Where the hell is the Opposition?

There should be at least one resignation over this.

Maybe the reason McFayden hasn't been "chirping" about this is because he was attending to his dying father....

"Ralph Daniel McFadyen, father of Manitoba’s Progressive Conservative Leader Hugh McFadyen, died today at age 69."
from the Winnipeg Free Press http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/local/McFadyens-father-dies-surrounded-by-his-family-151750505.html[/url]

Who said anything about paying off politicians?

That was not the implication.

What I was explaining was the informal aspect of negotiation and proposal.
Two to four people, sitting at a dinner table or playing a round of golf can get much more accomplished weeding out the crap, than a room full of 40 politicians with their own hidden agendas ever can.

Use the waterpark thing as an example.
So I am a business person, and I want to build a waterpark. Am I going to go stand in front of city council and say "hi, I want to build a waterpark...please vote for my idea"?
No, I'm going to find out where I think a good location would be, my estimates, my costs, etc. Once a location or two are found, I need to find out the impact of THAT area first...so I would contact the rep for that area and invite him/her out for dinner or a game, spend a little money and grease a wheel to make a "friend", so that I can gather information about the area...what they are trying to do (ie. expand community centres, change infrastructure), and try to work that into my plan.
I would also field my idea off this politician to see what their first reaction would be to the proposal...and see if they are completely against the idea...or if they are lukewarm, and can be swayed with the right incentive for their community...which of course would help keep them elected.

I'm not sure what happened with the waterpark thing at the Forks. And I'm afraid I don't know who represents what areas...but did the politician who announced it represent the Forks area? If not...I'm curious how he got involved...unless he owed a favor to the person who DOES represent that area...and put his head out there to get chopped in case it didn't work.

Again...for the crown corporations to use taxpayer money to buy things, or political influence like these is unacceptable. I don't know enough about "crown" corporations to know if they are truly taxpayer funded? or do they self-sustain? If they are self-sustaining...then it would seem they have a fund in place to at least buy these event items to give to charitable causes.

The guy who got tickets from CanadInns though? He should never have bothered reporting it. It's nobody's business. It would ONLY be an issue if he was offering favor back to CanadInns because of what they gave him.

"That was not the implication."

Actually, that is entirely the implication.

We have rules against buying politicians lunch for a reason.

"Again...for the crown corporations to use taxpayer money to buy things, or political influence like these is unacceptable."

LOLOLOLOLOL... so its okay for private business to buy political influence... but not crowns?

that is quite the messed up little theory you have there.

both are equally as bad.

Lets put the water park into perspective now

5 years ago city says.. here is the RFP.. it MUST meet these guidelines, 3 bids come in, 2 are tossed for not meeting guidelines ( the developer did not own the land in that was proposed for the development)

winning bid decides not to go forward.

RFP goes out again.. SAME RULES ATTACHED. No one is particularly interested.

meanwhile
Parcel 4 is NOT listed as for sale and in fact using city land and getting a discount on the land is STRICTLY forbidden in the RFP docs.

all of a sudden.
a "plan" is walked on to EPC that has parcel 4 for sale (at a discount for almost certain given its value) has the guidelines being missed (too small of a building, developer not currently owning land, discounted land sale from city), has no details attached to it, and did not consult the area stake holders (HRM and Forks) and its jammed through the EPC approval with no concern for voter outrage.

Why? Because of a backroom deal that did not follow the proper process all to ensure that the $7 million water park promise from Sam from 5 years ago was fulfilled.


This waterpark is a perfect case of why greasing the wheel is illegal. Its a perfect case of how development should NOT happen.

Lack of leadership, corrupt, no vision, - I seem to remember these in the Winnipeg Tribune's article in 1960.

Why haven't things gotten better? lol