Partner, Maple Leaf Strategies
Ottawa, Canada
Joined January 2011
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Phil von Finckenstein retweeted
Can’t believe CBC’s At Issue is dissecting the Alberta referendum with a panel of Toronto Globe, Ottawa-based TorStar and Montreal voices with a guest B.C. radio guest and not even a token Albertan. No wonder they’re alienated.
Phil von Finckenstein retweeted
A massive signal of confidence as @hitachienergy invests $479 million to build Canada's largest transformer insulation facility.
Ontario's 25-year energy road map is providing long-term certainty, creating the conditions for companies to localize manufacturing to build to meet Ontario's rising energy demand.
In short, a plan to manufacture more at home, built by and for Canadians.
Phil von Finckenstein retweeted
Holy fuck it’s 2026 and we just got flying cars.
Tesla Roadster is insane.
Phil von Finckenstein retweeted
Minnesota beat Michigan earlier today, and this might the best postgame locker room video I've ever seen 😲😲
Phil von Finckenstein retweeted
David Eby seems to think being a billionaire is something to be condemned.
Maybe he should take a look at what Jimmy Pattison has actually done for British Columbia.
• EXPO 86: Pattison worked virtually full-time for five years without compensation to help make Expo 86 a reality and putting Vancouver on the world stage
• Health care: He donated $75 million to St. Paul’s Hospital, described by the B.C. government as a historic contribution to Canadian health-care philanthropy. (BC News)
• Royal Columbian Hospital: He donated $30 million toward the redevelopment, with the new acute-care tower now bearing his name.
• Surrey health care: He donated $5 million toward the Jim Pattison Outpatient Care and Surgery Centre, helping fund equipment and attract physicians.
-Vancouver General Hospital: donated $20 million to VGH
-He made major contributions to Lions Gate Hospital in North Vancouver, Burnaby, Kelowna General and Kootenay Boundary Regional Hospital. A 2024 grant record shows nearly $20 million in foundation grants in one year, much of it going to B.C. health care.
- Children’s health: the Pattison Group, has contributed tens of millions of dollars to B.C. Children’s Hospital, including $15 million for its family immunization clinic.
• Jobs and investment: The Pattison Group grew from a single Vancouver car dealership into a major Canadian business empire employing thousands of people.
So when David Eby looks at Jimmy Pattison and sees only “a billionaire,” British Columbians should remember what Pattison has actually contributed.
He built businesses. He created jobs. He invested in our communities. He helped put Vancouver on the world stage. And he has donated millions to help British Columbians receive health care.
We should be debating how to create more success stories like Jimmy Pattison not denigrating people simply because they achieved extraordinary success.
B.C. needs more builders, more investment and more ambition, not politicians who turn success into something to be ashamed of and using him for cheap political talking points
Phil von Finckenstein retweeted
Ben, come on down. The Rice is Right.
#RepBX
Phil von Finckenstein retweeted
Excellent interview with Vladimir Kara-Murza, who very kindly wrote the foreword to my biography of Irwin Cotler. His warning is that Putin will go as far as he is allowed to go.
'Real change is inevitable'
As Russians head to the polls in another tightly controlled election, Sky News' @IvorBennett speaks to former political prisoner Vladimir Kara-Murza.
Phil von Finckenstein retweeted
Bryan Shelton reflects on everything his parents sacrificed to give him the chance to play tennis, and the lasting impact they had on his kids, Ben and Emma too.
Phil von Finckenstein retweeted
Qinwen Zheng says she suffered a lot of pain psychologically with every loss since coming back from injury, ‘In sport, you just need to stay humble & keep fighting… If God gave me all the losses before, I’m sure he’ll give me something back’
“You’re obviously a big star in a lot of ways. You have a lot of fans in China. You’re an Olympic Gold Medalist at the last Olympics. How difficult was it for you to not be in the main event? To play qualifying and start earlier than everyone else? Was that at all a psychological challenge? Even though it obviously worked out great in the end…”
Qinwen: “Yeah. Psychologically it’s very difficult to accept. I used to be top 10, Olympic champion, I played in the big stadiums since the beginning. And right now my ranking dropped so much after injury. I couldn’t perform as well the last 3 or 4 months. I know people have a lot of doubts about me. It’s just really hard for me. I just need to keep positive every single day, telling myself ‘just keep working, let’s see when the result is gonna happen.’ It’s really really tough. I suffered a lot and I’ve been through a lot of pain every single loss I’ve had. At the end, sport, you just need to stay humble and keep fighting. Because once you lose that, the result will show everything. I’m just happy to be back again. If that’s what God gave to me, all the losses before… I’m sure he’ll give me something back, you know?” ❤️
(via US Open Press)
Phil von Finckenstein retweeted
Enter Sandman is a 25 year old Virginia Tech tradition and the reason Metallica added the school to their last tour.
Virginia Tech’s Geosciences department measured the equivalent of a magnitude 1 to 2 earthquake when the band played the song at that concert.
Phil von Finckenstein retweeted
This is probably the most mind blowing and stunning onboard footage I’ve seen in ages. Wow 😮
Even @elonmusk may appreciate this… that is if he ever actually looked at any of my posts 🤭
A team of mostly University of Waterloo undergrads sent a rocket more than 19 kilometres into the sky, setting a world record for the highest amateur liquid rocket. The successful flight happened on August 21 at the Launch Canada Challenge, in Timmins.
You can clearly see the curve of the Earth and space. What an incredible view.
Credit: Waterloo Rocketry
