The Real McCoy

“I've been blessed to find people who are smarter than I am, and they help me to execute the vision I have.”    Russell Simmons, American Entrepreneur  

Over the years I have employed many people.  When I commenced by second career in 1990, my wife and I opened our first “going concern” in Leduc.  We ran a Radio Shack Dealership for nearly 10 years before we decided to wind down the business.  During that same period we started a computer company, where we opened two stores.  One in Leduc and the other in Camrose.  A third location was opened by a Wetaskiwin resident in that city on main street.  In all three stores that we operated, I employed no less than thirty people, all doing specific jobs.  Some were sales persons, other electronic and computer technicians and another eight people were instructors teaching computer classes.

After closing these retail businesses I entered the publishing field, where I managed a sales team for a national periodical. This lead me to my current position with the Pipestone Flyer.

The point of all this is simple.  I have been in a position where I have had to hire people to do specific jobs and assess performance levels of each person under my supervision.  Like many managers, I have found the performance levels of individuals all different.  But every once and a while I find a real gem.  That person who really makes a difference, where your personal vision and mission that you have is adopted with zeal.  In a word, the 'Real McCoy'.

Those types of people are very hard to hold onto and I have found from my experience that when you have that person in your employ you make the best of it.

What I, as well as many employers look for in the 'Real McCoy’, is someone that has served with distinction.  Distinction does not so much mean that they have flair, although an interesting personality does not hurt.  But it simply involves doing the job and doing it well.  That person knows exactly what their job entails, and organizes their time well leaving no tasks behind.  They become that employee where you know with full confidence that their job is getting done even when unsupervised, and the results show.

Many who hold jobs seldom understand how important their role is in a specific company.  They may feel that their tasks they have been hired to complete are mundane, boring or just not necessary.  However, no job you are hired for is unnecessary, because if that were true, no paycheque would be forthcoming and the position would be dissolved.

Yes, the 'Real McCoy' is that person who does the job whether they feel their assignment is just not interesting or even important.  Believe it or not, many managers do take note of each employee and the level of value they bring to the table.  They know when someone is just 'not there' and when that is identified, it becomes a housekeeping problem for the employer.

So what is this all about?  It is about a young lady who I had the privilege of employing as a full-time reporter for the Pipestone Flyer. Sydnee Bryant is leaving us, and in the very short time we had her in our employ she created the mold of what a very good employee is.  She became a real asset to The Pipestone Flyer and (if you will excuse my expression) my right-hand 'man.'
 
Sydnee Bryant is leaving the glamour of working for an Alberta weekly community newspaper and will fly to the middle east, where she will become the editor of the “Qatar Happening Magazine”, a trendy monthly glossy publication in the heart of Qatar.

As readers you have been witness to the start of a young persons journalist career.  Although the Pipestone Flyer was Sydnee Bryant's first full-time position as a reporter, I truly believe that this special person will have a long and distinguishable career.

It all started here, and we are very proud to have had the opportunity to be a part of her journey.  God speed Sydnee, I know that everything you do will have the mark of the 'Real McCoy.'

Refugees or Fugitives?

There are those people who live their lives with an open door policy on nearly everything.  Acceptance is not only a word to them but a way of life.  They accept circumstances all under the guise of political correctness with a liberal dose of 'what ever'.  These same people are those that see others who like to examine circumstances around them with a critical eye as being intolerant, ignorant and yes even racist.  In a word, everyone else are nothing but a bunch of xenophobes.

The recent arrival of refugees from Sri Lanka, who landed on the coast of British Columbia aboard the MV Sun Sea from Thailand has brought Canada's liberal immigration practices in question.  It has also given some on the press the opportunity to call our current government, and many average Canadians as xenophobic. In a word, “Xenophobia” is an unreasonable fear or hatred of foreigners or strangers or of that which is foreign or strange.

The key here is “unreasonable” because quite frankly, there is nothing unreasonable about questioning the motives of the Tamil asylum seekers.  The story behind the MV Sun Sea is littered with intrigue and slight of hand manipulation.  According to published reports the MV Sun Sea was purchased by a Mr. Kunarobinson, who is reported to be connected with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Ealam (Tamil Tigers). Kunarobinson, who disappeared after the ships purchase bought it on behalf of a shell company that came into existence only a year earlier.  Further some reports have named a veteran Tamil Tiger arms smuggler known as Vinod as the Captain of the MV Sun Sea while enroute to Canada.  In short, there are good reasons for officials here in Canada to vet the refugee status of everyone on board the MV Sun Sea.

So sitting on a ship off the coast of British Columbia are 500 asylum seekers from Sri Lanka, with a reported two more ships ready to set sail waiting in the wings watching to see how we accept asylum seekers from Sri Lanka.

For the Tamils choosing Canada as their place of refuge is a no-brainer.  Canada has a long reputation of having an open door for people seeking refugee status.  For example, in 1956, 37,000 Hungarians fleeing a failed revolution were allowed refugee status.  Following close behind in 1968, 11,000 people fled to Canada from former Czechoslovakia.  During the Vietnam War Era in 1971, 40,000 Americans were granted asylum and in 1999 Canada received 5,000 refugee from the war-torn Balkans.  In each one of these cases the Canadian government saw good reasons to grant refugee status.

The real question here is not so much whether Canada is a caring enough country to accept these people with open arms from a country that has been waging a Sri Lankan Civil War.  A war that the Tamil Tigers admitted defeat in May of 2009. But, should Canada as least stop them on the shore and place the onus on each individual to prove that they are not members of a terrorist organization of criminals, thugs and murderers?  Because quite frankly I want our government to send those types of people packing.

There is enough intelligence regarding the MV Sun Sea's mission to Canada to show that the Tamil Tigers planned this excursion two years ago when it became apparent that thay had all but lost the civil war.  History shows that the Tamil Tigers existance is littered with violence.  They have carried out many high profile attacks including the assassinations of several high-ranking Sri Lankan and Indian politicians including Sri Lankan President Ranasinghe Premadasa in 1993, and former Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi in 1991.  As a terrorist organization the Tamil Tigers also pioneered the use of suicide belts. It is no surprise that they are currently identified as a terrorist organization by 32 countries.

It would be fair to say that not all the people who landed here on the MV Sun Sea are members of, or have connections with the Tamil Tigers.  But to be accepted as a refugee a person has to prove they are in danger of torture and there is a risk to their life if returned to their home country.  If that were the case, one would expect that previous Tamil refugees who have found safety in Canada would still live in fear of their homeland.  A recent investigative report as reported by the Toronto Sun, showed that 71% of Tamil refugees here in Canada believe conditions in Sri Lanka are good enough, that they have gone back for a vacation. This report was backed up by the UN High Commissioner of Refugees who has gone on record and stated that so much has improved in Sri Lanka that no country in the world should assume that the Tamils are refugees.

So are the Tamils who are now being processed refugees or fugitives from Sri Lankan justice?  I believe in light of this incident it is reasonable for Canada to strengthen the laws governing those seeking asylum and immigration status.  Canada has become an easy target for foreign nationals to force our hands and circumvent proper immigration channels.

What is your life worth?

I guess a better question would be, can you put a value on your life?  If you think about it, the question itself is not only insulting but ludicrous because life itself is all there really is, and without it, anything else that has been deemed of any worth, is worthless.

Ask any individual if someone were to kill a loved one, be it a spouse, parent or child and the answer in many cases is, “An eye for an eye.”  I posed this very question to our office staff, and that was the first statement that came out.  Followed by “No Freedom” for the offender.  When I posed our insulting value question on life, the responses were, “priceless and everything.”  The bottom line is that as human beings we cherish our lives and the lives of our family.  It would also be fair to say that the feelings we have for our family does transfer somewhat to others, including strangers.  That is probably why we look at small children with smiles or practice common courtesy with others in public, which includes stopping for a jaywalker.  So we as individuals do value lives.

But, it has become quite clear that we as a society do not value life.  Last week Coda William Fika was handed an meager eight year sentence in Edmonton for killing Jeremie Auger.  The killing occurred as a result of a dispute over a woman who was romantically linked to both men.  During an argument where alcohol was involved, Fika picked up a knife, washed it, then stabbed Auger.  

Fika was charged with Second Degree Homicide which carries a mandatory life sentence in Canada.  During the proceedings, the charge was reduced to Manslaughter and Fika changed his plea to guilty and agreed to the facts of the case.

The presiding judge sentenced Fika to eight years in jail and credited him with twice the time served while he was remanded in custody, reducing the remaining incarceration by 20 months.  Fika will be out of jail in just over six years, unless he is released earlier.

Our justice system has weighed in on Jeremie Auger's value as a human being.  Fika will probably be still in his twenties when Canada deems payment is made in full for his crime.  For whatever reason the Crown decided that taking the time to proceed with a lengthy trial for homicide was just not worth it.  By plea bargaining they were able to save taxpayers some money, save witnesses from having to relive what they saw, and dispense of this sordid affair quickly.  Good for them!

Sadly, as sentencing goes in Canada, Fika received a rather stiff one.  According to a report of the Research Branch of Correctional Services of Canada the median prison sentence in 2001/02 was 30 days.  The same report showed that just six years earlier the median prison sentence was 115 days.  Any sentence under 24 months is served under provincial jurisdiction, therefore Fika will serve his sentence in a federal prison.

What are we to make of our justice systems soft handed approach to crime, where the punishment for killing a fellow human being will be all but forgotten by the offender in less than a decade but felt by family for a lifetime?

Did the police bungle the investigation that motivated the Crown to 'cut a deal?'  Are the courts so overbooked that Jeremie Auger's death just slipped through the cracks of justice?  Has Alberta Justice taken the stance that their mandate is just another rubber stamp process where people are nothing more than a case number?  When we witness justice for the death of a fellow human being handled with such bargain basement prices it makes me think that the entire system is lacking.  The same system that doubles time served as 'credit coupons' or 'get out of jail free cards' is one that is only trying to save a few meals, and keep beds open in our prisons.

If the average Canadian wants to see stiffer prison terms for violent crimes, why is there so much opposition to our current sentencing reforms being brought forth by the Conservative Government?  The reforms for mandatory minimum sentencing that have passed in Parliament have only touched on impaired driving, serious firearms offenses, and organized drug crimes. 

Opposition to these changes by the NDP and Liberals have all cited increased costs to the taxpayer if stiffer sentences are legislated. The opposition have gone on record and stated  there will be additional prosecutorial costs to mandatory minimum sentences, where these changes will lead to longer sentences behind bars and require additional prison space. One point brought up was that people will not plea bargain because the Crown Prosecutors will have nothing to offer the accused person.

Once again, costs and bargaining tools are brought up.  In any financial “Balance Sheet” there are assets and liabilities, where both sides of the balance sheet counter each other.  In society, the assets are you and me, the lives that make up Canadian society.  On the other side of the Balance Sheet are the liabilities.  The criminals, and the costs incurred to deal out a measure of justice.  I guess if we devalue human life we have no alternative but to balance justice with equal contempt.

If You Believe, Think Again

Environmental activism has turned a corner I doubt will ever regain its former dignity.  Gone are the days when someone could be referred to as environmentally conscience, where people could have intelligent conversations on a topic like industrial pollution, where the goals are to improve processes and educate.  The environmental movement is no longer an intellectual pursuit.  It has now become an Eco-Mental pursuit where many have taken it to emotional levels, equal if not exceeding behaviors found in groups displaying religious fervor.

Just as communities formalized important waste management systems like recycling, people are being subjected to attacks from these Eco-Mentalists disguising themselves as friendly neighbours.  Case in point; a man in Toronto went into a rage over his neighbour not sorting out her pop cans from her regular trash.  In an act of what he must have felt was 'righteous anger' he assaulted the poor woman until the police had to be called into remove him from the premises.  Apparently he felt it was more important to be a friend with the earth than to respect his fellow human.  Evil creatures these humans are, for not sorting properly.  “It's not easy being green.”

But, his actions illustrate a trend where many, but not all, environmentalists are motivated by emotion and not so much intellect.  In what can only be seen as a case of cutting off the nose to spite the face, a coalition of the willing, comprised of ten non-profit organizations have commenced a marketing campaign against all Albertans.  In an effort to stop the development of the oil-sands operations in Alberta, they are calling on all Americans to boycott Alberta Tourism.  This campaign is aimed along roadsides, on billboards and internet traffic in the forms of video and Google advertising.  The campaign which compares the oilsands with the BP gulf oil spill disaster states, “Alberta: The OTHER oil disaster.”

The video campaign shows Alberta as a great place to be with rolling hills, sunsets and beautiful mountains,  all the time flashing juxtaposed images of the Athabasca oil-sands development, oil soaked ducks, and it's tailing ponds. The video tells the uninformed viewer that the ecological disaster of the oil-sands are twice the size of Great Britain.  The final message is clear, with gloomy music, the narrator along with words written state, “Thinking of visiting Alberta.  Think again.  Take the Pledge.”

Accuracy is not the special of-the-day, because emotional campaigns just don't require accuracy.  Case in point; according to the groups video, the oilsands operation is twice the size of Great Britain, which would mean that it engulfs 66% of the province. But like so many movements that are emotionally driven, the people behind it become Zealots, where the political movement is designed to incite the people to rebel against the 'Roman Empire' and expel it from the 'holy land' by force.

The executive director of one of the non-profit organizations, Corporate Ethics International in the press stated, “We felt we needed to be more aggressive in calling the government out.”  In his own words Marx says,  “Our job is to get the people to look past the cover, to unwrap the cover and see what's really inside.”

To stop these attacks these eco-mentalist's made a threefold demand to the Alberta government. “a. Halt the expansion of the Tar Sands.  b. Stop spending millions of dollars on public relations campaigns designed to keep the United States addicted to dirty Tar Sands oil, c. Take meaningful steps to transition its economy away from dirty Tar Sands oil to clean energy alternatives.”  In essence a billion dollar ransom.

Although this action has spread like wildfire around the world through the press and the internet, I doubt it will ever be more than a boil on the rear of Albertans. The facts speak for themselves, and  whether the Eco-mentalist likes it or not, business will continue because according to 2008 figures, Alberta shipped 1.4 million barrels of crude oil a day to the United States as opposed to Saudi Arabia's 1.06 million barrels.  When is comes to Alberta Tourism, 82 per cent of Alberta tourism is made up of other Albertans, 14 per cent are other Canadians and from overseas visitors.  Only four percent were made up of Americans.

This anti-Alberta campaign, may make a small dent in  our tourism, but not enough to sway provincial policy.  The only thing it will do is appeal to those who react on an emotional level and do not look beyond the package to look inside.  Like many zealot movements, you have to 'look past the cover, to unwrap the cover and see what's really inside.' Because these kinds of groups thrive on providing a small piece of the picture all the while claiming that they are representing the whole.  If you believe the Eco-Mentalist, think again.

“Colonel! Send in the Geese.”

With that order began an perceived invasion from Canada on U.S. soil.  The invaders, are none other than the Canada Geese.   It appears that our name sake fowl is now being blamed for the downing of a commercial jet, buckets of white effluence littering New York city parks, and replacing the pigeons as the trademark bird of the park scavengers.

The solution that New York city is examining are the capture and killing of these birds to the tune of 165,000, or 330,000 drum sticks. The methods that are being proposed are to capture them in cages, place them in wood grates and transport the fowl to a site where they are euthanized in accordance with approved methods of the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA).

The approved method according to the 2007 AVMA Guidelines for Euthanasia, is “Free-ranging birds may be collected by a number of methods, including nets and live traps, with subsequent euthanasia. For collection by firearm, shotguns are recommended. The bird should be killed outright by use of ammunition loads appropriate for the species to be collected.”   If the authorities have the facilities to place these birds into pressure chambers the recommended method instead of gunshot is to cause hypoxia through gassing.  The recommended gas that can cause death within 2 to 6 minutes are either CO (Carbon Monoxide) or CO2 (Carbon Dioxide), the former being the preferred gas.  This according to the AVMA are approved for the humane killing of wildlife birds such as the Canada Goose.

The interesting point of all this is a that according to studies the population of Canada Geese is not at a high.  It appears that all that has run a foul is that the migration pattern has changed.  The pesky birds just seem to want to stay at the Big Apple and the fields near the airports have been chosen as their favourite landing zone.  It has also been noted that since Canadians are no longer avid hunters, the seasonal culling through this activity is being blamed for the increased concentration of the goose population.

For whatever reason, the Canada Goose has been identified as a pest, that requires pest control. So American society has now placed them on the radar for extermination.  I really have no problem with that since one goose was sucked into the engine of a commercial jet and did take down the aircraft and it's passengers.  Of course it can be said that it is not the fault of the goose, and that man made objects, those being the jet and airport should not be there in the first place.  It can be argued that perhaps hundreds of years ago before New York city was just a twinkle our eye, the birds migrated to that region yearly and lived in harmony with their surroundings.  Of course the Canada Goose was called the Cackling Goose then so really Canada has no real claim to them, so have at them.

But to exterminate 165,000 birds!  What a travesty, the global community should be enraged!  People should gather in city parks with signs with, “stop the killing” slathered on them! It paints a picture of hairy low-life types encroaching on them with shot guns and killing all those poor birds!  Can you hear my sarcasm?

This story really did not get much press attention.  One short burst of exposure in the dailies, and now the New York mayor is reexamining the situation. I guess he is waiting for another aircraft to crash in order to sway public opinion.  Because we all know that public opinion should be the sole rudder that steers government action.  More sarcasm, I sure hope you heard that.

Much like Canada's policy on the seal hunt, and the loss of ducks in the tailing ponds, the U.S. problem with the Canada Goose is a very similar situation.  It is another example of how humankind as a society is faced with a contradiction.  On one hand we want to be good stewards of this planet where humans live in harmony and respect for all creatures great and small.  In the other, we have a need to continue to survive as a culture.  A culture where we have developed technology and a lifestyle that the majority of us depend on.  That includes such things as air travel and fossil fuel energy.  The structure of these developments cannot be just changed overnight. To do so would be detrimental to our economy, and believe it or not it could adversely affect each one of us.

So like Geese adversely affecting the air travel in New York, structures and operations by humans clash with nature such as the oil sands development.  Unfortunately until other solutions develop, humans will continue to confront nature.  When it comes to Canada's seal hunt, the authorized method of killing them as regulated by those in authority includes shooting and clubbing, where clubbing preserves the pelts.  In contrast with the AVMA authorized methods of killing wild birds seems just as inhumane.  Like it or not both policies are necessary.

Now that the United States of America has joined Canada as a country at odds animal rights activists, it will be interesting to see how the Canada Geese will fair in that country.