Nah, it was good people ahead of their time trying to lead a Province of numbnuts. Really. It was BC's entitlement era, where everyone just expected to wake up and get a cheque from the government.
Bring back Bill Vanderzalm
- Thread starter Kreskin
- Start date
Nah, it was good people ahead of their time trying to lead a Province of numbnuts. Really. It was BC's entitlement era, where everyone just expected to wake up and get a cheque from the government.
You are absolutely right, VanIsle. No matter what Bill did while in office, I never got truly angry with him, certainly nothing approaching the vile thoughts I held only too often for Glenn Clark. I think well of Mr. Vanderzalm.
Well said, Mowich- when you climb in the pig pen you're gonna get sh*t on you. There was definitely nothing wrong with the man, honest, hard worker and very personable and obviously able to succeed at business. He just said things some people didn't like - and maybe felt the rest of us should be as religious as he is. THAT wouldn't hurt a lot of people..................:lol::lol::lol::lol::lol::lol:
Just walked to town and back, and while there I signed
the 'remove the HST' list, they are getting many signatures,
and they have a little head office right here in town,
and the response is very positive.
the 'remove the HST' list, they are getting many signatures,
and they have a little head office right here in town,
and the response is very positive.
Sounds good - it boggles the mind how the powers that be can't get it through their thick heads that we are already way over taxed. I do have to give Harper credit though for giving seniors a tax break without giving him the idea that he could still give us more. Did I hear it or did I just dream it that they are adding more snouts to the trough?
Hi Mowich, nice to see you again.
I gave up political cartooning because I couldn't stand wallowing in crap everyday looking for fodder.
But if he was so popular with the people, why did he resign, why didn't he hang on and ride it out?
Campbell has not made a nuisance of himself like Vanderzalm did (there was that drunk driving conviction of him in Hawaii, but it soon blew over). He has not brought himself to the attention of the national press. Also, he doesn’t have Vanderzalm’s ability of shooting himself in the foot, or of putting his foot in the mouth.
I don’t think Campbell ever will be as good a subject for cartoonists as Vanderzalm was.
I have a feeling that ‘c’ will happen, Liberals will simply ignore the petition. What are opponents of HST going to do, vote for NDP? Not a chance, it is usually the right wing which is fond of petitions, referendums etc. They are not going to vote for NDP.
No, in BC you guys are screwed. The alternatives are Campbell or NDP. Choose your poison.
Surprisingly, there is very little outcry against HST in Ontario. Conservatives did try to make an issue of it, but it went nowhere. When reporters asked our Conservative leader to condemn Harper and Flaherty for supporting the harmonization, he refused to do so. He would only condemn McGuinty for bringing in harmonization, but in his opinion, Harper and Flaherty are totally blameless. He lost a lot of credibility that way.
While Ontarians probably don’t like the harmonization, they are not as burned up about it as BC.
Tea Party is a flash in the pan. After the midterm election, I expect Tea Party will fade away. Or it may be absorbed into the Republican Party. After all, it is a faction of the Republican Party.
Where did you get the impression that Tea Party is in the middle? Tell me even one of their positions that is middle of the road. Nothing of the sort. Tea Party is on the right wing fringe of American politics. They are simply mad because they don’t have any power in Washington, that is where their energy comes from. Once Republicans make gains in November election (which is inevitable, in a mid term election, the party out of power always makes gains), I expect that Tea Party will disappear.
Indeed that may be one of the reason that Tea Party is popular today, many people just don’t know much about them, what they stand for. To say that it is a middle of the road, a centrist party, really shows that you don’t know much about the Tea Party. As I said, show me even one of their policies which is middle of the road.
As people find out more about the Tea Party, its popularity will inevitably decrease.
And this phenomenon is nothing new. When Republicans are in power, Democrats have the energy, as happened in 2006 elections. When Democrats are in power, Republicans have the energy, as is happening this year. We have been here before, it is nothing new.
That is unchartered political territory. If a referendum results in an 80/20 vote and they ignore it, that could be a defining moment in the Liberal party's future. The liberals weren't a force at all in BC until recently. The winds can change fast around here.
I don’t see it coming to a referendum, Kreskin. Is there a law in BC that says that if sufficient number of signatures are obtained, the government must hold a referendum? If it is up to the government, they will simply ignore the petition.
And they should. Tax increases are not something that should be put to referendum. Put to a referendum, a tax increase will always lose; nobody likes to pay higher taxes. If the government thinks it right and proper that taxes should be raised, then they should do so and people will judge them at the next election.
But it is always dangerous when people start micromanaging the economic policy by referendums. If everything is put to a referendum, people will invariably vote for lower taxes, more services, and if the resulting huge deficit is put to a referendum, they will vote for zero deficit. And who is going to bring all that about (lower taxes, more services, zero deficit)?
My advice to the liberal government would be, if law allows you to ignore the petition, by all means do so.
Apparently there is. I believe it was part of the recall laws that were initiated by Vanderzalm and enacted by Harcourt. Bill seems to know the system pretty well.
A smart gov't will recognize this petition or it could come back to bite them in the ass. There are other ways of raising money without digging into the citizens' pockets. There's 306 of the bastards in Ottawa and 80 odd in B.C. - if they want more money, maybe they could spend a few Saturdays selling hotdogs.
Recall and Initiative
Elections BC Accepts Initiative Petition from Former Premier Vander Zalm to Undo the HST and bring back the PST
7 February 2010 | Recall and Initiative
The Chief Electoral Officer of Elections BC has accepted an initiative petition from former BC Premier Bill Vander Zalm. Pursuant to the Recall and Initiative Act (British Columbia), the initiative process gives registered voters the opportunity to have a legislative proposal introduced into the BC legislature. In connection with his initiative petition, Mr. Vander Zalm has drafted a bill that would reverse the implementation of the HST and bring back the PST in British Columbia.
The first step of the initiative process is the petition. Starting on 6 April 2010, Vander Zalm will have 90 days in order to collect the signatures of at least 10% of the registered voters in each of the 85 electoral districts in British Columbia. If Vander Zalm succeeds in collecting the required signatures, a committee of the legislature can either recommend the bill for introduction by the legislature, or refer the bill to the CEO for an initiative vote. As the BC Liberals hold a majority of the committee seats, if the petition is successful it will very likely proceed to an initiative vote.
If the initiative bill proceeds to an initiative vote, the bill must pass two difficult thresholds: first, the majority of registered voters in the province must vote in favour of the initiative. Second, more than 50% of registered voters in at least two-thirds of the electoral districts in the province must vote in favour of the initiative. The initiative vote would be held on 24 September 2011.
If the initiative vote succeeds, the BC government must introduce the initiative bill in the legislature at the earliest practicable opportunity. However, the BC government is under no legal obligation to pass the initiative bill.
Recall and Initiative
Elections BC Accepts Initiative Petition from Former Premier Vander Zalm to Undo the HST and bring back the PST
7 February 2010 | Recall and Initiative
The Chief Electoral Officer of Elections BC has accepted an initiative petition from former BC Premier Bill Vander Zalm. Pursuant to the Recall and Initiative Act (British Columbia), the initiative process gives registered voters the opportunity to have a legislative proposal introduced into the BC legislature. In connection with his initiative petition, Mr. Vander Zalm has drafted a bill that would reverse the implementation of the HST and bring back the PST in British Columbia.
The first step of the initiative process is the petition. Starting on 6 April 2010, Vander Zalm will have 90 days in order to collect the signatures of at least 10% of the registered voters in each of the 85 electoral districts in British Columbia. If Vander Zalm succeeds in collecting the required signatures, a committee of the legislature can either recommend the bill for introduction by the legislature, or refer the bill to the CEO for an initiative vote. As the BC Liberals hold a majority of the committee seats, if the petition is successful it will very likely proceed to an initiative vote.
If the initiative bill proceeds to an initiative vote, the bill must pass two difficult thresholds: first, the majority of registered voters in the province must vote in favour of the initiative. Second, more than 50% of registered voters in at least two-thirds of the electoral districts in the province must vote in favour of the initiative. The initiative vote would be held on 24 September 2011.
If the initiative vote succeeds, the BC government must introduce the initiative bill in the legislature at the earliest practicable opportunity. However, the BC government is under no legal obligation to pass the initiative bill.
Recall and Initiative
I see. Is the referendum binding? If it is not, government will ignore it. If it is binding, government will challenge it in the court. It will be tied up in the courts for years and in the meantime, harmonization will go ahead.
And suppose you people defeat Liberals and NDP comes to power next election. Do you think NDP will get rid fo harmonization and thereby deprive itself of the added revenue? Don't you believe it.
No, I think once harmonization takes place, chances are very good that you people will be stuck with it.
We actually had another Gov't petition in B.C. that was successful although not in the manner one would think. In the late 90s the M.L.A. from Parksville was caught making some sort of crank phone calls disguising himself as members of the electorate praising himself to the press etc. and it back fired on him. Of course every man and his dog in the riding signed it (for him to be recalled) but he soon got the idea that people were against him and resigned in disgrace. Other Canadians shouldn't under estimate British Columbians, we don't put up with much crap.