What Should Follow Snowmageddon 2020

Quick question, fellow snow shovellers: if the Feds have on their priority list a tunnel across the Labrador Strait, why not a dome over the City of St. John’s? OK, I get it. Funnies aren’t welcome when you’re tired and you have spent possibly several days without power. Many people face the loss of a week’s pay too, which worsens the financial circumstances of a good many. That said, 80 cm of snow is no laughing matter.

It is a testament to the character of people that they have endured, having used Snowmageddon 2020 as an opportunity to express the best of who they are, make new friendships, and share their neighbourliness and their all-round civility, too. Then, too, we acknowledge those who had to carry on in hospitals and other institutions and on snow ploughs, maintaining essential services and working to get the City back on its feet.

“OUT OF THE LOOP” STURGE: ENTITLEMENTS REVEALED

When Derrick Sturge, the “not in the loop” Nalcor Chief Financial Officer, went off with a compensation package of approximately $900,000 last November, CEO Stan Marshall stated in a release that he was legally entitled to a compensation package of approximately $900,000. Now the Uncle Gnarley Blog has obtained details of the “package”; we can say candidly that Stan likely worked harder bending paper clips for Fortis Inc. than he he did hold Sturge to account. 

JOHN C. CROSBIE, R.I.P.

One of Newfoundland and Labrador's most able politicians, John C. Crosbie, passed away today. He has already been missed from the political stage for a few years; now we justifiably mourn his passing. This Blog wrote two Posts on the man whose biography was perfectly titled "No Holds Barred". One, called "Where Have You been John C. Crosbie?", welcomed his putting Danny Williams in his place in 2014 for meddling in the P.C. Leadership Campaign of that year. Another, a 2013 post called "Crosbie Can't Be Serious" contained a facetious chastising for what respectfully of the octogenarian, I had deemed must really have been a 'tongue in cheek' condemnation of Muskrat; it being completely out of character for him to give a nod to such a crazy idea. 

Both pieces, however, speak to the contributions he has made to the Province, his sharp wit and sharper mind, and especially his ability to speak his mind and not be fettered by political correctness. I still regard both pieces a tribute to the man and the place he carved out out in the hearts and minds of many people and surely in the annals of Newfoundland and Labrador history. Here is Where Have You Been John C. Crosbie?

MUSKRAT'S "DOOZY" OF A PROBLEM

Guest Post by James L. Gordon

What else can go wrong – this one is a doozy!

There are 3 synchronous condensers (SD) at the Soldiers Pond substation on the Avalon         

Peninsula, the down-power end of the DC transmission line.

TOP TEN POSTS OF 2019 AND OTHER SNIDE REMARKS

It is time to list the top ten posts of 2019 and to thank those who contributed to the work. But, first, a quick word about the year that was. Most notably, the province's fiscal position continued to slide, lacking as it does essential political leadership to deal with the problem. The Ball Government remains stuck in a prescient mindset, one preoccupied solely with the Liberal Party's re-election.  

The annual cash deficit of the Government remains at the $2 billion level. The Governing Liberals and the Opposition Parties — PC and NDP — have the same agenda: keep the public placated, maintain the illusion that there is no crisis, and otherwise keep public expectations of them low. 

As to other sectors of Newfoundland and Labrador society, including business and unions, short-term self-interest prevails. For all of them, serendipity (translated as “offshore oil”) will provide a “fix” for gross mismanagement in a Province boasting the second largest per capita revenues of any Canadian Province.