Welcome Back to the Point of No Return - The Musical

Today I received a phone call from outgoing Vancouver Mayor/incoming Senator Larry Campbell. It was nice of him to call, I don't think we've talked since he told the Bus Riders Union where to get off. Before I could get a word in edgewise (also the same time I realized I it was a recording), Larry told me that I had to support Vision Vancouver because "we can't afford to let the NPA turn back the clock to when big money ran City Hall", or something like that.

This page finds this message ironic, given that Campbell led a million dollar fundraising drive that swept himself and COPE into power three years ago. "Shut Down the NPA"* also sounds a lot like Gordon Campbell's hit earlier this spring: "Back up the James Gang"**, a touching ballad about how "Big Labour" still owned the NDP. Unfortunately, it wasn't as big a smash as the Lieberals' 2001 chart-topper "Who Built the Fastcats?"***, and the Liberals subsequently lost 31 seats, including four in Vancouver.

The political time travel card has to be played with subtlety. Today I also received a letter from COPE City Councillor David Cadman, in which he points out where COPE had specific disagreements with the NPA (Four Pillars, Woodwards, the 2001 Bus Strike, Education Cuts, Tax Reform) over the past three years. That's a more coherent approach than claiming the Right Wingers have bludgeoned Sherman & Peabody and stolen their Wayback Machine.

*Sing it to the tune of "I Love Myself Today" by Bif Naked
**Sing it to the tune of "Back on the Chain Gang" by the Pretenders
***Sing it to the tune of "Who Let the Dogs Out?" by the Baja Men