The BC Conservatives Score Big! Rick Peterson Joins Their Team–Sure Trouble for the Christy Party!
I used to have an uncle in Atlanta. He died six years ago.
Well, he wasn’t really my uncle, but we became so very close over the years that he insisted I call him that.
He had a great saying, and while it may not entirely apply to the BC Conservatives this morning, until they make more of these moves, they may end up like the blind pig in the Georgia parable ‘Uncle Nick’ loved so much.
He used to say, about anyone who encountered good fortune or caught a “lucky break” (even if it was through determined work):
“Even a blind pig finds an acorn, Alec!” Or more accurately in his beloved, prominent Southern drawl: “Eevun a blaaan pig faaands ‘n akurn, suun…”
That was usually through several gin and tonics, a half smoked, half chewed cigar and leaning up against an immaculate ’71 Cadillac convertible, replete with the horns and ‘General Lee’ flag on the front licence plate.
The cordless phone was one of the originals from the late sixties.
The point is well taken, though.
The BC Conservatives have (finally!) found an acorn (and a half!) and it doesn’t really matter how lucky they were in getting him, he’s theirs…
Rick Peterson is a very successful financial guru in his own right. A loving, dedicated single dad from the eastside of Vancouver (he’s sharing the raising of his child–a daughter, while the other two kids are adults). Rick is whippet smart, tough as nails, and will suffer no fools, let me assure you. He has a Rolodex to rival anyone’s and as the new Deputy Finance Chair of the BC Conservatives, he brings strong PROGRESSIVE CONSERVATIVE (which is what this province generally is!) credentials to a group whose organizational Board meetings likely begin with a reading from the Bible and a summary throw around discussion about catechism.
Peterson is someone I’ve know for over 15 years. He is painfully detailed (obsessively so), a taskmaster (read: ballbreaker) and exceedingly articulate. His opinion pieces have appeared everywhere from the Vancouver Sun to the Globe and Mail national edition. He is fluently bilingual (English and French) and was touted as a possible mayoral candidate to rival Mayor Moonbeam.
Now–more importantly, he is also a former campaign operative for Kevin Falcon’s leadership bid–which was the real winner, since the Preem’s crew stole PIN numbers to get her elected.
But I digress…
Symbolic or not, Peterson’s are made-in-BC stripes and not imported ones like those (few) Tories utterly daft enough to venture to Premier Snooki’s lair. Sarah McIntyre, Dimitri Pantazopoulos and Ken Boessenkool may be touted as “conservatives” by the Preem, but not one of them is a prominent BC conservative (and they’re all being paid handsomely for their loyalty). And what about Stock Day, Jay Hill and Chuck Strahl? A feckless meanderer, a moribund buffoon and a tear-inducing, boredom peddler–not one of them (at least the one that isn’t lobbying) were able to deliver inspirational conservatism in the cumulative, decades-long service they provided as MPs. Not one. Let them sit with Christy. It’s a compliment to real Conservatives!
More to the point, Rick Peterson’s ability to raise huge money and engage previously indifferent or (understandably) apprehensive parties and individuals will be indispensable. His appearance on the BC Conservative rolls, changes the patina of the party in one fell swoop, as he is a noteworthy and influential progressive conservative, with ties throughout the province and country (he is a national director of the MacDonald-Laurier Institute, one of the country’s leading think tanks).
Well done, to the BC Conservatives. Perhaps they’re finally listening.
And as a teaser: Peterson has authored a superb editorial piece to combat the unending drivel recently written by former Gordon Campbell roommate, Geoff Plant, who took ridiculous, disjointed shots at the BC Conservatives in a widely publicized opinion piece of his own.
No word yet on when Peterson’s op/ed piece will be released, and where, but you can bet we’ll cover it right here.
Left, Right or In-Between, I’ll take anyone if the focus is on three things.
Integrity, Ethics, Accountability.
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Me too! Well, I’m sorry, I just cannot bring myself to vote NDP. I like Adrian. My Dad used to buy insurance from his dad. They’re good people, but I cannot support socialism or wealth redistribution. Even Tommy Douglas wouldn’t defended that.
The BC Liberals are totally corrupt. So that leaves the BC Cons, who I STILL cannot support unless they come up with a helluva lot more Rick Petersons…
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I didn’t say I’d vote for any party, but any party has a chance if the candidate measures up on those three issues.
The Christy Party, by definition, is excluded.
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Obviously. You’re a man of great principle, I would expect nothing less.
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I feel exactly the same way Merv does and I suspect, so do the majority of those who voted Liberal in the past. This is a tremendous development.
I’d have liked your uncle.
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Yeah, he was a really good guy.
Former FBI officer, and two Purple Hearts in Vietnam, whose pals never forget me. Christmas, Easter and my birthday, I’ll hear from his brother–who he made up with right prior to dying. They fought in Vietnam together. I was privileged to ride with him and his colleagues from Athens to Atlanta for a memorial one year. One of the biggest thrills of my life. He even lent me one of his softails, so I didn’t have to rent. Super wonderful people.
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i expect a smear against John Cummins tonight from Global, or
anything they can do to bring his poll numbers down
i really hope i’m wrong
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It won’t work if they do.
Lately, Global have been running lots of negative material on Christy and her crew.
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“Lately, Global have been running lots of negative material on Christy and her crew.
”
Global and Baldery have finally acknowledged what the rest of BC already knows: BC CHRISTY is fish wrap.
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Yes, we used to have government by polling, now we have media by polling. PATHETIC!
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It’s good to read about a positive move by the only viable alternative to the NDP. I don’t know Mr Peterson so I felt a good deal of relief while reading your piece. After reading some of your dated blogs, I see that the proverbial snowball has more potential for success than the BC Liberals. Thanks. gs
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Correct. The BC Libs don’t have a snowballs chance in hell of winning. I assure you.
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I dunno Alex, The Libs aint dead until the fat lady( Christy) sings at a BC Rail trial
The election is a year away and the eligible voters that actually vote ( all 40% of them) seem to have the attention span of Fruit Flies drunkenly swarming over a bowl of over ripe cherries. The Libs are counting on low turn out, voter apathy and, most important of all, voter ignorance.
I over heard a gal at work the other day saying,” I’m gonna vote for Christy because she’s bringing in a new holiday next Feb…….”
shoot me now.
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Yeah, but your dipshit co-worker is in the wee minority.
The holiday is meaningless.
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save yourself, shoot her.
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hahahahahhaa
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Thanks for the good news. I hope the trend continues.
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It’s really quite encouraging. Rick is first-class and was a long-time BC Liberal supporter.
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Will he call for an inquiry into BC Rail?
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That’s what he claims. On that, I believe him.
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another strike against Ms.Photo ops
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You said it.
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Not a bad start (sorry I wouldn’t dance in the street or bend a lady over to kiss her in the middle of Georgia and Burrard St) over this one).
So holllld on thar. (in my best Quick Draw McGraw voice)
Let’s do a little exploratory here.
So Petersen can attract Big Money. Not bad, but remember it was Big Money that was a part of the Falcon campaign that had a few people shaking their heads. They didn’t like the Kevin Falcon 20/20 project brought on by Ryan Beedie and his pals. It was a good concept, but got too big too fast.
While Christy’s Campaign’s PIN Number stealing was really bad
and I would consider to be a capital crime politically, the antics of the Falcon campaign in their proxy voting scheme (people let the Flacon campaign “borrow” or “lend” their PIN numbers because they themselves were too lazy to spend two minutes to vote, or go to a place where they could) isn’t exactly squeaky clean politics either.
I would even scale Petersen a bit more. Why exactly could he not
win the nomination in 2009? I figure Reichart and his pals were busy manipulating again so that MacDiramid could win the nomination.
Seems to me that a guy like that could bag a nomination with a bit of homework and a good organized effort. Been done before.
How does Petersen square with Randy White and the other idiot
BC Tories (including one who hasn’t learned a few
fundamentals and is to the right of Bill VanderZalm, but to the left of Attila The Hun). I heard or read somewhere that Rita J is also part of the group. Oh great.
Agree with your thoughts, but not to the same enthusiastic degree.
Want to find out more. It’s a start, not a finish.
The BC Tories have alot of doin’ to do. In many parts of the Lower Mainland for example, they don’t even exist. At least not yet.
Will worth watchin’ though.
As per usual, keep us updated on this file.
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Will do. Some good points, although Rick is a firebrand who doesn’t put up with shit. Reichert hated him.
I think he’d make a great candidate for almost anything. But that he’s going to be raising money and changing the patina of the party is extremely important.
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Well that earns a few more points from me.
If Reichert hated him, then he has to be a good guy. A real winner.
But it will take more than few stuffed bags with a green dollar sign on each of them, carired to the RBC or BMO to grow the BC Tories.
If he manages to tap into the resources available from The Howe Street Boyz, then the BC Liberals have another problem (of which they have many and more to come. Wait and see).
If the BC Tories can say to Randy White “thank you for your time and effort, we’ll take over from here”, then they’ve earned a few more points.
But we’ll wait and see.
Wonder if a vote for the BC Liberals is a vote for the NDP..
Could happen.
Be here when it does.
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I believe both White and Rita J are “advisers” in the process of party organization. Neither hold board positions or intend to run for a seat.
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And that worries me, because neither of them is a good political adviser. She was stubborn and he exercised foot-in-mouth syndrome, more often than not.
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It’s technically called “Foot and Mouth Disease” for him.
For her it would be called Mad Cow Disaese.
and you’re right neither are very good.
I remember that famous line of hers.
“Mike Harcourt… you will never be Premier of this province”.
When she very narrowly won the leadership, the room was so quiet
you could hear a pin drop.
and if that happened it would have set off quite a few people.
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I’ll never forget the ‘Unity’ signs held up by Grace’s people.
And how Jennifer Mather’s shirt flew open when she stretched for a can of Coke.
Those were the highlights of the the day.
We won, but I knew we’d lost. I told Pat Kinsella privately after the win in the suite upstairs that the youth vote had evaporated, and the Grace vote int he Lower Mainland wouldn’t never come back.
He just shrugged.
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“I told Pat Kinsella privately after the win in the suite upstairs that the youth vote had evaporated, and the Grace vote int he Lower Mainland wouldn’t never come back. ”
and it didn’t.
unfortunately, he did.
“And how Jennifer Mather’s shirt flew open when she stretched for a can of Coke”
to see that would have been the best thing of the whole day.
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Believe me, it was…
The rest of the convention could have been held in the Himalayas and would have been quite flat in comparison.
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Does this one think man shared the earth with the dinosaurs?
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Regardless of whether he believes in intelligent design, creationism or evolution, the point is he will be a massive help.
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Does this one think man shared the earth with the dinosaurs?
Geezus man. Think..
Fred handled a dinosaur every day at the gravel pit, remember?
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LOL!
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This is very good news! The conservative coalition is being built and we both know when conservatives stop the infighting they can do almost anything. Someone like appeals the urban conservative voter and this is the next frontier the BCC needs to really break into.
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Well, I’ve been pushing and pushing for them to expand their base. I have NOTHING against Evangelical Christians. They are wonderful people. But they do not represent mainstream BC. Those are the people you need, not minority interest groups. It’s anathema to the way politics has been played in this country, until that flipping moron Presto! Manning showed up. It’s absurd to contend that they could have continued with just the crew they have. Randy White is a very nice man who has done some wonderful things for the drug addicted in this country. And Reed Elley and his wife have fostered dozens of kids. They’re good people, without question. But their past statements on gays and abortion are rank insanity. These kinds of bigoted statements, do not belong in public life. So, with the addition of Rick, it makes a huge difference. I applaud the BC Conservatives for waking up. And just in time!
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Thank’s for the applause Alex!
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You’re welcome. And to take the shine off it, your leader goes on province wide television tonight and blows a hole in your new-found credibility by saying the absolutely WRONG thing about gay marriage.
NOT ready for prime time, AGAIN….
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http://thetyee.ca/Blogs/TheHook/BC-Politics/2012/02/20/FalconSurprise
Falcon “not surprised” . There may be more.
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Like I said right after New Year’s: lots more on the way….
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http://www.globaltvbc.com/video/raw+video+john+cummins/video.html?v=2199395704&p=1&s=dd#video
Un-edited interview from global with John Cummins.
Responses please….
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Positive interview, GREAT daughter! Good Lord they should run her, but apparently she’s only 19!!!
But again, one major screw up, even though he’s handled the same question well in the past: Cummins should have simply said that the BC Conservative party would not entertain discussing or dealing with gay marriage or abortion–EVER. Period, full stop. Instead, he insisted on telling us he was personally socially conservative. Completely idiotic as a response.
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Jas did do a good job with his interview. On the moral issues he continued to press Cummins until he stated his personal beliefs. John avoided making a clear statement, but his thoughts were indicated. Top his credit, IMO he indicated his view was not anywhere on the political agenda.
I hope so.
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No, that’s not correct. It was a very poor response to straightforward question. He blew it, big time.
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they danced around the question for a while, John stumbled. Had a good start, weak finish.
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Precisely. Not one of the BC Conservative operatives I spoke to thought his response was either informed or representative of what he has said in the past. A very stupid mistake.
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Yeah you are right Alex. The media will always be looking for a gotcha moment when they interview Cummins. He has to have his response rehearsed, answer it clearly and move on to issues affecting BC today.
Although with the riff raff the Conservatives have in BC hanging around in the back of the room they will not be able to get away from these questions being asked on a regular basis.
Nonetheless I thought it was one of his better interviews.
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Precisely right. A prefect summation of the interview and the background. Letter perfect! Well done.
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When are the “media” going to give Christy a “gotcha moment” in an interview?
Perhaps a few BC Rail questions? This elephant isnt going away and its high time someone in the “media” starts to nail her with both barrels.
What ,in God’s name, are they waiting for? June 2013 when she’s out of office and she cant yank the govt advertising budget from these pathetic hacks?
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Excellent questions, excellent questions…. *SIGH*
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Her “gotcha” moment has already occured with the “piling stupid on top of dumb” comment.
An absolutely appropriate metaphor of her time in politics.
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Yes, who better than her to use that line.
The BC Liberals were already dumb but having her come on was really piling on stupid…
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Geoff Plant is a hemorrhoid on BC’s butthole! Who cares what that twit has to say?! anyone?
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A first class moron, who never understood the people of this province or what’s in their best interest.
That’s Geoff Plant.
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His pot legalization charade from last week lowered my perception of the guy drastically.
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He lost a ton of respect from many people, who had previously liked him. A very stupid move.
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Is this the same Geoff Plant that left the Liberal party to take a Lucritive job with the Rape of River company?
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Ah, it’s St. Patrick’s Day come early…CORRECT! That’s the idiot…
Tell you a great story: I was once in the office of Heenan Blaikie in Vancouver to meet a friend for lunch. But I needed to you the washroom before we went to the elevator. As I was standing by the urinal, in walks Plant, who does a double take as he’s standing in the urinal next to me.
“Hello Alex,” he says.
“Hello Geoff,” I replied. Now, I had dealt with him and his govt when I owned Britannia Beach and had cleaned up Britannia Creek for a fraction of what they fleeced the taxpayer for. But I was bought out by my partner before I completely left with my UBC partners and it became too big a proposition for me.
Anyway…
What does Plant say next? With the most sarcastic look on his face?
“Sorry that Britannia didn’t work out, I’m sure there’yll be others…” Now, remember we’re still tinkling at the urinals.
So I looked up at him and said, “Geoff thank you…you will forgive me though for not offering you my hand–I’m already shaking with a big prick…”
I looked over my shoulder as I was washing my hands–he stormed out of the can! LOL! One of my best lines I think…
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ROFLMAO….I’m going to have to remember that one!
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It was CLASSIC! I told my friend over lunch and she just about shot wine through her nose…
You should have seen the look on Plant’s face…
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If they turn into a clone of the federal Conservatives – NO THANKS! Think Oda, Teows, Oliver, Flaherty, McKay and the rest of the party that are either proven liars or utter idiots. Harper needs to sweep that shit off the driveway before he sees any X on a ballot from me.
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