What else is on?

In British Columbia, Legislature proceedings are broadcast live on a cable channel throughout the province. When the Legislature is not in session, the channel is handed back to the cable company, who usually run another service on it until the next session - where this page lives in Vancouver it's a scrolling news ticker. When the BC Liberals cancelled the fall session of the Legislature, that didn't happen this time. Instead, viewers looking for headlines and a quick forecast have been treated to idyllic shots of the Legislature in Victoria and the caption 'THE BRITISH COLUMBIA LEGISLATURE IS ADJOURNED UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE'.

Notice comes tonight at 6:15 PM when Premier Gordon Campbell uses the Legislature Channel to broadcast his government's response to the current economic situation. The Liberals didn't buy time on the private networks because the Opposition and their allies are still frothing over Bill 42, and the CBC (apparently not being leaned on by former boss Carole Taylor) is refusing to carry Campbell's address live.

If Campbell refers to the state of B.C.'s economy as a crisis, this page calls bullsh*t - a crisis is something you deal with by recalling the Legislature, not posturing about how the 'fundamentals are strong' and how the province is 'on track' after the so-called 'decade of decline'. What can Campbell say in the vacuum chamber of a TV address that's going to make any kind of a difference? More tax cuts for the rich? More intellectual fraud like the Carbon tax? More shipping of shipbuilding jobs to Germany? Another unconstitutional scheme to bust a public-sector union? More fiddling while the forestry industry burns, gets eaten by Pine Beetles and is stripped of its value one raw log export at a time?

Speaking of being on track - it looks like the Basi-Virk trial will going ahead in January, so maybe the Premier may have something meaningful to say after all tonight: maybe something about resigning before having to testify, and packing his martini shaker for that permanent Hawaiian vacation he's always wanted. For those of you scoring at home, this page will actually be watching the opening game of the World Series and not holding his breath.