Please, don't bother

Dan the socialist
I don't care anymore. I got my name removed for the voters list, will join the ever growing group of non voters in BC and will spend my money and time helping the federal NDP..

Okay for the first part. For the last part, ... please don't bother.

sunshine coast girl

Evidently, Fraser "Health" has anticipated Gordo's "painful cuts" to health, education, social services, by cutting away at health -- even before the official August 25th budget launch.
http://www.theprovince.com/Health/Fraser+Health+take+knife+costs/1676396/story.html

Just think what the money being wasted on a single Campbell project -- the Port Mann bridge -- could do for this province......

Sue A Politician

I'll keep it short, I brought up the idea of suing a politician a while ago. then came along white rock and S.A.P. was born. Now the only way that Campbell is going to be keep in check is to take as many politicians as possible to court, for lying, incompetence, breach of public trust, breaking a verbal contract and so on. These people have lost all sight of reality and it's time we explained it to them.
JVR

BC Lib Fan is obviously delusional

Premier Polak?

MWAH HA HA HA HA! With comments like that you can't be a PAB troll, they would fire you on the spot.

Yeah, the people of Langley will elect her until she dies or stops running. After all, she was their champion against the queer hordes who wanted to have harmless books like "Heather has two mommies" in the library.

She is a real gem, that Polak. Though better at staying on message than the two women who were dumped from cabinet.

The reason Mary was kept out of cabinet so long is because Gordo was waiting for people to forget she is an anti-homo crusader.

Notice he didn't appoint ol' Marc, "homophobes are like paedophiles" Dalton either - even though it was a tight race, one where the NDP will certainly focus significant resources in the future.

The talent pool on Scampbell's team is so thin it doesn't even qualify as a wading pool. It is a thin gruesome little mud puddle.

Come on, get real!

All of yeah.

"'Oh, come on; get real.' Nobody buys that stuff anymore, guys. Instead, let's get on with solving the problems. Let's debate the ideas."

Nobody does it better.

Moonbug is clearly speaking as NDP troll

"'Oh, come on; get real.' Nobody buys that stuff anymore, guys. Instead, let's get on with solving the problems. Let's debate the ideas."

Really, that was for you Moonbug. You are misrepresenting the Surrey crisis - the issue wasn't library access, it was Kindergarten & 1st grade access to homosexuality promotion in the classroom by a teacher/authority figure. I strongly suspect with a cynical eye this was done to undermine a rising star. Do your homework before you smear a hero, a hero who said herself to PublicEyeOnline that she volunteered for the toughest ministry out there.

Premier Polak? We'll see about that!

Oh and the "Scampbell's team" is really beneath you. "'Oh, come on; get real.' Nobody buys that stuff anymore, guys. Instead, let's get on with solving the problems. Let's debate the ideas."

Baloney Dan

"As long as Ms.James is staying on until next election, we have at least 8 more years of the BC Socreds or Liberals as they call themselves these days. Not that there will be anything left of BC in 4 or 8 years anyway..

So this is my last post in provincial politics.

Good luck, BC needs it."

Seriously, I wonder if you are even a supporter at all with comments like these.

First of all, I'm tired of the Carole hate. There is no justification for it. Look at how well she did in the debate. She rocked creepy Campbell.

I am pretty convinced at this point that all the griping about Carole is thinly disguised sexism.

Notice how many other successful NDP leaders lost several elections before winning... should the Nova Scotia NDP have turfed Dexter because he didn't win on his second try?

Oh no, because he was a man and the reasons they lost those elections were not his fault. Carole though, well she is responsible for losing the election. Why? She is just one piece of the puzzle.

I wish you would take a hard look at the facts and focus on those things which really need to be fixed in the party.

Also take a hard look at the political landscape of BC and realize politics is about the choices of a lot of people, and the NDP doesn't control that.

They don't get big donations from Canwest PropagandaCorp either.

The BC NDP got their highest percentage of the popular vote ever. Every other time they got similar percentages, they won government.

There is no argument in saying that the election was a huge loss. The NDP held their ground and are heading into the next 4 years with a solid team of experienced MLAs...

I can't believe people so easily forget that most of the BC NDP team had absolutely no experience when it was elected in 2005 - they have done a fantastic job holding their ground while learning.

spoken like a true homophobe

"the issue wasn't library access, it was Kindergarten & 1st grade access to homosexuality promotion in the classroom by a teacher/authority figure."

I rest my case.

moonbug

You are absolutely correct. Mary Polak and Heather Stilwell are all the proof anyone needs to make the claim that rampant homophobia is afoot in Surrey.

How much did their little exercise in 'freedom of speech' actually cost the ratepayers of the District?

But, it doesn't matter how many ministers or how utterly incompetent they actually are - I've just gone through the biographies provided by the Premier's Office for the ceremonies yesterday and this bunch couldn't launch a kite - all decisions will still be made on the side of Campbell's desk by deputies chosen through that office.

These guys and gals are nothing more than the required accouterments of the 'appearance' of representative democracy - we're in for another four years of waste and hugely increasing deficits.

By 2013 the total debt of the province will likely double from what it is now and health care and education - not to mention poverty - will have suffered immeasurably.

No doubt all the poor kids will get a book bag from someone though....

BTW, moonbug, don't know if you saw my last message - send me an email if you have a moment -

Cheers

Campbell

has to expand his cabinet because he needs to keep his place at the top. It costs a lot to keep people faithfull, especially when your popularity is going down...

Josef/BCLibFan

I have a sneaky feeling BCLibFan is just "Josef" and "Josef K" who has been busy posting bizarre love letters to Mary Polak on publiceyeonline and Janet Steffenhagen's blog. Ignore it... it's just odd bafflegab and not worth the distraction.

Moonbug is wrong...

A parent should be given some rights as to religious education and intervention. Put differently: The government shouldn't define what a family is or what marriage is. And then to wham down something in a multicultural community that would - and did - cause a storm isn't wise. This is an issue about ciricullum, not about access to literature. There's always Amazon.ca, Chapters.ca and used book stores - no need for the gov't to divide a community.

Oh and nobody writes Cabinet Ministers love letters. No, they get sworn at. Bizarre allegation.

You used the same

You used the same amazon/chapters line at public eye online. So yes, you are Josef.

Ignore.

VicRK is right

Oh and the bizarre allegation of me writing a love letter is over-the-top.

To all those whom would like to misrepresent the Surrey crisis..

Why don't you read PublicEyeOnline from 2004 like HERE and Polak's explanation HERE. This was before I joined up.

Nope

If parents don't like public education they can pull their kiddies out and send them to private school at their own expense.

The only problem is that Campbell is so far indebted to his friends that he's now got us taxpayers paying the freight for those elitist and religious institutions too.

Time to stage a tax revolt and withhold whatever portion of expense for private schools that comes out of the public purse now.

We have the highest percentage of children in poverty in this province of any in Canada - why a single penny goes to pay for private schools while that is the case ought to be worthy of public shaming.

G West, well...

What about the parents paying for both the public and the private schools under your system?

And how would you cure child poverty?

Hmmm... curious minds want to know.

I could care less

People who don't support the public system can pay for their own kids' education in the private one.

If they can't afford both then they're welcome to send their kids to public schools.....

Public education is one of the prices a civilized society requires - supporting religious bigotry and elitist education have nothing whatever to do with civilization...in fact, quite the contrary, when folks like Heather Stilwell and Mary Polack get involved in education they ruin it and cost the taxpayers millions to make up for their ignorant mistakes and prejudice.

You might care to ask Premier Campbell's good friend and supporter John DeC Evans about his feelings concerning homophobia while you're at it - strange bedfellows in the Campbell ranks indeed.

My point was pretty clear by the way the funding that's now going to private schools should be used to address child poverty.

First step - increase the minimum wage to $10/hour and scrap the training wage BS.

Campbell refused to do that how many times?

Remind me.

Second step - fire the Public Affairs Bureau and put another 33 million per year into supporting families and children.

Third step - institute a comprehensive program of school lunches and breakfasts for all students in public school.

Fourth step - get rid of useless tax breaks for Campbell's friends - no matter how anyone makes that dollar every single one them should be taxes similarly. Special Tax rates for Campbell's friends have created the mess we're in now - no more dividend tax credits or accelerated CCA accounts for his friends either.

Simple stuff really if you actually care about something other than your own ass.

Remember, this supposed to be the 'Best Place on Earth™'.

G West as to 3 & 4 of "I could care less"

I agree. 2, but you still need public affairs people period. Maybe not as much. 1, no - won't work, will hurt small business.

Oh and I think the best option is either a voucher portable to public & private/independent schools or all public schools charter schools w/ no private and most of the onus on school boards on what to do. Let there be choice! And respect the minority!

Nope

Bad Idea.

This culture is fragmented enough already - the vitality of a society is measured by the commitment of all its people to the general good and it comes through shared trust and investment in public institutions open to all - and not just to folks with jingle in their jeans.

Religion is an after-school-hours thing - I respect all minorities - not just the ones with the money to schlepp their children to private schools.

The public school needs to become the centre of the community - not just a costly appendage.

Baloney - increasing the minimun wage won't do a thing to small business - I know.

G West, okay...

So you want all public schools, no private? Fine, then you're going to get Surrey-esque catfights over anything that is not basics like reading, 'riting and 'rithmetic + special needs support. Maybe that's best. It won't happen completely, but a public school system that didn't dive into controversial social issues - especially for elementary schools - sounds very libertarian. I like it.

I know the min wage should have been increased in 2005-2008 boom. Bad call by the Premier to not do so, big mistake that I think cost the BCLibs a chance to take some ridings. In contrast, Washington State has auto increases by inflation annually (but should have a stopgap when unemployment hits X percent).

See, we don't have to hurl invective, eh?

hmmmm...

No, we don't have to hurl invective - but why do I feel like I have to hurl?

Invective?

What are you talking about, invective?

With Campbell in office invective isn't necessary - simply describe the reality and that's all that's necessary.