It’s the radio contest that has all soul! Or is it want's your soul? Chez 106 a Classic rock station in the nation’s capital has announced that its listeners can now redeem their listener points to receive absolution from an Ottawa area church.
For one million “platinum points”, the Church of St. John the Evangelist an Ottawa area Anglican church, will absolve you of your past sins, and no doubt hope that you’re not a return customer any time soon.
The Rev. Garth Bulmer of St. John's had approached the station about purchasing some advertising on the capital’s rocker, to get his flockers (and other wayward ones) to reflect on their lives a bit.
Instead, he and the promotions people at Chez came up with the concept of an absolution of the airwaves.
One assumes that the capital’s political class need not bother to apply! Heavens above, surely it will take more than 1 million platinum points for that sub class of life in Ottawa to receive absolution.
There surely are not enough points in the Chez catalogue to give them anything to clear their consciences.
Sunday, August 13, 2006
Saturday, August 12, 2006
Just Once I’d like….
So I don’t think my lotto retailer and I are on the same page these days, I specifically asked to be sold the winning ticket to tonight’s 6/49 draw.
I felt that I could make the best use out of that 42 million dollar jackpot, and well I was all set to count the money tonight. It just seemed like a perfectly sensible arrangement we had, I handed over my cash on Thursday, collected my ticket and waited for confirmation tonight.
However, it seems that my lotto retailer somehow misunderstood my instructions, as when I checked my numbers for tonight, I find that whoo heeee, I’ve won a dollar on the extra!
Now somewhere along the way, we got some zeroes misplaced here, I’m short approximately $41.999, 999.
I look forward to this oversight being addressed by my lotto retailer in a prompt fashion.
For those who still may not have checked their numbers, they’re listed here.
The Big winners came from Ontario and Quebec where four groups or people shared $10,805,586.00 each.
Damn, I had such grand plans for my money!
I felt that I could make the best use out of that 42 million dollar jackpot, and well I was all set to count the money tonight. It just seemed like a perfectly sensible arrangement we had, I handed over my cash on Thursday, collected my ticket and waited for confirmation tonight.
However, it seems that my lotto retailer somehow misunderstood my instructions, as when I checked my numbers for tonight, I find that whoo heeee, I’ve won a dollar on the extra!
Now somewhere along the way, we got some zeroes misplaced here, I’m short approximately $41.999, 999.
I look forward to this oversight being addressed by my lotto retailer in a prompt fashion.
For those who still may not have checked their numbers, they’re listed here.
The Big winners came from Ontario and Quebec where four groups or people shared $10,805,586.00 each.
Damn, I had such grand plans for my money!
Just take a hike! …. On our award winning trail!
One of Prince Rupert’s best known attractions has received a little extra publicity, giving it a step up on most of its competition across the province. The Butze Rapids trail was named as the second best trail in BC this week in a list put together by the B. C. Association of Podiatrists.
The Daily took us for a hike in its Thursday edition to explain what it is that made Butze Rapids one of the best in BC.
‘BE KIND TO YOUR FEET, GO WALK BUTZE TRAIL’
By Sarah Fox
The Daily News
Thursday, August 10, 2006
Pages One and Two
Prince Rupert’s Butze Rapids trail has been named the second best trail in B. C. in a list compiled by B. C.’s foot doctors.
The Butze Rapids trail follows a rainforest ecosystem to a viewpoint above the reversing tidal rapids. Deer, bald eagles and other local wildlife can frequently be seen along the trail.
The B. C. Association of Podiatrists say that walking is one of the most beneficial and accessible types of exercise in the world, yet many B. C. residents don’t walk enough to reap the benefits.
“It almost sounds like a late night infomercial,” said B. C. podiatrist Dr. Amarjit Masson.
“How can one simple activity melt fat, reduce the risk of cancer, hypertension, diabetes, stroke, heart disease and even alleviate conditions such as depression and stress.
“But in this case, there’s no need to reach for your credit card. Walking gives you all these benefits and it’s virtually free.”
“It’s the best thing you can do for your general well-being and the best exercise for maintaining healthy feet too.”
The B. C. Association of Podiatrists is encouraging people of every age and ability to achieve better health and quality of life by putting together a list of B. C.’s 10 most beautiful walking routes.
Podiatrists from all over the province voted for their favourite walks.
B. C. Podiatrist’s top picks for beautiful B. C. walks include.
1. Mission Creek Greenway in Kelowna
2. Butze Rapids Trail in Prince Rupert
3. Lions Gate Bridge to Stanley Park and Denmon St. in Vancouver
4. Shannon Falls and The Chief hiking trail in Squamish
5. Dikes leading to Quilchena golf course in Steveston
6. Tynehead Park in North Surrey
7. Smuggler’s Cove trail on the Sunshine coast
8. Promenade and Pier in White Rock
9. BNR Rail Trail in Nelson
10. Harold’s Park to Margaret Falls in Shuswap/Sunnybrae
B. C. Podiatrists provide the following tips to keep you walking:
1. Wear good quality, lightweight shoes.
2. Do some simple warm-up exercises.
3. Consult your family doctor before starting a walking program.
4. Start with just a 20 minute walk, three times a week.
5. Use good posture.
6. Wear socks that wick sweat away.
7. Walk on asphalt or trails instead of concrete.
8. Drink plenty of water before and after walking.
9. Walk at a steady pace.
10. Cool down and stretch after your walk.
The Daily took us for a hike in its Thursday edition to explain what it is that made Butze Rapids one of the best in BC.
‘BE KIND TO YOUR FEET, GO WALK BUTZE TRAIL’
By Sarah Fox
The Daily News
Thursday, August 10, 2006
Pages One and Two
Prince Rupert’s Butze Rapids trail has been named the second best trail in B. C. in a list compiled by B. C.’s foot doctors.
The Butze Rapids trail follows a rainforest ecosystem to a viewpoint above the reversing tidal rapids. Deer, bald eagles and other local wildlife can frequently be seen along the trail.
The B. C. Association of Podiatrists say that walking is one of the most beneficial and accessible types of exercise in the world, yet many B. C. residents don’t walk enough to reap the benefits.
“It almost sounds like a late night infomercial,” said B. C. podiatrist Dr. Amarjit Masson.
“How can one simple activity melt fat, reduce the risk of cancer, hypertension, diabetes, stroke, heart disease and even alleviate conditions such as depression and stress.
“But in this case, there’s no need to reach for your credit card. Walking gives you all these benefits and it’s virtually free.”
“It’s the best thing you can do for your general well-being and the best exercise for maintaining healthy feet too.”
The B. C. Association of Podiatrists is encouraging people of every age and ability to achieve better health and quality of life by putting together a list of B. C.’s 10 most beautiful walking routes.
Podiatrists from all over the province voted for their favourite walks.
B. C. Podiatrist’s top picks for beautiful B. C. walks include.
1. Mission Creek Greenway in Kelowna
2. Butze Rapids Trail in Prince Rupert
3. Lions Gate Bridge to Stanley Park and Denmon St. in Vancouver
4. Shannon Falls and The Chief hiking trail in Squamish
5. Dikes leading to Quilchena golf course in Steveston
6. Tynehead Park in North Surrey
7. Smuggler’s Cove trail on the Sunshine coast
8. Promenade and Pier in White Rock
9. BNR Rail Trail in Nelson
10. Harold’s Park to Margaret Falls in Shuswap/Sunnybrae
B. C. Podiatrists provide the following tips to keep you walking:
1. Wear good quality, lightweight shoes.
2. Do some simple warm-up exercises.
3. Consult your family doctor before starting a walking program.
4. Start with just a 20 minute walk, three times a week.
5. Use good posture.
6. Wear socks that wick sweat away.
7. Walk on asphalt or trails instead of concrete.
8. Drink plenty of water before and after walking.
9. Walk at a steady pace.
10. Cool down and stretch after your walk.
Friday, August 11, 2006
Closure comes closer after three years
The Daily has a front page story in its Thursday edition about the three year ordeal of Prince Rupert’s McLean’s’, who faced every parent’s horror, that of the murder of their son.
Police in Victoria recently announced that they had arrested a suspect in the three year old case and had charged a Victoria man with the murder of 29 year old Alex McLean in an Esquimalt park.
The Daily’s story traces the path that the McLean’s have followed since learning of their son’s death and how the Victoria police and RCMP combined forces to investigate the murder.
The tale of the lengthy road to what everyone hopes will be justice, can be followed below.
Long wait for justice may be nearly over
By Sarah Fox
The Daily News
Thursday, August 10, 2006
Pages One and Three
Three years after the death of their son Alex, Prince Rupert’s Gabe and Dorothy McLean are welcoming the fact that a man has been charged with their son’s murder.
“We’re happy about it, we’re glad to hear the news, it always makes you feel better when you feel like something’s being done and you’ve gotten to a point where you see the result,” said Gabe McLean.
“We’ve waited a long time, so now from the point of view of justice for my son, I’m going to wait and see how it pans out.”
Alex McLean, 29, was shot in an Esquimalt park in October 2003 and his murder is one of 42 charges four men are facing after a year-long investigation by a previously secret Greater Victoria police homicide unit.
One of the four men, Daniel Aitken, of Victoria, is charged with the first degree murder of Alex McLean.
“We’ve been through the whole process since the day our son died and after that you never get to end the process; you become attuned to it, you have your moments, you have your teary moments and your emotional moments and you have your moments where you think ‘geez I wish they’d get moving’ but now we have a moment where we can be happy,” said Gabe McLean.
“We really hope that in the future there will be justice for Alex, which is really all we want.
“We’ve put closure to the things that we need to at this point and now we’ll put closure to this phase of it when we see the final result, because we won’t know what that is until it hits the courts. It takes time.”
Investigators from Victoria and the RCMP first worked independently to solve McLean’s death, but a year ago they formed the Integrated Homicide Enforcement Action Team (IHEAT).
Existence of the 11-officer special unit was made public for the first time July 31 at a joint police news conference.
When the McLean’s first found out about their son’s death, there was no special unit in existence, although according to Gabe McLean the idea had come up when RCMP members were consulting with the family about their case. Gabe McLean immediately began a letter-writing campaign pushing for some form of joint action between the Victoria police and the RCMP in solving the death of his son.
“Initially, when the investigation started, right after Alex was murdered the police officer had talked about the resources that he had and some of the things that affect how they investigate things.
“One of the things that came up was an integrated homicide investigation team,” said Gabe McLean.
“I thought that was a really good idea and if it was going to do anything to help the case for my son then I was going to write letters, one of them was printed in the paper … and I wrote letters to the RCMP, the Attorney General, the MLA and I really hope that helped get some funding to (form IHEAT).
“What I’m hoping now is that this investigation team will stay together so that they can follow through on all these other cases because, lets face it, if people like the fellow that murdered my son are still on the street, then there are other people at risk.
“So if (IHEAT) can do something about that, that’s awesome. I actually wanted to see that province wide, and I’m really glad to hear that it was a team like that because we’re grateful to all those guys.”
The McLean’s would like to express their gratitude to City West for helping establish a confidential tip line (1-866-807-TIPS) and to all the police officers and investigators involved, for their help in apparently solving the case of their son’s death.
Police in Victoria recently announced that they had arrested a suspect in the three year old case and had charged a Victoria man with the murder of 29 year old Alex McLean in an Esquimalt park.
The Daily’s story traces the path that the McLean’s have followed since learning of their son’s death and how the Victoria police and RCMP combined forces to investigate the murder.
The tale of the lengthy road to what everyone hopes will be justice, can be followed below.
Long wait for justice may be nearly over
By Sarah Fox
The Daily News
Thursday, August 10, 2006
Pages One and Three
Three years after the death of their son Alex, Prince Rupert’s Gabe and Dorothy McLean are welcoming the fact that a man has been charged with their son’s murder.
“We’re happy about it, we’re glad to hear the news, it always makes you feel better when you feel like something’s being done and you’ve gotten to a point where you see the result,” said Gabe McLean.
“We’ve waited a long time, so now from the point of view of justice for my son, I’m going to wait and see how it pans out.”
Alex McLean, 29, was shot in an Esquimalt park in October 2003 and his murder is one of 42 charges four men are facing after a year-long investigation by a previously secret Greater Victoria police homicide unit.
One of the four men, Daniel Aitken, of Victoria, is charged with the first degree murder of Alex McLean.
“We’ve been through the whole process since the day our son died and after that you never get to end the process; you become attuned to it, you have your moments, you have your teary moments and your emotional moments and you have your moments where you think ‘geez I wish they’d get moving’ but now we have a moment where we can be happy,” said Gabe McLean.
“We really hope that in the future there will be justice for Alex, which is really all we want.
“We’ve put closure to the things that we need to at this point and now we’ll put closure to this phase of it when we see the final result, because we won’t know what that is until it hits the courts. It takes time.”
Investigators from Victoria and the RCMP first worked independently to solve McLean’s death, but a year ago they formed the Integrated Homicide Enforcement Action Team (IHEAT).
Existence of the 11-officer special unit was made public for the first time July 31 at a joint police news conference.
When the McLean’s first found out about their son’s death, there was no special unit in existence, although according to Gabe McLean the idea had come up when RCMP members were consulting with the family about their case. Gabe McLean immediately began a letter-writing campaign pushing for some form of joint action between the Victoria police and the RCMP in solving the death of his son.
“Initially, when the investigation started, right after Alex was murdered the police officer had talked about the resources that he had and some of the things that affect how they investigate things.
“One of the things that came up was an integrated homicide investigation team,” said Gabe McLean.
“I thought that was a really good idea and if it was going to do anything to help the case for my son then I was going to write letters, one of them was printed in the paper … and I wrote letters to the RCMP, the Attorney General, the MLA and I really hope that helped get some funding to (form IHEAT).
“What I’m hoping now is that this investigation team will stay together so that they can follow through on all these other cases because, lets face it, if people like the fellow that murdered my son are still on the street, then there are other people at risk.
“So if (IHEAT) can do something about that, that’s awesome. I actually wanted to see that province wide, and I’m really glad to hear that it was a team like that because we’re grateful to all those guys.”
The McLean’s would like to express their gratitude to City West for helping establish a confidential tip line (1-866-807-TIPS) and to all the police officers and investigators involved, for their help in apparently solving the case of their son’s death.
Look Up, Look way Up!
If the skies are co-operative, there should be a light show above the Northwest this weekend.
Tonight and through the weekend marks the best possible viewing time for the Perseid Meteor shower, that annual passing of the earth's atmosphere through the wandering space rocks way out there.
This year however, it may not be the best viewing available as the Moon, having just gone through it's full phase will shine it's light over the night sky, making it harder to pick out the shooting stars and tumbling space rocks (unless one of course lands in your neighborhood, which of course could make you famous some forty years later).
It's always a hit and miss proposition in Podunk when it comes to nature's light shows, more often than not the big day arrives and we're socked in with fog, drowning in rain, or just straining our eyes through layers of cloud.
And as if on cue to torment us, the Weather Network doesn't offer up the most promising of forecasts.
If you feel like a drive, Prince George has big plans for weekend, their forecast offers up better conditions by Saturday night.
Tonight and through the weekend marks the best possible viewing time for the Perseid Meteor shower, that annual passing of the earth's atmosphere through the wandering space rocks way out there.
This year however, it may not be the best viewing available as the Moon, having just gone through it's full phase will shine it's light over the night sky, making it harder to pick out the shooting stars and tumbling space rocks (unless one of course lands in your neighborhood, which of course could make you famous some forty years later).
It's always a hit and miss proposition in Podunk when it comes to nature's light shows, more often than not the big day arrives and we're socked in with fog, drowning in rain, or just straining our eyes through layers of cloud.
And as if on cue to torment us, the Weather Network doesn't offer up the most promising of forecasts.
If you feel like a drive, Prince George has big plans for weekend, their forecast offers up better conditions by Saturday night.
Two Carnivals in one year!
It’s like a reminder of the days of old, or perhaps it’s an indication that we really are heading for better times! For the first time in a number of years, Prince Rupert will be hosting its second traveling carnival in a year.
Yes, a second chance for you and your money to become separated, as we find something called Shooting Star Amusements setting up shop at the Civic Centre parking lot in mid August.
Now back in the day of endless money, we were frequently home to a spring and a summer carnival; we already had our spring affair this year when West Coast Amusements rolled through town in May. But this mid summer festival is something unexpected. It’s been a number of years and more than a few cents on a litre of gas when the carnies would make two trips to Rupert in a year.
It seems rather strange that there are two traveling carnivals in these days of ever increasing gas prices, but there it is on page 9 of the Extra, a four day festival of rides, fried foods and games of chance. Midways open at 3 pm on Thursday and Friday, Noon hour on Saturday and Sunday.
Judging by the two websites, the Shooting Star folks seem to be the junior of the circuit, there are not as many rides it would seem, but probably still enough to offer to get your young ones on your case early.
With two visits per year, suddenly it seems there must be money to be made in the traveling road shows. You can add your contribution to their bottom line from August 17 to 20, or perhaps it’s time to pack the kids off for that long put off camping vacation, saving yourself the trouble of getting tapped twice in the same year, for carnival fun.
Yes, a second chance for you and your money to become separated, as we find something called Shooting Star Amusements setting up shop at the Civic Centre parking lot in mid August.
Now back in the day of endless money, we were frequently home to a spring and a summer carnival; we already had our spring affair this year when West Coast Amusements rolled through town in May. But this mid summer festival is something unexpected. It’s been a number of years and more than a few cents on a litre of gas when the carnies would make two trips to Rupert in a year.
It seems rather strange that there are two traveling carnivals in these days of ever increasing gas prices, but there it is on page 9 of the Extra, a four day festival of rides, fried foods and games of chance. Midways open at 3 pm on Thursday and Friday, Noon hour on Saturday and Sunday.
Judging by the two websites, the Shooting Star folks seem to be the junior of the circuit, there are not as many rides it would seem, but probably still enough to offer to get your young ones on your case early.
With two visits per year, suddenly it seems there must be money to be made in the traveling road shows. You can add your contribution to their bottom line from August 17 to 20, or perhaps it’s time to pack the kids off for that long put off camping vacation, saving yourself the trouble of getting tapped twice in the same year, for carnival fun.
And we're taking back the toaster ovens too!
The terror scare out of England yesterday has led to more than one burst of hyperbole in the media, as networks, websites and such battle each other to have the hook that will keep the audience attached to their service.
Add to that mix, the never ending stream of politicians that appeared on TV yesterday to make sure they had their moment to speak out, look grave and offer courage and it was an all out, blitz of media activity. Seemingly every person possible had been interviewed by midnight, with every possible aspect of the story covered.
But by far the strangest headline I've seen thus far came from the CBC website, which provided the following story on the terror plot with an unusual angle.
Bank of England releases names of bomb plot suspects
http://www.cbc.ca/story/world/national/2006/08/10/bombing-aircraft.html
Now money, that in itself is an interesting take on the situation, but the Bank of England?
Uh, I guess each government department must pull together in times of crisis, but shouldn't the naming of the names and such belong to a law enforcement agency?
Oh, lets say Scotland Yard or MI-5 (though nobody is supposed to know who they are I guess)!
Reading the headline you would get the impression that the Bank of England is the lead investigator, holding the point on scuttling terrorists where it hurts them the most, their bank accounts.
I'm not too sure that the English people will sleep well at nights thinking that it's the bankers that are going to save the Kingdom.
Add to that mix, the never ending stream of politicians that appeared on TV yesterday to make sure they had their moment to speak out, look grave and offer courage and it was an all out, blitz of media activity. Seemingly every person possible had been interviewed by midnight, with every possible aspect of the story covered.
But by far the strangest headline I've seen thus far came from the CBC website, which provided the following story on the terror plot with an unusual angle.
Bank of England releases names of bomb plot suspects
http://www.cbc.ca/story/world/national/2006/08/10/bombing-aircraft.html
Now money, that in itself is an interesting take on the situation, but the Bank of England?
Uh, I guess each government department must pull together in times of crisis, but shouldn't the naming of the names and such belong to a law enforcement agency?
Oh, lets say Scotland Yard or MI-5 (though nobody is supposed to know who they are I guess)!
Reading the headline you would get the impression that the Bank of England is the lead investigator, holding the point on scuttling terrorists where it hurts them the most, their bank accounts.
I'm not too sure that the English people will sleep well at nights thinking that it's the bankers that are going to save the Kingdom.
Thursday, August 10, 2006
Port Edward has questions about the Great Northern Salmon Classic
While they understand why Prince Rupert is holding a fishing derby, the councillors at Port Edward council have some serious concerns about the entire project and its impact on fish stocks in the area.
It’s just the latest indication of the bad feelings from around the region, generated by the derby launched by Tourism Prince Rupert. Communities across the Northwest have expressed disappointment and concern over the tournament and its impact around the northwest. Another sticking point was the fact that the derby was centered in the Prince Rupert region, a situation that has provided for it’s own fair share of attention.
The Port Edward angle was covered on the front page of the Daily news in its Wednesday edition; we land it on your computer screens below.
Port Ed councillors attack fishing derby
By Patrick Witwicki
The Daily News
Wednesday, August 9, 2006
Page One
The District of Port Edward understands why Prince Rupert decided to hold an ongoing fishing derby to lure more tourists to the region after the sinking of the Queen of the North but that doesn’t mean they’re happy about it.
In fact, Port Ed councillors said last night they are concerned about the ramifications of how the derby may affect future coho stocks on the North Coast.
“This salmon thing, I’m not happy about it,” said Coun. Murray Kristoff at the district’s regular council meeting.
“I know they’re trying to do good with tourism, but I thought DFO (Department of Fisheries and Oceans) would have stepped in by now and put a stop to this.
Kristoff reminded council about limitations on fishing Skeena coho in effect since 1997.
“In 1997 and ’98 the (commercial fishermen) didn’t fish,” he said. “And the commercial sector to this day does not keep coho, and now they’re trying to target coho with this derby?”
Coun. James Brown agreed with Kristoff, adding that First Nation fishermen have also been limited in their coho catch in recent years.
”I have some relatives who were charged for having coho on board,” he said. “And now they’re letting this go?”
Kristoff said that this derby, long-term will simply add fuel to the fire in blaming commercial fishermen in the decline of fishing stocks.
“Four years from now, everyone’s going to forget what killed the coho, and they’re going to blame the commercial fishermen,” he said.
Kristoff added that he didn’t understand why Tourism Prince Rupert chose coho as the target.
“I work with the commercial sector and they’re not happy,” he said. “They could’ve targeted a different salmon, or held a one week derby, I’m fine with that.”
But Brown didn’t agree, pointing out that a fishing derby on such a large scale could impact fisheries in general.
“They’re catching all kinds of species out there,” he said.
Mayor Dave MacDonald said that at first, when he heard about the fishing derby idea, he supported it because the North Coast was hurting from the drop in tourism this season. But he agreed that it didn’t make sense for the main fish in question to be coho.
“When I first heard about it, I though that it was good for Rupert,” he said. “But they wouldn’t let anyone fish coho, and now they’re letting this happen? It doesn’t make sense.”
Kristoff wondered if the main reason behind DFO’s silence on the subject was because at first, they weren’t consulted.
“Then, to save face, they’ve said they’re okay with it,” he speculated. “But I want to know how this will or won’t impact the salmon stocks.”
Council then decided to contact DFO and request the situation be examined further.
The fishing derby officially got underway on August 1 and will continue until September 15, with a monetary prize of $100,000 for the biggest coho salmon caught during that time-frame.
An additional prize of $40,000 will be awarded for second place with other many other prizes also on the line.
The derby initiative was born from consultative meetings by the Northern Fund Management Committee, which was created after $450,000 was provided to the Northern Tourism Region by the provincial Ministry of Tourism, Sport and the Arts.
It’s just the latest indication of the bad feelings from around the region, generated by the derby launched by Tourism Prince Rupert. Communities across the Northwest have expressed disappointment and concern over the tournament and its impact around the northwest. Another sticking point was the fact that the derby was centered in the Prince Rupert region, a situation that has provided for it’s own fair share of attention.
The Port Edward angle was covered on the front page of the Daily news in its Wednesday edition; we land it on your computer screens below.
Port Ed councillors attack fishing derby
By Patrick Witwicki
The Daily News
Wednesday, August 9, 2006
Page One
The District of Port Edward understands why Prince Rupert decided to hold an ongoing fishing derby to lure more tourists to the region after the sinking of the Queen of the North but that doesn’t mean they’re happy about it.
In fact, Port Ed councillors said last night they are concerned about the ramifications of how the derby may affect future coho stocks on the North Coast.
“This salmon thing, I’m not happy about it,” said Coun. Murray Kristoff at the district’s regular council meeting.
“I know they’re trying to do good with tourism, but I thought DFO (Department of Fisheries and Oceans) would have stepped in by now and put a stop to this.
Kristoff reminded council about limitations on fishing Skeena coho in effect since 1997.
“In 1997 and ’98 the (commercial fishermen) didn’t fish,” he said. “And the commercial sector to this day does not keep coho, and now they’re trying to target coho with this derby?”
Coun. James Brown agreed with Kristoff, adding that First Nation fishermen have also been limited in their coho catch in recent years.
”I have some relatives who were charged for having coho on board,” he said. “And now they’re letting this go?”
Kristoff said that this derby, long-term will simply add fuel to the fire in blaming commercial fishermen in the decline of fishing stocks.
“Four years from now, everyone’s going to forget what killed the coho, and they’re going to blame the commercial fishermen,” he said.
Kristoff added that he didn’t understand why Tourism Prince Rupert chose coho as the target.
“I work with the commercial sector and they’re not happy,” he said. “They could’ve targeted a different salmon, or held a one week derby, I’m fine with that.”
But Brown didn’t agree, pointing out that a fishing derby on such a large scale could impact fisheries in general.
“They’re catching all kinds of species out there,” he said.
Mayor Dave MacDonald said that at first, when he heard about the fishing derby idea, he supported it because the North Coast was hurting from the drop in tourism this season. But he agreed that it didn’t make sense for the main fish in question to be coho.
“When I first heard about it, I though that it was good for Rupert,” he said. “But they wouldn’t let anyone fish coho, and now they’re letting this happen? It doesn’t make sense.”
Kristoff wondered if the main reason behind DFO’s silence on the subject was because at first, they weren’t consulted.
“Then, to save face, they’ve said they’re okay with it,” he speculated. “But I want to know how this will or won’t impact the salmon stocks.”
Council then decided to contact DFO and request the situation be examined further.
The fishing derby officially got underway on August 1 and will continue until September 15, with a monetary prize of $100,000 for the biggest coho salmon caught during that time-frame.
An additional prize of $40,000 will be awarded for second place with other many other prizes also on the line.
The derby initiative was born from consultative meetings by the Northern Fund Management Committee, which was created after $450,000 was provided to the Northern Tourism Region by the provincial Ministry of Tourism, Sport and the Arts.
Fishermen looking for a better deal from local processors
The annual debate over the price of fish landed at local fish plants has reached its regular breaking point, as August reaches the midway point.
Local fishermen have taken to using a petition to try and move the local processing companies closer to their view on the always contentious issue. With claims of price fixing making the rounds, countered by an explanation of the globalization of the sockeye fishery, it should prove to be a most heated exchange between the companies and those that fish for them.
The Northern View had a front page story on the issue in its August 9 edition, The Podunk provides it below.
Debate looms over pricing
By Shaun Thomas
The Northern View
Wednesday, August 9, 2006
Page one
Local fishermen have taken up a petition to try and get what they consider fair price for their catch, and Joy Thorkelson with the fishermen’s union said many feel there is more than meets the eye.
“The petition reflects the desperation fishermen are feeling and the price processors are paying. They feel that there may be price fixing going on and feel powerless,” she said, adding that current prices sit around $.20 and $1.30 for sockeye and between 10 and 20 cents a pound for pinks,
“These prices don’t reflect the market and that is why they feel there may be price fixing… Something had to be done because as the price of salmon goes up the price being paid to the people who catch them shouldn’t decrease.”
The petition, which was started by the fishermen and not the union, simply asks for fair pricing for the catch and notes that wild pacific salmon are the most sought after of fish products and in many cases the catch isn’t keeping up with the demand.
However, Ocean Fisheries’ Director of Fish Management says that is not the case.
“Unfortunately that is reflective of the current market situation. The fact is the sockeye price is driven by the Japanese market for frozen sockeye and Canadian fish had a premier position in that market.
Unfortunately we lost that position last year due to an inconsistent supply, the advent of fish farming in Japan, and the rise in supply from the Russian market. Without a consistent supply in Japanese supermarkets the market has turned to that Russian sockeye,” he said.
“B. C. are price takers in the market, as disappointing as that is to the fishermen. There is no discussion at all about setting prices, we all sell into the same market and try to be as competitive as possible… As producers we realize how disappointing it is and the world would look a whole lot brighter to us if we could pay more to the fishermen because then they are making money and we are making money.”
Thorkelson added that the union is asking the government to look into price fixing, and continuing to attempt to reach an agreement through collective bargaining.
However, she said the bargaining process is difficult due to the position of the fishermen after fighting for more openings during the commercial season.
Local fishermen have taken to using a petition to try and move the local processing companies closer to their view on the always contentious issue. With claims of price fixing making the rounds, countered by an explanation of the globalization of the sockeye fishery, it should prove to be a most heated exchange between the companies and those that fish for them.
The Northern View had a front page story on the issue in its August 9 edition, The Podunk provides it below.
Debate looms over pricing
By Shaun Thomas
The Northern View
Wednesday, August 9, 2006
Page one
Local fishermen have taken up a petition to try and get what they consider fair price for their catch, and Joy Thorkelson with the fishermen’s union said many feel there is more than meets the eye.
“The petition reflects the desperation fishermen are feeling and the price processors are paying. They feel that there may be price fixing going on and feel powerless,” she said, adding that current prices sit around $.20 and $1.30 for sockeye and between 10 and 20 cents a pound for pinks,
“These prices don’t reflect the market and that is why they feel there may be price fixing… Something had to be done because as the price of salmon goes up the price being paid to the people who catch them shouldn’t decrease.”
The petition, which was started by the fishermen and not the union, simply asks for fair pricing for the catch and notes that wild pacific salmon are the most sought after of fish products and in many cases the catch isn’t keeping up with the demand.
However, Ocean Fisheries’ Director of Fish Management says that is not the case.
“Unfortunately that is reflective of the current market situation. The fact is the sockeye price is driven by the Japanese market for frozen sockeye and Canadian fish had a premier position in that market.
Unfortunately we lost that position last year due to an inconsistent supply, the advent of fish farming in Japan, and the rise in supply from the Russian market. Without a consistent supply in Japanese supermarkets the market has turned to that Russian sockeye,” he said.
“B. C. are price takers in the market, as disappointing as that is to the fishermen. There is no discussion at all about setting prices, we all sell into the same market and try to be as competitive as possible… As producers we realize how disappointing it is and the world would look a whole lot brighter to us if we could pay more to the fishermen because then they are making money and we are making money.”
Thorkelson added that the union is asking the government to look into price fixing, and continuing to attempt to reach an agreement through collective bargaining.
However, she said the bargaining process is difficult due to the position of the fishermen after fighting for more openings during the commercial season.
Maybe you’d rather walk (or swim) today
Air Travel between Europe and North America is about to get a whole lot more complicated, thanks to today’s arrests of eighteen would be plotters to bomb trans-Atlantic flights between England and the USA.
A Breaking story out of England had the terror rating heading to critical and delays expected to be leading toward aviation chaos, as extremely strict travel guidelines were put in place to tackle a new form of terrorism previously not expected.
Flights from other European cities were being cancelled between the continent and London, as authorities tried to get a handle on what it is they are facing as far as a threat goes.
Reports from British news sources have it that liquid explosives were being planned to be put in use, to blow a number of planes out of the skies en route to America.
The initial announcement and follow up scares have begun to cause havoc with air travel between European cities and London and England and North America.
British residents hoping to catch a plane face a strict list of rules today if they wish to board a flight.
American Airline officials have become so alarmed at the developments, that the US has banned any liquids from any commercial flights and no carry on hand baggage will be allowed for those flights that manage to get take off clearance.
It’s all going to make for some pretty tense and frustrating times for the worlds travelers, as the terror fears get ratcheted up once again in our troubled little world.
A Breaking story out of England had the terror rating heading to critical and delays expected to be leading toward aviation chaos, as extremely strict travel guidelines were put in place to tackle a new form of terrorism previously not expected.
Flights from other European cities were being cancelled between the continent and London, as authorities tried to get a handle on what it is they are facing as far as a threat goes.
Reports from British news sources have it that liquid explosives were being planned to be put in use, to blow a number of planes out of the skies en route to America.
The initial announcement and follow up scares have begun to cause havoc with air travel between European cities and London and England and North America.
British residents hoping to catch a plane face a strict list of rules today if they wish to board a flight.
American Airline officials have become so alarmed at the developments, that the US has banned any liquids from any commercial flights and no carry on hand baggage will be allowed for those flights that manage to get take off clearance.
It’s all going to make for some pretty tense and frustrating times for the worlds travelers, as the terror fears get ratcheted up once again in our troubled little world.
Wednesday, August 09, 2006
Paula says we’re powerful, but others say that may not be so!!!
Alright folks, I’m flexing my blogging muscles now, Paula Zahn says that the defeat yesterday of Senator Joe Lieberman in the USA, was partially caused by bloggers. We are bloggers, hear us roar, in numbers too big to ignore!
Ir used to be that it was the Editorial board of your local major newspaper that carried the big stick and brought down the big players of political life, now it’s Joe, Bob, Sally and Sue and their lap tops and Dell computers (sorry Acer only one plug per entry) who hold the power.
The Blog effect examined the impact that blogs have had on American politics, and they described how the liberal anti-war movement in the USA, galvanized on the blogs to bring Ned Lamont to victory and sending Joe Lieberman off to the land of the Independents.
Michael Moore who has become the poster boy for multi media citizen participation from the left, fired a warning shot across the brow of another high profile Democrat, one which many in that party feels has fallen off the path of the righteous. Moore suggests that Hillary Clinton had best change her ways, lest she follow the Senator from Connecticut off into some form of the Democratic circles of hell.
A hell, which apparently comes complete with liberal dashes of blogs to read.
The bloggers are warming up their typing fingers and scarcastic barbs as I write this.
But far beyond the idea that simple bloggers, in a world now chock a block full of blogs, can have that much impact on a political race (personally I think one episode of the Daily Show can do more to kill someone’s political hopes than all the blogs combined) is a much more important question that must be answered.
Are male bloggers between the ages of 30-55 shiftless, lazy and unemployable?
This is the burning question that has come to the blogging forefront through the CBS webpage.
Below is the entire conversation among the blogging set, as they debate the worth of those male drop outs from society’s daily grind.
Are There Men In Your Office?
One of the most blogged stories on the New York Times website since it was first published last week is about the rise of voluntary unemployment among men. Men between the ages of 30 and 54 are voluntarily dropping out of work, the New York Times reports, unable to find jobs that interest them. According to the newspaper, about 10 percent of men in this age group—or about 3 million workers—are out of work and not looking for jobs.
And, apparently, some of them are bloggers.
"I am the poster child for this story. I am 44 years old and have not had a steady full time job in 2 1/2 years. Not because I don’t want to work, but because there is no longer the fulltime decent paying, job with medical benefits available anymore," blogs The Hollywood Liberal, a man in the film industry. "This was never what I wanted."
Some bloggers sympathize with the unemployed men. "The men in the article aren't slothful or complacent; they are teaching at community colleges, volunteering in their communities, learning musical instruments, delving into historical debates on Charlemagne, trying their hand at writing novels. They're leading full and healthy lives; they're just not making much money," Ben Brothers blogs.
But some bloggers have little empathy for the unproductive. "Unproductive slobs. Dragging the rest of society down with their non-working sloth. Get to work at Home Depot or something...," The Poverty Jet Set writes.
Senacle agrees. "I'm inclined to think of these men as shiftless and lazy but the reality is -- well, OK, they are just that. These days, we can't afford for anyone to be taking prolonged timeouts," he blogs. And John asks simply, "How did things go so wrong?," echoing a popular sentiment among fellow bloggers.
How does this trend impact women, some bloggers questioned. "I am seeing this in my own life and with many of my friends. An increasing number of young women like myself are the primary breadwinners, which is no problem, except for the fact that we end up working full time, doing most of the housework, kin work, consumption work, and care work," Rachel writes at Rachel's Tavern. "In fact, the article notes that many men who are out of the labor force are not raising kids, which significantly contrasts them with unemployed single women."
Perhaps it's a cautionary tale for future generations. "This is looking to me like a lost generation (or two) of men who were trained by our educational system to think in terms of 'jobs' and, when the changing economy pulled that rug out from under them, they could not adapt," a blogger at The Microenterprise Journal writes. "I hope we do better by the kids who are in school now." "Nobody is safe from the forces of globalization," Kenyanentrepreneur writes.
Others issued a call to action. "Somehow we must find ways to bring back these men into society’s fold, so that they can become productive citizens again," a blogger at Total Trust writes.
So, never mind the political power of the blog; it’s all about social empowerment now I guess, a sense of worth and accomplishment.
If those critical blogger are correct, it’s going to be a long hard blog for men! They are but a lost generation; one lost in cyberspace, painfully blogging our commentaries to an increasingly uncaring and mocking audience.
Oh the pain of it all!
Ir used to be that it was the Editorial board of your local major newspaper that carried the big stick and brought down the big players of political life, now it’s Joe, Bob, Sally and Sue and their lap tops and Dell computers (sorry Acer only one plug per entry) who hold the power.
The Blog effect examined the impact that blogs have had on American politics, and they described how the liberal anti-war movement in the USA, galvanized on the blogs to bring Ned Lamont to victory and sending Joe Lieberman off to the land of the Independents.
Michael Moore who has become the poster boy for multi media citizen participation from the left, fired a warning shot across the brow of another high profile Democrat, one which many in that party feels has fallen off the path of the righteous. Moore suggests that Hillary Clinton had best change her ways, lest she follow the Senator from Connecticut off into some form of the Democratic circles of hell.
A hell, which apparently comes complete with liberal dashes of blogs to read.
The bloggers are warming up their typing fingers and scarcastic barbs as I write this.
But far beyond the idea that simple bloggers, in a world now chock a block full of blogs, can have that much impact on a political race (personally I think one episode of the Daily Show can do more to kill someone’s political hopes than all the blogs combined) is a much more important question that must be answered.
Are male bloggers between the ages of 30-55 shiftless, lazy and unemployable?
This is the burning question that has come to the blogging forefront through the CBS webpage.
Below is the entire conversation among the blogging set, as they debate the worth of those male drop outs from society’s daily grind.
Are There Men In Your Office?
One of the most blogged stories on the New York Times website since it was first published last week is about the rise of voluntary unemployment among men. Men between the ages of 30 and 54 are voluntarily dropping out of work, the New York Times reports, unable to find jobs that interest them. According to the newspaper, about 10 percent of men in this age group—or about 3 million workers—are out of work and not looking for jobs.
And, apparently, some of them are bloggers.
"I am the poster child for this story. I am 44 years old and have not had a steady full time job in 2 1/2 years. Not because I don’t want to work, but because there is no longer the fulltime decent paying, job with medical benefits available anymore," blogs The Hollywood Liberal, a man in the film industry. "This was never what I wanted."
Some bloggers sympathize with the unemployed men. "The men in the article aren't slothful or complacent; they are teaching at community colleges, volunteering in their communities, learning musical instruments, delving into historical debates on Charlemagne, trying their hand at writing novels. They're leading full and healthy lives; they're just not making much money," Ben Brothers blogs.
But some bloggers have little empathy for the unproductive. "Unproductive slobs. Dragging the rest of society down with their non-working sloth. Get to work at Home Depot or something...," The Poverty Jet Set writes.
Senacle agrees. "I'm inclined to think of these men as shiftless and lazy but the reality is -- well, OK, they are just that. These days, we can't afford for anyone to be taking prolonged timeouts," he blogs. And John asks simply, "How did things go so wrong?," echoing a popular sentiment among fellow bloggers.
How does this trend impact women, some bloggers questioned. "I am seeing this in my own life and with many of my friends. An increasing number of young women like myself are the primary breadwinners, which is no problem, except for the fact that we end up working full time, doing most of the housework, kin work, consumption work, and care work," Rachel writes at Rachel's Tavern. "In fact, the article notes that many men who are out of the labor force are not raising kids, which significantly contrasts them with unemployed single women."
Perhaps it's a cautionary tale for future generations. "This is looking to me like a lost generation (or two) of men who were trained by our educational system to think in terms of 'jobs' and, when the changing economy pulled that rug out from under them, they could not adapt," a blogger at The Microenterprise Journal writes. "I hope we do better by the kids who are in school now." "Nobody is safe from the forces of globalization," Kenyanentrepreneur writes.
Others issued a call to action. "Somehow we must find ways to bring back these men into society’s fold, so that they can become productive citizens again," a blogger at Total Trust writes.
So, never mind the political power of the blog; it’s all about social empowerment now I guess, a sense of worth and accomplishment.
If those critical blogger are correct, it’s going to be a long hard blog for men! They are but a lost generation; one lost in cyberspace, painfully blogging our commentaries to an increasingly uncaring and mocking audience.
Oh the pain of it all!
Kitimat takes the lead in the great LNG race!
Kitimat’s LNG project received a major boost last week, as Environment Canada gave the federal governments approval on the much discussed regasification plant and shipment terminal planned for Beese Cove .
The approval from Environment Canada was the last hurdle of the approval phase, but it doesn’t necessarily mean that there will be a burst of construction activity in the next few months.
The planners of the Kitimat LNG project, exepct to begin their preliminary work in the next few months, with construction expected to begin in the new year.
Prince Rupert is also being considered for an LNG project, though it’s plans seem a little further down the road to development than the Kitimat project at the moment.
The Northern Sentinel has the details from a Kitimat perspective in the story below.
Environment Canada green lights Kitimat LNG
Northern Sentinel
August 9, 2006
Kitimat LNG has cleared the final hurdle of the approval phase.
Federal Environment minister Rona Ambrose gave the project the final green light on Tuesday, August 1.
“We are thrilled to death,” said KLNG director of communications and consultation Patti Schom-Moffat. “We had every confidence it was coming though.”
The reason the company felt confident was that the federal and provincial environmental assessment agencies had worked closely on this project, Schom-Moffat explained.
Provincial approval had already been granted on June 6.
Schom-Moffat admitted that she thought the time between announcements would be shorter.
“It did seem to us that it was longer than it needed to be, but we are just happy to have the approval,” she added.
During the approval process Haisla, provincial and federal endorsements were necessary for the survival of the project, she explained.
With all three now secured, agreements with suppliers and buyers can be finalized.
But Schom-Moffat pointed out it usually takes the better part of a year to work out an agreement with a supplier.
In fact, in order to get a jump on the competition, KLNG began courting both suppliers and buyers months ago.
On June 25 KLNG executives brought 38 perspective partners from around the world to the proposed site at Beese Cove to showcase the benefits of the location.
“I think we’ve got a very strong argument that Kitimat is the gateway to the North American market and the Alberta oil fields,” Schom-Moffat emphasized.
Despite the fact the project is currently running six months behind the original schedule, it is still the LNG project closest to becoming a reality on the west coast of North America.
“If you look at the map, it is absolutely pimpled with proposed LNG projects,” Schom-Moffat said. “It’s a race and, while we didn’t come in as early as we would have liked to, we’re still first.”
Rival LNG projects include Westpac in Prince Rupert and Bradwood Landing near Knappa Oregon.
Westpac is projected to start operations in 2011 and Bradwood Landing in 2010.
KLNG is scheduled to come on-line in 2009.
As for construction, Schom-Moffat said not to expect a flurry of activity right away. Next month a temporary dock will be installed at Beese Cove so the materials and equipment needed to build the regasification plant can be brought to the site.
Site preparation will take place in the fall with construction expected to start in the New Year.
The approval from Environment Canada was the last hurdle of the approval phase, but it doesn’t necessarily mean that there will be a burst of construction activity in the next few months.
The planners of the Kitimat LNG project, exepct to begin their preliminary work in the next few months, with construction expected to begin in the new year.
Prince Rupert is also being considered for an LNG project, though it’s plans seem a little further down the road to development than the Kitimat project at the moment.
The Northern Sentinel has the details from a Kitimat perspective in the story below.
Environment Canada green lights Kitimat LNG
Northern Sentinel
August 9, 2006
Kitimat LNG has cleared the final hurdle of the approval phase.
Federal Environment minister Rona Ambrose gave the project the final green light on Tuesday, August 1.
“We are thrilled to death,” said KLNG director of communications and consultation Patti Schom-Moffat. “We had every confidence it was coming though.”
The reason the company felt confident was that the federal and provincial environmental assessment agencies had worked closely on this project, Schom-Moffat explained.
Provincial approval had already been granted on June 6.
Schom-Moffat admitted that she thought the time between announcements would be shorter.
“It did seem to us that it was longer than it needed to be, but we are just happy to have the approval,” she added.
During the approval process Haisla, provincial and federal endorsements were necessary for the survival of the project, she explained.
With all three now secured, agreements with suppliers and buyers can be finalized.
But Schom-Moffat pointed out it usually takes the better part of a year to work out an agreement with a supplier.
In fact, in order to get a jump on the competition, KLNG began courting both suppliers and buyers months ago.
On June 25 KLNG executives brought 38 perspective partners from around the world to the proposed site at Beese Cove to showcase the benefits of the location.
“I think we’ve got a very strong argument that Kitimat is the gateway to the North American market and the Alberta oil fields,” Schom-Moffat emphasized.
Despite the fact the project is currently running six months behind the original schedule, it is still the LNG project closest to becoming a reality on the west coast of North America.
“If you look at the map, it is absolutely pimpled with proposed LNG projects,” Schom-Moffat said. “It’s a race and, while we didn’t come in as early as we would have liked to, we’re still first.”
Rival LNG projects include Westpac in Prince Rupert and Bradwood Landing near Knappa Oregon.
Westpac is projected to start operations in 2011 and Bradwood Landing in 2010.
KLNG is scheduled to come on-line in 2009.
As for construction, Schom-Moffat said not to expect a flurry of activity right away. Next month a temporary dock will be installed at Beese Cove so the materials and equipment needed to build the regasification plant can be brought to the site.
Site preparation will take place in the fall with construction expected to start in the New Year.
Bad Boys, Bad Boys, Whatcha gonna do, maybe, maybe, maybe they’ll come for you! Rupert breaks top 10 in crime.
Criminal activity in Prince Rupert has increased ever so slightly in the last 365 days, but still enough to move the city into the top ten of the 2006 Municipal Crime Rate Report. It’s a report that makes for a rather controversial bit of data collection and one that has more than a few critics.
Many suggest that by just using each municipality as a core group area, the numbers get skewered by those that visit the core city or those that live just outside of it’s municipal boundaries. Better yet to use Municipal case load reports, which suggest that with staffing levels as they are, each city Mountie has 104 cases to work on during the course of a year.
Combine all the criminal statistics with the reduction of police services to the area, due to budgetary troubles and as well as the actual change in the make up of the force, and well, whatcha gonna do! Maybe buy an extra lock or two!
Regardless, crime is crime we guess, Rupert reports a total of 204 criminal code offences per 1,000 residents, up 2 offences from last years stats. Still we are far from claiming the top prize, that less than wanted title goes to Smithers which recorded a rate of 301 criminal code offences per 1,000 residents (obviously it’s those crazy skiers that are causing all the trouble eh!).
The Daily News had full details in the crime wave in its Tuesday edition provided below, break out your calculators and start crunching those numbers, before those numbers start crunching you!
CRIME CONTINUES TO PLAGUE THE NORTHWEST
By James Vassallo
The Daily News
Tuesday, August 9, 2006
Page One
Prince Rupert has cracked the Top 10 for the highest crime rates in the province. After coming in 11th last year, Rupert climbed to a tie for ninth in the 2006 Municipal Crime Rate Report with 204 criminal code offences (excluding traffic) per 1,000 residents. Last year, the city had a rate of 202 offences per 1,000 residents.
For the fourth consecutive year, the dubious honour of top spot went to Smithers with a rate of 301 criminal code offences per 1.000 residents, an increase over last year’s 277 offences. Williams Lake held steady at the number two spot, but had less offences overall dropping to 252 from 275 offences per 1,000 residents. Quesnel held at number three, but also dropped from 263 offences to 237, while Fort St. John (fifth last year) and Merrit (sixth last year) tied for fourth at 278 offences. Dawson Creek had their crime rate decrease but still moved up in the ranking from seventh in 2005 to sixth with 225 offences. Port Alberni jumped from 13th last year to seventh in 2006 with 210 offences per 1,000 residents. Terrace moved from 12th last year to eight with 206 offences, an increase from 198, and Squamish tied Rupert for ninth.
In terms of criminal code offences – including property and violent crime – the only comparable sized town to Prince Rupert (official population 14,974) that had more offences was Squamish. Rupert’s 3,060 criminal code offences was significantly larger than Powell River’s 1,581, Pitt Meadows 1,686 and Salmon Arm’s 1,750.
According to the Ministry of Public Safety and Solicitor General’s Police Services Division a high crime rat indicates that a municipality is a “core” city or tourist destination. Core cities are those which are the business or entertainment centres for a larger number of people who reside outside of as well as in the municipality. As crime rates are based on resident populations- populations which exclude, commuters, tourists, students and other “part-time’ residents – core cities and tourist destinations often have higher than average crime rates. If core cities included other populated areas outside of their boundaries, or if tourist communities included “part-time” residents in their population bases, crime rates would be lower.
What is believed to be a better barometer of demand for police services is the Municipal case load burden, the number of files each officer in a detachment has to work. For Prince Rupert, a caseload of 85 files per officer puts the community tied for 45 in the province.
However, the number is based on the official Rupert deployment of 36.
Due to city cutbacks there are presently only 28 active duty officers, upping the caseload for Rupert officers to 104 each, slightly higher than the provincial average for a Mountie of 102.
The highest case loads per officer are found in Smithers, Parksville, Fort St. John, Courtenay, Chilliwack, Campbell River, Merrit, Pentiction, Williams Lake and Squamish.
The Ministry notes that the data can show crime trends in a community but can not predict the overall safety level of any.
Many suggest that by just using each municipality as a core group area, the numbers get skewered by those that visit the core city or those that live just outside of it’s municipal boundaries. Better yet to use Municipal case load reports, which suggest that with staffing levels as they are, each city Mountie has 104 cases to work on during the course of a year.
Combine all the criminal statistics with the reduction of police services to the area, due to budgetary troubles and as well as the actual change in the make up of the force, and well, whatcha gonna do! Maybe buy an extra lock or two!
Regardless, crime is crime we guess, Rupert reports a total of 204 criminal code offences per 1,000 residents, up 2 offences from last years stats. Still we are far from claiming the top prize, that less than wanted title goes to Smithers which recorded a rate of 301 criminal code offences per 1,000 residents (obviously it’s those crazy skiers that are causing all the trouble eh!).
The Daily News had full details in the crime wave in its Tuesday edition provided below, break out your calculators and start crunching those numbers, before those numbers start crunching you!
CRIME CONTINUES TO PLAGUE THE NORTHWEST
By James Vassallo
The Daily News
Tuesday, August 9, 2006
Page One
Prince Rupert has cracked the Top 10 for the highest crime rates in the province. After coming in 11th last year, Rupert climbed to a tie for ninth in the 2006 Municipal Crime Rate Report with 204 criminal code offences (excluding traffic) per 1,000 residents. Last year, the city had a rate of 202 offences per 1,000 residents.
For the fourth consecutive year, the dubious honour of top spot went to Smithers with a rate of 301 criminal code offences per 1.000 residents, an increase over last year’s 277 offences. Williams Lake held steady at the number two spot, but had less offences overall dropping to 252 from 275 offences per 1,000 residents. Quesnel held at number three, but also dropped from 263 offences to 237, while Fort St. John (fifth last year) and Merrit (sixth last year) tied for fourth at 278 offences. Dawson Creek had their crime rate decrease but still moved up in the ranking from seventh in 2005 to sixth with 225 offences. Port Alberni jumped from 13th last year to seventh in 2006 with 210 offences per 1,000 residents. Terrace moved from 12th last year to eight with 206 offences, an increase from 198, and Squamish tied Rupert for ninth.
In terms of criminal code offences – including property and violent crime – the only comparable sized town to Prince Rupert (official population 14,974) that had more offences was Squamish. Rupert’s 3,060 criminal code offences was significantly larger than Powell River’s 1,581, Pitt Meadows 1,686 and Salmon Arm’s 1,750.
According to the Ministry of Public Safety and Solicitor General’s Police Services Division a high crime rat indicates that a municipality is a “core” city or tourist destination. Core cities are those which are the business or entertainment centres for a larger number of people who reside outside of as well as in the municipality. As crime rates are based on resident populations- populations which exclude, commuters, tourists, students and other “part-time’ residents – core cities and tourist destinations often have higher than average crime rates. If core cities included other populated areas outside of their boundaries, or if tourist communities included “part-time” residents in their population bases, crime rates would be lower.
What is believed to be a better barometer of demand for police services is the Municipal case load burden, the number of files each officer in a detachment has to work. For Prince Rupert, a caseload of 85 files per officer puts the community tied for 45 in the province.
However, the number is based on the official Rupert deployment of 36.
Due to city cutbacks there are presently only 28 active duty officers, upping the caseload for Rupert officers to 104 each, slightly higher than the provincial average for a Mountie of 102.
The highest case loads per officer are found in Smithers, Parksville, Fort St. John, Courtenay, Chilliwack, Campbell River, Merrit, Pentiction, Williams Lake and Squamish.
The Ministry notes that the data can show crime trends in a community but can not predict the overall safety level of any.
Pictures of Podunk: Kasiks River, a bridge and a mountain or two
Well if we can't have the real thing, we'll look back at a sunny day from the past. A picture of the Kasiks river bridge with the mountains in the background.Parsing those Presidential Press Conferences
Slate's Fred Kaplan does a fascinating job of interpreting Monday's Presidential Press Conference. That pitch and catch session between George Bush, Condi Rice and the Presidential traveling press gallery left more than a few observers wondering what it was that was said, what it meant and if it made any difference anyways!
Never it seems at his best in a press conference situation, President Bush didn't exactly leave his nation (or the world for that matter) with a clear indication as to where he thought the hot topic of the day (that war between Israel and Hezbollah) was going to lead us all to.
In fact he seemed to get himself off topic from time to time, leaving it up to the Secretary of State to come in and try to steer the press (and the public watching on TV) back onto the path that the administration was heading towards.
For those that missed the actual broadcast, Kaplan fills in the blanks and offers his analysis of the Five W's of Presidential press coverage.
Never it seems at his best in a press conference situation, President Bush didn't exactly leave his nation (or the world for that matter) with a clear indication as to where he thought the hot topic of the day (that war between Israel and Hezbollah) was going to lead us all to.
In fact he seemed to get himself off topic from time to time, leaving it up to the Secretary of State to come in and try to steer the press (and the public watching on TV) back onto the path that the administration was heading towards.
For those that missed the actual broadcast, Kaplan fills in the blanks and offers his analysis of the Five W's of Presidential press coverage.
We get mail: Mocking the Engineers
We've cleaned out our in box and found some interesting chuckles at the expense of those that chose engineering as the path to follow.
Understanding Engineers: One
Two engineering students, one pushing a bike, were walking across a
university campus when the other said, "Where did you get such a
great bike?"
The second engineer replied, "Well, I was walking along yesterday,
minding my own business, when a beautiful woman rode up on this bike,
threw it to the ground, took off all her clothes and said, "Take what
you want."
The first engineer nodded approvingly and said, "Good choice; the
clothes probably wouldn't have fit you anyway."
Understanding Engineers: Two
To the optimist, the glass is half full. To the pessimist, the glass
is half empty. To the engineer, the glass is twice as big as it
needs to be.
Understanding Engineers: Three
A priest, a doctor, and an engineer were waiting one morning for a
particularly slow group of golfers.
The engineer fumed, "What's with those guys? We must have been
waiting for fifteen minutes!"
The doctor chimed in, "I don't know, but I've never seen such inept
golf!"
The priest said, "Here comes the greens-keeper. Let's have a word
with him." He said, "Hello George, what's wrong with that group
ahead of us? They're rather slow, aren't they?"
he greens-keeper replied, "Oh, yes. That's a group of blind firemen.
They lost their sight saving our clubhouse from a fire last year, so
we always let them play for free anytime."
The group fell silent for a moment. The priest said, "That's so sad.
I think I will say a special prayer for them tonight."
The doctor said, "Good idea. I'm going to contact my ophthalmologist
colleague and see if there's anything he can do for them."
The engineer said, "Why can't they play at night?"
Understanding Engineers: Four
What is the difference between mechanical engineers and civil engineers?
Mechanical engineers build weapons and civil engineers build targets.
Understanding Engineers: Five
The graduate with a science degree asks, "Why does it work?"
The graduate with an engineering degree asks, "How does it work?"
The graduate with an accounting degree asks, "How much will it cost?"
The graduate with an arts degree asks, "Do you want fries with that?"
Understanding Engineers: Six
Three engineering students were gathered together discussing who must
have designed the human body.
One said, "It was a mechanical engineer. Just look at all the joints."
Another said, "No, it was an electrical engineer. The nervous system
has many thousands of electrical connections."
The last one said, "No, actually it had to have been a civil
engineer. Who else would run a toxic waste pipeline through a
recreational area?"
Understanding Engineers: Seven
Normal people believe that if it ain't broke, don't fix it.
Engineers believe that if it ain't broke, it doesn't have enough
features yet.
Understanding Engineers: Eight
An engineer was crossing the road one day, when a frog called out to
him and said, "If you kiss me I'll turn back into a beautiful
princess." He bent over, picked up the frog and put it in his pocket.
The frog spoke up again and said "If you kiss me I'll turn back into
a beautiful princess and stay with you for a week."
The engineer took the frog out of his pocket, smiled at it and
returned it to his pocket. The frog then cried out, "If you kiss me
I'll turn back into a beautiful princess and stay with you for a week
and do ANYTHING you want me to." Again the engineer took the frog out
of his pocket, smiled at it and returned it to his pocket.
Finally the frog asked, "What's the matter? I've told you I'm a
beautiful princess and that I'll stay with you for a week and do
ANYTHING you want me to. Why won't you kiss me?"
The engineer said, "Look, I'm an engineer. I don't have time for a
girlfriend, but a talking frog, now that's cool!"
Understanding Engineers: One
Two engineering students, one pushing a bike, were walking across a
university campus when the other said, "Where did you get such a
great bike?"
The second engineer replied, "Well, I was walking along yesterday,
minding my own business, when a beautiful woman rode up on this bike,
threw it to the ground, took off all her clothes and said, "Take what
you want."
The first engineer nodded approvingly and said, "Good choice; the
clothes probably wouldn't have fit you anyway."
Understanding Engineers: Two
To the optimist, the glass is half full. To the pessimist, the glass
is half empty. To the engineer, the glass is twice as big as it
needs to be.
Understanding Engineers: Three
A priest, a doctor, and an engineer were waiting one morning for a
particularly slow group of golfers.
The engineer fumed, "What's with those guys? We must have been
waiting for fifteen minutes!"
The doctor chimed in, "I don't know, but I've never seen such inept
golf!"
The priest said, "Here comes the greens-keeper. Let's have a word
with him." He said, "Hello George, what's wrong with that group
ahead of us? They're rather slow, aren't they?"
he greens-keeper replied, "Oh, yes. That's a group of blind firemen.
They lost their sight saving our clubhouse from a fire last year, so
we always let them play for free anytime."
The group fell silent for a moment. The priest said, "That's so sad.
I think I will say a special prayer for them tonight."
The doctor said, "Good idea. I'm going to contact my ophthalmologist
colleague and see if there's anything he can do for them."
The engineer said, "Why can't they play at night?"
Understanding Engineers: Four
What is the difference between mechanical engineers and civil engineers?
Mechanical engineers build weapons and civil engineers build targets.
Understanding Engineers: Five
The graduate with a science degree asks, "Why does it work?"
The graduate with an engineering degree asks, "How does it work?"
The graduate with an accounting degree asks, "How much will it cost?"
The graduate with an arts degree asks, "Do you want fries with that?"
Understanding Engineers: Six
Three engineering students were gathered together discussing who must
have designed the human body.
One said, "It was a mechanical engineer. Just look at all the joints."
Another said, "No, it was an electrical engineer. The nervous system
has many thousands of electrical connections."
The last one said, "No, actually it had to have been a civil
engineer. Who else would run a toxic waste pipeline through a
recreational area?"
Understanding Engineers: Seven
Normal people believe that if it ain't broke, don't fix it.
Engineers believe that if it ain't broke, it doesn't have enough
features yet.
Understanding Engineers: Eight
An engineer was crossing the road one day, when a frog called out to
him and said, "If you kiss me I'll turn back into a beautiful
princess." He bent over, picked up the frog and put it in his pocket.
The frog spoke up again and said "If you kiss me I'll turn back into
a beautiful princess and stay with you for a week."
The engineer took the frog out of his pocket, smiled at it and
returned it to his pocket. The frog then cried out, "If you kiss me
I'll turn back into a beautiful princess and stay with you for a week
and do ANYTHING you want me to." Again the engineer took the frog out
of his pocket, smiled at it and returned it to his pocket.
Finally the frog asked, "What's the matter? I've told you I'm a
beautiful princess and that I'll stay with you for a week and do
ANYTHING you want me to. Why won't you kiss me?"
The engineer said, "Look, I'm an engineer. I don't have time for a
girlfriend, but a talking frog, now that's cool!"
Tuesday, August 08, 2006
"I've been drivin' all night, my hand's wet on the wheel"
Those are the opening lines to what many believe to be one of the greatest driving songs ever played on a car radio. But yet, in a Canadian survey released today, Golden Earring just didn’t make the cut, nor did many others which you would think would be a natural when it comes to summer driving and rock and roll.
A panel of music journalists has made their deliberations in the Pontiac Rhythm of the road competition. And when the pedal hits the metal, it’s Bryan Adams that apparently gets our motors running.
The Globe and Mail ran a complete story on the music competition on today’s website, including some interesting statistics about our habits behind the wheel. Did you know that BC residents are most likely to be caught singing while driving down the road? Guess that explains the whole Adams experience.
Adam’s 1984 hit, Summer of 69, was selected as the ultimate car song, edging out the other short listed six of Queen with Bohemian Rhapsody, Steppenwolf and Born to Be Wild, The Rolling Stones with it’s only Rock and Roll, Drive my Car by the Beatles, Tom Petty’s Free Falling and of course the monster hit by Holland’s Golden Earring.
Lists of these kinds will always spur on debate, which is no doubt the purpose of the bit of summer fun from Pontiac. And certainly there are questions about some serious absences on the list of road tune masters, No Tom Cochrane’s Life is a Highway? Where is AC/DC's Highway to Hell, Mellencamp's Jack and Diane or Bruce Springsteen’s Born to Run? What’s the matter with you Canada, you leave the volume up too loud, damaging your ears or something?
Adams is an ok choice, I’ve always liked his stuff. Though I'm not even sure that Summer was his best ever work. But for highway cruising I would politely suggest that he’s not quite in the realm of the master.
For me, you put me in a car, on a nice sunny day and it’s gotta be the Boss! There are any number of Springsteen songs that just were made for the car. From the above mentioned Born To Run, through Thunder Road, Badlands, Cadillac Ranch and dozens (hell maybe hundreds) of other great songs, Springsteen and cars were made for each other.
We should demand a judicial recount, clearly Canadians need to get out on the road more often and expand their musical education. There’s a bounty of rockin’ road songs just waiting to be blared out from the speakers.
A panel of music journalists has made their deliberations in the Pontiac Rhythm of the road competition. And when the pedal hits the metal, it’s Bryan Adams that apparently gets our motors running.
The Globe and Mail ran a complete story on the music competition on today’s website, including some interesting statistics about our habits behind the wheel. Did you know that BC residents are most likely to be caught singing while driving down the road? Guess that explains the whole Adams experience.
Adam’s 1984 hit, Summer of 69, was selected as the ultimate car song, edging out the other short listed six of Queen with Bohemian Rhapsody, Steppenwolf and Born to Be Wild, The Rolling Stones with it’s only Rock and Roll, Drive my Car by the Beatles, Tom Petty’s Free Falling and of course the monster hit by Holland’s Golden Earring.
Lists of these kinds will always spur on debate, which is no doubt the purpose of the bit of summer fun from Pontiac. And certainly there are questions about some serious absences on the list of road tune masters, No Tom Cochrane’s Life is a Highway? Where is AC/DC's Highway to Hell, Mellencamp's Jack and Diane or Bruce Springsteen’s Born to Run? What’s the matter with you Canada, you leave the volume up too loud, damaging your ears or something?
Adams is an ok choice, I’ve always liked his stuff. Though I'm not even sure that Summer was his best ever work. But for highway cruising I would politely suggest that he’s not quite in the realm of the master.
For me, you put me in a car, on a nice sunny day and it’s gotta be the Boss! There are any number of Springsteen songs that just were made for the car. From the above mentioned Born To Run, through Thunder Road, Badlands, Cadillac Ranch and dozens (hell maybe hundreds) of other great songs, Springsteen and cars were made for each other.
We should demand a judicial recount, clearly Canadians need to get out on the road more often and expand their musical education. There’s a bounty of rockin’ road songs just waiting to be blared out from the speakers.
Sun Wave plans for Watson Island could be affected by Terrace Lumber closing
Last week it seemed that the pulp world was bouncing back, a story from the Vancouver Sun had the pulp and paper industry looking forward to the immediate future, with higher prices and better profits forecast for the short term. A situation that one would have though would bode well for a start up of the dormant Watson Island pulp mill.
However, optimism it seems isn’t the case locally, in a front page story in today’s Daily News; the word out of Terrace about the closure in June of the Terrace Lumber Company is causing some serious ripples in Prince Rupert. The prospect of the sawmill remaining shut down is putting the restart plans for Watson Island into question as the owners from Sun Wave ponder the logistics of running a pulp mill without a stable and reliable supply of timber for the operation.
With the latest rescue plan, hopes that Sun Wave would purchase the saw mill seemingly being dashed, the owners in Terrace have gone a long way from the optimism at the time of the re-opening, to the state of closure that the mill sits under today.
The owners have now begun the lobbying for governmental relief to make the cost of running a sawmill more manageable in the Northwest. Without that relief from the government, some suggest that there is some serious doubt as to the viability of running the sawmill, a situation that could have a domino effect felt all the way to Prince Rupert.
The entire story is provided below.
SHUTDOWN MAY HURT MILL CLOSER TO HOME
By Leanne Ritchie
The Daily News
Tuesday, August 8, 2006
Page One
Any closure of the Terrace Lumber Company could potentially be a problem for restart plans of Sun Wave Forest Products’ Watson Island pulp mill, said Bill Belsey of Points North Consulting.
Belsey, who has been hired by Sun Wave to oversee the day-to-day operations of the mill while Sun Wave seeks start up financing, explained that the Terrace sawmill and its associated forest licence were taken into account by Sun Wave in its fibre supply plan.
“The sources of fibre that can be found in the area are generally decadent,” said Belsey, pointing to the high content of pulp in the timber profile.
“Historically, you need both a sawmill and pulp mill to make both industries feasible. When you lose one, it makes the difficult to run the other.”
The Terrace Lumber Company sawmill and Sun Wave ‘s Watson Island pulp mill have historically been owned by the same company – Skeena Cellulose up until 2001, and following that New Skeena Forest Products, although the company was never able to find start-up financing and went bankrupt.
Since then, the assets have been split apart, with the pulp mill and Carnaby land and forest licence purchased by Sun Wave Forest Products earlier this year, the Terrace – based sawmill purchased by a group of Terrace based business people back with a loan from the City of Terrace in the summer of 2005, and Tree Farm Licence one, the largest fibre holding of the company, sold to Coast Tsmishian, a company owned by the Lax Kw’alaams band, also in the summer of 2005.
However, in June, the Terrace Lumber Company closed down because of low lumber prices, the high Canadian dollar, the cost of the softwood lumber tariffs and the high cost of operating in the region.
They are hoping to find and investor to provide them with the equity to hold on until lumber markets improve and they can restart operations.
The mill in Terrace was employing 70 directly, not including contractors working in the woods.
“It (the potential closure) could have an impact on the pulp mill because part of our fibre supply took account of the sawmill and forest licence. How we overcome that would depend on if someone buys it and restarts it or whether other sources of fibre can be found in the general area,” he said. Sun Wave was approached to buy the sawmill, however those talks have not gone anywhere.
In an interview with the Daily News, John Ryan, chair of the TLC board of directors, said that the high cost of logging in the Northwest is definitely part of the problem.
Members of the forest industry have been pushing for the province to declare a special economic zone, which would allow the province to lower the cost of logs purchased by companies and deal with the geographical challenges facing forestry companies.
A lengthy list of reports stretching back to the 1980’s have recommended the province address the higher costs of logging in the Northwest.
“It’s something we have been pushing for some time. A lot of our pricing is done based on a market that’s not reflective of the area’s profile and then there’s the added cost to get the fibre to market,’ said Belsey.
And the low stumpage around the pine beetle killed wood is also affecting the area, he added.
Ryan noted the province has given areas affected by the pine beetle a special economic zone, but has yet to make that move in the Northwest.
“A special economic zone would be a huge benefit to the entire region,” said Belsey.
However, optimism it seems isn’t the case locally, in a front page story in today’s Daily News; the word out of Terrace about the closure in June of the Terrace Lumber Company is causing some serious ripples in Prince Rupert. The prospect of the sawmill remaining shut down is putting the restart plans for Watson Island into question as the owners from Sun Wave ponder the logistics of running a pulp mill without a stable and reliable supply of timber for the operation.
With the latest rescue plan, hopes that Sun Wave would purchase the saw mill seemingly being dashed, the owners in Terrace have gone a long way from the optimism at the time of the re-opening, to the state of closure that the mill sits under today.
The owners have now begun the lobbying for governmental relief to make the cost of running a sawmill more manageable in the Northwest. Without that relief from the government, some suggest that there is some serious doubt as to the viability of running the sawmill, a situation that could have a domino effect felt all the way to Prince Rupert.
The entire story is provided below.
SHUTDOWN MAY HURT MILL CLOSER TO HOME
By Leanne Ritchie
The Daily News
Tuesday, August 8, 2006
Page One
Any closure of the Terrace Lumber Company could potentially be a problem for restart plans of Sun Wave Forest Products’ Watson Island pulp mill, said Bill Belsey of Points North Consulting.
Belsey, who has been hired by Sun Wave to oversee the day-to-day operations of the mill while Sun Wave seeks start up financing, explained that the Terrace sawmill and its associated forest licence were taken into account by Sun Wave in its fibre supply plan.
“The sources of fibre that can be found in the area are generally decadent,” said Belsey, pointing to the high content of pulp in the timber profile.
“Historically, you need both a sawmill and pulp mill to make both industries feasible. When you lose one, it makes the difficult to run the other.”
The Terrace Lumber Company sawmill and Sun Wave ‘s Watson Island pulp mill have historically been owned by the same company – Skeena Cellulose up until 2001, and following that New Skeena Forest Products, although the company was never able to find start-up financing and went bankrupt.
Since then, the assets have been split apart, with the pulp mill and Carnaby land and forest licence purchased by Sun Wave Forest Products earlier this year, the Terrace – based sawmill purchased by a group of Terrace based business people back with a loan from the City of Terrace in the summer of 2005, and Tree Farm Licence one, the largest fibre holding of the company, sold to Coast Tsmishian, a company owned by the Lax Kw’alaams band, also in the summer of 2005.
However, in June, the Terrace Lumber Company closed down because of low lumber prices, the high Canadian dollar, the cost of the softwood lumber tariffs and the high cost of operating in the region.
They are hoping to find and investor to provide them with the equity to hold on until lumber markets improve and they can restart operations.
The mill in Terrace was employing 70 directly, not including contractors working in the woods.
“It (the potential closure) could have an impact on the pulp mill because part of our fibre supply took account of the sawmill and forest licence. How we overcome that would depend on if someone buys it and restarts it or whether other sources of fibre can be found in the general area,” he said. Sun Wave was approached to buy the sawmill, however those talks have not gone anywhere.
In an interview with the Daily News, John Ryan, chair of the TLC board of directors, said that the high cost of logging in the Northwest is definitely part of the problem.
Members of the forest industry have been pushing for the province to declare a special economic zone, which would allow the province to lower the cost of logs purchased by companies and deal with the geographical challenges facing forestry companies.
A lengthy list of reports stretching back to the 1980’s have recommended the province address the higher costs of logging in the Northwest.
“It’s something we have been pushing for some time. A lot of our pricing is done based on a market that’s not reflective of the area’s profile and then there’s the added cost to get the fibre to market,’ said Belsey.
And the low stumpage around the pine beetle killed wood is also affecting the area, he added.
Ryan noted the province has given areas affected by the pine beetle a special economic zone, but has yet to make that move in the Northwest.
“A special economic zone would be a huge benefit to the entire region,” said Belsey.
Bayonne Bleeder finally gets his due!
If you ever wondered who was the inspiration behind the Rocky movies, wonder no more. Chuck Wepner, a New Jersey club fighter who once battled with Muhammad Ali in 1975 has settled his law suit with Sylvester Stallone.
Wepner launched legal proceedings in 2003, claiming that he had never been properly compensated for his “inspiration” to the Rocky Franchise. It was a claim that Stallone and his lawyers fought for three years, before throwing in the towel (cheesy boxing reference!) last week.
While Wepner counts whatever financial bounty he received in the settlement, Stallone is keeping busy putting together the sixth Rocky film. “Rocky Balboa, is set for release in December.
Perhaps there’s a movie in all of this legal wrangling for Stallone once Rocky Balboa wraps production. Something like the final battle of Rocky Balboa!
Stallone settles Rocky lawsuit with ex-boxer
Associated Press
via the Globe and Mail
Tuesday, August 8, 2006
Newark, N.J. — Chuck Wepner has ended his bid to get compensation from Sylvester Stallone for using him as the inspiration for his “Rocky” movies.
Lawyers for Wepner and Stallone filed notice in U.S. District Court last week that they have settled the 2003 lawsuit for undisclosed terms.
Wepner had maintained that although he was the inspiration for Stallone's Rocky Balboa character, the actor never made good on promises that he would get payment.
The former heavyweight boxer claimed Stallone improperly used his name to promote the “Rocky” films, while Stallone countered that Wepner had already benefited by making public appearances as “the real Rocky.”
Stallone has said that he was working on a screenplay about a fighter when he watched Wepner nearly go the distance with heavyweight champion Muhammad Ali in 1975.
“What I saw was pretty extraordinary,” Stallone said during a 2001 interview that became part of a “Rocky” anniversary DVD. “I saw a man they call ‘the Bayonne Bleeder' who didn't have a chance at all against the greatest fighting machine supposedly that ever lived.”
“Rocky,” which won the Oscar for best picture in 1977, is the story of a down-and-out club fighter from Philadelphia who gets a long-shot chance at the heavyweight title. Stallone played Balboa, who trained at a meat-cutting plant and nearly dethroned the champ.
Stallone, 60, is now working on “Rocky Balboa,” the sixth film in the franchise, which is set for release Dec. 22.
Wepner, now 67, was a New Jersey club fighter who got his nickname from the damage he was prone to receive even while winning.
He was plucked from obscurity by promoter Don King, who offered him a title shot against reigning heavyweight champion George Foreman. But when Ali defeated Foreman, Wepner got the match with Ali. He knocked Ali to the canvas in the ninth round before losing by technical knockout 19 seconds before the final bell.
Wepner launched legal proceedings in 2003, claiming that he had never been properly compensated for his “inspiration” to the Rocky Franchise. It was a claim that Stallone and his lawyers fought for three years, before throwing in the towel (cheesy boxing reference!) last week.
While Wepner counts whatever financial bounty he received in the settlement, Stallone is keeping busy putting together the sixth Rocky film. “Rocky Balboa, is set for release in December.
Perhaps there’s a movie in all of this legal wrangling for Stallone once Rocky Balboa wraps production. Something like the final battle of Rocky Balboa!
Stallone settles Rocky lawsuit with ex-boxer
Associated Press
via the Globe and Mail
Tuesday, August 8, 2006
Newark, N.J. — Chuck Wepner has ended his bid to get compensation from Sylvester Stallone for using him as the inspiration for his “Rocky” movies.
Lawyers for Wepner and Stallone filed notice in U.S. District Court last week that they have settled the 2003 lawsuit for undisclosed terms.
Wepner had maintained that although he was the inspiration for Stallone's Rocky Balboa character, the actor never made good on promises that he would get payment.
The former heavyweight boxer claimed Stallone improperly used his name to promote the “Rocky” films, while Stallone countered that Wepner had already benefited by making public appearances as “the real Rocky.”
Stallone has said that he was working on a screenplay about a fighter when he watched Wepner nearly go the distance with heavyweight champion Muhammad Ali in 1975.
“What I saw was pretty extraordinary,” Stallone said during a 2001 interview that became part of a “Rocky” anniversary DVD. “I saw a man they call ‘the Bayonne Bleeder' who didn't have a chance at all against the greatest fighting machine supposedly that ever lived.”
“Rocky,” which won the Oscar for best picture in 1977, is the story of a down-and-out club fighter from Philadelphia who gets a long-shot chance at the heavyweight title. Stallone played Balboa, who trained at a meat-cutting plant and nearly dethroned the champ.
Stallone, 60, is now working on “Rocky Balboa,” the sixth film in the franchise, which is set for release Dec. 22.
Wepner, now 67, was a New Jersey club fighter who got his nickname from the damage he was prone to receive even while winning.
He was plucked from obscurity by promoter Don King, who offered him a title shot against reigning heavyweight champion George Foreman. But when Ali defeated Foreman, Wepner got the match with Ali. He knocked Ali to the canvas in the ninth round before losing by technical knockout 19 seconds before the final bell.
"I mean no disrespect, but it's isolated, there's nothing there and you have to go a long way to get there"
Ouch, geez somebody doesn't think too highly of us, no dis-respect intended! The above quote comes from a fellow named Michael Haverty, a railroad man with the Kansas City Southern. It comes as part of that story in the Wall Street Journal that I blogged about yesterday. It seems that Mr. Haverty is backing a different container port project in Mexico, so he of course felt the need to weigh in with his geographical expertise.
Those comments and much, much more can now be presented to our loyal Podunk readership, thanks to one of our fellow travelers on hackingthemainframe.
From our famous precipitation, to our wildlife to questions of distance, interest from container lines and the ever possible legal issues, all bases seemed to be covered well. The author of the piece suggests that the folks at Maher Terminals are the saviors of the project, with their plans for turning the port into a giant of Asian trade, he deals quite a bit with the projects importance to the New Jersey marine shipping company.
With increased competition from Panama and Mexico, it's a fairly in depth look at our project. Featuring observations from both those who think we're on the right track and others who suggest it's a bit of a fanciful dream we are weaving here in the northwest. The article tackles all the issues and provides a bit of a history lesson as well about the port and the city's development.
It perhaps is the most comprehensive look thus far at our Port project and all of the obstacles and opportunities that come with it. Read it below and check out just where the project stands in the minds of those closest to the world of container transportation.
Tiny British Columbia Port Aims To
Be New Venue for China Trade
By Daniel Machalaba
Wall Street Journal
August 8, 2006
PRINCE RUPERT, British Columbia This mist-shrouded port boasts scenic beauty and an abundance of wildlife but a human population of a mere 13,000.
Now, thanks to soaring U.S.-China trade, Prince Rupert may have a very different future: as an important link in the transport chain that supplies DVD players, toys, clothes and other goods to the U.S. heartland.
Large container-ship ports in Los Angeles and Long Beach, Calif., have seen surging volumes as the Asian trade has boomed. This has meant chronic congestion and pushed some cargo to smaller West Coast ports such as Vancouver, British Columbia. Now tiny Prince Rupert 500 miles to the remote north of Vancouver is making a play for a piece of that international trade. And the entry of a well-established U.S. port operator has given the project credibility.
He is M. Brian Maher, whose family-owned company operates the largest container terminal in the port of New York and New Jersey. By October of next year, Mr. Maher expects his giant cranes to be moving Asian goods onto trains at an upgraded Prince Rupert terminal for a 2,600-mile rail ride to the Midwest. He is gambling that big-box retailers and large global shipping companies, frustrated by backups at Southern California ports, will flock to his alternative route.
The project faces plenty of obstacles. A tribal group has filed a lawsuit contending the container-terminal plan violates aboriginal land rights. The city's small population means there will be almost no local demand for the arriving goods, nor local products to put on the ships for their return voyage to Asia. Workers are having to adapt their schedules to environmental concerns, such as holding off blasting when whales, sea otters or porpoises are sighted. And there is no guarantee that either the shipping companies or the big retailers will want goods sent via Prince Rupert.
Situating a container-ship operation at such an out-of-the way spot turns conventional wisdom about port-building on its head. The usual plan is to build ports next to major cities that generate great demand for cargo, and then to compete for freight bound for elsewhere as well. But more than 98 percent of goods imported through Prince Rupert will leave the area immediately on long train rides.
The Prince Rupert project is part of a wave of port development that attempts an end run around the most historically important Asian gateways farther south. Los Angeles and Long Beach handled more than 60 percent of containers that passed through West Coast ports in the U.S. and Canada last year. They are a magnet for cargo because they have a huge local market and abundant rail lines. Manufacturers and retailers have fed the growth by building vast distribution centers about 40 miles east of Los Angeles.
But traffic has been seriously snarled three times in the past decade, including a 10-day shutdown in 2002 resulting from a stalemate in labor negotiations. The Southern California ports recently expanded capacity by keeping truck gates open at night and on weekends, and by adding more tracks, terminals and dockworkers. But "shippers have already been burned, and they know they can't just rely on established West Coast ports," Mr. Maher maintains. "They have to find alternative gateways."
Prince Rupert has lots of competition in the bid to provide alternatives. Voters in Panama will decide this fall whether to back a $5.5 billion widening of the Panama Canal to handle bigger ships carrying Asian goods to the U.S. East Coast and Gulf of Mexico ports. Houston is building a container terminal to serve Wal-Mart Stores Inc. and Home Depot Inc. distribution centers. The largest container-ship company in the world, A.P. Moller-Maersk Group of Copenhagen, is building a new terminal in Norfolk, Va. New facilities are under way or planned in smaller ports in Mobile, Ala., Wilmington, N.C., and Jacksonville, Fla.
Kansas City Southern is pushing a Mexican port as the answer. The railroad has spent 10 years assembling a rail line linking the Pacific port of Lazaro Cardenas with Kansas City, and recently launched direct cargo trains over part of the 2,200-mile route. Giant terminal operator Hutchison Whampoa Ltd. of Hong Kong plans to build a new container terminal in Lazaro Cardenas by the end of next year.
Describing the Prince Rupert project, Kansas City Southern Chairman and Chief Executive Michael Haverty says: "I mean no disrespect, but it's isolated, there's nothing there and you have to go a long way to get there."
As for the shippers and retailers who will decide how much use to make of Prince Rupert, they express interest but aren't ready for commitments. "We need options to the existing West Coast ports and Panama Canal," says Peter Keller, an executive vice president of NYK Line (North America) Inc., a container-ship company. He says Prince Rupert has the water and the rail capacity, but will have to show it can compete on rates and service.
With a deep natural harbor, Prince Rupert has long been a port but not one that could handle container ships. Local authorities such as Don Krusel, president of the Prince Rupert Port Authority, sought to add container capacity and finally won provincial and Canadian national aid for the project. But skepticism remained strong until the port signed up a major terminal operator, Maher Terminals Inc. A terminal operator leases port facilities and provides the cranes that transfer containers from ships for transport over land by truck and train.
The idea of exploiting this isolated natural harbor for major movement of cargo dates all the way back to 1906, when railroad builder Charles Melville Hays had a vision of making it part of a shortcut from Asia to Europe. He proposed to load trains at Prince Rupert with silk arriving from China, speed the freight to Montreal by rail and load it back on ships that would traverse the St. Lawrence River and the Atlantic. But six years later Mr. Hays died on the Titanic.
Prince Rupert developed modestly as a small hub for exporting bulky goods that weren't being put in standard metal containers. The Fairview Terminal at the mouth of the inner harbor loaded lumber into ships bound for Asia, while other docks handled grain and coal. But coal volume suffered as some mines closed. The port's cargo dwindled to under five million tons last year from about 14 million in 1994.
Nestled among the coastal mountains and islands of northern British Columbia and drenched by about 10 feet of precipitation annually, Prince Rupert stays lush and green. Its harbor at the end of a narrow inlet extends to an unusual depth of more than 100 feet. Lining the waterfront are old wooden piers, a rail yard, ferry terminals, fish-processing plants, and a few seafood restaurants.
Mr. Maher got interested in the area a few years ago at the suggestion of one of his executives. Mr. Maher, 59 years old, is the son of a onetime longshoreman who got into terminal operation in New Jersey after World War II. The area boomed as trade grew and cargo began moving in containers instead of cartons and other loose items. Maher Terminals, owned by Mr. Maher and his brother Basil, 54, now operates a 450-acre terminal in Elizabeth, N.J., next to the New Jersey Turnpike and Newark airport. Home to 26 container-ship lines, the huge facility handles 5,000 trucks a day.
Convinced the flood of Asian cargo would bring new cargo growth to the Pacific Coast, Mr. Maher looked for ways to expand but missed out on a chance to operate a container terminal in Tacoma, Wash. When one of his executives brought up the idea of developing Prince Rupert, Mr. Maher liked the idea, partly because the deep harbor could accommodate the biggest ships without dredging.
The British Columbia port also appeared to offer the shortest, fastest route from China to the U.S. Midwest, and it had an upgraded rail line with capacity to spare. To move a 40-foot container from Shanghai to Chicago via the Los Angeles or Long Beach docks takes about 22 days and costs about $3,500. Prince Rupert is 1,100 miles closer to Shanghai than Southern California, equal to about two days of travel time.
In addition, in contrast to rail freight from Southern California, once a container is loaded on a train in Prince Rupert, there are few local stops to slow it during its 2,600-mile trek over mountains and prairies to Chicago. While that route is longer than the land route from Los Angeles to Chicago, the rail-transit time might be about the same. "The only thing trains have to worry about is hitting a moose," says Mr. Krusel of the local port authority. He calculates that Asian freight passing through Prince Rupert should arrive in Chicago nearly two days sooner than if it had gone through the Southern California ports.
When Prince Rupert authorities who were pushing the container-ship project solicited proposals from terminal operators, Mr. Maher jumped in. Maher Terminals won a 30-year lease with an option to develop a larger operation later.
While the losing bidders meant to use Prince Rupert just for overflow, Mr. Maher believed the port could become a major cargo gateway for North America despite its remoteness. He agreed to spend $60 million initially on new cranes and equipment as part of transforming the old docks into a container terminal. Port officials now are drawing up plans for a massive second phase that would expand the terminal far more.
That project could cost hundreds of millions of dollars, meaning that Maher Terminals' investment could ultimately run as high as $500 million. Mr. Maher argues that continuing rapid growth in cargo from the Far East to the U.S. rising about 10 percent a year means that ship lines will flock to Prince Rupert and other new terminals elsewhere.
While most port terminals have sprawling lanes for thousands of trucks, Prince Rupert because so little cargo will be used locally will have only one truck gate. The vast majority of containers will be loaded onto rail cars waiting in a big rail yard. Prince Rupert's deep, funnel-shaped harbor has tides that rise and fall 25 feet every 12 hours, so it will need cranes especially designed to adjust to the huge tidal swings.
To help fill containers for the return trip to Asia, Canadian National Railway Co., which runs the rail lines leaving Prince Rupert, plans to build new depots along a route from Memphis, Tenn., that will collect soybeans, cotton, paper and other exports.
Workers now are demolishing the old Fairview Terminal in the shadow of towering Mount Hays to make way for the first phase of the new port. Steel pilings 120 feet long will extend the pier into deeper water. Workers are laying the foundation for the huge cranes, scheduled to arrive next spring. They, too, are coming from China.
Mr. Maher still must overcome opposition from the Coast Tsimshian First Nations tribal group, whose members have longstanding land-title issues in the region and say they weren't sufficiently consulted about the project. "They are determined that this port won't operate until their issues are resolved," says Greg McDade, lawyer for the tribe. Port officials are confident the project won't be slowed or derailed.Although the dock will have union labor, some officials of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union express skepticism about port projects such as Prince Rupert, concerned that they may lessen the union's leverage when the current contracts expire in 2008. Current dockworkers in Prince Rupert, who belong to the Canadian chapter of the ILWU, continued to work during the 2002 labor battle.
As far as competition is concerned, the Prince Rupert project has a big jump on the Panama Canal expansion plan, which some say could take 10 years if approved. The Lazaro Cardenas project in Mexico has suffered from labor strife, such as the fatal shooting by police in April of two strikers at a nearby steel mill. Parts of the railroad connecting the Mexican port to the U.S. are circuitous and slow, using mostly a single set of tracks that forces trains to pull into sidings and wait for other trains to pass on heavily trafficked portions of the route. Meanwhile, the giant established ports in Southern California face the possibility of work stoppages when dockworkers' contracts expire.
Among the obstacles to be faced in Prince Rupert are the reluctance of some shipping lines to add new ports because of extra costs such as for piloting the ships. But after years in the New Jersey docks, wrestling with the complexities of operating a terminal amid congestion, union wrangling and local politics, Mr. Maher figures he is ready for just about anything at Prince Rupert.
Those comments and much, much more can now be presented to our loyal Podunk readership, thanks to one of our fellow travelers on hackingthemainframe.
From our famous precipitation, to our wildlife to questions of distance, interest from container lines and the ever possible legal issues, all bases seemed to be covered well. The author of the piece suggests that the folks at Maher Terminals are the saviors of the project, with their plans for turning the port into a giant of Asian trade, he deals quite a bit with the projects importance to the New Jersey marine shipping company.
With increased competition from Panama and Mexico, it's a fairly in depth look at our project. Featuring observations from both those who think we're on the right track and others who suggest it's a bit of a fanciful dream we are weaving here in the northwest. The article tackles all the issues and provides a bit of a history lesson as well about the port and the city's development.
It perhaps is the most comprehensive look thus far at our Port project and all of the obstacles and opportunities that come with it. Read it below and check out just where the project stands in the minds of those closest to the world of container transportation.
Tiny British Columbia Port Aims To
Be New Venue for China Trade
By Daniel Machalaba
Wall Street Journal
August 8, 2006
PRINCE RUPERT, British Columbia This mist-shrouded port boasts scenic beauty and an abundance of wildlife but a human population of a mere 13,000.
Now, thanks to soaring U.S.-China trade, Prince Rupert may have a very different future: as an important link in the transport chain that supplies DVD players, toys, clothes and other goods to the U.S. heartland.
Large container-ship ports in Los Angeles and Long Beach, Calif., have seen surging volumes as the Asian trade has boomed. This has meant chronic congestion and pushed some cargo to smaller West Coast ports such as Vancouver, British Columbia. Now tiny Prince Rupert 500 miles to the remote north of Vancouver is making a play for a piece of that international trade. And the entry of a well-established U.S. port operator has given the project credibility.
He is M. Brian Maher, whose family-owned company operates the largest container terminal in the port of New York and New Jersey. By October of next year, Mr. Maher expects his giant cranes to be moving Asian goods onto trains at an upgraded Prince Rupert terminal for a 2,600-mile rail ride to the Midwest. He is gambling that big-box retailers and large global shipping companies, frustrated by backups at Southern California ports, will flock to his alternative route.
The project faces plenty of obstacles. A tribal group has filed a lawsuit contending the container-terminal plan violates aboriginal land rights. The city's small population means there will be almost no local demand for the arriving goods, nor local products to put on the ships for their return voyage to Asia. Workers are having to adapt their schedules to environmental concerns, such as holding off blasting when whales, sea otters or porpoises are sighted. And there is no guarantee that either the shipping companies or the big retailers will want goods sent via Prince Rupert.
Situating a container-ship operation at such an out-of-the way spot turns conventional wisdom about port-building on its head. The usual plan is to build ports next to major cities that generate great demand for cargo, and then to compete for freight bound for elsewhere as well. But more than 98 percent of goods imported through Prince Rupert will leave the area immediately on long train rides.
The Prince Rupert project is part of a wave of port development that attempts an end run around the most historically important Asian gateways farther south. Los Angeles and Long Beach handled more than 60 percent of containers that passed through West Coast ports in the U.S. and Canada last year. They are a magnet for cargo because they have a huge local market and abundant rail lines. Manufacturers and retailers have fed the growth by building vast distribution centers about 40 miles east of Los Angeles.
But traffic has been seriously snarled three times in the past decade, including a 10-day shutdown in 2002 resulting from a stalemate in labor negotiations. The Southern California ports recently expanded capacity by keeping truck gates open at night and on weekends, and by adding more tracks, terminals and dockworkers. But "shippers have already been burned, and they know they can't just rely on established West Coast ports," Mr. Maher maintains. "They have to find alternative gateways."
Prince Rupert has lots of competition in the bid to provide alternatives. Voters in Panama will decide this fall whether to back a $5.5 billion widening of the Panama Canal to handle bigger ships carrying Asian goods to the U.S. East Coast and Gulf of Mexico ports. Houston is building a container terminal to serve Wal-Mart Stores Inc. and Home Depot Inc. distribution centers. The largest container-ship company in the world, A.P. Moller-Maersk Group of Copenhagen, is building a new terminal in Norfolk, Va. New facilities are under way or planned in smaller ports in Mobile, Ala., Wilmington, N.C., and Jacksonville, Fla.
Kansas City Southern is pushing a Mexican port as the answer. The railroad has spent 10 years assembling a rail line linking the Pacific port of Lazaro Cardenas with Kansas City, and recently launched direct cargo trains over part of the 2,200-mile route. Giant terminal operator Hutchison Whampoa Ltd. of Hong Kong plans to build a new container terminal in Lazaro Cardenas by the end of next year.
Describing the Prince Rupert project, Kansas City Southern Chairman and Chief Executive Michael Haverty says: "I mean no disrespect, but it's isolated, there's nothing there and you have to go a long way to get there."
As for the shippers and retailers who will decide how much use to make of Prince Rupert, they express interest but aren't ready for commitments. "We need options to the existing West Coast ports and Panama Canal," says Peter Keller, an executive vice president of NYK Line (North America) Inc., a container-ship company. He says Prince Rupert has the water and the rail capacity, but will have to show it can compete on rates and service.
With a deep natural harbor, Prince Rupert has long been a port but not one that could handle container ships. Local authorities such as Don Krusel, president of the Prince Rupert Port Authority, sought to add container capacity and finally won provincial and Canadian national aid for the project. But skepticism remained strong until the port signed up a major terminal operator, Maher Terminals Inc. A terminal operator leases port facilities and provides the cranes that transfer containers from ships for transport over land by truck and train.
The idea of exploiting this isolated natural harbor for major movement of cargo dates all the way back to 1906, when railroad builder Charles Melville Hays had a vision of making it part of a shortcut from Asia to Europe. He proposed to load trains at Prince Rupert with silk arriving from China, speed the freight to Montreal by rail and load it back on ships that would traverse the St. Lawrence River and the Atlantic. But six years later Mr. Hays died on the Titanic.
Prince Rupert developed modestly as a small hub for exporting bulky goods that weren't being put in standard metal containers. The Fairview Terminal at the mouth of the inner harbor loaded lumber into ships bound for Asia, while other docks handled grain and coal. But coal volume suffered as some mines closed. The port's cargo dwindled to under five million tons last year from about 14 million in 1994.
Nestled among the coastal mountains and islands of northern British Columbia and drenched by about 10 feet of precipitation annually, Prince Rupert stays lush and green. Its harbor at the end of a narrow inlet extends to an unusual depth of more than 100 feet. Lining the waterfront are old wooden piers, a rail yard, ferry terminals, fish-processing plants, and a few seafood restaurants.
Mr. Maher got interested in the area a few years ago at the suggestion of one of his executives. Mr. Maher, 59 years old, is the son of a onetime longshoreman who got into terminal operation in New Jersey after World War II. The area boomed as trade grew and cargo began moving in containers instead of cartons and other loose items. Maher Terminals, owned by Mr. Maher and his brother Basil, 54, now operates a 450-acre terminal in Elizabeth, N.J., next to the New Jersey Turnpike and Newark airport. Home to 26 container-ship lines, the huge facility handles 5,000 trucks a day.
Convinced the flood of Asian cargo would bring new cargo growth to the Pacific Coast, Mr. Maher looked for ways to expand but missed out on a chance to operate a container terminal in Tacoma, Wash. When one of his executives brought up the idea of developing Prince Rupert, Mr. Maher liked the idea, partly because the deep harbor could accommodate the biggest ships without dredging.
The British Columbia port also appeared to offer the shortest, fastest route from China to the U.S. Midwest, and it had an upgraded rail line with capacity to spare. To move a 40-foot container from Shanghai to Chicago via the Los Angeles or Long Beach docks takes about 22 days and costs about $3,500. Prince Rupert is 1,100 miles closer to Shanghai than Southern California, equal to about two days of travel time.
In addition, in contrast to rail freight from Southern California, once a container is loaded on a train in Prince Rupert, there are few local stops to slow it during its 2,600-mile trek over mountains and prairies to Chicago. While that route is longer than the land route from Los Angeles to Chicago, the rail-transit time might be about the same. "The only thing trains have to worry about is hitting a moose," says Mr. Krusel of the local port authority. He calculates that Asian freight passing through Prince Rupert should arrive in Chicago nearly two days sooner than if it had gone through the Southern California ports.
When Prince Rupert authorities who were pushing the container-ship project solicited proposals from terminal operators, Mr. Maher jumped in. Maher Terminals won a 30-year lease with an option to develop a larger operation later.
While the losing bidders meant to use Prince Rupert just for overflow, Mr. Maher believed the port could become a major cargo gateway for North America despite its remoteness. He agreed to spend $60 million initially on new cranes and equipment as part of transforming the old docks into a container terminal. Port officials now are drawing up plans for a massive second phase that would expand the terminal far more.
That project could cost hundreds of millions of dollars, meaning that Maher Terminals' investment could ultimately run as high as $500 million. Mr. Maher argues that continuing rapid growth in cargo from the Far East to the U.S. rising about 10 percent a year means that ship lines will flock to Prince Rupert and other new terminals elsewhere.
While most port terminals have sprawling lanes for thousands of trucks, Prince Rupert because so little cargo will be used locally will have only one truck gate. The vast majority of containers will be loaded onto rail cars waiting in a big rail yard. Prince Rupert's deep, funnel-shaped harbor has tides that rise and fall 25 feet every 12 hours, so it will need cranes especially designed to adjust to the huge tidal swings.
To help fill containers for the return trip to Asia, Canadian National Railway Co., which runs the rail lines leaving Prince Rupert, plans to build new depots along a route from Memphis, Tenn., that will collect soybeans, cotton, paper and other exports.
Workers now are demolishing the old Fairview Terminal in the shadow of towering Mount Hays to make way for the first phase of the new port. Steel pilings 120 feet long will extend the pier into deeper water. Workers are laying the foundation for the huge cranes, scheduled to arrive next spring. They, too, are coming from China.
Mr. Maher still must overcome opposition from the Coast Tsimshian First Nations tribal group, whose members have longstanding land-title issues in the region and say they weren't sufficiently consulted about the project. "They are determined that this port won't operate until their issues are resolved," says Greg McDade, lawyer for the tribe. Port officials are confident the project won't be slowed or derailed.Although the dock will have union labor, some officials of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union express skepticism about port projects such as Prince Rupert, concerned that they may lessen the union's leverage when the current contracts expire in 2008. Current dockworkers in Prince Rupert, who belong to the Canadian chapter of the ILWU, continued to work during the 2002 labor battle.
As far as competition is concerned, the Prince Rupert project has a big jump on the Panama Canal expansion plan, which some say could take 10 years if approved. The Lazaro Cardenas project in Mexico has suffered from labor strife, such as the fatal shooting by police in April of two strikers at a nearby steel mill. Parts of the railroad connecting the Mexican port to the U.S. are circuitous and slow, using mostly a single set of tracks that forces trains to pull into sidings and wait for other trains to pass on heavily trafficked portions of the route. Meanwhile, the giant established ports in Southern California face the possibility of work stoppages when dockworkers' contracts expire.
Among the obstacles to be faced in Prince Rupert are the reluctance of some shipping lines to add new ports because of extra costs such as for piloting the ships. But after years in the New Jersey docks, wrestling with the complexities of operating a terminal amid congestion, union wrangling and local politics, Mr. Maher figures he is ready for just about anything at Prince Rupert.
If we can make it there, we can make it anywhere!
Our little burg has been discovered by the Wall Street Journal!
My little Google news alert service tipped me to the news that the Financial paper of record in America had decided to do a little story on Prince Rupert and it's big plans for attracting Asian growth.
Of course, it being the Wall Street Journal it's all about capitalism, so we're supposed to pay to read the story. If anyone out there has a subscription to the Journal's on line service, then the story is waiting there for you, all 2,131 words of financial wisdom.
Those with time on their hands can try any number of search engines trying to find a back door entry to the Journal story. Sometimes you get lucky if you use Google, Alta Vista, Yahoo or some other service to seek out the story title. But so far, it's a story out of reach for your faithful Podunkian servant.
For those of us too poor to have a Journal subscription, it's down to Eddies or over to the Library to see what the big money players think of our port, our plans and our future.
My little Google news alert service tipped me to the news that the Financial paper of record in America had decided to do a little story on Prince Rupert and it's big plans for attracting Asian growth.
Of course, it being the Wall Street Journal it's all about capitalism, so we're supposed to pay to read the story. If anyone out there has a subscription to the Journal's on line service, then the story is waiting there for you, all 2,131 words of financial wisdom.
Those with time on their hands can try any number of search engines trying to find a back door entry to the Journal story. Sometimes you get lucky if you use Google, Alta Vista, Yahoo or some other service to seek out the story title. But so far, it's a story out of reach for your faithful Podunkian servant.
For those of us too poor to have a Journal subscription, it's down to Eddies or over to the Library to see what the big money players think of our port, our plans and our future.
The Raid is rescheduled
I'm still not too sure what this was going to be all about, but for now it doesn't matter I guess.
When it was first announced it was described as some kind of Surivivor thing coming to our part of the world to test the endurance of those foohardy enought to play with mother nature.
In the end, it seems it wasn't the ravages of nature that would slow them down, but that age old problem money. Reading between the lines of their press release it seems that they didn't have all their financial ducks in a row in time to put the show on for September 3rd as scheduled.
The Raid the North extravaganza, has been rescheduled until 2007.
Everybody hold their disappointment please! We can wonder anew what it was all about sometime next year!
When it was first announced it was described as some kind of Surivivor thing coming to our part of the world to test the endurance of those foohardy enought to play with mother nature.
In the end, it seems it wasn't the ravages of nature that would slow them down, but that age old problem money. Reading between the lines of their press release it seems that they didn't have all their financial ducks in a row in time to put the show on for September 3rd as scheduled.
The Raid the North extravaganza, has been rescheduled until 2007.
Everybody hold their disappointment please! We can wonder anew what it was all about sometime next year!
Monday, August 07, 2006
Google recommends....
Google is branching out, no longer just the search engine of all search engines, it has been busy working on ways of becoming your one stop gateway to the world wide web.
Now if you'll take their advice, they'll even tell you what neighbourhoods to stay out of while you wander through that world wide web.
Google has launched a service designed to keep you and your computer from visiting those bad, bad sites that might lead you down the road of computer ruin.
The on screen warnings pop up if you are searching out sites that may provide spy-ware or malicious codes. A pop up will appear telling you that Google recommends you not go down that path, but if you wish they shan't stop you from tempting the fates of the computer Gods.
Of course net observors will be watching Google carefully, just to be sure that they don't use their good intentions for evil purposes eh, surely it would be a nasty search engine provider that scared you away from another competing service!
In the past few years there have been some grumblings around the internet about the Google empire's plans for net domination, so no doubt they'll have more than a few eyes and filters keeping them on the straight and narrow.
For now though, they're like that good buddy of yours, always willing to offer you the advice that perhaps you have had one too many, or should think twice about doing something that just may not be in your best interests.
They're no doubt hoping that later on you'll remember that you owe them one!
Now if you'll take their advice, they'll even tell you what neighbourhoods to stay out of while you wander through that world wide web.
Google has launched a service designed to keep you and your computer from visiting those bad, bad sites that might lead you down the road of computer ruin.
The on screen warnings pop up if you are searching out sites that may provide spy-ware or malicious codes. A pop up will appear telling you that Google recommends you not go down that path, but if you wish they shan't stop you from tempting the fates of the computer Gods.
Of course net observors will be watching Google carefully, just to be sure that they don't use their good intentions for evil purposes eh, surely it would be a nasty search engine provider that scared you away from another competing service!
In the past few years there have been some grumblings around the internet about the Google empire's plans for net domination, so no doubt they'll have more than a few eyes and filters keeping them on the straight and narrow.
For now though, they're like that good buddy of yours, always willing to offer you the advice that perhaps you have had one too many, or should think twice about doing something that just may not be in your best interests.
They're no doubt hoping that later on you'll remember that you owe them one!
Miller's satirical cynicism to find a home again this time on Fox!
He's coming back! After an enforced absence from the cable and satellite airwaves, Dennis Miller is plotting his return to television. Miller who last entertained the less than multitudes on CNBC, is making another return to Cable News, this time as part of the Fox Family of neo-comms.
Reports have it that Miller will join up with the Hannity and Colmes program this September, to offer his thesauriastic view of the days events. Miller's last program on CNBC was terminated due to low ratings, perhaps an unfair fate since the ratings of CNBC aren't the thing of a juggernaut at the best of time. Then again, if I remember his CNBC days, the show was at times a rather painful thing to watch as Miller and his producers struggled to find the right tone and method to deliver his in your face style of political commentary.
Miller had arrived at CNBC after a strange two years cooped up in the Monday Night Football booth, where he dispensed his thinking man's observations to the football mad sports fanatics, a combination that didn't exactly work out as ABC had planned.
Since those days he's appeared on the occasional HBO special in the USA, but alas the appearances on Canadian cable or satellite providers have been few and far between.
It will be interesting to see how Miller works his shtick into the Fox stream of info, but it should be a pretty seamless marriage of styles considering the timbre of his comments over the last three or four years.
All that's left to know is if the much lamented CNBC monkey will follow him along to Fox. The caustic bombast will begin September 13.
Reports have it that Miller will join up with the Hannity and Colmes program this September, to offer his thesauriastic view of the days events. Miller's last program on CNBC was terminated due to low ratings, perhaps an unfair fate since the ratings of CNBC aren't the thing of a juggernaut at the best of time. Then again, if I remember his CNBC days, the show was at times a rather painful thing to watch as Miller and his producers struggled to find the right tone and method to deliver his in your face style of political commentary.
Miller had arrived at CNBC after a strange two years cooped up in the Monday Night Football booth, where he dispensed his thinking man's observations to the football mad sports fanatics, a combination that didn't exactly work out as ABC had planned.
Since those days he's appeared on the occasional HBO special in the USA, but alas the appearances on Canadian cable or satellite providers have been few and far between.
It will be interesting to see how Miller works his shtick into the Fox stream of info, but it should be a pretty seamless marriage of styles considering the timbre of his comments over the last three or four years.
All that's left to know is if the much lamented CNBC monkey will follow him along to Fox. The caustic bombast will begin September 13.
Time to fill up your tank?
Gasoline prices never seem to need much of a reason to spike upwards, long weekends, vacation traveling, a spin of that mighty Big Oil roulette wheel (red seven, jack it up sevens cent guys), it all seems to contribute to the mysterious nature of the up and down (well ok, mostly up) pricing of gas.
But that being said, this, is probably not a good omen for those looking for relief at the pumps.
But that being said, this, is probably not a good omen for those looking for relief at the pumps.
Sunday, August 06, 2006
Highway 16 Shopping village, still more speculation than substance!
The Daily News provided something of a pulp version of a Seinfeld episode in its Friday edition, a story pretty well much about nothing.
The latest is that nothing is really happening yet at the proposed Shopping Mecca on the highway, well nothing in the form of a construction phase at any rate.
Instead the project is more akin to a game of Monopoly at the moment, as the developers at Royop have been busy buying up more and more land, ready to expand the shopping destination to come.
Buying land, working on a revision to their website and denying rumours, so far that’s the extent of things on the Highway. The denial phase came with a bit of mystery on their website regarding that always soon to come here chain Canadian Tire. The project developers felt the need to deny the participation of the chain in the project so far, the Daily following things up with an interview with a Canadian Tire official who said they haven’t any tangible plans to come to Rupert yet.
The project still apparently is on track, as far as development goes, just not anything of a visual nature to excite the locals about the soon to come bounty of shopping and eating options.
The article did however leave the reader with visions of a fast food bounty to come, dancing off the pages.
Full details are provided below, be sure to wipe your face after your meal!
SPECULATION RIFE AS MALL PROJECT GROWS
By Leanne Ritchie
The Daily News
Friday, August 4, 2006
Page One
Despite information posted on Royop’s web site, the development company cannot yet confirm that Canadian Tire will be one of the retailers in the new shopping village development on Highway 16.
“I really can’t say>” said Melvin Foht, vice president of development for the Royop Corporation. “That web page, sometimes marketing guys get a little enthusiastic and jump the gun so I really can’t comment on what’s on that web page.”
The Royop web page had posted information on the 16-acre development, including a 4.6 acre site for Canadian Tire.
However, Foht explained that information is no longer current because the company has acquired an additional nine acres of land and is in the process of redesigning the now 25 acre development.
“A lot of people are interested in what’s happening and not happening on the site,” he said.
”One of the reasons it’s not moving forward this summer is we originally acquired 16 acres and we are expanding that to the full 25 acres where B. C. Hydro’s building is now,” he said.
“By doing that, we have to apply for land use on the additional nine acres, we have to do a new traffic study which is underway and we have to look at the whole development in light of it being 25 acres, not 16 acres. That’s causing us to go through the process again.”
Royop will have to appear again before council for rezoning on the nine acres, something they hope to do before the end of the year.
“We are keeping the mayor and staff informed,” he said.
The development is expected to include large national retailers as well as smaller shops.
“Prince Rupert is a place we identified a few years ago as somewhere we’d like to do some business in or develop in and we still feel that way,” he said.
Despite having retailers in both Smithers and Terrace, Canadian Tire wouldn’t confirm its interest in the new development in Prince Rupert.
Were Canadian Tire to establish itself here, Canadian Tire corporate headquarters would likely buy the land and build the facility and then find a dealer to operate the store, said a Canadian Tire spokesperson.
“At this time, we have no confirmed plans to open a store,” said Maeve Burke. “It doesn’t mean we wouldn’t, but right now we aren’t. Until everything is final, we wouldn’t want to get people’s hopes up.”
Royop is marketing Prince Rupert as the location of B. C.’s second container port.
“This container port is set to bring in workers from all over Canada and add to Prince Rupert’s economy. This is a great opportunity for retailers and restaurants due to Prince Rupert’s forecast for high growth.” Read the company’s web site.
Since the announcement of the construction of the Fairview Container Terminal, a number of national chains have begun advertising for franchise opportunities in the community. These have included Quizno’s, A & W and Dairy Queen. Even KFC, when it ‘kicked the bucket’ locally in 2004, said it was looking at opening one of its combination franchises of KFC, Taco Bell and Pizza Hut in the future.
The latest is that nothing is really happening yet at the proposed Shopping Mecca on the highway, well nothing in the form of a construction phase at any rate.
Instead the project is more akin to a game of Monopoly at the moment, as the developers at Royop have been busy buying up more and more land, ready to expand the shopping destination to come.
Buying land, working on a revision to their website and denying rumours, so far that’s the extent of things on the Highway. The denial phase came with a bit of mystery on their website regarding that always soon to come here chain Canadian Tire. The project developers felt the need to deny the participation of the chain in the project so far, the Daily following things up with an interview with a Canadian Tire official who said they haven’t any tangible plans to come to Rupert yet.
The project still apparently is on track, as far as development goes, just not anything of a visual nature to excite the locals about the soon to come bounty of shopping and eating options.
The article did however leave the reader with visions of a fast food bounty to come, dancing off the pages.
Full details are provided below, be sure to wipe your face after your meal!
SPECULATION RIFE AS MALL PROJECT GROWS
By Leanne Ritchie
The Daily News
Friday, August 4, 2006
Page One
Despite information posted on Royop’s web site, the development company cannot yet confirm that Canadian Tire will be one of the retailers in the new shopping village development on Highway 16.
“I really can’t say>” said Melvin Foht, vice president of development for the Royop Corporation. “That web page, sometimes marketing guys get a little enthusiastic and jump the gun so I really can’t comment on what’s on that web page.”
The Royop web page had posted information on the 16-acre development, including a 4.6 acre site for Canadian Tire.
However, Foht explained that information is no longer current because the company has acquired an additional nine acres of land and is in the process of redesigning the now 25 acre development.
“A lot of people are interested in what’s happening and not happening on the site,” he said.
”One of the reasons it’s not moving forward this summer is we originally acquired 16 acres and we are expanding that to the full 25 acres where B. C. Hydro’s building is now,” he said.
“By doing that, we have to apply for land use on the additional nine acres, we have to do a new traffic study which is underway and we have to look at the whole development in light of it being 25 acres, not 16 acres. That’s causing us to go through the process again.”
Royop will have to appear again before council for rezoning on the nine acres, something they hope to do before the end of the year.
“We are keeping the mayor and staff informed,” he said.
The development is expected to include large national retailers as well as smaller shops.
“Prince Rupert is a place we identified a few years ago as somewhere we’d like to do some business in or develop in and we still feel that way,” he said.
Despite having retailers in both Smithers and Terrace, Canadian Tire wouldn’t confirm its interest in the new development in Prince Rupert.
Were Canadian Tire to establish itself here, Canadian Tire corporate headquarters would likely buy the land and build the facility and then find a dealer to operate the store, said a Canadian Tire spokesperson.
“At this time, we have no confirmed plans to open a store,” said Maeve Burke. “It doesn’t mean we wouldn’t, but right now we aren’t. Until everything is final, we wouldn’t want to get people’s hopes up.”
Royop is marketing Prince Rupert as the location of B. C.’s second container port.
“This container port is set to bring in workers from all over Canada and add to Prince Rupert’s economy. This is a great opportunity for retailers and restaurants due to Prince Rupert’s forecast for high growth.” Read the company’s web site.
Since the announcement of the construction of the Fairview Container Terminal, a number of national chains have begun advertising for franchise opportunities in the community. These have included Quizno’s, A & W and Dairy Queen. Even KFC, when it ‘kicked the bucket’ locally in 2004, said it was looking at opening one of its combination franchises of KFC, Taco Bell and Pizza Hut in the future.
Saturday, August 05, 2006
"As long as Cheney doesn’t get him arrested, fine, let him have it.”
The above quote, is from John Dean's (yes he of Watergate fame) new book. A ghost from the past returning to haunt the walkers of the White House halls today.
Dean is interviewed as part of Eleanor Clift's contribution to MSNBC's website, an online segment from her politics column in Newsweek magazine.
The topic of the day; Iraq, Donald Rumsfeld and Dick Cheney's fingerprints.
The basic content of the article (which you can read here) is that the current Iraqi mess is basically the creation of the Vice-President, who has been noticeably absent these last few weeks as things take a much more violent turn in the Middle East, from Iraq, through Afghanistan and into Lebanon.
With the best that the administration is able to come up with being nothing but a holding pattern policy, Clift takes aim at the VP and lets Dean explain how "the Vice-Presidency has swallowed the President."
Dean has written a book, that is sure to be must get on many Democrat's book club lists this year (maybe a few nervous Republicans too!). "Conservatives Without Conscience" explores the Cheney influence on the war in Iraq and the sense of fear that seems to be colouring the spectrum of American politics these days.
Clifts' article is a barbed filled look at the declining years of the Bush administration, an interesting retrospective of mistakes made, changing dynamics at the White House and lack of focus at times to the details of governance.
It also ends with a rather pointed comparison between the former employer of Mr. Dean and the current subjects of his new book. Something that won't sit well with the President as he does some light summer vacation reading at the ranch in Crawford.
In the meantime, anyone seen Dick?
Dean is interviewed as part of Eleanor Clift's contribution to MSNBC's website, an online segment from her politics column in Newsweek magazine.
The topic of the day; Iraq, Donald Rumsfeld and Dick Cheney's fingerprints.
The basic content of the article (which you can read here) is that the current Iraqi mess is basically the creation of the Vice-President, who has been noticeably absent these last few weeks as things take a much more violent turn in the Middle East, from Iraq, through Afghanistan and into Lebanon.
With the best that the administration is able to come up with being nothing but a holding pattern policy, Clift takes aim at the VP and lets Dean explain how "the Vice-Presidency has swallowed the President."
Dean has written a book, that is sure to be must get on many Democrat's book club lists this year (maybe a few nervous Republicans too!). "Conservatives Without Conscience" explores the Cheney influence on the war in Iraq and the sense of fear that seems to be colouring the spectrum of American politics these days.
Clifts' article is a barbed filled look at the declining years of the Bush administration, an interesting retrospective of mistakes made, changing dynamics at the White House and lack of focus at times to the details of governance.
It also ends with a rather pointed comparison between the former employer of Mr. Dean and the current subjects of his new book. Something that won't sit well with the President as he does some light summer vacation reading at the ranch in Crawford.
In the meantime, anyone seen Dick?
Down east, it’s careful where you sit no more!
Here’s a trend one hopes catches on in the rest of the country, that of the sanitary roadside washroom. The folks in the Maritimes and New England are making your travel break a less worrisome adventure with some homey touches to the salle de bain dans la rue.
I’ve been in some pretty toxic dumps in my travels over the years, most recently in Alberta where things were so bad in one particular gas station washroom, that I did my best to hold off til I found another location. Trust me this was no easy feat, but none the less a decidedly necessary approach, such was the state of distress that this can had. This place had the aesthetic feel and toxicity of Three Mile Island at zero hour.
It’s nice to know that somewhere out there, somebody is thinking of us lonely travelers and our need to answer natures call from time to time.
So with a long weekend upon us once again, may you find safe trails and clean rest rooms, just like they have from the Miramachi to Cape Breton Island.
Gas stations deal their customers a royal flush
SHAWNA RICHER
From Saturday's Globe and Mail
SACKVILLE, N.B. — As Canadians hit the highways and byways this holiday weekend and over the dwindling days of summer, one unavoidable and unpleasant routine will inconvenience and unite all.
A stop at the gas-station restroom.
But for those travelling through the Maritimes and New England, going on the road is now a little more like going at home.
It has been two years since Irving Oil Ltd. of Saint John launched the Really, Really Clean Washrooms campaign that promised its restrooms would be scrubbed at an obsessive-compulsive pace “every 30 minutes.”
But something else is going on in those washrooms, something with a folksy East Coast feel. Irving gas-station operators are quietly getting their Martha Stewart on.
Most of the company's 800 gas-stop restrooms are individually decorated with fresh flowers, tasteful knick-knacks and country kitsch. There are houseplants and magazine racks, duck decoys and hand-painted stools, small tables and antique pieces. In the women's restrooms, the walls sport garden motifs of sunflowers and roses; the men's restrooms feature fish and ducks. Some feature original paintings by local artists.
None of these decorative touches would be out of place in a nice restaurant or hotel. But they surprise in a gas bar. Customer comment cards from restrooms in Miramichi, N.B., Oxford, N.S., and Bar Harbor, Me., to name just a few, tell the tale:
“You have such nice bathrooms! Pleasant, fragrant, clean and decorated!”
“The cleanest public washroom I have ever used. And the prettiest! 5 out of 5!”
“I've never seen a gas station restroom with antiques! Wow!”
“Who doesn't want a nice restroom?” asks Marlene Crossman, store manager of the Irving Mainway gas station in Sackville. “The added touches make it homey and comforting, an added bonus when you're travelling. Rather than feeling just ‘hospital clean,' they feel personal and relaxing. It's been fabulous for business. It's what we're known for now.”
Everyone who has ever made a car trip has reluctantly procured the grimy key on a wooden stick from a gas jockey, hovered carefully over the toilet seat and sighed with relief if there was paper on the roll. Everyone has seen a service-station washroom so filthy it made the ditch look inviting.
“Gas station bathrooms are the lowest of the low. Most of the ones I've seen are disgusting,” said Jon Thompson of Minneapolis, curator of a slick website devoted to the subject (www.restroomratings.com).
“But I give higher ratings to restrooms that take aesthetics into account. The ones that make you feel as if you were in your own home are more than just a system for going to the toilet. I've never been in an Irving bathroom, but they sound nice.”
Mike Crosby, head of marketing in the United States and Canada for Irving Oil, said the company has encouraged its store operators to do whatever it takes to make customers feel at home in the washroom.
“People need a nice place to stop,” he explained. “We want our people to put out fresh flowers and plants and pictures on the walls. We want you to feel like you're using the bathroom at home, not in a gas station that's gross and dirty.”
Years ago, when Mr. Crosby was starting out with the company, Arthur Irving, son of billionaire industrialist K. C. Irving, advised him to never underestimate the importance of the gas-station restroom. “Everyone has to go to the washroom,” Mr. Irving said wisely.
“It was great advice and I've never forgotten it,” Mr. Crosby said. “If I'm using the bathroom on the road, I'll pick up paper towels off the floor and wipe down the sink myself. I like seeing how the different stores decorate.”
It might make sense that Irving, which also produces toilet paper in its pulp-and-paper division, has a feel for bathrooms.
“If I bought a station tomorrow, the first thing I'd do is put up a huge sign saying: ‘Cleanest Bathrooms of Any Gas Station Anywhere,' ” wrote retail anthropologist Paco Underhill in Why We Buy: The Science of Shopping. “Gas is gas, and prices are fairly uniform, too.
But clean bathrooms would draw female drivers, who make more use of facilities and so have more bitter complaints about horrible, filthy conditions.”
Kim Miers agrees. In the women's restroom at the Irving station she manages in Oxford, she has painted the walls a pretty blue and put up candle holders and flowered borders. In the men's, a duck decor prevails. Never satisfied, she plans to redecorate in the fall.
“I look forward to visiting other Irving bathrooms,” she added. “They're so homey and warm. I think this is really unique to Atlantic Canada.”
Some of the nicer pieces do go missing at times, said Ms. Crossman in Sackville. But it hasn't deterred her from making the effort.
“It's a university town, so the signs are particularly hot items,” she noted “But it doesn't stop us from putting out nicer decor. Customers always know we're thinking of them.”
Tell us about your favourite and least favourite roadside pitstops encountered while travelling.
I’ve been in some pretty toxic dumps in my travels over the years, most recently in Alberta where things were so bad in one particular gas station washroom, that I did my best to hold off til I found another location. Trust me this was no easy feat, but none the less a decidedly necessary approach, such was the state of distress that this can had. This place had the aesthetic feel and toxicity of Three Mile Island at zero hour.
It’s nice to know that somewhere out there, somebody is thinking of us lonely travelers and our need to answer natures call from time to time.
So with a long weekend upon us once again, may you find safe trails and clean rest rooms, just like they have from the Miramachi to Cape Breton Island.
Gas stations deal their customers a royal flush
SHAWNA RICHER
From Saturday's Globe and Mail
SACKVILLE, N.B. — As Canadians hit the highways and byways this holiday weekend and over the dwindling days of summer, one unavoidable and unpleasant routine will inconvenience and unite all.
A stop at the gas-station restroom.
But for those travelling through the Maritimes and New England, going on the road is now a little more like going at home.
It has been two years since Irving Oil Ltd. of Saint John launched the Really, Really Clean Washrooms campaign that promised its restrooms would be scrubbed at an obsessive-compulsive pace “every 30 minutes.”
But something else is going on in those washrooms, something with a folksy East Coast feel. Irving gas-station operators are quietly getting their Martha Stewart on.
Most of the company's 800 gas-stop restrooms are individually decorated with fresh flowers, tasteful knick-knacks and country kitsch. There are houseplants and magazine racks, duck decoys and hand-painted stools, small tables and antique pieces. In the women's restrooms, the walls sport garden motifs of sunflowers and roses; the men's restrooms feature fish and ducks. Some feature original paintings by local artists.
None of these decorative touches would be out of place in a nice restaurant or hotel. But they surprise in a gas bar. Customer comment cards from restrooms in Miramichi, N.B., Oxford, N.S., and Bar Harbor, Me., to name just a few, tell the tale:
“You have such nice bathrooms! Pleasant, fragrant, clean and decorated!”
“The cleanest public washroom I have ever used. And the prettiest! 5 out of 5!”
“I've never seen a gas station restroom with antiques! Wow!”
“Who doesn't want a nice restroom?” asks Marlene Crossman, store manager of the Irving Mainway gas station in Sackville. “The added touches make it homey and comforting, an added bonus when you're travelling. Rather than feeling just ‘hospital clean,' they feel personal and relaxing. It's been fabulous for business. It's what we're known for now.”
Everyone who has ever made a car trip has reluctantly procured the grimy key on a wooden stick from a gas jockey, hovered carefully over the toilet seat and sighed with relief if there was paper on the roll. Everyone has seen a service-station washroom so filthy it made the ditch look inviting.
“Gas station bathrooms are the lowest of the low. Most of the ones I've seen are disgusting,” said Jon Thompson of Minneapolis, curator of a slick website devoted to the subject (www.restroomratings.com).
“But I give higher ratings to restrooms that take aesthetics into account. The ones that make you feel as if you were in your own home are more than just a system for going to the toilet. I've never been in an Irving bathroom, but they sound nice.”
Mike Crosby, head of marketing in the United States and Canada for Irving Oil, said the company has encouraged its store operators to do whatever it takes to make customers feel at home in the washroom.
“People need a nice place to stop,” he explained. “We want our people to put out fresh flowers and plants and pictures on the walls. We want you to feel like you're using the bathroom at home, not in a gas station that's gross and dirty.”
Years ago, when Mr. Crosby was starting out with the company, Arthur Irving, son of billionaire industrialist K. C. Irving, advised him to never underestimate the importance of the gas-station restroom. “Everyone has to go to the washroom,” Mr. Irving said wisely.
“It was great advice and I've never forgotten it,” Mr. Crosby said. “If I'm using the bathroom on the road, I'll pick up paper towels off the floor and wipe down the sink myself. I like seeing how the different stores decorate.”
It might make sense that Irving, which also produces toilet paper in its pulp-and-paper division, has a feel for bathrooms.
“If I bought a station tomorrow, the first thing I'd do is put up a huge sign saying: ‘Cleanest Bathrooms of Any Gas Station Anywhere,' ” wrote retail anthropologist Paco Underhill in Why We Buy: The Science of Shopping. “Gas is gas, and prices are fairly uniform, too.
But clean bathrooms would draw female drivers, who make more use of facilities and so have more bitter complaints about horrible, filthy conditions.”
Kim Miers agrees. In the women's restroom at the Irving station she manages in Oxford, she has painted the walls a pretty blue and put up candle holders and flowered borders. In the men's, a duck decor prevails. Never satisfied, she plans to redecorate in the fall.
“I look forward to visiting other Irving bathrooms,” she added. “They're so homey and warm. I think this is really unique to Atlantic Canada.”
Some of the nicer pieces do go missing at times, said Ms. Crossman in Sackville. But it hasn't deterred her from making the effort.
“It's a university town, so the signs are particularly hot items,” she noted “But it doesn't stop us from putting out nicer decor. Customers always know we're thinking of them.”
Tell us about your favourite and least favourite roadside pitstops encountered while travelling.
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