Daytime shooting in Vancouver’s West end

There was a shooting in Vancouver’s West end yesterday at 3:00 PM. A black pick up truck was shot at near Jervis and Comox. A local resident told the Vancouver Province that he heard bang, bang bang and thought kids were throwing firecrackers. The target driving the pick up was not injured and left the scene. Police caught up with him as he was driving across the Burrard Street bridge and seized his vehicle for the investigation.

Reports came in that the truck was riddled with bullets yet only two bullet holes were seen. One dangerously close to the driver in the bottom of the driver side window and another on the rear left quarter panel. The police found shell casings in the alley behind Jervis and Comox. Judging from the photos in the paper, the police had numerous markers on the ground implying several shots were fired.

So although several shots were fired only two shots that we know of actually hit the vehicle and the driver was uninjured. Not like the recent daytime shooting in surrey where the shooter fired several shots from point blank range through the windshield right into the target.

Although the name of the intended target in this case is not being released, police state the shooting was targeted and gang related.

Canada needs less MPs and BC needs less MLAs

The Vancouver Province published a stellar editorial in today’s paper about the number of MPs we have in Canada. They said we need less MPs not more and they are absolutely right.

“The U.S., with about 314 million citizens, has 435 congress-men. Why does Canada, with a population one-tenth the size, need 308 MPs, let alone the 338 now being proposed? Britain, with nearly 63 million citizens, has 650 MPs, but is reducing that to 600, in part to cut the cost of government. With the cost of our Parliament pushing $600 million a year, cutting the number of MPs would free up tax dollars for more important programs.”

Here here! Can we get an Amen on that brother? Canada already has a hugely bloated parliament and Canada's 10 electoral boundaries commissions are holding public hearings to sell Canadians on a plan to increase the number of seats in Parliament to 338 from the current 308. Get off the crack! This is what’s wrong with pork barrel politics.

Part of the problem is that everyone wants more. Everyone wants more tax dollars spent in their riding. BC has an increasing population and some want that increase in population to reflect an increase in the number of MPs. Breaking news folks, as long as the number of MP’s is a percentage ration of population to MP, then it’s fair and everyone is equally represented. That means we can cut MPs and as long as we do it proportionately, we will save money and keep equal representation. We need to follow up on this.

Increasing the number of MPs should be stopped and we should follow England’s example of reducing the number of MP’s proportionately to save money. Especially in BC. They keep giving themselves raises and gold plated pensions so we need to cut the over all number of MLAs. That legislature is way over crowed as it is. It’s a very old building and they don’t have enough room to expand the floor. Cutting the MLA proportionately will save money and solve the problem of having to build another Legislature.

Internet Explorer bug

Microsoft is warning about a new IE bug that hackers have discovered. They have yet to release a fix but they have some advice on how to protect yourself in the interim. I didn’t see use another browser on their list.

Ya gotta wonder about who hacked into the hole in the first place. It’s like those spyware companies that put spyware on your computer that says your computer is infected download and buy this program to fix it. I’m not going to download that program. Those are the bastards that put the spyware on my computer in the first place. They should be going to jail not getting money from me. You have to make sure the patch you do download is from a trusted web site.

Update:

Microsoft has the fix now. You can download it through windows update.

More violent murders in Mexico’s repulsive drug violence

The dismembered bodies of 17 men were found Sunday on a farm in a part of central Mexico disputed by violent drug cartels. The bodies were naked, mutilated and stacked with chains around their necks. They had been killed elsewhere and dumped on the property.

Some 60,000 people have died in drug-related violence in Mexico since late 2006. On Friday, 16 dead bodies were found in northern Mexico. Nine of those dead were found hanging from a bridge in the northern border city of Nuevo Laredo.

Authorities have warned of an increase in gang violence following the arrest of Jorge Eduardo "El Coss" Costilla, the top boss at the Gulf drug cartel, one of the country's seven powerful crime syndicates. Costilla's arrest came one week after authorities detained Mario Cardenas, another top Gulf Cartel leader.

Now let’s take a step back and remember a recent headline about the HSBC getting caught laundering money for the Mexican cartels. The scandal drew in British trade minister “lord” Green after Labour warned he had "serious questions" to answer about the way the bank laundered money for drug cartels, terrorists and pariah states while he was at the helm.

Green was chief executive of Britain's biggest bank between 2003 and 2006 and was its chairman until 2010 when he resigned to take up a position of trade minister in the coalition government.

A damning Senate report - which concluded the bank had a "pervasively polluted" culture - covers the period 2004 to 2010 and shows that HSBC subsidiaries moved billions of dollars around the financial system from countries such as Iran and Syria as well moving cash for Mexican drug cartels.

However, “lord” Strathclyde, the leader of the upper house, brushed off Labour requests for Green to answer questions on the grounds that he is not accountable to peers for his business career. I kid you not. That is evil. Nothing but. OK so it’s time to re examine that scandal. Good thing I didn’t call it a conspiracy because no one would think it really happened when in reality it did.

Just like the BCCI’s laundering of drug money was tied to senior intelligence agencies, the HSBC’s money laundering appears to be tied to senior government officials. Kinda like the Rupert Murdoch wire tapping scandal. The banking spin doctors did a magnificent smoke and mirrors presentation on behalf of ll Green. They said of all people he must be the most shocked and disappointed because he has always been the moral compass of the banking industry. Bravo! What a hilarious performance. What’s worse is the people bought it. Sad but true. Why? Because the opposition parties weren’t allowed to ask him any questions about it. That is NOT a democracy. Oh right, monarchy and all.

I’m not going to get too much into it today, but I will. We need to follow up on the major banks that have been involved in money laundering for the Mexican cartels that were no doubt also tied to Operation Fast and Furious. We can’t let Obama’s Oliver north take the fall for this. We need to follow the money and follow up on the money laundering in the banking industry. Including but not limited to the Carroll Foundation Charitable Trust fraud tied to the HSBC.

The point I want to stress here is that a British politician who was CEO of the HSBC during the time it was accused of laundering drug money for the Mexican cartel is being protected from having to answer questions in the British Parliament because some idiot who calls himself a lord says he doesn’t have to answer any questions about his involvement in the money laundering on the grounds that he is not accountable to peers for his business career. That needs to be addressed.

Lawyers for two RCMP officers withdraw from case

Lawyers for two RCMP officers charged in the breach of their duties in the Surrey Six investigation have withdrawn from the case because they haven’t been paid. Crossin said he could not continue to represent his client for ethical reasons but would assist him in seeking to obtain legal aid.

Ethical reasons? They both said it was because they hadn’t been paid and were both helping their clients apply for legal aid. Strange choice of words. This is the case where that cop from IHIT that had an affair with a witness and the other cops that covered it up. Sad.

Sounds like there are two other lawyers represent two other officer that might follow suit if they can’t get a confirmation about the force paying their legal fees. No offence, but that’s something even the Union wouldn’t do. Oh but wait, you don’t have a Union. Expecting the employer to pay for your lawyer when you’ve been charged with a criminal offense is quite a stretch of the imagination. But hey, it’s worth a try. Stranger things have happened. Jim Brown and Don Stang still have a job.

Wayne Scott sentenced to 3 ½ years

Great Scott, granddad’s going to jail. Here’s a guy who’s daughter was the girlfriend of one of the Bacon brothers and had a child with him. The girl’s father gets nabbed in a drug conspiracy ring with the Bacon brother and gets sentenced to three and a half years in prison for his role. OK so that was his girlfriend’s father but what about his own father and mother? Wire tap evidence showed that not only were they aware of it, they were involved as well. Not only does that make them bad parents, it also makes them an accessory to the crime.

Letter to Christy Clark

A couple people sent me this link and I saw it posted on someone’s facebook so I suppose it’s going viral. Evan Solomon from the CBC wrote an open letter to Christy Clark expressing some valid concerns including the fact that she just canceled the fall sitting of parliament. Gordon Campbell and Stephen Harper both have pulled the same stunt in the past.

The whole idea of cancelling an entire session of parliament is problematic. No other industry in the world pays you for not going to work. Let alone give you an obscene raise and gold plated pension for booking off. Since they’re cancelling the fall session they should return that portion of their yearly salary. It’s only fair.

Letting a political party with no approval rating whatsoever meet to create news laws is a bit scary but we all know the real reason for cancelling the fall session is two fold. They don’t want to have to answer questions from the opposition. It is a form of censorship. They also don’t want to get caught in a non confidence vote which would spur an election and their subsequent demise earlier than they can squeeze out another pay cheque.

Now I will say that Christy Clark was Gordon Campbell’s Liberals best chance at saving the party from the brink of destruction. We can’t blame Christy Clark for what Gordon Campbell did any more than we can blame Kim Campbell for what Brian Mulroney did. Both women were left with their predecessors trash. The problem was all the other MLAs were part of the same Campbell Cabal that arrogantly steam rolled right over voters democratic will. The current rats leaving that sinking ship are just that, rats.

Which brings us to the next concern. The leadership rumblings in the provincial conservatives. What a scam that is. The media claimed there was some kind of internal rift over the new leadership of the party. Oh really? He’s the one that put it on the map. It’s the fastest growing party in the country. Who on earth could have a problem with that? His only MLA? Well that explains it. We shouldn’t have let van Dongen cross over. He is still consumed in the Campbell cabal arrogance and has been swept away in his pride.

Why is politics such a dirty business? Selfishness and greed permeate the process. The idea of service is lost. With all these rats leaving the Campbell Cabal’s sinking ship, it is clear they want to infiltrate and destroy freedom’s hope in BC just like they did federally by letting Harper turn Reform into Mulroneyism. They very evil they set out to change. A sad day indeed. It’s a mess filled with selfishness and greed. Locally and internationally.

Bandidios in BC

I forgot to mention I was speaking with someone who claimed they saw a group of about 40 Bandidios driving up the Coquihalla just north of Hope a few weeks ago. He said he also saw a group of Hells angels shortly thereafter travelling in a group heading in the same direction. It was as though they were having a meeting of some sort. Seeing both groups on the same freeway heading then same direction was suspicious indeed.

The source isn’t the type to make up some bs story. A recent comment on the blog claiming Bandidios have been sighted in the north Okanagan reminded me of the claim and is another confirmation of the sighting. We don’t really have Bandidios in BC. We know they’re in Bellingham. We remember the Bandidio massacre in Ontario. They sound like more drug dealers as opposed to a legitimate MC.

In November, 2006, Glenn Merritt of the Bellingham, Washington chapter was sentenced to four years in prison for drug possession and trafficking in stolen property. A total of 32 members were indicted in the associated investigation, on charges including conspiracy, witness tampering, and various drug and gun violations. Eighteen of those plead guilty. They were trafficking crystal meth and selling stolen Harleys. Maybe they wanna get a piece of Johnny Newcome’s racket.

Pretty significant since although the Bandidos started in Texas, some claim their HQ is now in Bellingham. We know some of the German Bandidios crossed over to join the Hells Angels. It’s all about the money to be made from the drug trade. And stolen motorcycles of course.

Here’s a rather amusing story of a member of the border Riders MC meeting some Badidios in Bellingham. I hadn’t heard of the border riders either. To each their own : )

Teresa Mitchell-Banks new director of enforcement for the BC Securities Commission

Investment fraud specialist, David Baines from the Vancouver Sun is reporting that Teresa Mitchell-Banks, the former head of B.C.’s organized crime prosecution unit has been appointed to be the director of enforcement for the BC Securities Commission.

Sounds like this is a step forward. Both David Baines and Kim Bolan claim Mitchell-Banks is competent and accessible. Baines did express the concern that Mitchell-Banks background is with criminal prosecutions and that the vast majority of the commission’s enforcement efforts are pursued through administrative hearings, where penalties are limited to market suspensions and fines, rather than through criminal prosecutions.

However, BCSC executive director Paul Bourque said “We allege fraud in many cases, and the difference between administrative and criminal fraud is just one of intent.” In recent years, the commission has been stepping up its criminal investigations and pressing Crown counsel to take securities offenders to criminal court, where jail sentences can be imposed.

A step forward indeed. Investment fraud is a huge problem in the modern world that effects pensions, markets and tax dollars. Focusing in on the criminal aspect of today’s investment fraud is crucial to our civil liberty. It is often tied to money laundering through drug trafficking like with Bandera gold.

Kim’s Back

Nice to see Kim Bolan’s back on her blog. Readers have been in withdrawal. Interesting to note she’s reporting that Rob Sidhu has been arrested in Montreal for his involvement in Rob Shannon's Hells Angel cocaine case in Seattle.