BCBusiness Report Card: Blueberries, glory holes and giving some Slack

We assess how different people/things and, of course, businesses fared this week.

We assess how different people/things and, of course, businesses fared this week

Guess who’s back, back again. COVID’s back; tell a friend, but keep your distance while you do it.

Yes, the increase in cases in B.C. is troubling. So are the parties in Kelowna and on Vancouver’s Third Beach. As our collective dad, John Horgan, gives us the “I’m not mad, I’m just disappointed” spiel, we all need to sit down and think about the consequences.

Do we really want to watch Justin Trudeau turn into a poorly groomed and decidedly less idealistic George Harrison in real time once again?

No, we do not. Do your part, people.

Here’s what made the grade (and what didn’t) this week.

Glory holes
Grade: A

What a time. Also, as the CBC’s Bethany Lindsay notes, this is how you do PR. Amazing.

We would make a joke, but we actually can’t think of any. If you happen to, our inbox is open. Wide open. Like a… You know what? Never mind.

The Seattle Kraken
Grade: A–

The Vancouver Canucks’ new rival has an awesome new moniker and sweet jerseys to boot. It also has an innovative (if somewhat pandering) arena name. We’re guessing it’ll take all of one Kraken game for everyone to take a side in the battle of the Pacific Northwest.

Forget the Kraken’s status as a monster; the Canucks have always been villains to the rest of the NHL. This’ll be no different.

Slack
Grade: B

It’s hard to see a company with offices around the world and more than 1,500 employees as the “little guy,” but that’s exactly what Slack is in its recent dispute with Microsoft Corp.

The Vancouver-founded firm claims that Microsoft is illegally crushing competition by making users of its Office suite use its Teams platform, too.

Unlike another well-known Vancouver online platform that isn’t all that user-friendly, Slack is actually good. So go Slack.

Blueberry growers
Grade: C–

Some (don’t say blue, don’t say blue)…blue times (dammit) apparently lie ahead for our province’s blueberry growers.

The BC Blueberry Council (why do we find that name inherently hilarious?) expects yields to be down significantly this year, thanks to poor weather conditions and a labour shortage.

CERB is actively hurting the industry, apparently, which makes a lot of sense. The Blueberry Council (OK, seriously how do you not say that in a John Cleese accent mocking importance?) is recommending that the CERB cap (people can only earn $1,000 a month while collecting it) be removed. Can only imagine that’ll be received well by the government.

Queen Charlotte Lodge
Grade: F

You know what we always say about not being welcome somewhere: ah, screw it, let’s keep running our luxury fishing lodge anyway during a pandemic.

Now the Council of the Haida Nation says that Queen Charlotte Lodge, which has operated in the area for 30 years, is no longer welcome in any circumstances.

The lodge has reportedly not responded to media queries. 

Prediction: this is not going to end well.