Togetherness in letter-carrier heaven

Colin Black has a not-so-secret advantage in the upcoming B.C. election. He has a praying wife.
While Black was debating local candidates on the radio Tuesday morning, Jo-Anne was praying for him the entire time.
Black is running as the B.C. Conservative Party candidate for the Okanagan-Vernon area against the likes of incumbent Tom Christensen (B.C. Liberals) and the B.C. NDP's Juliette Cunningham and a bevy of fringe players, including Erin Nelson (Green Party), Michael Toponce (Marijuana Party), Tibor Tusnady (B.C.Patriot Party) and independent Gordon Campbell.
Another unique factor is that Black would have a free vote in the B.C. Legislature, if he's elected in the May 17th voting. While others are saddled with party conformity, Black and the B.C. Conservatives can be independent and free of party in-fighting.
"I believe that an MLA or MP must represent their constituents, wholeheartedly, whether in Victoria or in Ottawa," said Black in his comfortable living room. "And the one thing our party gives me is the freedom in the voting process. They trust their MLAs to make their own judgments."
It certainly is a unique concept in the all-for-one and one-for-all which has dominated Canadian politics for so long.
"On the big issues we can come back to our riding and hear the heart of the people, we can ask them, give them the information and no matter how I feel personally or how I would vote on an issue ... yes, or no ... the majority rules. I think that's exactly what the heart of the people want in Victoria."
The uniqueness is not lost on Black.
"The party can't say 'look you will need to vote like this on the big issues.'"
He did concede on some of the smaller issues, such an independent stance wasn't always needed.
As a letter-carrier for a number of years, Black has obtained first-hand knowledge of how the public in his area feel.
"I have done two or three jobs and our pocketbooks have shrunk," he said. "We used to call it nickel and diming, now it's 20s and 50s ... now there's extra fees for parks and it all adds up."
Black's bottom line on such "frustration" comes under the heading of "wasteful government spending."
"A million dollars to me is a huge amount of money. It seems to be that government in the past have spent millions or hundreds of millions, almost in a blatant way and have no responsibility or accountability for the taxpayers' money," he emphasized.
Black was forceful when he said: "If I am elected to Victoria, a million dollars will be a huge amount to Colin Black amd I will see that the money is spent wisely and not waste it on the likes of privatization of the Coq, which was a $6 million waste of money to set the whole thing up. So that money is gone and so people are getting wealthy on it. But those are taxpayers' dollars and need to be cared for like it was my own."
With seven B.C. Conservatives running in the 79 electoral areas, Black believes his party has a realistic chance of taking them all.
"The people are quite upset of what the past four years has to offer plus the issues of the previous NDP government," he said, adding, "they are looking for a good alternative, a sound alternative choice. What could well happen is we need four to be recognized as an official party, and if our seven should get elected then I believe we have a very good opportunity to hold the balance of power. It would certainly keep our government accountable and they just couldn't shove things at the taxpayer and do what they want. So our constituencies could be in a very good position. I believe we have a very good chance to make a difference, not just for our own constituents, but for all British Columbians."
Black is strongly behind the B.C. Conservative Part philosophy in believing in the freedom of every individual and family to achieve their God-given potential and supports an agenda including::
1. Strengthening our social safety nets for those in greatest need -- such as increasing the amount of low-cost housing to accommodate the homeless, senior citizens, mentally disabled, and the people on social assistance;
2. Implementing a constitutional limit on provincial taxation and borrowinf (TAXCAP). Total taxation will be limited to a fixed percentage of the provincial Gross Domestic Product (GDP);
3. Ensuring that the exploration, harvesting, and development of British Columbia's resources be done in an environmentally sound manner.
There were a number of other platform issues which he discussed during the hour-long interview.
But to put his views into a capsuule, Black considers himself a "people person" because of his unqiue contact with the neighborhoods as a letter-carrier. In fact, it's a family affair, for his bride of five years, Jo-Anne, is also a postal worker.
Even if he should lose the election, Black said he would value the experience greatly "Life is a learning experience to be a good listener, and I will continue to listen to people and be watchful of who gets in and see how they represent us. What I will cherish in all of this is to see how hard all volunteers work."
And, of course, Black has another advantage: A praying wife.