Baby Penguins are freezing to death in the Antarctic because it’s raining. Starbucks are closing in the hundreds and people are starting petitions to save them rather than realizing that it would be faster to just invest in a cheap coffee maker and a can of MJB. The Pope’s sorry for Catholic priests buggering kids – for God knows how long. Obviously an apology makes everything better. The Americans will probably have to issue some half assed apology to the Iraqis at some point as well, ...More »

I'm a big believer in corporate responsibility. That is, I think big corporations should reach out and do more for people in their communities, or use whatever means they have to contribute positively towards society. Surprisingly, the Vancouver technology scene is fairly active in this area, and I've witnessed many technology-driven events in this city geared towards feeding people in the Lower East Side, helping acquire clothing, etc. So today, I was rather pleased to see an announcement from one of the largest technology ...More »

Today the government of British Columbia announced that it’s spending $23.7 million dollars on purchasing six more hotels on the Downtown Lower Eastside that will be converted into affordable housing. In total, the Province has purchased 16 such hotels. Dave Eby weighed in on the government's purchases in a recent Vancouver Sun article. Of course, it sounds fantastic in theory until you delve into how much property in comparison is being snatched up for private development purposes. Meanwhile, the Canadian Navy has announced that it will be ...More »

I came across the following comment left in response to an article on the Tyee regarding homelessness in British Columbia, particularly Vancouver… “An avalanche of stories on the homeless and the left is bankrupt of any practical ideas. The left calls for housing and treating them in Vancouver, perpetuating the slum we know as the DTES. We in the real world know that Vancouver real estate is far too expensive to justify the economic cost of housing them. Don't even talk about the NIMBY's who'll kill ...More »

Two pops, to acoustic echoes, just around the corner someone was dead in a van. It’s the sixth homicide in town this year and we’re only thirty six odd days into it… “Vancouver recorded its sixth homicide of 2008 Friday when a man was shot dead while sitting in his van at the 300 block of Carrall Street in the city's infamous Downtown Eastside. The Vancouver Police Department's major crime and forensic identification teams have launched an investigation into the incident, which occurred at around 6:30 p.m. ...More »

According to an article in today’s Globe & Mail, one third of all calls made to the Vancouver City Police have to do with dealing with individuals who are mentally ill. For those of you that are in the dark, we spent the last two decades emptying out our long-term mental facilities and placing people on the streets. I suppose, to some, the streets seemed just as good a place as any to dump those that require long-term care. After all, we can’t dare ask taxpayers ...More »

It’s raining, dark; the streets empty and the doorways filled. On the streets you have to wait it out, try to stay dry, try to find somewhere sheltered from it so that maybe you can catch a few hours of sleep in the hopes that it will have stopped. I needed laundry detergent yesterday. I went around corner to the store. In Blood Alley something was happening; three squad cars, two officers pulling shot guns out of their trunks. No idea what it was about, ...More »

They stroll the streets and alleys adorned in their bright yellow security jackets – but they’re not Police Officers, they’re members of a private security firm hired to patrol the neighbourhood. Despite their mandate from the local business association that hired them, they have absolutely no legal authority, cannot lawfully touch another person, ask them questions, ask them for identification, or ask them to ‘move along’ when on public property. But you see, around here the law might as well be written on wet toilet ...More »

December 5th, 2007. A small candlelight vigil is held for the victims at the corner of East Cordova and Columbia on Vancouver’s downtown Eastside. The jury in the Pickton trial reached a verdict this morning. He was found guilty on six counts of second-degree murder. Pickton was, of course, originally charged with six counts of first-degree murder. In Canada, first-degree murder is defined as follows: “First degree murder is a murder which is (1) planned and deliberate, (2) contracted, (3) where the victim is an identified peace ...More »

Vancouver, being a coastal city surrounded by mountains, has one of the most moderate climates in all of Canada. The average temperature in the summer probably hovers around 20C or so, and in the winter, rarely drops below 0C. Last time I checked, only one out of every five Christmases in Vancouver is white. And despite the relatively warm temperatures here, walking the streets of this city in winter you'll see the homeless struggling to keep warm, often forced to cover themselves with newspapers, ...More »