ray henderson

2008-02-24T11:29:00.000-08:00

oh if only I had...

Have you ever had the cause to think that maybe you've missed your calling? That maybe somewhere along the way you missed a path that, if taken would have put you in a drastically different place today. In the immortal words of Blue Rodeo, ever "Wonder what you are doing here"?

Personally I couldn't be happier with the place I'm in today even though like many people I think, I ended up here almost completely by accident. So I haven't really had the occasion to wonder to much, but last week a co-worker and I were talking and this conversation combined with some recent events in our city have got me thinking...

I think that most of us are in a similar boat, we get up 5 days a week (often at a time that seems way too early), battling traffic in some variety we go to work, clock in and provide a several hours of whatever it is that we are good at for (in most cases) the ultimate benefit of someone else. Hopefully we like what we do and the people that we do it with so that the time we spend at work doesn't kill us in one way or another. Then we go home, spend a few hours of the day doing the things that really define who we are, with the people that we really enjoy being with, go to bed, wake up and do it all over again. Then, after a week or two in reward for our efforts we get paid and in turn we pay a whole bunch of other people, just to keep the cycle moving.

Whether or not we like our work or the people we work with, I think that we can all agree that there is always something else that we would rather be doing and we think about this each morning that we drag ourselves out of bed and through the ritual that takes us to work and back. Question is why do we put ourselves through this?

If your like me (and I like my job and the people I work with) you do it because you have to. We do this to support the lives that we've been given, to pay for the roofs over our heads and the food in our stomachs. Hopefully we do it so that we can also afford to do the other things that make us happy but like it or not, we also do it to help contribute towards our communities and in turn to help support the lives that have been given to others. Even when those others seem to do very little to support themselves!

So what would I do if I could go back and do it all over again? Given the chance I think I would become an advocate. I have to be careful here because the truth is that we are all advocates to some degree. Most of us have something that is important to us that we try hard to protect or make conditions better for, but I'm not talking about this kind of advocate. I'm talking about the truly devoted advocates that don't do anything else but advocate. Full-time advocates! Hard core advocates that don't really advocate for anything in particular anymore, they just advocate and they do it with loud voices, heavy fists and lots and lots of props! So many props that most of us can't hear the message anymore because we are so distracted by the props.

I want to be one of those advocates that have become more important, have begun to take themselves much more seriously than the causes that they initially became advocates for!

Last week the village idiots that make up the Anti-Poverty Committee took their brand of advocacy (complete with brightly colored props) to the streets of Vancouver again and, in two separate incidents attempted to send an increasingly unclear message but succeeded in doing nothing more than terrorizing innocent people and destroying property. Hiding behind the very real problem of homelessness in Vancouver and British Columbia as well as paint suits and masks, members of the APC last week attempted to draw attention to what they call "the contradiction between the BC Liberals, the Olympics and the thousands of people living in the streets". This despite the fact that the BC Liberals have committed to an unprecedented 2400 units of housing in Vancouver alone since last April.

Two weeks ago Premier Campbell and Housing Minister Rich Coleman announced another $23 million to purchase 6 more SRO hotels in the downtown east side (DTES) which will provide homes for another 330 people. This means that the province has now purchased 16 buildings all in an effort to solve the problem of homelessness on our streets. Will these hotels, combined with the 1 200 units being offered by the City completely solve the problem? Of course not, but its a step in the right direction and its a step that no one has ever taken before in British Columbia. The APC, rather than acknowledging this step refers to these purchases as "a few crummy hotels" or "a change in slumlords". An interesting judgement passed on a project not yet completed.

Never mind the fact that the APC have historically used props and fear tactics to make their points. Never mind that they push women off podiums to steal mikes that allow them to swear in front of children. Never mind that the cause becomes lost as they bully their way into the spotlight with no regard to who they step on along the way and lets just pretend for a moment that there is a legitimate message buried somewhere in the rhetoric. What is it? Well according to people like Jill Chettiar, Thomas Malenfant and David Cunningham what the APC want (this time) is a share of the $2 billion surplus being held by the provincial government. They want a piece of our savings account.

The problem that I have with the APC's demands is two-fold. First, while I fully support the efforts that the BC Liberals have made so far with the purchase of some 16 SRO hotels, I'm not in favour of more similar housing in the DTES. I just can't see how concentrating homelessness or social housing into one area (the DTES) is going to solve the problem. One need only look around some of the existing SRO's to see that this is true. I do support the idea of more social housing throughout the province, in communities like Langley, Abbotsford, Hope, Kelowna, Prince George and so on. Housing needs to be built and support provided in the communities that the people currently living in the DTES are from. This includes Calgary, Regina, Toronto and the other places in this country where conditions make living in the street impossible.

My second issue goes back to how this post began. The $2 billion surplus that the government is holding is ours, we worked for it and we contributed to this with our sweat, our ideas, our taxes and I can't help but wonder the size of the pie that represents the contributions made by the APC and similar groups. At the end of the day how much have the advocates contributed in the only real way that will change conditions for the homeless? How much money do they bring to the table?

The next question then is how does their share of the contribution measure against the cost of cleaning up after them?

2008-02-17T20:56:00.000-08:00

...Darwin's rolling over in his coffin. Cuz the fittest are surviving much less often.

Now everything seems to be reversing, and its worsening...

...now angry mob mentality is no longer the exception its the rule.

And I'm starting to feel a lot like Charlton Heston, stranded on a primate planet...

I really try hard most of the time to give people the benefit of the doubt. I recognize that we all make mistakes, act before we think sometimes and suffer the occasional moment of stupidity. After all, aren't some of the most important lessons in life learned through trial and error?

Then again, sometimes the immortal words of punk rock legends NOFX (above) seem to strike a little closer to home and sometimes it really does seem like the idiots are taking over. Sometimes its hard not to worry about the future of our civilization, especially as it seems to grow increasingly uncivil as time goes by.

If I had my way I would have all of the horns removed from all of the vehicles currently on the road and I'd see to it that no cars or trucks built in the future were done so with a horn. Or, even better I'd see to it that horns could only be heard by the driver on the inside of the vehicle. Crazy? Maybe! Of course I understand the intent behind the car horn however I'm am now convinced that the original purpose to a horn has become lost on today's driver and in fact horns have become more of a distraction than a safety feature, especially amongst those who feel that their gratuitous horn use is really their god-given right.

Once I've succeeded in eliminating the horns of the world, my next step will be to somehow have the middle finger surgically removed from anyone wishing to obtain a drivers license.

This past Saturday I found myself at the Park and Tilford shopping center in North Vancouver. The mall was unusually busy and parking was at a premium so I think I was lucky to find a spot in the furthest corner of the lot. I was walking back to the car when I happened to notice a driver pulling out of a lane onto the road that exits the mall. I didn't notice anything unusual about the way he pulled out, there was a van approaching but he had more than enough room to safely make the maneuver given the conditions at the time.

Apparently the driver of the van didn't think so.

What happened next seemed so absolutely ridiculous to me that I couldn't help but laugh out loud. The woman driving the van was probably going a bit fast for the lot and unfortunately, the driver pulling out in front of her meant that she was forced to move her right foot from the gas over to that other pedal to the left, the brake I believe. I guess she didn't like this and her immediate reaction was to hit the horn. Actually this is an understatement as I'm sure that her fist made a permanent dent on the center of the steering wheel. As if this wasn't enough, once she was sure that she had the attention of the other driver she then proceeded to thrust her middle finger forward so hard that I was sure it was going to go through the windshield.

The lady driving the van was in a fit of rage the likes of which I don't think I've ever seen before. I can't read lips but still I have a pretty good idea what she was saying and while this should have been enough clearly she wasn't satisfied. Once again she drove her fist into the horn and with the other hand again shoved her finger forward, willing it I'm sure through the back of the head of the driver in front. She obviously wanted everyone to know that she was angry, unfortunately this was the point where I started laughing.

Sadly, all of this was taking place in front of the van's passenger who could not have been more than 15 years old. An important lesson being passed on to a daughter, niece, whatever... but an even more important lesson was about to unfold.

Once the drama was over inside the van the male driver in the car up front stopped, got out of his car and approached the van...

In this case all the driver did was look at the lady, shrug his shoulders and ask the lady what her problem was but considering the seemingly increasing level of violence in our communities lately one can only imagine how this situation could have unfolded, and for what? But then I can't help but wonder, how exactly did the driver of the van expect the other person to react? What did she hope to gain by her obvious over-reaction and should she really expect the other guy to sit still through this when he really didn't do anything wrong?

This was a ridiculous, laughable event and in the end no one was hurt. Yet somehow I am troubled by it and what it says about us.

A few years ago my wife was at a 4 way stop when another car approached and blew the intersection out of turn. My wife gave the driver the finger and a couple of days later she was confronted by a high school friend who asked why she (my wife) had done this to the friends mother. To my knowledge my wife hasn't fingered anyone since.

A silly little story for sure, but I'm pretty sure that there's a lesson here somewhere. Or maybe not.

2008-02-05T20:57:00.000-08:00

an ounce of prevention...

When I was in grade 12 I worked part time at a full-serve gas station in Langley. I was 17 years old and I usually worked the 4 to 11 pm shift by myself, without benefit of a cage, cameras or an alarm. Looking back I don't think that I ever really gave my safety a second thought but part of the reason may have been that I was 17. That was 20 years ago and while 20 years may not be that significant in the grand scheme of things, it was a different world than the one we live in today.

After I finished high school I got a job working the car wash at a 24 hour self-serve station. There was no such thing as a "touchless" car wash back then and my job was to scrub the tires, rocker panels and bumpers before guiding the driver into the wash. I also had to go into the bowels of the carwash to retrieve any mirrors, antenna's or other car appendages that it may have consumed. I also covered shifts in the gas bar from time to time, often over the graveyard shift. When I first started the job there were no alarms, cameras and no thought to securing the attendant in a cage even at night, until one night the station was robbed. Thankfully I wasn't working, but shortly after that incident we installed a button that allowed the attendant to unlock the door and two panic buttons, one under the counter and the other was worn on a chain around the attendants neck. This was only a year after I had worked at the full-serve but already the world had become a different place than it was the year before.

A lot has changed since my days pumping gas (not including the price per liter)... there are very few completely full-serve stations left and there is no longer the choice between leaded and unleaded. Back then pay at the pump meant that you passed your cash or a credit card through your window to the guy who pumped the gas and if you paid by credit card you signed your name and the paranoid people asked for all of the carbons. There was no option to use debit. The world has changed.

I realize that change doesn't always come easy to all of us, none-the-less I can't help but be a just a little concerned with a few of the letters I've read in this weeks Vancouver Province. It troubles me how little compassion we can show towards the safety of others when this safety is measured against our own convenience. As most of you are probably aware on Friday the 1st of February "Grants Law" came into affect requiring British Columbians to prepay for gasoline purchases and for station owners to introduce measures to protect attendants working alone. This law was introduced in response to the death of Grant DePatie who was tragically killed when he tried to stop (quite mistakenly) a gas and dash at the station where he was working.

An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure...

...or so the old saying goes, but in response to Grants Law Province readers said "Initiatives like Grants Law rarely accomplish their objectives and are usually counterproductive", and "The net effect of Grants Law will be to make gas stations more dangerous for all of us." According to one letter writer "Grants Law is an over reaction to a tragic incident that happened once and never happened again."

If this is the path that our "enlightened" society is choosing to follow somebody please stop the world so I can get off!

Of course Grants Law is not going to stop all thefts from gas stations, nor is it going to stop all gas thieves, especially as the price of fuel rises. But if this law prevents just one theft, if it deters just one person from attempting another gas and run, if it makes just one gas station attendant feel safer while doing their job...doesn't that make it a worthwhile exercise and a reasonable strategy at making our community safer? Does anyone really believe that potential gas thieves will now be lurking behind pumps in well lit stations waiting to hijack gas consumers now that they can't steal the gas from the pumps themselves? Really?

Am I the only person bothered by this?

In the same paper I see a readers response to fire fighter union boss Rod MacDonald's decsion to ignore new rules giving emergency services the choice to turn sirens off when responding to incidents late at night. This despite the concern of downtown residents including Sam Sullivan over the disruption and loss of sleep caused by the excessive noise of "2 fire trucks, a rescue vehicle, a cop car or 2 and an ambulance" for each event. In his letter the writer states that "we are woken every night by sirens from trucks often going 3 blocks to a fender bender..." I'm sure that the writers opinion would change if it was him pinned helpless behind his steering wheel, the smell of gasoline rising around him...

I don't pump gas for other people anymore, for the past 8 years I have been a safety officer, emergency planner and risk manager so my opinions here may be slightly biased in one direction but still I can't help but be disturbed when it appears to me that personal comfort and convenience are held in higher regard than just one life...taken as a result of "one tragic incident that happened once and never happened again."

Until it happens again!

2008-02-03T21:05:00.000-08:00

leeside tunnel

Next week is the sentencing hearing for Dennis White who was convicted in November 2007 for the 2nd degree murder of 23 year old skateboarder and aspiring artist Lee Matasi.

Up until a couple of months ago I didn't know who Lee Matasi was. I'm actually a bit embarassed by this as it shows that I really don't know as much about the community as I'd like to. I was at a Board meeting of the Hastings Community Association late last year and I bought a pound of coffee beans to help support the Leeside Tunnel Project, a community effort to build a place for skateboarders, bmx'ers and mountain bikers to safely ride, huck, ollie and do whatever other tricks apply to their sport of choice. It sounded like just the thing that our community needed and something I was definitely interested in supporting.

The Leeside Tunnel passes under Hastings street between the East end of Pender and the Empire bowl. It belongs to the Ministry of Transportation and was originally built as a bus loop but the project was cancelled in the early 1990's. Not long after the tunnel became a popular hang-out for skateboarders, cyclists and artists and it also provides perfect pedestrian access for residents to get under Hastings to Empire Bowl, Hastings Park, the PNE and all of the other recreational opportunities within.

Leeside is named in memorium to Lee Matasi who was one of the original users of the tunnel and one of the many artists showcased on the tunnel walls. Matasi was shot and killed in December 2005 by Dennis White outside of the Red Room nightclub in Vancouver. White was sentenced last month.

Intrigued by the project and looking for a new short cut to the Second Narrows bridge, my son and I visited the tunnel for the first time today. When we got there we found a half dozen volunteers cleaning up and tearing down some old wooden ramps and hits to make room for newer concrete structures. It seems that even the skateboarding community isn't safe from vandals as a group had set a fire in the tunnel recently, not the first one as I understand. Leeside tunnel is rough, it needs work and it needs the support of the community but despite what the tunnel needs I was impressed with what I saw and with the level of dedication shown by the guys working there today. I think that this project is perfect for our community and its a perfect addition to the many recreational opportunities offered at Hastings Park (see my post "Save Hastings Park"). I also like the fact the Leeside has engaged the community in the project.

If you are interested in supporting the Leeside Tunnel Project I encourage you to visit their site (see the link on the right) and donate or, if you like coffee as much as I do you can show your support by purchasing some Leeside Tunnel Roast certified organic custom espresso blend. Visit Anti Social for details.

2008-02-02T21:38:00.000-08:00

rule number 6...

Two prime ministers are sitting in a room discussing affairs of state. Suddenly a man bursts in, apoplectic with fury, shouting and stamping and banging his fist on the desk. The resident prime minister admonishes him: "Peter," he says, "kindly remember Rule Number 6," whereupon Peter is instantly restored to complete calm, apologizes and withdraws. The politicians return to their conversation, only to be interrupted yet again twenty minutes later by an hysterical woman gesticulating wildly, her hair flying. Again the intruder is greeted with the words: "Marie, please remember Rule Number 6." Complete calm descends once more, and she too withdraws with a bow and an apology. When the scene is repeated for a third time, the visiting prime minister addresses his colleague: "My dear friend, I've seen many things in my life, but never anything as remarkable as this. Would you be willing to share with me the secret of Rule Number 6?" "Very simple," replies the resident prime minister. "Rule Number 6 is "Don't take yourself so g-damn seriously." "Ah," says his visitor, "that is a fine rule." After a moment of pondering, he inquires, "And what, may I ask, are the other rules?" "There aren't any."

(The Art of Possibility by Rosamund and Benjamin Zander)

I'm not really sure how you would classify "The Art of Possibility". I guess it could be described as a self-help, self-development kind of book. To be honest I haven't quite finished it yet so any decription that I give right now could fall a bit short but I have been so taken by some of the lessons in the book that I thought it worth mentioning here.

About three years ago the entire management team at Grouse Mountain was given a copy of the book from the company president, Stuart McLaughlin. I started reading it immediately but for whatever reason put it down halfway through and didn't pick it up again until very recently. Given some of the changes in my life recently it seemed like a pretty good fit and so far it hasn't disappointed. A couple of posts ago I mentioned how my new job has given me an opportunity to take a couple of steps back and evaluate some of the things that I've been doing, one of the things that I have decided is that I've been taking myself just a bit too seriously.

Rule Number 6!

The Art of Possibility provides a different way of looking at the world and the people around us. It is about participating and allowing those around us to participate too. Its about contributing and encouraging those around us to contribute. There are a lot of us out there who take the easy way out a lot of the time. Its easy to make excuses for the things we've done or haven't done, easy to blame others when we fall short, easy to overlook or ignore the consequences of the decisions that we make. Its not so easy to listen and hear what other people have to say, to encourage those that don't normally say anything to speak up and sometimes it really sucks to stand up and say "Thats my fault, I'm sorry".

I have been taking myself too seriously lately and The Art of Possibility has opened my eyes to that. I know a few others out there that may benefit from rule number 6 and thats why I thought I'd mention it here.

2008-02-02T17:00:00.000-08:00

why don't we just pick a bus off the transit tree?

What do you suppose the reaction would be if you stood outside your favorite grocery store and asked everyone entering if they would like to pay less for milk? The answer is obvious isn't it? So what if you created a petition and told all of these people that by signing they would show the store manager that a whole bunch of like-minded people believe that they should be paying less for milk and therefore the manager should give all of us milk consumers a break and roll back the price. How do you suppose the store manager would react?

Perhaps, in this case the manager would turn to her milk supplier and demand that he reduce the stores milk price in order that the store may ease its customers burden at the cash register. Or maybe intead the store manager would call a meeting of her employees and inform them that the only way to meet the demands outlined in the petition and reduce the price of milk will be for each worker to take a pay cut.

Of course this is ridiculous!

The point here is that despite the fact that we would all like to pay less for the things that we use, everything has a price and someone has to pay it. The only way to avoid this simple truth is to go without all of the things that we need or enjoy. So I can't help but wonder what BC NDP Leader Carole James is really trying to tell us when she says that "transit users like the idea of lower fairs"?

Duh!

Of course they do and it should be no surprise that people would approach her on January 30 at the Broadway skytrain station and sign her petition calling for lower fares. Lets face it, there isn't a person out there that wouldn't like to save a buck or two somewhere and somehow.

Recently Premier Gordon Campbell and Transportation Minister Kevin Falcon announced an incredible $14 billion investment to improve transit in British Columbia. This investment is long overdue if we have any hope in meeting the BC Liberals aggressive emission reduction targets and if we truly expect to keep a growing Metro Vancouver population moving at the same time. The question remains though, who is going to pay for it?

If Carole James has anything to do with this it won't be the people that use the service the most! Look out tax payer!

I don't take transit that often. My wife and usually car-pool and lately I've been trying to use my bike more to drag myself around to all the places I need to be. The fact is that transit, in its current state at least, doesn't really fit us that well and I can actually get to work about an hour quicker by riding a bike versus riding the bus. That said, I'm not really that bothered to see the transit levy on my monthly hydro bill. I don't mind a portion of the taxes I pay for fuel or anything else going to service Translink and to be completely honest, I wouldn't be that opposed to any future, moderate increases in taxes to help ensure an efficient and sustainable transit system leading into the future. I don't have a problem contributing...as long as the people who use the service do their part as well!

The notion that we can ever have "more buses, lower fares" (as groups like the Bus Riders Union would suggest) is absolutely absurd and I suspect that even people like Carole James, deep down understand this.

Carole James and the BC NDP can stand at as many skytrain stations or bus stops as they like and they can amass as many signatures as they like in the process. At the end of the day the obvious will remain, we need to spend a lot of money to improve our transit infrastructure... and no one rides for free!

2008-01-30T20:26:00.000-08:00

help support hastings park.

This week the BC Court of appeals will hear the petition put forward by "concerned community groups" from Vancouver-Hastings opposed to a 2006 decision that has allowed Great Canadian Casinos to install slot machines at Hastings Park. Leading the charge in this case is the Hastings Park Conservancy, a group of volunteers strongly opposed to any kind of development in the park that isn't green and that advocates for the complete return of Hastings to the community of Vancouver-Hastings (or Hastings-Sunrise).

I know a few members of the Conservancy and I have a great deal of respect for some of the things that they have done in advocating for green space and for their passion in preserving an important piece of our community. The trouble is that I don't necessarily share the vision that the Hastings Park Conservancy has of what our park should look like. Incidentally, there are a lot of people who don't.

Over the past 3 or so years that we have lived in Vancouver-Hastings and throughout the last year or so that I have actively participated in groups within the community I have heard loud and clear the battle cries of the defenders of one of Vancouver's largest urban parks (all 162 acres). Phrases like "Hastings Park must be returned to the people." or "Hastings Park is a park for the public before profit." I have heard people in conversation say that all of the buildings in the park, no matter their historical significance should be removed and that a race track that can't survive without slots shouldn't be allowed to survive at all. I have read in bulletins and in letters to the editor that "we want our park back" but I've also looked a little bit into the history of Hastings Park and at the end of the day admit that I am confused.

In 1889 the province of BC gave the 160 acre future Hastings Park to the community "for the use, recreation and enjoyment of the public." What did they mean by this? By whose standard are we supposed to measure what is recreation or enjoyment? Can we not accept that people going to the PNE, Playland, the skate park, the race track, a Vancouver Giants game or the sanctuary are doing so for recreation or to enjoy themselves? Or should we be lead to believe that the only acceptable recreation in the park is that defined by certain advocacy groups?

Shortly after the province gave our community the park 15 acres were set aside for the race track. This area, originally known as East Park was cleared by the BC Jockey Club and Hastings track was soon born, the first race track in BC. Later in 1908, 60 acres of the park were given to the PNE's predessessor the Vancouver Exhibition Association, presumably to fullfil a need for "more wholesome activities such as tradeshows for dairy farmers, loggers, and horticulturists". Since then there have been many changes and additions to Hastings Park. Buildings and attractions came like Happyland, the Forum and Rollerland and buildings went including the Purefoods building, BC Pavilion and Showmart. Our park may have served a regrettable purpose during WW II but it also proudly provided Vancouverites and British Columbians with a place to watch the BC Lions while the Pacific Coliseum gave us a place for our Vancouver Canucks to play their first NHL game.

Although I never really liked them (thanks to a certain high school music teacher) Hastings Park and Empire Stadium also welcomed the Beatles in 1964.

Despite what certain groups (and certain bloggers) would like us to believe Hastings Park has been a park for both the public and for profit for over 100 years and for the most part this arrangement has worked pretty well for everyone. Without the "profits" generated by the PNE, the track, the Colliseum and so on the full financial burden to maintain Hastings Park would fall squarely on the taxpayer. Without permanent residents in the park that have a vested interest in keeping it clean and open to the public our park would undoubtedly fall prey to vandalism, tent cities and other hazards that put the safety of those very few that would still choose to recreate and enjoy this gift from the province at risk.

Advocates tell us that Hastings Park has been stolen from the "citizens of the east end". We are told that the park was never intended for casino purposes, but I can't help but wonder who it was that said the park belonged solely to the east end in the first place. Was the word "casino" ever even mentioned in any documents way back then in 1889? Have any of the people currently opposed to slot machines taken the time to visit the new (temporary) casino at Hastings Park to determine its actual impact? I have.

I can agree in part with the Hastings Park Conservency as I believe that there is more room for greening and there is certainly a need to protect Hastings Park. The question remaining is how should the park be preserved? My version of Hastings Park includes a race track (with slots if needed), Playland, a skate park, the PNE, a shortcut for my bike ride to and from work, the Vancouver Giants, the Sanctuary, the Italian Gardens, the Hastings Little League, Disney on Ice, the Hastings Community Center and so on. My version of Hastings Park has "recreation and enjoyment for everyone" in all of recreation's many shapes and sizes.

Advocates ask us to join them in shouting "we want our park back" but I question whether or not it was ever really taken away. I say that Hastings Park has simply evolved over the last century to meet the changing needs of an extremely diverse community and those others who care to visit for good family "use, recreation and enjoyment."

2008-01-28T22:11:00.000-08:00

small school...big bulldozer!

I really wanted to write this post (or one similar to it) about 8 months ago. In fact I did but then my own sensibilities prevented me from putting out into the blog-o-sphere. After a bit more thought and a couple of leaflets in my mailbox I've decided that mine is a tale that needs to be told.

As most people in the Vancouver-Hastings community may be aware the Vancouver School Board decided several months ago to close the Garibaldi Annex to Lord Nelson Elementary. The possibility of the school closing has actually been out there for a lot longer however, last December the Board held a meeting to determine the fate of this small annex with just over 40 students. Supporters of Garibaldi obviously and perhaps reasonably oppose this potential closure stating in the first flyer that we received that "Garibaldi has been unfairly isolated and removed from the ongoing Vancouver School facility review process and targeted for closure."

Interesting choice of words...

No one can say that they truly relish the notion of the closure of any public school, whether its in your community or not. Schools, arguably are one of the few foundations within a community that bring people together to help form bonds and memories that often last a lifetime. I'm sure that there are a great many memories out there that surround Garibaldi, some good and some not so good. But still I believe that the questions need to be asked...At what point does the community outgrow its need for the school or the school fail to meet the needs of the growing community? How much does it cost to keep a school alive for a steadily declining student population? How much do we really owe Garibaldi Annex and how do we measure this against what the school provides for us? At what point do we cut our losses in terms of the number of students attending 40, 30, 20, 15, 7?

Garibaldi School has confirmed 11 new registrations for kindergarten next year. How many grade 4 students are leaving? We don't know, perhaps next year if the school remains open someone will be fighting to save it for 30, 20, 15 students. Then what?

Alright, by now you are wondering what my point is, why am I attacking Garibaldi school, what do I personally have against the tiny k to 4 annex nestled so quaintly between Hastings and 1st and Renfrew and Naniamo? A very good question! As I said earlier I don't think that anyone is super excited about the notion of a public school closing in their community or anyone else's for that matter. The truth is that everyone (except for a few students perhaps) loves to have a school in their neighbourhood since they are good for the community, good for the social networks within the community, good for property values (hmmm) and so on. The truth is that I have a personal history with this particular school and unfortunately the memories that I took away from it aren't really that great.

Garibaldi Annex, or more specifically the administration of Garibaldi Annex made my son's first experience within the public school system absolutely miserable. It was bad for him, bad for my wife and bad for me and this is too bad because we began the year dedicated to the cause of saving this school. We were on the PAC, we attended fund raisers, you name it...we were there. Without going too far into the details of our experience, the school's administration at the time (while friendly to begin with) turned out to have everything but the welfare of our son at heart. While we thought that we were involved with his educational experience, it actually turned out that we had no idea what was going on after we dropped him off. The the staff were far less than transparent and the only item on the agenda seemed to be the labelling of our son with any "designation" that would justify the administrations drive for funding, resources and a future. What was that phrase "unfairly isolated and removed...?"

The latest flyer that we received from Garibaldi supporters (which came last weekend) does what any "save our anything" sort of flyer should do, it aims straight for the heart strings of the reader. It tells us that Garibaldi is a "small school with a big heart" and we are told that the school "provides an intimate learning environment in which children develop strong community values" Let me tell you that this was not the case while we were a part of this school. Our child was separated from the "community" as much as possible often for behaviour that most people would expect from a 5 year old.

The motto at Garibaldi Annex we are told is "We think of others", a great motto for sure but not one that our family experienced that much while we were there. But don't take my word for this alone as there are at least 3 other families that I am aware of who either pulled their children from the school early or did not return this year. I have spoken with a few of these parents recently and all report the wonderful progress that their kids are making in their new environments. Sort of makes you think that maybe, just maybe there's another reason for the steadily declining population at Garibaldi.

Or maybe I'm just a bitter parent! In all honesty though and despite my own real life experiences I do applaud those that love Garibaldi for their efforts to save the school. You know, after all is said and done I have to give the school some credit...after all if the administration at Garibaldi had not made our experience so absolutely miserable we would have never discovered Sir Mathew Begbie, a public school that has shown us plenty of "heart", has worked with our son and us and has yet to even mention the word "designation".

Even still, don't expect my name on any petition to save Garibaldi school.

2008-01-26T10:54:00.000-08:00

On September 19, 2007 after almost 14 years working at Grouse Mountain, I started a new job. Of course I was nervous and needless to say this was a very big step for me. 14 years is a long time and almost everything I know, everything I have become and nearly everyone who is important to me, including my wife and 2 boys has come to me in some way thanks to my experiences at Grouse Mountain.

But the move came at a very good time and among other things it has allowed me to take a couple of steps back and evaluate what I'm doing, why I'm doing it, where I'm going and my reasons for wanting to get there. This move, if nothing else has reminded me of the importance of "rule number 6". (a great topic for another time).

So with the job change came an opportunity to make a bunch of pre-new year resolutions and one of the things that I promised to do was to ride my bike to work more often. Despite the cold and unforgiving weather of late this has been a relatively easy promise to keep especially since my new job is about 7 km closer to my home and some 900 feet closer to sea level (it really couldn't be closer to sea level). My former colleagues at the Vancouver Area Cycling Coalition would be proud as last week I managed to ride 4 times (only a mid day dentist appointment prevented me from riding all week) and notwithstanding a few minor pains, I'm also pretty pleased with my accomplishment.

I made the decision to ride more for three reasons. First I wanted to reduce my own carbon footprint. Anyone who has visited here before knows that I believe we all need to make important changes in our own routines before we can expect anything from anyone else, including government. Second I wanted to save a bit of money by visiting the pump a little less, but most importantly my decision to ride was made to achieve the mental and physical benefits of the cycling. As I approach 40 I figure that its time I do something nice for my body.

Along with this resolution to cycle more came another important decision to trim some of the fat that I had accumulated through volunteering a bit too much of my time to a variety of organizations. This time last year I was involved with no less than 8 different volunteer boards, committee's, sub-committee's, coalition's, association's, team's and organization's. Way too much... just ask my wife. The challenge here was which ones to leave since all were important to me for one reason or another? After a fair bit of consideration and a little bit of frustration my decisions were made and one of the groups that I have since left is the Vancouver Area Cycling Coalition.

One of the great benefits of cycling to work is the opportunity that it gives you to think. My particular route is relatively calm, it takes me about 20 minutes to make the 10 km trip to and from work which is plenty of time to think about the day ahead and forget about the day behind. Interestingly one of the things that I have been thinking about the most lately is cycling.

Despite my growing passion for cycling it was pretty easy for me to leave the VACC. Despite the fact that I am cycling more these days it is becoming quite clear to me why more people aren't doing the same. Unfortunately, in my opinion this has little to do with poor cycling infrastructure and a lot to do with the cycling community. There are many types of cyclists but I think they can all be put into two general categories, the transportation cyclists and the recreational cyclists. In my own experiences (this is a bit of a generalization of course) I have found that transportation cyclists don't really like recreational cyclists and this is a problem for me. I attended a meeting several months ago where the key topic was about finding better ways to communicate with cyclists and get more people involved in our organization and with cycling as a form of transportation. The transportation cycling movement needs a stronger voice in order to deal with some of the very real infrastructure issues within our community. To get a stronger voice they need more members, simple right? One of the questions I asked was why we didn't communicate and ally ourselves more with other cycling organizations like the North Shore Mountain Bike Association, after all I was a mountain biker first and most of my mountain biking friends also cycle commute at least some of the time. Shouldn't it be easier to convince someone who already cycles in one form or another to also cycle commute than it would be to get someone who has never ridden a bike to attempt it in traffic for the first time? All but one person in the group looked at me as though I had a horn growing out of my head!

To be fair not all transportation cyclists feel this way, nor do all members of the VACC. Don't get me wrong, I also believe that the VACC is a good organization and a lot of its members are as reasonable as they are passionate about improving conditions for cycling, it just seemed to me at times that those with the most negative outlooks also had the loudest voices and I often felt as though I had to defend myself and my friends because we sometimes ride for fun!

The next observation that has lead me to believe that transportation cyclists can be a miserable bunch comes directly form my own commute. Each morning I meet the same half dozen or so cyclists along the way and each morning as I meet them I attempt to brighten an otherwise cold and wet experience by shouting out a "hello" or a "good morning", even a short "hi" in our often brief passing. I almost never get a reply, in fact I've had 2. Why are these people so grumpy? Is this what I have to look forward to as I get older and continue riding to work? I sincerely hope not. I concede that it is not always an easy decision to choose the bike over the car and some of the rides are more challenging than others but the one thing that I have found so far is that no matter what the weather or how wet I am when I get to work. No matter how tired or sore I am, how bad the traffic was and so on, I always feel good about myself when I get to where I'm going and I look at the bike that got me there.

There are at least three very good reasons to choose cycling but unfortunately it isn't, nor can it be for everyone. Transportation cyclists need to understand this and be a bit more willing to accept cycling in all of its forms if they truly hope to attract more members and the respect of other commuters. There are a few transportation cyclists out there that could really benefit from the valuable lesson contained in rule number 6.

2007-10-28T12:35:00.000-07:00

had enough of NIMBY's

How many people are there in your immediate family? How about your extended family? Ok, how many people do you work with? How about friends, how many do you have? How many are really close to you? How many people out there, reading this have more than 5 people in their lives that are important to them.

Hopefully there are more than 5 people out there that will read this post...

About a week ago I came home to find a single paged leaflet in the mail alerting me and the fine folks of Hastings Sunrise to a potentially disastrous development about to take place at 2750 East Hastings. (site of the former Bell Funeral Home) The group that produced the flyer (sorry, I can't remember their name and my wife recycled the flyer before I had the presence of mind to write this) is urging residents to do whatever we can to stop this atrocity from occurring in our back yard. Write or call your MLA or city hall, take part in a rally... whatever just do something else our neighbourhood will surely be doomed!

So what is the development that is chilling the bones of this very concerned group? A supervised injection site? Is it another liquor store? An arcade (are there still arcades out there?) Is it a skateboard park or are they thinking about building mechanical dinosaurs in Hastings Park? Slot machines?

Sorry, all good guesses but its none of those...coming soon to 2750 East Hastings, Bosa Land Corporation hopes to build a 3 story building that will house a Shoppers Drug Mart on the main floor and offices for Vancouver Coastal Health on the 2nd and 3rd floors. Scary huh! Ok so VCH plans to use these offices to provide counselling and outreach services for patients suffering mental illness. I guess I can see how the ignorant and uninformed might be a little bit scared. These people probably aren't aware that 40% of the clients that will use the facility already live within walking distance of it as they are likely stuck on the fact that 1 in 10 of the people who will use the facility have a chemical dependency. So what!

The group that is opposed to this new mental health facility, in truth offices for outreach workers and approximately 70 clients per day, is clearly misinformed and they would like the rest of us to believe that by allowing this development our neighbourhood will become the next downtown eastside. Once built, according to those ignorant about mental illness and the services that VCH already provides in other communities, our community will be flooded with drug addicts, panhandlers and the homeless. At least those that aren't here already. The truth is however, that there is already a mental health facility that services the DTES located at 330 Heatley meaning that there would really be no sensible reason to believe that our facility would service anyone other than primarily our residents.

According to the Canadian Mental Health Association nearly 1 in 5 Canadians or about 20% of the population will personally experience a mental illness within their lifetime. So again I have to ask, how many people do you know? When I look closely at my friends and family some days I think this number could be more like 1 in 2, but seriously what do we tell our loved ones who need the help as we write our letters, make our phone calls and march en masse to stop this development. Personally I'm ashamed!

Mental illness accounts for approximately 4% of all hospital visits in this country and its treatment costs us about $7.331 billion per year. There are proven and effective treatments for most forms of mental illness and many of those treatments will be available to our community (and others) at 2750 East Hastings. Unless our own selfishness and ignorance gets in the way, you see the trouble with mental illness and the greatest barrier to a persons ability to get treatment is the stigma that we hang on our friends and family members that suffer from it.

Shame on those of you out there that would stand in the way of this badly needed facility!

On another note... sometimes I find myself trapped between the things that I like and my own ideologies (see the comments on my last post). While I really used to enjoy drinking Miller Genuine Draft I had to stop only because of the fact that Miller is owned by cigarette giant Phillip Morris. Many of you will think that this is ridiculous but then I've never admitted to be anything other than ridiculous. In doing research for a tobacco-free strategy at my last job I also learned a surprising fact about Shoppers Drug Mart, a fact that in my mind makes the above development thousands of times more objectionable than the mental health facility that will occupy most of it. Shoppers Drug Mart is owned by none other than Imasco... the same company that controls about 69% of the Canadian tobacco market through its "Players" brand.

So while I personally support VCH's bid for a new facility, guess which new drug store in the community I won't be using.

2007-10-21T14:23:00.000-07:00

Ahh Another rainy day in the lower mainland...

My wife loves the rain...at least that's what she tells me every time I start griping about the weather. Me, I understand that rain is important but I'm no great fan of it nonetheless. Especially on a miserable rainy Saturday when my wife is at work and I am left to find creative ways to entertain our two boys.

Yesterday I decided that after skating lessons we would head out to Langley, the plan being to catch up with some old friends and drop in at my folks place. Driving out there can be a pain at the best of times so I wasn't relishing the idea of making the trip in crappy weather, but we hadn't been out in a while so off we went. On the way I tried to call a couple people to find out who was up for a visit, unfortunately it seemed as though everyone was busy or at least unable to answer the phone. This should have been my first clue but no worries, one of my parents is almost always home so we continued on anyway.

Well in this case it turned out that almost was the optimum word. Worse, when I got to my folks place I realized that I hadn't brought my key and so there we were in Langley, in the rain with nothing to do and no one to do it with. Looking at the entire situation it had appeared as though I had made "the wrong plan!"

What to do next? We loaded ourselves back up into the car and, not knowing anyone else to call we headed back in the same direction that we had come. Back home to kill the couple of hours until we had to pick mom up from work. Needless to say none of us were thrilled but despite the poor planning on my part all went fairly well on the trip home until we got to about the 104th st exit of highway 1. Surprise, surprise here we were at 2:30 on a Saturday afternoon crawling our way west toward the Port Mann bridge.

Turns out that despite being the only way we could have gone at the time we had in fact headed in "the wrong direction!"

I grew up in Langley but have lived about the last 17 years divided between parts of North Vancouver and now East Vancouver or, more specifically Hastings-Sunrise. That said, I'm pretty familiar with the different route choices available to get to my parents house and back again. Choosing a route home yesterday I suppose that I could have gone over the Pattullo bridge but driving through the heart of Langley and Surrey has never been a great option. I guess I could have taken the Alex Fraser route but I've never really been a fan of going to far out of the direction I need to go. Same with the tunnel, plus I've had some pretty bad traffic luck there in the past. Albion ferry? I wouldn't even consider it. To get where I needed to go I was really only left with one choice in crossings, the Port Mann.

Turns out that, despite this lack of choice, I had in fact chosen "the wrong bridge!"

Sound familiar? On Thursday September 27 BC NDP Leader Carole James told the Union of BC Municipalities that "the governments current Gateway plan spends billions of infrastructure dollars on yesterday's solution to tomorrows problem." An interesting statement and I guess I should agree with her since the Port Mann was in fact my problem yesterday. Unfortunately its been the problem of a lot of lower mainland commuters for about 20 years now and will continue to be a problem for thousands of commuters until the expansion proposed with the Gateway Program is completed.

Finally, after months of speculation Carole James has told the people of British Columbia where she stands (albeit not in the same place as most of us and many within her own party) on Gateway. In Carole's world the BC Liberal plan to ease congestion over the Fraser River and stop the idling that happens daily approaching it is "the wrong plan, the wrong direction and the wrong bridge!"

Sort of makes you wonder if Carole James isn't looking at the wrong picture, in the wrong century from the wrong planet doesn't it?

2007-10-16T20:26:00.000-07:00

facebook, the planet and the many faces of the environmentalist

Thanks to Facebook I have recently re-connected with an old high school friend. (Yes I too am part of the massive and growing facebooker movement) In my friends profile he lists as one of his favorite books "endgame" by Derrick Jensen and along with the book he posts a challenge for all to "shut the #%$! up about current affairs until you've read it!" Not being able to resist a good challenge (and needing to be able to talk about current affairs) I immediately went out and bought Volume 1 (its a 2 volume book)"The Problem of Civilization" and dove right into reading it.

Derrick Jensen, for those that haven't heard of him is a bit of an environmental extremist. According to his bio he is a "leading voice of uncompromising dissent" and fellow author (Peoples History of the United States) Howard Zinn praises Jensen as "a rare and original voice of sanity in a chaotic world". Endgame basically tells the story of how civilization has and is ruining the planet and all of the living things, (plant and animal) that occupy it.

Looking at the world around me, its really hard to disagree with many of the points raised by Jensen or with the twenty premises that he poses at the start of the book. I too am concerned about our environment and I can't disagree that civilization has had the greatest negative impact on our planet and the future of everyone and thing that calls it home. Still, there were several times throughout my reading of Endgame where I thought I would put it down and move on to something else. I don't know if Jensen is in fact the leading voice of dissent but he is certainly the loudest I've read in a while. His points are valid, I'm just not so sure that I'm ready to buy into his solutions yet!

According to Derrick Jensen the only way to save the planet is to destroy civilization as we know it. Blow up dams, pull down cell phone towers, and all-in-all create a level of chaos that will force those people who survive to change the way that they are living. All for the benefit of the salmon (Derrick Jensen really likes salmon).

Civilization has most certainly reached a crossroad where we must make what could arguably be the most important decision we've ever made before. The decision that we make will have a profound impact on the future of not only civilization but the planet as a whole for sure, but I'm not yet at the point with Jensen where I believe that we need to start blowing up dams to save the world. Perhaps the biggest challenge that I had with the book lies in the fact that Derrick Jensen seems to dismiss the impact that we as individuals have or can have on a sustainable future. No doubt our efforts are small and seemingly insignificant when stacked up against the damage caused by industry and government but I can't help believe that more of us need to clean up our own back yards to demonstrate that we actually have the conviction to take on the big offenders. Only once the majority of us agree that our planet is important and that saving it is a priority will we be able to truly affect any kind of positive change.

I'm not ready to blow up dams, but on the subject of dams and recognizing that since most of us don't want to see civilization destroyed, I am in favour of efforts to find alternative sources of energy that don't destroy salmon populations, contribute to melting ice caps or rely heavily on non-renewable fossil fuels. Common sense tells me that finding alternative energy sources is not going to be easy and meeting future demands, especially as our population grows is a challenge that required serious thought and creative solutions. But then I'm no expert when it comes to energy, not like Vancouver-Hastings NDP MLA and Environment Critic Shane Simpson.

When it comes to energy and the environment the BC NDP and Simpson's strategy (or lack of) only manage to confuse me more. British Columbian's have largely told the government that the environment is a priority and the BC Liberals have responded to the level that even environmental groups within the province have applauded the governments efforts. Yet the NDP still find the time to oppose green energy such as independent run-of-the-river projects. In case you've missed it, Shane Simpson is a long-standing opponent to run-of-the-river projects like the one currently being built at Ashlu Creek in the Squamish valley. Run-of river power is achieved (very simply stated) when a portion of a river is diverted through a tunnel or pipeline toward a turbine and then returned, unchanged back to the river. It seems like a pretty reasonable alternative to bigger dams that flood valleys, harm the salmon and face the potential risk of being blown up by Derrick Jensen, doesn't it? Ashlu Creek, once completed will generate enough power to service 23,000 home each year. Not bad considering that BC Hydro doesn't have enough power to service BC right now and has to import power from other places.

So what is Shane Simpson's problem? I know I've said it before but here it is again...

Ownership!

Shane Simpson and the BC NDP don't like the idea that anyone other than the government control power in British Columbia. Shane Simpson and the BC NDP stay awake at night worrying over the very notion that private companies might generate power that they might then turn around and sell...for a profit! Worse, they might sell it to people other than British Columbians! I can understand and in some ways respect a politician, critic, or minister for that matter placing the needs of British Columbians before those of anyone else. This is why we elect them after all, to represent us. That said, there just seems to be something wrong with an environment critic who's concerns for a greener planet stop at the border. On this I have to agree with Nigel Protter in the Oct 4 Georgia Strait where he identifies run-of-the-river projects "as a means of avoiding dirty fossil fuels in electricity generation." Don't we all benefit in some way from cleaner energy?

There are currently some 1.7 million hydro customers in this province and BC Hydro already must import energy to meet our needs. The province's energy demand is expected to increase by 1.7% each year for the next 10 years meaning, as I mentioned earlier, that if we expect to meet our own power demands we will have to seriously explore alternative sources.

Shane Simpson has promised to start asking some serious questions in the legislature about the future and scale of power generation in the province. He intends to use question periods to raise his concerns over "massive projects" like the one at Ashlu Creek and the some 50 other projects awaiting approval.

I may not agree with Jensen's form of extreme environmental dissent but at least I can respect his conviction when it comes to saving the planet (I'm currently reading volume 2 of Endgame). Unfortunately the same can't be said for Shane Simpson, the environment critic that seems to have no clue or conviction at all for a greener planet.

2007-10-03T20:27:00.000-07:00

How many New Democrats does it take to save a tree?

A good question isn't it, but I think that the real joke here is in the absence of a punchline (or any answer at all). The truth is that when it comes to an NDP environmental strategy not much has really changed since Glen Clark decried environmentalists as "enemies of British Columbia".

Federal NDP... provincial NDP, take your pick but it really doesn't matter that much as both NDP representatives for Vancouver-Hastings and Vancouver-East (Shane Simpson and Libby Davies respectively) are equally shallow in their criticism of the BC Liberals environmental strategy and both have demonstrated a complete lack of productive solutions to a problem that I for one, take very seriously.

Our own BC NDP Environment Critic Shane Simpson is so confused by his backward left of center ideology that he refuses to even consider the benefits of environmentally sustainable energy sources (like run-of-the-river) as long as that power is owned by private companies. But I'll leave Shane alone for now as the real focus of this particular entry goes a little further east to East Vancouver's "Queen of Junk Mail" Libby Davies.

Earlier this week I came home to find the latest, hot off the press issue of the Vancouver East Community Bulletin, a 16 page multi-lingual quarterly reminder to the fine people of East Vancouver of all the great things that our federal NDP representative, Libby Davies has done to make our lives better. This comes to us in addition to the monthly and at times several times monthly newsletters and updates that Libby likes to send out. This also comes despite my email several months ago asking her to stop sending them and after I stapled all 5 identical newsletters that came addressed to my house together and returned them to sender. (interestingly enough the staple must have failed in the mail and two of the newsletters were re-delivered to my house).

Libby Davies is killing tree's at a furious pace in order to feed her junk mail habit. I haven't received this much mail from any other political figure before...even during an election! But big deal you say! Maybe its recycled paper, maybe not but despite the electronic mediums like email lots of people still send junk mail. Right? This may be so but still there is something unsettling about a 16 page leaflet that outlines the NDP environment strategy" on page 11.

Libby Davies, like Carole James, Shane Simpson and a few others is opposed to the BC Liberals Gateway Program. No surprised here! In her bulletin she tells us of the 5 forums that's she's hosted in East Vancouver and how hundreds of us have told her that we are also against Gateway, primarily because of the environmental impact that the project supposedly brings with it.

Hundreds!!

I don't have a problem with people that oppose a project like Gateway and I think its great that people ask questions of our government and the decisions that it makes everyday on our behalf. The problem that I do have with Libby's (et al) stance on Gateway (her own environmental hypocrisy notwithstanding) is that it appears to be torn out of the same old play book as the BC NDP, SPEC and a few others. Lots of criticism and virtually no reasonable alternatives. Investing in sustainable transportation, public transportation and the efficient use of existing roads and rail are all great ideas for sure, but the trouble is that none of these come close to addressing the current problem of the Port Mann bridge and the bottleneck that it creates for almost 13 hours every single day.

Unfortunately Libby, like her fellow NDP opponents can't seem to see the project beyond the twinning of the Port Mann and the adding of a single lane on each side of the freeway. A lane I might add that can be equally served by buses, hybrids and other alternative energy vehicles. One lane is hardly massive expansion as the critics would have us believe. Unfortunately Libby and those of like thinking don't see the environmental problem (among the other problems) of sitting idle in traffic for several hours each day. Unfortunately Libby, Carole, Shane and those like them probably don't get out to Surrey, Langley, Abbotsford, Chilliwack etc. that often so they likely haven't experienced this grid-lock first hand. Unfortunately it doesn't appear as though Libby has talked to anyone that does make this trip on a regular basis (people like my co-worker who car pools from Chilliwack to North Vancouver with 3 other guys 5 days per week).

Unfortunately Libby Davies and those of like mind don't see the provinces Gateway Program as an opportunity to expand and offer more transportation choices like buses on the Port Mann bridge, light rail, cycling and yes cars.

Fortunately we know better.

Hopefully Libby will soon see the relationship between her own junk mail habit and the points that her party raises in its environmental strategy.

2007-09-30T13:33:00.000-07:00

here's to a new beginning

Has it really been over 2 months since I last graced this space with my presence? Hard to believe but thanks to two different friends pointing it out to me last week I have been reminded that I do in fact own a small piece of the blogging world. Apparently there are at least a couple of people out there interested in what I have to say. Thanks!

So here I am again, staring out the kitchen window, watching my back yard flood thanks to the rain and reflecting on a summer that never really came but is now long gone. Looking at the lake forming next to the garage I'm reminded of all the things that I planned to do this summer (like fixing the drainage) but never really got around to. Contributing to blog space is just one of many projects cast aside over the past couple of months but to be completely honest, looking back now it doesn't seem like there was really that much to talk about anyway.

What have I typically filled this space with after all? Looking back in previous posts you'll find all sorts of stuff about politics (mostly provincial), my community (Vancouver-Hastings) and some of the volunteer opportunities within it, the Gateway Program (interesting that now all of a sudden so many others are bringing attention to this), the environment and of course mountain biking. An odd mix perhaps but these are the things (along with my family of course) that make me happy. Question then is how do they contribute (or not) to my absence from the blogosphere?

Some may disagree but I think that politically speaking its been a pretty quiet summer as the province has managed to tick along quite nicely with Gordon Campbell at the helm. For those that didn't know I am a fan of the man and his leadership and therefor tend to agree with most of the things that the BC Liberals have done, or at least those things that affect me and my family. Frankly I see no problem in his plan to turn over the University Golf Club to the Musqueam's! Politics...oh yeah I guess there is that nasty little labour dispute that doesn't seem to want to go away. This has been a challenge hasn't it? But I quite intentionally left it alone as I, along with many Vancouverites have managed to find a way to get through it. The truth is that I don't agree with or support either side of this particular dispute. I believe that the union is being completely unreasonable and at the same time I think that Sam Sullivan has demonstrated a complete lack of leadership on the matter. But then if you ask me I think Christy Clark should be mayor.

The strike has contributed in some ways to my lack of inspiration as it has affected my ability to participate with at least 4 of the volunteer groups that I belong to since they have been handcuffed by picket lines. While most of these groups shut down for the summer anyway it is never-the-less difficult to talk or get excited about the City's Neighbourhood Emergency Preparedness Program, the Hastings Community Association, the Hastings-Sunrise City Vision or the Public Realm when all of their projects and facilities have been shut down. (My son doesn't need to go to pre-school anyway)

Short of his brilliant move to risk life and limb and enter an active construction area without benefit of even the most basic personal protective equipment, my pal Shane Simpson has been pretty quiet this past summer. Nothing too ridiculous for me to mention here anyway, although I see that is quickly changing so stay tuned. The PNE has come and gone for yet another year with over 900 000 visitors and I'm happy to say that my family and I are included in this number yet again. It amazes me to think that there are people in this community that seem bent on dismantling Hastings Park and the PNE as we know them and as they have stood as institutions in our community for so long.

So I guess this leaves mountain biking...ah mountain biking probably the second or third love of my life. What happened to you this summer? Things really started off well and we were managing to get out at least once per week for a good while but then life started getting in the way I suppose. People got busy, people moved, changed jobs and so forth and suddenly it became near impossible to find a time that our faithful group could get together at the same time. My own schedule and family responsibilities made getting away for even one afternoon or evening almost impossible. The weather... well one great thing about mountain biking is that sometimes the crappier the weather the better the ride.

So here I am, the last day of September and the water level in the back yard is almost to the point where it starts pouring into the garage...

But not to worry! If I have sounded bit dreary up to this point all is till ok (but thanks for listening anyway) because I have a feeling that things are about to change after all, I see both Carole James and Shane Simpson back in the news with one foot or another rapidly approaching one mouth or another. The groups that I love that aren't stuck behind a picket line seem to be ramping up for the tail end of 2007. I've started a great new job that is challenging me in all of the right ways (its also allowed me to stay in Vancouver) and, perhaps most important I dropped my bike off at the shop yesterday for a much needed tune-up. It should be ready in about a week just in time for some wet, muddy fall riding.

It feels good to be back in the saddle again!

2007-07-16T18:08:00.000-07:00

the best place on earth...

My family and I recently returned from a week spent exploring parts of British Columbia. Specifically the southern parts from Vancouver to Cranbrook and back. With over 2000 km to travel and only a week to do it, the trip was an ambitious one from the start. Never mind the fact that our Ford Focus, overstuffed with kids, bikes and gear left us wondering more than a few times whether or not we would actually make it to the top of that next summit along the way.

Never-the-less, we were excited about the trip and despite the rush and some of the challenges faced along the way, we still managed to see some really great places and were provided with many reasons as to why BC should be considered as "the Best Place on Earth!"

One of the main reasons for this particular route was so that we could visit some of our friends that had recently moved away from the Vancouver area. It seems like lately more and more of our friends are pulling up roots and replanting themselves in parts scattered across the province, sad perhaps but a great reason for a road trip! This time around the plan was to hit Lac Le Jeune, Kamloops, and Cranbrook with various stops in between, most important for me was a stop at Panorama Ski Resort outside of Invermere for a couple of days of mountain biking.

Because of all the places that we had to be and the time that we had to get there we ended up spending a lot of time on the road, staring longingly at majestic mountain vistas, lakes, pristine rivers and vast forests (sadly more than a few devastated by the beetle) through the windshield of our belaboured Focus wagon. Still, we did manage a few key stops at places like the last spike in the transcontinental railroad, Rogers Pass, the Hope slide and other significant points of Canadian and British Columbia history, just to keep the trip educational for our boys. Of equal importance, we were able to glimpse a few areas of the province that we would like to see more of and so are better able to plan our next trip into parts of ...the best place on Earth!

Which brings me to my final point, if there's to be a point in this particular story at all. During the trip I often found myself caught up in our surroundings, from the devastating results of the Pine Beetle in the Kamloops area, to the Shushwap, to the rugged mountain passes around Revelstoke, Golden and Invermere, to the deer on the street in front of the house we were staying at in Cranbrook, to the desert of Osoyoos (you get the picture). This trip, for whatever reason extended my sense of community from our little piece of Vancouver-Hastings to the greater community of British Columbia. Maybe its because of all the people we now know in these places, I don't know but this trip made me realize what a great place we are a part of.

There has been a certain amount of objection and negative comment to the BC governments decision to identify our province as "the best place on earth". Many of the negative comments identify the narrow mindedness of such a label and point out equally fantastic parts of others places in the world. Others point out some of the challenges to living in BC and, more specifically Vancouver as a result of high housing prices and so on. While I understand these challenges and also accept that I have seen some great things in the places I've been, places like Germany, Mexico, Fiji, Australia, I point out that I (and many of us) have always returned to BC. For me, and for most of us that live here, British Columbia is the best place on Earth and I think thats the point to the governments message. Perhaps more of us should stop and take a look at what we have for a minute instead of always finding ways to point out what we don't have or what we should have, or what is owed to us.

If you are a British Columbian, BC really should be the best place on Earth!

2007-07-16T09:18:00.000-07:00

transit\'tran(t)s-et, 'tranz-\ n [L transitus, fr. transitus, pp. of transire to go across, pass} (15c) 1 a: an act, process, or instance of passing through or over ; PASSAGE b: CHANGE, TRANSITION c (1) : conveyance of persons or things from one place to another (2) : usu. local transportation esp. of people by public conveyance; also : vehicles or a system engaged in such transportation.

What is transit? To some transit is limited to public buses, light rail, trains, seabuses and other forms of public transportation as point (2) in Webster's definition (above) seems to support. However, I would argue that points (1) and (3) imply that transit includes any form of transportation or infrastructure that supports it thereby allowing people and things to move.

This should then include cycling and cycling infrastructure. What do you think? Is money spent on cycling infrastructure not money invested in better transit? I think so!

2007-07-15T14:05:00.001-07:00

BC Liberals invest $1.7 million for "Better Transit"

A few months ago I made comment here about a sign that I had spotted in my neighbourhood. The sign, produced by the Society Promoting Environmental Conservation (SPEC) read Better Transit, Not Freeways and its intent (presumably) was to draw attention to the concerns of a few citizens over the provinces Gateway program. Gateway, of course is a project set up by the BC government to address much needed transportation infrastructure upgrades throughout British Columbia.

Better Transit signs can be found scattered throughout neighbourhoods across the GVRD but I would wager that no community hosts as many as that of the Commercial and Victoria Drive areas of East Vancouver. The signs, while very simple in nature draw the reader towards the SPEC web site at http://www.spec.bc.ca/ where it is the hopes of the organization that concerned citizens will sign the on-line petition to encourage the government to invest our money in... Better Transit, not freeways!

To say that SPEC and similar organizations like it are against Gateway is probably a bit of an understatement. Nonetheless and despite the narrow focus I would say that their position is fair, after all in a society like ours its important that citizens take part in any debate over how our tax dollars are spent. The trouble is in this case I don't believe that many of those in opposition to Gateway are actually looking at the project as a whole. Many critics seem stuck on the notion that Gateway is about twinning a bridge and widening a freeway, a view that limits their ability to see the forest through the trees (sorry).

Case in point. On Friday July 6 I (along with 2 fellow members of the Vancouver Area Cycling Coalition) had the opportunity to be on hand as BC Transportation Minister Kevin Falcon and Minister of State for ActNow BC Gordon Hogg announced $ 1.7 million for cycling infrastructure in communities throughout the province. Or, for the benefit of anyone from SPEC that might be reading, for "Better Transit!" This $1.7 million is a part of the almost $100 million (more money for cycling in BC than ever spent before) spent or pledged on cycling by the BC Liberals and it will be distributed through the Cycling Infrastructure Partnerships Program (CIPP) which is a province wide cost share initiative between the provincial government and local governments.

CIPP funding is intended to allow for the development of critical cycling infrastructure like separate bicycle paths, shoulder bike ways, bike lanes and shared roadways. All of these are important elements to encourage more and more people to take up cycling as a viable transportation alternative or to simply get out and enjoy the health benefits of cycling in the safest manner possible. During the announcement just over a week ago Minister Falcon showed his passion for cycling by committing to bicycle lanes on every new piece of road built by the province. He also stated that new cycling funding, among other things will "...give commuters a chance to get out of their vehicles and get on their bikes, it will also help ease congestion, cut down on emissions, and improve the air quality."

For those from SPEC that may still be reading, once again read more money for Better Transit... not just freeways!

2007-07-03T21:43:00.000-07:00

our plan is working!

In this booming economy with unemployment at a record low and a provincial government that actually cares and is doing something about the environment, health care, poverty, the provinces critical infrastructure and relationships with first nations (to name a few), its easy to forget the 90's. We shouldn't forget the 90's and how the NDP government of the day very nearly destroyed it all. 6 years later, with many ups and downs encountered along the way, its easy to see that the plan is working. Remember this in May 2009.

2007-07-01T20:05:00.000-07:00

There goes my hero...

Wow! Just when I was beginning to think that nothing interesting was going to happen in BC politics this summer (now that summer has finally happened), Shane Simpson comes along and, for the sake of the environment and at tremendous personal risk, tries to take on Ledcor Power.

According to Province columnist Michael Smyth, Vancouver-Hastings own BC NDP MLA Shane Simpson has been recently accused of trespassing (along with an entourage of environmental activists) at Ledcors Ashlu Creek hydro project. Is anyone really surprised? Simpson has never made a secret out of the fact that he opposes the environmentally friendly run-of-the-river project at Ashlu Creek. Strange when you consider the impact that projects like this one have compared to bigger hydro projects that require large reservoirs, that cause large-scale flooding and that contribute greenhouse gas emissions.

Run of the river projects divert a portion of a creek or rivers water through an intake structure and into an underground tunnel. As Mr. Simpson correctly pointed out from his unauthorized "inspection" of the Ashlu project, a 7 km tunnel is being built (in this case) to take this diverted water to a power house (roughly the size of a large house). The advantage of the tunnel system (despite what Shane may try and tell us) is that it can be built without disturbing the landscape or the wildlife that lives above it. Once at the power house, the diverted water turns turbines that in turn generate electricity, in the case of the Ashlu project that's enough electricity to provide power to some 23 000 homes annually. Once used, all water is returned clean and unchanged to Ashlu creek.

Sounds pretty good doesn't it? After all, since we need power why wouldn't we try to get it from green sources like the one being built at Ashlu creek? Well if your Shane Simpson, environment critic for the BC NDP you don't agree. As Michael Smyth points out in today's column, Shane Simpson "likes to stay on top of all the big construction projects affecting the environment in British Columbia." But wait... Ashlu is a green project! How could Simpson possibly object to a green hydro project? The truth is that when it comes to Ashlu creek it really has nothing to do with anything green except that is, for money.

Shane Simpson objects to the Ashlu creek project because it is a private project, not because its not green! Simpson and the BC NDP by their very nature can't accept any project of this nature unless it is controlled by the government and so, in the interest of trying to find a real environmental reason to oppose the Ashlu Creek Project, Shane Simpson chose to lead a group of like-minded, misguided supporters on an unauthorized and extremely dangerous fact-finding mission into a construction site. This without any of the appropriate personal protective equipment needed to enter an active construction zone (where is Bill C-45 when you need it?)and without any regard for the health and safety of himself or anyone in his group.

Who said that there aren't any heroes left in the world?

Meanwhile, back in Vancouver-Hastings crime seems to be on a steady increase, the troubles of the Downtown Eastside seem to be spilling into our community, residents no longer feel safe... and the community continues to go largely under-represented by any of its elected officials!

2007-07-01T14:17:00.000-07:00

Transportation in the BC (and especially the GVRD) has become a very hot topic over the past couple of years, partly with the introduction of the BC Liberals Gateway program, desperately needed improvements to the Sea to Sky Highway and the Kicking Horse Pass, the Canada Line and a number of other initiatives designed to improve a largely neglected transportation infrastructure. Complicating matters, there seems to be almost as many opinions about how to fix the problem as there are transportation choices but very few seem to look at the whole picture. In the end, whether you drive, take the bus, ride a bike or walk, we are all somehow impacted by a growing population and a long outdated transportation infrastructure. This said, it appears as though Translink and an aging bus fleet seem to be the focus of the latest conversation on transportation in Vancouver and the GVRD...

More buses...

One solution being offered up by organizations like SPEC and the Bus Riders Union is to increase the number of buses in the area by as much as 20%. This isn't a bad idea although one might argue that a significant increase in buses will only increase congestion unless some serious road upgrades are made at the same time. Of course the counter-argument would be that more buses will decrease the number of cars on the road meaning less congestion however, Jan Efting of the Bus Riders Union raises some speculation on this point in her column in the Friday 22 Jun Province. In her opinion piece Ms. Efting points out that in 2006 bus riders were left to wait at stops 10 extra minutes, 19 000 times, as full buses passed by. She goes on to say that there are 500 fewer buses running during the rush hour than what were promised (imply necessary) by Translink in 2000.

While I don't necessarily dispute Jan Efting's claim I can't help but wonder if this means that the proposed 20% more buses will be just enough to take up the current slack in the system or whether this includes room for new riders? Long line-ups at the bus stop will do very little to encourage more people to take the bus meaning that 20% more buses may in fact do little to decrease congestion on the streets. More buses, without rapid transit (as the Bus Riders Union seem to favour) is not the answer!

...lower fares!

This is the all important second half of the war cry of the Bus Riders Union, and why not? Don't we all relish the thought of getting something for nothing? Recently Translink announced that it would seek fare increases of about 12%, or $0.25 per trip on buses, skytrain and the Seabus. To most of the population, including many of us that take the bus this seems reasonable, after all if we expect an increase in any kind of service there should be some expectation that someone has to pay for it. Shouldn't we?

Not if you are a member of the Bus Riders Union or for that matter the BC NDP. Despite the rising price of commodities (like fuel), the expanded maintenance costs of an expanded fleet, extra staff and the initial cost of new buses, these groups feel it unfair that the end user of Translink's services, the bus rider's actually pay any part of an increase in service. Translink has made plans to increase its current fleet by adding 400 buses at an approximate cost of $500 000 for each bus (assuming they are standard 40 pax diesels) and to replace 228 aging trolley buses with new low floor models that cost significantly more. The 20% increase in buses proposed by SPEC comes with a price tag of about $170 million, either way a lot of money and since most of us know that nothing really comes free this would mean that any increase in Translink's services would be placed squarely on the shoulders of the taxpayer.

Thank goodness for calmer heads at Translink and for a BC government that understands that there is a limit to how far a tax dollar can stretch. In the end we will all have to pay for a part of these increases and, as tough is it may be for some, bus riders must be prepared to pay their share as well.

2007-07-01T10:25:00.000-07:00

What's making you Sicko?

I haven't yet seen Michael Moores latest project Sicko. To be honest, if I see it I will likely wait until I can rent it on video. Its not that I have anything against Moore or his movies, in fact in most cases I have agreed with what he try's to say I just don't necessarily agree with the journey he takes to get to his decisions. Like the establishment that he criticizes, I don't believe that Michael Moore necessarily offers up the whole story. Anyway, I am interested in the topic he has chosen this time as health care is a very important topic in British Columbia right now and its a subject that has hit kind of close to home lately.

While it can be argued that our health care system is not yet anywhere near the poor shape of our neighbours to the south of us, there is certainly no denying that the system is in trouble. Currently in this province health care spending gobbles up about 40% of our tax dollars and its only getting worse. Why? Great question and there are undoubtedly hundreds of possible answers. To their credit the BC Liberals are in the process of trying to find these answers along with some practical solutions to our health care woes through the Conversation on Health. Despite these efforts, critics such as the BC NDP, BC Federation of Labour (to name a few) still believe that the best solution to health care in BC is to throw more money at it.

I'm no expert on health care, but I do believe that I have a fair amount of common sense and so the irony of the picture that I came across in the paper last week wasn't lost. Aging population, bad habits such as smoking, lack of exercise, new strains of virus's are all contributors to a system bulging at its seams, but maybe part of our problem lies a little closer to our waist lines than we would like to believe.

2007-06-08T08:56:00.000-07:00

Its been a tough month for me as a blogger. Lots going on in my own life means not a lot of time for following all that's going on around me. Truth is though, there hasn't been that much going on that I've found exciting. It seems to me that local media has run out of things to talk about and so they just keep dragging up the same issues over and over again. All in all pretty boring.

Of course there are a couple of things of interest to me (outside of cycling which seems to dominate the few posts I've done lately). I've also had a few ideas bouncing around my head for future posts. I just can't seem to find the energy to bring them to life. (I thank Garibaldi School for this) I'm very concerned about the state of the provinces rivers and the communities surrounding them as this years spring freshet brings water levels to near record highs. As of today eight communities in the province have declared states of emergencies. As a volunteer with the Provincial Emergency Program I am prepared to go and help wherever I'm needed and asked and as a human being I feel for those affected by another example of the power of nature.

Of course last week the provincial legislature finished for the summer with a significant raise and pension plan for our MLA's. Good for them, I believe its deserved and as a voter I expect to get what I pay for. Many comparisons are being made between MLA salaries, highly paid executives and those making minimum wage but in reality this is like comparing apples and oranges. We have expectations that our elected officials are going to work for us 24/7 and therefor they should be paid to reflect that. If they are not fulfilling these expectations (as many opponents to the raises say) then it is incumbent upon us to do something about it. Perhaps if we held our local representatives more accountable they would have no choice but to work for us and the money we pay them.

If the NDP is willing to do the job for less money then fine, let them however I would caution that when you give a job to the lowest bidder you don't always save in the long run! The truth is that despite the BC NDP attempting to demonstrate moral superiority by donating their raises to charity, I would argue that most (if not all) of them felt deserving of the raise. Lets not kid ourselves, this year the raise was given to charity but what about next year, the year after, or how about the year after that. What about the pension? As NDP MLA's retire (or more likely get defeated) will they then donate a significant portion of their pension to the same charities? I doubt it!

So how about the comparison between the new MLA salary and a $10 minimum wage suggested by the NDP and many leaders within the labour movement? This one is a little bit tougher for me. I do believe that people should be able to make a decent wage in this province and I don't believe that anything under 10 bucks is decent, but I don't believe that a $10 minimum wage needs to be necessarily legislated. The fact is that in today's market the employees are in charge. As someone who hires workers (mostly in the mid range between $10 and $20 and hour) I know painfully well how difficult it is to find people. As this situation gets worse and skilled and unskilled labour becomes more and more difficult to find employers will be forced to become more and more creative in order to attract and retain their workers.

I'm sure that Jim Sinclair knows this, but this won't give him any press.

I would like to talk about safety and security and the lack there of in the community of Vancouver-Hastings. I'd also mention the fact that neither our NDP MP Libby Davies nor our BC NDP MLA Shane Simpson seem to give it much thought. As crime in our community seems to get worse and worse we have one representative with her head buried in the DTES while the other is off somewhere fighting run-of-the-river energy plants, fish farms and flooding rivers. All important issues for sure, but not a great deal to do with the people who voted for them. I'd like to talk about these things but will save them for later. Right now its back to cycling.

As most of you know my commuter bike was stolen last week during Bike to Work Week. As angry as I still am about this I did learn a few lessons from it. First, check your insurance deductible against your bike limits. In my case both were $1000 so I got nothing and unfortunately my bike was valued at about $3000. Second, don't buy a cable lock. Even though the big Kryptonite lock is going to add some pounds to your ride it will be worth it in the end. Third, never assume that your bike will be safe just because you've locked it up outside of the police station!

Good news though, I bought a new bike this past Tuesday. Its a Trek 7.5 disc and while it is very different from anything I've ever ridden, so far I love it. I would like to mention the amazing service that I received from James and his staff at Obsession Bikes in North Vancouver. You can visit Obsession on 1st and Lonsdale or go to http://www.obsessionbikes.com/

Finally. I have found the opportunity to combine one of my passions (cycling) with a cause that I feel is extremely important. I have recently registered for the 23rd annual Bicycle Trek for Life and Breath with benefits going to The Lung Association of British Columbia. This is a 2 day 200 km ride designed to raise money in support of lung health and I couldn't be more excited to participate. Tobacco use has directly impacted my family and my wife and oldest son are among the 1 in 20 British Columbian's that have asthma. According to the Lung Association smoking kills 1 in 10 adults worldwide and air pollution causes 5000 premature deaths in Canada each year. Every hour 2 British Columbian's die from tobacco related disease.

Its a great cause and I would encourage cyclists everywhere to consider registering for the event by calling 604 731 5864 or going online at http://www.bc.lung.ca/ . If your not a cyclist but would like to help out anyway I would encourage you to consider a donation, you can even sponsor me if you like by going to http://www.bicycletrek2007.kintera.org/ . Just click on "Sponsor a Participant" and enter my name (Ray Henderson). The Lung Association (and I) certainly appreciates any help that you can give.

Until next time...

2007-06-03T12:16:00.000-07:00

a crappy end to an otherwise great week...

The 1st annual Greater Vancouver Bike to Work Week has come to a close and by all accounts it seems to have been a success. 587 teams and 3494 participants is impressive for a first effort and should make the organizers proud of all the work that they have done. Never mind the fantastic weather that we were blessed with all week. At Grouse Mountain we managed to enlist 13 staff to participate which is great considering the seemingly insurmountable hill(s) that must be tackled on the way to work. Over the week (and including the weeks leading up to the event) our staff managed to clock just over 600 km's, burning 17,295 calories and preventing 143 kg's of green house gas emissions from entering the atmosphere.

So why the less than enthusiastic start to this post?

Don't get me wrong, I had a great time all week and am proud to have been involved with such a worthwhile activity. Unfortunately, for me Bike to Work Week came to an abrupt end last Wednesday. Somewhere out there is a bike with my name on it... literally. More likely, somewhere out there are a bunch of parts floating around from the bike that was once mine!

Last Wednesday I got up nice and early and rode to the commuter station located in West Vancouver at the Lions Gate Bridge, where I had agreed to volunteer. Admittedly, I didn't really want to ride that day as I was pretty sore from the previous two days of riding and I thought one day off might be a good idea. However, being that I was actually participating in a BTWW activity and that I am on the Board for the Vancouver Area Cycling Coalition I thought I had better ride. Once finished at the commuter station I proceeded to the North Vancouver RCMP detachment where I had a meeting at the Emergency Management Office.

Imagine my surprise a little more than an hour later when I entered the courtyard in front of the detachment only to find the empty space where my bike had once been locked! Amazing that it would happen in front of the police station and ironic that it would happen given what I had done in the interest of cycling up to that point. Also interesting (to me at least) is the fact that this post comes one year after my very first which talked about the theft of my wife's pansies from the front deck of our house.

The pictures I've attached don't really give the bike justice but they are all I have. I also don't hold out much hope that the bike is still in one piece, it may not even be anywhere near the area. The bike is a Santa Cruz Chameleon, the frame is gray and it has red Kooka cranks and headset. Rhino lite rims with slick tires and Hayes hydraulic disc brakes.

It also has my name on it, in red. The same color as my anger over the fact that it no longer has my butt on it.

2007-05-28T22:48:00.000-07:00

bike to work week May 28 to June 3

Wow! Almost a month since my last post, unfortunately the end of the ski season, preparations for a new fiscal year and, most importantly mountain biking have kept me pretty well tied up over these past 4 weeks. But here I am.

Today was the first day of the first annual Greater Vancouver Bike to Work Week. It was also the first day in a long time that I managed to pedal my butt the whole way from my home in Hastings-Sunrise to my work at Grouse Mountain in North Vancouver (I have ridden part way there and all the way home several times). I've been dreading this almost 18 km (mostly uphill) trek for weeks but, now that its been done I've got to say that it mostly wasn't that bad. Besides whats uphill one way is all downhill the other right? (hopefully I still feel this way tomorrow morning).

The Greater Vancouver Bike to Work Week event has been modelled after a similar event, now in its 12th year in Victoria. Sponsored by the Vancouver Area Cycling Coalition, Bike to Work Week is a fun event designed to create friendly competition between organizations and individuals to get people onto their bikes as a healthy alternative for commuting to work. According to the VACC, some of the most important reasons for biking to work is that it allows us to:

1. Get out of traffic.
2. Get healthy. Cycling to work allows us to use our commute as a part of an exercise routine.
3. Cut down on our personal greenhouse gas emissions.
4. Engage our communities, meet our neighbours, breath some fresh air and enjoy the beauty of our landscape.

During Bike to Work Week the VACC and local businesses, municipalities and volunteers will be hosting commuter stations throughout the GVRD. These are essentially gathering places for cyclists that offer up free refreshments, mechanical expertise and opportunities to win prizes. For more information on Bike to Work Week, the VACC, the location of commuter stations and cycling in the community go to http://www.vacc.bc.ca/ . Its not too late to get involved and keep in mind that Bike to Work Week also marks the beginning of Bike Month, another reason to keep the car parked for a while.

One note of concern regarding many of the fellow cyclists that I encountered on my ride this morning... we're an awfully serious bunch aren't we? Not a smile or a wave from a single person that I met and I just can't understand why everyone seemed so serious on such a fantastic day. Cheer up everyone, just think of all the great things that you are doing for yourself and our environment!

2007-04-30T21:30:00.000-07:00

...using less - living better?

A rhetorical question if I may... How many people out there are, like me, fed up with the vast amount of unsolicited junk mail that seems to clog our mail slots and fill our recycling bags each week? Judging by the number of "No junk mail" signs in my neighbourhood I'd say there are a lot of you.

Really though! Does anyone actually read it? Do any of you really care how many houses realtor A has sold and do you actually compare this information against the flyer from realtor B? Just how many credit cards, consolidation loans or mortgages does the average person apply for? If you need your house painted or your gutters cleaned, do you go digging for that flyer that you know came a couple of months ago? How many people actually make decisions based on the things they've taken from their junk mail?

Most of the unwanted stuff that we get goes directly, unread and often unopened, to the recycling bag. I barely have the time to read the things that I want to read or that I should be reading these days. Never mind everything else. Each week it gets carried out to the curb so that it may be returned, recycled and reprinted so that it may be re-delivered another day. Sadly, our yellow bag is often more full than the blue bag, blue box and the garbage can combined. I'm not kidding! Frankly, in this day of electronic access to nearly everything, I find the scale of this waste a little disturbing.

Which brings me to the point today where I had decided it was enough. I don't even know how I got on this mailing list, but now for the second time in just over a week I received a newsletter from East Vancouver's own Libby Davies. Champion of everything, protector of all, but apparently a poor environmental steward. I guess that's not completely true, there are three names on the envelope mine, my brother in law's (lives downstairs) and a name I've never heard of but can only assume that he used to live here, so I guess the intention is that I read it and pass it on to the other two guys. That's called reducing. Anyway, the title of today's bulletin for those interested is...

Eco-energy - Using Less - Living Better

A bulletin that describes a new residential energy efficiency assessment service for Canadian homeowners in order that we may improve the energy efficiency of our homes and... reduce our homes impact on the environment!

Wonderful! I've always been a bit suspect when it comes to the NDP's true position on the environment and this just makes me scratch my head a little more. In the Community Links bulletin that I received from Libby Davies last week she tells us about some of the very important things that she's been working on for all of the citizens of East Vancouver. These include workers rights, affordable housing, environmental sustainability, and so on.

Anyone that's followed my ramblings up to this point knows that I am very fond of recognizing the small steps, since they all lead to bigger things, especially where the environment is concerned. So while two bulletins (3 pages and 2 envelopes) in a little over a week may not seem like a big deal to some, to me its ridiculous especially when the information could easily be sent out electronically and further since it came without my asking for it in the first place. An information pamphlet sent out during an election to inform voters of their choices is one thing, a steady barrage of letters and bulletins is another thing entirely.

2007-04-29T13:09:00.000-07:00

OPERATION: Clean Sweep!

Yesterday (Saturday April 28) Aiden, Jack and I spent a couple of hours with the Vancouver Area Cycling Coalition (VACC) helping with its contribution toward this years Pitch-in Canada week. It was a beautiful day to be out for sure, and after our experience at the bank machine earlier it felt really good to be doing something positive for the community. It also provided me with the opportunity to try and drive some good values and positive morals into my boys and I think it worked. By the end of the day Jack, my youngest was telling anyone who'd listen how "we're never going to litter!"

This year marked the 41st anniversary of Pitch-in Canada week. According to the Pitch-in site this is the largest and only multi-province environmental improvement campaign in the country, involving some 3.5 million volunteers. The objectives of this years campaign, entitled OPERATION: Clean Sweep include to:

involve millions of Canadian, young and old in local projects which clean-up, restore and/or preserve the environment, thereby promoting environmental sustainability and involving both young and older people in local partnerships which benefit and enhance their communities.
clean up, restore and beautify the environment by cleaning up litter and other garbage from urban, rural and wilderness areas and by initiating local projects such as habitat preservation and restoration and urban renewal activities, thereby promoting respect for Canada's natural and urban environments.
encourage voluntary action as a means of resolving environmental problems.
stress the value of waste as a resource by encouraging Canadians to refuse, reuse, recycle and properly dispose waste.
educate Canadians to pack-in/pack-out their waste when they enjoy the natural environment.
encourage civic pride and develop long-term working relationships for the future which will help local communities develop in an environmentally friendly and sustainable manner, thereby leaving lasting benefits.

I'd have to say that these objectives were accomplished in our little part of the greater operation! As I said, it felt great to be out doing something positive for the community and for me, it was even better that the VACC chose a part of my own community to clean up. By the end of the afternoon our group had amassed an impressive (yet somewhat disturbing) pile of rubbish from the area of the TransCanada trail between North Kaslo and the Second Narrows Bridge. We all had a great time in the process.

2007-04-28T21:41:00.000-07:00

A lesson in line-ups...

I can hardly believe this one myself!

How many lines do you think should form at a bank that has more than one Automated Teller Machine (ATM)? I have to assume that the majority would agree that one line is all it takes. As a machine becomes available the first person in the line takes it, the next person takes the next machine and so on...right? Seems like common sense to me but, today being a day for lessons I learned a valuable new one about ATM line-ups.

Today my sons and I walked into the TD Canada Trust at Hastings and Kamloops and, seeing a line for the 2 ATM machines, did what came naturally and stood behind the last person in the single line to wait our turn. The fellow in front of us was at the front of the line so it wasn't that big a deal for us and we weren't in that big of a hurry anyway. At some point as we waited another man (a large white man) entered the line, only instead of standing behind us he took up a position to the left of the guy in front of me.

Soon the machine on the left became open but, against traditional ATM line etiquette the guy that had just recently joined the line went for it, ahead of the fellow that had been waiting before me! Well the natural thing happened of course, the guy who had been waiting longest said "Excuse me, I was here first." This is where my years of ATM Line experience were suddenly cast into doubt. The large white guy (LWG) then replied "You were standing in the wrong line." The fellow in front of me, who happened to be a middle aged Asian guy (AG), answered (as I would have) "There's only one line."

So the LWG, seeming to realize his mistake, let the Asian guy go ahead and thankfully, all seemed right once again in the land of the ATM line.

The machine on the right opened up and I took it. As is usually the case when I go to the bank with my two sons (Salt and Peter), my attention was pretty much absorbed with preventing them from pushing buttons out of turn, stopping them from taking all of the deposit envelopes out of the rack, handling my transaction and grabbing the cash before one of them can do it. Needless to say I had pretty much forgotten about the exchange between the LWG and the other guy, that is until the Asian fellow was finished with the machine beside me and the LWG took his turn.

As the large white guy approached the ATM and the Asian fellow headed for the exit, the former made some kind of strange comment that none of us really heard that clearly. But although we may have missed the actual words I think the intent was pretty loud and clear. The Asian guy asked "What?" and here is kind of what followed...

BWG: "You were in the wrong line."
AG: "There's only one line!"
BWG: "There's 2 machines, there should be 2 lines"
AG: "There's only one line!"
BWG: "Why don't you go back to where you came from."

Thats right... I couldn't believe it either!

AG: "What? I've probably been here longer than you have." (in absolutely perfect English)
BWG: "I doubt that, I've been here since I was born 63 years ago."

At some point during the last statement the Asian guy had left the bank, and me, standing there in complete astonishment at what I'd just heard. As much as I really like to look at my community through rose colored glasses sometimes, I'm not an idiot (unlike the BWG) and I understand that sadly, attitudes like this still do exist. But while attitudes like this are absolutely unacceptable anywhere, they seem especially out of place in a community like Vancouver-Hastings whose population is approximately 48% Chinese, 10% Italian, 5% Vietnamese, 3% Filipino, 3% Aboriginal, 3% East Indian, 2% Portuguese and a mere 14% English (whatever Elections BC means by English)

Finishing my transaction and gathering my boys, I turned to the BWG and said "There's only one line." Its not what I really wanted to say... but my kids already had one crappy experience that I would have to spend the day explaining and de-programming. Although it probably made no difference to the attitude of the BWG, I had to say something!

2007-04-22T10:25:00.000-07:00

All about the ride!

A few months ago, thanks to Volunteer Vancouver and BoardMatch, I was introduced to the Vancouver Area Cycling Coalition. I was looking to gain some experience with a volunteer Board and exploring ways to get more involved in my community and so, being an avid mountain biker (frequent mountain bike crasher) this seemed like a good match and a great opportunity.

Established in 1988, the Vancouver Area Cycling Coalition (VACC) is a non-profit, volunteer operated organization that has committees in municipalities throughout the GVRD. Members are all passionate cyclists from all walks of life and with a variety of cycling experiences, passions and stories to tell. The goal of VACC members (as found at http://www.vacc.bc.ca/) is to "work to improve conditions for cycling in the lower mainland."

Before joining this Board, I attended a couple of meetings with the Vancouver committee. Not being much of an urban cyclist (unless you count a few trips around Stanley Park) and being relatively new to the area, I was still surprised by how much I didn't know about cycling in a city, within traffic and in all types of weather and conditions. I had never before even considered what some of the challenges faced by daily (or occasional for that matter) cycle commuters could be and, being a mountain biker I have largely focused my riding attention on things like "hucks", "skinny's", "teeters" and slippery roots and logs. Railroad crossings, traffic bulges and circles and cycle route signage just haven't been within my frame of reference, until now that is.

The VACC is made up of an incredibly intelligent and passionate group of people that seem to put the greater issues of cycling before all of the little reasons why people cycle. Our main purpose is simply to get more people out on their bikes. The work of the VACC is grounded in these following values:

1. We support a variety of styles and approaches to cycling.
2. We value education and role-modelling for safe cycling.
3. We respect those who use other forms of transportation.
4. We value cycling as a community building tool, and as a healthy practice for individuals and our environment.
5. We avoid funding or support that could compromise the integrity of our mission, purpose or values.
6. We seek positive legislative and policy change to make a lasting difference.
7. Our membership is open to all who share our goals and values.

These values are important as one of the things that drew me most to the VACC was how little it mattered that I was ignorant to a lot of the issues facing urban cyclists and cycling. That the people making up the VACC come from all points of many different spectrum's doesn't seem to matter since we are all joined somehow by a love for the ride. In all of its forms! My early experiences with this group have inspired me to "urbanize" one of my mountain bikes so that I may use it to be come more familiar with this great city that I call home. I would encourage cyclists from all stripes to check out the Vancouver Area Cycling Coalition at http://www.vacc.bc.ca/ . Become a member, join a committee or just get inspired to go for a ride.

2007-04-17T13:49:00.000-07:00

Volunteer Vancouver

When I moved to East Vancouver a few years ago I found a community like none I'd ever experienced before. Our little piece of Grant Street is friendly, our neighbours talk to us and to each other and everyone seems genuinely concerned about each other. All-in-all, despite what we thought we knew about East Vancouver before moving there, we were made to feel at home. I'm not saying for a second that there aren't other communities like ours, its just that I've never lived in one quite like it before.

Considering that this community was to be the one that we would call home, the one that we would raise our kids in, I thought that the best way to ensure that it stays friendly, clean and safe was to find a way to contribute and become a more active member of the community at large. I have volunteered in some capacity in other areas where I've lived so I decided to explore the various volunteer opportunities available in Hastings-Sunrise and Vancouver in general.

One great source of information for organizations looking for volunteers and volunteers looking for organizations is Volunteer Vancouver. This is something like a "help wanted" site for the voluntary sector but it also offers much more. According to their web site:

Established in 1943, Volunteer Vancouver has evolved into an organization that is proactive and innovative. We also continue to respond to the community and enhance the contributions of volunteers by working with organizations to maximize volunteer involvement.

Volunteer Vancouver offers a wide range of services that include training workshops, BoardMatch, a resource library and an online newsletter called Vantage Point. Interested people can sign up for regular updates and be made aware (by email) of volunteer opportunities in their communities.

As mentioned, I have volunteered for pretty much my whole adult life. Today I am involved with 6 different organizations in Vancouver and on the North Shore (I have trouble saying no sometimes) and despite the challenges that all of these present sometimes, all are very important to me for their own reasons. My wife would love for me to cut a few of them back, but which ones? Trouble is there just aren't enough people like me (or the 7.5 million (1997) other Canadians) willing to give up some of their time for a worthy cause. Worse, competition for good volunteers is fierce, as I have found out trying to find volunteers where I work. I'm not suggesting for a minute that everyone need give up as much as I do and I understand that there are probably some very good and valid reasons why people don't volunteer, but I personally believe that this world would stop rotating if it weren't for the efforts of volunteers.

According to Volunteer BC, in 2000 some 845 000 (26% of the population) British Columbian's volunteered about 142 million hours of their precious time. This is equal to 74 000 full-time jobs. The national contribution of British Columbian volunteers is an impressive 13% and this includes all of those wonderful people on the PAC's at your kids school, little league coaches, Search and Rescue members, people on the board at your favorite Rec Center, people providing valuable public services at no charge so that you may participate in the activity for low or no charge. Sort of makes you want to hug a volunteer doesn't it?

But back to Volunteer Vancouver and their significance for me... this is were I first found out about the Vancouver Area Cycling Coalition. The subject of my next post.

2007-04-15T20:33:00.000-07:00

More of the same from the NDP

Can someone please give Carole James a nudge, her record is skipping again! I don't know why I do this to myself (OK I do) but the other day I decided to spend some time learning more about our provinces official opposition, so I spent about an hour visiting the BC NDP home site and the site of the official opposition.

I'm pretty sure that I was there less than 10 minutes before my eyes started bleeding and I became short of breath. I needed water, badly! I want to call my venture into NDP territory research, at least that's how it was intended but unfortunately this would imply that I learned something useful from it. In fact all that I may have learned I knew already.

That Carole James and the NDP don't really like Premier Campbell and the BC Liberals is pretty obvious and, to be fair I guess it comes with the job. The problem that I found is that the NDP don't really seem to bring anything tangible to any of the arguments that they try to present. Even the message is the same, regurgitated from one issue to the next, "Gordon Campbell can't be trusted!" What is this, grade 9?

Lets look at health care, the one issue that the NDP keep trying to claim as their own. On their home site the NDP (correctly) observe that Gordon Campbell is promising to listen to our (British Columbian's) ideas on health care. (Presumable referring to the government Conversation on Health). In true NDP fashion they take it that one extra step by saying "Why should we believe him this time?"

Hmmm...

Well to begin with I guess we can look at the amount of money that the BC Liberals have thrown at health care since inheriting a sinking ship in 2001. Most recently $9.5 million announced for First Nations health initiatives. Fact is Gordon Campbell has increased health care spending by $3.8 billion since 2001, doubled doctors training spaces, increased training for nurses, eliminated MSP premiums and reduced prescription costs for nearly 300 000 low income British Columbian's, to name only a few. I know why the NDP shouldn't trust the government when it comes to health care.

Instead of encouraging people to take part in the Conversation on Health and bring meaningful dialogue and possible solutions to fix an ailing system to the table, the NDP choose to focus on looming shortages of health care professionals and place blame for this problem squarely on the shoulders of the premier. Here's a news flash Carole! Labour shortages are an increasing reality in all sectors in this province and it has everything to do with an aging population and, thanks to this government, a hot economy. Within the next few years BC and Alberta combined will realize a shortage of up to 350 000 skilled and unskilled laborers, who will you blame for that?

Next comes the challenges faced by lower income British Columbian's. Carole James, the NDP and the BC Federation of Labour have all jumped on the minimum wage band-wagon. According to them the "BC Liberals don't care about our lowest paid workers." Don't care? Seems to me that not so long ago the Liberals introduced a 10% tax cut specifically aimed at helping these people, a tax cut opposed by Jim Sinclair and the BC Fed. Gordon Campbell also increased the maximum income level for rental assistance to $28 000 and increased monthly shelter allowances and basic rates for single employable people by $50 each. This was the first increase of its kind since 1992.

Then we come to a personal favorite of mine, the environment.

So far, the BC Liberal government has contributed more than $500 million towards the development of greener communities. During its first term in office our government reduced its own greenhouse gas emissions by 24%, the same amount that emissions increased under the previous NDP government. Carole James says that "Gordon Campbell has failed on climate change" yet he is behind what is arguably the most aggressive plan at reducing carbon emissions in North America. Carole James hasn't even managed to reduce her own vehicle emissions.

I love this one!

"Gordon Campbell can't be trusted to deal with growing homelessness in our streets."

Homelessness due to things like mental illness, drug addiction, and all other contributing factors combined represents a very serious challenge to all communities throughout the province. Those of us in Vancouver-Hastings are patently aware of the reality of this problem and despite what the NDP would have us believe, its a problem that has been growing steadily since the early 90's. The problem of homelessness has been passed from government to government and until now, none have done much to solve it. During their turn at the wheel, the NDP acknowledged the challenge of homelessness and admitted that they didn't really know what to do about it.

Under Gordon Campbell, the BC Liberals have realized the problem of the homeless. They've stood up and taken responsibility for solving the problem and they've put their money where their mouths are. Recently to the tune of some $80 million and despite what the likes of the NDP and the Anti-Poverty Committee say, this is a significant first step and to quote the premier, "This is not the end."

At the beginning of this post I said that I didn't learn anything from this exercise but that's not entirely true. A couple of things did emerge after an hour or so in NDP web space. First, our official opposition is very heavy on criticism yet extremely light with useful suggestions. The NDP, for lack of any tangible argument cling to an over-used, now stale "can't be trusted" angle that doesn't allow for any intelligent debate on any of the important issues. Its like George Bush saying the the United States is "fighting evil" or worse, like trying to reason with your three year old who doesn't want to eat his/her vegetables.

Second, all it takes is a little digging (and a little common sense) to learn that while some of the challenges now facing our province did in fact become more difficult within the last 7 years, none of them were actually created during this time. Many of these challenges of been growing for decades but then does anyone really believe that a troubled health care system, global warming or the plight of the homeless magically appeared in 2001 with the changing of government? The NDP does. The reality is however, that the NDP was very aware of these problems while in government but they didn't have any money to do anything about them.

Which brings me to my final observation. The BC Liberals have turned our province around. We have money, the government is aware of the issues and they are taking all of the right steps to try and create positive change. The problem for the NDP is, that it leaves them with nothing but a bunch of old government credit card receipts to sift through, hoping beyond hope to find something, anything that can help breath a little life into a party full of old ideas and outdated ideologies.

2007-04-15T09:34:00.000-07:00

1 person screwing up East Vancouver

Its been a crazy couple of weeks for me. I've barely had the time to keep up with whats going on in the world, nation, province, community... so it was great to find a few minutes yesterday to scan some headlines and I wasn't disappointed. The first one that caught my eye (and apparently a lot of other peoples) read "Pro 9/11 column may oust Green candidate."

I immediately thought of East Vancouver's own Kevin Potvin!

It had to be! He's written so many ridiculous things I just couldn't think of anyone else that would want to be within miles of any essay, article or thought out loud that would hint at anything but absolute remorse for some 3000 innocent lives lost in the twin towers. You may not agree with the current American administration's style of politics, capitalism, consumerism, militarism or any other ism for that matter, I don't necessarily, but most people recognize the events of 9/11 for what they truly are, a tragedy.

So I clicked on the story and sure enough... Kevin Potvin!

I wasn't surprised to see him, nor was I surprised that he would attempt to bring context to the ramblings of his "little voice". I guess he had to do something to try and fill in the hole that it has dug for him. What does surprise me is the fact that the Green Party of Canada was even willing to consider him as a viable candidate for Vancouver-Kingsway, or anywhere else for that matter. It also surprises me that party leader Elizabeth May would even consider giving Potvin the "benefit of the doubt" over his comments. While I am not a member of the party, nor do I vote green I will admit to a certain amount of respect for the party and some of the things that they stand for (more than I can often muster for the local orange party). Kevin Potvin, co-founder and regular contributor to the "Republic of East Vancouver" does nothing good for the credibility of the Green Party, just like he has done nothing good for the "Community" of East Vancouver.

Even if Potvin does manage to hold on to the Green nomination for Vancouver-Kingsway it is extremely unlikely that he would be elected. Too bad for East Vancouver and Vancouver-Hastings because that means we are likely stuck with him. The rest of this great country may never realize the star that is Kevin Potvin and so sadly, he will likely never make Spinks' list of 101 People that are Screwing up Canada. Too bad because lists like this were made for people like Potvin.

2007-03-31T19:52:00.000-07:00

Identity in Crisis...

What is the first thing that comes to mind when you think about (if you think about) East Vancouver?

Almost 3 years ago, as my wife and I frantically searched for a house big enough to accommodate our growing family without breaking the bank, our realtor mentioned East Vancouver. We were moving from the North Shore as it was obvious we wouldn't be able to afford a bigger place there and we were considering going as far east as Cloverdale. We looked in Burnaby, New Westminster, the Coquitlams and even Langley. But East Van???

Like many people, the image that came to mind for us back then was one largely created by what we'd seen, heard and read about in the news. Aside from the annual trip to the PNE, our East Vancouver experience was somewhat limited and our impression of the community was unfortunately shaped by a stigma perpetuated by the media, poor political representation and, in many cases the communities own residents. How many people can conjure up an image of East Vancouver that doesn't include the Downtown Eastside? Needless to say we had our reservations.

Since moving here and become active members of our new community we have realized just how wrong this negative perception of East Vancouver really is. It is extremely unfortunate that a large and otherwise vibrant, culturally diverse and lively community must carry the label provided by a very, very small (geographically speaking) part of it. The challenges of homelessness, drug abuse, prostitution and so on that plague the DTES (and beyond) are undeniably real and they certainly need to be addressed and dealt with in a way that works for everyone. But it is important to understand that these problems are not (nor should they be considered) exclusive to our community and therefor they should not be used as the stick by which to measure the entire community of East Vancouver.

Forget the media for a second, the problem is that our own elected officials and, in many cases residents often focus too much of their efforts on the worst parts of our community forgetting that there is so much more to East Vancouver than homelessness, drug abuse, prostitution and so on.

Not long after moving in I read an article in the Vancouver Courier outlining the history of Hastings-Sunrise and its important part in the shaping of Vancouver as we know it. I know that I've talked about this before but it's certainly worth repeating some of the proud historical achievements of a community now famous for what it doesn't have. Hastings, formally New Brighton has laid claim to many Vancouver firsts such as the first road, wharf, post office, museum, sub-division and hotel. Our community was even the first one in the area to have a telephone. In the latter part of the 1800's, Hastings played a critical role in transportation as stage coaches made their way from the capital of New Westminster to New Brighton to catch the ferry to Stamps Mill and to the logging operations at Moodyville (now North Vancouver). How can one not be impressed (and perhaps a little bit surprised) but such a proud history. Learning of my communities past played a large part in my desire to learn and do more but at the same time, I am often curious and somewhat disappointed that so many of my neighbors seem unaware of this past or have otherwise chosen to forget about it.

Recently I was talking with a person much more familiar with the area than I am and after our conversation I believe that I have a greater understanding of the community and the East Vancouver identity crisis. Or at least one possible explanation for it. According to this person a lot of the challenges that we face today (in respect to who we are and our place within this city) can be traced back to those early days at New Brighton. Although our community was the one to get the ball rolling for what would eventually become Vancouver, for whatever reason we weren't able to hold onto that ball and it rolled away. Somehow, a city that was supposed to take shape on our shores moved west leaving what would later become East Vancouver, in its shadow.

Today we are recognized by the outside world as the community surrounding the DTES or, more accurately from the outside all of East Van is the DTES. This identity is unfortunately legitimized by our own elected representatives like NDP MP Libby Davies who despite her obligation to the entire community, can't seem to pull her head out of the very small part of it that is the DTES. That's the look from the outside anyway.

From the inside, our identity goes back to our being denied right to the city itself. Ever since we have chosen to describe ourselves by all of the things that we are not or that we don't have. We are not the West End, we're not as affluent, we don't get as much money, our services aren't as good, we're forgotten, Hastings Park isn't Stanley Park, the government(s) ignore us... you get the picture. At least this is the impression that I have after attending a few meetings in the community, talking to people and listening to other people talk. We want so badly to be recognized like the Vancouver west of Main street that we fail to see the beauty within our own back yards, or at least the potential for beauty there. Worse, in our efforts to be more like them we (or some of us anyway) are actually working to destroy some of the great institutions still alive that helped create us in the first place and that continue to remind outsiders that there is a reason to visit East Vancouver. There is more to us than the DTES. That we are home to Hastings Park race track and the PNE is something that should be celebrated (I'll save them for another post I think).

Of course I am new to the community and the lens through which I view it hasn't yet become clouded over by visions of private enterprises setting up shop, attracting visitors that spend money here and making a little money of their own in the process. I love this community and couldn't be happier about the decision that we made to become a part of it. While at times its easy to get bogged down by the false identity of East Vancouver and forget about our significance to all communities surrounding us I do believe that the times are-a-changin and we can rediscover our proud past and rightful place in the future of the City of Vancouver. But first we have to work on our own views of ourselves. We need to start celebrating all that we have along with the things that we don't have, recognizing that these are the things that make us unique. We need to participate in creating and maintaining a vibrant community that is safe and that people want to visit and we need to celebrate the private and public partnerships that help make us strong. We need to elect federal, provincial and municipal representatives that recognize all parts of our community and not just the aspects that further their own agenda's. The problems of the DTES will be fixed when they are made a part of a greater community plan and not as long as they are the only part of the plan.

Finally, we need to tell other people what we have. We need to encourage people to visit, move here, set up shop, do business here. We need to encourage growth and move on. The city may have passed us by, but where would it be without us?

2007-03-20T22:36:00.000-07:00

Go figure!

"People in this province want action on climate change. That means taking real, concrete steps toward reducing emissions. It means coming up with meaningful strategies to address the consequences of climate change."

That was BC NDP MLA and Environment Critic (Vancouver-Hastings own) Shane Simpson back on January 13 2007, before the speech from the throne and before the unveiling of the BC Liberals 2007 budget. Back when the opposition, in desperate need of something, anything that would allow it to claw itself back into relevance on the political landscape of this province chose the environment as one of three platforms that it would use to show British Columbians that the NDP still gave a "you know what" about our future and that it had an edge on the current government.

The weeks and days leading to the opening of the legislature this year provided us with a steady barrage of what would prove to be not so well thought out challenges by the NDP for the government to do something about climate change, the health care system and poverty. These were the areas that the NDP felt they had the greatest chance at making a difference in BC politics at least, and the areas that they hoped would allow them to gain back some of the support that has been slipping through their fingers lately. As the gears began turning on a new year in BC's political machine the NDP demanded action on the environment, changes in health care and support for the homeless. The foot stomping was relentless! After a year of near obscurity the opposition seemed fired up with a new energy and it had clearly identified the areas that this energy would be challenged. And here are some of the things that our own Shane Simpson said about the governments action on climate change.

"When you get to the substantive aspects of the actual actions they've taken, you'd be hard pressed to point to many things that this government has done that will actually deal with reductions in emissions" Shane Simpson 24 hrs 19 January 2007

"This government has an absolutely atrocious record on climate change, we should be long past arguing that climate change is an issue worth discussing, we should be working at getting some real results." Shane Simpson 13 January 2007

And then came the throne speech and the budget for 2007...

Since then it seems to me that the markers identifying the NDP's position on such things as climate change, health care and the plight of the homeless have become noticeably grayer. Despite the fact that these three things are arguably the most significant issues in the minds of many British Columbians, the lines that divide what the NDP says in public and what they are actually practicing themselves just seem to get longer and wider.

Consider the environment!

Carole James has, on more than one occasion blasted the BC Liberals for what she refers to as government inaction on climate change. She states on the official NDP web site that "BC is falling behind the rest of Canada (in respect to climate change and the use of clean energy)" yet she herself still drives an SUV. Remember that it was Carole James who demanded the government set greenhouse gas emission limits, and on her parties own site she identifies the need to "examine and invest in clean technologies today so that we don't have to play catch up tomorrow."

Carole James announced six priorities for action to help cap emissions (one of which encourages the use of alternative fuels and fuel efficient automobiles) and she has challenged the Premier to "work with us to do better". Interesting...

And then we move to health care...

According to Carole James she (and the NDP) is listening to the concerns of people in BC. Ms. James has "innovative and practical new ideas that will get results now." Wow! We just don't know what they are. Carole James is going to reverse BC Liberal cuts to health care and make the system more affordable for years to come. The same system that, during the 90's under the NDP saw a reduction in the number of long-term care beds, was promised $125 million dollars for a mental health plan that never materialized and witnessed scores of doctors leaving rural communities across the province.

The NDP demands the Gordon Campbell work with them to fix a system that they broke in the first place. A system that the Liberals have since poured $3.8 billion extra, dollars into, that has seen an increase in the number of doctors in training and has created 2500 new nurse training spaces. Among other things.

Finally we have affordable housing and the issue of homelessness...

Carole James has called on the government to "put more money into solving the shortage of affordable housing and the problems of addiction and mental illness in this province." Times Colonist 19 Feb 07. This was before the budget at a time when the BC Liberals had already spent 54% more on social housing than the NDP government before it. The NDP have called on the Premier to fix the very problems that it began to create while in office even though former NDP MLA's admitted that the problem may not be so easily fixed.

But, despite all the money spent up until now, the 2007 budget still provides more money for low income families, more money for affordable housing, decreases in income taxes for low income earners, increase in shelter allowances, millions of dollars for an increased number of shelter beds and so on.

Why am I bringing this up? After all it shouldn't be too terribly surprising for those of us familiar with the tactics of the NDP and the way that their position on key issues changes with the wind. I only bring all of this up again as a point of reference. The NDP has made some very serious demands of the government to make changes that it feels necessary to reverse damage that it feels has occurred/is occurring in a few key areas. On the environment alone Carole James has said that "Working together through the legislature we can freeze emissions now...BC can be among North America's climate change leaders. That's what British Columbians want us to be."

Carole James wants to work with the government yet her party has unanimously voted against a throne speech and a budget that will accomplish the very things she is asking for. She has voted against a budget that is committed to climate change, that provides an additional $870 million for health care and that clearly addresses some of the key issues surrounding affordable housing and homelessness.

This is called working together...

"We will be looking for meaningful action from the government and if its there we will support it..." Shane Simpson on News 1130 12 Feb 07.

Shane Simpson also voted against a budget that is committed to climate change, that provides an additional $870 million for health care and that clearly addresses some of the key issues surrounding affordable housing and homelessness.

Go figure.

2007-03-19T12:57:00.000-07:00

101 people screwing up BC?

A few weeks ago I came across a very interesting site that is counting down the 101 people that are screwing up Canada. I was so impressed by what I was reading that I had to add it to my links and this list is part of the reason for this particular post.

I've been very interested in provincial level politics for some time and I have spent an almost ridiculous amount of time following it over the past few years. My family and I moved to East Vancouver two years ago and since that time I have been especially interested in the interaction between this new community of mine and its politicians but, to my detriment I have largely ignored the going's on at City Hall and the doings (or lack of) of our Federal MP Libby Davies.

I've been so focused on the lousy job being done by our provincial MLA that I haven't realized the impact that Libby may be having across the country. But thanks to Ms. Davies and google alerts I discovered the 101 people list.

Libby makes the list at number 55 and reading her contributions to the demise of our country it became clear to me Why I've ignored her up until now. Libby Davies is not on my radar largely because I'm not on hers. Like the vast majority of the population of Vancouver-East I am not a resident of the Downtown Eastside, I'm not addicted to drugs, not a prostitute and when it comes to child care I happen to prefer methods that encourage and allow my wife and I to do the majority of it ourselves.

Outside of these issues (all important and deserving of attention) it is very difficult to determine what, if anything Libby has done for East Vancouver and for this reason, while deserving of number 55 on the national list, I'm not sure that she would even register if a similar list were created identifying 101 of the people screwing up BC. After all, you have to do something in order to screw it up. But don't take my word for it. Sign up for google alerts and see what comes up for Libby Davies, I guarantee that it will be one of the same 3 issues over and over again.

As to a list for BC, Libby may not make it but BC NDP MLA Shane Simpson... that's another story entirely.

2007-03-18T22:16:00.000-07:00

more green baby steps...

Like watching an old M*A*S*H re-run sometimes the classics are hard to resist. So here is yet another post about the environment, climate change, sustainability... you pick the buzz phrase.

This past Saturday I went to the 1st EPIC Sustainable Living Expo under the sails, at Canada Place. I kind of had to go, given the amount of space I've provided for the environment here and the lengths I've gone through to make a difference in my family's lives, but really I wanted to go to see what a first (presumably annual) expo would have to offer and I wanted to learn of anything else that I could do specifically in my life and of what I could bring to the place that I work. The Expo was certainly interesting and I did get the answers to a couple of my questions but, surprisingly perhaps I also learned a couple of things about current environmental trends and the potentially negative side of a movement recently thrust into the limelight.

I arrived at the Expo in time to see the "Greening your home" presentation on the main stage. It was interesting and I learned a bit about paints and some of the chemicals that we use to clean our homes but I'll admit that it was hard to follow for long, especially given the environment of the Convention Center and especially when you hearing is less than perfect like mine is. So my friend and I decided to skip out early and check out some of the exhibits instead. It didn't take us very long to realize the first hard lesson about a life totally green, it costs a lot of money! Looking at just a few of the products on display made us realize that current trends in sustainability don't come cheap.

I know, and I can already envision the responses to this post... Yes I do believe that the earth is worth the money... I understand that at the end of the day its a small price to pay to ensure a future for our children and generations to come... and yes I understand that we have neglected our planet for so long now that we really can't afford not to do it. But I am sorry, walking through the displays and exhibits at the EPIC fair it didn't take me that long to do the math and I was never that terribly good at math. $30 000 for a Toyota Hybrid... I guess that seems reasonable! $500 for a lamp made solely from recycled agricultural waste (who knows what that is)... I don't know! $1200 for a coffee table made of recycled industrial materials... It was a nice looking coffee table but I paid $149 for the one I have now at IKEA. $1800 for a partition made from old cross walk signal lenses... pushing it for sure. $45 for a t-shirt made out of bamboo? Enough... I don't care how soft it felt or that it had natural odour control properties. The fact is that if this is the face of the environmental movement it is doomed before it gets off the ground, no one can afford it!

Don't get me wrong, I think its great that there are some innovative people out there that have found a way to create products with low environmental impact and some that actually have social conscience as well. The fact that my friend and I found it a bit of a stretch to connect sustainability to some of the products that we saw doesn't mean that we don't give them credit for trying.

The cost of going green may be one thing but the second, and possibly the most puzzling lesson learned surrounded the fact that a lot of the stuff that we saw at EPIC really had to travel a long way to get there. One can only question the validity of the claim of "sustainability" by a product that has travelled from literally the other side of the world and then costs a small fortune for the consumer. Bamboo flooring makes a great deal of sense to me, its attractive, its durable but is it environmentally friendly? I loved the quilts that I saw that were made from used sari's and I appreciated the social causes under which they were presented, but sustainable? I didn't even try the potato chips shipped from Malaysia although they looked delicious. Face it, most of these things, all of these things are presented with the best of intentions and they are probably all great products, but dig a bit deeper. Isn't the manner in which most of these things are transported to us the most significant contributor to climate change and global warming?

Despite these lessons I did get out of the Expo exactly what I had hoped to get. It was the last booth that I visited, but not only did it provide me with the answers that I needed, but it also cast aside a lot of the negative impressions that I have been left with recently after talking to some of the "really green" members of my community. This last booth was, in my opinion the only one delivering the real message, for no reason other than the fact that the message needs to be delivered.

As I have mentioned in perhaps too many posts now, I have unfortunately encountered a few "green" people of late bent on delivering an all or nothing message when it comes to individual efforts at reducing our impact on the environment. These people are more than a little reluctant to recognize those little steps that some of us are trying to take on the road to becoming more environmentally responsible. I have had more than one conversation where I have been told that what I was doing wasn't enough and several conversations where I've been told that our current BC Liberal government is moving too slow, despite the fact that they are moving faster and with greater resolve than anyone preceding them. The really green people want it all and they want it to happen right now. I applaud their ambition but...

Back to the Expo. I have always been one to recognize the small steps and that is why I almost fell in love with the One Day Vancouver booth. When we stopped in at this exhibit we became immediately aware of how important individual contribution was/is. The booth seemed to not only recognize it but to celebrate it as well, as the entire back wall of the display was covered with Polaroid's of real people with one sentence explanations of what they are doing to contribute towards a sustainable planet. The message was clear, it was sincere, it had impact and I was impressed. So I went to onedayvancouver.ca to learn more (I've added it to my links if your interested)...

One day's purpose so incredibly mirrors my own feelings that I have to print it here. According to their site, One day:

...is about small first steps. Its about individual actions that each of us can take in our every day lives. Its about what is possible, and will reward and applaud each and every action, no matter how big or how small. Its about momentum and shared success.

...is about values - about protecting the best place to live in the world, about preserving our unparalleled quality of life for our children and grandchildren, and shared effort and enterprise.

...is about health, fitness and well being. Walking and cycling are easy ways to stay fit, lose weight and help cut down on the amount of energy we use. Changing the way that we move through our day also helps us slow down and take more time with our children, neighbourhoods and communities, reminding us that life doesn't need to be as hectic as we make it out to be.

...is about leadership. One day, Vancouver will be a model for how urban populations use and consume energy. Together, business, neighbourhoods, individuals and communities will showcase Vancouver to the world at the 2010 Olympic Games as a model city for sustainable energy consumption and urban development.

...is working with partners - youth, community groups, business leaders - to start this movement from the ground up, seeding the idea in schools, workplaces, businesses, neighbourhoods, coffee shops and more.

The one day web site provides some simple suggestions to the things that we do everyday at home, at the office and on our way in between. Things like, if you have to drive make sure that your tire pressure is correct, or how installing low-flow shower heads can save you money (so you can afford that bamboo t-shirt) or about the benefits of switching to cold water washing. One day Vancouver tells us that we don't actually have to drop everything that we have learned up to this point to become overnight environmental extremists. It does tell us that there are reasonable and practical things that we can do right now, that will reflect in immediate positive impacts on our environment.

EPIC must be rated as a success by all measures. Any gathering that would cause people to reflect on what they are doing and on what can be done to make our world a better place must be considered as a good thing. My hope is that the "really" green people will take a look at some of the things that organizations like One Day Vancouver are doing and realize that if they hope to actually gain momentum and win the support of that huge portion of the population that is currently sitting on the fence they will have to start celebrating these small steps. Change will not occur overnight and, whether the climate demands it or not, people will not buy into any ideology that is shoved down their throats.

2007-03-09T15:02:00.000-08:00

is labour out of touch???

On February 28 the Federal government announced long-awaited changes to the Temporary Foreign Worker Program. Essentially these changes extend the amount of time that someone from another country can be employed in Canada, from 12 months to 24. It also helps simplify and speed up the application process. As a manager in the tourism industry I am one of many people that are relieved to see these changes. The past two years (at least) have been extremely challenging in finding new skilled and unskilled workers for us and I know that this has been equally difficult for other areas similar to ours throughout the province.

I know it... and most people that hire (or try to hire) workers in the tourism, restaurant, construction, retail and other industries know it as well. Strangely enough though BC Federation of Labour President Jim Sinclair and Wayne Peppard of the Building and Construction Trades Council either haven't been told about this growing problem or they have chosen to ignore it. You would think that anyone with their fingers on the pulse of labour in this province (as I would assume these guys have) would be very aware of the nearly 350 000 person shortfall that BC and Alberta combined will face within the next few years.

Wouldn't they?

In the tourism sector alone, in this province it is projected that we will need to fill some 84 000 skilled and unskilled positions leading up to and beyond the 2010 Olympics. This is significant considering that about 1 in 14 British Columbian workers are employed in or otherwise rely on tourism. Worse, according to the Globe and Mail's BC Editor Patrick Brethour after the Olympics if things continue as they are now, employers will look back on 2007 and reflect on how "easy" they had it way back then. Meanwhile, here in 2007 the restaurant industry is reporting a 13% shortfall in labour and the construction industry is scrambling to find the 20 000 extra workers that it will need within the next 3 years.

One of the key reasons that the likes of Mr. Sinclair and Mr. Peppard oppose changes to foreign worker rules is because they feel that the workers are vulnerable to their employers. The fact that many of these people may not speak or understand english means that they will not fully understand theirs rights and responsibilities. They become a gift to employers looking for "cheap labour". This is the most ridiculous accusation I have heard recently and speaking for my workplace (where I am responsible for employee Health and Safety) and in part for my industry, I can quite honestly say that the foreign workers employed by us are paid and treated exactly the same as their Canadian counterparts. They receive the same health and safety orientations and training, the same benefits, the same safety equipment and they are made to feel part of the same team. To suggest otherwise is simply insulting!

Employers within the province are not only competing with the site down the road for workers as shortages exist east of the Rockies as well. For this reason it seemed to make perfect sense to me that our provincial government come up with creative ways to attract workers from other provinces into the BC labour force. Creating an environment where our citizens pay the lowest tax in the country thanks to a 10% tax break seems like a pretty good way to start. Did I mention that Jim Sinclair opposed this tax break when it was introduced by Minister of Finance Carol Taylor?

No doubt the lowest unemployment rate in some 32 years is beginning to show its marks on all business and industry sectors across BC. It means that we are going to have to get creative in finding and retaining workers in a variety of ways and we will have to start exploring options and looking in places that we haven't really looked that hard in before. Extending the length of time that a foreign worker can stay in Canada is one option that seems to make sense to most of us however, it is a concept that the heads of the labour movement may never fully grasp. The numbers will likely never really add up to them and they won't justify what is seen by the likes of the BC Fed as a "cheap labour strategy", even when those foreign workers do receive the same benefits as we do.

So you tell me... is the labour movement out of touch with the reality of labour today? I'm sure beginning to think so.

2007-03-07T20:50:00.000-08:00

quit now!

Most of the things that I've posted here so far have been about things that I have a certain amount of passion about. They are things that I've studied, I'm involved with personally or that I feel are interesting enough to share with the world, or at least the small part of it that cares what I think. Whenever possible I try and back up what I say with facts but still, at the end of it all if your reading my blog your getting my views on the things that I feel are important. What a great place we live in! That said, given the number of times that the topic of this particular blog has presented itself to me in the past two days alone, it seems as though this blog was meant to be posted.

Nothing that I have said so far on these pages means anything, compared to what I am about to say. Nothing!

Two years ago I devised a plan to make my workplace tobacco free. It was an ambitious plan that wasn't really received that well by a lot of the people that I work with (roughly 15% of them at least), but the Executive Team liked it and so we began taking steps that would eventually see the end of smoking at the place where I work. Two years later we have significantly changed the way that people smoke there but smoking is still permitted and lately I've found myself faced with a pretty big challenge in implementing the next step. Yesterday I had a telephone conversation with the person at Coastal Health Authority heading up the Tobacco-free sports program. It was a great call and I was very pleased to hear how far ahead we are compared to other companies similar to ours, but at the end of it I really wasn't that much closer to solving the problem I'm faced with right now.

First thing this morning I decided to drop in on our General Manager and get his advise on how to proceed with this project. We talked about the programs successes so far and the challenges we've faced along the way and, most importantly what we can do next. It was a very productive session and I left feeling really good about the idea and motivated to come up with the way to move it forward. Timing being on my side today, I arrived in my office shortly after only to read about yesterdays introduction by the BC Liberals of tougher legislation surrounding tobacco that will make tobacco products "invisible" by January 2008.

I was absolutely ecstatic!

Unless you've been hiding under a rock for about the last 60 years or so, you know that tobacco use (especially smoking) is bad for you. You know that about 6000 British Columbian's will be killed this year directly or indirectly due to tobacco related illness and that some of these people will have never smoked in their lives. Canada wide 50 000 people will die from tobacco use and about 1000 of them will be non-smokers. You may know that tobacco accounts for 90% of all lung cancers, 75% of all emphysema deaths and 25% of all cardiovascular deaths. You may not know that about 4.9 billion people worldwide will die this year because of tobacco.

Then again, you may not care!

Climate change, global warming and other environmental issues being the hot topics these days, you may understand that the cultivation of tobacco has a significant negative impact on the world. Most tobacco is grown in the third world so you may not know just how much land is cleared and fuel is burned to grow and cure the leaf, land that could be used to grow food. You may not know that it is actually difficult to grow tobacco and therefor farmers tend to use a lot of pesticides to guarantee their crops. Since this occurs in the third world most farmers aren't protected from harmful exposure to toxins and pesticides. You may have an idea about the amount of waste smoking and tobacco packaging produces. In Canada its about 2 billion empty cigarette packages and some 50 billion butts, worldwide cigarette butts pile up to a staggering 954 million kilograms.

You may not care that much about this either!

British Columbian's are concerned (with good reason) about the state and future of our health care system. You may know that tobacco use gobbles up about $2.3 billion health care dollars in BC every year, Canada wide the number is about 6 times higher and I can only imagine what the cost world wide is. According to a study completed by the Conference Board of Canada in 1995 tobacco use costs the average employer about $2 565 more per year to employ a smoker versus a non-smoker. Two years ago I figured that my employer probably pays about $7 000 per year just to clean up after our smoking staff and customers.

Its quite possible that you don't care about this any more than my other points!

I took the bus home today. The number 16 down Hastings was packed, noisy and it didn't smell too terribly great either. About halfway through the trip my phone rang and in the midst of all that was around me I tried to listen to my Mom, clearly upset, tell me about her day. She spent it at Vancouver General Hospital where my Dad was getting a biopsy on his throat to hopefully determine the extent of damage that over forty years of smoking has done to him.

This hurts! I can't begin to tell you how much and hopefully you'll never find out on your own.

So... Excuse me while I climb up onto my beloved soapbox! To the 15% of British Columbian's that still smoke and more specifically to those that would like people like me to shut up because its "your habit", "your life" and "your right" to do whatever you want since you are only harming yourself... Your wrong! Your not only harming yourself you are killing everyone around you, including those you love physically, financially and emotionally. Quit Now!

To those of you out there that feel the need to continuously compare the supposed small impact of your habit towards respiratory disease to that of vehicle emissions... Stop it! This is not about comparing apples to oranges and the fact that one thing is probably worse in one respect than another doesn't mean that the other thing is suddenly OK. Then again, if you want to go and take a long haul off of someones tailpipe I guess you'll say that its your right to do so! Quit Now!

To those of you still out there that think we need you to keep smoking because of the supposed significant contribution that you are making to our economy in the way of the taxes you pay on cigarettes... Stop being stupid! The approximate $8 billion dollars of tax revenue generated annually from the sale of tobacco pales considerable when compared to the $15 billion spent in Canada each year to treat tobacco related illness. Quit Now!

After smoking for about 15 years I quit. It took me about 8 different tries and it was probably the most difficult thing that I have ever done, but I did it. Its been 4 years or so since my last cigarette, If I can do it anyone can... Please, quit now!

2007-03-03T10:04:00.000-08:00

Election day so soon?

When I woke up on Thursday morning I had no idea that this would be the day I travelled forward in time! It seemed like a pretty average day from the start, granted it had snowed a bit overnight and it was a bit colder than I can remember other March 1st's being, but other than that nothing special. Work that day was busy but not unusual, it was the end of my work week so I was excited to see the end of the day so I could begin enjoying the weekend. It really wasn't until I got home later in the evening and opened my mailbox that I realized I was no longer in March 2007...tucked in between the Visa bill, some flyer's and a letter was my first clue that it was actually May 2009 with a provincial election right around the corner!

At least this is the best way that I can describe the feeling I got when I glimpsed Shane Simpson's MLA report for the past 18 months. As I read it the feeling that an election was near only got stronger! His personal report card reads a lot like election material as he proudly extols all of the great things that he's done for our community since the last election, all the while reminding his loyal followers how little the nasty government actually cares about them.

If even half of it were true I'd run up to Shane's constituency office today (thank goodness its closed) and shake his hand, no wait, I'd give him a big hug and thank him for all of his tireless efforts as champion of Vancouver-Hastings and all things swimming, green and down-trodden. The trouble is that there are a few things missing from his report, leaving a couple of holes big enough to drive a hydrogen powered bus or bio-diesel truck through. So I feel that it is my duty to try and patch a couple of those holes here.

Shane Simpson is the NDP Environment Critic and it is in this role that he reminds us about a few "important environmental issues facing our province", including climate change. Of course anyone with a pulse that has been in the same room with a radio, TV or newspaper within the past couple of weeks knows this. Simpson tells us of the urgent need to take action on fossil fuel reduction (I wonder if John Horgan is listening) and the importance of a plan to address climate change, of course as critic it is incumbent upon him to say that the government is not doing enough.

Hmmm.

What Mr Simpson fails to address is the fact that the BC Liberals (before the 2007 budget) have already pledged millions of dollars toward projects that will directly reduce British Columbia's contribution to climate change. This includes $40 million for the Green Cities Project, $10 million toward the Hydrogen Highway, $2 million for cycling infrastructure and $325 000 in incentives and funding to support the development of alternative fuels and energy efficient appliances. This is before the $103 million provided in the 2007 budget for green initiatives. Shane Simpson tells us how committed he and his SUV driving leader (Carole James) are toward freezing greenhouse gas emissions but he doesn't mention the fact that emissions increased by 24% during the time that the NDP ran the province into the ground or that government emissions were actually reduced by 24% during the Liberals first term in office. Not only did the NDP not have a plan in the 90's but, as Corky Evans reminds us they didn't even have an "idea how to deal with climate change and its implications for socialist principles."

Simpson accuses the government of doing nothing to address climate change. He says that they have abdicated their responsibility and that their inaction has only made things worse. He doesn't mention his own personal stand against such green power alternatives as the Ashlu Creek run of the river micro plant, leading me to believe that green power is only acceptable if there is no private interest in it.

The report shifts gears from the environment to affordable housing and alleviating poverty. This is reasonable and, as MLA for the second poorest electoral district in the province I would actually expect that Shane had done more in this area. What he does instead is continue to blame Premier Campbell and the BC Liberals saying that affordable housing and the plight of the homeless is not a priority for this government. Not mentioned is the $2.4 million announced last September for the Pennsylvania Hotel Project, the recent 10% tax cut making British Colombian's the lowest taxed in the country, the $50 per month increase in the housing allowance (the first increase since 1992) or the $50 per month increase in the basic rate for single, employable people.

While it is no surprise that Mr. Simpson falls short on suggestions for the problem of poverty and affordable housing it is important that we understand that there have in fact been important steps taken. The government, in its 2007 budget has committed $27 million toward 300 emergency shelter beds and another $38 million for supportive housing projects. In 2005 the Liberals budget for social housing was 54% higher ($172 million) than that of the previous NDP government and 10 times higher than it was 10 years earlier. Shane calls this "government inaction" but the truth is that it was under the NDP that beds began closing at Riverview Hospital and Shane's own predecessor Joy McPhail herself, acknowledged that many homeless people wouldn't access housing if they could. Of course this doesn't mean that we shouldn't do something about the problem and despite what our own MLA would like us to believe, we are.

To round off the big three, Shane Simpson brings up health care and the BC Liberals "Conversation on Health". Of course he would like us to believe that the conversation is nothing more than the justification of private health care. He fails to touch on a few of the key elements regarding the state of health care in our province like the fact that health care spending has increased by over 50% since 2000/01. Not surprisingly absent from Shane's report card in respect to health care are the facts that under the NDP the average wait for a residential care bed was 360 days and that the NDP government of the time actually reduced the number of long-term care beds by 18%.

The BC Liberals have put aside $13.1 billion for health care in this years budget, but the NDP still clings precariously to the notion that more money will help the problem. Simpson would like us to believe that the Conversation on Health is the governments way of ignoring real solutions and avoiding promises, what he doesn't mention is the $125 million promised by the NDP for a mental health plan that never materialized. In fact, according to Corky Evans (as Minister of Health) the NDP "made announcements about things we weren't even going to do."

The report card goes on to mention a myriad of other things that the government has apparently forgotten or ignored. Things like the supposed sell-off of BC parks, the flooding of the Chilliwack River and the Gateway program. Certainly Simpson brings up some very key issues facing British Columbian's, things that we should all be aware of however residents of Vancouver-Hastings are really only give one side of the story. He's done a pretty good job with the handout too, its colorful, attractive with lots of pictures of our MLA "working hard" for our community. He must be working hard because he says so right in the pamphlet. The truth is however, there is absolutely nothing in the report that provides us with the slightest glimpse of anything measurable that our MLA has done or is doing for Vancouver-Hastings. There are no suggestions for solutions to the important issues that he raises, there is no mention of a plan that he or the opposition have to contribute to the good governance of our province and there is no mention of what we can expect from him over the next 2 years.

The truth is there is nothing in Shane's report that leaves me with any reason to believe that Vancouver-Hastings is any better off today than it was before with almost 75 years of representation by center to extremely left leaning MLA's. Someone tell me where this has put our community?

Finally, while I can understand the importance of the union label on Shane's literature, wouldn't you think that the Environment Critic would make sure that everyone reading his material would be able to clearly see that he uses recycled paper? Just a thought.

2007-02-28T20:34:00.000-08:00

Fuelling confusion???

Earlier this week in a letter to the editor (printed in Monday's Province) I expressed my confusion over the stand that the NDP has taken over the issue of climate change, versus the efforts of one NDP MLA to force oil companies to lower the price of gasoline at the pump. As confused as I was (am) over this particular issue, a piece in today's Vancouver Sun seems to clarify my belief that one of the NDP's hands is clearly not talking to the other.

NDP MLA and energy critic John Horgan announced last week his plan to introduce a private members bill to address what he identified as "gouging" by the oil companies. His argument being that the price of fuel here in British Columbia is significantly higher than anywhere east of the Rockies. No argument from me there! Surely no one likes to pay too much for anything but, for some reason inflated pump prices always seem to hurt twice as much as anything else. The high price of gas was one of the key factors in my decision to down size from an SUV to a miserly 4 cylinder wagon.

My problem with Mr. Horgan's stand on this point is more about timing than content (as I've had to explain to more than one of my friends). Why now and why not last summer when fuel prices were almost 30 cents more per litre? Why now at a time when climate change is thebuzz phrase and fellow NDP MLA, environment critic and Vancouver-Hastings own native son, Shane Simpson has accused the Ministry of Transportation of ignoring the link between transportation and the environment? Why would MLA Horgan choose now to even suggest cheaper fuel when his own leader, Carole James has all but taken credit for the governments commitment to emission reductions? Why, oh why would the NDP want tosuggest cheaper fossil fuel if there is even the remotest of possibilities that the high price of oil could encourage people (like me) to make alternative transportation choices.

If your not confused yet... read on!

This past Tuesday the BC Liberal government unveilled its new energy plan that, among other things identifies the harsh reality that we will have to cut our energy demands in half over the next 13 years in order to effectively reverse the occurrence of climate change and to become energy self-sufficient by the year 2020. The government presents some very aggressive steps that it feels necessary to reduce consumption by some 15 000 gigawatts annually and to ensure that the energy we use is as clean as possible. The most significant change needed seems to be one in attitude.

In order to achieve this ambitious goal of energy reduction, British Columbian's will likely have to first change behaviours. As president of BC Hydro Bob Elton correctly points out "We have a province where people have never had to think about electricity and we need to change that view." (Sounds familiar to me) The problem, according to the NDP's John Horgan is that there is no way we will be able to change public behaviour as long as electrical prices remain low! That's not all, Horgan goes on to ask "Whats the incentive to move to more efficient appliances, for people to power smart their windows? There's nothing to encourage people to meet these goals."

Its true! You did read right, the very same person that's demanding cheaper gasoline prices in BC is also suggesting that the only way we will ever change our attitudes about energy is to hit us where it hurts, in the wallet. Increased electrical prices will encourage us to turn out the lights, turn down the heat and turn off the tv. Why not? If we get really cold we can always jump in our cars, crank the heat up and drive around the block a few times.

John Horgan tells us that the government is sending a mixed message (The News Feb 28). I don't know about you but I've never been more confused about a message than I am about the one that he's trying to peddle here.

2007-02-25T11:00:00.000-08:00

I really can walk the walk!

When I decided to jump onto the climate change band-wagon I did so with both feet. Environmental issues have been important to me for far longer than they have been fashionable but, I still admit to being a bit of a hypocrite in some areas. Mostly in respect to the car I drive.

The recent popularity of global warming and environmental issues has put my family and I at occasional odds and has done more than ripple the fabric of our lives more than once. As I've said here, in numerous previous posts I believe that the first and most important steps to becoming good stewards of the environment begin in our own homes, backyards and, in this case driveways. Unfortunately, the whole time that I have been writing here I have been one of those dreaded, evil SUV drivers.

GASP!

We used to be a two car family but two summers ago, when insurance on one car expired we decided to make a go without it and see how we fared. There were some minor adjustments that had to be made but mostly the experiment went fine and so we never did go back to driving two cars. We adjusted our schedules a bit, took alternate transportation when we could and we managed to save a bit of money along the way. We felt good about what we had accomplished and all went well...that is until "going green" became a buzz phrase and the bandwagon threatened to collapse under the weight of all who had jumped on. I was beside myself.

Suddenly I found myself at odds faced with what I felt were my responsibilities toward the environment on one hand and the fact that I own this truck that I really, really love on the other. The truck has been really good for my family. It has taken us to a lot of places, it carries our bikes, camping gear and other "stuff" really well. It really sucks at the gas pump for sure, but haven't we already done our part? After all, we've given up one car, small steps right? My wife and kids love the truck too. It fits us and our lifestyle but, on the other hand at almost $80 per week in fuel alone it is getting kind of expensive.

About two weeks ago the important discussions began between my wife and I.

There is more to the dilemma. Whether I like to admit it or not the truck has become a symbol of my success. I have been using all of the excuses in the book to justify owning it without admitting that I have been using this truck partly as the yard stick to measure myself with. I have allowed myself to be somewhat defined by the car that I drive and it took my realizing this to allow myself to finally consider letting go. Once this happened, Liz and I learned that there are in fact plenty of options (for us) out there that will allow us to continue doing all of the things we like to do and did before. All while reducing the footprint that we leave behind and keeping a bit more cash in our pockets. After all, if Premier Campbell can do it, why can't I?

Yesterday we traded the truck in for a much smaller, more economical Ford Focus wagon. Its fantastic and we couldn't be happier with our decision. Of course we got the sportiest one that we could find. We had to, after all... the car will have a small part in defining who we are.

2007-02-18T12:33:00.000-08:00

Climate Change Shmimate Change

Talk about jumping on the bandwagon! This weekends Vancouver Sun contained no less than 11 different stories (more than 460 column inches) dedicated to, or otherwise mentioning climate change, global warming and/or environmental sustainability. That's before even reaching the 18 page special supplement entitled "Going Green" in the middle of the paper. There are stories that mention climate change in 7 different sections of the newspaper including the business, travel and West Coast Homes sections. Wow!

There can be very little doubt that climate change has officially become the flavour of the week, month, year and I personally think that this is great (to a point). I agree with Sun columnist Stephen Hume who tells us (among other things) that we need to get educated about climate change and as this weekends paper seems to indicate, there is an awful lot of information out there from a lot of different people with some very different points of view. Just take a look at the Douglas Todd piece in the Going Green supplement for an example of two very different perspectives. It would appear then that our job is to sift through all of this stuff, try and determine what is valid, what affects us and what our abilities are to make positive changes in our own back yards.

Yesterday a friend approached me at the Rec Center and, seeing that I was reading the paper asked "Whats new?", to which I replied "Looks like a lot of stuff on climate change." I'm not sure if I should have been surprised or not but she then proceeded to inform me that she thought the whole thing was being blown out of proportion. She then started to tell me that we had no idea what was going to happen as a result of global warming and that no one can predict the actual affect that we have towards climate change. She went on to inform me about a potential shift of the gulf-stream which will bring weather back in line to what it should be??? This is where she lost me!

I told her that while I agreed that we don't really know exactly whats going to happen in the future the evidence that our impact is growing increasingly negative seems pretty clear. Even so, if we know that there are things that we can do to make our air cleaner or reduce the pressure on landfills and so on, why wouldn't we do it? I went on to explain how my wife and I were seriously thinking about downsizing our current vehicle (its a V6) to one that is easier at the pump and therefor easier on our wallets and easier on the environment. Her response... if climate change and global warming are such a big problem then why don't they stop clear cutting!

That's about where the conversation ended.

The Premier has a daunting task ahead of him if he is to reduce our carbon emissions by 33%. I say "him and he" in this case since many of us prefer to place the blame on him rather than shoulder up to this task ourselves. I think its encouraging that 77% of us (according to a recent poll by Ipsos Reid) seem willing to make significant changes in our lives in the interest of climate change (Am I the only one that picked up the significance between the 77% in this Ipsos Reid Poll and the 33% in the governments plan?) but I'm not surprised at all that 50% of British Columbians don't want to pay any more for it. While it appears that 76% of us think that Canada should take a leading role in climate change, I am frequently reminded and alarmed at the number of people (like this friend) that refuse to recognize individual contribution and cling precariously to the argument that we don't know all of the facts or the facts are inconclusive.

I am certainly not a scientist or an expert on weather, climate change, ecosystems, global warming or any of these other things. That said, I don't believe that Victoria will become the new Atlantis within the lifetime of our grandchildren and I do believe that the earth is somewhat resilient and therefor able to recover a bit more than some of the more radical environmentalists give it credit for. But I'm also not blind and I have seen the affects of a warmer planet all around me.

I know that the world is getting warmer because I can remember winters growing up in Langley where we actually got a lot of snow, every winter. I've also seen pictures of my Dad as a young boy in Port Kells with even more snow. Lots of snow! I've worked at one of the local ski areas since 1991 and I have seen the affects of global warming as every year the winter season seems to get shorter or less predictable. The need for snowmaking on many ski hills in BC, Canada and North America in order to guarantee a full season is becoming greater as the years go by.

I also know that the population of Langley District Municipality (where I grew up) has grown significantly over this period from a population of 39 000 in 1977 to almost 100 000 in 2006. I know that the population of the Lower Mainland has increased by about 750 000 in the last 20 years and I'm told that the number of vehicles on our roads increases by about 20 000 per year. I also know that it took me an extra half hour to get home from North Vancouver yesterday thanks to an antiquated infrastructure and a major accident north of the Second Narrows Bridge. I'm pretty sure that an extra half hour idling in traffic is probably not great.

While I'm certainly no expert, I know that despite the confusion in some of the information we're getting there are many things that we can do to generate some positive change. I also believe that although some of the steps we take may seem small, we must recognize the significance in all of them. I believe that Premier Campbell and his team are leading us in the right direction but I also think that most of us are reasonable and intelligent people capable of making reasonable and intelligent decisions. We just need to remind ourselves of this fact.

I agree that Canada and British Columbia should take a leadership role on climate change, but I certainly don't see leadership in a person that justifies a poor vehicle choice by saying "We go off road sometimes in the summer." Finally, I'm starting to believe a friend of mine who told me recently that I've been watching the same movie for too long soooo... I'll step off my soapbox for a minute. Only a minute though.

Phfew!

2007-02-16T17:32:00.000-08:00

flowery words or bold solutions?

In last Tuesdays Speech from the Throne Premier Campbell and the BC Liberal government unveiled what has been described by many as a "breathtaking and bold" plan to tackle the growing challenge of greenhouse gas emissions. The governments aggressive plan will see a reduction in emissions of 33% by the year 2020 and will require the concerted effort of provincial and municipal governments, industry and every British Columbian in order to be successful.

"I'm very encouraged by this." David Suzuki

The preliminary plan introduced on Tuesday has received the approval of government leaders and environmentalists alike including the Governors of all pacific coast states (most notably Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger), the Sierra Club and David Suzuki himself who has said "...I think this man (Campbell) is capable of making this kind of shift, and I have great hopes for it.?
In fact, unless I've missed someone the only group slow to accept the Liberals plan of action has been... you guessed it, Carole James and the BC NDP. What a surprise!

"The fact that this government has even embraced the notion of a target is a really good sign." Karen Campbell, staff lawyer for the Pembina Institute.

This is odd however considering the words of Vancouver-Hastings MLA and NDP environment critic Shane Simpson who told News 1130 prior to the Speech from the Throne that "...they (the NDP) will be looking for meaningful action from the government and, if its there we will support it". Interesting! The government has promised to do its part to fight global warming and climate change by, among other things:

extending the $2000 tax incentive to anyone buying a hybrid vehicle.

helping and encouraging individuals to make their homes more energy efficient.

ensuring that all electricity produced in the province has net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2016.

requiring 100% carbon sequestration for future coal-fired energy projects.

introducing and supporting anti-idling measures for commercial vehicles.

reducing congestion on lower mainland highways through the provincial Gateway Program and introducing a toll on the twinned Port Mann bridge.

phasing in new, aggressive tailpipe emission standards.

leasing or purchasing hybrid vehicles for government use.

reducing energy consumption and emissions in the public sector.

encouraging personal choices that are sensible to the environment.

"I am pleased that British Columbia has committed to joining the fight against climate change." California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger

I don't know about you but all of this sure looks like "meaningful action" to me. So where is the support of the NDP as promised by Shane Simpson? Carole James calls the governments plan "flowery words" and accuses the premier of "grabbing onto the issue of the day." Ms. James says that Premier Campbell has a poor record when it comes to following through. This is interesting when you consider that The BC Liberals have already pledged nearly half a million dollars towards projects that directly reduce our footprint on the environment (these projects include the Green Cities Project, Hydrogen highway, Localmotion fund and more) and much more in projects that will indirectly reduce the occurrence of climate change.

"Our party has no idea how to deal with climate change and its implications for socialist principles." NDP MLA Corky Evans August 29, 2006

How does this compare with the NDP? Lets look at their stance on energy for starters. Shane Simpson is adamant in his call for government to reject any proposals for coal-fired energy. A week ago I read a piece where Carole James rejected "conventional" coal-fired energy projects but I do note that she is now against all forms of coal energy. As environment critic I suppose that it is reasonable to expect Mr. Simpson's skepticism in this area but how does this explain his position on environmentally clean "run of the river" projects like the one proposed for Ashlu Creek? Shane is against Ashlu creek (despite the fact that the project is supported by such groups as the Squamish Nation), primarily because the NDP does not like the idea of private ownership of energy. No matter how green it is. His stance with Ashlu would seem to put him at odds with what his responsibilities should be in respect to the environment as a critic.

"I will say that the record of the last government, being the NDP in the late '90s, was not good on climate change..." MLA Michael Sather, Hansard, April 5, 2006

Never mind the type of vehicle that the Leader of the Opposition drives and forget about the NDP's historical position calling environmentalists the enemies of the province. The NDP record on the environment leaves me wondering who has really "grabbed onto the issue of the day".

Within its opening paragraphs the throne speech asks "What can we do today to secure the future of our children and grandchildren?" This is a very good question. The speech calls for partnership and action to meet the objectives of a changing world and Shane Simpson has said that the NDP would support a good plan. Since almost everyone has said that this plan is a good one you have to ask what happened to the support? This session of the legislature isn't even a week old and the finger pointing by the opposition has already begun. This should be an interesting year. Stay tuned!

2007-02-14T22:02:00.000-08:00

Saved by the Throne Speech...

I got to go to the Speech from the Throne this year. I don't want to say that this was a once in a life time experience but it was great to witness first-hand, the announcement of a positive and aggressive plan that will, (among other things) help reverse the tide of climate change. The opportunity allowed my wife Liz and I to stretch the day into a much deserved three day mini-vacation and, despite the weather we had a fantastic time.

We left Vancouver on Monday afternoon, meaning that I was not able to see the unveiling of the 2010 count-down clock. A small sacrifice I suppose but unfortunately I did manage to see all that I needed later that night on the news. I was flicking through the channels when I happened upon the somewhat disturbing spectacle created by a few that oppose the otherwise great opportunity that the 2010 Olympics brings to Vancouver, Whistler and the province of British Columbia. Needless to say, I was glad I didn't go as if I had I would have surely brought my 3 year old son Jack with me. I don't envy the task that all of those parents who did attend with their children must have had explaining how such a small group of people can be so narrow minded and destructive.

You don't have to like the Olympics! You don't have to agree with any international sporting (or similar) events and you don't have to be happy that they are coming to Vancouver. You may believe that there are bigger issues in our communities that need to be dealt with and you may fool yourself into thinking that the money being used to host the Olympics would actually solve all of these problems. You may wish to tell the world exactly how you feel about all of these things and while your at it you may wish to tell all of the little children that there is no Santa Claus. These are your rights and while I obviously disagree with your opinion (if this is you) the fact that we can do this is what makes our city, province, country such a great place to live. Peaceful demonstration is your right.

What happened on Monday is another story completely!

What this small group of people did was nothing short of terrorism! Unfortunately, the issues that these people and other groups like them (the Sea Shepard Society comes to mind) hide behind are real. Homelessness, drug use, prostitution, mental illness, affordable housing, all present us with some very serious challenges that will only be overcome with the cooperative efforts of all communities, levels of government and citizens, including those most affected. These real-life challenges are somehow minimized when the so-called champions of the cause resort to violence to make their points. Suddenly the plight of the homeless, drug-addicted (and so on) becomes lost behind the hidden agenda of the "professional" protester and the true problem gets lost as these people move from one cause to another, all on the backs of the desperate.

The Olympic and Paralympic games are coming to Vancouver, Whistler and communities in between in 2010. Its a done deal and people should really try and get used to the fact. Events like this unfortunate one on Monday will not change anything. Pushing innocent people out of the way, screaming obscenities into a microphone in front of children and other forms of violent protest are just not acceptable. These kinds of acts do nothing to solve the real issues and the only attention that they give to the real challenges within our communities is negative.

2007-02-08T20:23:00.000-08:00

troubles with orange and green...

I've always been a fan of the colors orange and green. These aren't the only colors I like but they are certainly up there and in fact, I'm wearing an orange shirt right now as I write this post. Orange and green (separately) can be vibrant colors. They draw attention to themselves as well as their surroundings. Most of the time they make me feel pretty good about myself but the trouble is, lately I find that I have become somewhat overwhelmed by both if these colors to the point that (for me) they are creating an effect exactly opposite of the one that color experts say they should.

Take green for instance. What should come to mind when you think of this color? My thoughts immediately go to trees, grass and other things natural and peaceful (I also have a pretty great biking shirt that is bright green). According to people that profess to know about colors, green evokes harmony and understanding. "Green" people are generous, self controlled and adaptable as well as sympathetic and understanding. Green is my oldest sons favorite color however, (notwithstanding the fact that he doesn't really exhibit many of these "green" traits), my own recent experiences with green have made me question the claims of these so-called color experts.

I recently decided to become involved with an organization that, not surprisingly, has a lot of green in it. Color had nothing to do with my decision to get involved although there may have been some "green" influences behind this decision. Mostly I was interested in what they had to offer, I thought I could learn something from them that could help me later on ,(I still believe this) and in turn I thought that I might have something to give back to them (I still do). The trouble is that now, after only two meetings I have been faced with two conflicts between my impression of what green should be and the what the green that some of these "green" people actually paint themselves with truly is.

Rather than exuding the values of understanding, adaptability or harmony, I have left these green surroundings feeling as though I have been exposed more to to hostility, stubbornness and closed-mindedness. My recent green experience has taught me that the "big picture" is most important and that this picture can only look one way to be accepted. There is only one way to paint the picture and the steps to follow must be deliberate and very clear. Although the most prominent color in the picture is green, the big picture is a "paint by number". There is no room for individual interpretation as to the colors that each number represents. Green only recognizes the big picture and not the small steps that have been taken or that must be taken to get to it. According to green our efforts are often not good enough and the time it takes us to make them is never fast enough.

According to the color experts, the trouble with too much green is that it becomes too moralizing. It allows us (encourages us) to put ourselves up on a pedestal and ignore the multitude of other colors that are essential to making the picture complete.

And then there is orange...

I've always liked orange. If green is my sons favorite color, orange is mine. My Dad used to have a great orange car when I was growing up, I painted our basement orange and I probably have more orange shirts than I have shirts of any other color. Orange is exciting, the sun is orange, it is very difficult to be in a bad mood when your surrounded by orange. Or is it?

Orange makes us sporty (so the color experts say). Orange people are concerned about their health, they are full of joy and they are enthusiastic. Orange makes people constructive! How could anyone not want to be an orange person if these are the personality traits that you get to possess?

I live in a very orange community. While I fully admit to liking the color, I am surrounded by a lot of people that like orange a lot more than I do and probably for reasons a lot different than mine. Normally this doesn't bother me that much and I am still prone to wear my orange shirt from time to time but, every once in a while this over abundance of the sun's color rears an ugly head and on those days, things aren't so bright and shiny.

The trouble with too much orange?

According to our experts it can make us proud, destructive. Excess exposure to orange allows us to become too full of ourselves so that we begin making nasty messes with the expectation that someone else will clean them up for us. Orange can be especially dangerous when mixed with too much red as this makes us angry and inconsiderate. Orange mixed with too much yellow makes us difficult to live with.

My own recent orange experiences? Most mirror what the experts say. I've found that while orange has behaved true to its nature of drawing attention to itself, the color is not always qualified or experienced enough to deal with the kind of attention its seeking. Orange for me has become sanctimonious and in doing so, has dealt with current important issues by placing blame on all of the other colors. Orange is caught up in the moment, using its vibrancy to draw attention to whats on the surface, hoping people will overlook its lack of depth. Orange has no memory and it reminds me that even the brightest of stars fade eventually.

Finally, orange and green don't go too terribly well together. Think about it. Combine the two and what do you get?.... Besides a pumpkin!

Whats the point? There isn't one. I still like orange and green but I only wear them once in a while. Mostly I stick to primary colors like red and blue.

2007-02-02T21:17:00.000-08:00

the art of influencing human behavior...

This week Premier Campbell and the BC Liberals were issued a "warning" by a group of labour, environmental, aboriginal and religious "leaders" stating that they must set tougher standards for greenhouse gas emissions. Given the announcement by the United Nations that concludes we are "very likely" to be the major contributors to global warming this seems appropriate I guess. We should expect leadership from our governments.

This coalition of leaders (including BC Federation of Labour President Jim Sinclair) issued a letter warning that "there can be no doubt that bold and immediate leadership is required of governments around the world to combat global warming". No doubt! Despite the fact that the Campbell government has done more in the interest of environmental sustainability than any government before it, I agree that there is still a lot of work to do. Moving forward, governments at all levels must recognize the key role that they will play in guiding all of us to make the right decisions to ensure a future for our planet, never mind our children and grandchildren. The challenge will be in guiding those that don't want to be guided and in ensuring that we all recognize our own roles.

The people making up this so-called coalition, those seeking leadership from our premier are supposedly leaders themselves. While it may be appropriate that they seek guidance from government it should also be expected that they come to the table with their own suggestions and solutions. As a manager, I don't wait for my boss to tell me to lead, more often I report to him on the steps that I have taken to improve the operation of my department. At the risk of singling one member of this coalition out, Jim Sinclair presides over a membership of almost half a million people. One should assume that he himself is in a great position to demonstrate some "bold and immediate leadership" of his own, guiding a significant portion of the population as to ways to minimize their own contributions to global warming. Yet... when I took the time to search the BC Fed's website I found nothing that provided me with any kind of direction or suggestions at becoming a better environmental steward. No policy, no recommended best practices, no position, not even a link!

As the debate heats up, along with the globe, people are going to need leadership and they are going to be looking for it in a variety of places, from many different people (like this coalition perhaps). We should expect leadership from our governments for sure, but its also incumbent upon every single person that calls them self a leader to provide a bit of their own.

2007-01-31T12:21:00.000-08:00

What about the "twinky" factor?

BC Federation of Labour President Jim Sinclair is very worried that we are "in danger of becoming a province where medicare dies." According to a piece in Kamloops This Week, Sinclair criticizes the BC Liberals $10 million Conversation on Health as wasted effort stating that, "Within the public system we can fix this. If we don't fix it at all, it will start to crumble."

He's half right!

Despite the fact that health care funding has been increased again, this time by another 7.3% up to a staggering $13.1 billion annually, Sinclair seems to continue to advocate for more spending claiming that this is the only way to prevent those nasty private health-care clinics from taking over. Not surprisingly, he makes no mention of any remote possibility that we may in fact be the greatest threat to "What Canadians are proud of - a public health-care system..."

Interesting... Has Mr. Sinclair or anyone else within the BC Fed ever even considered the faint possibility that were it not for our own bad habits, we may not need health-care (public or private) as much? Lets consider this first deadly sin... Obesity.

According to a study conducted by GPI Atlantic in 2005, direct health-care costs due to obesity were estimated at an incredible $380 million. Right now 1 in 4 of our children are considered to be over weight and obesity in children has doubled over the past 10 years.

Not convinced?

How about this one... Tobacco use. While British Columbia has the lowest rate of tobacco use in the country, about 6000 people in this province will die this year, due to tobacco related illness. Health-care costs associated with the treatment of tobacco use... approximately $1.25 billion per year! But wait,
To round of these three mortal evils we end with Sedentary Lifestyle. This is the result for those of us content to sit and watch the world go by from the comfort of our couches and recliners (usually with a cigarette in one hand and a bag of chips in the other). Physical inactivity is a proven major contributor to such wonderful things as coronary artery disease, stroke, hypertension, type 2 diabetes, colon cancer, breast cancer and osteoporosis. 38% of British Columbian's are not active enough to achieve any of the benefits associated with active lifestyle... and what does our laziness cost the province (or us) each year in terms of health care? About $573 million!

Has anyone been keeping up with the math so far?

Jim Sinclair, by ignoring our own contributions seems to be saying that this is OK and that the solution to saving a system that is in big trouble is to continue to throw money at it. The fact is that so much money has been thrown at health care lately that much of it isn't even sticking anymore. He cites overflowing hospitals and long surgery wait lists as proof that we need to spend more less we become overrun by private health-care clinics, but I can't help but think that Jim Sinclair, the BC Federation of Labour and many other critics of the Conversation on Health have somehow missed the most important piece to the puzzle.

Our public health-care system is indeed crumbling, but its not because of private health-care. Its crumbling because we've all dog-piled on top of it and we're too heavy and out of breath to get off.

2007-01-30T21:18:00.000-08:00

its tough I know...

Sometimes my job can be pretty darn difficult! I know that I am not the only one out there with challenges to face everyday, wondering how I can possibly face another day without cracking under the shear pressure of it all, but today was a particularly tough one for me so I thought I'd use this space to tell a few people about it and try to gather as much sympathy as I can find. (yes I know where to find sympathy in the dictionary)

The job was to scope out Grouse Mountain's Munday Alpine Snowshoe Park in preparation for the upcoming 9th annual Snowshoe Classic taking place on Saturday February 10th. (Visit http://www.grousemountain.com/ for more information or to register for the race) I needed to see the 5 and 10 km courses to determine the best places to put course marshalls and first aid attendants to ensure that racers stay on course and that any injured racers are treated quickly.

The Munday Alpine Snowshoe park consists of approximately 10km of trails that take snowshoers of all abilities out to the north of Grouse Mountain's peak and into country that offers what is arguably some of the most spectacular scenery on the North Shore. All of this about 15 minutes from downtown Vancouver!

I hope that you enjoy these pictures as much as I enjoyed taking them and in case my boss happens to read this, I'm joking about the tough job stuff. If anyone is looking for a low-impact way to get some great exercise and experience Vancouver and the North Shore at its most magnificent, I highly recommend that you check out Grouse Mountain's Munday Alpine Snowshoe Park. If you do, keep in mind that (believe it or not) not every day looks like this one so you should be prepared, tell someone where you are going and when you'll be back and come equipped with the following (minimum) equipment:

1. Sturdy hiking boots.
2. Wind and water resistant jacket.
3. toque and gloves.
4. Clothing that is appropriate to changing winter conditions.
5. Headlamp.
6. Change of clothes.
7. Gators.
9. Water and snacks.

Most importantly, don't forget your camera.

2007-01-30T20:27:00.000-08:00

The Chudnovsky "Tour de pot-hole" 2007

Sorry, but this one was just way too incredible for me to leave alone. The fact that David Chudnovsky has garnered so much attention from it (admittedly as I contribute myself) takes ridiculous to an entirely new level. This only helps reinforce my opinion that our current government is doing a pretty good job.

Last week NDP MLA and transportation critic David Chudnovsky enlisted the help of a friend with a 4x4 to embark on what I'm sure will go down in the BC political history books as the most significant fact finding mission ever taken on by any party in opposition. The purpose of this noble and lofty mission...to count potholes along a stretch of provincially maintained highway. Chudnovsky and friend took two days to travel highways between Vancouver and Prince George and returned with this earth-shattering report. Along the way they found some 670 potholes, 90 significant pools of water and 400 damaged or buried signs.

I'm not kidding!

As most of us are painfully aware, we are in the midst of a winter that has thrown what may be some of the worst weather that we've seen in a decade. Weather that, while extremely bad for things like Stanley Park trees and California fruits and vegetables, has been ideal in producing a bumper crop of potholes in blacktop patches everywhere. In fact, as Chudnovsky fails to mention, potholes are abundant everywhere including city and municipally maintained roads, public and private parking lots and many of our own private driveways. There are probably 50 potholes on Renfrew Street (near my house) between 1st Avenue and Hastings and there is one particularly nasty teeth chattering pothole in North Vancouver on Capilano Road that I manage to hit nearly every day. The point you ask...potholes are an unavoidable part of winter, especially an unusually cold winter like the one that we are in right now. Go to Walter Schultz's blog in the links at the right for some great information on how potholes are formed.

Vancouver-Hastings own NDP MLA and environment critic Shane Simpson must have been tossing in his sleep in absolute turmoil over Chudnovsky's decision to consider pothole counting over the impact that his two-day trip may have had towards global warming. But I have a suggestion as to how similar trips can be justified in the future (it is supposed to freeze again this weekend, meaning more potholes are inevitable). The next time that David Chudnovsky or any other citizen concerned with the increasing number of potholes decides to embark on a mission to count them, I suggest that he (or they) throw a few bags of cold patch into the back of their vehicle. This will serve a couple of purposes first, the added weight will help with traction on those slippery winter roads and second, once the pothole has been counted it can be filled. This will provide a great service to all of the travellers that follow and it will make an otherwise ridiculous and unnecessary trip useful.

2007-01-22T18:12:00.000-08:00

flavour of the week?

It seems like energy and the environment get this distinction this week. Not a bad thing considering how important both of these are, or at least should be. The unfortunate part about this particular story is that probably, had we paid more attention to these things sooner (even before the 90's when Glen Clark called environmentalists the "enemy" of BC) we may not be in the position that we are today. Arguably, one of the most significant arguments bringing energy and the environment to the forefront this time is the Liberals proposal to build two coal-fired generating plants in British Columbia. This is something never before considered in the province, or at least that's what NDP environment critic Shane Simpson will tell you if asked. Shane Simpson is against coal-fired energy in BC.

So what do you think? On the face of it I would say that the answer seems quite clear. Coal has been around for thousands of years and it has a nasty reputation as a dirty source of energy that contributes to a number of environmental and health problems like acid rain, greenhouse gas emissions, the spread of toxic chemicals like mercury and an increase in respiratory illnesses like asthma.

Given what we know about coal and the seemingly negative footprint that its use leaves, if your with Mr. Simpson and against burning coal in our province then one has to ask how we could possibly consider selling our coal to the rest of the world. Especially since we know that BC coal is being turned into energy in other countries. In fact, approximately 70% of the worlds coal production is used to generate 40% of all energy while 12% is used to produce 70% of the worlds steel. World-wide, the largest producers and consumers of coal are the United States, China, Australia, India, South Africa and Russia. Canada uses relatively little of its coal to produce energy at 18%, compared to the United States which uses about 3/4 of its produced coal to generate 56% of its energy.

This makes coal a very important commodity for British Columbia as we produce some 25 million tonnes of coal per year (2001 figures) valued at an impressive $1.5 billion. The coal industry in our province, in 2001, employed 6000 people and put about $18 million into the provincial purse. It would seem to me that the production of coal is relatively important to us then which places those of us concerned about global warming in a bit of a dilemma.

So... do we immediately say no to coal-fired energy in the province? Given the information provided above I would have to say that the answer doesn't seem as simple anymore. In fact its a question that even many environmentalists struggle with as they acknowledge that the production of coal, especially in the developing world can't be easily stopped. The task then seems to be to create and adopt cleaner coal technologies (many exist already) that will allow us to utilize the worlds most abundant fossil fuel.

Should we be exploring cleaner energy alternatives like wind and solar power? Absolutely! However I don't think that we can or should completely discount the use of coal as a viable energy option, especially if the technology is present to reduce harmful emission and minimize the contribution that coal-fired energy has towards global warming.

Or we could just stop using energy!

2007-01-21T20:07:00.000-08:00

the rant continues...

Sorry, but I'm not quite finished with the rant that I began a week ago. This is especially timely given recent press, the BC NDP's so-called report card on the environment and the Vancouver area opposition MLA's energy forum held last week at the Heritage Hall in Vancouver. What is one to get from all of the attention that the environment is getting lately? Global warming is a reality and its because of everything that everyone else is doing. At least that's how I read it.

I did read an interesting letter in yesterday's Vancouver Sun. Basically, in the view of the letter writer no one "gives a damn about global warming" or is able to see the connection between their cars and the environment. Not too far off I would say as last Friday I myself witnessed a couple sitting outside of my son's school in their idling mini-van. They were there for at least ten minutes... but then it was pretty cold out that day.

When it comes to the environment we are all hypocrites! As Environment Minister Penner said in a recent interview "individuals have a role to play" and in my view it has been the BC Liberals that have actually done the most for the environment lately as they have invested heavily in projects that encourage alternate transportation, created plans to address environmental issues today and in the future through tax incentives (among other things) and reduced greenhouse gases in the government by 24%. We blame our government for its contribution to global warming when in reality that contribution is ours. Its easy to blame because that negates us as individuals from having to do anything about it on our own. In reality nothing will change until we start to do something about the way that we manage our own houses.

Last Wednesday a friend of mine pointed out an article on the front of the Vancouver Sun. The heading read "US freeze means you'll pay more" and basically the story warns us of impending doom at the supermarket cash register thanks to the recent and unexpected freeze in California. Nearly 80% of some Californian crops have been wiped out thanks to obviously much colder than normal temperatures. Interestingly, as my friend points out the article didn't touch on some of the potential contributors that the purchase of foreign produce has toward global warming.

The extremely unusual weather that we (and California) have faced this past year will undoubtedly be linked somehow to the the poor state of the environment and global warming. California produce has been almost wiped out in part because of the market that has been created for it and the manner in which it reaches the world. While I am in full support of the BC Liberals Gateway Program (getting vehicles off of the road quicker still seems like a good idea to me), opponents fear that expansion of the south Fraser perimeter road will destroy the "lungs" of the lower mainland (Burns Bog). What they seem to fail to mention is that a large reason for this expansion is to improve the passage of freight, in other words all of those trucks carrying (among other things) California produce to the communities of British Columbia. There is one of those connections that the Sun letter writer alludes to.

Don't get me wrong. Although my family and I have made some significant changes in the way that we do things, we are far from perfect. Like the NDP opposition MLA's last Wednesday I admit that I also don't have the answers (they didn't exactly admit to that though) but certain things (like idling your van for ten minutes outside your kids school) do seem like common sense to me. Problem is that until we all see the common sense in the things that we are doing or not doing, the Sun letter writer will continue to be correct, except on one point. I believe that most of us really do "give a damn" about global warming, we're just in denial about the significance that our individual contribution has on it.

2007-01-15T17:03:00.000-08:00

Environmental sustainability every ones responsibility

Well I guess the holiday season is truly over and its ,time for everyone to buckle down and get back to the very important tasks that will keep us busy until we do it all over again next year. Vancouver-Hastings own Shane Simpson has wasted no time in the new year grabbing at headlines. Most recently I see that he has come out in support of a survey released by the Sierra Club claiming that a staggering 82% of British Columbians want the province to enact legislation setting clear targets for green house gas emissions. I would say that the only surprising outcome of this survey is the number. You'd think that it would be more. But, considering that the Sierra Club has Victoria almost completely under water within the lifetimes of our grandchildren, I would take their survey results with a grain of salt. Shane Simpson, the NDP Environment Critic supports the survey results by saying that "British Columbians want action on climate change!" Action!!!

Of course most sensible and reasonable people want to see measures taken to protect the environment. For us, our grandchildren and their grandchildren. My problem with this is not that I disagree that we all must become better stewards of the environment, but I question the stance that both the Sierra Club and the BC NDP have taken and I think that their decision to target the provincial government, while politically expedient, really ignores the biggest group of offenders.

There can be no doubt that governments, at all levels, must begin to consider and implement environmentally sustainable practices into all aspects of their planning processes, no one is arguing that, but I question just how much the 82% of people identified by the Sierra Club are doing to make a difference in their own parts of the world. I'm sorry, but blaming government is just too easy and, in my view blaming anyone is not an acceptable method of problem solving. Collectively, we are the ones destroying the environment! We have created the demand for more energy, we have made choices as to the cars we want to drive, we are the ones consuming at increasing and alarming rates and we are the ones throwing our junk out the window as we collectively call the environment someone else's problem. (Using an example that is close to my own crusade, Canadians throw away 50 billion cigarette butts annually) We choose to blame our government because we can't fess up to the fact that we are not a part of the problem, we are the problem! All 82% of us.

Shane Simpson accuses the BC Liberals of having an "absolutely atrocious record on climate change." He says that "We should be long past arguing that climate change is an issue worth discussing, we should be working on getting some real results." He's right, this is exactly what all of us should be doing but we need to start this discussion at the ground level with our friends and families. That said Mr. Simpson's view that the BC Liberals aren't concerned about or aren't doing enough to protect the environment is dead wrong. Here are just a few of the positive things that have occurred in this province within the past year:

$40 million committed to the creation of bike paths, walkways and greenways over the next 4 years with the Green Cities Project.
Increased incentives to help local governments make the move toward the use of hybrid vehicles.
A promise to ensure that all new vehicles leased or purchased by the provincial government will be hybrids by the year 2007.
Further incentives to encourage individuals to purchase hybrid cars and trucks.
$2 million committed directly toward bicycle infrastructure in various communities throughout the province.
$10 million set aside for the development of the worlds first fleet of hydrogen powered buses.

So then the question remains, where was Shane Simpson when all of these environmentally positive plans were announced? Where was the Sierra Club? What was this 82% of the population doing and where were the press releases from the opposition saying "These are great ideas and we support them?" Shane Simpson says that "Sustainable development is extremely important to British Columbians" and I agree, but lets not lose sight of the fact that while we have a responsibility to hold our governments accountable to our environment, we also have a certain responsibility to make sure that we are being held accountable.

2007-01-14T19:26:00.000-08:00

taking advantage of another snow day...

This past Thursday (after a particularly hectic Wednesday drive home) I decided to take advantage of the 14th major storm to hit the Lower Mainland this winter and I took the day off of work. Rather than contribute to the mayhem that the unexpected snowfall seemed to have created, I took the opportunity to spend the day with my 3 year old Jack. After we dropped his brother off at kindergarten, we spent the day exploring Vancouver-Hastings on foot and we had a blast (albeit a cold one).

I woke up that morning with BC Transportation Minister Kevin Falcon on the radio encouraging those motorists that didn't have the luxury of staying home (like me) to at least make sure that their tires were suitable for the conditions and that their gas tanks were full before heading out. Seems like common sense to me (admittedly I'm probably pretty close to needing new tires myself), but pretty good advise none-the-less.

So... In keeping with my current theme of promoting emergency preparedness in the home (I've talked in past posts about the importance of a plan and given some ideas for emergency kits in the home), Minister Falcon's advise reminds me that a good plan should extend beyond our houses. Given the bizarre, record breaking weather that we've been faced with in 2006 and the beginning of 2007 it may be wise to consider keeping a bit more than good tires and full gas tanks with our cars. In ours, we've stashed a small rubbermaid container under the seat that contains:

1. A first aid kit.
2. A few simple tools (adjustable wrenches, screwdriver, pliers etc.)
3. A couple of fleece blankets.
4. Water.
5. A flashlight.
6. Non-perishable snacks (granola bars).

We also have a couple of bags of sand, spare containers of oil, window washer fluid and other things that could become necessities, that will hopefully ensure that we are ready for most potential situations. Your car kit doesn't have to be complicated and it doesn't have to take up a lot of space. It can be tailored to suit the type of driving and distances that you have to travel, but keep in mind that even the shortest trips could turn into major excursions depending on what Mother Nature decides to throw at us next.

Hopefully we will never need to use the stuff that we've packed in an emergency, but I feel better knowing that it is there.

2006-12-24T09:50:00.000-08:00

No need for the ark...yet!

I've been thinking about this one for a while now, but this morning I think the crazy weather of the past year (more specifically the last two months) really hit home. I was on my way to work, aboard the Grouse Mountain Skyride enjoying an amazing sunrise when suddenly the wind picked up. Great! When I got to my office (at the Peak of Vancouver), after a head-down battle with the relentless wind across the mountain plateau, I was advised by our fabulous dispatcher of yet another wind warning for the area. Even better!

You don't have to be a weather expert to realize that November and December have been more than a little bit unusual. A quick look at some of this fall's headlines says it all:

"Hundreds of Chilliwack residents evacuated as river overflows"

"Water, Water everywhere"

"No end yet to Vancouver's boil-water advisory"

"Crippled by storm, BC sees new one approach"

"Mother nature unforgiving, blasting BC's south coast again"

"Mayor seeks emergency funds"

The damage left by recent storms has left an incredible footprint (Have you seen the opictures of Stanley Park?) that should serve as a reminder to all of us about our vulnerabilities when pitted against the forces of nature. Why the sudden change? Of course we can speculate. Maybe global warming (if your a member of the BC NDP then its surely the governments fault) but regardless of why its happening, the bigger question must be whether or not we have learned anything from the experience of all this bad weather?

Really! What is going to happen the next time we find ourselves faced with a precautionary boil-water advisory? How will we fare the next time higher than normal winds cause longer than average power interruptions? What would we do if something really big and bad happened, like an earthquake?

Popular school of thought tells us that we should be prepared to survive on our own for up to 72 hours. To do this there are some very basic items that you and your family must have on hand. These things make up your emergency survival kit and, combined with a plan and some basic knowledge should help you to weather any storm:

1. Water - you'll need 4 litres per person, per day. This water will be used for drinking, washing and preparing your food.

2. Food - be sure to pick non-perishable food that doesn't need a lot of water to prepare and that won't make you thirsty.

3. Manual can opener - in case the electric one doesn't work.

4. Flashlight with spare batteries - check your batteries (in everything) every 6 months, with daylight savings times.

5. Candles - with matches or a lighter.

6. Radio - make sure its a battery powered one and keep a spare set of batteries.

7. First Aid kit - In a big event emergency responders will be extremely busy and probably only able to respond to life-threatening illnesses and injuries.

8. Extra medication, prescriptions, baby formula etc.

9. Extra keys to your car and house.

10. Extra cash or travellers cheques - don't assume that bank machines or debit machines will be working.

The above is a minimum list of things that you should have. In order to make your 72 hours as comfortable as possible, you should also consider packing:

1. Changes of clothing and footwear for all family members.

2. Sleeping bags or extra blankets.

3. A whistle.

4. Garbage bags - in case sewer and septic systems don't work.

5. Toilet paper.

6. Gloves.

7. A basic tool kit that includes things like an adjustable wrench, pliers, screwdrivers, hammer etc.

8. A small fuel powered stove, with instructions for its safe use.

The wind today has been a little bit inconvenient for us at Grouse Mountain but I for one, take comfort in the fact that we have very good plans for dealing with just these types of situations. Planning is the critical element that will ensure all of us make it comfortably through whatever mother nature throws at us. We certainly can't change the weather, hopefully we have learned something from our experiences and the next time it happens we will be prepared. Please check out the emergency preparedness links in the community section of my blog.

I wish you all a safe and happy holiday from my family to all of yours.

Ray

2006-11-30T11:54:00.000-08:00

Children's Commissioner appointed.

I'm a bit out of the loop for sure. As my last post suggests the start of an incredible winter season has kept me busy and I haven't had a lot of time to pay attention to the news. So, in trying to catch up I happened upon a headline from CBC News (on the internet) stating "Judge appointed as BC children's watchdog." This is great news and I for one wish Judge Mary Ellen Turpel-Lafond well as she settles into her new and very important post.

The appointment of a children's commissioner in BC accomplishes one of the key recommendations in the 172 page "Hughes Report: BC Children and Youth Review", completed by retired Judge Ted Hughes in April 2006. Since the completion of this report, the BC NDP have repeatedly called for the government to re-instate a children's commissioner. In the above mentioned CBC piece Carole James calls the appointment of Judge Turpel-Lafond "a victory for children and an admission of failure by Premier Gordon Campbell." Interesting!

The newly appointed commissioner is quick to point out that her office will be free of partisan politics and that she hopes to keep said politics out of child protection in this province. Great idea, unfortunately thanks to our most loyal opposition her very appointment has been tainted by political expedience. I think that if this was my new job I'd be just a bit concerned about the actual importance placed on the appointment compared to say... bottled water?

Maybe I've just missed something? Perhaps all of this time on the slopes has frozen my brain a bit (I know many people who would agree). Of course it is not unusual for Carole James and the NDP to blame someone for something (the government has been blamed for the affects of recent floods, water turbidity, global warming and snowfall, to name a few) but didn't the BC government plan to have a children's commissioner appointed over a week ago (22 Nov), after a one-day sitting of the legislature? What happened? Its curious to me that anyone so apparently concerned about the welfare of children in this province would even consider refusing unanimous consent to the appointment of a commissioner. This should have been the priority of the sitting as it was intended and it is extremely unfortunate that the NDP has seen fit to once again lay blame for a situation rather than participating in the achievement of an appropriate and immediate solution.

2006-11-26T18:39:00.000-08:00

epic powder day at Grouse Mountain

While most of the city seemed to be stuck today, wondering what this white stuff falling from the sky was and how they were going to deal with it, I spent the day practically up to my knees in powder up at Grouse Mountain. OK, so I work at Grouse and therefor had very little choice in the fact that I was there, but I can't remember the last time we had this much powder this early in the season. Almost 2 feet in 24 hours and its only November 26. If this is any indication to the ski season we are going to have then I recommend that you all dust off the gear and I'll see you on the slopes.

2006-11-20T22:39:00.000-08:00

"Its not the time for politicians to be debating with each other in the legislature. Its time for politicians to listen to the people..." (Mike Harcourt in the Vancouver Sun September 1992)

It's unfortunate that the BC NDP of today is still getting mileage out of the fact that the fall session of the legislature has been cancelled. Its also unfortunate that the media seems to be providing them with the vehicle to keep this alive when they clearly didn't feel it that important back in the 90's when the NDP government of the day cancelled the fall session all but twice.

Whats most unfortunate however is the fact that the BC NDP appear poised to voice their displeasure (over the cancelled fall session) by dragging out the planned one day session of the legislature this Wednesday using every trick that they can think up.

The purpose of this Wednesday's session is to appoint a new independent children's commissioner, an appointment that the NDP agrees is important. The question then is, will the NDP stick to the agenda and help see Ted Hughes recommendations become reality or will they once again try and find political opportunity in an otherwise tragic event.

2006-11-18T10:26:00.000-08:00

Into everyones life a little rain must fall... or something like that.

Oh my Goodness! A little bit of rain combined with a boiled water advisory and look what happens! Fights break out at Costco, hundreds of people line up at Real Canadian Superstore, sell outs at Canadian Tire and virtually every other retailer in the neighbourhood, police called in to control riotous crowds...for what? The new Playstation 3? No, that was the day before, this time the most precious item on everybodies shopping list was bottled water.

I wouldn't have believed it if I hadn't seen it for myself. I was walking past the Save-on-Foods in Lynn Valley yesterday at the same time as a poor, beleaguered store employee was pulling a large pallet of 500 ml water bottles from the store and into the mall entrance for the waiting horde. The pallet jack wasn't even lowered to the ground when the employee was literally pushed out of the way, the shrink wrap torn from the pallet and people, like locusts swarmed taking as many cases as they could barely carry. It was incredible to watch and I couldn't help wonder if these bottles contained water from the fountain of youth itself.

Why the panic? Recent heavy rainfalls combined with high wind have caused mudslides into each of the lower mainlands three water reservoirs. This mud and silt has caused turbidity levels to rise, up to 90% at the Seymour Reservoir and 70% at Capilano. (Turbidity has dropped significantly since and advisories for the Coquitlam reservoir have now been lifted). Despite these high levels we have been assured by the Vancouver Coastal Health Authority that the boil water advisories are "precautionary" and in place due to the potential for bacteria to become embedded in silt particles, making it difficult for chlorine to kill.

Panic is an extremely dangerous thing. I deal with a certain amount of panic all the time through my job and the other things that I'm involved with and I've seen panic do some strange things to otherwise calm and rational people. But panic need not happen and the easiest way to reduce panic in an emergency (or precautionary boil water advisory) is to be prepared for it. One easy way to get prepared is to develop a family emergency plan that identifies these 10 elements:

1. Family meeting place - Determine a place to go if you can't stay in your house.
2. Out of town contact - A person to phone to get information and to check in.
3. Home hazard hunt - Identify and correct the hazards in your home.
4. Emergency kits - Create Grab and Go and Stay in Home kits.
5. Emergency Supplies - Including things like food and water.
6. Utilities - Locate gas and water shut offs and learn how and when to shut them off.
7. Sanitation - What will you do if your toilets don't work.
8. Kids and Disasters - Prepare everyone in your family.
9. Pets and Disasters - Are the special considerations for your pets in a disaster?
10. Practice, Practice, Practice.

Looking at water alone, your family should have enough clean, potable (bottled) water on hand to supply 4 litres (1 gallon) per person, per day for at least 3 days. Remember that (depending on the nature of the emergency) this water may also be needed for things other than drinking like brushing teeth and cooking so keeping a bit more on hand is probably a good idea. Another great way to ensure that you are prepared is to educate yourself about the potential emergencies that could happen in your community and the hazards that they would likely present for you in particular. Most communities provide some sort of basic emergency preparedness training to residents free of charge and there is plenty of information available to you at your local library or through the Provincial Emergency Program. Please check out the links below and do yourself and your families a favour by getting prepared.

http://www.pep.bc.ca/

www.vancouver.ca/nepp

http://www.nsemo.org/

www.getprepared.ca

Next time I'll tell you about where you can go to get a coffee the next time we find ourselves in a nasty boiled water advisory

2006-11-12T10:29:00.000-08:00

we will not forget!!! Victory Square 11 November 2006

2006-11-10T16:06:00.000-08:00

Sand-bagged by Simpson

I hate this time of year! The fall is particularly difficult for me for a number of reasons but perhaps one of the biggest is the affect that the rain has on my backyard. The lane behind my house has been built up so that its higher than my yard, so every time we get any significant amount of rain my garage and parking spot flood. This makes them pretty much useless to me until the spring and it drives me crazy. I keep meaning to do something about it but...

As frustrated as the fall rain makes me, I really do count myself lucky compared to those living along the Chilliwack and other rivers this past week. Our recent record-breaking rain falls were an inconvenience to me for sure, but my plight seems insignificant when stacked against those forced to evacuate their homes as swollen rivers took over. I sincerely feel for these people, as a human being and as a volunteer with two emergency preparedness organizations.

Thankfully, no one was hurt or worse and homes will dry out allowing repairs (albeit expensive ones) and life will go on for these people.

Disturbed as I was lying in bed and listening to the rain, this time around I think it was the wind that bothered me the most, and I'm not talking about mother natures warm fall breezes! What really got my back up against the wall was the wind generated by Vancouver-Hastings' own NDP MLA Shane Simpson and his inappropriate timing in turning a communities struggle into a political opportunity for a struggling political party.

Its certainly no surprise to see Simpson or the NDP using the backs of those disadvantaged as a soap box and this time around it was to accuse our provincial government of neglect in dealing with flood protection over the past 5 years. This despite the fact that it was a now past member of his own party (while in government) that placed the sole responsibility for dike and levy repair and maintenance on the shoulders of local government. Even Chilliwack Mayor Clint Hames refused to blame the provincial government citing that the storms of the past week were 1 in 200 to 500 year events. How do you plan for that?

So here are a few of the things that Shane Simpson forgot to tell us about.

1. In May of 2003 the BC Liberals introduced the Flood Hazard Statutes Amendment Act and provided $1 million for the development of flood hazard management tools.

2. During the NDP's reign in the 1990's the Fraser River Flood Control Program, an agreement with the Fed's to undertake massive improvements of dikes along the Fraser River (established in 1968), was allowed to expire. This despite the fact that studies completed in 1994 identified substantial risk of flooding with the potential to cause $1.8 billion damage affecting 300, 000 people, should the Fraser rise beyond its banks.

3. In June 2001 the BC Liberals announced a 2 year funding commitment for the Flood Protection Assistance Fund.

4. After the Chilliwack River flooded in 2003, the BC Liberals spent $500, 000 to help strengthen dikes along the river and they provided a further $56, 000 in grants to study further upgrades.

5. Since 2001, the BC Liberals have spent $9 million in flood mitigation projects in British Columbia.

Its extremely unfortunate that events like this happen in our communities, the fact that they do is one of the reasons I volunteer, and it really sucks that my back yard and garage flood (for me at least). But they do and they always will. The best we can do is prepare for the worst, hope for the best and when they do happen, all of us should have some responsibility to help. Shane Simpson says that sending Barry Penner in to fill sandbags isn't enough. I suspect that in reality, if asked Barry would be right there doing this, would Shane?

2006-10-30T09:53:00.000-08:00

A Tale of Two Leaders

This past weekend has been a busy one in the news for BC politics with the closing of meetings of the Union of BC Municipalities. Of particular note were announcements made by Premier Gordon Campbell and comments from Carole James regarding homelessness and mental illness in BC.

Both of these issues resonate clearly for us in Vancouver-Hastings. One need only walk a few short blocks of Hastings street to witness first hand the very real footprint that homelessness has left in our community. No longer is this a problem limited to the downtown eastside.

I must have read half a dozen pieces between the Sun and the Province dedicated to homelessness and mental illness and I found it very interesting to see the manner in which our two provincial party leaders approached a very serious and growing problem and the level of leadership applied toward reaching a solution. On one hand we have Gordon Campbell who, in Saturdays Vancouver Sun acknowledges the "the mentally ill in BC have been let down" and he recognizes that "the de-institutionalization of the mentally ill has been a failed experiment". Does he mention the fact that it was the NDP in the late 90's who first helped carve up Coquitlam's Riverview Hospital? No, he doesn't.

On the other side of the house we have NDP leader Carole James who, in the same piece blames Campbell and the BC Liberals for the increased number of homeless people in BC, for creating the gap between the rich and poor in this province and for cancelling the fall sitting of the Legislature (How many fall sessions did the NDP cancel during their tenure? Someone remind me.) The Premier, in acknowledging homelessness has also recognized the limitations of his government in dealing with the problem and points out the need for cooperation between all levels of government in order to reach a real solution (a point echoed by Michael Smyth in the Vancouver Province, "Cities share blame for plight of homeless"). Ms. James calls this finger pointing.

So let me point some fingers. While it is true that the number of homeless people in the GVRD almost doubled between 2002 and 2005 (from 1121 to 2174), the truth is that homelessness in BC has actually been on a steady increase since the early 1990's. In fact:

1. In 1998 there were 70 foodbanks in BC, about as many as in the rest of Canada combined.
2. In 1997 the child poverty rate was 19.6%, only slightly better than the national level.
3. There were about 15 000 homeless people in BC in 1998.
4. Between the years 1991 and 1996 the number of households in the GVRD at the risk of homelessness increased from about 39 000 to almost 58 000 and the number of homeless people during this period doubled.
5. Between 1995 and 2000, in Burnaby the number of trips made to the foodbank rose by almost 38%.

The problem of homelessness can certainly not be ignored any longer. Premier Campbell has acknowledged this and stepped up to the challenge, however the problem cannot be solved by the province alone. Communities through-out the province must take some responsibility for the people living on their streets and perhaps most importantly, Carole James and the NDP need to demonstrate a bit of leadership of their own and become part of the solution to homelessness. Especially since they helped to create the problem.

2006-10-29T10:00:00.000-08:00

better transit...not freeways?

This past Friday, walking home from my son's school we passed a sign on a neighbour's lawn that read "better transit... not freeways". Anyone that's followed this blog for a while knows where I personally sit on the issue, still when my son asked me what it meant I was a bit stumped. The only thing that I could think to say immediately was that the person who put it up obviously doesn't commute outside of the city.

"Better transit...not freeways"? I challenge anyone (that hasn't done this already) to take a day trip out into the valley and back again, on any given day of the week. It doesn't matter which crossing you choose: Port Mann; Pattullo; George Massey; Alex Fraser; etc., the result will be the same. You will be stopped almost completely at some point due to traffic.

"Better Transit" obviously means more light rail, car-pools, bicycles and anything else that reduces the number of single-occupant vehicles on the road. While all of these are great ideas (we have been a one vehicle, car-pooling family for over a year now), none solve the immediate problem of outdated bridge and freeway infrastructure and none will really work until our freeway's are made bigger. (There have been no significant improvements to lower mainland freeway's since the 1980's, but the population has grown by about 750,000 during this period) Transit outside of the City of Vancouver and off of the Skytrain lines is close to pathetic! As long as it takes someone like me an hour and a half by bus to travel what takes fifteen minutes by car no one will be jumping to change their transportation habits. So what is the solution? 20% more buses and 44 more Skytrain cars? Probably a great idea in the long run but immediately (without significant infrastructure upgrades) all that more buses are going to do is create more congestion.

"...not highways!" I can't help but think that those opposing the Gateway Program (like my neighbour) are missing what is probably the biggest and most important part of the puzzle. Gateway is not about building bigger freeways, but freeway upgrades are a critical part of Gateway. Our current systems will not allow more buses, more light rail or more use of bicycles. In other words, our current freeways can not accommodate "better transit."

"Better transit..." means a lot of things for sure and it appears to me (especially after reading the Vancouver Sun on Saturday 28 Oct 06) that Premier Gordon Campbell, Transportation Minister Kevin Falcon (whom I know personally as a passionate cyclist) and the BC Liberals have begun taking some very significant steps in the right direction. Of course we all have certain responsibilities toward the success of better transit and for starters, opponents need to look beyond the notion of bigger freeways. For starters, take a look at the provinces "Green Cities Project" that includes $40 million over 4 years in matched funding for, among other things "better transit" like improved bike paths and walkways. This is over and above the $2 million promised earlier this summer specifically for bicycle infrastructure in various communities throughout the province.

Unfortunately, at the moment it seems as though those against Gateway are stuck in their own ideological "traffic-jam" and they can't see beyond the roadblocks that they have constructed. If they could they would see what most of us do already and that is a multi-faceted plan for..."better transit."

2006-10-27T09:58:00.000-07:00

Hastings-Sunrise Community Meeting

This past Monday (October 23) I attended the second annual Hastings-Sunrise Community meeting at the Hastings Community Center. Although I had been to a Committee meeting in September, this was my first "real" exposure to the Hastings Sunrise CityPlan Committee as a whole and I have to say that I was (am) impressed. I found it extremely refreshing to see such a large group of people, from all points of the community, come together for a community that they clearly care a great deal about.

For those of you out there that don't know, CityPlan is an initiative of the City of Vancouver that engages community residents to develop a "plan" (with City support) that is then used to help guide future decisions affecting the particular community. In this case Hastings-Sunrise. CityPlan initiatives include such things as inventory and improvements in housing choices, shopping areas, traffic issues, parks and public places. The Hastings-Sunrise community extends (approximately) from Grandview Highway to Burrard Inlet and from Boundary Road to Naniamo.

While I can't really give justice here to everyone that set up a display or all groups that presented, meeting attendees were provided brief updates from sub-committee representatives in areas including:

1. Hastings-Sunrise Public Realm (described as those "things" outside of buildings).

2. The Neighbourhood Centers Program ( a department within the city that has money for such initiatives as community public realm).

3. Hastings-Sunrise Housing Sub-Committee (exploring density issues and looking at housing issues that will help attract people to the area).

4. Hastings-Sunrise Traffic Sub-Committee (works with the city to try and solve the most troubling traffic issues in the community)

5. Living in Communities (a group that works with the community to address issues surrounding the sex trade).

6. Hastings Park Conservancy (an organization dedicated to the re-greening of Hastings Park)

7. East Vancouver Port Lands (a joint effort between the city, Port Authority and the Burrard View community to address issues involving port lands).

8. North End Action Team (a group of residents from the "Forgotten Triangle")

9. Light Water Drums.

10. Hastings Elementary School (celebrating 100 years).

This meeting turned out to be an extremely informative and worthwhile way to spend an otherwise dreary Monday evening. As a relative newcomer to the community, the passion that I encountered here only served to strengthen my own resolve to do more. So, over the coming weeks I will try and find more information about the various groups within this community of ours and introduce them to you here but, in the meantime you may want to mark a couple of dates on your calendars:

Hastings-Sunrise CityPlan Committee Meeting - Monday Nov 27, 7pm @ Hastings Community Center

Hastings-Sunrise Traffic Subcommittee Meeting - Tuesday Nov 7, 7pm @ Hastings Community Center

Hastings-Sunrise Public Realm Subcommittee - Wednesday Nov 15, 7pm @ Hastings Community Center

For More information on the Hastings-Sunrise Community Vision and its various subcommittees, go to www.vancouver.ca/visions

2006-10-20T20:58:00.000-07:00

Hastings-Sunrise Community Meeting 23 October 2006

Want to learn more about what's going on in your community? This Monday October 23 is your opportunity to get involved. Join the Hastings-Sunrise CityPlan Committee at the Hastings Community Center at 6:30 pm for the 2nd Annual community meeting and you can learn more about:

1. Crime and Safety Initiatives
2. Traffic Calming Proposals
3. Greening and Public Realm Initiatives
4. The Neighbourhood Centers Program and
5. The status of planning in East Vancouver's Port Lands.

Don't miss your chance to provide suggestions and participate in some of the great initiatives designed to preserve and make our community safer. I look forward to seeing you there!

Monday. October 23 2006, 6:30 pm

Hastings Community Center

3096 East Hastings Street

2006-10-06T16:34:00.000-07:00

time to get moving...Gateway Consultation Wednesday 11 Sep 06

I think I've made my feelings pretty clear when it comes to traffic, gridlock and the proposed Gateway Program. As someone who drives the Number 1 and creeps up to the Port Mann with some regularity, I think improvements are way past due. But whether you commute or not, Gateway is important to Vancouver-Hastings residents and therefore it is important that we all understand the truth about the project.

Current estimates put the population of the Greater Vancouver area at just over 2 million, this is set to increase to 3 million by 2031. In order to get these people moving, in a city with a less than perfect transit system we are increasing the number of cars purchased each year by about 20 000. The result is a 30% increase in commute times over the past decade. What is your time worth to you?

Our BC Government is taking some desperately needed steps to correct a transportation infrastructure that really hasn't been touched since the 1980's. Despite what you may hear, increased capacity on roads and bridges is critical to allow an increase in buses, light rail and other transportation alternatives. You can't have one without the other! Further, increased capacity on roads leading into Vancouver will not mean increased traffic in Vancouver-Hastings since studies show that growth in Vancouver residents working outside of the city exceeds suburban residents working in the city by 9 to 1. Gateway is going to help many of us Vancouver-Hastings residents get to our jobs (outside of the city) and home again quicker and more safely.

The Gateway program is a long overdue initiative that will allow our critical infrastructure to meet current requirements and future growth in transportation alternatives. It is also critical to moving goods quickly throughout the lower mainland, the province and the country, but perhaps most importantly it will allow us to get home to our families more quickly, spending our time where it is needed most.

Be a part of this exciting project. Come out to learn more and support our government, the Ministry of Transportation and the Gateway Program this Wednesday Oct 11 between 6 and 9 pm at the Italian Cultural Center (2610 S Grandview Highway). If you can't make it on Wednesday, be sure to complete the online feedback form available at www.gatewayprogram.bc.ca

2006-10-06T14:38:00.000-07:00

Don't miss this Opportunity to make your voice heard!!!

Its now been a week since the Premier launched the BC governments "Conversation on Health" and during this past week I've heard surprisingly little positive feedback (in the media at least) about a program that will allow all British Columbians, from all corners of the province and from all points of the political spectrum, the opportunity to contribute towards the solution to a very real problem. A problem that, left alone will likely end up consuming 70% of every tax dollar in the province by 2017.

I can understand how some people may be skeptical. British Columbians may not be used to a government willing to listen to their concerns. We like our government where it belongs, tucked away in Victoria out of sight out of mind. By keeping them there "we" are always able to stay one step ahead of them. Because "we" are out here "we" know what the real problem with health care is and "we" can only assume that "they" also know the true nature of the problem (As announced by one reporter at the Premiers announcement and a Province reader in an Oct 3 letter).

Unlike the above mentioned reader, I am an idiot (I guess) because I don't know what the problem with health care is! But I'd like to find out. My exposure to the system is limited to the 3 or 4 emergency hospital visits that I've had to make due to my oldest son's asthma. Each time we were treated quickly and with the utmost care and so, based on my own experience I would have to say that the system is working fine! Isn't it?

Obviously my experience is hardly indicative of the system as a whole and that is exactly the point to the "Conversation on Health". To allow our government to get out into the community (literally and figuratively) to gain a sense of everyone's experience(s) and gather suggestions to ensure a sustainable system for us, our children and our grandchildren.

The problem, so far at least, with the critics is that while they are not afraid to tell us how much they hate the idea or that it will cost too much money, their criticisms (as usual) fall short on providing constructive solutions to the problem. For this reason I implore everyone who reads this to get involved. You have been given the chance to make a difference and if we truly care about our health care system, we will support our government by providing it with our honest concerns and constructive suggestions for change.

As Health Minister George Abbott has said "The challenges we face in health care today are not BC Liberal Challenges; they are not NDP challenges; they're challenges for all governments and all society". To get involved and make your voice(s) heard with respect to health care in British Columbia:

make a comment... http://www.bcconversationonhealth.ca/EN/405/89

sign up for a forum... www.bcconversationonhealth.ca/EN/402/510

or email your support... ConversationonHealth@Victoria1.gov.bc.ca

2006-09-19T14:52:00.000-07:00

another reason to quit?

By now one would have to assume that almost everyone knows all of the very compelling health benefits to quitting smoking. Longer life must be an appealing concept to most of us, but in case anyone out there needs another reason to kick the habit, why not consider the negative impact that tobacco use has on our environment?

According to an article in Vancouver's 24 Hours on Monday, clean up crews at East Vancouver's own Trout Lake have picked up an astonishing 208 000 cigarette butts from the shoreline over the past year. In my own relentless efforts to make my workplace go tobacco free, I've learned a bit more about the large and ugly footprint left on our planet by the cultivation and use of tobacco products.

Cigarette butts are made of cellulose acetate, a material with extremely poor biogradability which means that we are stuck with them for an awefully long time. In 2003 in the United States, San Diego's Sonoma Beach decided to go completely smoke free. Prior to that, like our own Trout Lake, officials estimated that 50 to 60% of the beaches litter consisted of cigarette butts. In Canada, some 2 billion empty cigarette packages and 50 billion butts are thrown away (many carelessly) every year and worldwide, it is estimated that 954 million kilograms of butts are discarded annually.

Without even getting into the further environmental damage caused through the cultivation of tobacco, again I have to ask... Do you really need another reason to quit smoking?

2006-09-17T20:55:00.000-07:00

what are you waiting for?

This past Saturday my two boys and I decided to take the bus up to Hastings where we took care of some errands and dropped in at a bicycle and pedestrian safety fair that was being held at the Community Policing Center. On the way home we walked back to Renfrew to catch the bus but unfortunately I was so busy reading a pamphlet that I'd got at the fair that we missed it pass by. With a bit more than a little persuasion I managed to convince the boys that it would actually be quicker, and better for us to walk home than wait the 15 minutes for the next bus.

But that's me in a nutshell. I will always walk to the next bus stop and even the stop after, rather than wait and its a trait that I hope my kids will take from me.

Last week Finance Minister Carole Taylor warned British Columbians of the impending doom that health care spending will bring to the provincial budget if something is not done. She predicted that by the year 2017 health care will gobble up 70 cents of each dollar that our BC government spends. I don't know about you but this disturbs the hell out of me.

But take a look around you. Are you really surprised that 50% of adult Canadians are over weight and that some 63% of us are not active enough to get any real health benefits from the few activities we do? The fact is that when it comes to health care most of us believe that it is our fundamental right to universal and unrestricted services. We are worried sick about the possibility of a two-tiered system and any increases in our premiums. The question then is, why are so few of us willing to do anything to actually help sustain the system? A perfect example is the fact that less than 3% of eligible adults in this country donate blood. I find this astonishing.

There can be no denying the fact that universal health care is a distinctly Canadian institution that is worth preserving. But if the system is to survive, a lot more of us are going to have to start walking a bit more rather than waiting that 15 minutes for the next bus to come.

2006-09-17T11:48:00.000-07:00

here's to big tobacco

Quite possibly the hardest thing that I have ever done was to quit smoking but, after nearly 15 years of carelessly puffing away, I finally began to realize just how stupid the whole thing was. It didn't hurt that at 33 I was having trouble walking up stairs without losing my breath and often kept myself awake at night listening to my own wheezing. So after about 8 tries I quit and now, 3 years later I couldn't feel better.

I am now one of those dreaded ex-smokers. While I don't usually preach to people who still smoke (it never worked for me), I do advocate for the complete ban of smoking anywhere that me or my family may be exposed to it and I applaud our provincial government for its stance on tobacco.

Last Friday the BC government won a landmark victory over the multi-national tobacco giants. The BC Court of Appeal has rendered a unanimous verdict that will allow our province the right to sue for recovery of tobacco-related health care costs. I couldn't be happier about this ruling and I sincerely hope that this is the final nail in the coffins of big tobacco in this province.

Tobacco use in our province accounts for approximately $1.25 billion in health care costs and it kills nearly 6000 British Columbians every year. Some of these have never smoked! Given the challenges that we currently face and projected costs in BC, I think its great that we may have found an innovative new way to finance health care. The only thing better to me would be an outright ban on tobacco!

2006-09-11T20:28:00.000-07:00

I don't know how many times I've heard critics of our government accuse the BC Liberals of lacking in imagination? I for one have been impressed, on more than one occasion, by the unusual yet progressive ideas that I've seen coming from Victoria.

Last week Premier Campbell announced a plan to cancel the fall session of the Legislature in favour of a road trip that will bring public meetings to communities through-out the province. As the Premier explained it, "This is a thoughtful way of proceeding with the public's business.", and I couldn't agree more. I for one welcome the notion of public processes taking place in the presence of the public.

Of course the NDP is aghast at the idea claiming that the move is simply a tactic designed to avoid accountability. (Forgetting of course that during their decade at the helm they only held two fall sessions) But who is the government expected to be most accountable to? This is an excellent example of leadership from the front and I suspect that the truth of the matter is simply that the opposition has finally accepted what polls have been saying for a while and that is that the NDP is no longer as welcome in the trenches as it once was.

2006-09-08T20:47:00.000-07:00

...the huck...

In my last blog I mentioned how a recent trip to Silver Star saw nearly everyone in our group overcome either a specific obstacle, or a component of riding in general that we were having trouble with. For me it was the "Huck", and I am so happy about licking this that I thought I'd share a few different "hucks" in this pictorial tribute.

While none of us are yet able to huck in the manner of say, Wade Simmons (we did have a lot of laughs at the expense of another "Simmons"), a few of us did manage some respectable air time and had a blast in the process. So here it is...the huck!

Sorry folks, I've got a lot more huck pictures to share but I believe that I've realized the limit to either blogger or my technical expertise. Doesn't want to post any more! Oh well, stay tuned 'cause next time we'll explore another exciting component of mountain biking...the skinny...