My December 9 session with Ian Jessop on CFAX 1070 covers the why and how of In-Sights, formerly Northern Insights, with a short end comment about BC Ferries. BTW, I’m working on […]
Norm Farrell
Gwen and I raised three adult children in North Vancouver. Each lives in this community, as do our seven grandchildren. Before retirement, I worked in accounting and small business management. Since 2009, I have published commentary about public issues at IN-SIGHTS.CA.
Lies, damn lies and statistics
In late 2012, BC Ferries published a 14-page self-promotion titled Fuel Strategies. It discussed alleged savings in fuel consumption achieved by BC Ferries’ brilliant managers. A centrepiece was this chart: I added […]
RCMP mess needs sweeping
This is one of the first articles I posted at Northern Insight, written in April 2009. By the time the fifth anniversary rolls around, the article count will be about 2,000. I […]
CKNW Orphans’ Fund Financial Recap
Based on T3010 reports filed by the charity with Canada Revenue Agency (CRA):
Fraying of social safety nets necessitates charity – REPLAY
First published in 2012: I listened to parts of Friday’s CKNW Orphans’ Fund Pledge Day, wondering if they would be more forthright about shifting over $1 million from the charity to pockets […]
CKNW charity boosts corporate profits – REPLAY from 2012
The article following this update was published Nov. 25, 2011 (the first chart is revised with 2012 figures). In 2012, I reviewed the most recent Registered Charity Information Return filed by the […]
Promises made, promises waived
From the 2013 platform of the B.C. Liberal Party: We need to do more to ensure coastal communities have access to a high quality ferry service that affordably meets the needs of […]
Christy Clark arrest may be imminent
Sunday, RCMP announced arrest of Qing Quentin Huang for attempting to communicate knowledge of Canadian ship construction to China. Huang is employed by an Ontario based subcontractor of Irving Shipbuilding. At a […]
Guess which photos come from Enbridge
H/T to Project-Pipeline.org
Investment in society and in human beings?
A paper published in the journal International Political Science Review considered if the International Monetary Fund (IMF) was “Democracy’s Friend or Foe.” It noted that reforms required by the American based IMF, […]
Diane, it’s even worse than you claim
Diane Francis is a writer from Central Canada whose typical view of the country is about 400 miles wide. So, it’s not surprising that in her New York Post expose, she ignores […]
An example of coastal ferry fares, 5x inflation
One of my readers lives modestly on Texada Island and comes to the city occasionally for shopping and medical treatments and to visit family and friends. He retired on this northern Gulf […]
Without fairness for all
Successful societies are based on equitable treatment of every citizen. That is not to say that individuals must be dealt with equally, rather that fairness should always be evident. Does the equity […]
They’re awesome, so they say
They should have paid attention two years ago
News item, November 19, 2013: “The B.C. government is disbanding its controversial Pacific Carbon Trust…” Yeah, they should have paid attention to us, the humble nincompoops blogging in underwear, or to the […]
New exploration
I’ve been examining the financial elements of legal gambling in British Columbia. Before looking at BCLC annual reports, I assumed the agency’s revenues had grown steadily. In fact, they show a distinctly […]
The BC Ferry crisis is a political one
http://www.gmodules.com/gadgets/ifr?url=http://prac-gadget.googlecode.com/files/google-audio-step.xml&up_MP3=https://sites.google.com/site/audiofilesnrf/home/13%201118%20NF%20with%20Terry%20Moore.mp3?attredirects=0&d=1&up_START=No&up_CCOL=%23d1dae3 First, the idea that gaming profits will help solve the transportation issue is worse than laughable. We know from experience that the beneficiaries will be BC Liberal friends, the ones that […]
Gangster love dealing in cash – REPLAY
With BC Ferries planning to create a moving fleet of gaming houses, it’s worth re-reading this Northern Insight article from the summer of 2011.————————————————————– News item: Catherine Pope, reporting for Global News, August […]
Jessop & Farrell on CFAX 1070, Nov 15
The ever succinct Adrian Raeside
Check out Raeside’s gallery of editorial cartoons.
in-sights.ca 
If you require high standards a good place to look for clarity is Liz Oyer. Liz - Blanche takes down…