Friday, February 16, 2007

Rambles...

I've been off the blog beat this week for a number of reasons. Mainly, I've been busy with work and what free time I've had I've devoted to playing with my kiddies, a bit of Guild Wars, and obsessing about running, which I've just been able to start back up after a month off (broken rib, see playing with kiddies and man, I'm getting old). For the record, and once it's in print here I suppose it's more or less official, I'm actually going to try to run my first marathon this year. Specifically, the Blue Nose International Marathon here in Halibedmouth. After missing a month of running, I'm starting off behind the eight ball, but I have nice shiny new shoes, my Forerunner, and the desire to turn my one-pack into a six-pack by summertime to motivate me. I'm not trying to BQ, just finish it smiling, so I'm looking forward to a managable challenge.

I'm glad to see that Dan and Flash have kept the fires warm here in my absence. I promise to be more on the ball next week when things settle down.

I'd be remiss if I failed to mention Nova Scotia Premier Rodney's Valentine's Day emission to the federal government that $400 million just ain't gonna cut it as the fed's committment for the Commonwealth Games. It's going to be interesting to see what the final budget for this monstrosity is when it's released later in the spring. How is the city council reacting to the spiralling costs estimates? Deputy Mayor Sue Uteck, who supports the bid, says:

I have no intention of leaving any local legacy of debt.

Which I suppose means that she has also forgotten that there is only one taxpayer and would love to offload as much of the cost on other branches of government as she can. However, she also restated that if the costs of the Games are too rich for the city, Council can pull support and the issue dies.

Ultimately, this means that, since the provincial government is broke, the city might pull support for the bid if (oh please!) the federal government does not pledge more money from its famously open pockets.

So, Mr. Prime Minister, when considering The Diddler Fiddler's request for more money, please keep in mind that we're not Quebec. Continue to ignore the East Coast, "move along sir, nothing to see here." The federal Conservatives have won just about as many seats as they're going to win in Nova Scotia, so money thrown into the Commonwealth Games is money lost as far as you're concerned. Save it for where it's really needed - undermining the federal Liberals in Ontario and buying votes in Quebec for your best pal Jean Charest, who in turn will tickle your prostate when the next federal election rolls around.

(h/t to Mrs. Flash for pointing me to the CBC article.)

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Wednesday, February 07, 2007

And the beat goes on (and it's in my wallet)

Readers of 'kogsworth here will no doubt be aware of my affections for Halifax's bid to host the 2014 Commonwealth Games. Now, it might be curmudgeonly of me, but the announcement that even the upper-estimate $785 million isn't going to cover the costs is not doing any more to win me over. On the heels of announcements that the Vancouver 2010 is going over budget and the London 2012 Olympic budget may have to double, this is as disturbing as it is expected. According to the Herald, when asked what the actual cost would be, bid CEO Scott Logan winked said:

How much will it be at the end of the day? At this point in time, it's in the hands of the three (government) funding partners because they'll tell us what they're prepared to pay.

Does this "we'll spend whatever we can" attitude not scare you? What is this guy, a defense contractor? Can we hire him to fix our schools and hospitals?

Let's first set aside the little fib about "three funding partners"; there's only one, the Canadian taxpayer. And they will pay. The feds have promised somewhere around $400 large, which leaves a province with what, a $10-billion debt and a city that is wrankled about having to shell out a few hundred thousand to keep the Sackville Curling Club open to split the remainder. How is HRM going to manage to find that extra change a few years down the road when they (we) are paying interest on a $250-million dollar debt? Sackville - say goodbye to your curling rink.

And if you see anyone out filling potholes you might want to take a picture.

At least in the case of Vancouver and London it's for an event that people pay attention to. I mean, how many people followed the last Commonwealth Games in Melbourne? Okay, now how many of you had family members competing?

See?

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