Cole Bendis, a welder with Stinger Welding, does some emergency repairs on one of the skid-steers used by the volunteer ice crew at the Outdoor Ice Oval.
The warm temperatures have created challenges for the ice crew this season. Cooler weather is expected this week.
Jennifer SALTMAN Vancouver Sun
The RCMP have breached a gate that a northern B.C. First Nation had erected to block access to a natural-gas pipeline project. Officers broke through a blockade on Morice River Forest Service Road, southwest of Houston, on Monday afternoon and arrested nine people, said protesters.
One of the people arrested was Molly Wickham, spokeswoman for the Cas Yex house, which is part of the Gidimt’en clan, according to a post on the Wet’suwet’en Access Point Facebook page.
The post claimed police broke through the checkpoint gate with “brutal force.”
The protesters were detained at a Hous-
ton RCMP detachment. RCMP later said 14 people had been arrested.
The checkpoint was one of two manned by members of the Wet’suwet’en First Nation.
The first, which has been in place for almost a decade, was set up by the Unist’ot’en, a house group of the Gilseyhu clan. It includes a camp and gate that obstructs the Morice West forest service road and the Morice River Bridge.
The second checkpoint was put in place three weeks ago by the Gidimt’en clan, and blocked the Morice River forest service road. This is the one that was taken down Monday.
The checkpoints are meant to keep workers away from the construction site for TransCanada PipeLines Ltd.’s $4.7-billion, 670-kilometre Coastal GasLink pipeline, which will deliver natural gas from Dawson Creek to a planned LNG Canada facility near Kitimat.
Members of the Wet’suwet’en First Nation, which is made up of five clans
Andrew A. DUFFY Victoria Times Colonist
As many as 20 per cent of all residential property owners in the province should be appealing their property assessments, says the man who has literally written the book on the assessment appeals process.
Peter Morris, a commercial real estate agent who has co-written a book entitled How to Successfully Appeal Your B.C. Assessment, said the sheer volume of properties the assessment authority has to evaluate means there are bound to be mistakes made.
“It’s my belief that there are a good 20 per cent of assessments that are incorrect,” he said.
The checkpoints are meant to keep workers away from the construction site for TransCanada PipeLines Ltd.’s $4.7-billion, 670-kilometre Coastal GasLink pipeline.
that have 13 houses, have long protested construction of pipelines through the nation’s 22,000 square kilometres of claimed traditional territory.
They say such projects will jeopardize the area’s natural resources and restrict access to their territory.
An injunction issued last month by a B.C. Supreme Court justice, and revised last week, prohibits anyone from physically interfering with or impeding any person or vehicle trying to access the area or carrying on pipeline business, including preconstruction and construction activities. They’re also prohibited from threatening, intimidating or getting within 10 metres of anyone actively working on the project.
RCMP’s E Division said it would enforce
the injunction Monday morning. Police arrived in the area over the weekend, gathering in Houston and Smithers, the two municipalities closest to the checkpoints. On Monday, the officers convened in Houston before heading to the Gidimt’en checkpoint. In a video posted online earlier Monday, Wickham said, “We’re doing everything that we can to make sure that we’re going to be safe.”
When officers arrived at the checkpoint they were told that hereditary chiefs would need to be present because barriers wouldn’t be removed without their consent. A handful of chiefs were allowed past the RCMP roadblock and taken to the checkpoint around midday.
— see POLICE ACTION, page 2
“It’s not because B.C. Assessment is doing things wrong necessarily, but there are a lot of factors in play when it comes to assessments being incorrect.”
Morris, who co-wrote the 64-page book with appraiser and former B.C. Assessment supervisor Tim Down, said the biggest factor is the number of properties on the provincial roll.
The new roll, released this week by B.C. Assessment, has 2.07 million properties worth a total of more than $1.99 trillion.
“There are more than two million properties assessed and not enough assessors to go and visit all two million every year so they use a computer model,” said Morris, noting that can lead to data entry errors, broad
generalizations between properties in a neighbourhood and not taking into account subtle changes such as tree growth destroying water views.
The assessment is an estimate of a property’s market value as of July 1, and physical condition as of Oct. 31.
According to B.C. Assessment, changes in property assessments reflect movement in the market and can vary greatly from property to property.
Assessors take into account current sales in the area as well as the size, age, quality, condition, view and location of a property.
B.C. Assessment says only two per cent of property owners appeal each year. Morris believes that number would be much higher
if people better understood the process.
“They don’t understand and they have misinformation about what their assessment means,” Morris said.
Morris said he was spurred to write the book after appealing his home’s assessment a few years ago and the person before him at the panel argued his assessment was too high because it didn’t take into account the lack of services he received from the municipality in which he lived.
“When I heard that, it dawned on me that the average person does not know how to look at their assessment, understand what it means and how to appeal if they think it’s wrong,” he said.
— see COMPLAINTS, page 3
— from page 1
Shortly before 3 p.m. the RCMP reportedly breached the gate at Gidimt’en.
In a statement posted online earlier in the day, E Division said they had increased their presence in the Houston area and would use “a carefully measured and scalable approach to ensure the safety of everyone involved.”
Temporary exclusion zones and road closures have been established in the area.
It is unfortunate that the RCMP must take this step so that lawful access for this public bridge and road can be re-established.
— Terry Cunha TransCanada spokesperson
Terry Cunha, a spokesman for TransCanada, said the enforcement of the order was “taken as a last resort and a necessary action after years of attempting to engage the camp” to find a solution. “It is unfortunate that the RCMP must take this step so that lawful access for this public bridge and road can be re-established.”
Coastal GasLink said it has signed agreements with 20 elected First Nations along the pipeline route, including the Wet’suwet’en. The company has engaged with all First Nations groups along the project, both hereditary and elected, and also has some hereditary support, said Cunha.
In a statement, Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor-General Mike Farnworth said any enforcement action taken by the RCMP is an operational matter and at arm’s length from the provincial government.
“We recognize the right for people to engage in peaceful protest. In any situation such as this, we hope all parties find a safe and mutually respectful resolution,” he said.
Rallies are planned in 30 cities today – including Vancouver, Victoria, Chilliwack, Lillooet, Nelson, Cortes Island and Prince George – in solidarity with the Wet’suwet’en.
NANAIMO — An eight-year-old boy has been killed in a collision with a pickup truck while riding his bicycle in Nanaimo.
Police say the accident happened just before noon Sunday when the boy rode out of a driveway. Emergency first aid was administered by Good Samaritans and police say the child received quick medical care from hospital staff, but he couldn’t be saved.
RCMP investigators obtained multiple statements and spoke with the driver of the truck involved in the crash. Police say the boy was with a sibling when he rode out of the driveway and was wearing a bike helmet.
From Prince George provincial court, Dec. 24, 2018-Jan. 4, 2019:
• Bryn Davis Antoski (born 1997) was sentenced to time served for break and enter with intent to commit offence. Antoski was in custody for 58 days prior to sentencing.
• Orry Eugene Wickstrand (born 1986) was sentenced to time served for breaching probation. Wickstrand was in custody for one day prior to sentencing.
• Tyler Bert Sinclair (born 1986) was sentenced to 75 days in jail and two years probation for assault with intent to resist arrest, willfully resisting or obstructing a peace officer, theft $5,000 or under and breaching probation. Sinclair was in custody for 10 days prior to sentencing.
• Trenton George Elroy Alexis (born 1995) was sentenced to time served and 18 months probation for aggravated assault and breaching probation.
• Brent Terence Baker (born 1974) was sentenced to three days in jail for breaching a recognizance or undertaking and to one year probation for two counts of theft $5,000 or under.
• Jolynn Fay French (born 1985) was prohibited from driving for one year and fined $500 plus a $75 victim surcharge for driving while prohibited or licence
suspended under the Motor Vehicle Act.
• Cali Ronald Harold Peal-Barton (born 1994) sentenced to zero days for assaulting a peace officer, committed in Prince George, and mischief $5,000 or under, committed in Terrace. PealBarton was in custody for 31 days prior to sentencing.
• Alexander William Alexie (born 1993) was sentenced to zero days for breaching a recognizance. Alexander was in custody for four days prior to sentencing.
• Peter Vernon Charlie (born 1981) was sentenced to zero days for breaching probation. Charlie was in custody for 20 days prior to sentencing.
• Philicity Rhea Lafreniere (born 1990) was sentenced to zero days for breaching probation.
• Gina Ann Monk (born 1979) was sentenced to 31 days in jail for theft $5,000 or under, to one day in jail for breaching probation and to one year probation on the counts.
• Frankie Elaine Stevenson (born 1964) was sentenced to a six-month conditional sentence order and one year probation and prohibited from driving for one year for dangerous driving and driving with a blood-alcohol level over .08.
• Raymond Francis Thiffault (born 1991) was sentenced to one year probation for possessing stolen property over $5,000, willfully resisting or obstructing a peace officer and breaching probation, committed in Willow River and possessing stolen property under $5,000, committed in Yale.
• Brett Michael White (born 1997) was sentenced to 24 days in jail and issued a five-year firearms prohibition for two counts of carrying a prohibited weapon and to zero days for two counts of breaching probation and breaching an undertaking or recognizance, committed in Prince George, and to zero days for breaching probation, committed in Penticton. White was in custody for 40 days prior to sentencing.
• Joshua Alexander Neumann (born 1990) was sentenced to 67 days in jail, served on an intermittent basis, for mischief $5,000 or under, assault and breaching an undertaking or recognizance, to 18 months probation for mischief $5,000 or under and prohibited from driving for two years for driving while prohibited or licence suspended under the Motor Vehicle Act. Neumann was in custody for 11 days prior to sentencing.
from page 1
Morris said his book offers tools to help property owners better understand the system and develop a sound argument that will hold water with B.C. Assessment during an appeal.
The book also goes through the various misconceptions people have about the assessment, including that an increase in assessed value automatically means property taxes will rise; that increases in assessed values are a good thing and reflect what the real estate market would pay for your home; and that it’s impossible to win an appeal.
“The biggest mistake people make (when appealing) is making the wrong argument,” said Morris. “They may not do the research right – they may just (compare their assessment) with their neighbours’ instead of analyzing the data at a granular level.”
That way, he argues, they can better compare their properties based on price per square foot or land area.
“If they don’t know how to research or put forth the right kind of argument, they will fail,” he said. Those who feel their property assessment does not reflect market value as of July 1, 2018, or see incorrect information on their notice, should contact B.C. Assessment as soon as possible.
Property owners may submit a notice of complaint by Jan. 31 to ask for an independent review by a property assessment review panel.
The panels, appointed by the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing, typically meet between Feb. 1 and March 15 to hear complaints.
Frank PEEBLES Citizen staff fpeebles@pgcitizen.ca
The first workshop of the new year in the Art of Business series has a particularly public theme.
The workshop follows two highprofile installations of public art in as many years. The first was placed on the lawn of Rolling Mix Concrete Arena downtown. The granite and steel depiction entitled Celebrations is meant to represent balloons at the moment they strike the ground following a celebratory drop. It was a creation by Mary Ann Liu and Paul Slipper of Vancouver, installed in 2017.
The parkade dancer was a creation by Facundo Gastiazoro from Smithers. It depicts a stylized happy human figure on large panels installed on the wall of the parkade at Fifth Avenue and Queensway. It was installed in 2018.
Mayor Lyn Hall also got involved in displaying public art by turning over the walls of city hall’s fifth floor (where the mayor’s office and other senior public servants have their work spaces) to an annual rotation of local artists.
Some local creators and general public have responded enthusiastically about the city and other funding partners (the B.C. Northern Real Estate Board was a major sponsor of the parkade art) putting a progressive emphasis on public art.
Others have been upset that the two latest installations of public art have been by out-of-town artists.
To add firsthand knowledge to this dialogue, the Community Arts Council (CAC) is hosting a pair of experienced figures in the municipal arts scene.
The CAC’s description of this workshop is: “Preparing for a request for submission for exhibition or public art – a conversation with George Harris (Curator and Artistic Director, Two Rivers Gallery) and Doug Hofstede (Community Coordinator, City of Prince George).”
These two will lead the discussion, touching on topics like:
• How to create a professional submission;
• How to read and understand submission requirements;
• What jurors look for in a winning submission package;
• Insights into the adjudication process;
• Dealing with both acceptance and rejection.
The workshop is open to anyone interested in public art and it is free to attend. It happens Jan. 15 at 6 p.m. at Studio 2880 (upstairs in the Artisan Gift Shop building).
Space is limited so please signal your attendance with an email to arts@studio2880.com
Bill Cash from Northern Building
up
Citizen news service
WILLIAMS LAKE — Imperial Metals Corp.
says it is suspending operations at its Mount Polley mine in south-central British Columbia due to declining copper prices.
The gold and copper mine was the site of a 2014 tailings dam collapse that was one of the largest environmental disasters in the province’s history.
Imperial Metals said in a news release Monday that the suspension plan includes milling of low grade stockpiles which is expected to extend operations to the end of May 2019.
There will be no impact to the mine’s ongoing environmental monitoring and remediation program, it said.
“Full operations will resume once the economics of mining at Mount Polley improve,” it said.
The company did not immediately respond to a request for more details, including how many jobs would be affected by the suspension of operations at the mine northeast of Williams Lake.
The union representing Mount Polley workers, United Steelworkers Local 1-2017,
Full operations will resume once the economics of mining at Mount Polley improve.
Imperial Metals statement
did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Imperial Metals said in August that unionized workers at Mount Polley had voted in favour of a new three-year contract, after initiating strike action in May following a lockout by the company.
Bryan Cox, president of the Mining Association of B.C., said the mine is a significant employer in the Cariboo region and it also creates indirect jobs including supplier positions across the province.
“There’s really a province-wide impact when there’s impact to our operations in B.C.,” he said. “This is big news for the province.”
There has been volatility in the copper market for some time and the price is near its lowest point in about 18 months, Cox said.
B.C. is the No. 1 copper producer in Canada, but it’s a global industry and tax structures need to be as competitive as possible to protect local jobs, he said.
But he added there is huge opportunity for the commodity in the long-term, as more parts of the world transition to a lower-carbon economy. It takes up to four times more copper to build an electric car than a conventional car, for example, and it’s also used in wind turbines and solar panels, he said.
“As we make this transition, we’re going to need more copper,” he said.
The tailings dam collapse sent 24 million cubic metres of mine waste and sludge into nearby waterways and the mine did not resume full operations for nearly two years.
B.C.’s Conservation Officer Service launched an investigation of the disaster but a threeyear deadline for provincial charges in the case passed in 2017.
Engineers and Geoscientists B.C. announced in September that three engineers involved in the design, construction and monitoring of the tailings storage facility that collapsed will face disciplinary hearings this year.
Citizen news service
A Vancouver peewee hockey coach says he’s
“amazed and overwhelmed” by the response to a video put together by his team to help him find a living kidney donor.
Stephen Gillis said the video is the nicest thing that anyone has ever done for him.
“Help us help our coach,” team members dressed for a game say in unison in the video.
Some members of the 11- to 12-year-old mixed gender team hold up message placards in the video, including: “Coach Stephen is really sick” and “We need to find a donor for Coach Stephen.”
Gillis is the coach of The Spirit, a Vancouver Minor Hockey Association peewee A2 team.
In an interview Monday, he said many people are surprised that he needs a new kidney, considering his active lifestyle. At 25
years old, Gillis was diagnosed with Crohn’s disease, an inflammatory bowel disease.
“My condition, based on my blood work, is getting worse but I don’t necessarily feel too bad.”
He said he started feeling “a bit weird” last July and his hands began to cramp. Gillis chalked down his symptoms to dehydration.
His doctor gave him a different diagnosis.
“They let me know that my blood was basically vinegar and that it wasn’t being cleaned for a while,” he said. “I developed a rare kidney disease because of my Crohn’s disease.”
After spending some time in the hospital, he said his kidney function came up to about 14 per cent but it’s now back down.
Gillis, 38, will soon have to start dialysis to keep his blood clean.
The captain of the team, Jordan Stewart, and his mother approached Gillis and asked
him about next steps for his health and Gillis suggested he might make a “selfie video” that was “not too sad.” Stewart said he was heartbroken to learn of his coach’s health condition.
“We just thought it would be a really good thing to make a video for him because he’s such a great coach and he’s a really caring and great person and make the video for him and hopefully find him a kidney,” Jordan said.
The team came together asking for a kidney donor in the video that has now racked up thousands of views.
In the video, the players say Gillis is an “awesome” coach who teaches them to be good people and good players. Gillis said the response to the video has been “amazing.”
“It’s very beautiful. They’re very kind and their kindness has been very overwhelming,” he said his voice breaking with emotion.
I was listening to Mayor Lyn Hall talk to CBC Radio on the wonderful job snow crews were doing now that the new recommendations and policies for priorities were in place.
I almost choked on my coffee and damn near sprayed the windshield of the rig I was driving. Apparently according to our well-informed, fearless leader we have had a very tough winter in Prince George and due to this we have already blown through and completely used up all of our $7 million snow removal budget for this year, causing our fearless and frugal team at the roundtable to have to look at raising taxes another five per cent for next year to keep present levels of service.
After that utter delusional tidbit and nearly spitting my very valued coffee out, I tried to take a bite of my delicious ham and cheese sandwich which my wife packed but choked on it when he said the most expensive part of our northern snow removal operations are the extensive ice cutting blades our graders are going through to cut the ice off the roads.
Every street I drove on was rutted and filled with huge frozen vehicle destroying ice humps from snow being deliberately left for the last month to pack, freeze and grow like all encompassing road tumors on every street in the city. When I called and asked for some sand on the ice rink on Macdonald Avenue last week, I was told we don’t sand residential streets anymore as part of operations.
Not to mention that even though we have had two major garage fires on the back designated fire lane alley, to date it still has three
feet of snow making it a total impossibility should fire crews need to use it even now.
John Tosoff Prince George
I am a P.G. citizen. I pay property taxes, a portion of which are targeted for snow removal from my front street, including clearing the front of my driveway.
On Saturday, Jan. 5, the city snow removal equipment arrived on my street to clear the snow that had been accumulating since Dec. 28.
After the plows and loaders left, my driveway was still about 40 per cent blocked and I spent an hour clearing it with a shovel. I estimate if the loader operator had put an extra 30 seconds on the job, my back would not be as sore as it is today.
I realize that 30 seconds extra for every city household driveway adds up, and that means extra cost. On the other hand, my tax payment is essentially a contract with the city to perform a task.
They simply did not hold up their end of the deal. This is a failure to effectively manage equipment and the workforce and/or to create a realistic budget structure.
Our city manager did her best to convince us that the exceptionally generous salaries granted to city management personnel were designed to “attract and retain the best talent.”
Why is the best available talent unable to get a handle on consistently ensuring our streets are passable? Is it possible the money required to provide better, quicker snow removal has been diverted into city management personnel
paycheques?
I would like to remind everyone that Prince George has never, ever had a winter without snow. Surely our highly talented city management should have a handle on how to deal with it by now.
Meanwhile, until the issue is solved, I propose a simple tax rebate program. Prince George citizens should be reimbursed the full cost of any Robaxacet type back pain type medications by submitting their receipts to city hall. The money can be sourced from the city management team salaries.
Ron Manning Prince George
Mayor and council, what a farce the snow removal was.
My street was not done until Jan. 3.
I do not condemn the crews. They by and large work very hard but the $150,000 a year management? How typical. When The Citizen asks the question what was done and in what order and no response, surely you are aware what a very poor public relations job that was.
Tell me if I am wrong but was there not a snow removal consultant hired last year? It seems he was from the Okanagan or somewhere. The continuing joke.
As for the costs to residents for vehicle damages on these roads, what about that and the very high dangerous piles of snow in the middle of the roads so as you cannot see around them?
Let me tell you, I am an investigator and in the past have done MVAs. A few years ago, the city knocked down the snow piles at least at the corners, that telling me that the city knows of the liabilities
in regards to them. You might have a difficult time explaining the complete disregard of the liability in an injury or death suit. Seeing as the response time was so slow overall this time, I can only surmise that you are taking the former mayor’s route for removal, that being let the sun melt it away, or her other famous line, if you do not like it, move. Great PR. Mayor Hall, I have refrained from writing over the past year or so because the only real fault I have found was your spendthrift ways, but there has been some progress on some fronts. On this, you have blown it and I know I am not alone in this thought. Good luck on the future. I hope I do not have to write again. Again I say, the crews work hard. If only the upper echelons would.
Bill Manders
Prince George
As I read the response from Lyn Hall (about snow removal), I feel that perhaps some people at city hall don’t understand the weather in Prince George.
He said we had to deal with 35 cm of wet heavy snow and rain. Well, most of us knew that’s what was coming as it was forecast to happen.
As of 4 a.m. on Saturday morning there was not a sand or plow truck on the city streets. I was on Foothills, 5th,10th and 15th Avenues and was pushing snow. Tenth Avenue is a major route for ambulances to take to the hospital and was rougher then most logging roads in the north.
As of 2 p.m. on Saturday, the little area from 20th Avenue to Exploration place and Pine Street were plowed but excuse me is Pine a Priority 1, 2 or 3? (Editor’s note: both of these streets are priority 2 roadways, according to the city’s snow removal map).
Really, what else could the mayor say but we did a good job as he could not nor would not speak out about how crappy the roads really were this last big snowfall. Seems to me the snow removal policy really needs a makeover
when the main ambulance route isn’t cleared but streets like Pine are.
Remember, we live in P.G. so expect the worse than what is predicted and prepare for it. Also, referring to a snowfall from last year and still having the same complaints, did city hall not learn anything?
Roland Hill Prince George
I agree that the city’s response was unacceptable to your request for information about snowplow clearing and that you should follow up with an FOI request. (Jan. 5 editorial).
In the meantime, the P.G. Citizen can figure out, fairly accurately, in nearly real time, where and when the streets of P.G. are being plowed. Just ask your own circulation department.
As a daily newspaper you are, unique among private companies, on every P.G. street at the same time of day five out of seven days a week. Ask the circulation department to report back to the news department which streets have and have not been plowed. When you do get the FOI response, you can compare that response to anecdotes, phone calls and other evidence you’ve collected.
FYI, my street was plowed at 8 a.m. on Jan. 5, eight days after it started snowing.
Colleen Davis Prince George
I have lived in West Beaverly approximately 20 years. I recently bought an ATV with a plow. I’m getting better with the plow but even with the additional equipment it’s been tough keeping up with all the snow! Lay off the road people. They love to do a good job. Snow happens!
Dan “Oscar” Dwyer Prince George
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Ihave been on a hiatus since before Christmas due to the timing of the holidays and haven’t had a chance to discuss the results of the referendum on proportional representation, so I thought I would. The vote was actually quite surprising –both in terms of the total number of people who participated and the vote distribution. I did win a bet with a colleague. He thought the response rate would be less than 10 per cent. I was shooting for 15 per cent. Neither of us were close to the final tally but I beat his estimate!
I also thought the voting gap would be smaller – say 53 per cent to 47 per centone way or the other. The overwhelming victory for the first past the post system was surprising. Perhaps more to the point, 71 ridings were in favour of the present system and only 16 for PR.
hopes of establishing a larger power-base in the legislature? Or will they simply follow along with the NDP, hoping to build support for the Green Party through their coalition?
Of course, forcing an early election could backfire. Voters tend to not like parties which force an early election. On the flip side, it does mean the Green Party will have to continue supporting the NDP’s initiatives which does not allow them to stake out their own political territory. It could lead to the awkward scenario of voting for pipelines and development they oppose.
In the end, it was an interesting exercise in democracy. Regardless of which side of the debate you were on – or whether you thought the whole thing a pointless exercise – such referendums are a useful tool for measuring the will of the voters. And yes, I would feel the same way if PR had won.
But what next?
There are two issues which come to mind. The first is “how much longer will the Green Party support the NDP in government?” It was fairly clear that supporting the referendum and switching to a system of proportional representation was high on the list of goals for the Green Party (and an election platform plank for the NDP as well).
Perhaps not surprisingly, most of the ridings which voted for PR were in the Vancouver/Capital Region District. Kootenay West, Powell River-Sunshine Coast, and Nelson-Creston were the only three outside of the urban block. The leading contender for change was Vancouver-Mt. Pleasant. At the other extreme, Peace River North and Peace River South were both in the mid-80s while Prince George-Mackenzie and Prince George-Valemount were 71.30 per cent and 70.87 per cent, respectively. This reflects the rural-urban split which exists in the province although there are a number of Greater Vancouver ridings which polled higher than Prince George.
Having lost out on the referendum, will the Green Party force an election in the
The second question for me is “can we now have a conversation about our representative democracy and how it works?”
I have said before that changing the system by which we elect our representatives won’t change the way government operates. Indeed, I would still contend a PR system leads to MLAs having to be much more on board with the party line. After all, if your candidacy depends on the party putting your name on a list, then the party will expect you to behave.
But do we need to change the system? Is there a way to hold our elected representatives to account?
One way, which still exists, is through recall. Unfortunately, the bar is high enough that this mechanism has not really been suc-
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cessful. More to the point, recall campaigns tend to be an anger reaction rather than a reasoned approach to the overall effectiveness of an MLA and a party. If not recall, then what? My brother-inlaw and I discussed this over the Christmas holidays. He once wrote a blog suggesting a system where we continually elect new MLAs. Thus parties would always have their feet to the fire, so to speak.
It would work something like this: with 87 seats, we would have 48 elections occurring over a four year span – one every month. Most of the “monthly elections” would be for two ridings but the summer month would only see one riding in contention. An MLA would be elected for four years but their four years would not necessarily coincide with any other member of their party. The result would be a continually evolving legislature. No four year mandate. Indeed, over a short period of time, a ruling party could see itself ousted and another party taking over. Or a riding might elect a fringe candidate knowing what the general composition of the legislature would be like. But it would mean giving up our general election. Would it work? Who knows? But maybe there are more representative ways to govern a democracy.
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RODDICKTON, N.L. — Seals have been swarming the streets of a northern Newfoundland town, with residents fearing for the animals’ safety but being warned to stay away.
Brendon Fitzpatrick of Roddickton said seals had been spotted in the area as early as October, but in recent weeks the animals have wandered into town, sometimes in the middle of the road.
Images posted to Fitzpatrick’s Twitter feed show the seals crawling along town streets, swimming in a brook and climbing a snow bank near a gas station.
“People chase them – people are there every day on snowmobiles stopping and looking at them, and the animals, they won’t move from you,” he said Monday.
Fitzpatrick has seen the animals in groups of two or three and more than 20, and expressed concern that the animals could be injured by vehicles or curious onlookers.
The ice has frozen, making it nearly impossible for them to swim back to the open ocean.
Fitzpatrick said he hopes the federal Fisheries Department will be able to step in and bring the seals back to the ocean.
“Nobody likes to see something in a place where they’re trapped in,” Fitzpatrick, a former hunting and fishing guide, said.
“You gotta wonder if they’re going to survive or why the Fisheries Department don’t do something to take them out.”
The Fisheries Department issued a statement saying the situation is being monitored and reminding people that it is illegal and dangerous to disturb a marine mammal.
“Seals are wild animals that can be unpredictable, and may become aggressive in order to protect themselves. In rare cases, seals carry infections that can be passed on to humans,” the statement read.
“We would like to remind people that it
is illegal to disturb a marine mammal and human interaction can disturb an animal’s normal life processes and can result in injury or death of the animal.”
Fitzpatrick said this law puts residents in a bind, however, because the seals are often on public roads where they could be hurt.
“It’s hard to stay away from them sometimes, there might be one in your driveway,” Fitzpatrick said.
“People are worried about touching them, about taking one and moving them from the road because you don’t know if the Department of Fisheries is going to charge you if
they come.”
Earlier this year, a harp seal that charmed spectators on a Newfoundland beach was found dead a few days later. At the time, Fisheries officials warned the public against touching seals as they can become scared and lash out.
OTTAWA (CP) — U.S. President
Donald Trump has affirmed his respect for judicial independence, the Prime Minister’s Office says, less than a month after the U.S. president baldly said he would intervene in Meng Wanzhou’s pending extradition from Canada if it would help forge a trade deal with China.
In a summary of a phone call Monday between Trump and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau,
the PMO indicated the leaders discussed the high-profile U.S. extradition request – though Meng was not named – and agreed on the importance of respecting the independence of judges and the rule of law.
China has pressed Canada to get Meng freed from the extradition process, which Canadian politicians have replied they simply aren’t allowed to do.
Trudeau also thanked Trump
Citizen news service
BEIJING — North Korean leader
Kim Jong Un arrived in Beijing on Tuesday at the start of a four-day visit, in what’s likely an effort to coordinate with his only major ally ahead of a summit with U.S. President Donald Trump that could happen early this year.
A long motorcade including motorcycle outriders reserved for state leaders left a Beijing train station shortly after the arrival of an armoured train consisting of 20 to 25 cars – most of whose windows were blacked-out -along tracks lined by police and paramilitary troops.
Kim’s trip, announced earlier by both sides, comes after U.S. and North Korean officials are believed to have met in Vietnam to discuss the location of a second summit.
North’s Korean Central News Agency said Kim departed Monday afternoon with his wife Ri Sol Ju and other top officials. It said Kim is visiting China at the invitation of Chinese President Xi Jinping. Tuesday also happens to be Kim’s birthday.
China’s official Xinhua News Agency issued a nearly identical report, while Beijing’s North Railway Station was cocooned in security, with dozens of police and paramilitary troops patrolling outside.
Kim is expected to stay at the highly secure Diaoyutai State Guest House in the capital’s west, with meetings held at the Great Hall of the People, the hulking seat of the legislature that sits next to Tiananmen Square.
The trip marked a further break with past practice in that it was announced in advance of Kim’s arrival, a possible sign of growing confidence on the part of North Korea and China, Pyongyang’s most important trading partner and a key buffer against pressure from Washington.
After years of cool relations following Kim’s assumption of power 2011, ties have improved remarkably over the past year as Xi seeks to maintain his influence in the region.
Kim’s trip comes as the U.S. and North Korea look to settle the North’s decades-long pursuit of a nuclear arsenal. Washington and Pyongyang
seemed close to war at points during 2017 as the North staged a series of increasingly powerful weapons tests that got it tantalizingly close to its nuclear goal of one day targeting with pinpoint accuracy anywhere on the U.S. mainland.
Possibly fearing the economic effect of crushing outside sanctions imposed because of his weapons’ tests, Kim abruptly turned to diplomacy with Seoul and Washington last year. He also visited China three times, notably without a reciprocal visit from Xi in a break with diplomatic convention.
But even after what was seen as a blockbuster summit between Kim and Trump in Singapore last June – the first-ever between the leaders of the war enemies –there’s been little real progress in nuclear disarmament.
Washington is pressing the North to offer up a detailed accounting of its nuclear arsenal, while Pyongyang says it has already done enough and it’s time for the U.S. to ease harsh international sanctions that hold back the North Korean economy.
Trump has offered assurances that another summit will allow he and Kim to make a grand deal to settle the nuclear standoff and change a relationship marked by decades of animosity and mistrust.
However, outside analysts are highly skeptical that the North will easily abandon a nuclear arsenal constructed in the face of deep poverty and likely seen by Kim as his only guarantee of regime survival.
for the “strong statements of support” by the U.S. in response to the “arbitrary detention” of two Canadians in China, the summary says. “The two leaders agreed to continue to seek their release.”
Entrepreneur Michael Spavor and fellow Canadian Michael Kovrig, a diplomat on leave from Global Affairs Canada, were taken into Chinese custody on security grounds in December.
Beijing’s actions came just days
after Canadian authorities in Vancouver arrested Meng, a senior executive with Chinese firm Huawei Technologies, who is wanted by the U.S. on fraud charges.
Meng’s arrest infuriated Beijing, and many western analysts see China’s detention of Spavor and Kovrig as retaliation.
Trudeau said at the time that Canada, which has an extradition treaty with the U.S., was merely following standard legal protocol.
Kelly Craft, the U.S. ambassador to Canada, told reporters it was “absolutely false” to assume a political motive behind Meng’s arrest. However, Trump muddied the waters the same day by telling Reuters in an interview that he would “certainly intervene” in Meng’s case “if I thought it was necessary” to help ensure a trade deal with China.
Canada has called for the immediate release of Kovrig and Spavor.
VANCOUVER — A major insurance company is fighting back after a British Columbia court required it to make good on a policy covering a gold, diamondencrusted eagle statue allegedly stolen in Metro Vancouver more than two years ago.
The B.C. Supreme Court issued a default judgment against Lloyd’s Underwriters last month, ordering it to pay the plaintiff, Forgotten Treasures International Inc., and its president, Ron Shore, damages and costs for the loss of the pricey statue. But court documents show Lloyd’s intends to return to court in February to ask for the default judgment to be overturned, arguing Shore violated the insurer’s conditions.
The court issued the judgment after Lloyd’s failed to formally answer Shore’s civil suit, but Lloyd’s says in documents filed last month that Shore’s lawyer was well aware the insurer wanted more detail before filing its notice of response.
Lloyd’s says in the documents that its lawyers also urged Shore’s counsel to confirm default proceedings were not underway, but the insurer says it only learned of the judgment four days after it had been made.
The insurer says it has “not wilfully defaulted” and is seeking special costs as an indication “a party’s litigation conduct is reprehensible.”
Documents filed when Shore launched his suit last year show the eight kilogram, solid gold eagle statue studded with 763 diamonds weighing a total of 56 karats was appraised at $930,450 in May 2016.
That was when police in Delta, B.C., reported Shore had been attacked and robbed as he carried the statue and a similar silver one to his car following a presentation about an international treasure hunt he was operating.
The jewel-covered statue and the silver version were prizes in the hunt, which was a fundraiser for cancer research, the statement of claim says.
The treasure hunt involved finding 12 certificates hidden in locations around North America and Europe with the first person to find the clue awarded one of 12 solid silver eagles.
Eagle statue studded with 763 diamonds weighing a total of 56 karats was appraised at $930,450 in May 2016.
Five of the silver eagles, worth an estimated total of $175,000, had already been awarded at the time Shore was attacked, hit over the head and robbed of the statues that he was carrying in a backpack, his claim says.
The gold eagle was to be sold at the end of the treasure hunt to finance the winner’s $1 million prize, say Forgotten Treasure’s
documents, and the insurance policy for the jewelled bird set liability at $400,000, while liability for loss of the silver statue was set at $53,750. Documents filed in November by Lloyd’s say the policy limits of liability for the articles were $710,000 and $53,750 respectively.
The insurers formally denied coverage in October 2016, says Shore’s civil claim.
Insurance broker The Hub, which is also listed as a defendant in the suit, alleges in its response that the eagle statues were being transported in a manner Shore “knew or ought to have known was in contravention of the policy.”
Lloyd’s supports that allegation in a notice of application seeking more information from Forgotten Treasures about its claim.
The policy contained conditions, one of which provided that coverage is excluded unless the insured articles are in the close personal custody and control of the assured and an officer or representative of the assured at all times, says the
application.
Shore’s claim says he had an associate with him the night the statues disappeared but Lloyd’s disagrees, noting in its documents that Shore was accompanied by Tanya Merx, a friend and practising psychologist, who was not trained in security.
“It is also clear from Ms. Merx’s statement that she was not with Mr. Shore during the reported mugging; rather, she had driven away from the scene and did not see the reported theft. Therefore, two persons for the plaintiff were not accompanying the insured articles at all times,” says the Lloyd’s filing.
Shore’s claim seeks a ruling that the policy was validly issued and “covered all losses during the policy period.”
He is also seeking special, punitive and general damages, including $400,000 for the gold and diamond-covered eagle, and $53,750 for the silver statue. A hearing regarding the default judgment is set for Feb. 26 in Vancouver.
Liam Sinclair of the Caledonia Nordic Ski Club makes his way up a hill on
during Biathlon B.C. Cup No. 2.
Ted CLARKE Citizen staff
tclarke@pgcitizen.ca
The biathlon game has changed this season for Damian Georgyev. It just got a lot tougher. When he gets to the shooting range he can’t just lie down on the job like he used to.
He still shoots in a prone position but now that he’s racing in the senior boys category that means half his shooting bouts require him to stand while holding his rifle. That raises the difficulty of the sport considerably for the 15-year-old Caledonia Nordic Ski Club member.
For every miss on the range at this weekend’s B.C. Cup biathlon races on his home course at Otway Nordic Centre he was required to ski a 150-metre penalty loop. Fortunately for Georgyev, all that practice on the range in the months leading up to weekend races paid off.
He hit seven of 10 standing targets and
knocked down seven of 10 prone targets on his way to a third-place finish in Saturday’s 7.5-kilometre individual race.
Then on Sunday he had just two misses (one prone, one standing) in 10 cracks at the range on his way to winning the 6 km sprint. Georgyev crossed the finish in 19 minutes 45 seconds, 1:37 ahead of secondplace Nicholas Veeken of Caledonia. Cody Vanwerkhoven of Quesnel was third, 1:43 off the pace.
“Junior was just prone-prone, now we have standing and it’s a whole new level,” said Georgyev, “It was a good race, the conditions for shooting weren’t that bad. It was a pretty good weekend,” he said. “For the standing (bout) there was no wind, which made it pretty easy. But on the prone bit there was quite a bit of wind when I was coming in but most of the people in the prone didn’t have much wind. I guess I was just unlucky.”
Georgyev, a Grade 10 student at Duchess Park secondary school, has always been a strong skier and had no problem making
He had just two misses (one prone, one standing) in 10 cracks at the range on his way to winning the 6 km sprint.
fast tracks on the Otway course, which included the challenging pitches of the Night Rider trail.
Miller Kriese of Smithers won the senior boys race Saturday in 29:23. Caledonia skier Liam Connon was second, 1:01 behind Kriese, with Georgyev 1:37 behind.
Georgyev plans to race B.C. Cup biathlon events in Quesnel, Jan. 18-20, and Vanderhoof, Feb. 1-3, leading up to the B.C. championships in West Kelowna, March 2-3.
“All of them are close to P.G. so it’s not much travelling for me,” said Georgyev. “I know a guy from (Vancouver Island) and he has to travel 13 hours and a ferry, so it’s lucky for us.”
Ted CLARKE Citizen staff
Somebody should remind Carter Berger of the Victoria Grizzlies he’s a defenceman.
As far as the Prince George Spruce Kings were concerned, Berger’s performance Sunday afternoon in Victoria was extremely offensive.
The 19-year-old University of Connecticut recruit scored two goals, his fifth and sixth in the past three games, to stake the Grizzlies to a 3-0 victory over the visiting Kings.
Berger opened the scoring 2:10 into the game when he took off on a rink-length rush and while spinning fired a shot that deflected off the post and in off the back of goalie Logan Neaton. Berger added to the total 6:20 into the second period on a setup from Alex Newhook.
Twelve minutes into the third period Newhook ended a lengthy stretch of offensive pressure applied by the Spruce Kings when he
scored his 21st of the season when the puck he shot bounced off Neaton’s pad and deflected in off a Kings’ player.
Curtis Chapman made 37 saves to earn his fourth shutout of the season. He was at his best early in the third period while the Grizzlies were killing a bench penalty for too many men and came up with two pad-stacking saves to keep the Kings off the scoreboard. Neaton took the loss in goal for Prince George, making 26 stops.
The win kept the Griizzlies (2512-0-2) first in the Island Division, two points behind Prince George in the overall standings. The Spruce Kings gained just one of a possible six points on a three-game weekend B.C. Hockey League road trip, losing three straight for the first time all season.
The Kings (25-12-2-2) started the weekend Friday in Merritt with a 3-2 shootout loss to the Cents, then made the long trek to Duncan where they dropped a 5-2 decision Saturday to the Cowichan Valley Capitals.
The Chilliwack Chiefs (27-11-00) now lead the Mainland Division and overall standings, tied with 54 points with the Spruce Kings. Chilliwack has two more wins than the Kings and has played one fewer game than Prince George.
The Spruce Kings will be back on home ice at Rolling Mix Concrete Arena on Friday to face Cowichan Valley. The Chiefs and Spruce Kings will meet Sunday afternoon in Chilliwack.
See page 8
Georgyev also has a shot at qualifying for the Canadian championships at Callaghan Valley near Whistler, March 26-31. Sisters Isla and Iona Cadell of Caledonia dominated their respective midget and juvenile classes winning gold both days. Quinn Friesen of Prince George captured the junior boys 4.5 km sprint title on Sunday. In other Caledonia medal results, midget racer Nathanael Dean was second in both races. Aliah Turner raced to silver in the juvenile sprint, while Gabriel Van Geloven won bronze in the midget sprint and Mackenzie Connon was a silver medalist in the recreation class sprint. In their boys individual race, Liam Sinclair (silver) and Aedan Miller (bronze) were right on the heels of gold medalist Jasper Fleming of Sea to Ski (Squamish). Payton Sinclair of Caledonia was the silver medalist in the juvenile individual race. Brynn Witwicki won silver in the senior girls sprint and bronze in the individual.
See Wednesday’s Citizen for more biathlon coverage.
Ted CLARKE Citizen staff
The end is in sight.
Two more road games and the Prince George Cougars can head home for an extended stay playing in familiar surroundings. Their marathon six-week, 11 -game road trip is nearly in the rearview mirror. But first they have to take aim at the Tri-City Americans, their opponents tonight in Kennewick, Wash.
Coming off a 2-1 shootout win over the Kelowna Rockets Friday night in Kelowna, the Cougars have to be feeling better about themselves after losing seven of their previous eight games on the current trip.
They’ll have to be sharp to defeat an Americans team that’s won six of its last 10, going 6-3-0-1 over that span.
The Americans (20-14-1-1) are coming off a weekend split with the U.S. Division-leading Everett Silvertips. They beat the ’Tips 3-2 at home on Friday and lost the rematch in Everett 4-1 on Saturday.
The Cougars will be without
the services of centre Ilijah Colina, who remains sidelined with a shoulder injury. Forward Reid Perepeluk (sick) is also not available tonight. Tyson Phare (lower body) might be ready for his first game action since November and Cole Moberg, who missed two games with a lower-body injury, could play tonight.
The Cougars will be in Spokane to face the Chiefs (24-13-2-2, third in U.S. Division) on Wednesday. On Saturday the Chiefs welcomed the return of centre Jarret Anderson-Dolan and defenceman Ty Smith, who returned from playing for Canada at the world junior championship. They helped the Chiefs defeat the Kootenay Ice 8-4 in Cranbrook.
The Cougars (13-21-1-2) are just four points behind the Kamloops Blazers for the eighth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference. The Cats are nine points behind Kelowna for third place in the B.C. Division. They’ll host the Rockets in back-to-back games at CN Centre Friday and Saturday.
Ted CLARKE Citizen staff tclarke@pgcitizen.ca
Anton Bilous and the Thompson Rivers University WolfPack prevailed in overtime Saturday, defeating the UNBC Tmberwolves 82-78, but not before they had to endure a storm that whipped up suddenly in the Thunderdome.
The pro-UNBC crowd in the otherwise-known Charles Jago Northern Sport Centre made life difficult for Bilous with 16 seconds left in regulation time when he stepped up to the free-throw line with a chance to bury the T-wolves. With his team leading by two points, the TRU guard needed to sink just one of his two tosses from the charity stripe but the T-wolves fans did their best to distract him, stomping their feet on the hollow metal stands and using their voices to create a thunderous roar and both shots from Bilous bounced off the rim and missed.
That allowed Jovan Leamy to bust deep into TRU territory and after a couple of tries from close range he got his shot to fall through the net with 1.3 seconds left, which tied the game 70-70 and forced overtime.
The WolfPack was unfazed and outscored UNBC 12-8 in the fiveminute OT session to clinch the victory and gain a weekend split with their Canada West conference rivals after losing Friday 90-81. But that crowd sure made it difficult for them.
“It was distracting,” said Bilous. “You guys get a great turnout here and I’m kind of jealous to be honest. I choked a little bit at the end I guess and I’ve got to get back in the gym and work on it I guess.” Bilous, a fourth-year veteran in his second season with the WolfPack after transferring from Western Texas College, collected 26 points in 32 minutes of playing time.
“Hats off to UNBC, two nights in a row they were there with us,” said Bilous. “Yesterday we came up short and today we were lucky enough to get to overtime. Maybe we were sharper at some
of the moments. They missed some pretty good looks so we got lucky.
“The way we play we just want to grind it out every game and keep it low-scoring. UNBC plays really good defence as well and it was a hard defensive game. But the refs did an amazing job, kind of letting us play a little more physical than usual and we like that.”
UNBC shot just three-for-12 with the game on the line and that made all the difference in an otherwise evenly-played OT session.
Enrico Nuno collected 16 points, Mike Rouault had 15 and Joe Davis scored 12 for TRU, hitting three times from long range.
Leamy was a threat to score all night in a 20-point effort. He grabbed a game-high 13 rebounds, 11 in the defensive zone, and also
had three steals and six assists. He wasn’t surprised it came down to the wire to decide another round in the Prince George-Kamloops battle.
“Every time we play TRU the game’s like that,” said Leamy. “We fought but we just didn’t come out on top this game. That’s a tough team on their side and they’re going to give us their best shot and
today they just had a better game.
“At the end of the game that’s where I feel I’m at my best and (on the tying shot) I just was aggressive and attacked the basket and was able to make the lay-up. We have a great crowd, probably the best in the conference and once they’re pumped up it’s so loud in there it’s hard for the other guys to shoot their free throws and actually focus and they definitely played a part in forcing the overtime. We just feed off that and it helps us play way better.”
Vova Pluzhnikov, given another chance to face Bilous, his former teammate on the Ukraine under-16 and under-18 national teams, led the T-wolves with 22 points.
The T-wolves (7-5) rank seventh in the Canada West
standings. TRU (5-7), ended a three-game slide and is now 11th in the 17-team conference. The WolfPack jumped out to a 20-11 lead in the opening quarter but UNBC crept ahead into a 37-35 lead at the half.
“There wasn’t a whole ton separating the teams, we played them once in preseason (a triple overtime win for UNBC),” said UNBC head coach Todd Jordan. “Last night they were in control for most of it and for us it took a big fourth-quarter run to win it and tonight it was a bucket or two separating the teams.
“When you look at close games like that it just comes down to execution and they were just that one possession better than us coming down to the stretch of the game and that was the difference.”
Ted CLARKE Citizen staff
It didn’t show up in the stats but UNBC Timberwolves point guard Emily Holmes definitely made a block to steal the ball underneath the hoop during the third quarter Saturday against the Thompson Rivers University WolfPack.
Standing just five-foot-four in her hightop sneakers playing university basketball against the giants of the U Sports Canada West conference, blocks are a rarity for Holmes and she made the most of it. She hauled in the ball and fired off a long, hard pass to teammate Alina Shakirova breaking up the court to close in for an easy lay-up.
That was certainly the most spectacular of a game-high seven assists for Holmes in a 79-49 victory which moved the T-wolves (8-4) into a tie for sixth place in the conference standings.
The T-wolves were on a four-game losing streak heading into the weekend, after a 6-0 start and the two wins against TRU were affirmation the team is back on track.
“We had a not ideal end to the first half of the season and we really wanted to come out hard right after Christmas with a fresh start so these two wins are huge for us,” said Holmes.
“That felt good as a team and everyone contributed so that really got our spirits back up. We had lots of energy and we were pushing the ball and focusing on defence and created those turnovers and we were getting those points.”
“She can still hit threes and you can see her basketball IQ is really high when she runs a fast break and she gets the ball to the right people without a lot of turnovers. We’re fortunate we have three players that can score on any given night 20-plus points a game.”
She can still hit threes and you can see her basketball IQ is really high.
— UNBC assistant coach Mark Johnson
Holmes is in her fourth season in U Sports and the 21-year-old Duchess Park grad is enjoying her time playing in her hometown with parents Louise and Dave in sight on the bench as T-wolves assistant coaches and she knows her role on the team.
“So far I feel I’ve been doing fairly well personally, it’s always about high energy on defence and that’s what I need to start with,” said Holmes. “I take my shots when they’re open but if not I’m looking to hit my teammates and that’s what I did tonight.”
Holmes had just two points but scoring is not a major part of her job description, especially considering the offensive weapons UNBC possesses.
“Emily’s very consistent and she’s really stepped up this year,” said T-wolves assistant coach Mark Johnson.
“She’s been a leader on the floor and you can see she’s confident and calm as she brings up the ball and starts up the offence and she knows exactly what she’s supposed to do. She plays to her strengths and doesn’t try to do things she knows aren’t in her wheelhouse.
Veterans Maria Mongomo, Vasiliki Louka and Madison Landry are among the best in the league at generating points and second-year guard Shakirova showed her scoring touch in both weekend games. Shakirova’s 19 points Saturday was one better than the career-high 18 she put up the previous night. Louka had 19, Landry had 15 and Mongomo chipped in 13 points in Saturday’s game. Michelle Bos scored 14 to pace the WolfPack (3-9) as they dropped into 14th place with their third straight loss.
After a sluggish beginning coming out of the month-long mid-season break in what ended up a 78-55 win Friday the T-wolves got the quick energetic start they were after in he rematch, scoring 10 points off turnovers to build a 25-13 lead they stretched to 38-23 at the half. The healthy lead allowed UNBC head coach Sergey Shchepotkin to give his bench players plenty of court time in the second half.
“I like the result and there were some very good moments but we’re still working it out,” said Shchepotkin. “We just have to keep working hard in practices and it will come.”
The T-wolves will now turn their attention to the Manitoba Bisons (5-7), who visit the NSC Friday and Saturday.
Barry WILNER Citizen news service
CHICAGO — Maybe it was the absence of all those high-powered offences on byes.
Perhaps it was the jitters for some younger teams, particularly their quarterbacks: Deshaun Watson, Mitchell Trubisky and Lamar Jackson.
Or maybe defence actually still has a place in the NFL, especially in the playoffs.
The most points anyone scored during wild-card weekend, when only Dallas won at home, was 24 by the Cowboys. In total, 145 points were scored, an average of 36.2 per game. The Chiefs averaged 35.3 all by themselves this season.
As Nick Foles – St. Nick in Philly for his clutch work as a relief pitcher and, oh yes, as a Super Bowl champion – observed following the Eagles’ 16-15 comeback escape in Chicago : “Our defence really kept us in this game. It was a hard-fought defensive battle tonight and we were able to come up big in the end.”
Or as coach Anthony Lynn noted following the Chargers’ 23-17 win at Baltimore in which Los Angeles forced three turnovers and held the Ravens to 229 total yards, 90 on the ground: “Our defence was outstanding. We held that team down to 100 yards rushing. No one has played that team the way our defence played today. I was really impressed with the way our defence stepped up.”
All the winning defences will need to step up a few more rungs next weekend. Consider that aside from the Chiefs scoring 565 points this season, the Rams got 527, the Saints 504 and the Patriots 436.
All of them will be at home.
The Colts (11-6) head to Kansas City (12-4) on Saturday, followed by the Cowboys (11-6) at the Rams (13-3). On Sunday, the Chargers (13-4) are at the Patriots (11-5), while the Eagles, who lost 48-7 at the Saints during the season, finish off the divisional round at New Orleans (13-3).
While the NFL loves to tout all the scoring records set during the 2018 season, all of the yards
gained and general wide-openness of weekly contests, when it comes down to deciding who winds up in the conference title games, maybe the guys trying to stop those videogame offences will have a say.
It’s unlikely that any of the wildcard victors can win a Super Bowl without being balanced. The Eagles will need to play far better defence in the Big Easy or Drew Brees will have, well, an easy time picking apart a secondary playing mostly backups. The Chargers likely will require more than 24 points to succeed in Foxborough, where the Patriots had the NFL’s only unbeaten home record this season.
Dallas needs more offensive imagination and another huge performance against the run to win at L.A. Only Indianapolis, which was superb on both sides of the ball at Houston, displayed enough of the formula needed to get the conference championship game.
Then again, the Colts must slow down All-Pro quarterback Patrick Mahomes and crew at Arrowhead Stadium.
“We’re not worried about who’s on the other side,” said Colts
rookie linebacker Darius Leonard, himself an All-Pro. “We always talk about whoever’s playing on the opposite side is grey matter. So we’re always talking about doing what we can do and controlling what we can control, and that is going out, playing each play, play by play and going from there.”
What about the four teams coming off byes? Which ones are best suited to come up with a solid defensive showing?
The two most suspect are the Chiefs and Rams. Sure, KC averaged all those points weekly. It also yielded 26.3, including 43, 54, 29 and 38 in its losses, and the 421 points opponents scored by far were the most any playoff team surrendered. The Rams allowed 384, easily the most of any NFC post-season qualifier; L.A. had seven games in which it allowed at least 30 points.
New England also can be vulnerable on defence even though it’s been stingy at times when it comes to giving up touchdowns. The Patriots aren’t a force in the pass rush and against quality quarterbacks the linebackers and secondary
have had trouble in coverage. New Orleans probably has the most well-rounded roster, with some standouts on defence to accompany Brees and All-Pro receiver Michael Thomas and the terrific running back duo of Alvin Kamara and Mark Ingram.
ARLINGTON, Texas — Ezekiel Elliott rushed for 137 yards and the go-ahead touchdown in the fourth quarter, and the Dallas Cowboys hung on for a 24-22 wild-card win over the Seattle Seahawks on Saturday night. The loss ended a run of nine straight victories in playoff openers for the Seahawks. The Elias Sports Bureau says it was the longest streak in NFL history. Dallas’ defence, ranked in the top 10 most of the season, mostly kept quarterback Russell Wilson under control and handed him his first loss in four wild-card games. It was the eighth win in nine games for the Cowboys.
Citizen news service
VANCOUVER — Jack Hughes still had tears in his eyes Saturday night as he talked about losing the gold-medal game at the world junior hockey championship.
“Right now, there’s nothing I really want to learn from this,” the 17-year-old said after Finland beat the Americans 3-2 in a dramatic final performance. “It’s sad. I don’t want to go through this again.” Hughes is expected to go first overall at this year’s NHL draft.
Kaapo Kakko, who’s expected to go second, scored the game-winning goal in the last 90 seconds of Saturday night’s game. “It was a great feeling. There are no words,” the young Finn said. Kakko’s teammates gushed about his per-
formance at the tournament and predicted that he’ll be the one picked first by an NHL team come June.
“I think he’s unbelievable. First tournament and he scores a goal like that? Unbelievable. It sums up his tournament, for sure,” said Finnish captain Aarne Talvitie.
“He’s so young but he seems like a thirdyear veteran guy out there. He don’t fear anything,” said Eeli Tolvanen, who played four games with the Nashville Predators last month.
“He’s unbelievable. He’s going to be the first overall for sure.”
Finnish coach Jussi Ahokas called the teenage forward “a future superstar,” but said his group won as a team on Saturday.
“We were really tight. We have great personalities on the team. We grew up as a
team,” he said.
The win was special for Ahokas, who’s been coaching some of the players for several years. He remembers being a skills coach for Talvitie when he was just nine years old.
“Kinda cool that he was here now,” the coach said. “It’s been a long journey and we had such a great bunch of guys.”
The win marks Finland’s fifth gold at the tournament and comes after the team was eliminated from competition in the quarterfinals last year. They last won at home in Helsinki in 2016.
The Finns also got scoring from Jesse Ylonen and Otto Latvala, and strong goaltending from Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen.
The six-foot-five Buffalo Sabres prospect was named the tournament’s top goalie
Citizen news service
SANTA CLARA, Calif. — Tua Tagovailoa dropped back on Alabama’s third play of the game, threw in between two receivers and had the ball intercepted and returned for a touchdown. It proved to be that kind of night for the Crimson Tide’s uber-talented quarterback, who didn’t fare nearly as well as a starter in the College Football Playoff championship game as he did a year ago in relief. Tagovailoa threw two interceptions, was stopped on a pair of fourth-down runs and struggled mightily in the final three quarters of a 44-16 loss to No. 2 Clemson on Monday night. Tagovailoa announced his arrival as a star on this stage a year ago when he came off the bench to throw three TD passes, including the game-winner in overtime to beat Georgia 26-23 for the championship in Atlanta. He followed that up with a Heisman Trophy runnerup campaign, throwing 41 TD passes and only four interceptions for the top-ranked Crimson Tide (14-1) to lead them back to the championship. After struggling on an injured ankle before getting pulled in the SEC championship game, Tagovailoa delivered a brilliant performance in the Orange Bowl semifinal game against Oklahoma, throwing for 318 yards and four TDs with only three incompletions. He looked to be on the way to another big game even after the early interception when he threw a 62-yard touchdown pass to Jerry Jeudy on Alabama’s second drive, followed by a one-yarder to Hale Hentges on the next possession. But after Alabama drove inside the Clemson 10 late in the first quarter, everything changed for the Tide. A false start by Jedrick Willis Jr. at the one-yard line helped stall a drive that led to a field goal that gave Alabama a 16-14 lead in the opening minute of the second quarter.
The Tide didn’t score again with Tagovailoa in the game.
after making 25 saves in the final.
“We showed at the end of the tournament why we are one of the best teams,” he said. “We have grown up as players and a group.”
The Americans had clawed their way back from a two-goal deficit in the third period with goals from Josh Norris and Alexander Chmelevski.
Cayden Primeau stopped 28 of 31 shots for the U.S.
“At the end of the day it’s about who stops the puck more. We didn’t get that on our side so that’s why we came up short,” Primeau said.
Earlier Saturday, Russia beat Switzerland 5-2 to capture bronze.
Next year’s tournament will be held in the Czech Republic.
Jake COYLE Citizen news service
NEW YORK — Thunder bolt and lightning rocked the 76th Golden Globes where a string of upsets culminated with the Freddie Mercury biopic Bohemian Rhapsody winning best picture, drama, over another movie about musicians: Bradley Cooper’s much more heavily favoured A Star Is Born.
A Star Is Born came into Sunday’s ceremony at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills, Calif., as the presumed heavyweight and Oscar favourite. But Cooper’s remake went home with just one award, for the song Shallow.
Instead, the night’s final two awards went to Bohemian Rhapsody – the popular but poorly reviewed drama about Queen’s frontman, a movie that wrapped after jettisoning its director, Bryan Singer – and best actor-winner Rami Malek for his full-bodied, prosthetic teeth-aided performance as Mercury.
“Thank you to Freddie Mercury for giving me the joy of a lifetime,” said Malek. “This is for you, gorgeous.” Few nominees were considered more of a sure thing than Lady Gaga as best actress in a drama. But Glenn Close pulled off the shocker in that category, too, for her performance in The Wife, as the spouse of a Nobel Prize-winning author. Met with a standing ovation, Close said she was thinking of her mother, “who really sublimated herself to my father her whole life.”
“We have to find personal fulfilment. We have to follow our dreams,” said Close, drawing still louder cheers from women in the crowd. “We have to say I can do that and I should be allowed to do that.”
It’s Close’s second Globe in 14 nods. She’s never won an Oscar.
A year after Oprah Winfrey’s fiery anti-Donald Trump speech at the Globes, politics were largely absent from the ceremony before Christian Bale took the stage for winning best actor in a musical or comedy for his lead performance in Adam McKay’s Vice. He thanked the antichrist.
“What do you think? Mitch McConnell next?” joked the Welshborn actor, referring to the Senate’s majority leader. “Thank you to Satan for giving me inspiration for this role.”
Co-hosts Sandra Oh and Andy Samberg opened the Globes, put on by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, on a note of congeniality, including a mock roast of attendees and a string of jokes that playfully critiqued Hollywood. Oh performed an impression of a sexist caveman film executive who casts like the title of Damien Chazelle’s Neil Armstrong drama: “First... man!”
Noting the success of Crazy Rich Asians, Oh alluded to films with white stars in Asian roles like Ghost in the Shell and Aloha, the latter of which prompted Emma Stone, who starred in Aloha, to shout out “I’m sorry!” from the crowd.
But Ottawa-born Oh, who later also won for her performance on the BBC America drama series
Killing Eve, closed their opening monologue on a serious note explaining why she was hosting.
“I wanted to be here to look out at this audience and witness this moment of change,” said Oh, tearing up and gazing at minority nominees in attendance. “Right now, this moment is real. Trust me, this is real. Because I see you. And I see you. All of these faces of change. And now, so will everyone else.”
Some of those faces Oh alluded to won. Mahershala Ali, whom the foreign press association overlooked for his Oscar-winning performance in Moonlight, won best supporting actor for Green Book. While the Globes, decided by 88 voting members of the HFPA, have little relation to the Academy Awards, they can supply some awards-season momentum when it matters most. Oscar nomination voting begins Monday.
Arguably the biggest boost went to Green Book, Peter Farrelly’s interracial road trip through the
early ’60s Deep South, which has struggled to catch on at the box office while coming under harsh criticism for relying on racial tropes. It won best film, comedy or musical, and best screenplay. “If Don Shirley and Tony Vallelonga can find common ground, we all can,” said Farrelly, the director best known for broader comedies like There’s Something About Mary. The year’s biggest domestic box-office hit, Black Panther, went unrewarded, though presenters Chadwick Boseman, Michael B. Jordan, Lupita Nyong’o and Danai Gurira took a moment, in unison, for a shout of “Wakanda Forever!”
As expected, Lady Gaga, Mark Ronson, Anthony Rossomando and Andrew Wyatt won best song for the signature tune from A Star Is Born. At the time, it seemed like just the first of a handful of awards for A Star Is Born.
“Can I just say that as a woman in music, it’s really hard to be taken seriously as a musician and as songwriter and these three
incredible men, they lifted me up,” Gaga said. Though the Globes are put on by foreign journalists, they don’t include foreign language films in their two best picture categories (for drama and musical/comedy). That left Netflix’s Oscar hopeful, Alfonso Cuaron’s memorydrenched masterwork Roma out of the top category. Cuaron still won best director and the Mexicanborn filmmaker’s movie won best foreign language film.
“This film would not have been possible without the specific colours that made me who I am,” said Cuaron. “Gracias, familia. Gracias, Mexico.”
Netflix also won numerous awards for the series The Kominsky Method, which won both best actor in a comedy series for Michael Douglas (he dedicated the honour to this 102-year-old father, Kirk Douglas) and for best comedy series over favoured nominees like The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel (whose star, Rachel Brosnahan still won) and Barry.
“Netflix, Netflix, Netflix,” said series creator Chuck Lorre. Olivia Colman, expected to be Lady Gaga’s stiffest competition when the two presumably go head-to-head at the Oscars –though Close may now make it a three-way race – won best actress in a comedy/musical for her Queen Anne in the royal romp The Favourite.
“I ate constantly throughout the film,” said Colman. “It was brilliant.”
Best supporting actress in a motion picture went to the Oscar front-runner Regina King for her matriarch of Barry Jenkins’ James Baldwin adaptation If Beale Street Could Talk. In her acceptance speech, King spoke about the Time’s Up movement and vowed that the movie crews of everything she produces in the next two years will be half women. She challenged others to do likewise.
“Stand with us in solidarity and do the same,” said King, who was also nominated for the TV series Seven Seconds.
A year after the Globes were awash in a sea of black and #MeToo discussion replaced fashion chatter, the red carpet largely returned to more typical colours and conversation. Some attendees wore ribbons that read TIMESUPx2, to highlight the second year of the gender equality campaign that last year organized the Globes black-clad demonstration. Alyssa Milano, the actress who was integral in making #MeToo go viral, said on the red carpet that in the past year a “really wonderful sisterhood has formed.” Spider-Man: Into the SpiderVerse won for best animated film. Ryan Murphy’s The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story won for both best limited series and Darren Criss’ lead performance.
For its sixth and final season, FX’s The Americans took best drama series over shows like Amazon’s conspiracy thriller Homecoming and Oh’s own Killing Eve. Richard Madden, the breakout star of the terrorism suspense series Bodyguard, won best actor in a drama series. Ben Wishaw took best supporting actor in a limited series for A Very English Scandal. The press association typically likes having first crack at series that weren’t eligible for the prior Emmys. They did this year with not just The Kominsky Method and Bodyguard but also the Showtime prison drama Escape at Dannemora. Its star, Patricia Arquette, won for best actress in a limited series.
Last year’s show, like a lot of recent awards shows, saw ratings decline. Some 19 million tuned in to the Seth Meyers-hosted broadcast, an 11-per cent decline in viewership. This year, Globes broadcaster NBC has one thing in its favour: an NFL lead in. NBC aired the late afternoon nail-biter between the Chicago Bears and the Philadelphia Eagles, likely delivering the network a huge audience.
Jeff Bridges received the Globes’ honorary Cecil B. DeMille Award. In remarks about everything from Michael Cimino to Buckminster Fuller and, of course, to his Big Lebowski character the Dude, Bridges compared his life to a great game of tag.
“We’ve all been tagged,” said Bridges. “We’re alive.” He ended by “tagging” everyone watching. “We can turn this ship in the way we want to go, man,” said Bridges. A similar television achievement award was also launched this year, dubbed the Carol Burnett Award. Its first honoree was Burnett, herself. “I’m kind of really gob-smacked by this,” said Burnett. “Does this mean that I get to accept it every year?”
O’BRIEN,VioletaG. September3,1936-January2,2019
VioletaO’Brien,age82,passedawaypeacefully, surroundedbyfamily,onWednesday,January2, 2019,atRotaryHospiceHouse.Shewillbelovingly rememberedbyherchildren,Kathryn(Christian) Schenk,PaulO’Brien,andFrancis(Melissa)O’Brien; grandchildren,Alexandra,Matthias,Samantha,and Gabriel;sisters,Nelly,Ligaya,andLinda;brother, Rudy;andnumerousotherrelatives.Sheis predeceasedbyherhusband,GaryO’Brien,and sisters,AdelaGaviniandFelyDorthee. Catholicprayerswillbeheldat7pmonFriday, January11,2019,andafuneralmasswillbeheldat 11amonSaturday,January12,2019,atImmaculate ConceptionChurch.
In loving memory of a very special father, grandfather and great grandfather JOSEPH HORDOS February 3, 1927December 29, 2018
Not a day goes by without the shedding of tears and the pain in our hearts. We know he is in the hand of the good Shepherd, our Lord and Savior Jesus in his heavenly home forever. We look forward to meet him waiting for us with open arms as always, Oh, how we miss your smile and laughter. Sadly missed by his companion Annie and his family; Ervin (Carol), James (Doreen), Carol (Howard), Donald (Colette), Patrick ( Jane), Paul (Lorna) and Joseph (Catherine), numerous grandchildren, great grandchildren, nieces, nephews, one brother and three sisters survive him. Joseph was predeceased by his wife Elizabeth and son Vern. Vigil prayers for the deceased will be held on Friday January 11, 2019 at 7:00pm at Christ Our Saviour Catholic Church, 4514 Austin Road W. with a funeral mass to follow on Saturday January 12, 2019 at 11:00am At Christ Our Saviour Catholic Church. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Alzheimer’s Society.
JARDINE
Brayden Paul Stanley March 18, 2004 Calgary, AB December 28, 2018 Prince George, BC
It is with great sadness that we announce the sudden passing of Brayden Paul Stanley Jardine on December 28, 2018 at the age of 14 years. Brayden will be lovingly remembered for his smile, his contagious laughter, his love for music and his love for his Grandpa’s guitar. Brayden is survived by his loving mother Amanda Jardine (Blythe), Grandparents Ron and Kathy of Francois Lake BC, Great Grandma Jean Boudreau of Calgary AB, Great Grandma Elizabeth Shepardson of Halifax NS, Aunt and Uncle Ronalee & Gregg Jones and cousins Duke & Lydia of Airdrie AB, Aunt and Uncle Ashley & Aaron Maccallum and cousins Bailey & Clark of Calgary AB and numerous Great Aunts, Uncles, Cousins and Great Friends. Brayden was predeceased by his Great Uncle Stanley Jardine, Great Grandpy Harry Boudreau, Great Papa Duke, Great Cousin Billy Sue Boudreau, Great Uncle Wayne Jardine & Great Uncle Jerry Boudreau. The family would like to extend a warm Special thank you to all who provided loving care and compassionate support throughout his short little life, to the numerous Doctors and Nurses who cared for him dearly and to AiMHI who provided their exceptional special needs support with love, care and tender compassion. A Celebration of Life will be held for Brayden on January 10, 2019 at 10:00am in the AiMHI building 950 Kerry Street, Prince George, BC. If friends so desire, donations can be made directly to AiMHI through their website aimhi.ca in lieu of flowers.
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Darren Lee Gill (Eiriksson) September 18, 1978December 28, 2018
Darren lost his very brief fight with cancer at the age of 40 years. He will be greatly missed by his loving wife and best friend Patricia. Also left with memories are family and friends. A memorial service and tea will be held on January 15th, 2019 11:00am at The Salvation Army Church, 777 Ospika Blvd. Everyone Welcome. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Rotary Hospice House.
Brandi Maye Folk January 31, 1996December 25, 2018
It is with heavy hearts and great sadness that we announce the passing of our dearest beloved daughter, Brandi Maye Folk. Brandi will be lovingly remembered by her father and mother, Edward and Susan Folk, brother David, sister Brittany, nephew Darius, Grandparents and numerous Aunts, Uncles and cousins. Brandi was a beautiful, thoughtful young lady full of kindness and compassion. Brandi was a talented artist and expressed her feelings and passion through her art. A celebration of Brandi’s life will be held at 1pm on January 12, 2019 at the College Heights Baptist Church, 5401 Moriarity Cres. In lieu of flowers we would ask that you donate to any Mental Health Program for Youth.
Alfred John Rolfes
Our Dad passed away on December 26th, 2018 at the Hospice House in Prince George, BC. Alfred was born on October 24, 1944, in Humbolt, SK (Son of the late Bernard & Maria Rolfes). Dad battled with oral cancer and fought the good fight. We are all very proud of him. “Cancer is just one chapter in your life, not the whole story. “ There will be a celebration of life held on April 13th, 2019 - at 2pm with refreshments to follow. Pineview Hall, 6470 Bendixion Rd, Prince George, BC - for info please contact 1-250-614-9772
We kids: Barry (Michelle), Dwayne (Kari-Lynn) and Colleen (Les) along with Grandchildren, Jessica (Brandon), Micheal, Marinus, William, Kaya and Sam would love to see you all there! (Predeceased by wife Ann Kathleen 2007 and granddaughter Emily Rose 1997)
Currencies
These are indicative wholesale rates for foreign currency provided by the Bank of Canada on Monday. Quotations in Canadian funds.
TORONTO (CP) — North American stock markets ended a wild first trading week of the year by rebounding strongly Friday on positive trade, employment and interest rate news and a further boost in the price of oil. A day after plummeting on concerns about Chinese growth, markets recovered on improved sentiment as the U.S. and China are set to resume trade talks, U.S. jobs numbers soared in December
The S&P/TSX composite index closed up 213.87 points or 1.5 per cent to 14,426.62 after hitting an intraday high of 14,438.27.
The broad-based rally was led by the energy sector, which gained 3.1 per cent, on higher oil prices.
The February crude contract was up 87 cents US at US$47.96 per barrel after a report that U.S. crude inventories remained essentially unchanged. The February natural gas contract was up 9.9 cents at US$3.04 per mmBTU. The price of West Texas Intermediate crude gained 5.8 per cent over the week to nearly $50. Blais expects WTI will rise to around US$60 per barrel this year once the supply-demand dynamic is brought back into balance. Cyclical sectors like technology, consumer discretionary and industrials that fell during selloffs gained on the day.
Five companies saw their share prices increase by at least three per cent Friday - Nutrien Ltd., Brookfield Asset Management Inc., Suncor Energy Inc., Manulife Financial and Canadian Natural Resources Ltd.
In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average gained 3.3 per cent or 746.94 points at 23,433.16 a day after losing 660 points.
The S&P 500 index was up 84.05 points at 2,531.94, while the techheavy Nasdaq composite was up 4.3 per cent or 275.35 points at 6,738.86. Apple Inc. partially recovered its 10 per cent loss on Thursday by closing up 4.2 per cent.
Blais said investors should brace for a continued roller coaster ride as markets compare news and upcoming earnings with expectations.
“I think we’re setting ourselves up for volatility on the upside and on the downside,” he said, adding there’s a bifurcated view of the market.
The Canadian dollar traded at an average of 74.57 cents US compared with an average of 74.02 cents US on Thursday.
The February gold contract was down US$9 at US$1,285.80 an ounce and the March copper contract was up 7.95 cents at US$2.65 a pound.
Kristine OWRAM Citizen news service
After a wild year for the cannabis sector, it’s appropriate that 2019 kicks off with a focus on Aphria Inc., the Canadian pot producer that was attacked by short sellers and is now the target of a hostile takeover bid.
Aphria reports results for the fiscal second quarter on Friday, and there will undoubtedly be plenty of questions on the conference call about the allegations from short sellers that it overpaid for “worthless” assets in Latin America. Aphria called the claims by Quintessential Capital Management and Hindenburg Research “malicious and selfserving.”
The saga took a new twist in the quiet days between Christmas and New Years, when Green Growth Brands Inc. proposed a hostile bid for Aphria, whose stock lost a quarter of its value in December. The potential offer, which has yet to be finalized, raised further questions about Aphria’s links to the much smaller Green Growth, with short-seller Hindenburg Research saying it’s “likely an attempt to generate the appearance of demand in the hopes of spurring credible offers.”
Aphria said the offer, valued at
C$2.8 billion ($2.1 billion) at the time, “significantly undervalues the company.”
The fallout will affect the sector as a whole, resulting in “greater emphasis on corporate governance, deal due diligence, and M&A valuations,” Andrew Kessner, analyst at William O’Neil & Co., wrote in a recent note.
Aphria played just one part in a hectic year for the burgeoning cannabis sector. At the beginning of 2018, former U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions had just thrown a wrench into states’ legalization plans, Canada’s recreational market was still just a campaign pledge by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and pot stocks were trading well above current levels.
We can sum up the year with three ‘L’ words: legalization, legitimization and listings:
• Legalization of medical marijuana has spread well beyond Canada to places like Thailand and the U.K. that few people saw coming.
• Legitimization of the drug has gathered pace at an astonishing speed, with traditional consumer and pharmaceutical companies ranging from Constellation Brands and AnheuserBusch InBev, to Altria Group and Novartis investing in or partner-
ing with pot firms.
• The number of cannabis listings has soared, with at least 149 companies worth a combined C$54.7 billion trading on Canadian stock exchanges as of Jan. 2. A growing number of those are U.S. firms with market values above C$1 billion.
In terms of stock performance, the BI Global Cannabis Competitive Peers index sank 54 per cent in 2018. It was a wildly volatile year for many pot stocks, but none could match Tilray Inc., the only cannabis stock to be listed solely on a U.S. exchange. It closed the year up 315 per cent from its July initial public offering, but that represents a major come-down for investors – at its highest point in September, it was up 1,665 per cent. The stock peaked at $300, and now trades close to $70. It still has a market value of $6.6 billion, surpassed only by Canopy Growth Corp. among pot firms.
It’s going to be hard to top the action-packed year that was, though 2019 will have almost as many catalysts for cannabis investors as 2018.
What to watch this year:
• The U.S. will dominate the news flow and stock listings: with the recently passed farm bill legalizing hemp, some say it’s only a matter of time before
legislators follow suit and legalize cannabis nationwide. Others argue a divided Congress will stymie any real progress. Either way, 2019 will be America’s time in the marijuana spotlight as investor interest rapidly shifts from Canada to the much larger U.S. market, where consumer spending on legal cannabis is expected to reach $20.9 billion by 2021 from $11 billion last year, according to Arcview Market Research and BDS Analytics.
• As the U.S. weighs proposed legislation that could open up banking and stock exchanges to cannabis companies, institutional investors will feel increasingly comfortable investing in the space. To date, cannabis investments have largely been the purview of retail investors, family offices and specialty hedge funds.
• Legalization of both medical and recreational cannabis will continue to spread around the world, with France, Italy, Peru, New Zealand and even Lebanon on the list of countries thought to be the next movers.
• Clear winners and losers will begin to emerge in Canada as pot producers report their first earnings that include recreational sales. Expect plenty of consolidation and a few outright failures.
Bell asking customers for more access to personal information
David PADDON Citizen news service
TORONTO — Canada’s largest telecommunications group is getting mixed reviews for its plan to follow the lead of companies like Google and Facebook in collecting massive amounts of information about the activities and preferences of its customers.
Bell Canada began asking its customers in December for permission to track everything they do with their home and mobile phones, internet, television, apps or any other services they get through Bell or its affiliates.
In return, Bell says it will provide advertising and promotions that are more “tailored” to their needs and preferences.
“Tailored marketing means Bell will be able to customize advertising based on participant account information and service usage patterns, similar to the ways that companies like Google and others have been doing for some time,” the company says in recent notices to customers.
If given permission, Bell will collect information about its customers’ age, gender, billing addresses, and the specific tablet, television or other devices used to access Bell services. It will also collect the “number of messages sent and received, voice minutes, user data consumption and type of connectivity when downloading or streaming.”
“Bell’s marketing partners will not receive the personal information of program participants; we just deliver the offers relevant to the program participants on their behalf,” the company assures customers.
Teresa Scassa, who teaches law at the University of Ottawa and holds the Canada Research Chair in Information Law and Policy,
says Bell has done a good job of explaining what it wants to do.
But Scassa says Bell customers who opt into Bell’s new program could be giving away commercially valuable personal information with little to no compensation for increased risks to their privacy and security.
“Here’s a company that’s taking every shred of personal information about me, from all kinds of activities that I engage in, and they’re monetizing it. What do I get in return? Better ads? Really? That’s it? What about better prices?”
Toronto-based consultant Charlie Wilton, whose firm has advised Bell and Rogers in the past, says there’s “tonnes” of evidence that consumers are increasingly aware of how valuable their personal information can be.
“I mean, in a perfect world, they would give you discounts or they would give you points or things that consumers would more tangibly want, rather than just the elimination of a pain point – which is what they’re offering right now,” Wilton says.
Scassa says there are also privacy and security concerns to consider.
At the macro level, Bell’s data security could be breached by hackers. At the micro level, she adds, there’s the potential for family friction if everybody starts getting ads based on one person’s activities.
Ads for pornography, birth control or services for victims of abuse could trigger confrontations, for instance.
“Some families are open and sharing. Others are fraught with tension and violence,” Scassa says.
Wilton says a company in Bell’s position also runs the risk that customers will feel
betrayed if their information is leaked or the advertising they receive is inappropriate.
In the age of social media, he says, “one leak or one transgression gets amplified a million times.”
Bell spokesman Nathan Gibson notes in an email that its customers aren’t required to opt into its new marketing program and they can opt out later by adjusting their instructions.
“Bell is responsible for delivering the advertising we believe would be most relevant to customers who opt in to the program, rather than the random online ads they would receive otherwise,” Gibson says. “Customer information is always protected, enforced by our strict privacy policy and in accordance with all Canadian privacy regulations.”
A spokeswoman for the federal privacy commissioner says that it hasn’t received any complaints about Bell’s new program.
However, Tobi Cohen noted that Bell withdrew and replaced its earlier Relevant Ads Program for its mobile service after the commission concluded in 2015 that dissatisfied consumers shouldn’t be required to take the initiative to opt out.
“Following further consultations and discussions with our office, Bell did make improvements and relaunched the program with opt-in consent in 2016,” Cohen says. She added that the privacy commission hasn’t scrutinized the new “tailored” marketing program but added that the federal privacy law governing private-sector organizations has numerous requirements. Among other things, organizations “need to explain what risks of harm may come to the individual from the collection, use or disclosure of the various information.”
