Psychopathology Breeds Contempt for the Public Good

See, I wasn't joking about the size of the ego and there is no room in BC for this disgusting kind of arrogance. Get the hell out of our Province and back to the depths to which you belong. You can't talk about OUR people like this. People who swore an Oath to the public good in BC, unlike those whose only fealty is sworn to the Almighty dollar no matter what it costs the citizens of the province one is visiting. And there are more than a few of 'em careening around BC right now.

I say let's give it a whirl, say bye-bye to the pocket liners, re-jig the Boards (no more double-dipping and conflict of interest), cap the salaries of CEO and directors and get back to an understanding of what public services are all about - serving the public interest.

BC Ferries Boss Dismisses Report of Being Overpaid as "Nonsense"
Comptroller general biased toward public-sector model, Hahn suggests
Lindsay Kines, Times Colonist. November 10, 2009.

Excerpts:

David Hahn began an interview by saying he had to be careful with his comments, then variously referred to the report's findings and recommendations as "biased," "nonsense," "craziness" and "dumb."

Hahn even objected to a section where comptroller general Cheryl Wenezenki-Yolland stated that, compensation aside, the quasi-private company was reasonably well-managed.

"I'd probably take exception with the word 'reasonably,' " he said. "I think it's so much better, it's night and day."

Hahn, who earned more than $1 million last year, said he was insulted by the report's suggestion that he had too much influence over his compensation. The board decides how much he gets paid, not him, he said.

"I kind of chuckled, and thought it was sad at the same time, when she said the targets were easy to achieve," he said. "Do you think building ships in B.C. and getting that done the right way is easy to achieve? Do you think the on-time performance on the ships or changing the culture of B.C. Ferries from what it was to what it is, is easy?

"I don't know. Maybe she never rides the ferries or didn't ride them a long time ago. But I know from where it was to where it is today, we've got a lot to be proud of."

Hahn also rejected the report's call for increased accountability and greater separation between the B.C. Ferry Authority and B.C. Ferries' board of directors. The authority appoints itself to the B.C. Ferries board, creating what Wenezenki-Yolland called a conflict of interest. She also recommended an expanded role for the B.C. ferry commissioner.

Hahn suggested Wenezenki-Yolland was "biased" toward a public-sector model.

"I think she's saying B.C. Ferries should return to the way of the past. And let me tell you, if they fully implemented her mindset and it went back into this Crown environment, it would take less than a year for things to fall apart."

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Narcissistic Personality Disorder

A pervasive pattern of grandiosity (in fantasy or behavior), need for admiration, and lack of empathy, beginning by early adulthood and present in a variety of contexts, as indicated by five (or more) of the following:

1. has a grandiose sense of self-importance (e.g., exaggerates achievements and talents, expects to be recognized as superior without commensurate achievements)
2. is preoccupied with fantasies of unlimited success, power, brilliance, beauty, or ideal love
3. believes that he or she is "special" and unique and can only be understood by, or should associate with, other special or high-status people (or institutions)
4. requires excessive admiration
5. has a sense of entitlement, i.e., unreasonable expectations of especially favorable treatment or automatic compliance with his or her expectations
6. is interpersonally exploitative, i.e., takes advantage of others to achieve his or her own ends
7. lacks empathy: is unwilling to recognize or identify with the feelings and needs of others
8. is often envious of others or believes others are envious of him or her
9. shows arrogant, haughty behaviors or attitudes