This week's Offside whistle goes off on the Premier of Quebec Jean Charest.

After the debacle that was, and for many in the Province of Quebec that still is, the Olympic Stadium, you have to hate hearing Premier Charest going on about plans for a new arena in Quebec City being "tied" to another Olympic bid. Hate hearing about it, if you are a supporter of the return of the Nords, that is.

Let's not even get into the history of massive cost overruns for any building related to the Olympics. See Montreal, Vancouver and Calgary in our country alone.

It would be more palatable and believable if a new rink were to be considered without any connection to the Olympics for the sporting and entertainment needs of Quebec City.

While having a new rink in Quebec City would, no doubt, add some competition to Winnipeg's return to the NHL, most Manitobans would have nothing but support for Canadian cities' NHL aspirations, especially those who have lost their NHL team. Misery it seems still likes company.

Also, given the escalation in construction costs over the years, a future $300 million rink sounds very impressive to us knowing the MTSC cost was $133 million but it may include an Olympic-caliber hotel and other amenities and infrastructure costs. Other specifics during an election campaign be damned, of course.

And let's be honest, $50 million as the province's investment out of $300 million is quite small overall. Where will the other hundreds of millions come from? No details here either, Mr. Charest?

So while the concept may be a great idea, upon further review, it may be a Premier just blowing smoke to attract votes from those Olympic and Nordique supporters during a provincial election.

If this election ploy sounds vaguely familiar to those in Manitoba, the names Premier Gary Filmon and Mayor Susan Thompson and their sidekicks will bring back the mid-1990's and a moving truck full of similar bad memories as a last "Lame Duck" season was about to begin.

And playing arena politics as a Premier with an NHL fan who has lost their team is one of the dirtiest tricks you can pull on them. Just ask most Manitobans; they remember their loss of their team, due primarily at the time to a lack of a new arena, made possible by local politicians without any real vision of the future while trying to win elections. To the good people of Quebec: History repeats itself only if we let it.

If you think I'm Offside on this, by all means, send your feedback on the link below or send me an email and set the record straight.

Chris
Chair, Manitoba Mythbusters
ManitobaMythbusters.com