Floatin' Like A Butterfly And Stinging Like A Bee

YouWorkin'ItHardBillary?
ObamaVille

Look.

Kentucky and Oregon will decide nothing.

So forget about all the playing for the cameras tonight.

Instead, what is perhaps more important is the fact that Barack Obama has once again proven that he is NOT John Kerry......

Case in point, less than a single newscycle ago The BillHill campaign broke with the 'Obama's-Winning-Because-He-And-The-Press-Hate-Women' meme:

"As Sen. Hillary Clinton has raced toward the end of what appears to be a losing bid for the Democratic presidential nomination, she has voiced what her most fervent supports have been saying -- her campaign has been dissed and damaged by people "who are nothing but misogynists".

In unusually blunt comments, Clinton told the Washington Post that sexism has played a larger role in the campaign than racism and that it has cost her and her supporters.

"It's been deeply offensive to millions of women. I believe this campaign has been a groundbreaker in a lot of ways," Clinton said. "But it certainly has been challenging given some of the attitudes in the press."

So, how did Obama react?

Did he run?

Did he hide?

Did he turn turtle?

Nope.

Instead, he immediately acknowledged it, owned it, and simultaneously turned it right around in a perfectly executed counter that HillBill never even saw coming:

Sen. Barack Obama said today that he agrees with Sen. Hillary Clinton that she has faced some sexism in the media coverage of her campaign.

"No doubt there are certain burdens for Sen. Clinton running as a formidable but first-time front-runner as a woman in the same way I've got to deal with some issues as an African-American," Obama told ABC's Jake Tapper.

"There is no doubt that there have been occasions where Sen. Clinton has had to overcome particular hurdles, and that is part of the groundbreaking nature of her campaign," he said.

It was like a perfectly executed 'Rope-A-Dope', circa 1974.

OK?

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Who Get's What In The Vancouver Art Gallery Deal?

AllTheDevelopersThatFit
BCPlaceVille

So, the document dump timer has now officially expired.

And it is now time to start asking the hard questions.

Frances Bula, just back from a Whistler Wingding with Teenagers, starts the ball rolling:

The provincial government announcement (last) Friday about a new roof for B.C. Place and the relocation of the Vancouver Art Gallery to the False Creek waterfront was fascinating for what it didn't tell us what's really going on here.

I wrote a story about how these two announcements in essence have put developers, which includes the province, in the drivers' seat when it comes to coming up with a new plan for this area of the Vancouver downtown around BC Place. The story also noted that the Plaza of Nations owner, Canadian Metropolitan Properties, sold the land to the art gallery for $1.

What's still missing from all this is what it is that Canadian is going to get back from this deal for their $1 sale......

{snippety-doo-dah}

.....I await further news. But in a deal that involves Aquilini, Concord and the province, whatever news we get has to be interesting."


Hmmmmmm.......

Maybe they're waiting for the Man from Marathon to tell them when things are 'safe'.

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One question I had for Ms. Bula, which she has posted but has so far at least chosen not to answer, is who, specifically, brokered that one dollar deal. Why did I ask such a question, you may be wondering (or not)? Well, there all kinds of reasons, many of which are 'cultural' in nature and which may involve 'content' that would require all kinds of 'consulting' but not 'lobbying'. OK?

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Can The NDP Win In 2009?

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PollingTheUnthinkable
SpinMeisterVille

It's only a survey of 853 and it's got the faint whiff of the Wurlitzer about it, but Greg Lyle's poll may have exposed a tiny chink in the fifty-thousand dollar CanWest-assisted media armour of Mr. Gordon Campbell and the British Columbia Liberals (in name only).

Justine Hunter did the stenoing for Mr. Lyle in today's (notCanWest)Globe and Mail:

"The Innovative Research Group survey of 853 British Columbians confirmed that trend, showing the Liberals continue to hold a firm lead over the New Democrats among decided voters, at 47 per cent versus 36 per cent. The Green Party remains close to their last election results at 12 per cent.

But the Liberals' weakness on social policy questions such as welfare, health, and education is fertile ground for growing NDP support.

Mr. Campbell still dominates NDP Leader Carole James on strong leadership by a wide margin of 28 percentage points. Of those polled who thinks he deserves re-election, most said it was because of the province's strong economy.

But when asked which leader "cares about people like you," Ms. James came out ahead. And among voters who think it is time for a change in leadership, their top reason is the need for more focus on social and health issues......"

As we've said many times before, Mr. Campbell has shifted his 'burdens' and made his 'corrections' that have put working people in their place.

And in doing so he has birthed a corpulent corporate cash-cow that is built for good times.

Thus, it may be an unfortunate truism that the only way he can lose is if things go bad.

Just ask the people of Mackenzie British Columbia.

OK?



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Of course, if Mr. Lyle is right that means that (notCanWest)Rafe Mair really isn't Tom Cruise Crazy.
Graphic at top of post comes from BC Liberals' campaign contribution statement for 2005 which can be downloaded here.

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It's Tuesday, And All Is Right With The World....

AllTheFunThatFits
ScoutVille

....Because 'Famous Stupid People' is back!

Go.

Go now.

You won't regret it.

OK?


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How Many British Columbian's Will Gordon Campbell Disenfranchise?

RiversOfDimesWithoutDebate
RamrodVille


Jody Paterson, activist and Victoria Times-Colonist columnist, figures the number is something like 170,000:

"Certainly some of the proposed changes to the (British Columbia) Election Act ought to give us pause, as they'll disenfranchise an estimated five per cent of potential voters -- some 170,000 people. The revised act prevents people from voting unless they have a home address and government-issued photo ID to prove it.

Obviously, those changes will be felt disproportionately by poor people: Those living on the streets; people who can't afford ID; people who change residences frequently......"

And before anybody tries to go all screamer on Ms. Paterson you might as well forget about it before you even begin.

Because she does her homework and in so doing demonstrates, unequivocally, that this has nothing whatsoever to do with 'fraud protection':

You could argue that requiring voters to have ID listing their current address is necessary to prevent fraud. But as the (2006-07) Elections B.C. annual report also points out, there's no fraud going on.

The agency combed through the 1.7 million votes cast in the 2005 election and deemed 44 worthy of more investigation.

But all they found when they took a deeper look were confused elderly people, mistakes by Elections B.C. staff and a few folks who were too sick to know they'd made a mistake.

"Elections B.C.'s conclusion is that there was no intention to vote fraudulently," concluded the report......

So.

Given all that

We have a duty, as citizens who believe in participatory democracy, to to ask ourselves the following:

Why?

Why would Mr. Campbell want to keep poor people from voting?



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You Want Numbers.....

....Greg's Got Numbers On Tomorrow's Primaries

And it does not look good for HillBill.

".....We project Obama will win 45-49 delegates on the night (47 is the average), giving Obama between 1655-1659 pledged delegates. Given 3253 total pledged delegates, with these projected results, Obama can claim he’s won a majority of the elected delegates (1627 is needed). In fact, with just 86 total pledged delegates yet to be awarded in Puerto Rico (55, June 1), Montana (16, June 3) and South Dakota (15, June 3), it is clear that after tomorrow, Clinton cannot mathematically catch Obama in elected delegates. Moreover, since April 1, Obama has won over three-quarters of superdelegates (71 to 22). With about 210 superdelegates yet to declare, a similar split would give Obama another 160 delegates to Hillary’s 50 — a gain of 110. That would leave Obama with a lead of almost 300 delegates......"


Greg's good.

In fact, to the best of my knowledge, he's never let us down, either North or South of the 49th.

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Did Vision Vancouver Stomp The NPA In New Member Sign-Ups?

Where'sLarry?
NotMcleanStevensonVille


Frances Bula seems to think so.

"Vision people are so excited about the total membership numbers appearing that they can hardly contain themselves. I hear from various places that the numbers, due to be announced soon, are somewhere between 10,000 and 12,000 (10,000 new on top of 2,000 existing memberships, from one source.). If true, that is very impressive. The closest to that in recent memory is the approximately 9,000 who signed up for the Non-Partisan Association in 2002, although that was with candidates for council, school and park board all pulling in memberships......"

Maybe.

"On the Non-Partisan Association side, where forms had to be in May 7 and we're still dealing with clean-up, I hear from someone on the Sullivan side that both Sam and Peter have about 1,500-1,700 each, another 600 from the caucus and another 600 of the pre-existing diehard NPA members always there for around 4,000-4,500 total....."


Regardless, what I find really interesting about that 10 to 12K 'Vision thing' is that, if it turns out to be for real, Ms Bula is also suggesting that it just may mean that former NPA wingman Big Ali G is about to get stomped:

"That would appear to leave little for Allan DeGenova if it's true, as I reported previously, that there are about 12,000 members total....."


And if that turns out to be the case we will conclude that it couldn't have happened to a nicer bunch of supporters of Big Al's vision that don't support Vision.

Like, say, this one, as reported awhile back by S.M. Holman:

"Former Non-Partisan Association supporter and federal Conservative constituency association president D.J. Lawrence is urging his friends to take out Vision Vancouver memberships in support of Allan De Genova mayoral nomination bid. In an email sent yesterday,

Mr. Lawrence writes, "rest assured, I DO NOT SUPPORT THE VISION SLATE, just Al, and a select couple of NPA and Vision candidates..."


OK?

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By the way, since posting up her original musings on the Vision numbers late last week on her FABulous Blog, Ms. Bula has seen fit to go with a slightly more conservative 'more than 11,000' in a piece published in today's VSun. Does this suggest further confirmation that she hasn't yet told blogpolloi about? Only time will tell.

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Is Rafe Mair Rafe Mair Crazy?

AllTheAdviceThatFits
TyeeVille


Not sure, exactly.

But he does think the NDP can win.

And he even tells them how.

Which can mean only one thing.

He may be crazy, but he's NOT Tom Cruise Crazy.....




OK?

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More Uke music...... Don't blame me though, blame Jon who has his own place going on now in what appears to be a poetry-fueled, duelin' banjos-type deal with Mr. Beer 'N Hockey.

Ya, But How Many of 'Em Were White?

Ain'tNoRace-BasedTriangulatin'GoinOnRoundHere
SayGoodnightHillaryVille


PORTLAND, Ore. - They waited for hours under a warm sun, the line snaking for blocks and blocks through downtown. They packed onto the park lawn, from the makeshift stage to the waterfront and up to the street. They watched from a bridge overhead and from pleasure boats on the river, bikini-clad. They brought their parents and their infants. Some skipped work. Some wilted in the heat. A few jammed the streets afterward, hoping for a final motorcade glimpse.

Fire department officials counted 75,000 in all, a record for the main attraction, Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.)......

..And, Apparently, Quite A Few Were Of The Caucasian Persuasion..

All of which set me to wondering......

What would it take for the Re-smuglicans to cajole 75,000 of their followers out see John McCain?

Heckfire.

I'm not even sure the promise of a five gallon jerry-can filled to bursting with gasoline and a free all-you-can-eat ticket to ride at Red Lobster for every attendee with a pulse would do the trick.

If you get my drift.

OK?



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Images source: Chris Carlson, AP/ NYTimes.


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The Following Is A Public Service Announcement...

Plan B (The Morning After Pill) Is NOT RU-486 (The Abortion Pill)

Look.

I have two daughters.

One is now nine.

And the other is fifteen.

And if either of them ever needs, or even thinks they might need, Plan B I want them to be able to walk into any drugstore in the known universe, even if it is in the middle of the night, and buy the thing, no questions asked.

Why?

Because Plan B is a synthetic progesterone.

As such, the main way it works is by preventing ovulation.

Thus, the earlier you take it the more effective it is.

No if's....no ands.... and....most definitely.....no buts.

Here is the story, taken straight from the Journal of the American Medical Association:

When used immediately after unprotected sexual exposure, Plan B's contraceptive activity is evident within hours; delaying the first dose by 12 hours increases the odds of pregnancy by almost 50%, and its efficacy diminishes linearly with time.¹⁰ Much of the activity is gone by 72 hours, although there is some residual activity with delays in use of up to 120 hours.

And, when it comes to the health and well being of my daughters, I'm even willing to go so far as to say that I don't give a hoot-in-hell that there is a small chance that it might work, occasionally, by preventing the implantation of an early blastocyst.

Even if I did believe there actually is one.

A hell I mean.

OK?

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Written in response to all the offline Emails from the screamers that I have been receiving over the last few days because of a post I wrote called "Plan B - It's Not Just For Pharmacists Anymore" .
For anyone that needs help with this stuff, a guy at Princeton keeps a fantastic website that explains it all, both succinctly and in great detail.


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Is Politically Incorrect Racism In America The New Normal?

BeCarefulWhatYouWishFor
ScreamerVille


David Neiwert thinks so.

And it's hard to argue with him.

Well, if anyone had any illusions about Barack Obama's presidential candidacy helping the nation get over its racial divide -- especially if they thought it might finally bury the old racism that has stained the nation's history -- the past few weeks should finally lay that to rest....

{snippety doo-dah}

It's all indicative of a shifting national mood that seems to find open expressions of racism increasingly acceptable and even normative -- thanks, no doubt, to a decade and half's worth of right-wing yammerers essentially defending racism as being merely "politically incorrect."....


We can only hope that this kind of thing boomerangs on the screamers.

And judging by the way the American mainstream has reacted to Mr. Obama when he goes before them and speaks to them like adults/not children, I for one hope that it does.

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Our Friend Bev Makes A Very Good Point

OurReadersHaveQuestions
WishWeHadAnswersVille


In commenting on our 'B.C. Place Becomes An Invisibly Inflated Cash Cow' on the Friday before the long weekend, our good friend Bev wrote the following:

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And my 1st response (to myself) was what they plan to put on the site of the old Art Gallery Heritage site, could it be more condo's?

BevinBC | 05.17.08 - 8:26 pm | #

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It's a great question.

Unfortunately it is also a question for which we have no definitive answer.

Why?

Well, because, as we pointed out in the original Cash Cow piece, the preferred planner/developer is not saying how much anything is going to cost or what is actually going to be done.

Thus, we must be content to believe in the ability of the invisible (and fully transparent!) hands of the Developer's Bund to do what is right for the public good.

Regardless, this much we do know - to quote the irrepressible Mr. Rafe Mair once again:

"This bunch seems to know the cost of everything and value of nothing."

OK?



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Image courtesy of Jason Vanderhill, who has posted up at the VAG Wiki page.

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Foreman Says These Jobs Are Going Boys...

...And They Ain't Comin' Back.


Paul Willcocks has the story of what just may be the end of the forest industry as we know it in some parts of British Columbia:

"The job losses in (the town of) Mackenzie over the last five months are the equivalent of something like 220,000 layoffs in Greater Vancouver. That kind of economic and human catastrophe in the Lower Mainland would get some major government action....."

One would hope so.

Except that, well, we've got a Convention Center, an Elevated Train Line that skirts the Creme, an Art Gallery and a Stadium roof to pore money into .

And that costs billions.

OK?

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Did Gordon Campbell Fudge His Numbers On B.C. Place Stadium?

EmptyDatesEmptySeatsEmptyPromises
StadiumVille


Yesterday, British Columbia Premier Gordon Campbell announced his plans to refurbish everything associated with B.C. Place Stadium.

Everything inside, outside, and topside.

And one thing we know for sure.

He did not fudge any numbers when it comes to total cost.

How do we know that for sure?

Well, because, as we mentioned yesterday, there were no numbers.

Dollar numbers that is.

However, later, on the (nolongerso)Giant'98's 9:00pm Newscast, I heard Mr. Campbell exclaim that, regardless the ultimate cost, British Columbians would be getting good value because B.C. Place is used at least 200 times a year.

Which floored me.

That '200' number I mean.

So, I decided to check the 'BC Place Events Calendar'.

And here is what I found:

In the next 6 months, which is far out as they go, BC Place will be open for events 26 times.

Again, that's Twenty-Freakin'-Six.

Now, unless I'm a total doofus with simple multiplication, that means that in the next year BC Place will be used about 50, maybe 60, times, tops.

And, all you have to do is have a quick look at the month above to see that almost all of those dates are for crap that nobody really cares about anyway, because they are trade shows - many of which will likely disappear when they move to the new Convention Center White Elephant on the waterfront.

Now, to be fair (or NOT) there are also 39 move/in move out dates that BC Place also puts on their calendar, the most interesting of which were the 4 days it will take Madonna to 'move-in' for her concert on October 30th which, by the way, is the only concert date on the entire calendar.

So, there you have it, a stadium filled to bursting with fudge rather than butts in seats.

Which means that, unless a Major League Baseball Team suddenly drops out of the sky (ha! at the moment we are squeaking by with short season rookie ball), we will paying a whole lotta money for a whole lotta nothing.

Regardless the ultimate final cost.

OK?

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One last thing - there are a bunch of 'Conversion' days on the calendar. At first I thought that,maybe The Rapture was coming to B.C. Place. Turns out these are days reserved for changing the carpet, also known as 'turf conversion'. Ha!

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Plan B: In Canada It's Not Just For Pharmacists Anymore

Doin'TheRightThing
InCanuckistanmikitaVille

From the Canadian Press:

TORONTO — The emergency contraceptive drug known as Plan B will likely be coming out from behind the pharmacy counter.

The National Association of Pharmacy Regulatory Authorities has accepted a recommendation to change the way the drug is sold, allowing it to be freely available on drug store shelves instead of behind the pharmacy counter.

Now, if only we could look outward and help make this kind of thing a reality everywhere.


Why?


Well, because of numbers like this:

Every eight minutes a woman in a developing country dies of complications from an unsafe abortion.

W.H.O. by way of the NYT

OK?

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Oh, and by the way, for a primer, with great balance and links, on 'Emergency Contraception' the Wiki wins.

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