Port deal worth political risks to presidents past and present

If your writer of the editorial in the February 24, 2006 edition of the ChronicalHerald was in fact writing for a Canadian audience he would have been well advised to look a little deaper through the White House spin deluge on this subject.

 

 

By only giving this an American perspective does a disservice to your Canadian audience and shows an incredible case of myopia.

 

We should be putting the issue of our new Conservative government just sitting by while the American government participates in the sale of control of our port facilities to another foreign country,

 

It has a Canadian connection. It is on the westcoast in the Port of Vancouver. It is called a container facility that will be a part of the deal between Dubai Ports World, and Peninsula and Oriental Steam Navigation Company – best known as P&O. 

 

Shouldn't Canada be having a similar debate over whether we want foreigners owning and managing our ports?

Thank you

Norman Greenfield

Calgary, Alberta, Canada
403-807-1251
www.provocostatusquo.com
http://provocostatusquo.blogspot.com
Media and Government Relations
Corporate, Marketing and Political Communications
New and Old Media
E-Learning/E-Democracy Business Development
Registered Federal, B.C. and N.B Government Lobbyist

 

Why The Canadian Myopia on Port Deal in USA?

Why are the Canadian media missing the Canadian connection in the sale of the US ports to a foreign government. The company selling the US ports to the Dubai government controlled and owned company is including container facilities in Canada in the deal.

 

Should Canada be in this discussion? 

 

Has anyone asked our new Prime Minister if he will march lock step with President Bush in this matter, or will we have a Canadian opinion on the matter?

Thank you

Norman Greenfield

Calgary, Alberta, Canada
403-807-1251
www.provocostatusquo.com
http://provocostatusquo.blogspot.com
Media and Government Relations
Corporate, Marketing and Political Communications
New and Old Media
E-Learning/E-Democracy Business Development
Registered Federal, B.C. and N.B Government Lobbyist

 

Tundra - Public Relations Manager

 

With all due respect, I think you or your representative in Ottawa may not understand what sort of person you need to find for this position, or maybe even the employer does not understand what they are looking for or should be looking for.

 

It might be because you or your representative in Ottawa or the clients, some or all of the people in the equation have no idea as to what Public Relations is.

 

The words in the posting for the position that CNC and Tundra have posted, and what Tundra are really looking for are disjointed.

 

The reason I have low expectations when dealing with an employment agency, is that most who deal in this area (Communications, Public Relations, Marketing, Government and Media Relations) are doing it as a side line to their core area of expertise. I must know what I am doing as I have several offers of either full time or contract employment in various states of negotiation or consideration by both sides.

 

Any employment agency I have dealt with thinks it can't be that hard to find someone, and don't do any research from their side, nor help inform their clients (or hoped for clients). Hence all are spinning their wheels and wasting effort and energy.

 

Public Relations is a part of marketing.

 

Public Relations can be political communications, and it can be government relations, a part of both, or have nothing to do with them in a corporate setting. The latter position of a company is not smart thinking, but it is the mindset of some in the corporate offices.

 

Public relation is more than just getting an article published, or a pretty picture of the product or service done.

 

Public relations is more than just getting an article written and published somewhere.

 

Anyone that has worked in the public relations, media relations, government relations, or corporate communications on a contract basis, does so on piece meal basis, unless retained on a contract full-time basis by a specific company or organization.  This will mean exclusivity, and a narrow focus.

 

Your company is doing a disservice to Tundra by just throwing resumes at them, without providing some experienced advice as to what they should be looking for, and not just what they think they need. It could be that by throwing just any resume at them, with what you think the person should have, and not educating the employer, you are wasting everyone’s time and efforts.

 

I realize you do not have a contractual exclusivity for this position or employer, but may have helped them to hire other IT people. The two areas are not the same, and it takes as much expertise to hire someone to be an effective Public Relations Manager as it would to hire someone as an IT Manager.

 

The employer must also realize that hiring a good and effective Public Relations Manager requires a different skill set on their part as well.

 

 

 

 

High-speed rail way off track

Sitting behind an editor's desk does give one a certain perspective on the world, that in the case of the, 'High-speed rail way off track,' editorial in the Calgary Herald of February 23, is wrong and myopic.

 

Who ever wrote the article dispensed far too quickly the report and study done by the Van Horne Institute on the Edmonton/Calgary high-speed link. Or spends no time driving the current QE 2 with their eyes wide open.

 

The editor looks at one side of the equation, the cost of the Edmonton/Calgary railine. The writer does not look at what it will cost to fix the QU-2, or to upgrade it so that the traffic needed to feed the Shell's Athabasca Oil Sands Project, Syncrude Canada's oilsands expansion, plus the possibility of a new refinery being built.

 

The writer does not look at the idea that using rail to transport large machinery and products to and from the oilsands via rail makes sense when you look at how efficiencies can be attained, that are not available via roads.

 

The writer does not look at the idea the high speed link could be one part of a puzzle to fix the problems of getting to and from the Fort MacMurray for not only the machinery but the human capital that will be needed. The high speed rail link should be the start of the province looking at the use of and improvement of the railway system in a larger picture. The widening of both the QU 2 and highway from Edmonton to Fort MacMurray should be compared to the costs and investment needed to improve the rail links.

 

The writer is right that, 'building a rail won't eliminate the need for roads.' Building a rail could help improve the ability of the province to eliminate the need for upgrades to roads that will not meet the provinces true future needs.

 

We should not look at ideas for infrastructure in such a narrow view as the writer of the editorial wants us to. The editorial does prove the writer's intial premise, that ' Junk in, will equal junk out.' In the case of the editorial it would be half of the truth in produces a poor and ineffective editorial opinion based on no reality.

 

I would suggest the editorial writer needs to get out more, and risk seeing reality without the benefit of the protection of their desk.

 

Thank you

Norman Greenfield

#207, 2425-90th Ave SW.

Calgary, Alberta, Canada
403-807-1251
www.provocostatusquo.com
http://provocostatusquo.blogspot.com
Media and Government Relations
Corporate, Marketing and Political Communications
New and Old Media
E-Learning/E-Democracy Business Development
Registered Federal, B.C. and N.B Government Lobbyist