Print Edition: January 8, 2014
Silence!
According to the Globe and Mail, two activists’ presence at a pro-oil speech by Stephen Harper in Vancouver marked a serious blunder in RCMP security. “It wouldn’t be BC without it,” Harper is quoted saying in the article. The activists held up signs behind the PM encouraging “climate justice.”
The two peaceful protesters were allegedly held down on the floor and handcuffed after being escorted from the meeting. A spokesman for the Vancouver Police Department told the press that “charges have yet to be determined.” Charges? For peacefully protesting? As far as I (albeit not an expert) can see, there was no reason to apprehend them — certainly, someone can be politely asked to leave a private event, but to put them in handcuffs is unwarranted. I understand there are security concerns, but the Vancouver Board of Trade president noted their presence was clearly non-threatening.
I applaud their efforts. When apathy seems to be so widespread, it is encouraging to see people willing to stand with peaceful conviction for their beliefs.
A true leader would have commended them for this, regardless of his own opinion, and wouldn’t have brushed them and their concerns aside.
Abbotsford, wake up!
Those who live outside the Fraser Valley label us the “bible belt,” “criminology college,” or “Mennonite mafia.” We’re seen as that pesky lot who won’t vote for legalized marijuana or an NDP government. And in 2010 we were the murder capital of Canada.
But this week I interviewed a dynamic range of movers and shakers that counter our image as BC’s centre for dull conservative thought: humanists, atheists, writers, DJs, musicians, mature and young students, visual artists, and a theatre director. The valley is bursting with hardcore, undeniable talent.
What we’re lacking is a good audience. We have become obsessed with creating special interest groups for the sake of our individual vanity. We are becoming a buzzing sea of megaphones pointed at the cloud. Everyone is talking, no one is listening.
We need to remember that be good at making stuff we need to study how it’s made. Writers need to read, singers need to listen, and actors need to watch.
It’s time that we turn off — or filter out — the silliness on our TV sets and phones. We need to wake up, get out, and start listening!
Mall tribute
December 26, 2013. The day after Christmas. A day full of eating leftover turkey dinner and still being in awe over gifts received. Instead of staying in, I braved the malls for the Boxing Day sales, in spite of the pushing and shoving, volunteering as tribute to go into each store to get the desired advertised items. Well, maybe not that dramatic. However, there were significant crowds to shift through. For many stores, line-ups were forming outside so countless minutes were spent waiting.
As I was trying to make my way from one end of Sevenoaks Mall to the other, I thought to myself, “Why am I doing this?” For those who just exchanged gifts the day prior, you are essentially getting more the day after. It shows how consumerist and materialistic the society we live in is. Regardless of how much we have, we still want more.
What happened to spending time with family instead of spending more money?
Go install a light, Abbotsford!
The intersection is too dangerous, according to a survey completed by the Abbotsford Police Department. That was what the letter that arrived at my house in late December said. For some diabolical reason the great and illustrious City of Abbotsford council has decided to put a concrete barrier at the end of my street, restricting left-turn access to nil. This has officially limited my access into the city and forces me to take long (and far more dangerous) routes into town.
For the record, that intersection is Crossley Drive and Maclure Road. I don’t understand the city’s decision to block left-turn access at this intersection. I don’t see why they can’t put in a light instead to stem the so-called danger.
A common traffic light would not only solve the problem, but also appease the issue of limited city access by the residence of this street. I can’t see the cost being much more (if not less) than paving a barrier with trees and crap down the middle of the street. Not only that, apparently, light sensors are already present in the road, making installation easy to do.
So what the hell, City of Abbotsford. Who ever thought this was a good idea?!
