Provocations

Why Canada's international image lies in tatters

"I think climate change is doing to Canada's international image what whaling has done to Japan's."

Canada's getting growing criticism for its retarded attitude towards handling climate change. News reports only add confusion with their sound bytes. Here's a brief, direct and (I think) informed outline of why Canada is seen as an obstacle to action:

An igloo in your back yard? The classic how-to video

In this hemisphere, winter is arriving - and here in BC, lots of snow with it. What better way to feel good than to build your own house from the white stuff? Here's a classic how-to video from the archives of Canada's National Film Board.

The Kaslo Food Security Project

A good example of a community approach to food security:

Planting the Seeds from Hadas Levy on Vimeo.

David Simon's 'The Wire' lays it bare

Still think there might be some value to "the war on drugs"? I challenge you to watch this video and still have some justification for that thought.

Think the war on drugs is BS but can't articulate very clearly why? Watch this video.

Wonder why inner-city stuff seems predictable and stuck? Wonder what's going on in the "world's most livable city" - Vancouver - where every few days a gang member is killed?  How will that end up?

Who really cares?

Sick of reading stats and hearing platitudes?

Watch this video. It's well-presented.

Then, you may well decide to watch the second half.

"When television history is written," one critic says, "Little else will rival 'The Wire.'"And when historians come to tell the story of America in our time, I'll wager they will not be able to ignore this remarkable and compelling portrayal of life in our cities.  - Bill Moyers.

OK. Enough said.

Harper government's plans to shut prison farms show lack of vision

It's coming up for a week since I sent an e-mail to our local (Kamloops - Thompson - Cariboo) member of parliament, Cathy McLeod. With no acknowledgment or reply yet, I will publish it here as an open letter:

To: Cathy McLeod MP

Greetings,

I've found your presence in this area to be refreshing. While it will take a bit to get me to vote Conservative, your style and apparent substance have had me paying attention and considering dropping in to your 100 Mile Office.

However, today I was reminded of your leader's style of governing and, unfortunately I have to see you in that context. I awoke to the story about the Harper government's plans to shut prison farms and, aside from vague rationalizations, what came thorough to me was meanness, lack of social vision and the blinkers of ideology.

Living in a more rural area, I'm hoping you will understand the folly of this move and perhaps can persuade Mr Harper that there is little to be gained and much to be lost by shutting down these farms. I suspect the ideological drive is a punitive one and a fear of being "soft on crime". However, if people are to leave prison with some hope of success in our society and a reduced likelihood of recidivism, surely it can only help for them to develop the work habits that form the foundation of job success. While I've been a web designer for ten years, for three years I ran a three-acre commercial vegetable garden. I saw how the compulsions of caring for animals and crops created a meaningful framework for some of the young people who worked for me, one in which their actions had clear consequences.

Add to this, the expanding importance of local food supplies and the related value of growing/raising at least some of our own food and I can only wonder: what is he thinking? Please see what you can do to get your leader/party to exercise a little more social vision and keep his eye on the big picture.

The mainstream media has pretty much failed to pick up on this story. Here are a few references added subsequent to the above post:

• Prison workers protest closure of farm programs for inmates
• Canada's prison farm system being phased out - announcement (read comments that follow)
• Prison farm closures imply farming irrelevant: NFU - National Farmers Union responds
• [update June 3, 2009] Union fighting government's plan to close prison farm

Canadian Study: Save thousands by housing the homeless

According to a British Columbia study by academics from Simon Fraser University, the University of B.C. and the University of Calgary, it would save the government $18,000 per person per year to house homeless people.

The report, titled Housing and Support for Adults with Severe Addictions and/or Mental Illness in British Columbia, was commissioned by the Ministry of Health in April 2006 to provide information about adults with addictions and/or mental illness in B.C. - and to determine numbers and associated costs, and to recommend solutions.

Read the full story in the Vancouver Sun

Marijuana movie: 'The Union' - the money and politics behind pot

Unless you have your head in the sand, you probably know that much of what we've been told about the dangers of marijuana are propaganda. Unfortunately this masks any real problems with partaking of this particular herb.  If you haven't given some thought as to who might have vested interests in keeping marijuana illegal, you might be surprised. Here's an interview, courtesy of CBC's The Hour,  with a couple of open-minded lads who were surprised at much of what they found out as they made a movie about marijuana in Canada: 'The Union - The Business Behind Getting High.'

Wildlife needs dead trees

From Wildlife & Trees in British Columbia:

It is important to remember that, under natural conditions, a tree remains part of the forest ecosystem long after its death. It's rate of decay varies according to the species, cause of death, climate and other factors. If left undisturbed by humans, a dead tree may remain standing in the forest for up to half the time it stood while alive. A tree's ecological importance continues as it breaks apart and falls to the ground or after it topples, and eventually all its nutrients are cycled back into the soil to be taken up by new plants.

Grants for independent journalism in British Columbia

I was recently reminded by someone at The Tyee of these excellent grants. Even if you're unlikely to apply or are not eligible, read the full article and see the kind of intelligent journalism The Tyee is encouraging. Closing date is December 15.

New Round of Tyee Fellowships
Journalists invited to apply for $5000 grants.
By David Beers
Published: October 12, 2007

TheTyee.ca

Last year our readers made it possible to launch an experiment in supporting independent journalism, one that attracted international attention and yielded groundbreaking articles.

We are again inviting applications for Tyee Fellowships in Investigative or Solutions Reporting. The fellowships are $5000 each, and go to independent journalists wanting to report a series of articles that educate citizens about important issues in British Columbia.

Here's one example from a previous award winner:

No Fares! Time for a free ride on public transit. Transit activist, consultant and writer Dave Olsen made a detailed case for eliminating fares on public transit, citing success stories in Washington State, Belgium and elsewhere. The series attracted so much attention it crashed The Tyee site, and gleaned tens of thousands more readers when it was picked up on the U.S. Alternet.org site.

Other winning articles:

• Rough Weather Ahead: How global warming will hit BC
• Reconciling with First Nations: How the 'New Relationship' is faring in the Fraser Valley

Read the full Tyee article

Old-fashioned "progress" in Delta, British Columbia

Another paradise to be paved for not much more than a parking lot. innocently entitled "The Fraser Perimeter Road". To those who don't live in the area, this may seem a local matter. For your own sake, remind your politicians that we are running out of fossil fuel and a viable planet and that it's time to find alternatives to building more highways.

In that light, take a look at what is happening to the community of Delta, just south of Vancouver - all in the name of "progress" and under that grand-sounding title of "The Pacific Gateway project".

"Widening roads to overcome congestion is like loosening our belt to solve obesity."   John Norquist, former mayor of Milwaukee & president of the Congress for New Urbanism