12 years of living and working in BC 1990's-2000's.
I am convinced that for about 50 years BC must be ruled by a Military Commission for Restoring Civilizational Sanity. Strictly controlled educational curriculum to instill independent critical thinking, to instill rejection of any form of extremism, and to instill everyday practice of vigorous open debate. No elections for 30 years, then 20 years of advisory only elections.
The current moment in BC politics certainly seems to rhyme with the '90s: NDP government initially led by a pragmatic centrist, who's succeeded by a more ideological leader who spends like a drunken sailor. The old right wing BC party finally collapses in on itself, and a new right wing party rapidly grows to replace it. However, the leader who started the rise gets replaced by somebody else. In the '90s, the NDP premiers were Mike Harcourt and Glen Clark. The old right wing party was Social Credit, and the new one was the BC Liberals. Gordon Wilson took the Liberals to opposition status, but was replaced by Gordon Campbell who eventually took them on to form government.
What's different this time is that there's an incipient civil war on the political right between populists and the older establishment conservatives. The populists have the energy, but they're politically toxic to a majority of the voting public, especially voters in the Lower Mainland who end up holding the balance of power in elections. The right quickly shifted to the BC Conservatives as the vehicle to defeat the NDP in the last election, but it's pretty hard to figure out what else they share in common.
The only difference being that a “united” right, for the first time, failed to defeat the NDP. The NDP usually loses when there is one viable free-enterprise party on the ballot. The more liberal free-enterprisers either sat out the election or were so scared by what was coming out of the BCCP that they voted for what they thought was a more moderate NDP.
However, the Eby-ego combined with the usual BC NDP drum circle paralysis, fiscal diarrhea and management malpractice is glaring, actually breathtaking.
I'm not betting against BC peeps voting for a party with no leader, no plan, no coherence. They almost voted exactly that into power once already, and the Eby-ego has not distinguished itself in any positive way since. Quite the opposite!
Great piece Rob Shaw. I always enjoy your take on all things legislative BC - plus cats! Who coined the “night of the long gingerbread houses”?
I hope the next BC Conservative leader (Brad West, Caroline Elliot - ideally someone young with some dynamism and energy who’s adept at wrangling) can solidify the right by bringing the 5 MLAs back into the fold or at least an alliance of sorts with OneBC. Eby is disintegrating this province’s economy and the natural resource livelihoods of workers throughout (the BCndp here are no longer the workers party); we must have a conservative alternative without this constant infighting.
Like PM Trudeau destroyed the Canadian consensus on immigration (a million people per year😳), Premier Eby is destroying the consensus on reconciliation.
Via the Cowichan Richmond decision, under his leadership fee simple title ownership of property is no longer indefeasible; with BC’s DRIPA statute (enshrining that all of BC’s laws align with the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples) he is ensuring that NO major project ever gets built in BC again whether it’s mines or forestry or a terminal or a pipeline without express indigenous approval (we have 202 separate first nations in BC). We can’t afford the NDP. It’s totally untenable. We must have a viable alternative.
Eby and BC people like him are pretty much ensuring that current style of BC BS politics will eventually get bulldozed by outside forces. Outside forces needing access to blue water and resources.
It’s seems to me conservatives fight amongst themselves much more frequently than the other parties. It’s too bad they haven’t yet figured out that if they want to get elected they have to work together. Sigh.
I had a 25 year visit to Ontario. Any time spent literally anywhere else in this country centres, or grounds a person in politics a little closer to POGG, to governance, to critical thinking.
If you want to understand BC politics, start by excising those assumptions completely. BC politics is the worst example of letting the smallest, loudest, most extreme voices drive terrible choices, justified by bizarre world views, and selfrighteous, moral indignation, by people who don't understand morals or ethics, or care.
12 years of living and working in BC 1990's-2000's.
I am convinced that for about 50 years BC must be ruled by a Military Commission for Restoring Civilizational Sanity. Strictly controlled educational curriculum to instill independent critical thinking, to instill rejection of any form of extremism, and to instill everyday practice of vigorous open debate. No elections for 30 years, then 20 years of advisory only elections.
I think there is a strong case to expand this program nation-wide.
Did not think of that, but absolutely yes.
And who will be the Dear Leader who will take us into this utopian future? Do you even listen to yourselves?
The current moment in BC politics certainly seems to rhyme with the '90s: NDP government initially led by a pragmatic centrist, who's succeeded by a more ideological leader who spends like a drunken sailor. The old right wing BC party finally collapses in on itself, and a new right wing party rapidly grows to replace it. However, the leader who started the rise gets replaced by somebody else. In the '90s, the NDP premiers were Mike Harcourt and Glen Clark. The old right wing party was Social Credit, and the new one was the BC Liberals. Gordon Wilson took the Liberals to opposition status, but was replaced by Gordon Campbell who eventually took them on to form government.
What's different this time is that there's an incipient civil war on the political right between populists and the older establishment conservatives. The populists have the energy, but they're politically toxic to a majority of the voting public, especially voters in the Lower Mainland who end up holding the balance of power in elections. The right quickly shifted to the BC Conservatives as the vehicle to defeat the NDP in the last election, but it's pretty hard to figure out what else they share in common.
The only difference being that a “united” right, for the first time, failed to defeat the NDP. The NDP usually loses when there is one viable free-enterprise party on the ballot. The more liberal free-enterprisers either sat out the election or were so scared by what was coming out of the BCCP that they voted for what they thought was a more moderate NDP.
I love following BC politics.
From a healthy distance.
The sooner this party can talk Brad West into running the sooner they can measure the drapes. Eby is on borrowed time
Second that
Rob Shaw knows BC politics.
However, the Eby-ego combined with the usual BC NDP drum circle paralysis, fiscal diarrhea and management malpractice is glaring, actually breathtaking.
I'm not betting against BC peeps voting for a party with no leader, no plan, no coherence. They almost voted exactly that into power once already, and the Eby-ego has not distinguished itself in any positive way since. Quite the opposite!
Great piece Rob Shaw. I always enjoy your take on all things legislative BC - plus cats! Who coined the “night of the long gingerbread houses”?
I hope the next BC Conservative leader (Brad West, Caroline Elliot - ideally someone young with some dynamism and energy who’s adept at wrangling) can solidify the right by bringing the 5 MLAs back into the fold or at least an alliance of sorts with OneBC. Eby is disintegrating this province’s economy and the natural resource livelihoods of workers throughout (the BCndp here are no longer the workers party); we must have a conservative alternative without this constant infighting.
Like PM Trudeau destroyed the Canadian consensus on immigration (a million people per year😳), Premier Eby is destroying the consensus on reconciliation.
Via the Cowichan Richmond decision, under his leadership fee simple title ownership of property is no longer indefeasible; with BC’s DRIPA statute (enshrining that all of BC’s laws align with the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples) he is ensuring that NO major project ever gets built in BC again whether it’s mines or forestry or a terminal or a pipeline without express indigenous approval (we have 202 separate first nations in BC). We can’t afford the NDP. It’s totally untenable. We must have a viable alternative.
Eby and BC people like him are pretty much ensuring that current style of BC BS politics will eventually get bulldozed by outside forces. Outside forces needing access to blue water and resources.
Good lord. What a fiasco. Thank you for helping the rest of us understand what happenned.
It’s seems to me conservatives fight amongst themselves much more frequently than the other parties. It’s too bad they haven’t yet figured out that if they want to get elected they have to work together. Sigh.
Conservatives employ the Circular Firing Squad, yet again.
A very clever article, written extremely well.
My home province really dodged a bullet last year. Astounding that it was so close.
BC politics remains a distant and murky mystery to this Ontarian. I have no clue what's going on out there.
I feel you.
I had a 25 year visit to Ontario. Any time spent literally anywhere else in this country centres, or grounds a person in politics a little closer to POGG, to governance, to critical thinking.
If you want to understand BC politics, start by excising those assumptions completely. BC politics is the worst example of letting the smallest, loudest, most extreme voices drive terrible choices, justified by bizarre world views, and selfrighteous, moral indignation, by people who don't understand morals or ethics, or care.
Upvote. For improvement, lower mainland and Victoria should be split into a separate province. Rest of BC could then function close to normal.
George Constanza has a Party!!!!