That’s right, British Columbia, make that five in a row. I think that makes us a dynasty. We can retire numbers in lofty ceremonies, and every British Columbian will get to have the cup at their home for a day.

You have no idea what I’m talking about, do you.

For the fifth straight year in a row, this Province has the distinction of having the highest child poverty rate in the country. Twenty-two percent of children in BC live in poverty, which is six percent higher than the national average. That’s 181,000 kids.

Oh Olympiad, your billions would have done so much good. Of course, with the recent loss of major sponsors, you stand to flush more kids down the poverty toilet. I swear by all that is good in this world that during the games it had damn well better rain golden snowflakes, because if they turn into the financial debacle that many are beginning to believe they will, someone’s going to have to answer for it.

Right now, as I type this, international trans-corporations are being taxed next to nothing by the government of Alberta to rape the Canadian wilderness in the pursuit of oil. The province of Alberta is the richest in the country, but the rest of Canada does not share in its wealth, nor is it used to help bolster those federal social programs that are in dire straights.

In the near future, Newfoundlanders may very well begin to reap the benefits of off shore resources. One wonders, given the economic disparity that they have been forced to endure since the collapse of the cod fishery, if they will follow suit.

I mention these things because, since 1989, the child poverty rate in this country has remained the same despite a 50% increase in the size of the economy. And that is simply disgusting.

In Canada, 11.7% of children live in poverty, and that figure is only based on after-tax income. Measured before income tax, the rate climbs to 16.8%. That, my friends, is one-in-six-children in this country.

British Columbia boasts the worst record. In 2005, some 15.2% children, before income tax, lived in poverty.

So what can be done? Well, the group Campaign 2000 has some ideas, though a lot of people are bound not to like them…

No matter how you look at this issue, it’s a national disgrace. And as a nation we are responsible for addressing it.