Under leadership of CEO David Hahn and Board Chairs Elizabeth Harrison and Don Hay, in a deal negotiated before completion of construction, BC Ferries lent a real estate developer almost $25 million […]
BC Ferries still owed $25 million 2nd mortgage
Looking at BC’s revenues from natural resources
A replay, first posted October 2013. It is important to consider that the $868 million shown as FY 2013 income from crown land tenures is mostly recognition of exploration rights sold in […]
Charting BC natural gas revenues
The following charts are created with production data from Statistics Canada (CANSIM 131-0001) and other reports from government ministries. These demonstrate significant changes of income from exploration and production of British Columbia’s […]
I’m all right Jack!
At The Tyee, Bob Mackin contributed Ex-Head of Troubled SNC-Lavalin Named Chair of BC Crown Corp. Like all work from this diligent investigative journalist – one of the few in BC – […]
Short term gain for long term pain, updated
BC Stats updated data on raw log exports and the volume shipped out of province in March 2014 was up 24% from the preceding month. In the fiscal year ended March 31, […]
Economics, by and for lay people
George Osborne, Chancellor of the Exchequer and Second Lord of the Treasury of the United Kingdom, boasted recently about his nation’s modest economic growth. If expansion continues, Britain will soon have an […]
Numbers tell a story
From the ProPublica story, The Rise of Corporate Impunity, “[Eric] Holder, who is now the U.S. attorney general, seemed to lament the position government enforcers had found themselves in. ‘I am concerned […]
Model T and Big Mac parallels
A once convenient version of history stated that a century ago, Henry Ford paid daily wages of $5, double the usual, so workers could afford the vehicles they made. According to myth, […]
When special interests buy a government – updated
Before BC Liberals were first elected in 2001, they promised natural resource producers to materially cut the public share of values extracted. They kept their promise and producers filled party coffers in […]
On resources with Ian Jessop, Apr 17
Perception supersedes reality
WorkSafe BC is in the news again and Shirley Bond appointed part-time Ferry Commissioner Gord Macatee to review WSBC operations. This is a common government ploy: when one group of patronage puppies […]
Flimflam sham
When conducting hearings on Northern Gateway, the National Energy Board Joint Review Panel denied participation to many and held sessions behind closed doors to limit opposition voices. Its decision favoured multinational industry […]
Democracy myth exposed
Testing Theories of American Politics: Elites, Interest Groups, and Average Citizens, Prof. Martin Gilens, Princeton University and Prof. Benjamin I. Page, Northwestern University. Multivariate analysis indicates that economic elites and organized groups […]
Money laundering and casinos, who knew?
CTV Vancouver: Money laundering rampant in casinos, April 10, 2014 Confidential documents are shedding light on a host of suspicious behaviour at B.C. casinos, where patrons routinely carry bags loaded with small […]
No more reprehensible MP than this guy
Note: April 12, 2014, incumbent Conservative MP Rob Anders was denied renomination in the federal riding of Calgary-Signal Hill. The following was published here in 2012 and is worth repeating once again. Until […]
No free lunches… ever
I published this article a year ago and repeat it because issues are little changed. Recently, our promedia friends learned that BC Liberal chief Laura Miller was refusing to speak with Ontario […]
Guts and glory
Title of the final article on Ian Reid‘s website, The Real Story, began with the words: Guts and glory. Of course, he was not writing about himself but those words applied to Ian, along […]
Still ROTFL
An old item, published January 30, 2013 and updated in March with an audio clip from The Bill Good Show on CKNW. Brought to the top again in October 2013. This one […]
Baksheesh, bustarella, schmiergeld, kuroi kiri
Reprinted from November 2013. What’s in a name? Shakespeare said, “That which we call a rose, by any other name would smell as sweet.” Organizations that aim to safeguard assets create effective […]
"Cardboard box? You’re lucky…"
Vancouver firm promises to build home in Third World for every local condo sold, The Province, Feb 2014 “Two Vancouver businessmen have started a real-estate gifting program with the lofty aspiration of […]
in-sights.ca 
If Mr Burns was born in America would he stay? US records new depopulation figures? https://www.wsj.com/us-news/americans-leaving-the-us-migration-a5795bfa In its 250th year,…