Herb is just doing what any other candidate in any other riding is, or should be doing. That is getting themselves out in the public and campaigning. It’s funny that some of you view this negatively. It is the responsibility of every candidate to make themselves known to their potential constituents to give the people the best possible information in which to cast their vote upon. Some people will cast their votes in the provincial election based on what Herb has done as mayor. Some may cast their vote based on Gordon Campbells brush with the law. I will cast my vote based on the future and not the past. I want to see which candidate will offer my family and I the best possible future so I want to see as much of the candidates as possible before the election. The more I see of each candidate the better.
Ok I’ll bite, when has candidate Pond expressed any indication as to what he might want to do for the riding, have we missed any policy ideas, any thoughts on how to improve our health care or educational system, create jobs etc. So far it’s been photos at photo op events, no news just flash.
Yet you keep bringing up stuff from more than 10 years ago?
Yeah…they mention the “landslide” of 2001 a lot…but…they are a bit quiet about 2005:-)
And you accuse me of assuming alot of things yet you assume that the Olympics will be a failure. They’re almost a year away. At least wait and see what happens. You should watch The Secret. A positive outlook will bring about positive results. Maybe you could prevent Vancouver 2010 from becoming Montreal 1976 just by changing your thought process.
It’s fine to discuss the things that happened more than 10 years ago but yet I will not vote for the NDP based on Mike Harcourts tenure as Premier nor will I vote for Herb Pond based on his time as mayor. Discussing what went right or wrong in the past is one thing, dwelling on them and bringing them into the future with us is another. I’m not forgetting about what has happened in the past but I’d like to learn from them. Coons is not Glen Clark, even Campbell is different than he was 10 years ago. Everyone matures and learns from their time on the job. You can’t tell me that you are the same in your profession than you were when you started. No doubt you’ve grown personally and professionally. Maybe there is something is your past, a mistake you made that you regret. Doesnt make you bad at what you do but maybe wiser for it. Why can’t politics be like that too?
[quote=“BoNeCrAcKeR”]
And you accuse me of assuming alot of things yet you assume that the Olympics will be a failure. They’re almost a year away. At least wait and see what happens.[/quote]
Well, the finance talk is in the present, not the future. It’s a certainty the Olympics have already gone over budget. That’s why they’re borrowing more money. No need to wait a year to see that.
I don’t think someone who spent two threads talking about past politics and then proclaims “I will cast my vote based on the future and not the past” should be lecturing someone on their thought process.
But fine, I accept that you “will cast your vote based on the future and not the past.” I’ll keep that gem in my quote file for future reference.
Yes. It should be. Let’s case our votes based on the future. I expect you to respond to future posters who dredge up the past with the same line, right?
It is a little gem isn’t it?
There are alot of things that I don’t like about the way that our current or past governments have managed our province and I’ll continue to discuss them. When I do cast my vote however, I’ll do so with an open mind and a whole lot of faith. I just don’t think that it is productive to base my vote for Coons or Pond on something that really isn’t about them. The Harcourt and Dosanjh years are over (thank god) and Coons, or even Carole James cannot be held accountable for those years. If they proclaim to be different then I will base my vote on the current but if they want to revert back to the 1990’s NDP provincial model then I may not vote for them. I won’t vote based on the past but I also won’t forget what past governments have done, including the Liberals.
I think this is the right thread.
Went to the Daily News today with Monday’s and Tuesday’s paper in hand.
Had a good conversation with Ms Webb and Mr Witwicki.
I was told that there was no intention of bias.
I was told that Herb at the Lester Centre was partly in response to complaints about Gary being on the front page last week as well as being a good opportunity to plug the Lester Centre. (The Green Party is on the front page today so now all parties have had their front page opportunity.)
I conceded the Lester Centre photo op did draw attention to its campaign, but that it was also a clever PR stunt by the Pond camp to draw attention to his.
I told them that Gary’s picture was a legitimate news story (his nomination) and that Herb had probably received similar exposure when he was nominated.
I told them that the intention of the Hockeyville photos was not about Hockeyville but very much about Herb.
I was told that there were no other Hockeyville photos, but I think they were uncomfortable about the photos on closer inspection e.g. in front of the Liberal campaign office with the Liberal sign clearly visible.
They thanked me for coming in, told me they would be more careful before publishing submitted photos, and again assured me that there was no intention of bias.
Right now, I believe them, but I will continue to pay attention.
coughbullshitcough 
You’re right except you forget, or maybe just choose to ignore, that we are still in the development phase of this entire thing. The real benefits will hopefully be seen during and after the Olympics. Wait five years and then see if the investment was worth it.
I suppose now somewhere in the Daily News office there will be a piece of paper tallying the number of references to Pond and Coons to make sure that each get an equal amount of print. I can see it now.
Daily News Provincial Election Campaign Story Tally
Coons
l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l
Pond
l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l l
Green Party
l l
Christian Heritage Party
.5
Shit! Pond’s up on Coons. If we don’t get a Coons story by press time that White fella is going to be back in here again raising hell.
Sorry, I missed your post earlier.
That’s right. It’s just been about being seen and getting out into the public. The real campaigning will begin later. I’m looking forward to the campaign so I can figure out how I’m going to vote. At this point I have no idea.
Heh-heh, tell that to the taxpayers in Vancouver as they pay off their Olympic-sized debt in the years to come.
The Olympics will not benefit us at all up here on the North Coast.
This is the Province of BC and unfortunately we have to live with the fact that we are only a very small percentage of the provincial population. The millions that live in the lower mainland pay their taxes too and if the end result is a benefit to them then it was worth it. Our province is bigger than many countries so to expect that we would benefit from everything that happens in it would be unfair.
I hope that in some small way that the Olympics will benefit us. Even having world class training facilities close by could allow our children the opportunity to learn and train in events that they might otherwise have to travel out of province or coutry to do.
This is getting way out of hand.
The insinuation that by putting goofy pictures of Herb Pond and Hockeyville photos on our front page is somehow going to get that man elected is really off. From what I can tell this town is polarized between BC Libs and local dippers. We could put across our banner “We love Herb and so should you” and what would it matter? Most of the folks in Fishermans Hall would still vote NDP and most of the folks in The Chamber of Commerce would back Herb.
In fact those pictures said nothing about his campaign.
It seemed to me that when we featured a picture of Nathan Cullen door-to-door campaigning in October there was not this furor. Or when Corrina Morhart visited Hondo’s poli-sci class for a talk with students. I can’t think of any bigger “shameless” photo ops than said examples.
I have brought this up a million times but here it goes:
It has been somewhat known since I arrived here in July that Herb planned on running for the Libs. At least that was the gossip. As a smart politician, Herb never committed himself until he officially decided to step away from municipal politics. But ask Herb how many times I asked him if he was running and if he tells the truth he would tell you as many times as I could.
At the same time I wrote less than flattering stories about city council and was quite critical of the in camera meeting they had in the Coast Hotel. Look at the articles between September and November for reference.
So a bias towards Herb seems missive at best.
On the other hand, the man is running for office and will be asking locals for their votes. So will Gary. Both are well-seasoned politicians who know how to get their message out. So far the messages are: Gary is in Victoria working, Herb is taking pictures with teenage girls. That was a bit glib, but I hope you all see my point.
Our perceived bias may be there but it seems based on really reactionary opinion on four photos and not based on historical evidence.
Now I can breathe.
I also hope that the Olympics will benefit us. But, I am less optimistic than you. I will be the first in line to eat crow if we get some pay-off up here in PR from the Olympics.
My worry is that essential services (health care,education) will suffer cut-backs as belt tightening occurs to balance the provincial books. I sincerely hope I’m wrong about this.
Well said and agreed!
That meaningful raise is just around the corner,keep up the good work.
I think it is important to say that noone is questioning the intentions and integrity of the staff and reporters at the newspaper. I think the concern is about a direction taken which was articulated in the editorial from ownership a week or two ago. That had the effect of raising readers’ sensitivity and observation. Blame the ownership for that one. Unfortunately, there have been signs that the philosophical shift advocated might result in practical, observable, (and objectionable) changes. Add to that the bigger picture of a mainstream media that has been basically in the pockets of right wing government for years, (Canwest, Fox, for example), and it’s not hard to understand that a threat of the same kind of bias here locally would be received in a reactionary way. There are a lot of people here who pay close attention to the role of the media locally and elsewhere.
I actually think most of us are on the same page. We want a fair, balanced, and courageously investigative newspaper. We worry that recent changes will mean we lose that. We have little choice but to voice our concerns when we can, and to trust that journalistic integrity will win out over ideological narrowness.
Looks like people having been typing at the same time as I have. Sorry if there is repetition.
First of all I would like to ensure you that I respect your ability as a reporter and that I do not think that your stories are compromised in any way. I have been a long time subscriber to the Daily News and am quite amazed that a town of this size can put out a quality daily paper.
However,it is hard to look at the historical context when management has made it clear that the paper is taking a different approach.
You said that the pictures said nothing about Herb’s campaign. But let’s be clear, the pictures said nothing about Hockeyville and they were submitted by Herb’s campaign.
If you think I am being reactionary by seeking clarification of the intent of those photos then I guess we can disagree. But as I said a page or two back, I don’t want cheesy photos of Gary either. I want truly newsworthy stories/pictures put out by the professional staff that work at the Daily News.
[quote=“teacher”]
Add to that the bigger picture of a mainstream media that has been basically in the pockets of right wing government for years[/quote]
and you probably believe there was a second shooter on the grassy knoll too?