Category Archives: Thoughts

Municipal, Poverty, Snafu

‘Public’ facilities not very public accessible

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I ran into an acquaintance I had not seen in a while who, knowing how I feel about City council’s priorities and behaviours, felt I would provide a sympathetic ear to his need to vent.

Both he and his wife work and even though they are frugal it is difficult to make ends meet these days – a struggle an ever increasing number of Canadians and Abbotsford citizens share.

The fees the City of Abbotsford charges for the use of its athletic fields has pushed the cost of playing soccer (and other sports) to the level that, while they might be able scrimp enough to pay for one child, paying for two kids is not possible. Leaving, in fairness, none of the kids playing soccer.

I pointed out that council needed as many dollars as possible to pay the multi-million dollar subsidies for council’s ego/vanity projects – the ASEC and Abbotsford’s professional hockey team – and their subsidizing the purchase of a professional hockey team for a group of well connected citizens.

His reply involved several anatomically challenging, if not out and out impossible, suggestions. When he inquired as to how one qualifies for City subsidies to purchase a professional hockey team I had to inform him that since the makeup of the ‘ownership group’ was deemed knowledge to important (to damning?) to let the taxpayers (the people footing the bills for all the multi-million dollar subsidies) know, there was no way to know the relationship between councillors and the Heat ownership.

Sadly he is not the only person I know who has children that cannot participate in sports because of the cost Abbotsford charges to use its fields. Growing numbers of young people are being denied participation in sports activities because their families cannot afford the fees.

Ironic is it not? The airwaves are full of government advertisements about the fact children need 60 minutes of physical activity a day to be healthy and the City of Abbotsford is making it impossible for growing numbers of children to participate in physical exercise.

Personally, I think that a City’s priority should be the participation of young people in sports and activities. If we are going to give multi-million dollars subsidies to sports facilities it should be facilities for the young and other citizens – not for professional athletes and certainly not to subsidize the purchase of a professional hockey team by well connected citizens.

But then I also think that the purpose of public recreation facilities is to provide an affordable place for citizens to exercise. Unlike the current council which uses public facilities as another source of funds to subsidize (to the tune of several millions of dollars per year) a facility for professional athletes to use and to provide multi-million dollars yearly subsidies for the purchase of the professional hockey team.

Council talks about the need for amenities to attract new citizens to Abbotsford and to encourage young people to remain in Abbotsford rather than moving elsewhere. Yet the fee’s council charges for the use of amenities are prohibitive.

There is no difference between having no amenities and having amenities nobody can afford to use or can afford to use only infrequently.

That is why in Abbotsford, in the good old days before this spendthrift council, a monthly or yearly membership for the use of city facilities was the lowest (or among the lowest) in the city.

These days, under this spendthrift council, the prices at city facilities are the highest (or among the highest) and fewer and fewer families and citizens can afford to use city facilities.

I have been, until now, a pass holder and regular user of city pools to swim. I have watched as those I had shared the city facilities with over the years became members of private facilities (as I would have if one of them had an appropriately sized pool) – because membership at a private facilities is many $$$$$ less.

I have lost count of how often I have been told by other citizens and families how extremely limited their ability to use ‘public’ amenities have become because of admission costs.

In other cities, the city facilities ensure the general public access to regular exercise and the private facilities are the haunts of the better off who can afford higher fees.

In Abbotsford it is the private facilities that best ensure the general public’s access to exercise, while the city facilities are the haunts of those who can afford the fees at city facilities.

But then in other cities, city facilities are to serve the needs of citizens and not the need of council to pay for its ego/vanity projects.

Caveat emptor, Consider, Federal, Media, Municipal, Provincial

Unpalatable perhaps – but REALITY none the less.

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Reality does not care what you want to be fact, reality does not care what you believe to be fact, Reality simply is what IS fact. Tao of James

I wanted to speak of a reality I have no doubt many will Howl about, deny or want to argue about. Which is fine with me – as long as you read the entire comment and think about why I made the statement of Reality IS in fact – as defined by our actions – not our words but our actions.

It is a source of pride for many of Abbotsford’s citizens that Abbotsford has a reputation as the Bible Belt, a very Christian city. False pride as a recent event and the reaction and behaviour of Abbotsford citizens to that event have compellingly proven.

Despite its diverse multicultural and multi-faith nature British Columbia also considers itself a predominantly Christian province. Here also the reaction and behaviour of the citizens of BC to that recent event prove compellingly that British Columbians are clearly deluding themselves as to any relationship between BC and Christianity.

Many Canadians think of Canada as being a Christian nation, a nation of Christian values. Again the reaction and behaviour of Canadians to that recent event have compellingly proven that Canada is demonstrably neither Christian nor does it honour Christian values.

Mr Harper and his Conservatives like to wrap themselves in their moral superiority as Christians. However the depravity of Mr Harper and his Conservatives recent spiritually corrupt behaviour makes clear that the ‘christianity’ of Mr Harper and his Conservatives is merely “sheep’s clothing’ to make them more electable and has nothing to do with Christ’s teachings.

What was this singular event?

It was Mr Harper stating he and his Conservatives are comfortable exporting death because it is profitable (and undoubtedly helpful in gaining seats in the House in the region of Quebec mining and exporting the asbestos).

Remember you cannot use asbestos in any form in Canada; should you disturb asbestos in a building you must call in specialists to remove the asbestos – wearing full environmental suits, using airlocks and special air filtration units to remove the asbestos from the air, showering off the suits and washing all surfaces down to prevent any asbestos from spreading or being left; and asbestos must be properly packaged up and disposed of in an approved disposal site.

All of this because asbestos is a highly hazardous and toxic material that causes asbestosis, cancer and death.

Yet Canada is exporting asbestos, along with its travelling companions – asbestosis, cancer and death because it is profitable – and opens a political opportunity for Mr Harper and his Conservatives.

What makes Mr Harper and his Conservative’s demonstrated distain for human life even more abhorrent, is the fact that Chrysotile asbestos will not be listed as a hazardous industrial chemical that can be banned from import after Canada helped block consensus, despite the fact that the scientific review body of the Rotterdam Convention recommended the inclusion of “white” asbestos on health grounds..

For Christians the question is what Christ would do and say about this export of death for profit and political advantage?

Christ would undoubtedly speak of the need to forgive and love those who engage or allow this trade in death; to pray that those dealing in death or permitting this trading in death find their way out of the darkness and into the light – putting an end to the exporting of death.

But would a Being who preached and lived not just loving your neighbour as yourself, but to love your enemies; to do unto others as you would have them do unto you; spoke not of vengeance, harming or killing others but of forgiveness and love find exporting death for money tolerable?

No.

This export of death is behaviour that is abhorrent to anyone, any being or Being, with honour, integrity and ethics – and to any true Christian.

The actions of Mr Harper and his Conservatives since they first formed the Government of Canada have demonstrated that while Mr Harper and his Conservatives may speak of morals or integrity or ethics, they will not let anything stand in the way of political power for them. Thus it is no real surprise that with a political advantage to be had Mr Harper and his Conservatives will not only support the export of the suffering and death that goes with asbestos, but bloc international attempts to protect people around the world from this export of death that may interfere with their political power and goals.

Mr Harper’s statements were made on the day the riot in Vancouver occurred. The airwaves were filled with hours of broadcasting on what was and had occurred on the streets of Vancouver; with righteous indignation, condemnation, outrage……..

For what was, when all is said and done, damage to property, ego and a black eye for Vancouver’s self-image, image and reputation.

And about Canada exporting asbestosis, cancer and death – Silence.

The people of Abbotsford were not lined up outside Ed Fast’s office to demand an end to this trading in death; they were not jamming his phone lines nor stuffing his email to demand an end to this trading in death; they were not demanding that city council pass a motion condemning the export of death and demanding an end to this trading in death.

The so called ‘christian’ leadership in Abbotsford (BC and across Canada) were silent, apparently undisturbed by the blood of innocents that stains the hands of all Canadians with this exporting of death.

Neither the people of BC nor Canadians were demanding their municipal or provincial governments condemn and demand an end to the export of death; there were NO demonstrations demanding an end to the export of death.

On the question of Christianity in Abbotsford, British Columbia and Canada we have arrived at a syllogism:

To those who practice the teachings and behaviours of Christ, Canada’s export of death is abhorrent, corrupt and depraved and must be strongly, loudly, continually opposed until Canada’s export of death is ended.

Outside of a very few, the reaction in Abbotsford, British Columbia and Canada was/is quiet acceptance of the continued trade in death.

Outside of a very few, the silence in Abbotsford, British Columbia and Canada evidences the lack of those who practice the teachings and behaviours of Christ and are Christian in deeds, not hollow words.

Caveat emptor, Consider

Thoughts on the Vancouver Riots.

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As Ye sow so shall Ye reap.

There are those who point to the size of the crowd as the reason for the riots in Vancouver following game 7 of the Stanley Cup final.

I suspect that even if you only had 50,000 (or just 25,000) people downtown you would have had a riot.

The problem did (does) not lie in the size of the crowd but in the people who make up the crowd.

The images that have allowed, and are continuing to allow, the identification of the rioters, arsonists and looters have made it clear that the common factor the participants share is youth.

Among the first people identified turned out to be: a member of the Canadian junior water polo team with a scholarship to the U of Calgary, a UBC student athlete, someone employed with a good work record….. They were not Anarchists as first claimed by authorities they were……. just youth, many of whom would have been labelled ‘good kids’ or even ‘accomplished kids’.

Which raises the question – what is going on with youth today that ‘good kids’ are rioting, setting cars on fire and looting?

I could talk about how my parents instilled a sense of honour, integrity and ethics where that kind of behaviour was and remains unacceptable. I could talk about how manners and responsible behaviour were drilled into me by actions such as having to sit down and hand write thank you notes for Christmas gifts or the requirement to use please and thank you when asking for something. Or how….

Some would argue that it is the pace of life, the fact both parents often are working, how stressful life is today……

And there is some validity in those points.

Still…….consider the following….

People complain about the failure to respect others property demonstrated by the rioters. But how can we expect young Canadians to have any respect for anything when Canada has a prime minister who, on the very day of the riot, refused to ban the export of slow painful death to developing nations.

You cannot sell or use asbestos in Canada and if you disturb asbestos you must call in removal specialists to remove the asbestos and it has to be disposed of in special disposal sites. That is how hazardous and deadly asbestos is considered in Canada.

Yet the prime minister not only refused to ban the sale of asbestos – which causes asbestosis, cancer and death – to the developing world, the prime minister was having Canada oppose a UN motion that would require the export of asbestos to be accompanied by a warning on the deadly health affect of asbestos.

When it was revealed that prime minister Harper sees nothing wrong with the export of asbestos for profit because it can perhaps win his party a seat in parliament, what were Canadian’s reactions to the news Canada was in the business of exporting death?

Yawn.

When the Chinese where found to have been shipping goods made with lead paint to Canada there were demands the government stop the import of items from China with lead paint – and indignation that China would ship dangerous materials to Canada.

Yet apparently the Canadian public and their elected officials see nothing wrong in exporting asbestos, a far more hazardous material that causes asbestosis, cancer and death.

It is not acceptable for other countries to export hazardous materials to Canada, yet it acceptable for Canada to export hazardous, cancerous and death causing materials to other countries.

How can we expect young people to have respect for people, their possessions or anything when our country and society accepts the export of asbestos and death as business as usual?

Some complain that in their angry frenzy the mob of youth running riot in downtown Vancouver gave no thought to the costs and consequences of their actions, inflicting millions of dollars of damage.

I wonder where they could have learned that behaviour?

Perhaps from the anti-HST leadership? Who in a fit of pique and/or making public mischief have set out to extinguish the HST without giving any thought to the costs and consequences. Or extinguish the HST while in wilful denial of the costs and consequences. Or worst of all extinguish the HST while ignoring the negative, multi-billion dollar consequences and costs to BC’s budget, healthcare and education of extinguishing the HST.

How many have said that those young people had failed to consider the far reaching, long term negative consequences would have on the brightness of their futures?

What bright futures?

I know that most of those among the ‘older or preceding generations’ are in strong, wilful denial but the reality is that we, those older and preceding generations, have – in self centered thoughtlessness – consumed the future of the youth of today.

Most politicians and Canadians are in a state of wilful and strong denial of this reality but, from the Tao of James: reality does not care what you believe is, reality does not care what you want to be, reality simply IS.

While we may not want to face the unpalatable reality that not only are we the first generation that is handing the next generation less than we were handed by preceding generations, but in our insatiable thirst for more, more, more….. we have consumed the future and stuck the kids with the bill for our excesses.

So before we go pointing fingers or shaking our heads or lamenting the actions of the mob and wondering ‘how could or why would they do that?” we had better consider the lessons we have taught and the society we have built with our choices and behaviours.

A society where profit and political advantage are more valuable/important that human life (exporting asbestosis, cancer and death); where childish temper tantrums where the consequences are ignored – or worse, to H*ll with the consequences is raging (HST) and the older generations have sold the future of youth to pay for their own life style and excesses

All our posturing, denial, excuse making and high sounding words really are meaningless, other than to highlight the hypocrisy of our society, when you look at the actions of our society.

It is not simply a matter of ” Actions speak louder than words” but also of “Every society should be considered as having a right to the character which it deserves; that is, to be spoken of according to its actions.”.

Perhaps, in light of our own actions, behaviours and the society that has resulted from those actions and behaviours, we should not be surprised that it happened, but that it does not happen more often.

Perhaps the question we should be asking is not “how could they” but rather what changes in our behaviours do we need to make to set a good example for young Canadians.