Not a word about how to create wealth. Lotsa words about how to spend it. It’s what they do.
B.C.-based energy stocks immediately fell.
The proverbial peanut stand has never been run by John Horgan and his recent punching bag and now bosom political sidekick Andrew Weaver – at the apex of his greatest political power, unless he remains the Green miniature dachshund tail, wagging the New Democrat doberman dog.
Memories. Standing outside a packed hall in North Vancouver. Year, 1972. Loudspeakers amplified W.A.C. Bennett’s cry: “The socialist hordes are at the gates!”
In they came. Dave Barrett – glorying in being called “Little Fat Dave” – ascended to the throne that Bennett had owned for 20 years. Barrett’s most lasting legacy was outlawing paid stalls (a dime) for public toilets. His greatest legislation created the Agricultural Land Reserve, with a less certain future than the free toilet.
The chain was yanked in 1975. How fast the euphoria vanished. His party was damaged by a wizard former finance minister who fiddled $2 million for the party and never went to jail. That was Dave Stupich.
Mike Harcourt became the second NDP premier. Delirium. Shaped by the 1960s, he ended his victory speech: “Let’s boogie!” The union mandarins boogied away from him.
Glen Clark. He and I shared a bit of a standing joke, serious point: Reid’s Scottish bakery having closed, he couldn’t find one with a really good black pudding, and did I know of one? He created the phrase “wriggle room” and left politics for an excellent (and still) executive career with B.C.’s most famous billionaire.
The election that more than decimated the NDP. Left with two MLAs. Joy MacPhail and Jenny Kwan. Dubbed “the Joy and Jenny Show.” From across the legislative aisle a young Liberal named Christy Clark cast dagger eyes at them.
Wrong politics, of course, but I didn’t dislike any of them – MacPhail grasped my hand tightly at my retirement party and we chattered about going to a high school anniversary in our native city of Hamilton. And now?
• • •
The coach of a CFL team with a chronically weak offence is lobbying to have a rule change giving his team a touchdown when it crosses the 20-yard line.
Joke! Not true! Kidding!
But that’s a parallel with what Agile Andy Weaver wants – among other profound changes in governance rules that, amazingly, all happen to benefit his Green rump.
It’s tended to be lost in the deal-making that one of Weaver’s announced ambitions is to obtain official party status for his wee three. Life isn’t fair. He needs, as in bridge, a fourth. Them’s the rules.
To the guileless citizen, the difference may seem, to switch sports analogies, inside baseball. But four seats would give the Greens access to a party office, expanded research capabilities, and enhanced status in the legislature. The rule requires four? Change the rules. That’s just one of Wily Weaver’s self-aggrandizing aspirations that have quickly won him my nomination as B.C.’s most unpleasant politician in my 53 years on this soil.
• • •
Power from the people!
Don’t be fooled. The political class would be the beneficiaries of any variant of the proportional representative system being touted by Arrogant Andrew and his fellow creeping socialist, Horgan. The people, above all voters at the constituency level where citizens have a recognizable and approachable representative, would be net losers.
Don’t even think, except with hostility, about the mixed-member proportional variant, in which some MLAs would be the people’s choices – directly elected – and others chosen by each party to reflect the popular vote, from its drawn-up slates, including unelectable favourite sons and daughters who couldn’t win dogcatcher. Two tiers of MLAs: the elected and the selected. Ugly.
As for his weasel words about democracy, the furry-tailed Weaver blandly proposes to have a panel of experts – more power to the elite, and who’d select them? – choose the new system, which Weaver would install by legislature vote, without any annoying consultation with the common herd. That would occur after the election. Hang ’em first, trial later. And you thought that was just a frontier-justice joke.
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West Van’s David Marley has long fought valiantly in the democratic trenches. His recent letter in the Vancouver Sun, unexpurgated: “If the B.C. Liberals end up with 43 or 44 seats, the premier ought to tell Weaver to piss off and dare him to trigger another election. That’s what W.R. Bennett would have done had he found himself in a similar situation. Alas, (Christy) Clark is no Bill Bennett.”
Hear, hear. But the chastened Liberals better search for their soul. They tolerated a bigger-than-Clark invasion of international maggots feeding a greedy lopsided prosperity.
Arguably partly complicit, partly a victim herself, later or perhaps sooner Clark may be forced or choose to resign, with deserved dignity. My wild choice for interim leader:
Carole Taylor. A calming hand, a respected presence. Just don’t muck into the snakepit.
• • •
Grace McCarthy – the “flower girl” who was the bricklayer for great monuments.
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