Posts Tagged ‘Ian Robertson’

The Tung Chan Wild Card

Posted by Jonathan Ross

Tung Chan has become a hot political commodity in recent months.

For a man who the majority of Vancouverites have never heard of, Success CEO Tung Chan’s political appeal is at an all-time high.

On one end of the political spectrum, the federal Conservatives continue to make overtures to Chan about the possibility of running in Vancouver South against Liberal MP Ujjal Dosanjh, who as many readers are well aware, only won his seat last time around by 20 votes.  That riding has close to a population that is close to 50 per cent Chinese, making Chan an ideal candidate with profile within the community that makes the difference on deciding a winner and a loser.

On the other is the moribund NPA, which from what I have been able to piece together, is getting desperate with regards to finding a sacrificial lamb to go against Mayor Gregor Robertson and his 70 per cent approval rating.

If indeed Chan is at all interested in politics, taking the Vancouver South offer seems like a no-brainer.  Until of course you factor in the hectic and unforgiving travel schedule of a BC MP, and realize that the amount of individuals willing to make such a personal sacrifice are few and far between.  Rumour is that Chan is not naturally inclined to be able to handle the Ottawa/Vancouver commute week in, week out.

This then leaves the option of running to become Mayor.

Read the rest of this entry »

Civic political reflections

Posted by Jonathan Ross

I want to preface this commentary with an acknowledgment that an administration without effective political opposition operates without a true understanding of what it feels like to face off against alternatives.

That being said, I am truly getting a kick out of the bloggers (three in particular) that are getting into a lather of fury over the popularity of both Vision Vancouver and Gregor Robertson amongst the municipal beat reporters around town.

The frustration that they are spewing only confirms that the Vision Vancouver juggernaut is real, in as much as is possible within the municipal political realm.

I don’t have the energy to craft a well-thought out, cogent post on why that juggernaut exists, nor do I have to quite frankly.  Rather, I would like to perform a political brain dump on the state of Vision Vancouver and the rest of the civic political scene at the halfway point of the term.

Park Board cleans up wishy-washy stance on smoking by former NPA majority

Posted by Jonathan Ross

Scenes like this will hopefully disappear from our beaches now that the new bylaw has been passed.

I’m not doing it.  I’m not the guy who’s gonna lead the charge.  If [the] park board decided that they wanted to vote in favour of that, I would probably vote in favour of that because I don’t think smoking is a good thing for anybody.” – former NPA Park Board Commissioner Marty Zlotnik, June 2007

What I might be supportive of is testing.  In other words, there may be a particular area of the beach that a family could go and know that in that area there is no smoking.” – current NPA Park Board Commissioner (and former chair) Ian Robertson, June, 2007

Last night the Park Board passed a groundbreaking decision to ban smoking in our parks and beaches.  After listening to the proceedings, and monitoring the overwhelmingly positive news coverage, this was a decision that was long overdue.

This step is the natural progression within a city that has moved on from systematically banning indoor and patio smoking.  The fact is that smoking within public spaces like beaches and parks – where families congregate for recreation – is simply not acceptable.

Park Board Commissioner Stuart MacKinnon had the line of the evening, when in his remarks he recounted an applicable saying his mother used to tell him:

“Your right to swing your fists ends at the tip of my nose.”

The decision, however, draws light to the fact that the previous NPA majority were not only gutless, but without any vision when it came to a clear political winner.

Read the rest of this entry »

Vancouver’s Board of Education doing exactly what it needs to do; Anton contradictions incomprehensible

Posted by Jonathan Ross

Scenes like this could disappear if the province has its way with the Vancouver School Board.

Last night on the news I saw coverage of band students playing a concert outside of the Vancouver School Board (VSB) offices, which for me really brought home the debate that is being waged right now between the BC Government and VSB.

Yes, I know that 190 full-time positions are on the chopping block.  But as a former member of a school strings program, and someone who continues to play music today, the prospect of losing all of the strings and band programs in the city is extremely troubling.

The gift of a music education to a child has immeasurable benefits.  Off the top of my head, I can name discipline, confidence, expansion of horizons, improved school performance, stress relief, fun, a sense of achievement, and improved self-esteem as some of the most tangible benefits that a child receives from learning music (although this list is much more comprehensive and has some amazing facts and figures).

I was fortunate enough to begin music outside of school, and enhanced my education through band in elementary and orchestra in high school.  But to many families, these school programs are the only access they have to offer their children the opportunity to play a musical instrument.

Anyways, this issue is about much more than band and string programs, so I shouldn’t get to caught up on this particular point.  I am willing to direct the full weight of my anger towards both Margaret MacDiarmid and lone NPA councillor Suzanne Anton, who in particular has shown how once again, politics trumps principle.

Read the rest of this entry »

Sat Sep 04, 2010

September 2010
SunMonTueWedThuFriSat
  
 1 2 3 4
5 6 7 8 9 10 11
12 13 14 15 16 17 18
19 20 21 22 23 24 25
26 27 28 29 30  

FACT OF THE DAY

More than 221,000 people have taken the second Amtrak evening train to Vancouver since the service began last August. It had a record month in July with nearly 25,000 passengers. Ridership on the morning train has also increased 21% in the past year.

Quote OF THE DAY

“Economic power is [dependent] on how fast you move people and goods around. You see China growing right now very rapidly in this direction. This is the direction North America must go.” – California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger

Archive

Tags