"Peace, Freedom, and a few less fat bastards eating all the pie."
-Edmund Blackadder III
There's no doubt that crown corps are an invitation to corruption and abuses of all kinds, as the current NDP/Hydro scandal clearly demonstrates.
It's barely possible that crown corps might be occasionally acceptable as a temporary measure in very unusual circumstances, but long-standing crown corps with legislated monopoly status are an outrage. The supposed "checks and balances" flowing from government control (even to the point of having an MLA on the Board of Directors) are simply nonexistent. Rather like putting the fox in charge of guarding the hen-house, it should be no surprise to any student of human nature that people in government will take advantage.
The role of government as the guarantor of honest corporate behavior is severely compromised when government is also a corporation owner. Given the recent history of crown corps, and the real and potential abuses open to all BC governments, I suggest we err on the side of caution. Therefore, I advocate the sale of all crown corporations ASAP.
There is no principled justification for government ownership of any means of production and no empirical evidence that such ownership yields any results superior to private ownership and free competition. Government ownership of the means of production has no place in a society of free men.
The BC Libertarian Party is running over 20 candidates in British Columbia's 75 Electorial districts. Vancouver Island has five declared candidates running under the Libertarian banner, including party leader Ken Wiebe in Saanich South.
Contact:
Ken Wiebe, Leader
BC Libertarian Party
604-384-4505
Wayne McLaren, Campaign Manager for Ken Wiebe
604-598-7848