Last week I took a much needed break – partially as I mentioned because of a computer melt down, and partially because of a fatigue of pontificating.  I promised a return this past weekend, but that also didn’t happen because of my enjoyment of the malaise, some amazing weather, and a full slate of great football games.

But now, armed with a sleek and sexy new laptop, I am back.

• Mike Howell’s piece about lone NPA Councillor Suzanne Anton last Friday was very important in confirming what has become apparent: the NPA is desperate for attention, traction, and relevance.  I said it last week, and I will say it again: to attempt to draw Gregor Robertson into responsibility for the terrible gang shooting that happened on Oak Street is about the lowest form of politics one can engage in.  This is particularly emphasized when examining the NPA record of funding police officers, which Howell took a look at, or when considering the $200,000 that the VPD just received in the budget for anti-gang measures, also as pointed out by Howell.  This kind of tactic is in the same vein as Ian Robertson’s complaints about Park Board procedure with regards to the budget, even though he didn’t even bother to show up to speak to Council about the process after signing up as a speaker, and also abstained from voting on the budget altogether.  Empty political rhetoric with little in terms of a political record or current actions to back it up.  Typical NPA.

• Charlie Smith is back with his conspiracy theories.  The entire Park Board budget vote was delayed to allow for public input and further negotiations with City Council, so for anyone to suggest that the process was done in isolation is a complete falsehood.  Furthermore, if Charlie took a look at the conduct of Park Board Commissioner Stuart Mackinnon during meetings, he would realize that there is an attitude that is espoused in the form of belligerence, bullying and condescending remarks and tone.  Stuart is not prepared to work together with anyone unless he can get some cheap political points or attention out of it.  Forget about political deals – this is a stream of behaviour that Mackinnon clings to partially because of his arrogance, partially because of his longing for the spotlight, and partially because of his fear of not getting elected once again.  Go ask any of the Commissioners aside from Mackinnon’s best friend Ian Robertson about his conduct, and you will hear about how he creates conflict and looks to exploit the ensuing drama simply for his own political benefit, not the good of the public.  On this issue, Smith clearly hasn’t done enough research about the claims made by both Raj Hundal and Sarah Blyth.

• The NDP has set its rules and date to choose the party’s next leader, and the group of undeclared candidates are scrambling to sign up members before the cutoff date of January 16.  It is amazing that no one has announced quite yet, although Mike Farnworth and Adrian Dix are clearly the front-runners at this point.  I think that the problem with what has been laid out lies solely with the party’s requirement to be a member for 90 in order to be able to vote.  I think that an April 17 convention date allows the eventual BC Liberal leader to call a snap election and put the party in great peril.  That being said, the NDP is very religious about their rules and procedures, so this is no surprise.  The next few weeks are going to be a frantic race of membership signing between the potential candidates, and it looks as though these new members could be the deciding factor in consideration of the 13,000 that are already on the list, which represents an historic low for the party.

• Is the BC Rail stuff sticking to Christy Clark?  Hard to say.  In one sense, she is clearly the most popular with the public, and still most likely represents the best shot for the BC Liberals to maintain power.  On the other hand, she lacks caucus support, and has the chattering classes of the party talking about how her victory could truly open up a Pandora’s Box with regards to the trial that fellow candidate Mike De Jong thought he had squashed through a $6 million deal.  I don’t think that the story is salient enough with the media and/or the general public to become the thing that tanks Clark’s candidacy.  Yet, she has a long way to go before she is able to test out that teflon quality with British Columbians…she has to win over her own members first.

• Innovation towards business development at City Hall continues under the watch of Gregor Robertson, and this is yet another sign to the business community that this Mayor and Council are ready to serve as partners in prosperity rather than a burden of red tape and the status quo.  The City of Vancouver has always had some of the best city planning in the world, and finally this same kind of planning and infrastructure is being laid down for a thriving economic climate.

• Sorry, even for people who are used to big stars and big productions coming through town, this is very exciting news!  I am totally marking out, regardless of who they choose to fill the role, as Brandon Routh is most definitely not coming back.

• The rest of the world is catching up to Canada’s passion.  It is time that the City of Vancouver steps up to the plate to make Vancouver an annual destination on the UFC calendar.  Because as things stand right now, UFC will be unlikely to return in 2011.  What a terrible shame.

Alright people.  Have a fantastic day, drive safe, have patience in the shopping lineups, and show some good will towards others.

The dynamic duo is at it again, and this time, they are using gender politics as their latest form of attack.

This story went up in this morning’s Vancouver Courier, with the spin being that Aaron Jasper was undemocratic, and that a female should be in the chair.

But like usual, the Ian Robertson/Stuart Mackinnon alliance has become more concerned with cheap politics than substance.

First of all, where are Robertson’s examples of how Jasper was undemocratic?  I know for a fact after speaking to several of the Commissioners that on a range of issues – from the budget, to the negotiations with Van Dusen Gardens to take over control the Bloedel Conservatory, to the – Robertson was brought into the discussions from the very beginning. Mackinnon was also asked to be a part of the selection committee to select the Park Board’s new General Manager.

It is easy to throw out a label, but until Robertson can back up his claims, his rhetoric does not match up with the way in which he has been treated by the Chair of the Vision Vancouver majority.

The second tactic that Mackinnon and Robertson tried on Monday was to nominate the three women on the board for the position of chair.

Each and every Commissioner nominated by the pair refused.  Sarah Blyth has a young child and a full time job, Constance Barnes has a full time job and a full slate of committee and portfolio responsibilities, and Loretta Woodcock was also not interested.

In each and every case, Mackinnon and Robertson acted unilaterally, nominating for the purpose of political gamesmanship rather than in the name of equality.

Woodcock’s comments about Robertson’s and his party’s conduct on previous incarnations of the Board are also very telling about their views on women:

“Woodcock said she got a laugh out of Robertson’s bid to have a woman elected as chair. Woodcock explained that when the NPA was in power, she brought forward an unsuccessful motion asking the board to support International Woman’s Day.

“The NPA said if they did that, they’d have to support International Dog Day too,” said Woodcock, laughing. “It looks like Ian Robertson has become very enlightened.”

“I am happy to report Aaron Jasper was elected as Chair last night and Constance Barnes Vice Chair.

Aaron has done an outstanding job as chair this year and we are really excited about the coming year.

The only odd part of the election was when Commissioner Mackinnon supported my nomination for chair last night.

For 2 years he has rolled his eyes at me heaved sighs and talked down to me. He has been anything but supportive.

With out consulting me he decided to be my champion.

I found it very patronizing.”

Mackinnon was on the horn last night, while Robertson didn't even bother to show up - much like this picture from the Kerrisdale Community Centre.

An inch deep and a mile wide…that seems to be the best description of the opposition when it comes to budgetary issues regarding the Vancouver Park Board.

Political observers might remember the joint press release sent out by Green Park Board Commissioner Stuart Mackinnon and NPA Park Board Commissioner Ian Robertson.

Yet in spite of that precursor, yesterday’s Council meeting (which had in excess of 30 speakers interested in offering their opinions on the budget) offered performances (or a lack thereof) that didn’t exactly live up to the bluster.

First, Robertson didn’t even bother to show up, in spite of being on the list of scheduled speakers.

Furthermore, Mackinnon made his speech, and literally bolted out of the room after refusing to take questions about his presentation from Council.  From the way I heard it, Mackinnon’s dust was still in the air by the time the next speaker came up to the podium.  Why he was in such a rush to leave is still a mystery.

Similarly, after crying foul about the cuts to the Park Board on Tuesday, NPA Councillor Suzanne Anton had little to talk about after Park Board Chair Aaron Jasper finished his presentation.  She took issue with the fact that Jasper was speaking solely on behalf of the Vision Vancouver caucus rather than the whole Board.  He explained that he could not speak for the other Commissioners from different parties, as his position as Chair did not give him license to present their positions.

And then, Anton was quiet, having nothing else to ask about the proposed budget cuts and the case that was made by Jasper.

In all cases, the opposition that tried so desperately to achieve a news hit in their objections to the budget cuts to the Park Board, didn’t follow through with anything of substance.

Political grandstanding doesn’t only reside with Mackinnon anymore, as his new alliance with the NPA seems to have caused that particular tactic to be passed on.

Meanwhile, it seems as though Jasper’s presentation was a hit, and maybe…just maybe…there will be some kind of concession offered as a result of a strong working relationship between the finance chair (Raymond Louie) and the Vision Park Board caucus.

When I called Jasper to find out whether he thought that there might be adjustments made to their proposed cuts, he was non-committal and had little to say.  He did, however, tell me that he was “very positive about the way the presentation was received” and was “optimistic” that something could be worked out.

The next week of negotiating should be interesting.

• News of Millennium’s Evelyn Development going also going into receivership continues to compound the evidence that the City of Vancouver made a foolhardy decision with regards to the Olympic Village.  The KPMG report released last year clearly shows how staff reworked the criteria matrix so that the third place Millennium came out on top in the end.  Like I have said before, I want to know from City staff, the former City Manager Judy Rogers, and people like former Mayor Sam Sullivan and his former Chief of Staff Daniel Fontaine, how a third place bid suddenly became the winning bid and also how Millennium’s financial position and payment capabilities were examined before the deal was signed.  Any notion that the bureaucracy at City Hall all of a sudden became “politicized” after Vision Vancouver took power should understand how ludicrous that assertion is after looking at the manner in which the Olympic Village developer was selected.

• Christy Clark will not only have Mike McDonald as a campaign manager as I reported over the weekend, but also Ken Boessenkool, a well-respected Stephen Harper organizer and strategist.  Christy’s campaign should really focus on trying to be the second choice of every other camp.  I feel as though she might be at a disadvantage in terms of numbers of sign-ups, meaning that she needs to sign up at least enough to make it past the first ballot and not fall off.  Then, if Christy can position herself as the only chance that the BC Liberals have of winning the next election (something that I, any other political observer with a half a brain can deduct), then maybe she can gather momentum and become the consensus choice for a membership wanting desperately to extend their reign in office.  It will be interesting to see how other camps respond to her impending announcement.

• Are Chief Jim Chu and Mayor Gregor Robertson being political and attributing responsibility for the RayCam community centre incident last week by calls like this and this?  Absolutely…and rightfully so.  Minister Kevin Falcon is correct when he says there is no system that can possibly account for the actions of everyone in society afflicted with a mental illness.  Yet it is very hard to argue with the 2008 VPD report on how the gaps in that very system are having a huge impact on police resources and effectiveness.  The study found that a staggering 31 per cent of all police calls involved at least one mentally ill person.  Now this isn’t about a hot potato of shifting blame.  Rather, this is about acknowledging that this provincial government has: 1) Eliminated the Mental Health Advocate’s office for BC  2) Eliminated the Minister of State for Mental Health 3) Slashed funding for mental health and addiction services (it isn’t all about housing, ladies and gents) and 4) Never followed through with their promise to provide municipalities with incentives to build new facilities to help people with mental illnesses and addictions.  I remember how Sam Sullivan’s alleged close relationships with the governments in Victoria and Ottawa were going to assist Vancouver is securing funding and support for initiatives.  We also saw how Sullivan was often completely ignored by his senior counterparts.  It is the job for the Mayor and the Chief of Police to advocate for cooperation and support with regards to mental illness, an issue which in some way touches all of us.

• I really wonder how Park Board Commissioner Stuart MacKinnon’s Green party feels about his ongoing alliance with the NPA’s Ian Robertson.  I say ongoing because this isn’t the first time that they have coalesced, and particularly going into an election year where attacking Vision will become an almost full-time affair, it is unlikely to be the last.  MacKinnon is a man that has a wealth of knowledge and passion about issues – particularly environmental and conservation – that put him ahead of a typical politician when it comes to interest and belief.  But he is also prone to making everything into a political drama, largely because he seems starved for attention and is likely worried about his re-election chances.  Political expediency and a little bit of coattail admiration is what makes me think that the Robertson flirtations might not be as respected or supported by his party faithful.

• Really, can you blame him?  The NDP is a fractured caucus with a bunch of ideologues and backstabbers that cannot put the fate of the party ahead of their own personal beefs or interests.  As I talked about last week, one of Vision Vancouver’s strongest assets is its party solidarity, particularly in contrast with the imploding of the NDP taking place at the moment.  First of all, he would be walking into a hornet’s nest full of many angry bees who have never forgiven Robertson for fleeing the provincial scene.  Second, he is poised for reelection in a municipal political landscape that is devoid of any significant opposition.  Robertson is a young man, and time is on his side…he is going nowhere until at least 2014-15, depending on whether the next go around is a 3 or 4-year term.

• David Lam was an amazing man, and the few times that I did come in contact with him during his days as Lieutenant Governor made a huge impact on me.  I distinctly remember a speech given at my high school where he spoke about diversity and multiculturalism, and how the word “tolerance” bothered him so much.  He said that merely “tolerating” someone in no way conotated respect or deference – it was almost a cop-out…a grin and bare it approach to accepting other people.  That is a speech I will never forget, and I remember how enthusiastically his words resonated in my head after he was done.  Lam was a generous and wise soul who made this province a better place.  He will be dearly missed by many.

• Speaking of remembering Canadian icons, I would be remiss if I didn’t mention my heartache for yesterday’s passing of Leslie Nielsen, who was one of my all-time favourites since I laughed my ass off as a 10-year old kid watching the Naked Gun in the theatre.  The best straight man in the history of cinema will also be sorely missed.  Here’s a montage to enjoy.

• Here’s a note to someone who might or might not know that this is directed to them: before you start levying anger at a group of people who are doing their jobs and playing effective politics, maybe you should examine your own state of affairs and realize that there is a lot of work to do from a public point of view, based on what was discovered over the weekend.  Ambushes aren’t exactly appreciated.

That’s all for now folks.  Have a great day.