Newfoundland and Labrador Wikileaks References Decoded

labradore deciphers the references to Danny Williams in the coded diplomatic cables that someone leaked already.

Pretty boring, routine stuff.

Of course, that doesn’t mean there might not be other, much more interesting diplomatic cables that mention the Old Man:

• Sino-Energy – a secret deal to share highly confidential information on the Lower Churchill and the north-eastern North American energy system, to a Chinese company with a dubious international reputation;
• Captain Williams of the Ozone Patrol  - Danny goes ballistic over a missile that follows a routine trajectory over the north Atlantic.
• Big Oil’s L’il Buddy – State would have noticed when Danny started batting oil companies around;  they would have really noticed when he decided to let them gain some serious control over the provincial government. 
• And he hates being called Hugo  -  Danny Williams decides to snatch up a bunch of hydroelectric assets under the cover of something else.  Foggy Bottom took notice, big-time.
• Heart Surgery – Yes, folks, lots of people took interest in that episode.

- srbp -

Debunking imaginary conspiracies update:  CBC’s David Cochrane joins in…eventually.

Canadian Press and CBC desperately need online fact checker

Someone needs to start doing some fact checking on stories posted on CBC’s web site.

A Canadian Press story on a Russian Proton K rocket contains this claim:

The Proton-K re-entry was reminiscent of a 2005 incident, when a U.S. military rocket splashed down in the vicinity of the Hibernia oil platform, on Newfoundland's Grand Banks, shortly after its launch from Florida.

The planned launch of the Titan IV B-30 rocket prompted Premier Danny Williams to order an evacuation of several offshore-oil platforms.

But the order was soon rescinded when American air force officials assured Ottawa the risks were small and the rocket would be destroyed if it veered off course.

None of it happened.

1.  Danny Williams didn’t order an evacuation of rigs – he doesn’t have the legal authority.

2.  Danny didn’t rescind the order not only because he didn’t give it  in the first place but because the evacuation  - or more accurately, a removal of non-essential personnel - went ahead. 

3.  The assurances from American authorities were the same all the way through the sorry-assed episode. The government reaction went through a few permutations mostly as people stopped making asses of themselves in public but nothing the Americans said produced any changes in the provincial government reaction.

4.  The Titan didn’t “splash down”.  The booster section broke up as it returned to Earth, as predicted. 

5.  The thing also wasn’t near the Hibernia rig unless more than 100 kilometres away is “near”.

Seriously, people.  This stuff happened within the past five years.  The facts are readily accessible on line.  It’s astonishing that CP would cock it up that badly and CBC would let the cock-up stand.

CP and CBC need a fact checker.

-srbp-