Comments on: Response to the Georgia Straight http://www.brendonwilson.com/blog/2009/10/24/response-to-the-georgia-straight/ The personal web site of Brendon J. Wilson, a software developer, technologist, and entrepreneur living in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Mon, 06 Sep 2010 10:19:44 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 hourly 1 By: jesse http://www.brendonwilson.com/blog/2009/10/24/response-to-the-georgia-straight/comment-page-1/#comment-270358 jesse Wed, 28 Oct 2009 05:06:15 +0000 http://www.brendonwilson.com/?p=687#comment-270358 You should note _how_ the government is trying to solve the unemployment issue. Unemployment in BC peaked in the early part of this decade but the employment growth in the subsequent years was almost entirely due to construction and real estate related jobs. If you're wondering why the government is redoing BC Place -- a questionable economic payback if I've ever seen one -- it's because it employs the skills of people who are going to be out of work as the building boom of the past 5 years wanes. Why not, instead of putting $500MM into a new roof, build and adequately staff small and privately-run mental health facilities around the province? Probably because when you look at such projects, they don't get the crane operators and lattice workers back to work, and there is an ongoing liability line item on the balance sheet. Not so with a retractable roof operated by a private outfit; or a new toll bridge spanning the Fraser River, assuming the current perfectly good free one is destroyed. You should note _how_ the government is trying to solve the unemployment issue. Unemployment in BC peaked in the early part of this decade but the employment growth in the subsequent years was almost entirely due to construction and real estate related jobs. If you’re wondering why the government is redoing BC Place — a questionable economic payback if I’ve ever seen one — it’s because it employs the skills of people who are going to be out of work as the building boom of the past 5 years wanes.

Why not, instead of putting $500MM into a new roof, build and adequately staff small and privately-run mental health facilities around the province? Probably because when you look at such projects, they don’t get the crane operators and lattice workers back to work, and there is an ongoing liability line item on the balance sheet. Not so with a retractable roof operated by a private outfit; or a new toll bridge spanning the Fraser River, assuming the current perfectly good free one is destroyed.

]]> By: Burnsian http://www.brendonwilson.com/blog/2009/10/24/response-to-the-georgia-straight/comment-page-1/#comment-269861 Burnsian Mon, 26 Oct 2009 18:34:01 +0000 http://www.brendonwilson.com/?p=687#comment-269861 I'm glad that your original letter is now at least linked to by the Straight. Good points. I’m glad that your original letter is now at least linked to by the Straight. Good points.

]]> By: jesse http://www.brendonwilson.com/blog/2009/10/24/response-to-the-georgia-straight/comment-page-1/#comment-269492 jesse Sun, 25 Oct 2009 04:07:39 +0000 http://www.brendonwilson.com/?p=687#comment-269492 You should write into the Straight itself. In the words of Bart Simpson, "[...you] have to reach people whose opinions actually matter!" You should write into the Straight itself. In the words of Bart Simpson, “[...you] have to reach people whose opinions actually matter!”

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