This is a good thing, on a number of levels. First there is considerable IT heft in Saint John and to have a provincial IT initiative led out of that city makes sense. Second, we need a provincial initiative. Read…
Continue ReadingSpend a little, get a lot
One of the oldest tricks in the advertising biz is to develop ads that are so interesting and innovative that you get a pile of media coverage thus doubling or more the impact of the advertising. The other thing about…
Continue ReadingThe McKenna Plan
I love it when the media talks about a new “Marshall Plan” or “Bretton Woods” plan to address the current global financial crisis. Not to be outmanoeuvered, some are calling for Green Marshall Plan. It’s funny but I actually like…
Continue ReadingIn defense of SJ – a bit
The TJ has an editorial quite critical of SJ leadership this a.m. and it uses the dreaded comparison to Moncton and Fredericton to make its point. It’s been a good year for Moncton and Fredericton. In March, these municipalities were…
Continue ReadingMoncton joins Freddy in a titanic battle
Well, this will be fun. Fredericton and Moncton vying to be the world’s most intelligent community. Both communities made the short list of 21 Intelligent communities. Congratulations. I’ll be curious to see how they get to the short list of…
Continue ReadingData centres go mainstream
I think the first time I started to seriously think that data centres might be an interesting ED opportunity for NB was over three years ago. Now, it is now a mainstream economic development opportunity and I get multiple stories…
Continue ReadingAshfield gets ACOA
It’s a bit strange but I have five emails in my inbox suggesting that Keith Ashfield getting the ACOA portfolio would be great news for New Brunswick. The kind of legacy that McGuire left in PEI, one said. Maybe. But…
Continue ReadingBernie goes retail
I saw on Tuesday as Frank McKenna was announcing he wouldn’t run to lead the Libs, the other less known Premier, Bernard Lord, was announced as the new president of the Canadian wireless industry association. I was more confused about…
Continue ReadingEqualization unsustainable: Flaherty
I just heard Finance Minister Jim Flaherty say that the Equalization program as currently structured is unsustainable. The New Brunswick government has relied on tens of millions more each year in Equalization and it is now the single largest source…
Continue ReadingOn McKenna
There’s an X factor in politics. Something that cuts across policies, dogma and ideology. There was something about Frank McKenna that made a few of us (maybe a lot of us) think that New Brunswick could be a leader instead…
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