Bennett is in denial
Kootenay East MLA Bennett’s honours degree in English from the University of Guelph should help him source the quotation: “This is the way the world ends / Not with a bang but a whimper”.
And, sadly, this is the way Mr. Bennett leaves politics, if his letter in last week’s Free Press is anything to go by.
He wrote, once again, about past wildlife awards, which he hopes will outweigh his underlying disrespect for B.C. hunters (see his e-mail, Vancouver Province, January, 2015). He is still in denial about this issue.
He is also in denial about the long-standing scandal of taxpayer money subsidizing BC Liberal propaganda. In Ms. Clark’s first two years as premier (2011-2013), public money spent on partisan BC Liberal advertising soared to $68 million.
In response to this, Carol Bellringer, B.C.’s auditor general, recommended in 2014 “…a general policy which explicitly prohibits the use of partisan political information in public communications.”
The recommendation was rejected by Premier Clark and the BC Liberal caucus, including Mr. Bennett.
He is in further denial about the current RCMP investigation into the questionable legitimacy of last year’s $12.8 million in corporate contributions to the Clark government – the offshore, out-of-province, $25,000 a plate, pay-for-play, cash-for-access Dark Money.
The BC NDP has proposed legislation to eliminate both corporate and union contributions from B.C. politics – six times
The proposal has been rejected by Premier Clark and the BC Liberal caucus, including Mr. Bennett – six times.
As he drew his letter to a twisted and garbled conclusion, Mr. Bennett sneered that NDP MLAs Michelle Mungall (Nelson-Creston) and Katrine Conroy (Kootenay West) lacked ‘awards and recognitions.’
He can rest assured that the only ‘award’ or ‘recognition’ that Ms. Mungall and Ms. Conroy anticipate is being returned as MLAs by their constituents in May – as they have been for the past 12 years.
JC Vallance
Fernie, BC
The NDP is a dying party
From most recent polls across the country; the federal NDP has a third party status with a approval rating of 15.8 per cent. Alberta presently has a NDP provincial government with a third place approval rating of 24.5 per cent. Saskatchewan NDP is the official opposition party with a second place approval rating of 35.3 per cent. Manitoba NDP is the official opposition party with a second place approval rating of 24.7 per cent. The Ontario NDP has a third party status with a third place approval rating of 25.9 per cent. The Nova Scotia NDP has a third party status with a third place approval rating of 18.3 per cent. The Newfoundland NDP has a third party status with a third place rating of 21.4 per cent. The provincial NDP in Quebec, New Brunswick, and Prince Edward Island is non-existent. Not one elected NDP MLA. Election day is May 9, 2017 in B.C. and B.C. voters will tell what they think of the BC NDP.
Total Canada average NDP approval rating is 16.5 per cent. The NDP is a dying party.
Joe Sawchuk
Duncan, BC
