British Columbia, Canada's topics - tribe.net

Emmigrating-Immigrating help?

2008-07-20T20:11:04Z

Please excuse the cross-posting if you are in other similar Tribes, but I, and several of my friends, are fairly desperate to leave the Bush-run land of the formerly free. Any help would be appreciated for the basic processes of moving. We are in various areas of California, and are thinking of moving to Victoria or there-abouts.

posted in *British Columbia, Canada* - 7 replies

Boycott the Genocide Olympics

2008-07-17T15:58:16Z

Join the facebook group or check www.tibet.ca during August for events happening daily in Vancouver to do with Tibetans, Darfur, the Falun Gong, East Turkestan, Burma, and Zimbabwe.

The facebook group is here http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=16054903835&ref=share or search for it as " Boycott the Genocide Olympics"

Thanks everyonee and pass this on to anyone who may be interested :)

posted in *British Columbia, Canada* - 1 reply

Giving ordinary people a chance to be heard again

2008-05-22T22:01:57Z

Dear Friend,

Politics is about listening.

Gordon Campbell doesn't seem to get this.

That's why his priorities are so out of touch with those of ordinary people in BC.

Take a look at the record:

While the minimum wage hasn't been raised for 7 years -- Campbell voted himself a $65,000 pay raise.

While waitlists for health care grow longer and hospitals dangerously grow overcrowded -- Campbell wasted almost $500 million on out-of-control spending on the Vancouver Convention Centre.

While seniors suffer neglect and abuse in government-funded care homes -- Campbell has gone $175 million overbudget on the Sea-to-Sky highway to Whistler.

While working families pay more for everything from fuel to tuition -- Campbell's Abbotsford experiment in private hospital construction has eaten up $144 million in overruns.

And while Campbell refused to pay $170,000 to counsel sexually-abused children -- he let the Children's Ministry blow $360,000 on glitzy renovations.

I think it's time to make Gordon Campbell listen. To tell him to invest this money in health care and education, not mismanaged projects that benefit Liberal friends and insiders.

That's why I'm excited about Neighbour to Neighbour Day.

On May 24, New Democrats in communities around the province are going to work together to help ordinary people be heard again.

On doorsteps, coffee shops and street corners, we'll be giving everyone a chance to express their hopes and fears about life in BC today and we'll be taking these hopes and fears directly to Gordon Campbell, in the work of our MLAs, in our platform, and in the election campaign.

You know, New Democrats have always worked to bring people together and give ordinary folks a voice.

That's how we changed the world with achievements like public health care, pensions for all, and recognition of the need to protect the environment.

But it's exciting to use new technology to find new supporters, give ordinary people new tools, and build a foundation for the achievements to come.

If you'd like to find out more, visit the Neighbour to Neighbour web site or Facebook group.

There's never been a better time to get involved.

The next election is less than a year away.

The province stands at a crossroads.

Will you have a government that listens to you?

Or a government that refuses to change?

It really is up to you.

Sincerely,

Carole James
Leader,
B.C. New Democrats

posted in *British Columbia, Canada* - 0 replies

Tibetan Freedom Torch and Festival

2008-05-06T00:30:01Z

Light the Passion, Share the Dream: Freedom and Justice for Tibet

***********
The Tibetan Freedom Torch symbolizes the hopes and aspirations of the Tibetan people for freedom and justice and the commitment of people around the world to helping achieve this dream. As the Freedom Torch reaches Vancouver Tibetans and Tibetan supporters will share in the spirit of survival, celebrating the hopes and determination of Tibetan people.

***********
Rally at the Chinese Consolate -12:00pm- 1:00pm

Lighting Ceremony, speeches, facepainting and rally. Runners will be cheered on as they make their way to the closing ceremonies at the Vancouver Art Gallery. Placards will be available.

***********
Tibetan Freedom Festival- 2pm - Vancouver Art Gallery (North Side)

Speeches and Performances by...

Hayfa Makes Music
ShennPenn Khymsar
Tibetan Childrens Choir
Pepe Danza
+ More

http://www.tibetanfreedomtorch.org/
http://www.tibet.ca/

posted in *British Columbia, Canada* - 0 replies

new tribe: Kootenay Entertainment

2008-04-27T18:39:32Z

Everyone is invited to visit and participate in a new tribe;
http://tribes.tribe.net/kootenayentertainment
see you there.
Leah

posted in *British Columbia, Canada* - 0 replies

reminders from Carole James

2008-04-04T21:42:43Z

Dear Friend,

A week ago, the Campbell government dropped a bombshell announcement late on Friday afternoon. My caucus and I have been working hard to get to the bottom of it.

Gordon Campbell still can't explain how it's acceptable for the public to be kept in the dark as John Les, the province's top cop, is under police investigation for almost a year.

But there's something else that concerns me about the cloud hanging over John Les and the whole Campbell government.

British Columbians need and deserve a government that makes their life better - but Campbell and his friends are too busy defending themselves from a growing list of ethical questions.

These last few days provide a very clear example.

On Tuesday, families in BC faced stiff increases in the cost of heating their homes and commuting on our ferry system. And these are just the latest increases:

BC Hydro rates have increased 36% -- an average of $255 per household

Transit fares are now the highest in Canada - costing an extra $400 a year for some commuters

Terasen Gas rates went up last fall, adding another $48 to the average residential bill

Last year, Campbell's cuts to child care funding leave a family of four with two kids paying an extra $1920 annually

In the last few years, increases to Pharmacare leave seniors paying an average of $276 more for the medicine they need, and increased fees for long-term care can cost up to $5476 more

Tuition fees have doubled since 2001, and students are now paying an average of $2287 more each year

This is big news for a lot of people. It's going to put real strain on people already having a hard time raising a family in this province.

But the Campbell government doesn't seem to care. The BC Liberals are too busy looking after their own. Today it's John Les. Yesterday it was Ken Dobell, who's lobbying schemes while serving as Campbell's top advisor came to an end when he was found guilty of breaking BC's lobbying rules.

My team in the Legislature is working hard, every day, to expose this kind of nonsense. We're holding Gordon Campbell accountable to you.

We're proposing reforms to help clean up government - like the specific changes to lobbying rules we offered up a few weeks ago.

But it's not just about forcing Gordon Campbell to adhere to better standards for accountability and ethics.

It's about getting down to the real business of making life better for you and your family.

Sincerely,

Carole James
Leader, BC New Democrats

posted in *British Columbia, Canada* - 0 replies

March against the Chinese oppression of Tibet

2008-03-20T06:29:32Z

Saturday March 22nd
12:00pm at the Art Gallery (Robson St)
We'll be marching to the Chinese Consolate.
For more information...

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=9885742857

The revolution has begun. Tibet will be Free!

posted in *British Columbia, Canada* - 0 replies

our premier

2008-02-25T17:26:55Z

Premier Gordon Campbell of B.C. was invited to address a major gathering of the Indian Nation last weekend in Kitimat, B.C..........He spoke for almost an hour on his future plans for increasing every First Nation's present standard of living. He referred to his career as Mayor of Vancouver, how he had signed "YES" - for every Indian issue that came to his desk for approval.
At the conclusion of his speech, the Tribe presented the Premier with a plaque inscribed with his new Indian name - Walking Eagle. The proud Campbell then departed in his motorcade, waving to the crowds.
A news reporter later inquired to the group of chiefs of how they come to select the new name given to Campbell. They explained that Walking Eagle is the name given to a bird so full of shit it can no longer fly.

posted in *British Columbia, Canada* - 2 replies

Friday Feb 15, "A night in the Jungle Room" Art party

2008-02-14T18:10:49Z

“A Night in the Jungle Room”
Leah Wilson and Daniel Silakiewicz present their Night in the Jungle Room fine art exhibit and party at the Redfish Grill in Nelson.

The Party is on Friday, February 15th, 7:30 pm til …late. Besides an unveiling of THE GIANT ELVIS and a chance to meet the painters:

Kris Ledrew unveils grooving Zimbabwean music from his NEW CD
Ashala , dancer extraordinaire, premiers her Tiger Dance (never before seen!!)
Howlin’ Dan and Ted Wallace play funky, rootsy music from Dan’s upcoming CD

A Night In the Jungle Room is a wild natured theme that explores Elvis, art, the jungle, mystical shadows, tribal expression, the music, the room, the night.

For more info:
dragonsonparade@hotmail.com
howlin.dan@gmail.com
Leah Wilson 250 227 6858

posted in *British Columbia, Canada* - 0 replies

Need a Happening?

2008-01-21T19:54:00Z

Good day, my name is Leah Wilson, performance artist living on Kootenay lake in B.C.
Please network my contact info along to anyone who may need a happening to stir interest in your location, event, or activity.
As part of Highpoint Performances, and many multidiciplinary creative facilitation events as my personal history, feel invited to say there are local stiltwalkers, fire spinners, mask makers, giant puppet creators & opperators, musicians and childrens entertainment specialists available. Workshop history includes lantern making, costume and mask making, specialty childrens workshops include face painting, minature dragon puppets, and paper masks, and imagination acting.

Thank you so much.
Leah Wilson
Multidiciplinary Artist
dragonsonparade@hotmail.com
highpointperformances.com (still being developed)
250-227-6858

posted in *British Columbia, Canada* - 0 replies

Smart Growth BC takes on exurban sprawl.

2008-01-01T03:19:20Z

The Sea-to-Sky corridor is in danger of turning into a giant strip mall, says Smart Growth B.C., a non-profit group dedicated to encouraging sustainable planning.

The answer, the group believes, is a greenbelt that would stretch from West Vancouver to beyond Pemberton.

"There's a huge amount of growth and development pressure in that region," says Ione Smith, special projects co-ordinator for Smart Growth B.C.

This pressure would be occurring with or without the 2010 Olympics, Smith says. But certainly, she says, the Games add to the problem.

With the population of the corridor projected by some estimates to double in the next 20 years, communities along the Sea-to-Sky Highway could throw off massive low-density sprawl.

A Sea-to-Sky greenbelt would help control that sprawl, Smith says.

"Vibrant economies, compact communities"

Smart Growth's proposal for the project envisions a corridor with "compact communities surrounded by green space designed on conservation biology principles."

The greenbelt would serve as "a cornerstone for better land use planning and result in urban development being directed into town centres," the group's proposal says. "The greenbelt will both assist in the preservation of wildlife habitat and increase the potential for alternatives to driving through physical activity such as walking, biking, cross-country skiing and snowshoeing."

The group's draft vision statement pictures the corridor as a sustainable utopia:

"Urban and rural settlements from West Vancouver in the south to Pemberton in the north will each exemplify the principles of smart growth: vibrant economies, compact communities with unique village centres, and a mixture of housing options.

"Transportation in the corridor will include an efficient public transportation system linking corridor communities to Vancouver. Each community will be surrounded by a defined growth boundary that will direct development inwards and outside of which will remain pristine recreational lands, productive farming and forestry lands, and protected wilderness areas."

Ultimately, Smart Growth hopes to have the greenbelt enshrined in provincial legislation.

Connecting the dots

Spurred by the Olympics, the provincial government is currently expanding the Sea-to-Sky Highway. That's already brought a construction boom and sprawl to the corridor, Smart Growth says.

"Though it is too late to affect the highway transportation decision, it is just the right time to promote strong settlement boundaries and connected protected green space for the corridor," Smart Growth's proposal says.

The corridor is already subject to a provincial land use plan, First Nations land use plans, regional district growth strategies and municipal official community plans. The greenbelt project would be a way of connecting the dots between the different plans, looking for ways to link existing green spaces, Smith says.

Protecting a greenbelt in the corridor from development could revitalize the downtowns of the Sea-to-Sky communities, Smith says. Development would be encouraged to occur in existing town centres, rather than sprawling outside current town boundaries.

Smith says the plan has been well received so far by all levels of government. Partners in the proposal include the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society, the Western Canada Wilderness Committee and The Land Conservancy.

Help wanted

A story in the Whistler Question quoted Squamish Councillor Patricia Heintzman as saying that some residents might oppose the greenbelt plan "because of their animosity toward some of the proponents -- especially the Western Canada Wilderness Committee, a long-time opponent of logging projects on which many Squamish residents depended for their livelihood."

"The point is well taken," says Smith. "So far our list of partners is fairly on the side of conservation and environmental protection.

"We are looking to broaden our partnership base because we really do believe it's going to require support from all sectors, whether it be real estate developers, local businesses, environmental activists, planners and sort of everything in between."

Smart Growth plans to draw up a series of maps in the coming year that will illustrate the proposal and show what might happen if growth continues without restraint.

Once the maps are done, Smart Growth hopes to hold public workshops.

"We're really concerned that things like the highway expansion and the Olympics are going to produce such an overwhelming amount of growth and development pressure that without... green space protection we'll just see sprawl and low density development," Smith says.

"And not only will that harm the environment, but ultimately that will harm our economy as well, because that type of development just isn't financially sustainable over the long term, in terms of infrastructure and that sort of thing."

http://thetyee.ca/News/2007/12/28/Greenbelt/

posted in *British Columbia, Canada* - 0 replies

CHF BC News: BC the worst province for housing need

2007-11-22T00:10:14Z

A detailed report on the almost 1.5 million Canadian households without
acceptable housing shows that 15.8% of British Columbia households are in
core housing need —- the highest percentage among the provinces.

Only two territories have higher rates of households in need: Nunavut with
38.8% and Northwest Territories at 17.4%. The Yukon is tied with BC. Among
the provinces, Nova Scotia (15.2%) and Ontario (15.1%) are next. The
Canada-wide rate is 13.7%, with the lowest rate in Alberta at 10.5%.

The report, released today by CHF Canada, also shows renters, new
immigrants, lone parent families, young adults, the elderly, and
Aboriginal households are hardest hit by the lack of affordable housing.

“This report shows that the rate of core need in British Columbia is among
the worst in the country,” said Thom Armstrong, Executive Director of the
Co-operative Housing Federation of BC. “It confirms what those of us who
work in co-op housing already know – the lack of affordable housing is
doing real damage to millions of Canadian families.”

Written by economics researcher Will Dunning, the report, entitled
“Dimensions of Core Housing Need in Canada,” looked at the most recent
housing data (2001) from Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation. It uses
the CHMC definition of Core Housing Need, which considers a household to
be in need if its housing is over-crowded, sub-standard or unaffordable
(costs more than 30% of before-tax household income.)

Renters account for 68.1 % of core housing need. Lone-parent families
have a rate of 30%; double that of other Canadian households. Immigrants
have higher rate of need than non-immigrants; for those households who
have recently arrived in Canada, the rate is triple that of
non-immigrants. Rates are also high among those aged 15-24 and those over
75. Across Canada, the incidence of core housing need for Aboriginal
households is 78% higher than for non-Aboriginals.

“This report paints a human picture of why we need to maintain the federal
and provincial investment in community housing,” said Armstrong. “It is a
first important step towards resolving the core housing need that affects
so many Canadians.”

The Dunning report indicates that affordability is the most common
difficulty in finding acceptable housing, with more than 89% of the 1.5
million households claiming it as a problem.

The full text of the report is available at www.chfcanada.coop.

posted in *British Columbia, Canada* - 0 replies

Tuva Camp 2008

2007-11-17T21:35:52Z

Dear Friends

Thank you for your interest to our music.

Last summer we held a throat singing camp in Tuva.

We had 14 students from around the world - 8 of them were from the US, 2 from Australia
2 from Denmark, 1 from France, 1 from England.
After arriving in Tuva, the students spent 1 week in Kyzyl, the capital city.
They were able to see many tourist attractions, see a Tuvan shaman,
and attend the Naadym - National Harvest Celebration.

The students then went on to spend 1 week in the deep taiga, with members of the Tuvan throat singing group Chirgilchin,
learning various styles of throat singing, traditional Tuvan instruments, as well as the Tuvan language.

This summer, we are trying to get 2 groups to go to Tuva again, in either June or July.

Please let me know if you have any further questions.

Please check our photos made by Russell Roesner - our student.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/bertdanger/sets/72157602427847575/

Thank you
Alexander

www.purenaturemusic.com
www.chirgilchin.com

posted in *British Columbia, Canada* - 0 replies

What they're saying this week

2007-11-06T03:51:55Z

"We'd love to talk to the Premier about [Convention Centre cost overruns], but he hasn't been around for the past week -- because it's only the Legislature and you know, he doesn't actually like to be here during session."
-- Sean Leslie, CKNW World Today, Oct. 29, 2007

"... For Gordon Campbell, a lot of messes are gathering in a little corner, and they're all getting swept in together ... These things are all coming into play at once, and I have a feeling the next couple of years Mr. Campbell is not going to have the nice free ride he thought he was going to."
-- Rafe Mair, CBC Early Edition, Oct. 29, 2007

"[Premier Gordon] Campbell's problem is that he flits from issue to issue like a butterfly, based on whatever book he's last picked up going through an airport."
-- Norman Spector, CFAX NewsLine, Oct. 30, 2007

"It's been a rough opening at the Legislature for the B.C. Liberals - yet another sign that they are not immune to scandal and accusations of mismanagement. All in all, it's been a bruising beginning for the Liberals at the Legislature ... clearly more than a few cracks are starting to appear in the Liberals' armor."
-- Keith Baldrey, Surrey Now, Oct. 30, 2007

"A botched megaproject. Cheap tricks with needy families. A failed lobbyist registration act. Multiple investigations. Many questions, a dearth of answers. That paints a far less flattering portrait of the B.C. Liberals than the self-satisfied image they have been promoting in their speeches and publicly funded advertising. Two weeks into the session, the New Democrats have already raised doubts about the B.C. Liberals' ability to cruise, unmolested, to a third term of government."
-- Vaughn Palmer, Vancouver Sun, Oct. 31, 2007

"All his [Campbell's] colleagues are getting hammered in there by the NDP. It's like a carnival game of whack-a-mole in there."
-- Mike Smyth, CNKW, Nov. 1, 2007

"It's been three weeks of trouble for the government. One embarrassment after another. And we're seeing an Opposition that's on its toes, doing its job."
-- Vaughn Palmer, Cutting Edge of the Ledge, Nov. 2 2007

"We have hundreds of sexually abused children in this province languishing on waiting lists for psychological counseling. There's a backlog of child-death reviews the government has promised, and failed, to complete. There are hundreds of developmentally disabled children all around B.C. who can't get the help they need because of government budget constraints. And what is the ministry's priority? Over half-a-million dollars to turn a government office into a private art gallery. Unbelievable."
-- Mike Smyth, The Province, Nov. 2, 2007

posted in *British Columbia, Canada* - 0 replies

This just doesn't look right from NDP

2007-10-20T14:51:46Z

The NDP has raised some serious questions concerning the lobbying activities of former BC Liberal cabinet minister Graham Bruce, and I thought you might like to know about them.

There are clear and simple laws in BC for lobbyists to follow:

It is illegal for a former cabinet minister to lobby the government for two years following their term.

It is also illegal for cabinet members or the Premier to give benefits to a former Minister who is lobbying them, before the 24 month cooling off period is over.

It is illegal to engage in lobbying contracts without registering with the government.

It is improper to use Treaty Support Funding for activities not related to treaties.

Mr. Bruce appears to have broken some if not all of these rules.

The NDP has asked the Campbell Liberals to investigate, but they refuse.

This week in the Legislature, I was told that Bruce denies he was a lobbyist. He claims that it "never crossed his mind" to register, despite the fact that Bruce was a cabinet minister in the government that implemented lobbyist registration.

However, quotes taken directly from the Cowichan Tribes treaty committee state that Bruce met directly with Gordon Campbell to secure the funds.

It sounds like lobbying to me.

Perhaps most worrisome is the Campbell government's indifference to this
controversy.

It's exactly this kind of indifference that has led to $400 million in
wasteful cost overruns at the Convention Centre.

It has resulted in years of neglect of seniors at care homes across the
province.

It has left dozens of small business owners affected by the Cambie Street Canada Line construction struggling or out of business entirely.

It has abandoned thousands of families living in rural communities
devastated by pine beetle infestation.

British Columbians deserve better than arrogance and indifference from
this government.

Stay tuned.

Yours truly,

Carole James
Leader,
B.C. New Democratic Party

posted in *British Columbia, Canada* - 0 replies

Good community places to live outside Vancouver?

2007-10-15T06:48:52Z

Hello west coast world. We are living in Toronto, preparing to move to B.C. next year.
Does anyone know of places to live outside Vancouver that have good communities?

Cowboy Mimes

posted in *British Columbia, Canada* - 2 replies

Landing in Vancouver...

2007-10-09T19:54:25Z

Hello everybody!

My hubby Mike (can) and I (est) will be landing in Vancouver on December 30th, to celebrate the New Year's Eve as the beginning of our new life in Canada. We are leaving our wonderful jobs in Estonia behind because of the impending economic doom / kroon inflation / Russian threat, and hoping that Vancouver will satisfy our need for change and permanence.

We're 25 and 30, both working in the postproduction / multimedia industry. I am a video editor / compositor whereas Mike is an audio engineer / DVD programmer (Sonic Scenarist). Links to our demo reels/resumes are http://www.creativefrequencies.com/kristel/ and http://www.creativefrequencies.com/michael/resume.html [in process]. We'd naturally appreciate any career-related suggestions or references that you may have!

Since I am from the middle of the Baltic Sea and Mike's BC residence is limited to a rather short period of time, we kind of need some help.

We work in a relatively noisy industry, so we're looking for a quiet place to rent. When looking for apartments, should we aim for Commercial Dr. or Kits and what are the pros and cons of each place these days? Can you recommend other places to look other than Craigslist?

Is there a coverage package that we should be aiming for when going to job interviews? Is it common to have dental/maternity benefits in multimedia or artsy/techie jobs?

Coming from Europe, I'll probably be feeling a need for a cell phone. What is the company and plan to use in the Vancouver area if one does not make any "national" phone calls and wants to pay as little as possible to call friends? Or is there no such thing?

Which bank would you recommend for everyday banking purposes, provided that one wants to do as much online/simplified/integrated/automated/environmentally friendly banking as possible?

Where does one register for a family physician and do you have to be working to be able to have one?

Can you recommend a good place for a gym/yoga center, that is down to earth and not overly yuppiefied ( :) ) where i could continue my (preferably Ashtanga) yoga practice?

Any suggestions for New Year's Eve 2007/08?

Oh, and do you still like Vancouver?:)

All replies welcome!

posted in *British Columbia, Canada* - 0 replies

Reality Check: James on Campbell's Gateway Plan

2007-09-30T23:42:32Z

In her annual address to the Union of B.C. Municipalities, New Democrat
Leader Carole James called on the Campbell government to stop stalling
on solutions for gridlock and immediately invest in transit.

"Gordon Campbell wants to wait until a new bridge is finished seven or
eight years from now before doing anything about traffic congestion.
Commuters are sick and tired of sitting in traffic jams, and they need
immediate action. That means a serious investment in transit," said
James.

James called on Campbell to immediately fund and begin work on the
Evergreen Line and start planning a new transit line up the Fraser
Valley to serve B.C.'s fastest growing communities, noting that half of
British Columbians live in the Greater Vancouver Regional District on
both sides of the Fraser River.

"If we really want address the traffic congestion that drives commuters
crazy, and if we want to do so while reducing the greenhouse gases that
are ruining our planet, then transit has to be our first priority," said
James.

"We need to be looking to the future for solutions, not the past. The
B.C. Liberals want to spend billions of infrastructure dollars on
yesterday's solution to tomorrow's problem."

James noted that public transportation has suffered under the Campbell
Liberals.

"Gordon Campbell has the wrong priorities. At a time when we should be
investing in public transit, a lack of provincial government investment
is making it increasingly difficult for communities like Surrey to
provide basic transit service. Meanwhile, fares are soaring, making
transit even less affordable for working families," said James.

James called for the purchase of additional buses and SkyTrain cars, and
the establishment of more transit routes.

"The Campbell government can't even get around to building the Evergreen
line on the north side of the Fraser, and they have no plans for Rapid
Transit or light rail for the Valley," said James.

Reality Check: Gordon Campbell on Climate Change

Gordon Campbell says he wants to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 33
per cent by 2020. But evidence suggests that the Premier has no serious
plan to help us reach that goal.

On transportation...

Cars and trucks are B.C.'s largest source of greenhouse gas emissions.
Despite Campbell's promise to reduce those emissions by 33 per cent by
2020, his Gateway Plan will increase them by a minimum of four per cent
- and many experts say the increase will be much higher. That's a 40 per
cent gap between Campbell's promise and his performance.

If Gordon Campbell can't even promote transit as part of a progressive
transportation project, how can we trust him to come up with a plan to
reduce greenhouse gas emissions across the board?

On energy...

Despite Gordon Campbell's supposed commitment to climate change, his
government continues to subsidize oil and gas production, to the tune of
$265 million this year alone. And Campbell continues to favour opening
B.C.'s coastline to offshore oil and gas.

And despite the 2007 Energy Plan which says there will be no greenhouse
gas emissions from coal fired electricity generation, Gordon Campbell
still allows dirty coal power in B.C., such as in the new Giscome
Limestone Plant project.

On carbon sinks...

Despite the destruction of B.C.'s forests by the mountain pine beetle
epidemic and uncertainty around the ability of newly planted trees to
store carbon, Gordon Campbell seems to think we should rely on British
Columbia's forests as carbon sinks.

On pine beetle...

The pine beetle epidemic is an unprecedented natural, economic and
social disaster throughout rural B.C. But Gordon Campbell still refuses
to declare the pine beetle epidemic a natural disaster, and has failed
to bring forward a serious plan to help communities in crisis.

If Gordon Campbell can't deal with one of the first real impacts of
climate change on B.C. -- the pine beetle crisis -- how can we trust him
to help British Columbians prepare for other impacts of climate change?

posted in *British Columbia, Canada* - 0 replies

Western Canadian Pine Beetle infestation Spreads

2007-09-18T20:19:50Z

VANCOUVER, British Columbia (Reuters) - Voracious beetles that have ravaged more than 9 million hectares (35,000 square miles) of British Columbia's forests have wiped out about 40 percent of the infested region's marketable pine trees, according to a report released on Monday.

The pine beetle infestation has spread unabated for eight years and unless weather conditions change to keep the tiny bugs in check, the amount of trees killed by 2015 in Canada's largest lumber exporting province will likely reach about 1 billion cubic meters (35.3 billion cubic feet), according to a provincial analysis.

The report estimated that at least 530 million cubic meters of wood has already been killed, which is about 12 percent of the western province's total supply of salable pine -- a key softwood construction lumber.

But the report by British Columbia's Ministry of Forests said the number of trees killed annually appears to be declining as susceptible trees die off, and the infestation rate may return to pre-outbreak levels by 2015.

The insects have lived on lodgepole and ponderosa pine in Western Canada for thousands of years, but nature has controlled major outbreaks by killing the beetles through extreme winter cold or with forest fires.

The area has not had the required cold snap in recent years, and efforts to fight fires to protect the timber supply and area communities have increased the number of older trees, which are more susceptible to an insect attack.

Trees killed by the beetles can be harvested for several years after they have died, but the provincial researchers said that more needs to be known about how long that wait can be.

The report said that, based on current assumptions on sawlog shelf-life, some areas of the province now hit by the infestation could see a decline in timber supply within four or five years.

The drier dead trees are subject to more cracking, which reduces the amount of timber and plywood that can be produced from each log.

The beetle infestation has continued to move eastward toward Alberta. Provincial officials there plan a major forest burn-off this fall in areas near the border in hopes of stopping the insects from crossing the continental divide.

http://www.enn.com/top_stories/article/23141

posted in *British Columbia, Canada* - 0 replies

Council of Canadians calls on B.C. government to investigate private clinics

2007-08-19T16:58:06Z

Vancouver - The Council of Canadians is calling on B.C. Health Minister George Abbott to investigate the Cambie Surgery Centre and the Specialist Referral Clinic for possible violations of the BC Medicare Protection Act and the Canada Health Act.

In a recent Globe and Mail article, Dr. Brian Day, part owner of the Vancouver-based Cambie Surgery Centre, admitted that he allows patients to pay cash for surgeries. "They can pay direct," he told The Globe and Mail.

“Dr. Brian Day has admitted to violating the Canada Health Act,” said Steven Shrybman, a lawyer with expertise in Canada Health Act issues. “The provincial government has an obligation to launch an investigation.”

Based in Vancouver, the Specialist Referral Clinic is also headed by incoming CMA President Dr. Brian Day. According to the clinic’s website, the clinic offers “rapid access to world class specialists.” There are more than 30 medical specialists listed at the clinic offering services in orthopaedics, general surgery, cardiology, and other areas. The website says CT scans and MRIs can be booked in one to two days at “leading diagnostic facilities” and if necessary, surgery can be arranged at Dr. Day’s own Cambie Surgery Centre. A consultation costs between $500-$800 which can be paid for with cash, Visa, Mastercard, AMEX or interac.

“These clinics appear to be offering medically necessary services for a price,” said Guy Caron, Health Care Campaigner for the Council of Canadians. “The B.C. government should be doing more to clamp down on private clinics that allow people to jump the queue and pay money for faster access to health care services.”

The Council of Canadians is also calling on the federal government to enforce the Canada Health Act and withhold transfer payments from provinces that let private clinics continue to operate.

“British Columbia now has more than 70 private, for-profit clinics,” said Caron. “It’s time for the B.C. government to act.”

The Council of Canadians is in Vancouver to speak in support and provide evidence of the benefits of public health care. For more information about the Council’s profit is not cure campaign, visit our website at www.profitisnotthecure.ca.

About us:

Founded in 1985, the Council of Canadians is Canada’s largest citizens’ organization, with members and chapters across the country. The organization works to protect Canadian independence by promoting progressive policies on fair trade, clean water, public health care, and other issues of social and economic concern to Canadians.

For more information, contact: Jan Malek, Communications Administrator: cell: 613-851-1483; jmalek@canadians.org or Carleen Pickard, BC Regional Organizer cell: 604-340-2455.

posted in *British Columbia, Canada* - 0 replies

Saskatchewan Says BC-Alberta Trade Deal is Flawed: Province Will Not Join TILMA

2007-08-02T16:15:16Z

Vancouver – After months of debate, the Saskatchewan government decided yesterday that it would not join the Trade Investment and Labour Mobility Agreement (TILMA) with BC and Alberta. Citing the agreement’s broad scope and unanswered questions, the government assessed that signing on had too many risks for the province.

TILMA was signed by the premiers of Alberta and BC, without public consultation or legislative debate, in April 2006. The agreement allows corporations and individuals to sue provincial governments for any provincial or municipal government measure they feel "restricts or impairs" their investment. Under TILMA, even measures designed to protect the environment and public health are vulnerable to attack from corporate lawsuits with compensation penalties as high as $5 million.

Saskatchewan’s announcement comes as Colin Hansen, BC’s Minister of Economic Development attempts to justify TILMA’s far-ranging implications to municipalities. The Ministry is scrambling to ‘consult’ with municipalities, dozens of whom have raised serious questions about the agreement’s impacts on local autonomy and will vote on excluding municipalities from the agreement in early fall at the Union of BC Municipalities AGM.

“Once elected officials get the chance to read through TILMA, they realize that it is more like a corporate bill of rights than an agreement to enhance trade and labour mobility,” says Carleen Pickard, BC/Yukon Regional Organizer for the Council of Canadians.

“Unlike in British Columbia and Alberta, the government of Saskatchewan actually consulted academics, experts and citizens and concluded that TILMA is a bad deal. It is time for Minister Hansen to accept that, stop forcing it on BC’s municipalities, and withdraw from the Agreement.”

For more information, contact:
Carleen Pickard, 604.340.2455; cpickard@canadians.org.

For more information about TILMA, visit Canadians.Org.

posted in *British Columbia, Canada* - 0 replies

$128,000 for pizza: Frivolous or valid? NDP asks

2007-07-27T16:55:57Z

B.C. finance minister says all charges are scrutinized, legitimate

The B.C. government spent $128,000 for takeout pizza, nearly $19,000 for doughnuts and more than $51,000 for Starbucks coffee last year, the NDP says.

It's all there, New Democrat MLA Guy Gentner said Tuesday, in the list of credit card billings released last week as part of the government's public accounts.

'We have a pattern of releasing all of the purchase card information to the public so that anyone can … ensure taxpayer dollars are not being misspent.'
— Finance Minister Carole Taylor

"So you look at these expenses," Gentner said. "Are they frivolous expenses? Are they part of business? Perhaps."

The 1,221 page list includes charges for fast food and fine dining, flowers, balloons, greeting cards, even some liquor. And page after page of travel bookings.

"When you're … the Ministry of Income Assistance and … the deputy ministers have a penchant for fine Asian food, meanwhile your clients are diving in dumpsters at Main and Hastings — it's a double standard," Gentner said.

And the total of $60 million in credit card charges is up from $52 million the previous year, he noted.

But Finance Minister Carole Taylor said all the charges are carefully scrutinized every month and are legitimate expenses.

"A number of the pizza charges — and I'm sure no one in the public would begrudge this — were for the firemen working on the fires that they were protecting our property and our lives and they have to be fed and taken care of when they're in the field," Taylor said.

The New Democrats will follow up with Freedom of Information requests to see if the government can justify all the expenses, Gentner said.

But Taylor said she welcomes the scrutiny.

"The system works well. We're very pleased that we have a pattern of releasing all of the purchase card information to the public so that anyone can ask the questions you're asking and ensure taxpayer dollars are not being misspent."

posted in *British Columbia, Canada* - 4 replies

Spiritual Sexual Predator

2007-06-29T05:24:23Z

An open response to Tantric M (people.tribe.net/894389d7-...dfb363dc1)

Let me tell you a story about me and LilShadow, the woman you called a liar on the Burningman Tribe (bm.tribe.net/thread/a6c9...6a77591132b)

It's in our Testimonials to each other.
I asked her to be a friend.. She said no. I accepted that. I didn't ask again and again. I respect women. Hell...I respect people!
We met on the Playa, held hands, and drank blood together.
We have been fast friends ever since. Walking each other through some seriously tough times, laughing and sharing the good. Talking on the phone at least once a month ever since.
She is an Angel!
One thing she has never done is lie. To me, or to anyone I know.

You questioned the integrity of a good woman. That was your first mistake.
Your second was picking on someone that you thought was weak.

Since then, I have been contacted by other women that you have preyed on.
One has only to look at some of the degrading photo's of women, of seriously sick Porn mixed in with 'Prayer Wheels' to see your character.
Personally...I think you are a new phenomenon.
The 'Spiritual Sexual Predator'.
I just evicted one from the Ranch I'm on. (See my Blog)((people.tribe.net/kamikazek...comments)) He, like you, was pathetic. Spouting New Age buzz words as a self described 'Enlightened Master' while eating our food, not working, and hitting on jail bait.
Every woman felt creeped out (like the women on Tribe I've talked to) 'hit on' by a dirty old Hippy.
Sound familiar??
Many women have come to me with tales of you.
Your actions speak much louder than your words.
Your past is verified by several independent sources.
Abuse has been notified.
If any other women than the 8 tonite who have contacted me want to speak to this issue, an issue (in my opinion) of a 'Spiritual Sexual Predator', please band together, speak out, and notify abuse at
www.abuse@tribe.net
KK
ps
I intend to cross post this on every Tribe that Tantric M subscribes to. If it gets me kicked off Tribe...so be it.
My intentions are as if I were a Father watching out for my Daughter.

posted in *British Columbia, Canada* - 0 replies

Taking initiative on the environment

2007-06-28T00:15:51Z

When our national leaders fail to lead, it is up to those that they are leading to point them in the right direction. With that in mind, I give kudos to the City of Vancouver for following the provincial government's lead and implementing ambitious greenhouse reduction targets. If enough cities and provinces lead, then eventually the leaders in Ottawa will follow.

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/british-columbia/story/2007/06/27/bc-vancouver-green.html

posted in *British Columbia, Canada* - 2 replies

Proposed National Park

2007-06-13T22:53:57Z

In the South Okanagan and Similkameen Valleys, the federal and BC governments are looking at the possibility of establishing a new National Park Reserve to protect Canada's only "pocket desert", complete with scorpions, rattlesnakes, cacti, and badgers, as well as in the grasslands and Ponderosa pine forests of this spectacular region near the town of Osoyoos.

Learn more and sign the petition here:
http://www.okanaganpetition.org/

posted in *British Columbia, Canada* - 0 replies

Campbell's Index

2007-06-01T05:32:32Z

With apologies to Harper's Magazine

Number of times B.C. Liberal Cabinet Ministers used the "it's before the courts" excuse in Question Period this session: 150

Number of ongoing investigations of senior B.C. Liberal government staff: 5, that we know of.

Number of Premier Campbell's staff involved in political dirty tricks: Unknown. The Premier refuses to say.

Number of Premier Campbell's staff mentioned in wiretap revealed at the Basi/Virk pre-trial hearings: 3

Percentage of the total touted housing money in the 2007 "Housing Budget" that went to tax cuts: 75

Ratio of Gordon Campbell's new salary compared to the annual salary of a full-time worker earning minimum wage: 11 to 1

Percentage of questions directed to the Minister of Labour about farm workers' conditions that were answered by other ministers: 50

Estimated cost increase for the Vancouver Convention Centre Expansion Project since the start of the Spring session: At least $185,000,000

Number of times "climate" was mentioned in the 2007 Throne Speech: 12

Amount of new money dedicated in the 2007 budget for climate change initiatives: $0

Number of students that could pay full tuition for the cost of Geoff Plant's "Campus 2020" contract: 27

Number of single parent families with children on social assistance whose combined annual income equals the amount Gordon Campbell paid Ken Dobell to be his special assistant: 21

Amount that average gasoline prices have increased since the New Democrats introduced a Private Member's Bill to protect consumers from gas price gouging: 20 cents/litre

Money owed to B.C. by California for the purchase of electricity during that state's power crisis seven years ago: $308,000,000

Number of mill jobs lost in the B.C. forest industry so far this year: 1,000

Number of studies the Campbell government was able to produce to substantiate their claim that doubling the Port Mann Bridge will reduce greenhouse gas emissions: 0

Number of long-term beds that could be funded for a year for the cost of Campbell's "Conversation on Health": 161

Child Care Resource and Referral Centres that have closed due to funding cuts by the Campbell Liberals: 6

Spending on B.C. government credit cards for dating services and sex toys in the last fiscal year: $947

Amount of government funding needed for Victoria's Mary Manning Centre to avoid having to make child survivors of sexual abuse wait for counselling services: $170,000

Figures cited are the latest available as of May 2007. "Campbell's Index" is not a registered trademark.

posted in *British Columbia, Canada* - 0 replies

$800,000 per Lucky MLA

2007-05-24T00:05:24Z

BC Libs' pension grab offered a fat target. The NDP whiffed.
By David Schreck
Published: May 18, 2007

TheTyee.ca
A retroactive pension windfall worth an average of more than $800,000 per member will go to just 41 lucky MLAs, almost all of them BC Liberals!

An MLA must serve six or more years after June 19, 1996, in order to qualify for the new pension; as of May 12, 2009, the date of the next election, only 5 NDP MLAs will have the required service, but 36 of the Liberal MLAs will be fully vested. The NDP's Leonard Krog, who was first elected in 1991 but not re-elected until 2005, will not qualify for the new pension unless he is re-elected. Only Corky Evans, Mike Farnworth, Sue Hammell, Jenny Kwan and Harry Lali have the necessary years of service without winning another election.

When he introduced Bill 37 to implement some of the recommendations made by Campbell's hand-picked commission, government House Leader Mike de Jong said: "With respect to one-time costs related to the pension buyback, I'm advised that, assuming all eligible individuals choose to exercise their full buyback rights, the total one-time cost would be $42 million, of which individuals would contribute $8 million." That provision of retroactive pensions benefits will cost taxpayers $4 for every $1 paid by MLAs. It also means that the 41 MLAs who are eligible to buy back service can claim an average taxpayer paid windfall of $829,268 ($34 million divided by 41). With the biggest salary and continuous service since June 19, 1996, Gordon Campbell will get more than that.

The pension figures make it clear why there could be division within the NDP caucus. If all members of the caucus signed the waiver and rejected the entire package, it might increase the chances that many of them could be re-elected. Current polling numbers suggest that 20 of the 33 NDP MLAs would lose their seats if an election were held today; they don't have to worry about ever receiving a pension because they won't have the necessary 6 years' service. In protecting the windfall for five of their colleagues, the NDP caucus may have assured that several times that number go down to certain defeat.

Laughing to the bank

The issue that cuts so deeply for the NDP has the Liberals laughing all the way to the bank. Campbell's commission provided political cover for the outrageous 29 per cent pay increase, plus the retroactive pension windfall for 75 per cent of the Liberal caucus, that is almost like winning the lottery, only in this case they got to pick their numbers after the draw. It is an example of stunning political stupidity that the NDP caucus rendered itself impotent on this issue instead of taking it to the public.

Since the release of the report from Campbell's Commission on May 1, only one news release came from the NDP caucus on the issue, and that was with respect to donating their raise to charity. Invitations to be interviewed by news media or on talk shows were refused; there was no fight-back campaign. They blew the opportunity to criticize the commission which did not reflect the diversity of British Columbians, which was unilaterally appointed by the premier, which demonstrated contempt for the public and which was racked with internal divisions.

Maybe good manners got in the way of protecting Campbell's political shield. The NDP caucus also blew the opportunity to demonstrate leadership for the public, which is understandably angry with the money grab, and they failed to offer an alternative. Word from Victoria is that the proposal to deal with MLA pay and pensions will be in the party's 2009 election platform. Why would they want to remind people of their blundering?

The best the NDP can hope for is that voters recognize that Campbell is responsible for the money grab, while forgetting the ham-handed way the NDP caucus behaved.

http://thetyee.ca/Views/2007/05/18/PensionGrab/?utm_source=mondayheadlines&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=210507

posted in *British Columbia, Canada* - 1 reply

Liberal MLAs endorse pay raises

2007-05-18T23:18:13Z

The B.C. Liberal caucus has approved recommended pay hikes that would give MLAs a salary increase of 29 per cent and Premier Gordon Campbell a boost of 53 per cent.

If approved in the legislature, MLAs would receive an additional $22,000 a year and the premier would get an extra $65,000 annually.

Premier Gordon Campbell said the raises are necessary 'to attract good people to public life.'

A three-member independent panel appointed by the premier has also recommended the resumption of a pension plan for MLAs that they would be eligible to receive after less then two terms — six years — in office.

The pay and pension recommendations have been met with negative public reaction. But Campbell said the raises are necessary.

"Taxpayers are never happy, I don't think, when salaries are dealt with, but it's something that we have to do if we are to attract good people to public life and not punish people for, you know, becoming a part of public life."

Campbell said no elected official likes dealing with this issue, but added the public may not realize how much work politicians put in.

"Again on both sides of the house and from all political parties, the sacrifices they make and their families make is often not recognized."

Campbell said the pay-raise legislation is being drafted. He also said it will be a free vote when it comes up in the legislature.

NDP Leader Carole James has already said New Democrat MLAs will not support the pay increase, and that if the Liberals pass the legislation, her MLAs will refuse it.

Liberal house leader Mike de Jong said that may be possible, as the legislation could include an opting-out clause for those who don't want the pay increase and pension.

posted in *British Columbia, Canada* - 9 replies

Some MLAs flunk on midterm report card

2007-05-17T22:56:09Z

May 16 marked the second anniversary of the B.C. Liberals' 2005 win. To commemorate the Campbell government reaching its halfway point, we decided to compile a midterm report card on key cabinet ministers and Opposition MLAs. We've concentrated most of our attention on MLAs representing Vancouver and the inner suburbs.

Gordon Campbell
Premier: C–

There are lots of reasons to give Gordo an F on his midterm performance. Earlier this year, he stood up in the legislature and opposed banning corporate and union donations to provincial political parties, ensuring oligarchical rule will continue as long as he's premier. ("I believe that banning donations actually undermines the principle of including people in the public process," he claimed.)

When B.C.'s former deputy minister of health, Dr. Penny Ballem, resigned last year, she claimed that the Campbell government's planned health-care reforms were "unsound". When Campbell launched his Conversation on Health, he misled the public by claiming that B.C.'s health-care system is unsustainable when this has been contradicted by health economists, including UBC's esteemed Robert Evans.

Campbell's government has given away our river system to so-called green power producers and is now about to turn over the regional transportation system to the road-building lobby. Campbell's government also introduced the odious Bill 30 last year, which ensured that regional districts and local governments cannot make zoning decisions that prevent British Columbia Utilities Commission–approved energy projects from going ahead.

In addition, Campbell keeps chipping away at the Agricultural Land Reserve, notably in the recent treaty negotiated with the Tsawwassen First Nation. As a politician, Campbell sometimes seems incapable of anticipating the future. Witness the cost overruns on the Vancouver Convention and Exhibition Centre. They were entirely predictable. And it's extremely likely that the bigger convention centre won't attract a lot of new business. He also fails to recognize that his big transportation investments will look awfully foolish when fuel prices eventually rise to astronomical levels.

So why a C– and not an F? Campbell boosted welfare rates slightly in the last budget. His government recently bought 11 single-room-occupancy hotels in Vancouver and Victoria, which could slow the rise in homelessness. He has capped the rate of increases in tuition; eliminated taxes for people earning less than $15,000 a year; banned coal-fired plants unless they capture their carbon emissions; revived legislative committees; and tried to forge a more harmonious relationship with First Nations. The economy is humming along quite well in many areas. And the bond-rating agencies have responded by boosting B.C.'s credit rating, which results in lower debt-servicing costs for taxpayers.

Carole James
NDP Leader: D

James has to carry a lot of the responsibility for the NDP's dreadful polling numbers, which are a result partly of a mostly invisible caucus and partly of less-than-stellar opposition research and communications. A recent Mustel Research Group poll had the NDP trailing the B.C. Liberals by 15 percent, and James's approval rating lagged 12 percent behind the premier's.

In her defence, she was diagnosed with cancer last year, which kept her out of the spotlight for a while. However, during her term as Opposition leader, the NDP has had few successes. And it's unclear where the party stands on some key issues.

For example, what is the NDP's position on twinning the Port Mann Bridge? How does the NDP feel about clear-cut logging in community watersheds? We don't know.

Thanks to the work of MLA Adrian Dix and others, the NDP managed to keep the pressure on the B.C. Liberal government for its abysmal record on child protection. Campbell ordered an investigation by retired judge Ted Hughes, who brought forward 62 recommendations, including the appointment of an independent advocate for children and youth.

The NDP also increased pressure on the government with respect to homelessness and the safety of farm workers. But James has failed to galvanize the public in her efforts to raise the minimum wage to $10 per hour, which is too bad for people struggling in this economy on eight bucks per hour or less.

Until recently, the NDP did not have much impact on the government's health-care policies. James responded by changing the lineup of critics.

James is an effective debater, but she has tried to create a more collegial and cooperative atmosphere in the legislature, which hasn't done her party a lot of good in the polls. James still has time to turn things around. However, don't expect her to last very long as NDP leader if she loses the 2009 election.

Carole Taylor
Finance Minister: C+

Taylor has softened the B.C. Liberal government's image by bringing in a budget that threw some crumbs at the poor–for instance, raising the income-assistance and shelter allowance to $610 from $510 for a single employable person and raising the rate by $155 to $1,036 for an employable single parent with two children. She also opened up the treasury to provide public servants and teachers with a decent raise and signing bonuses after they endured some brutal Campbell-style austerity during the first term of the B.C. Liberal government.

On the downside, Taylor remains a firm ideological adherent to public-private partnerships, despite the dreadful impact that this approach has had on the British health-care system. She still hasn't fired Partnerships BC boss Larry Blain, who managed to bill the government for $45,325 in expenses in 2005-06–including some very expensive meals–on top of his $519,448 salary and bonuses.

Bruce Ralston
NDP Finance Critic: C–

Ralston, a former chairman of Vancity, has one of the legislature's most important jobs, yet he is virtually invisible to most British Columbians. Because the NDP refused to oppose the Canada Line and the expansion of the Vancouver Convention and Exhibition Centre, the NDP finance critic can't stand up with any legitimacy in the legislature and complain about these boondoggles. So he concentrates instead on such things as the B.C. Liberal government's dirty tricks. As a result, Carole Taylor has enjoyed a free ride in the media.

Colin Hansen
Economic Development Minister: F

Hansen is the minister responsible for the British Columbia–Alberta Trade, Investment and Labour Mobility Agreement, which allows dispute-resolution panels to issue rulings on complaints filed by companies against governments. Hansen didn't bring this before the legislature for debate, showing that he and the premier still have a lot to learn about democracy. Hansen is also the minister responsible for the Olympics, where he has also demonstrated a lack of interest in public accountability. VANOC is not subject to the Financial Information Act or the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act, and Hansen has done nothing to rectify this.

Jenny Wai Ching Kwan
NDP Critic for Economic Development: B

Not long after Kwan held a news conference to highlight broken Olympic promises regarding homelessness, the Campbell government announced the purchase of 11 single-room occupancy hotels in Vancouver and Victoria. Kwan is an excellent debater in the legislature, and very few NDP MLAs can match her ability to highlight the heartlessness of B.C. Liberal policies on housing, income assistance, and childcare.

Kevin Falcon
Transportation Minister: D–

Falcon rammed the grossly overpriced Canada Line through the TransLink board. He did this by making provincial funding conditional on the line being built by a public-private partnership. Then Falcon decided to eliminate local control over regional transportation because the TransLink board couldn't manage its finances, thanks to the Canada Line. For good measure, Falcon oversaw the ruination of Eagleridge Bluffs with an overland expansion of the Sea to Sky Highway. Falcon is also forcing the twinning of the Port Mann Bridge on the region with little consultation. He missed receiving an F because he's giving his Surrey-Cloverdale constituents exactly what many of them want: more roads. Occasionally, Falcon promotes more cycling.

David Chudnovsky
NDP Transportation Critic: C+

He deserves an A for effort for showing up at numerous community events dealing with the Gateway project, and for regularly raising hell about rail safety. He's a terrific debater in the legislature. The unfortunate reality is that the NDP has an incoherent transportation policy, which lowered his grade. NDP MLAs south of the Fraser River, such as Bruce Ralston, has previously expressed support for twinning the Port Mann Bridge. But MLAs in East Vancouver, including Chudnovsky, recognize that their constituents oppose this. So the party has sent out mixed messages.

Wally Oppal
Attorney General: C–

Oppal has been a bit of a dud in the legislature. He seemed out of his depth on the deaths of children in care. He sidestepped questions about the Liberals' dirty tricks with media relations, claiming it would be improper to discuss this because it arose in a criminal trial. He also introduced Bill 30 last year, which wiped out the right of municipalities and regional districts to make zoning decisions on British Columbia Utilities Commission–approved power projects.

Oppal oversaw the shameful offer to Woodlands survivors, then wouldn't discuss it because it was before the courts. In addition, Oppal introduced a bill giving TILMA dispute-resolution panel decisions the same legal authority as a B.C. Supreme Court ruling. As if that's not enough, he also didn't play a very constructive role after an RCMP officer shot Ian Bush in the back of the head in an RCMP detachment in Houston, B.C. But he survived a cancer scare and, in the process, helped raise awareness of the disease. So it wasn't an entirely bad first two years in office.

Mike Farnworth,
NDP House Leader: D

Farnworth, a law-and-order politician, has to carry some of the blame for the NDP's poor results in the polls. As the NDP's second-in-command, Farnworth sometimes seems more interested in playing to the CanWest journalists in the press gallery than in working with social movements vying for change in our society. This has contributed to the growing gulf between the provincial NDP and its traditional supporters.

Richard Neufeld
Energy Minister: F

Neufeld has given away scores of B.C. rivers to independent power producers. He has invited energy companies to drain our natural-gas fields without adequate public benefits flowing back to the government. Now he's laying the groundwork for offshore drilling and for the prohibitively expensive Site C dam on the Peace River. Historians might judge this cabinet minister harshly.

John Horgan
NDP Energy Critic: C–

New Democrats think Horgan is a star because he's quick with a sound bite and he talks the language of business. But if Horgan were really doing his job, he would be rousing the public to oppose Campbell's giveaway of our river system instead of focusing so much attention on gasoline prices.

Everyone knows that high gasoline costs are a downer for drivers and small businesses. But higher prices also curb consumption, reduce emissions, and result in fewer kids with asthma showing up in emergency wards. In the meantime, Campbell is giving away B.C.'s capacity to generate renewable power for its citizens, and the NDP energy critic is not doing nearly enough to stop it.

George Abbott
Health Minister: F

Abbott's former deputy minister Penny Ballem quit, claiming that the government's plans for health care were "unsound". She said only 40 percent of people with diabetes receive good care. Then he fired the chair of the Vancouver Coastal Health Authority, which was quickly followed by the resignation of the chair of the Fraser Health Authority. Abbott is a dud, which might explain why the premier brought his brother-in-law, Dr. Les Vertessi, on a tour of European health-care facilities. Abbott had to stay home to deal with another controversy: the death of 91-year-old Fanny Albo two days after she was separated from her 97-year-old husband, Alfred, in their Trail long-term-care home. Maybe it's time that the premier separated Abbott from his cabinet position.

Adrian Dix
NDP Health Critic: A–

Dix did a superb job as the critic for children and families, forcing the government to order an inquiry by retired judge Ted Hughes. This led directly to the creation of a new officer of the legislature, Mary Ellen Turpel-Lafond, to act as an independent advocate for children and youth. Dix has also been an effective health critic, highlighting financial shortfalls at various health authorities and pointing out how the government is not enforcing the Medicare Protection Act. However, Dix has pulled his punches somewhat on the premier's Conversation on Health, preferring to let the process unfold rather than use his office to highlight the possibility that this could be part of a secret agenda by the premier to give private insurers more access to the public health-care system. He introduced a motion, which passed, recognizing the Armenian genocide from 1915 to 1923 as a crime against humanity.

Shane Simpson
NDP Environment Critic: B–

Simpson knows the issues, but for someone with a great deal of communications experience, he rarely shows up in the media compared to his Vancouver compatriots Adrian Dix and David Chudnovsky. However, Simpson put sufficient pressure on the government in the legislature to force Campbell to back down from allowing coal-fired electricity plants.

Lorne Mayencourt
Liberal MLA: C+

His first term representing Vancouver-Burrard was marred by the introduction of the Safe Streets Act and mean-spirited disputes with a postal worker and a panhandler. But in his second term, Mayencourt has tried to highlight new approaches to drug treatment, brought in a member's bill to address motorcycle noise, and has promised to resign his seat if his own government moves St. Paul's Hospital out of the West End. Now if only he could convince the premier to stop denying welfare to young people who haven't been independent of their parents for two years.

Gregor Robertson
NDP Critic for Small Business, Revenue and Deregulation: C

Robertson did some good work highlighting the problems faced by foreign students who were screwed on their student loans. He has also raised serious concerns in the legislature about the risks of offshore drilling, and he assisted tenants in his constituency who were being evicted. But he hasn't lived up to his star billing during the 2005 election campaign, which might explain why his leader, Carole James, shuffled him out as the critic for advanced education.

Ralph Sultan
Liberal MLA: C+

As chair of the legislature's health committee, Sultan promoted measures to address childhood obesity, and the government responded with the ActNow initiative. Sultan, a former chief economist with the Royal Bank, also gave MLAs a fairly thorough education on the ineffectiveness of gasoline-price regulation after the NDP's John Horgan raised this in the legislature. On the downside, Sultan did little to stop his government from ruining Eagleridge Bluffs to make room for an overland-highway route in his own constituency, West Vancouver–Capilano.

Dan Jarvis
Liberal MLA: D

Dan who? One of the legislature's foremost fish-farming advocates has been warming his seat for 16 years and still hasn't been promoted to cabinet.

Katherine Whittred
Liberal MLA: C–

Whittred has taken an interest in housing issues, which might be a factor behind the government's newfound interest in this area. But she hasn't had a great deal to say in the legislature, and the City of North Vancouver in her constituency was financially clobbered by the Campbell government's decision to cap municipal taxes paid by waterfront businesses.

John Yap
Liberal MLA: C–

Every once in a while, Yap stands up in the legislature and either praises the B.C. Liberals' economic policies, highlights the importance of immigration, or reminds fellow MLAs about the historical contributions of Chinese Canadians. He likes TILMA, and he hasn't expressed any concern that it wasn't brought before the legislature for debate.

Olga Ilich
Minister of Labour and Citizens' Services: C–

Ilich, a rookie MLA, handled herself well in her first year as the minister responsible for arts and culture. But she hasn't fared nearly as well in the labour portfolio. She came across abysmally in the legislature following a horrible motor-vehicle accident involving farm workers. Ilich couldn't even answer NDP MLA Raj Chouhan's question about why farm workers aren't eligible for minimum wage, overtime, and holiday pay.

Linda Reid
Minister of State for Childcare: D

The B.C. Liberal government has not invested nearly enough money in childcare (see page 13). In addition, Reid and the premier haven't made that big a deal of the federal Conservative government's decision to scrap child care agreements with the provinces.

Raj Chouhan
NDP Critic for Mental Health: C

Chouhan has taken on a number of issues, including safety of farm workers, sham marriages for immigration purposes, and the restoration of the British Columbia Human Rights Commission, which the Campbell government scrapped several years ago. His leader changed his critic's portfolio from human rights to mental health, where he has been somewhat less active.

Richard Lee
Liberal MLA: C

Lee often touts the benefits of the provincewide Foundation Skills Assessment tests in grades 4 and 7, and he has also defended the Gateway program as a necessary component of increasing Canada's trade with Asia. Lee isn't flashy, but he has regularly reached out to the aboriginal community.

John Nuraney
Liberal MLA: C

Nuraney, an Ismaili Muslim, stood up in the legislature and urged the Conservative government and the United Nations to do much more to halt the genocide in Darfur. He is one of the legislature's strongest proponents of multiculturalism. But like other Liberal MLAs, he hasn't resisted the trend toward public-private partnerships in health care, which, according to some peer-reviewed research, inevitably leads to higher health-care costs.

Chuck Puchmayr
NDP Labour Critic: C+

Puchmayr has kept up the pressure in the legislature on workers' safety and on farm-vehicle inspections. He is also knowledgeable about a wide range of issues in his community, which reduces the likelihood that New Westminster will be ignored when the province doles out funds for health and housing projects.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Source URL:
http://www.straight.com/article-91249/some-mlas-flunk-on-midterm-report-card

posted in *British Columbia, Canada* - 0 replies

Minimum Wage

2007-04-25T22:17:42Z

Click here to sign the petition to win a raise for B.C.’s lowest paid workers!

http://www.bcfed.com/issues/minimum_wage

posted in *British Columbia, Canada* - 0 replies

BC Legislator: Nice Gig!

2007-02-19T22:26:11Z

MLAs got full-time pay for nine week session. Gordon Campbell is arranging a raise.

A recent editorial in The Globe and Mail blasted American lawmakers, and especially Republican congressmen and women, for what the newspaper described as a "declining work ethic." ("Work, you lazy Congress," Dec. 8, 2006.)

According to the newspaper's calculations, the U.S. House of Representatives last year sat for a mere 103 days.

That less-than onerous schedule was "22 fewer days" than that of Canada's members of Parliament and, for The Globe, proof that the formerly Republican-controlled Congress was lackadaisical in fulfilling its public responsibilities.

British Columbians should be thankful that the gaze of Canada's national newspaper infrequently reaches over the Rocky Mountains, for to date we've been spared the embarrassment of seeing our legislators' workload compared to that of lawmakers elsewhere.

In 2006, you see, B.C.'s MLAs toiled in the provincial legislature for -- take a deep breath -- all of 46 days.

Really. Forty-six days.

Of 52 weeks in the year, B.C. MLAs worked nine.

Yes, those allegedly indolent U.S. congressmen and women last year put in more than twice as many days of work than did British Columbia's MLAs.

And Canadian MPs look like veritable workaholics with a work schedule almost three-times longer than that of our provincial legislators.

Shameless

Are B.C. lawmakers, who earn between $76,100 and $115,100, embarrassed by their lighter-than-light workload? Heck, no. Why, they've actually launched yet another bid to squeeze even more money, for themselves, out of the public purse.

Last week, in anticipation of the Feb. 13 opening of the third session of British Columbia's 38th Parliament, Premier Gordon Campbell appointed a three-person commission to undertake "a non-partisan, independent review of salary levels and pension arrangements" for B.C. MLAs.

Speed is of the essence. The three-member panel -- chaired by Vancouver lawyer Sue Paish, along with former Court of Appeal justice Josiah Wood and UBC business school professor Sandra Robinson -- must complete their report within 90 days. Legislation then will be quickly drafted so that, according to Campbell's news release, it can "be voted on in the spring legislative session."

Yessiree. Let's get moving, people! Relatively unimportant matters like hospital wait-lists, homelessness, tax competitiveness, the loss of head-office jobs, the pine beetle infestation in our forests and climate change are going to have to wait whilst our MLAs address their number-one priority: getting more dough.

Campbell government broke promise

Since 1973, British Columbians have been paying MLAs to do a full-time job. And, as initially explained -- by them, to us -- that full-time job consisted of a legislative sitting in the spring (to pass a budget and approve the spending estimates), followed by a later fall-sitting.

This pledge was reiterated in 2001, when the Campbell Liberals won election to government after promising to introduce "a fixed legislative calendar" with spring and fall sittings.

Yet, in the spring of 2005, the Campbell government short-circuited the spring sitting -- refusing even to debate the budget estimates -- so as to get an early start campaigning in the scheduled general election. The total number of days worked in the year? Fifty-two.

Last year, after the government initially cancelled the 2006 fall sitting, MLAs grudgingly returned to Victoria for a short, three-day sitting to appoint a children's commissioner. To repeat the point made earlier, the number of sitting days was 46.

In the past two years, B.C. Liberals have twice broken their promise to work full-time through a fixed legislative calendar. And the total number of days worked by MLAs over that two-year period, 98, is less than the one-year total of those so-called "lazy" American lawmakers.

By the numbers

It's not just a B.C. Liberal problem, or one specific to the 38th Parliament. As the chart at the top of this column illustrates, our MLAs' legislative work schedule has been in a gradual decline almost since they began receiving full-time compensation more than 30 years ago.

When W.A.C. Bennett was premier of the province, from 1952 to 1972, the legislature had a single sitting each year. A session would start near the end of January, last through February and March, and then conclude in the early days of April. The average number of sitting days per year was about 50.

The 1972 election to government of Dave Barrett's New Democratic Party resulted in a significant increase in both the workload and compensation for B.C. MLAs. In part, this was because the NDP had an ambitious legislative agenda.

But Barrett also believed that a legislator's job -- which, since Confederation, had been viewed as a part-time commitment -- was a "full-time" occupation.

And so to the traditional spring legislative sitting was added a fall sitting, with MLA salaries and expense allowances doubled to match the increased workload. (Actually, the legislators' annual indemnity first was hiked by 60 per cent, and then it was doubled.)

The number of legislative sitting days per year exploded to 102 in 1973, and 108 in 1974. The following year, when the fall sitting was cancelled in favour of a general election -- which brought the New Democrats' first term in power to an abrupt end -- MLAs still managed to get in 86 days of work.

Bill Bennett, W.A.C.'s son, restored Social Credit to power in 1975. The second Bennett was not enamoured with the NDP spring-fall schedule, instead favouring a single sitting that usually began in March and continued through the summer months until all budgetary and legislative business was completed.

In some years under Bill Bennett, the total number of sitting-days far exceeded the annual totals during Barrett's tenure. The House sat for a whopping 136 days in 1977, and 119 days in 1980.

Since then, however, government whim has determined the legislative assembly's schedule, with sessions frequently starting in one year and ending in the next. At the same time, the average number of sitting days per year has gone into a steep decline.

Incredible shrinking schedule

Three distinct trends are discernable in the chart above. First, the number of legislative sitting days usually is higher at the beginning of each government's term in office than it is at the end.

This is not a surprise; after all, newly elected administrations often have an ambitious agenda of reform intended to clean up the problems (real and perceived) left behind by their defeated predecessors. Then, after a year or two of hard work, government MLAs lose their enthusiasm for change, legislative or otherwise.

Second, the number of annual sitting days is noticeably lower in a year when a general election is held. Again, this is not surprising; prior to an election, most politicians would prefer to be courting their constituents at home rather than thumping their desks in Victoria.

The third trend is surprising, and problematic for those who believe, as do our current crop of under-worked legislators, that MLA compensation should be increased.

As mentioned earlier, the average number of sitting days per year under W.A.C. Bennett's Socreds (1952-1972) was approximately 50. When Barrett's NDP (1972-1975) doubled MLAs' pay, the average number of sitting-days per year also doubled, to about 100.

Under Bill Bennett's Social Credit government (1975-1986), the average number of sitting days per year slipped to 82.

And it has continued to fall ever since, to 77 under Socred premiers Bill Vander Zalm and Rita Johnston (1986-1991), and then to 73 when NDP premiers Mike Harcourt, Glen Clark and Ujjal Dosanjh were in power (1991-2001).

Now, under Gordon Campbell's BC Liberals (2001-present), the average number of sitting days per year has plummeted to just 60.

A bridge to sell you

Campbell's appointment of the Paish commission recalls an embarrassing episode 14 months ago when our legislators dispensed with conventional parliamentary procedure so as to sneak past the public and news media a bill awarding themselves significant pay hikes.

Whereas it almost always takes a few weeks (and occasionally several months) for a bill to go through first reading, second reading, committee stage, and third reading, in November 2005 MLAs took little more than an hour to unanimously pass – B.C. Liberals and New Democrats in rare agreement -- their pay-raise legislation.

It all fell apart, of course, when the media howled and the public seethed. NDP leader Carole James quickly buckled, turning on her former co-conspirators to assert new-found objections to the very measures she and her opposition MLAs had negotiated in secret.

For their part, the Campbell Liberals petulantly introduced legislation to repeal the pay hikes, but appeared less concerned about the impropriety of their actions than by James's traitorous about-face. Mike de Jong, B.C. Liberal house leader, even said that "the government intends to take no further steps to examine either the salary, pension or constituency office support issues...and we will move on to other issues."

Fat chance.

The fix?

Make no mistake, the Paish commission will not find that B.C. MLAs are under-worked and over-paid. A Las Vegas wedding between Donald Trump and Rosie O'Donnell is more likely than a finding by the commissioners that our legislators' compensation ought to be either reduced or kept at current levels.

(Do you think it mere coincidence that Campbell hand-picked for the commission three individuals who work in fields where six-figure salaries are the norm, and somehow failed to appoint anyone who works for the minimum wage, or belongs to a trade union, or is unemployed? Golly, one might have thought this omission would have aroused some response from NDP MLAs, but so far, only puzzling silence.)

Nope. A sizeable boost in legislative pay and benefits will be enacted before summer. To borrow an old phrase often heard in the legislative precincts, "the fix is in."

And so, let us hope that The Globe and Mail continues to be unaware or unconcerned with public affairs in our Pacific province. For, if Canada's national newspaper views U.S. congressmen and women as "lazy," one wonders what possible words their erudite editorialists would use to describe B.C. legislators.

"Idle"? "Lethargic"? "Inert"?

Oh, and don't forget, "sneaky" and "greedy," too.

By Will McMartin
Published: February 9, 2007

posted in *British Columbia, Canada* - 1 reply

COMPETITION: ANCIENT FOREST PETITION DRIVE!

2007-02-19T17:40:18Z

Do you want to help protect Vancouver Island's endangered ancient
forests and also have a chance to win some great prizes? If so,
please take part in our petition drive competition!

From now until 12:00 noon on March 23, we'll be asking all those
who want Vancouver Island's remaining ancient forests protected
to circulate a petition which you can download at
www.viforest.org

The petition calls on the BC government to end old-growth logging
on Vancouver Island and to ban raw log exports from BC.

The 1st place winner gets a $250 gift certificate on all items in
the Western Canada Wilderness Committee's Rainforest Store in
Victoria, while the next 9 highest signature-collectors will also
get prizes (soon TBA - check our website www.wcwcvictoria.org
soon for details). We'll send you the prizes if you can't make it
to Victoria!

Do petitions work? YES!!! Only when enough people know, care, and
speak up are governments forced to listen and do the right
things. Look at what's happening with climate change right now.
Petitions, letters, rallies, and protests all add-up together to
generate the public awareness and mobilization to force
politicians - who are worried about staying in power - to act
accordingly, or else get tossed from power.

Our goal is to collect 10 000 signatures over the next 5 weeks,
pushing our current total to over 20 000 signatures. Signatures
from anywhere on planet Earth are valid, since BC's old-growth
forest products are sold internationally, too.

Where can you collect signatures? On busy streets is quickest
("Hi, please sign our old-growth forest petition!"), as well as
in class (pass many copies up and down the aisles), door to door,
at line-ups, and among roommates, friends and neighbours.

Please return all petitions to our WCWC Victoria office at 651
Johnson St., Victoria, BC V8W 1M7 (open M-F 10-5 pm, Sat. 11-5
pm) no later than 12 pm noon on Friday, March 23. We'll be
announcing the winners at our Vancouver Island Ancient Forest
Rally on March 24 at the BC Legislature (12 noon) in Victoria.

Already 75% of Vancouver Island's original ancient forests have
been cut down, including 90% of the valley-bottom ancient
forests, and 99% of the old-growth Coastal Douglas Fir forests.

The WCWC is calling on the BC government to protect the remaining
old-growth forests on Vancouver Island and to force the timber
industry to make a full transition into second-growth logging at
a slower, more sustainable pace. Other jurisdictions, such as New
Zealand and southwestern Australia, have already banned
old-growth logging in recent years, and BC can feasibly do the
same on Vancouver Island and in southern BC where most logging
already takes place in second-growth forests. The WCWC is also
calling on the BC government to ban raw log exports (almost 5
million cubic meters exported each year from BC) in order to
protect the jobs of BC millworkers.

For more info on the campaign or to download petitions, visit:
www.viforest.org

You can also pick-up petitions at our office at our Victoria
office (250-388-9292) at 651 Johnson St. or our Vancouver office
at 341 Water St. (604-683-8220).

UVic students can also participate in the campus petition drive
and win extra prizes (ie. you are eligible in both contests) from
the UVic WCWC Club. Contact Elly, Sada, or Cayce at
uvicwilderness@gmail.com to drop off petitions to them, which
they will turn over to the main office afterwards.

Thank you for your participation in this most important effort to
save the most beautiful forests on Earth!

posted in *British Columbia, Canada* - 0 replies

BC Liberal government deregulates forest lands on Vancouver

2007-02-08T04:45:53Z

Last week, the BC Liberal government deregulated almost 30 000
hectares of land on Vancouver Island by allowing Western Forest
Products to take their private forest lands out of their Tree
Farm Licenses (TFL's). This opens these forest lands to being
sold-off as real estate for suburban developments between Sooke
and Port Renfrew, for logging without any real laws (ie. no
Forest Practices and Range Act outside of TFL's), for raw log
exports in 3 years time (ie. loss of BC milling jobs), and for
rampant logging without any restrictions on the rate of cut.

These lands also include highly significant stands of Vancouver
Island's vanishing ancient red cedars, western hemlocks, and
Douglas fir trees - already 75% of Vancouver Island's ancient
forests have been cut down. Only a massive push by
environmentalists, millworkers, First Nations, tourism operators,
recreationalists, and other concerned citizens will protect
Vancouver Island's remaining old-growth forests, stop raw log
exports, and stop the deregulation of the forests.

Visit www.wcwcvictoria.org for details in the Feb.1 media
release, and for the Globe and Mail and Times Colonist articles.
Visit www.viforest.org to sign the online petition and to write a
letter for Vancouver Island's old-growth forests.

posted in *British Columbia, Canada* - 0 replies

B.C. government proceeds with new open net-cage salmon farm in besieged Broughton Archipelago

2007-02-06T22:24:11Z

The B.C. government is ignoring the recommendation of its own Special Legislative Committee on Sustainable Aquaculture by allowing the application for a new open net-cage salmon farm in the Broughton to move through the review process.

“Living Oceans believes there must be a complete stop to open net cage salmon farming and the government should be supporting a transition to closed, contained technology. There are proven, serious environmental concerns associated with the open net-cage industry,” says LOS Campaign Director Catherine Stewart. “But at the very least, Premier Campbell and his cabinet should respect the recommendation of his own hand-picked committee and agree to a moratorium on all new farms until they complete their analysis and report.”

The proposed farm at Providence Point will have the capacity to raise over three quarters of a million fish at a time. Feces and other waste from the farms could accumulate quickly in the area due to poor tidal flushing, a mud bottom and an offshore reef.

Providence Point is on a salmon migration route through Wells Passage which is also habitat for orca and sea lions. The Canadian Wildlife Service has identified the passage as an “area of interest” for wildlife protection.

“There already two farms on the north side of Wells Passage,” Catherine says. “Putting another farm on the south side of the channel is going to create an absolute gauntlet of high risk for the wild salmon.”

Wells Passage is an adult wild salmon holding area where they rest, recuperate and feed before returning to their natal streams. It’s also a migratory route for juveniles, particularly those from the Kingcome and Wakeman Rivers. Both river systems are already suffering declines in wild salmon stocks, especially in odd-numbered years.

“The added threat of another salmon farm breeding lice, discharging waste and transferring disease and parasites could be the nail in the coffin for these at-risk stocks,” Stewart added.

The proposed farm could also threaten peoples’ livelihoods; the area around Providence Point is heavily used by the wilderness tourism sector and the commercial prawn, shrimp, crab and rockfish fisheries.

The Gwawaneuk Nation and the Musgamagw Tsawataineuk Tribal Council, in whose territories the farm will be sited, have seen existing salmon farms degrade their traditional food sources. They are staunchly opposed to any expansion of open net-cage industrial fish farms in their territories.

Add your voice to the chorus of objections and tell Gordon Campbell’s government to halt this farm application immediately.

http://www.democracyinaction.org/dia/organizationsORG/farmed/campaign.jsp?campaign_KEY=6501

posted in *British Columbia, Canada* - 0 replies

Can the Government do this?

2007-01-21T21:50:03Z

Ok. The following effects everyone working and living and paying taxes in BC so i am posting everywhere I can. please read. and then email and talk to everyone you know about it and what to do about it.

Here is some information about the unheard of Trade, Investment and Labour Mobility Agreement between BC and Alberta.

I want to make two points and then a plee before you read the article.

1)"The Agricultural Land Commission, the
Island Trusts, regional districts and land use restrictions in
provincial parks will all be vulnerable to a TILMA challenge as of next
April (2007)." - This is for any evironmentalist on the culture jamming list and beyond.

2 )"They could then be challenged for
regulating the size and location of commercial signs and billboards,
imposing height restrictions on buildings, or requiring green space
allocations from developers." - For all you cultural jammers out there, you are going to have a lot of work on your hands. all those new billboards, popping up everywhere.

My plee:we need to do something. What?Wrtie and call your MLAS, attend City Council meetings and present the council about TILMA, and ask them to adopt a resolution saying they are against it.
for even more information and what you can do check out:

http://www.canadians.org/DI/issues/TILMA/index.html

and join the TILMA tribe:

http://tribes.tribe.net/tilma

ARTICLES:
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

December 13, 2006

Murray Dobbin

Last April the governments of B.C. and Alberta signed an agreement
called the Trade, Investment and Labour Mobility Agreement (TILMA).
There was no public notice, little media coverage, no legislation
introduced to give it legitimacy and no debate in the legislature. The
Alberta-based think tank, the Canada West Foundation, says TILMA will
rid the provinces of barriers that "frustrate business".

The most draconian aspect of TILMA is its investment provisions. Once
the agreement enters into force on April 1, 2007, individuals and
businesses will gain the right to launch complaints and get up to $5
million in awards against governments just because they “restrict”
investment. Since pretty much everything a government does in some way
restricts investment, the two provinces are in for a wild ride.

TILMA claims will be decided by NAFTA-like panels.

What are some examples of government restrictions on investment that
could be challenged under TILMA? TILMA has some exceptions, but land use
planning is not one of them. The Agricultural Land Commission, the
Island Trusts, regional districts and land use restrictions in
provincial parks will all be vulnerable to a TILMA challenge as of next
April. Municipalities will have a two-year grace period before the
government extends TILMA to them. They could then be challenged for
regulating the size and location of commercial signs and billboards,
imposing height restrictions on buildings, or requiring green space
allocations from developers. And they can be challenged starting in
April if they introduce bylaws that are stricter than their existing ones.

We can get some idea of what we might be in for by looking at Oregon. A
ballot measure approved in 2004 gives property owners there the right to
sue for compensation for anything the state or local governments do that
restricts the value of their property. The result is the effective end
of land use planning. According to Sheila Martin, Director of the
Institute of Portland Metropolitan Studies, the ballot measure has
resulted in over 6,000 claims totalling over $6 billion.

“The biggest impact of the measure,” says Martin, “has been on Oregon’s
land use regulations which seek to protect farm and forest land.” Land
use deregulation outside the cities has Martin especially worried: “The
urban growth boundary will become ‘leaky,’ releasing pressure for higher
density in the cities.” Many challenges have been filed against “sign
ordinances” regulating the size and location of commercial signs.

Like the dilemma BC and Alberta will face under TILMA, Oregon is now
having to decide whether to pay compensation to keep their regulations,
or waive them for the complainant. The trouble is, there is no limit to
the number of claims that can be made against a single regulation - so
if you want to keep it, you have to keep paying.

How many claims will BC get? Oregon allows anyone with property in the
state to sue over land use regulation. TILMA gives Albertans the right
to sue BC over restrictions on their BC investments, and vice versa. But
Gordon Campbell is hocking TILMA to all the other provinces to get them
to sign on, which would expand the potential number of complaints
against BC. And under TILMA complaints can be made against a wide range
of government regulations or programs, not just land use planning.

TILMA allows for a limited number of “Legitimate Objectives” so
governments can try to defend themselves before a dispute panel, arguing
their regulations were "necessary." But nothing in TILMA recognizes the
kind of quality of life objectives served by land use planning.
Moreover, a government would also have to demonstrate that its measure
is not more restrictive to business than necessary to achieve its
objectives.

BC officials are making extravagant claims about trade barriers between
the provinces, suggesting that TILMA could “save” BC $4.8 billion - an
eye-popping figure, equivalent to what BC earns annually from its
softwood exports to the US. In October, federal officials told a Senate
committee that reliable studies have estimated inter-provincial trade
barriers to be about one tenth the amount BC is claiming, and vary
depending on what is defined as a trade barrier. Is the removal of land
use restrictions part of the "benefits" to be gained by TILMA? What
about the drop in property values that could result from uncontrolled
development?

Alberta cabinet minister Gary Mar told a Richmond business audience the
easy process TILMA provides for complaints to be taken against
governments is "everything Canadian business asked for." He was right
about that. But what about everyone else?
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

www.winnipegfreepress.com/westv...c.html

Agreement cuts provincial powers to govern

Winnipeg Free Press

Fri Nov 3 2006

By Murray Dobbin

WHAT if a provincial government signed an agreement forcing it to make
most of its regulations identical to those of another province? What if
this government voluntarily made itself, and every municipality within
its borders, open to lawsuits over virtually anything it did that
restricted investment? What if it tied its own hands so that, no matter
how much a region was suffering economically, it could not provide
assistance that might "distort investment decisions?"

Well, there are no "what ifs" about it. This past spring, B.C.'s Gordon
Campbell and Alberta's Ralph Klein signed an agreement with exactly
these sweeping constraints on the ability to govern. It is called the
Trade, Investment, and Labour Mobility Agreement. B.C. and Alberta trade
officials are now shopping it around to other provinces to get them to
sign on. The agreement comes into effect next April.

According to Todd Hirsch of the Canada West Foundation, the agreement
could erase the borders between B.C. and Alberta so that the only
differences between them will be "voting and the colour of the licence
plate."

Except, once the agreement comes into full force, voting provincially in
B.C. and Alberta could be a waste of time.

Under the agreement, the B.C. or Alberta government will be barred from
doing anything that could "impair or restrict" trade, not only between
the provinces but also through them to another province or country. One
article just flatly decrees that there shall be "No Obstacles" to this
trade.

Governments will be prohibited from providing subsidies that either
directly or indirectly "distort investment decisions."
Click here to find out more!
Some exceptions, such as for water, are permitted but even these are to
be reviewed annually to get them reduced.

The agreement also requires B.C. and Alberta to "mutually recognize or
otherwise reconcile their existing standards and regulations" if these
"impair or restrict" trade, investment or labour mobility. Then it
prohibits new regulations from being introduced that would have these
effects. Since regulation always restricts investment in some way, the
result will be that all future B.C. and Alberta governments will be
prevented from strengthening their regulations.

How exactly is this going to work? What would happen, for example, if
B.C. voters decided they had had enough of leaky condos and voted for a
party committed to tougher construction regulations? A government
elected on such a commitment would quickly find it had to betray its
promise or be vulnerable to a trade investment challenge.

Plus if either province considers any new initiatives, it has to give
the other party to the agreement the right to comment in advance and is
then obligated to "take the other province's comments into
consideration." In sharp contrast, citizens in B.C. and Alberta were
never consulted by their own governments on this astonishing agreement.

As part of their sales job, Alberta's Gary Mar and B.C.'s Colin Hansen
have claimed the agreement will not result in lower provincial standards
-- just ones that are "appropriate." In reality, however, the agreement
can only lead to deregulation because businesses are only likely to sue
governments over regulations they think are too high, not ones that are
too weak. In a vastly expanded version of provisions in NAFTA, any
resident of B.C. or Alberta will gain extensive new grounds to sue
government. A dispute panel will be empowered to make binding decisions
and grant compensation of up to $5 million for any government action
that violates the agreement. Repeated complaints can be taken about the
same government policy or regulation.

Governments can go on bended knee to trade investment panels and argue
that their regulations were "necessary," but trade dispute panels rarely
accept such arguments. Plus, this agreement only recognizes a limited
list of regulatory objectives as "legitimate."

For example, a city's desire to prevent urban blight is not on the list
of legitimate objectives, so municipal bans on billboards would likely
be a violation.

No wonder Gary Mar could tell a business audience in Richmond that the
dispute process is "everything Canadian business asked for."
The pact creates endless potential for litigation against government
right down to the school board level, without any demonstrable benefit.
A 1998 study done for the B.C. government found that: "efforts to
liberalize interprovincial trade will have almost no effect on trade
flows. The reality is that interprovincial trade barriers are already
very low."

As for labour mobility, all of provisions for increased labour mobility
will already be covered in Premier Gary Doer's initiative to see
professional requirements harmonized across Canada.

To sum up, the agreement pretty much bans new regulation and government
assistance for economic development. Perhaps in anticipation of the
pact, the B.C. legislature's fall sitting was cancelled with the
government claiming there was not enough to do. When asked about the
constitutionality of the agreement, Steven Shrybman, a partner in the
law firm of Sack, Goldblatt, and Mitchell, commented that "a basic
principle of constitutional law is that a government cannot fetter its
own legislative prerogatives by abandoning its authority to govern."

Sounds like what the Trade, Investment, and Labour Mobility Agreement is
all about.

Murray Dobbin is a Vancouver-based writer.

fighting till my last breath,
jax (jaxfitzgibbon@yahoo.ca)

posted in *British Columbia, Canada* - 0 replies

Looking for Adventurers to change the World!!

2007-01-20T05:38:21Z

MythMaker Productions
The Mytho Theatrical Sacred Circus
Is looking for a few good Adventurers to change the World!!
Calling all Hero’s & Heroin’s,
Sacred Warriors, Elves, Wizards, Ninjas & Jedi Knights

We are recruiting for the 2007 summer tour season
A 40’ bus of Bards, Artists, Circus Creatures and Sacred Warriors
Will be traveling the U.S. & Canadian west coast in aims to shift culture thru Art.

We Are Seeking:
Spiritual Warriors
Circus Performers
Actors/Actresses
Stilt walkers/Fire dancers
Dancers/Acrobats
Musicians/Artists
Lighting/Sound tech
Support crew – vending, children, ect..

Application Questionnaires available now

Auditions/Training camp begins this spring

For More Info Go to
www.mythmaker.ca

Please send replies to Hjeron thru the website

posted in *British Columbia, Canada* - 0 replies

Great Bear Rainforest: The Clearcut Truth

2007-01-16T00:57:33Z

Groups say Big Greens brokered a bad deal, and now ramped-up logging is devouring coastal old-growth.
By Zoe Blunt
Published: Monday December 4th, 2006

In February 2006, Greenpeace, Sierra Club and other groups celebrated a historic agreement with government and industry to bring an end to the “war in the woods” in the Great Bear Rainforest area of coastal British Columbia. Less than a year later, observers say the agreement may be unraveling. Timber companies have ratcheted up the rate of clearcut logging to unprecedented levels, and guidelines for sustainable logging are not being implemented.

Ian McAllister of Raincoast Conservation Society says the sudden increase in logging on the Central Coast is “unprecedented in fifteen years.”

“It’s unbelievable,” McAllister says. “It’s still just cut and run.”

“It’s talk and log,” says Qwatsinas (Ed Moody), hereditary chief of the Nuxalk Nation. “It is not a victory; everyone loses.”

What’s at stake is the largest intact coastal rainforest in North America – home to thousand-year-old red cedar forests, grizzlies, wolves, moose, mountain goats, black bears, and rare white spirit (Kermode) bears. Protected from logging and development by formidable mountains, this wild and rugged coastline stretches hundreds of miles from the tip of Vancouver Island to the Alaskan panhandle.

The ice-capped peaks rear up from the ocean, cut by fjords and salmon streams and covered with majestic cathedral forests. Whales and orcas swim through the channels and inlets, delighting tourists. First Nations communities fish, hunt, and gather berries, as they have done here for thousands of years.

The Great Bear Rainforest, we were told, is a wilderness legacy for our children and our children’s children.

How did this success story turn sour?

Twelve years of campaigning

It was members of the Nuxalk Nation who first invited non-native environmentalists to their traditional territory to witness large-scale clearcut logging in 1994. The following year, Greenpeace teamed up with the Nuxalk and other environmental groups to launch the campaign to save the place they named “the Great Bear Rainforest.”

By 1997, Nuxalk members and their allies – Greenpeace, Forest Action Network, Bear Watch and People’s Action for Threatened Habitat – were blocking logging operations on Roderick Island, King Island and Ista, which is sacred to the Nuxalk as the place where the first woman came to earth.

At dawn on June 6th, 1997, workers for International Forest Products (Interfor) arrived at Ista as usual to cut trees. Thirty protesters – including Nuxalk chiefs in full regalia – greeted the workers with a blockade and a huge tripod towering over the middle of the road. One protestor was locked down to a cement anchor buried in the road, while two more were perched at the apex of the tripod.

In total, fifty-five people took over the road and shut down Interfor’s logging operation for nineteen days. Twenty-four people, including six members of the Nuxalk Nation, were arrested when police arrived to enforce a court injunction. Qwatsinas was one of those arrested and convicted for blocking the road.

“I am charged with contempt of court,” Qwatsinas – a large, handsome man in his prime – told Justice Vickers at his sentencing in 1999. “Yet there is continuous contempt of our culture, our heritage, our lands and our rights. Logging companies coming to our land without our consent show contempt of our laws, our land, our people.”

Indigenous people in Canada are known as First Nations, and unlike their counterparts in the U.S., most First Nations in British Columbia retain legal rights on their traditional land for hunting, fishing, gathering medicine, and decision-making about resources. Recent high court decisions uphold these rights. But court challenges can take years, and when faced with the imminent threat of “illegal” logging or development on their traditional territory, many First Nations in B.C. have resorted to acts of civil disobedience like blocking logging roads.

In the 1990’s, massive industrial clearcutting was already taking place – without the permission of First Nations – under the auspices of the province, which also hosted a process called the Central Coast Land and Resource Management Plan (CCLRMP). The process was widely condemned as a “talk and log” exercise, until Sierra Club and Greenpeace set their sights on the planning committee. The groups won a moratorium in 1998 to suspend logging in intact rainforest valleys in the Central Coast while they participated in the CCLRMP process.

Meanwhile, environmentalists organized an international markets campaign to lobby buyers of B.C. wood products around the world. As the boycott campaign picked up steam, companies like Home Depot and Ikea dropped their B.C. wood contracts, and the pressure was on to find a compromise.

“Customers don’t want to buy their two-by-fours or their pulp with a protester attached to it. If we don’t end it, they will buy their products elsewhere,” Bill Dumont, chief forester at Western Forest Products, told the Vancouver Sun in May 2000.

Also in 2000, Greenpeace, ForestEthics, Rainforest Action Network, and Sierra Club of Canada – known collectively as the Rainforest Solutions Project (RSP) – made a decision that changed the course of the campaign. According to Qwatsinas and others close to the Great Bear Rainforest, it was a serious strategic error.

While negotiating the Great Bear Rainforest Agreement, the RSP formally agreed to end their protests, blockades and markets campaigns. For the duration of the agreement, there would be no more high-profile blockades of logging operations on the B.C. coast, no lobbying international wood buyers, and no hardball criticism of the process to the media.

But did the environmentalists give up their only bargaining chip?

“They made the Central Coast an environmental-protest-free zone,” Qwatsinas says. “We can’t go out and blockade or protest. We’re neutralized, really. They [participating groups] are handcuffed. How are you going to set forth your demands at the table when your will is broken?”

The Big Greens kept their promise to keep the peace with good faith and due diligence. It remains to be seen whether the timber industry and the provincial government will do the same.

As a hereditary chief with a sworn duty to protect the land, Qwatsinas has been on the front lines of this battle for more than fifteen years. Now, watching clearcuts chewing up habitat for salmon and bears, he can’t understand the enviro groups’ concessions. “They’ve given away too much. It takes time to get the market campaign, the boycott campaign going again. Think about those strengths that were given up – the power that they had in making demands, but it’s gone now. What else can they use?”

Victory through Compromise

RSP forged ahead with negotiations about how much land to protect and how to log the rest. With the Joint Solutions Project, the eco-groups collaborated with industry, government, labor groups and First Nations to establish interim agreements, logging moratoriums and other small victories.

Since the parties had pledged to base the outcome on the best independent science available, the province requisitioned a scientific review of the Central and North Coast flora and fauna to make recommendations about habitat protection. Seventeen scientists comprised the Coast Information Team, and their findings in 2005 stated that setting aside a minimum of 44 to 50 percent of the land area would be necessary to save ecosystems and wildlife.

In 2006, the final agreement was announced with fanfare by a provincial government eager to paint itself green after years of cutting parks budgets and opening wilderness areas to development and logging. But the Great Bear Rainforest Agreement only commits to a “conservancy” designation for 32 percent of the land, part of which is open for mining, and all of which may be open to roads, hydroelectric projects, tourism, and other uses.

Sierra Club campaigner Lisa Matthaus admits the amount of protection was inadequate. “The protected areas alone are not sufficient, but this is a political compromise. You need to have a lot of parties in agreement.”

“We wanted to meet the recommendations of the scientists [on the Coast Information Team],” she told The Martlet in 2005, “but we couldn’t.”

The quantity and quality of the protected areas greatly concern conservationists in the region. They cite the lack of connections and wildlife corridors between small, widely scattered conservancies. Worse, wolves, a key predator, were simply left out of the habitat surveys.

McAllister estimates that eighty percent of salmon streams are outside the protected areas, along with seventy percent of grizzly bear habitat. He notes that even inside the conservancies, trophy hunting will be permitted

In May 2006, the B.C. Legislature officially designated 24 conservancies in the Great Bear Rainforest. As of December 2006, 61 more were still awaiting legal recognition.

Although they recognized that the agreement didn’t meet minimum standards, environmental groups hoped more habitat might be saved through special forestry practices known as ecosystem-based management (EBM).

Boom and Bust

If one-third of the land base of the Great Bear Rainforest is protected, according to the deal, then two-thirds will be logged. How it will be logged is still the subject of debate.

The logging industry, environmental organizations, communities, labor unions, First Nations and the B.C. government agreed to phase in new EBM logging practices by 2009. The Rainforest Solutions Project website describes “lighter touch practices” that would “protect old growth, wildlife habitat, sensitive watersheds and salmon streams.”

Instead of starting to adopt these gentler practices, it appears some – if not most – timber companies are stripping the land as fast as possible before the 2009 deadline.

Ian McAllister sums up the current logging practices: “Clearcutting. Everywhere on coast it’s the status quo, clearcutting. It’s no different than what you’d see thirty years ago. In some places they may be doing something different, but the vast majority is status quo logging.”

Raincoast Conservation Society has conducted research and education about the Great Bear Rainforest since 1990. “I’ve just returned from a month of exploration on the coast, looking at recent logging practices. Based on what I’ve seen, I’m not hopeful. They’ve had years – decades really – to get their act together and agree to basic principles of forestry. They’re still not adhering to those principles,” McAllister said.

“They’ve been told that will change in 2009, so they’re just trying to log as fast as they can, and get roads into as many valleys as they can. There’s no interest in community employment or long term sustainable logging jobs.”

The clearcuts are bad enough, but some timber companies are leveling the rainforest and then hauling out only the best trees, mostly red cedar, leaving the rest to be burned as slash or rot on the ground. High-grading wastes millions of tons of wood each year, and it’s universally deplored as wasteful and contrary to sustainable forestry. The combination of clearcuts and high-grading resembles the world’s worst slash-and-burn logging.

“It’s a huge concern,” McAllister says, “because this is the forest species with the greatest economic value, and it’s the rarest species in the temperate rainforest. And it’s being logged at an unsustainable rate.”

“In our October surveys of recent logging operations on the Central and North Coast, all of the cutblocks had hemlock and spruce stacked high ready for burning,” McAllister relates.

The final insult for coastal communities – and loggers – is the destination of much of this high-grade timber: foreign mills.

The Truck Loggers Association (TLA) tackles the problem head-on in a position paper delivered to the province November 22, 2006.

“Today, log shortages are common across the coast,” the paper states. “At the same time, increasing volumes of exports continue to leave the province, while many independent mill-investors are struggling to secure wood in the marketplace to sustain their operations.”

Qwatsinas compares the current logging boom to the one in Nisga’a territory just before a treaty agreement was signed. “They accelerated logging up to five times the rate they were cutting before. Obviously, they’ve accelerated the logging in the Central and North Coast too.”

Even the RSP groups are getting concerned. A press release in September 2006 charges the government has missed deadlines it agreed to in February 2006, including a pledge to legislate EBM measures and fund a scientific oversight group. Also, they note, “some forest companies” still have not begun the eco-logging practices they promised three years ago.

Merran Smith of ForestEthics says: “We stood on the stage and announced to the world a new conservation approach for the Great Bear Rainforest, These agreements are now at risk because a cornerstone of the agreement, ecosystem-based management, is faltering. We are tired of big talk with no action.”

Pat Bell, a B.C. government minister, responded to the RSP’s complaints last month in an interview with the Ottawa Citizen, saying the oversight group would be established within weeks, and the initial objectives for ecosystem-based management would soon be available to the public. But Bell was vague about the time frame for “phasing in” EBM.

“There could be components of it in legislation next year,” he said, “but the commitment that I think is really important was full implementation by 2009.”

Those watching the clearcutting on the North and Central Coast are not likely to be comforted by assurances that things may change in a few years.

Division in the ranks

Qwatsinas calls the Great Bear agreement an “empty box.” Essentially, the deal is a framework, with timelines set for the parties to fill in the details later. Ecosystem-based management itself is left undefined. Even when a set of practices is eventually spelled out, the definition will be subject to change.

The David Suzuki Foundation, one of Canada’s largest and most respected enviro groups, wouldn’t endorse the Great Bear agreement for this reason. “There’s no guarantees that acceptable EBM practices will be adopted,” Bill Wareham said. “The agreement does not meet our expectation.”

Several other groups dedicated to the Great Bear Rainforest have walked away from the table, including the Forest Action Network, Spirit Bear Youth Coalition, Valhalla Wilderness Society, and Raincoast Conservation Society.

Valhalla Wilderness Society has been collecting scientific data and working to protect the coast for eighteen years. In a 2004 memo, society chair Anne Sherrod blasted the RSP:

In the future, while logging the unprotected ecosystems, timber corporations on the mid-coast will enjoy the signed agreement of two of B.C.’s largest groups, Greenpeace and the Sierra Club, as well as the U.S.-based ForestEthics and Rainforest Action Network. The groups that will continue working on additional protection on the coast – such as VWS, Raincoast, Forest Action Network and David Suzuki Foundation – will be blocked by the B.C. government and timber industry, using the agreement signed by the RSP groups as a “done deal.”

In the last few years, some environmental groups and activists have lost patience with this. After 15 years of seeing this happen, there should have been more learning, more awakeness to the crisis of what we are losing and how we are losing it. Instead we have the rhetoric and delusion of “win – win” agreements.

First Nations people are also divided in their response to the agreement. Even within the Nuxalk Nation, the band council supports the process, while traditionalists like Qwatsinas and the House of Smayusta oppose it vehemently.

The dissent is further fueled by the fact that the agreement failed to respect a protocol with the Nuxalk members who first invited Greenpeace to their territory in 1994. The protocol between Greenpeace and the House of Smayusta stated no deals would be made without the approval of the First Nations partners.

“It was a bold move for Greenpeace Canada to ignore the protocol and make the [Great Bear] agreement without our approval,” Qwatsinas notes. “The sovereignty of Nuxalk lands and rights in our sense took a back seat.”

Elsewhere on the coast, the Kitasoo Nation has signed the deal and now hopes to reap the benefits – by logging Green Inlet, part of its traditional territory. Although almost half of Kitasoo land is protected, and Kitasoo Forest Products is cutting trees selectively instead of clearcutting, the project has brought the wrath of Simon Jackson, founder of the Spirit Bear Youth Coalition. Jackson says opening a key area to logging could threaten the future of spirit bears.

“Everybody thought the white bears were protected with that announcement,” he said. “A lot of great steps were taken . . . but it didn’t protect the spirit bear.”

Simon says the Green watershed is needed as a genetic buffer zone.

“What’s happening now is that if logging occurs in the Green, bears will be displaced from their homes and the likely forced migration route they’ll take is over to Princess Royal Island, where they’ll dilute the gene pool and render the area thus far protected useless.”

Grant Scott, a Kitasoo representative, disputed Jackson’s facts, pointing out the area being logged is not prime black or spirit bear habitat.

“We talked to him about this. We said, ‘Simon, this isn’t spirit bear country,’ but he apparently doesn’t agree,” Scott says.

B.C. lands minister Pat Bell says that logging in spirit bear habitat is no problem, as long as “the operation is in keeping with the February agreement, which protected key spirit bear habitat, while leaving other areas open to ecosystem-based logging.”

The coalition says the agreement has protected only two-thirds of the spirit bear’s crucial habitat and that the province is back-pedaling on its commitment to protect the rest.

Now that logging has begun in the last third, the small spirit bear population – estimated at about 200 animals – faces an uncertain future, said executive director Salimah Ebrahim.

Action and collaboration

The announcement of the final agreement set B.C.’s environmental community abuzz with debate over tactics and strategies in the Great Bear Rainforest. Clearly, Greenpeace has switched its focus from confrontation to cooperation, no doubt to stay in line with the changing priorities of a protest-weary public. Similarly, “finding solutions” and “building consensus” have become the catch phrases of foundations funding the large eco-groups in the U.S.

The evolution of Greenpeace from a rag-tag band of protestors to a multinational bureaucracy may explain its newfound commitment to collaboration with industry and government. Ingmar Lee, a journalist and old-growth forest activist from Vancouver Island, says the group has adopted the corporate model it once deplored.

“This is exactly what happens to forest protection activists who graduate from the frontlines into paid positions and begin working themselves up the ladder,” Lee says. “Once they’re into the $60,000-a-year bracket, they just quite simply cannot relate to anyone in the movement, but they can sure hobnob with the corporate logging executives. They begin to see how the ‘real world’ works, and they begin to understand that if they cooperate, they will start to get some of that power.”

By seeking closer relationships to government and industry, Sherrod says, environmental organizations can become alienated from their actual power bases: solidarity with other environmental groups, widespread public support; and the reality of what is happening in our environment as documented by science. “I really don’t think it’s a problem particular to big environmental groups or rich ones,” she says. “I’ve known lots of little ones to do this. And some large groups play positive roles in the movement.”

The Valhalla Wilderness Society has campaigned tirelessly for the Great Bear Rainforest, but it never participated in the negotiations. “We think decisions on public lands should be made by open public process, and certainly in conjunction with First Nations and in full accord with their rights,” Sherrod says. The Society did work with the planning table, contributing its scientific surveys of potential protected areas, for example, but eventually there was a split between the environmental groups.

“I think the real problem is that negotiations with industry bring about a fundamental incompatibility in working methods,” Sherrod continues. “How can colleague environmental groups have solidarity when some of them are having meetings with the logging companies behind the backs of the others, making decisions that will affect everyone, and keeping them secret until there’s nothing that can be done about it?”

Dani Rubin, secretary of B.C. Pathways, says the exclusionary process inflicted “collateral damage” on the entire B.C. environmental movement. “I remember Don McMillan of Interfor telling me that the industry had a plan for us [environmentalists],” he says. “It’s pretty clear now that the corporate strategy was to divide the environmental movement by electing to negotiate only with the ‘pragmatists,’ leaving the rest of us out in the cold.”

Rubin says in the rush to get to the table and make a deal with industry and government, Greenpeace, ForestEthics, and Sierra Club swept aside pre-existing agreements with several environmental groups. Not only that, but an “umbrella of silence” has stifled open discussion about the deal and how it’s being implemented.

Many observers report that one of the conditions imposed on those who joined in negotiations was a ban on any public complaints or criticisms aimed at the process or any of the participants. Of course, the parties involved are not disclosing details about any such restrictions.

Qwatsinas suggests more groups should be speaking out about the agreement’s shortcomings, but “I don’t think they can. Some of their hands are tied and the gag order is in place.”

Besides the forest, the wildlife, fresh air and clean water, a substantial financial package is at stake for the Great Bear Rainforest Agreement participants. $120 million has been raised or pledged by foundations and the government, and it’s earmarked for First Nations sustainable economic development and conservation projects. (Not to mention the cost of the planning process itself.) And the Big Greens’ high-profile campaign, with the spirit bear as its mascot, has served them well by raising their public relations profiles and expanding their donor bases.

Lee says a cost-benefit analysis of the money spent on the Great Bear Agreement comes up short. “We’ve found organized, institutional environmentalism [in B.C.] has failed over the last four years to accomplish anything,” he complains. “The successes have come from individual grassroots efforts that have basically bypassed the entrenched, bureaucratic, environmental institutions that have been sucking up the enviro-buck and just not getting the kind of accomplishments we need.”

Lee is not surprised that the RSP groups are getting “stabbed in the back” by government and industry apparently reneging on the spirit of the agreement.

“I just believe that we should be working together against these incorrigible forces of destruction rather than working together with them,” he says. “I have always advocated a broad spectrum of environmentalist effort, but the grassroots activist community has been excluded from the project from the start.”

Lee understands the need for no-compromise action; as a key member of the campaign to save Cathedral Grove from a misguided parking lot, he spent over two years helping to coordinate a campaign of road-blocking and tree-sitting that ultimately forced the province to back off.

Qwatsinas also makes a distinction between the efforts of grassroots groups versus the Big Greens. “I’m glad there are some out there, groups like Raincoast, trying to make an honest effort, protecting the environment, who are not handcuffed by the process.”

posted in *British Columbia, Canada* - 0 replies

Bad news for childcare

2007-01-08T01:06:56Z

BC has the funds to proceed with child care system building next year BUT
on January 5, 2007 Linda Reid, Minister of State for Child Care, announced
that the provincial government will begin a phased reduction of funding
starting April, 2007.

The BC government is insisting it cannot afford to maintain some of its
child care funding commitments when the federal-provincial agreements come
to an end [as a result of the federal Conservative government's termination
of the agreements as of March 31, 2007].

The BC government has other options but they do not have the political will
to stand up for the rights of working families, their children and the
workers who provide the daycare they need.

The BC child care situation will continue to go from bad to worse!

Read the Minister of State's letter [at top of web page]:
http://www.mcf.gov.bc.ca/childcare/

Read about their reduced spending on the Child Care Operating Fund:
http://www.mcf.gov.bc.ca/childcare/operating.htm#rates

Read the Ministry of Children and Family Development's "Q's and A's"
http://www.mcf.gov.bc.ca/childcare/pdfs/ccof_rate_change_qa_jan07.pdf

posted in *British Columbia, Canada* - 0 replies

Gay multicultural couple

2006-12-29T20:57:39Z

Hello everyone!
My partner and I are looking foward to migrating to BC in a year and half from now. He is an american and I am mexican, and since both or our countries are so close-minded, we want to live the rest of our life together in a country that seems safe and so welcoming. We've been forced to live away from each other for a year and now we are looking for a migration lawyer who can help us out with this adventure that defenitely will birng so much happiness to us, Can anyone can help us?

Have a nice day!

posted in *British Columbia, Canada* - 0 replies

Trade, Investment and Labour Mobility Agreement between BC and Alberta.

2006-12-15T05:07:42Z

Ok. The following effects everyone working and living and paying taxes in BC so i am posting everywhere I can. please read. and then email and talk to everyone you know about it and what to do about it.

Here is some information about the unheard of Trade, Investment and Labour Mobility Agreement between BC and Alberta.

I want to make two points and then a plee before you read the article.

1)"The Agricultural Land Commission, the
Island Trusts, regional districts and land use restrictions in
provincial parks will all be vulnerable to a TILMA challenge as of next
April (2007)." - This is for any evironmentalist on the culture jamming list and beyond.

2 )"They could then be challenged for
regulating the size and location of commercial signs and billboards,
imposing height restrictions on buildings, or requiring green space
allocations from developers." - For all you cultural jammers out there, you are going to have a lot of work on your hands. all those new billboards, popping up everywhere.

My plee: I don't know of any actions/campaigns against this agreement, yet. I hope i will find some to inform you all of. But from where I stand, we need to do something. What? Don't know that part yet. But I think we might be able to angle it from the illegitimacy of the agreement (" no legislation introduced to give it legitimacy")
I just really want to get a discussion on this going. So any thoughts would be great.
I will attach the original article as well on the bottom.

fighting till my last breath,
jax

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

December 13, 2006

Murray Dobbin

Last April the governments of B.C. and Alberta signed an agreement
called the Trade, Investment and Labour Mobility Agreement (TILMA).
There was no public notice, little media coverage, no legislation
introduced to give it legitimacy and no debate in the legislature. The
Alberta-based think tank, the Canada West Foundation, says TILMA will
rid the provinces of barriers that "frustrate business".

The most draconian aspect of TILMA is its investment provisions. Once
the agreement enters into force on April 1, 2007, individuals and
businesses will gain the right to launch complaints and get up to $5
million in awards against governments just because they “restrict”
investment. Since pretty much everything a government does in some way
restricts investment, the two provinces are in for a wild ride.

TILMA claims will be decided by NAFTA-like panels.

What are some examples of government restrictions on investment that
could be challenged under TILMA? TILMA has some exceptions, but land use
planning is not one of them. The Agricultural Land Commission, the
Island Trusts, regional districts and land use restrictions in
provincial parks will all be vulnerable to a TILMA challenge as of next
April. Municipalities will have a two-year grace period before the
government extends TILMA to them. They could then be challenged for
regulating the size and location of commercial signs and billboards,
imposing height restrictions on buildings, or requiring green space
allocations from developers. And they can be challenged starting in
April if they introduce bylaws that are stricter than their existing ones.

We can get some idea of what we might be in for by looking at Oregon. A
ballot measure approved in 2004 gives property owners there the right to
sue for compensation for anything the state or local governments do that
restricts the value of their property. The result is the effective end
of land use planning. According to Sheila Martin, Director of the
Institute of Portland Metropolitan Studies, the ballot measure has
resulted in over 6,000 claims totalling over $6 billion.

“The biggest impact of the measure,” says Martin, “has been on Oregon’s
land use regulations which seek to protect farm and forest land.” Land
use deregulation outside the cities has Martin especially worried: “The
urban growth boundary will become ‘leaky,’ releasing pressure for higher
density in the cities.” Many challenges have been filed against “sign
ordinances” regulating the size and location of commercial signs.

Like the dilemma BC and Alberta will face under TILMA, Oregon is now
having to decide whether to pay compensation to keep their regulations,
or waive them for the complainant. The trouble is, there is no limit to
the number of claims that can be made against a single regulation - so
if you want to keep it, you have to keep paying.

How many claims will BC get? Oregon allows anyone with property in the
state to sue over land use regulation. TILMA gives Albertans the right
to sue BC over restrictions on their BC investments, and vice versa. But
Gordon Campbell is hocking TILMA to all the other provinces to get them
to sign on, which would expand the potential number of complaints
against BC. And under TILMA complaints can be made against a wide range
of government regulations or programs, not just land use planning.

TILMA allows for a limited number of “Legitimate Objectives” so
governments can try to defend themselves before a dispute panel, arguing
their regulations were "necessary." But nothing in TILMA recognizes the
kind of quality of life objectives served by land use planning.
Moreover, a government would also have to demonstrate that its measure
is not more restrictive to business than necessary to achieve its
objectives.

BC officials are making extravagant claims about trade barriers between
the provinces, suggesting that TILMA could “save” BC $4.8 billion - an
eye-popping figure, equivalent to what BC earns annually from its
softwood exports to the US. In October, federal officials told a Senate
committee that reliable studies have estimated inter-provincial trade
barriers to be about one tenth the amount BC is claiming, and vary
depending on what is defined as a trade barrier. Is the removal of land
use restrictions part of the "benefits" to be gained by TILMA? What
about the drop in property values that could result from uncontrolled
development?

Alberta cabinet minister Gary Mar told a Richmond business audience the
easy process TILMA provides for complaints to be taken against
governments is "everything Canadian business asked for." He was right
about that. But what about everyone else?
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

www.winnipegfreepress.com/westv...c.html

Agreement cuts provincial powers to govern

Winnipeg Free Press

Fri Nov 3 2006

By Murray Dobbin

WHAT if a provincial government signed an agreement forcing it to make
most of its regulations identical to those of another province? What if
this government voluntarily made itself, and every municipality within
its borders, open to lawsuits over virtually anything it did that
restricted investment? What if it tied its own hands so that, no matter
how much a region was suffering economically, it could not provide
assistance that might "distort investment decisions?"

Well, there are no "what ifs" about it. This past spring, B.C.'s Gordon
Campbell and Alberta's Ralph Klein signed an agreement with exactly
these sweeping constraints on the ability to govern. It is called the
Trade, Investment, and Labour Mobility Agreement. B.C. and Alberta trade
officials are now shopping it around to other provinces to get them to
sign on. The agreement comes into effect next April.

According to Todd Hirsch of the Canada West Foundation, the agreement
could erase the borders between B.C. and Alberta so that the only
differences between them will be "voting and the colour of the licence
plate."

Except, once the agreement comes into full force, voting provincially in
B.C. and Alberta could be a waste of time.

Under the agreement, the B.C. or Alberta government will be barred from
doing anything that could "impair or restrict" trade, not only between
the provinces but also through them to another province or country. One
article just flatly decrees that there shall be "No Obstacles" to this
trade.

Governments will be prohibited from providing subsidies that either
directly or indirectly "distort investment decisions."
Click here to find out more!
Some exceptions, such as for water, are permitted but even these are to
be reviewed annually to get them reduced.

The agreement also requires B.C. and Alberta to "mutually recognize or
otherwise reconcile their existing standards and regulations" if these
"impair or restrict" trade, investment or labour mobility. Then it
prohibits new regulations from being introduced that would have these
effects. Since regulation always restricts investment in some way, the
result will be that all future B.C. and Alberta governments will be
prevented from strengthening their regulations.

How exactly is this going to work? What would happen, for example, if
B.C. voters decided they had had enough of leaky condos and voted for a
party committed to tougher construction regulations? A government
elected on such a commitment would quickly find it had to betray its
promise or be vulnerable to a trade investment challenge.

Plus if either province considers any new initiatives, it has to give
the other party to the agreement the right to comment in advance and is
then obligated to "take the other province's comments into
consideration." In sharp contrast, citizens in B.C. and Alberta were
never consulted by their own governments on this astonishing agreement.

As part of their sales job, Alberta's Gary Mar and B.C.'s Colin Hansen
have claimed the agreement will not result in lower provincial standards
-- just ones that are "appropriate." In reality, however, the agreement
can only lead to deregulation because businesses are only likely to sue
governments over regulations they think are too high, not ones that are
too weak. In a vastly expanded version of provisions in NAFTA, any
resident of B.C. or Alberta will gain extensive new grounds to sue
government. A dispute panel will be empowered to make binding decisions
and grant compensation of up to $5 million for any government action
that violates the agreement. Repeated complaints can be taken about the
same government policy or regulation.

Governments can go on bended knee to trade investment panels and argue
that their regulations were "necessary," but trade dispute panels rarely
accept such arguments. Plus, this agreement only recognizes a limited
list of regulatory objectives as "legitimate."

For example, a city's desire to prevent urban blight is not on the list
of legitimate objectives, so municipal bans on billboards would likely
be a violation.

No wonder Gary Mar could tell a business audience in Richmond that the
dispute process is "everything Canadian business asked for."
The pact creates endless potential for litigation against government
right down to the school board level, without any demonstrable benefit.
A 1998 study done for the B.C. government found that: "efforts to
liberalize interprovincial trade will have almost no effect on trade
flows. The reality is that interprovincial trade barriers are already
very low."

As for labour mobility, all of provisions for increased labour mobility
will already be covered in Premier Gary Doer's initiative to see
professional requirements harmonized across Canada.

To sum up, the agreement pretty much bans new regulation and government
assistance for economic development. Perhaps in anticipation of the
pact, the B.C. legislature's fall sitting was cancelled with the
government claiming there was not enough to do. When asked about the
constitutionality of the agreement, Steven Shrybman, a partner in the
law firm of Sack, Goldblatt, and Mitchell, commented that "a basic
principle of constitutional law is that a government cannot fetter its
own legislative prerogatives by abandoning its authority to govern."

Sounds like what the Trade, Investment, and Labour Mobility Agreement is
all about.

Murray Dobbin is a Vancouver-based writer.

fighting till my last breath,
jax (jaxfitzgibbon@yahoo.ca)

posted in *British Columbia, Canada* - 0 replies

BC Liberals admit at least 1100 Violations of the Canada Health Act and the Medicare Protection Act

2006-12-15T02:03:56Z

About-face occurs three months after NDP raises concerns

VICTORIA - The BC Liberals have admitted to allowing at least 1100 violations of the Canada Health Act and the Medicare Protection Act three months after the NDP first revealed the Campbell government was turning a blind eye to private clinics to selling access to MRI testing.

As a result of an investigation spurred by NDP questions, the government will now reimburse 1100 British Columbians who paid fees to get off long waiting lists for MRIs and other services at St. Paul's and Mount Saint Joseph's Hospital over the last four years.

"Gordon Campbell pays lip service to protecting public health care in BC, but he's allowing privatization to run rampant while ordinary people suffer on long wait lists."

Under pressure from private clinic operators, Campbell pulled the plug on Bill-92, legislation that would have put a stop to the expansion of privatized health care. Unlike other provincial governments, the Campbell Liberals have refused to crack down on membership-fee schemes like the Copeman clinic. For almost a year, the BC Liberals did nothing while private owners prepared the launch of a for-profit ER. Now the BC Liberals have admitted that they allowed private companies to break the law by selling access to publicly-owned MRIs at two Vancouver hospitals.

"Gordon Campbell isn't doing anything to enforce the law," said Dix. "Instead he has passed the buck to patients waiting for care to complain about extra-billing and violations of the Canada Health Act," said Dix. "I am pleased that some patients will get their money back. But there is still no relief from the BC Liberals for the thousands of others who are waiting too long for care."

posted in *British Columbia, Canada* - 0 replies

Bonjour tout le monde/ Hi everyone

2006-12-09T03:27:03Z

I am a French-Scottish Canadian mongrel who on the English side is linked to the Conquest Highlanders and some other English military stuff, plus our hymn composer, Calixa Lavallée, who was on his mother's side related to the Scottish Highlanders. He even joined ranks with the American revolutionaries at one point.

The French side however is a bit of a peace (and love) lover who posses quite a bit of joie de vivre, is into gourmet food, wine and everything and these days, élégant clothes.

Both sides manage to live in peace in the image of our great, big and beautiful Canada but I have noticed that I manage to raise controversy everywhere I go as both sides consider me equally strange (but that is THEIR problem).

I am now living in an entirely French area.

As this is a Canadian tribe and I am up to kicking a little more dust, I would like to know what you think about French Canada.

I took poli-sci in an English U quite a while ago and haven't taken the pulse since.

You are speaking under cover of anonymity so please be frank.

I will appreciate it.

posted in *British Columbia, Canada* - 1 reply

New Democrats Force B.C. Liberals to Extend Legislative Session

2006-11-23T23:22:51Z

VICTORIA -- B.C.'s Official Opposition is forcing the Campbell government to extend a hastily-called legislative session, holding them to account for their choices and raising issues important to British Columbians, NDP Leader Carole James said today.

"The Campbell government has called back the Legislature to appoint a Child and Youth Representative for the province of British Columbia," said James. "New Democrats will be giving that Representative our full support. But it is just not good enough for the government to sneak in, conduct a single order of business, and then sneak out.

"It is not up to the B.C. Liberals to decide what issues are important to debate in the people's house, and which are not," said James. "It is not up to the Premier to decide which questions he is going to answer and which he is not. As the Official Opposition, we have a responsibility to raise important issues on behalf of British Columbians, and to hold the government to account for its choices. We intend to do that."

James added that it was regrettable the Premier chose not to return from his trip to the Asia Pacific to oversee the appointment of the Child and Youth Representative.

"Had the Premier been in the Legislature today, perhaps he could have answered for his government's willful dismantling of our child welfare system," said James. "He should have been there to explain why his government eliminated the office of the Children's Commissioner in 2002, leaving our most vulnerable children without an independent advocate.

"We are excited at the prospect of having a Child and Youth Representative once again in B.C. Our understanding is that the appointee will not be available until early next year, so extending the session for a couple of days will not hamper this process," said James.

James said that there are a number of issues of urgent public importance that the Legislature must address including homelessness, affordable housing, health care wait lists, climate change and the ongoing problems in our child protection system.

"Passing this motion by Monday will ensure that the Representative for Children and Youth can begin her work as planned. In the meantime, we are committed to doing our democratic duty by speaking up for ordinary British Columbians in their legislature," said James.

posted in *British Columbia, Canada* - 0 replies

ski/snowboard photos and clips please

2006-11-04T19:13:44Z

my brother is looking for snowboard/ski photos and movie clips for his website www.helmetheads.ca
check it out,submit your best shots,get psyched for the winter.

posted in *British Columbia, Canada* - 0 replies

Environmental Groups go to Court to Protect Spotted Owl

2006-10-03T04:42:52Z

Environmental Defence has joined with four other national groups to save the endangered Northern spotted owl. The groups are taking federal Environment Minister Rona Ambrose to court because she has refused to protect Canada’s most endangered bird. Minister Ambrose said in August that she would not use the federal Species at Risk Act to protect the spotted owl as she did not believe the bird faced ‘imminent’ threat to its survival.

Government scientists confirm that only 17 spotted owls remain in British Columbia, the only place in Canada where they are found.

posted in *British Columbia, Canada* - 0 replies

Travel Pal wanted for Canada!

2006-08-17T13:29:33Z

Hey there! Its short notice but I'm supposed to be flying into Seattle next week and wanted to check out Vancouver...I was going to go solo but honestly I'd love to connect up with some like minded souls...I'm 34 laid back...want to see the sights,eat the food. Hurry to drop me a line...I wish I thought of this sooner. Be well

posted in *British Columbia, Canada* - 0 replies

Tent City in Victoria

2006-08-08T23:48:55Z

On Monday night a tent city was started at St. Ann's Academy in Victoria. Police showed up and people were peaceful and said that they are staying. I invite you to support and participate in the tent city.

By chance, I met David Arthur Johnson's mother Lea on the weekend. She says to "Pray for us." She wants her son out of jail.

From the TC article: Johnston wants people to write to the attorney general and the lieutenant-governor asking for his release from the facility. Lea also wants people to write to the authorities on his behalf.
http://www.canada.com/components/print.aspx?id=685d4271-880a-40e2-b96c-3754c2d7cf87

Send a one-liner requesting that David be released from prison:
http://www.ag.gov.bc.ca/contacts/emailag.htm

There was also some CBC radio coverage.
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/british-columbia/story/2006/08/03/bc-hunger-strike.html

I also met David Shebib who wants to publish David's story.

Here are related links...

http://www.angelfire.com/apes/hatrackman/welcome.htm
http://loveandfearlessness.com/
http://therighttosleep.com/
http://theverysecretplan.com/

posted in *British Columbia, Canada* - 0 replies

visa question - american traveling through canada for under six months

2006-08-07T18:21:35Z

hi everyone . . .

I was wondering if anyone knew the deal with how long an american can stay in canada without a visa? I heard six months, but when i called the canadian consulate today, the woman told me it would be up to the person at the border, who would ask me some questions and then tell me, two weeks, or three months, or six months . . .

does anyone know the real deal, or the magic password? I'm going to be working at a yoga center on salt spring island, and then WWOOFing . . .

thank you very much.

sam

posted in *British Columbia, Canada* - 0 replies

New Tribe, Kelowna and Okanagan

2006-04-11T16:52:49Z

Hi there, just thought i would let a few people know that i started a new tribe to try and connect some of the people in and around the Okanagan. Please feel free to join it at will.

I will be posting lots of upcoming events and local + world news as it comes to me.

http://tribes.tribe.net/okanagandeserttownsandcommunities

Thanks
Adrian Clarke

posted in *British Columbia, Canada* - 0 replies

Aloha Canadians in Whistler!

2006-03-24T08:43:15Z

Get a bunch of Hawaiians in the mountains with 20+ foot of snow and watch the locals really laugh! Kalani & Kai were married at the top of Blackcomb mountain and a few minutes after snowboarded down with the wedding party following. The whole trip was great and the canadians really rock! They do have aloha in whistler, BC. Mahalo to you BC!

posted in *British Columbia, Canada* - 0 replies

contact improv jams in vancouver?

2006-01-24T22:00:09Z

hiya,
anybody know where you can go for contact improve if you're a relative beginner?
cheers -N

posted in *British Columbia, Canada* - 0 replies

If you're in the market for a new vehicle - check this out

2005-07-29T20:08:56Z

If you're looking for a new vehicle but not up for the hassle or endured too much already searching for that perfect vehicle - then by all means use my services. Just let me know what you're looking for and I'll tribe you what I have available in the Lower Mainland of BC.

I Currently represent the exciting Saturn line-up boasting dent resistant polymer paneled, 5 star crash ratings, low maintenance costs during ownership and fantastic fuel economy.

However, I also have Pre-owned Vehicles that represent most Makes and Models usually encompassing exciting vehicles that are trending this year.

So if you or someone you know is in the market and I can help then tribe me and I will see if I can make this a less daunting task than it has to be.

Jay
Saturn Sales/Lease Consultant

posted in *British Columbia, Canada* - 0 replies

Heli Skiing Review Site

2005-05-04T19:29:46Z

Hey,
If you or someone you know is interested in Heli Skiing or Boarding, check out our review site at www.heli-review.com
Thx,
tj

posted in *British Columbia, Canada* - 0 replies

hi all

2005-04-07T12:15:55Z

good and happy to be here
but all iwant is that ,very soon i will be on leave from my plce of work
and will like to spend my holiday in china
pls iwll be happy if there is any body from china to be my travell mate
thanks

posted in *British Columbia, Canada* - 1 reply

hi all

2005-03-25T17:44:21Z

good and happy to be here
cos i belkeive you all will be happy to meet me also
pls all am here for is to ask how and what do you do to help others

posted in *British Columbia, Canada* - 0 replies

Don't miss it!

2004-11-01T17:02:58Z

http://www.space.com/spacewatch/041001_lunar_eclipse.html tonight

posted in *British Columbia, Canada* - 1 reply

Created Kaslo BC tribe

2004-10-03T08:36:00Z

For those who live in, have lived in, or love Kaslo BC or nearby places - you know, like Ainsworth or Johnson's Landing.

kaslo.tribe.net is the site I think

posted in *British Columbia, Canada* - 0 replies

Happy Canada Day

2004-07-01T15:12:34Z

Happy Birthday Canada

posted in *British Columbia, Canada* - 0 replies

Weddings at Whilstler...

2003-12-16T21:20:47Z

Hi!

I'm planning a January 2005 wedding at Whistler and was wondering if anyone had insider info, tips, etc. I'm also looking for a wiccan/pagan official for the ceremony (preferably one who will ski!)

Thanks!
Portia

posted in *British Columbia, Canada* - 1 reply

*British Columbia, Canada*'s topics - tribe.net

Emmigrating-Immigrating help?

Boycott the Genocide Olympics

Giving ordinary people a chance to be heard again

Tibetan Freedom Torch and Festival

new tribe: Kootenay Entertainment

reminders from Carole James

March against the Chinese oppression of Tibet

our premier

Friday Feb 15, "A night in the Jungle Room" Art party

Need a Happening?

Smart Growth BC takes on exurban sprawl.

CHF BC News: BC the worst province for housing need

Tuva Camp 2008

What they're saying this week

This just doesn't look right from NDP

Good community places to live outside Vancouver?

Landing in Vancouver...

Reality Check: James on Campbell's Gateway Plan

Western Canadian Pine Beetle infestation Spreads

Council of Canadians calls on B.C. government to investigate private clinics

Saskatchewan Says BC-Alberta Trade Deal is Flawed: Province Will Not Join TILMA

$128,000 for pizza: Frivolous or valid? NDP asks

SUGGESTED SUMMER READING FOR FINANCE MINISTER CAROLE TAYLOR

Spiritual Sexual Predator

Taking initiative on the environment

Proposed National Park

Campbell's Index

$800,000 per Lucky MLA

Liberal MLAs endorse pay raises

Some MLAs flunk on midterm report card

Minimum Wage

BC Legislator: Nice Gig!

COMPETITION: ANCIENT FOREST PETITION DRIVE!

BC Liberal government deregulates forest lands on Vancouver

B.C. government proceeds with new open net-cage salmon farm in besieged Broughton Archipelago

Can the Government do this?

Looking for Adventurers to change the World!!

Great Bear Rainforest: The Clearcut Truth

Bad news for childcare

Gay multicultural couple

Trade, Investment and Labour Mobility Agreement between BC and Alberta.

BC Liberals admit at least 1100 Violations of the Canada Health Act and the Medicare Protection Act

Bonjour tout le monde/ Hi everyone

New Democrats Force B.C. Liberals to Extend Legislative Session

ski/snowboard photos and clips please

Environmental Groups go to Court to Protect Spotted Owl

Travel Pal wanted for Canada!

Tent City in Victoria

visa question - american traveling through canada for under six months

New Tribe, Kelowna and Okanagan

Aloha Canadians in Whistler!

contact improv jams in vancouver?

If you're in the market for a new vehicle - check this out

Heli Skiing Review Site

hi all

hi all

Don't miss it!

Created Kaslo BC tribe

Happy Canada Day

Weddings at Whilstler...

British Columbia, Canada's topics - tribe.net