originally posted March 11th 2010
___________
Time to talk class, time to talk about a born leader, someone willing to speak to the truth, someone who puts common sense before political points, a rebel in his own party, a man who is not afraid to rock the boat, lets talk John Horgan.
It`s absolutely amazing, John Horgan made an appearance on CFAX radio on Vancouver island, John horgan was asked an honest question about photo radar, well, John Horgan gave an honest answer, John Horgan said in fact he is in favour of photo radar...
Well well well, what do you think happened next? Friends you know there are 200 members of Gordon Campbell`s public affairs team, they`re everywhere, listening, blogging, letters to the editor, spinning out the news,churning, conspiring stories, a group of money grubbers desperate to change Gordon Campbell`s fate, opportunists, Barack Obama has but 42 members of his PAB, Gordon Campbell has over 200 members, unreal!
So anyway, the Liberals spin machine got busy, the story was sent to Canwest, the story was sent to all of Gordon Campbell`s complicit friends disguised as journalists.
Even the BC Liberals web site instantly had the story, a huge headline...Here is the headline the Liberals put on the John Horgan photo radar story.
NDP wants to resurrect failed photo radar plan.
Well isn`t that special, so in reading the press release and story on the Liberals web site...The Liberals say..NDP energy critic John Horgan on CFAX radio wants to bring back photo radar.
Then they blather on and on how BCers hated photo radar and the great Liberal party listened to BCers and removed it...blah blah blah.(In fact read the story yourself, fresh off the Liberal web site)http://www.bcliberals.com/stop_the_ndp/stop_the_ndp__learn_more/ndp_wants_to_resurrect_failed_photo_radar_plan
So now Smyth calls John Horgan, the Liberals sent the lap dogs to chase John Horgan,chase Carole James and get them on the record, of course Carole James stated..."The NDP aren`t going to bring back photo radar, the people have spoken",good on Carole James for standing her ground as well!....And of course Christy Clark ran with the story on cknw, she started her 1:00PM segment with Kash Heed and of course the topic was....
Photo Radar, 20 minutes with Kash Heed, Kash stating how the BC Liberals would NEVER bring in photo radar, Kash stated they have better methods, and apparently those better methods include 144 new intersection cameras coming to a corner near you soon, Kash Heed denounced Photo radar and the NDP....So Kash Heed leaves and Christy Clark asks for callers .....Christy primed the pump, she asked callers to tell her what they think of the NDP wanting to bring back photo radar.!
Well, I was waiting for the barrage of NDP haters to line up and denounce the NDP, but guess what, it didn`t happen, every call except one either attacked Kash Heed, attacked Christy Clark or defended Photo Radar, I was shocked,blown away in fact, Christy ran the segment to 1:45 PM,...An extra long segment, looking for those NDP haters, well friends they weren`t there today, I of course know it was readers of the Straight Goods who decided to call in, new brave voices, friends and warriors who are prepared to speak to truth, to argue, have opinions, not a lame batch of ...boo hoo, NDP bad, Gordo good, brand new voices, voices that I have heard here,contributing, screaming,crying,passionate caring people who have had enough,and I thank each and everyone of you for making the effort!(in fact,listen to the segment yourself, cue up 1:00PM thursday march 11th)http://www.cknw.com/other/audiovault.html the segment runs to about 1:45 pm
I of course sent Christy a story By Andrew McCleod of the Tyee where it shows definitively that traffic fatalities were down with photo radar, Christy failed to mention the stats, and to be fair Christy Clark did say to Kash Heed ..."what is the difference between intersection cameras and photo radar"
To Which Kash Heed responded, "lots of accidents happen in intersections" Kash Heed went on to say that Photo radar in the 90s was set up on highways, the bottom of steep hills, kash heed referred to these placements as "Fishing".......And friends, to be honest there was photo radar traps set up in the past, but the one thing to remember, it wouldn`t matter where the photo radar trap was set up,if you didn`t speed you wouldn`t get a ticket.
And typical cknw, did they ask John Horgan to respond,no, Christy Clark was trying to incite some anger towards the NDP,that wouldn`t work if John Horgan was there to clear the air,you can bet that the PAB will push this story for all it`s worth, slow brainwash, propaganda at it`s finest.
But what I find disturbing is how fast Gordon Campbell`s public affairs bureau was able to turn a nothing little comment on a radio show by John Horgan and in a matter of minutes had churned out a story and sent it out all over the Province and the bought and paid for media ran with it as big news! Unbelievable!
Is photo radar really any different then plain old radar traps that police employ today? Radar traps on the cut on the upper level highway, or the radar trap by the PNE grounds on Hastings, or the radar trap on the Barnett highway, no,there is no difference, except one, a live police officer can check for liquor, proper insurance,warrants etc etc etc when there is a physical stop, but back to those pesky intersection cameras,the same thing, that camera doesn`t know whether the car is stolen, phony insurance,a driver with arrest warrants,so in my opinion photo radar is no different than intersection cameras!And one more thing about intersection cameras,if it isn`t set up to record speed, people can blast through an intersection at double the speed limit on a green light and not even get a ticket.(read about reduced traffic fatalities with photo radar here)http://thetyee.ca/Blogs/TheHook/BC-Politics/2010/03/11/PhotoRadar/
And I want to be perfectly clear, I am against photo radar where it is used as a trap,a money collector, photo radar should be in intersections,that is where most fatalities occur, photo radar should be in school zones, on bridges, in fact even on freeways but....And here`s the deal, there needs to be posted signage warning drivers that the photo radar is there,photo radar dead ahead, if photo radar was run on those grounds there would be few to none that would be opposed! After all, isn`t our ultimate goal to make our streets and highways as safe as possible? Isn`t that the main goal we are all trying to achieve.
Where was I, oh yea, John Horgan, You see friends, I hope you read the BC Liberal web site propaganda piece on John Horgan, because their story was lacking details, the BC Liberal story on John Horgan stated "John Horgan wants the return of the failed photo radar plan"......But what the story forgot to mention was the rest of the story.
Because what John Horgan said was this....I am fundamentally in favour of photo radar,I believe it saves lives, however, I didn`t like the way it was set up in the past on hills and sides of highways.
That my friends is what John Horgan said, the BC Liberals spin machine tried to turn a mole hill into a mountain, the PAB are so desperate to change the channel on the Gordo song, a song everyone hates.
In fact friends this whole affair upset me on many levels, so I contacted John Horgan and said...What`s up, what is going on.
And this is the response I received from John Horgan....
"Grant the Last thing I want to do is help the Gord change the channel. Was on my local radio –CFAX- and got an honest question about photo radar and gave an honest answer. When Smitty came calling I knew I had stepped in it. Still, the truth is the truth. I am not changing to fit the message box."
There is a place for photo radar, John Horgan is right about limited use of photo radar to make our roads safer, who knows how many lives can be saved from road carnage with some advertised photo radar cameras in place!
Recent road deaths in Pitt Meadows and Maple ridge have local mayors calling for the return of Photo Radar,police want the return of photo radar,as do our Paramedics, as do I, but not as tax collectors, but as lifesavers!
John Horgan, a man who doesn`t backpedal, a man who will stick to his guns, a man who IS THE REAL LEADER OF the NDP!
And lastly, the above story isn`t about photo radar, it`s about the speed and precision of Gordon Campbell public affairs bureau, how quickly they churn and brew and contort stories, it`s about the complicit cknw radio voices, and it`s about John Horgan not fumbling for an excuse, sticking to his principles.
The Straight Goods
Cheers Eyes Wide Open
17 comments:
Grant - The problem is that 90% of drivers exceed the posted speed limit by 10 - 20 km/ hr. Probably because the posted limits are too low and that the 85% percentile of drivers have it right based upon highway design standards and concurrent operating speeds.
Most people got pissed off with photo radar vans sitting on the side of the highway acting as a cash cow during the 1990's. They were everywhere. People didn't know they exceeded the speed limit until they received their ticket/fine in the mail.
Now that's different from red-light intersection cameras where most accidents occur with people traveling through red lights.
Photo radar is a dead political issue and not on the public's radar screen. More important issues out there.
You are correct sort of...There are many important stories out there being ignored, but I believe you missed the point of my story.
This is not an advertisement for photo radar.
Would you object to photo radar in front of the park or school your child plays in?
Would you object to photo radar on the Pattullo bridge? Or intersections?
But, like I said, the story has nothing to do with photo radar.
Cheers
One more thing 8:28PM...As a frequent traveller of the Island inland highway(The best highway in BC,union built)
The speed limit is 110 KM...And that`s fast,but,I get passed by vehicles going 150 KM on that highway, it`s one way traffic,no oncoming traffic,a very safe highway even at high speeds, about the only real trouble on that highway is with bad weather,bridge icing or an elk crossing the highway,scary stuff at 110 KMs even more so at 150KMs.
The point being is leadership and not running from the PAB, not wilting over a statement to an honest question, I concede that photo radar probably will never come to be,and I can live with that.
The point being,time to stop running from the spin,stand up and be strong.
Grant G hope you're watching CBC, Penner is coming on.
Oops make that federal!
Jaydee,it was the Federal enviro minister Jim Prentice..
The Hour..Got absolutely nothing out of the interview,soft.
But CBC needs funding,pretty hard to bite the hand that feeds you.
I guess we know why Campbell has a stable of 200 plus in the PAB. Each one is probably assigned a specific news source just looking for any tidbit that they think they can spin to Gordo's advantage. They were one of a few ministries that got an increase in the budget that Hansen just brought down. Just think how many better ways the money Gordo is wasting on his spin machine could be utilized.
I was glad to hear one particular gentleman phone Christy and lay the facts on the line. Even though she did her best to try and talk over him, he was able to let her know that the issue of photo radar was not an NDP position just the views of one person, John Horgan. Of course then she had to try and turn the tables on this caller by stating that if Horgan became the solicitor general in an NDP government then photo radar could be back on the table. To his credit, this caller didn't back down and by the end of her segment on this issue she at least admitted that she was the only one that agreed with herself.
I've noticed that her new tactic is to talk over callers that don't agree with her in the hope that she can drown out the caller's message.
Of course the only reason the PAB, MSM and Christy jumped on the photo radar bandwagon is to deflect the attention from the piece of crap budget Hansen brought down. The thievery from ICBC, BC Hydro, and the disadvantaged have garnered a lot of bad press and negative reactions and the Libs and their supporters will use whatever tactic they can muster to turn the attention elsewhere.
The BC Liberal party is on the run and that's just where we want them. Hopefully this will lead to a few defections within their ranks and then the fun will really begin.
Cam
B.C. Libs/PAB start the rumour - B.C. Libs considering bringing back photo radar, but not just yet, it isn't the time. It didn't seem to take off so poof Michael Smyth to the rescue and center John Horgan out on a little local radio station that was also set up and last stop Christy Clark's dumbass show. That failed miserably AGAIN and poor Christy just doesn't get it that the B.C. Liberals will keep her there on NW doing her nothing thing to keep her and her mouth focused on exactly what they plan, stopping her from causing the BCL's any real serious trouble. Michael Smyth you have obviously done ZERO research on this photo radar topic :)) as usual and you are an excellent example of how low 'journalism', as practised in the MSM, has sunk to in B.C. Shame on all of you, Campbell's playing you all and you don't get that either. Stupid is as stupid does, trouble is you're all taking the citizens of our province down with you. Exactly how dictatorships thrive, a lying media and lack of any truth or simple facts. The three top problems in B.C. right now 1. media 2. bad voting system 3. Campbell and his B.C. Liberal Party.
Jean
Unfortunatly, Smith , along with Baldry, are shills for the drunk gordo. If these, two and others in the media (Hear me Bill not so Good), had any balls to tell the truth, we might have our province back. Cristie, is a loudmouth, with no sense of fairness. She blathers on, many times shouting over the caller, showing her loyalties for the little drunk. Maybe have the likes of the many scribes out there that are not afraid to tell the truth. Who is running this province? The drunk womenizer, mentally unstable gordo, or maybe his gf? Time for them to go, and give us our province back.
Kam Lee
Photo radar is a gimmick, used by the politico's to get a negative reaction from the public.
What photo radar did was to get the lazier police types to set up radar traps at the bottom of hills etc. Cash cow.
The real problem of course is bad driving and nothing has ever been done to address this.
Our traffic laws are dated, so much so, people do not stop at stop signs/red lights any more, including police!
In the real world, a stop sign/red light is the most basic of the 'rules of the road' as it assigns right of way. A four way stop means the right of way is to the person on the left (round abouts please take note).
If a bus, tram or train driver doesn't stop at a red light or stop sign it is cause for termination of employment.
In BC and Canada motorists have ignored the stop sign/red light as some sort of hindrance to their driving and the pro motorist government has done little to address this.
Red light cameras are fine, but only a small percentage of them are working as the actually cameras are rotated to various locations.
I would do this:
1) update the motor vehicles act, including all stop signs/red lights protected by a rumble strip.
2) 1 month suspension (no fine) for not stopping at a stop sign/red light.
3) 1 years suspension (no fine) for not stopping at stop sign/red light, if one causes an accident.
4) Lifetime ban (no fine) for not stopping at stop sign/red light, if one causes an accident, which causes death.
Harsh yes, but in line which other countries do!
John's my MLA. Whenever I have a question or problem, I get a prompt reply. If he led, I'd join the party.
Thanks for that Kim,that`s why I respect John Horgan, if I ask him a question he responds with The Straight Goods,no bafflegab, I might not like the response but he is honest.
He doesn`t sugar coat his answers,he doesn`t divert the issue,and...
He doesn`t have some pencil pusher or automated robotron reply with...
"John is very busy and rest assured he is concerned and has your best interest at heart,or some other generic message."
My emails to Campbell have been ignored,or a generic reply,and or a few phone calls to me from the Provincial police force.
Why would the police phone shoudn't they be busy investigating collusion charges against campbell and co?
I e-mailed John.and agreed with him on photo radar,and suggested that he "tell all those that don,t like photo radar,raise your right foot"
How come nobody is interviewing Kash Heed's predeccesor about photo radar? That would be right up there with John Les' views on real estate development.
I'm wondering if the negative issues surrounding photo radar has more to do with invasion of privacy, than with the safety/life aspects of excessive speed?
Would the drivers and passengers in a vehicle caught on camera be identifiable? If so, could the photo's of the people in the vehicle cause an issue in the home of either one of them? Know what I'm saying?
If it's at all possible for photo radar to affect a person's "personal" life, then I think it would become an invasion of privacy issue. And would likely be fought in a court of law on that basis.
An aside, one of the funniest (I thought) road signs I've ever seen said:
"All those who don't like spending money on fines, please raise your right foot."
It worked.
The song running through my head tonight is "Ding Dong, the Witch is Dead". Yippee!
Thank you, Grant, and your fellow bloggers, for keeping the flame burning through the 16-year reign of terror.
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