Other posts related to vancouver

Bruce Allen’s Reality Check on Mayor Gregor Robertson Post Canuck Game 7 Loss Riot 2011

| June 16, 2011 12:24

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I wholeheartedly agree with Bruce Allen (like I usually do). I didn’t like Robertson even before he took office. I remember the Christmas holidays of ’08 when he first got elected Mayor. A slightly unexpected snowstorm hit Vancouver and the streets were just covered in heaps of snow. He was no where to be found or to be made reachable. He was enjoying his winter vacation before taking office. From that minor incident, I knew this guy is not the type that would put the city first. It has become quite apparent that he is self-serving and autocratic.

Oh yes! Remember the embarrassing skytrain incident with Robertson even before the election? He tried to deflect his fare evasion by staging some complaint against the transit system. Attempting to divert the fact that he was evading his fare by pointing another issue about the ‘unfairness’ of the system. Robertson basically got elected because it was a two horse race between him and Ladner.

Robertson inherited the Olympic games and a well-run city from an outgoing paraplegic mayor, Sam Sullivan, who showed way more heart and sensible service to the city.

Enough about Robertson. The Chief VPD, Jim Chu, also has some explaining to do. Poor and incompetent Police Intelligence to blame? I’m not only referring to their failure to control the crowd, but their inability to predict the expected and speculate the magnitude of a post-game riot–win or lose. This cat was too frail to do anything to contain the mice problem. All they could do is just let the mice run amok until they all slowly retreated back into the holes they came from.

Last night’s gathering was a perfect opportunity for anarchists and thieves to plan and execute their heist. And most of the idiots who got caught up and on cameras were stupid teenage kids taking souvenirs just for the fun of it.

And don’t expect too much after the fact. All this talk of “We’re going to identify all these perpetrators and charge them to the fullest extent of the law.” Yeah, okay. Sounds like an uphill battle. Actually, it is an uphill battle. Getting the courts in this province to impose the law is as tough as the Canucks winning the Stanley Cup.

So, will heads roll? I doubt it. Robertson won’t resign. He will have to be voted out in the next one (if he’s running again.) And for Chief Chu, I don’t think there’s anyone else that could step up and fill his role. That’s it, folks. And there you have it, Vancouver’s ‘finest’.

Animals in Captivity Debate Refueled by Recent Baby Beluga Death

| June 24, 2010 11:46

“Animals in captivity debate refueled” was the latest headline sparked by a recent death of a baby beluga whale, Nala, at the Vancouver’s Aquarium. This is the seventh baby whale to have died at the aquarium. This death has also prompted more calls to end the ongoing captivity of whales and dolphin in Stanley Park. The cause of the death was an “accumulation of fluid in the lungs”, and also found were two small stones and a penny swallowed by the baby whale.

A group called No Whales in Captivity is hoping that the Vancouver Park Board will allow Vancouverites to vote on the issue of keeping whales in captivity by including the referendum question on the ballot in the next civic election in 2011.

Interestingly, the debate was rather split down the line among callers to the CKNW radio show. I was fascinated to hear the rationale from those who sided in keeping animals in captivity. Their arguments for were either for education or for (affordable) entertainment. One caller cited the educational value by allowing children to see these animals live in person so that they can aspire to working with animals later on–particularly endangered species. Another caller justified the need for keeping the whales because most families could not afford the whale watching experience offered by local tour companies. The cost to do so could be upwards to a thousand dollars per family. A thousand dollars for a family trip whale watching may actually be cheaper than taking the family to watch the Canucks play!

Whatever the excuses are, I don’t see any real justification to keeping any animal in captivity. Perhaps it’s because I never was astonished as a kid being at the zoo or aquarium. Actually, the aquarium is pretty cool, but that’s about my excitement towards these tours. I remember dreading field trips to the zoo as a child. I didn’t care to see the lions, rhinos, elephants, crocs… Nothing piqued my curiosity. I was more intrigued watching them on the wildlife documentaries on TV than seeing them in the flesh lying in one spot at the zoo. There is nothing exciting and majestic about seeing animals in artificial environments. And how does all this translate to saving the animals?

June 22 was two years since George Carlin passed away. This recent debate reminded me of stand-up he did on “saving the planet”. I couldn’t agree more.

The End of Barwatch or Just the End of Barwatch as We Know it?

| July 22, 2009 12:19

It’s official! BC’s Information and Privacy Commissioner, David Loukidelis, has ruled against Vancouver’s Barwatch Program and to cease the scanning of patron’s IDs as a condition for entering the establishments. The Commissioner Office, however, is leaving the door open for consultations with Barwatch.

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BC’s Information and Privacy Commissioner Has Ruled Against Barwatch

| July 21, 2009 16:41

BC’s Information and Privacy Commissioner has ruled against Vancouver’s Barwatch Program.

The commissioner has ruled that patron’s ID’s cannot be scanned nor photo’s taken as a condition for entering the bar.

Awaiting further updates on this breaking story!

For a background on this issue, read my original post on Ima Lush Blog.

Diana Krall – Quiet Nights Concert in Vancouver

| May 18, 2009 20:16

So, I went to see Diana Krall last Thursday night. What can I say, amazing singer, pianist, and band… but the overall experience was lousy. I had a hunch that it was going to be a bad experience and I was right. A week prior, I saw Diana Krall featured on her husband’s show (Spectacle: Elvis Costello With…) as a guest.

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The STVerdict!

| May 14, 2009 10:32

Some other arguments I’ve tallied since my last post on this issue.

In large rural constituencies, it is possible that most or all elected MLAs may come from a major town within that riding. Why? Because most of the voters would come from the same town. The same could apply to city constituencies like in Vancouver, where west side residents are more likely to vote than eastsiders, for example. Thus, electing city councilors from their locale. (This is the same argument of ‘western alienation’ that Western Canada has been clamouring for years!)

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U2, Here We Come!

| April 11, 2009 01:46

U2 BC Place Stadium

So I set my alarm 5 minutes before 10AM awaiting the release of U2 tickets to the public Onsale. Well, there was the option of becoming a (paid) member of the U2 fan club to purchase Presale tickets, but I thought about being a little more adventurous to see if I can snag some decent seats through the trusty and honest Ticketmaster system. So I opened multiple browsers waiting for the stoke of 10.

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12B – A Unique Restaurant Idea

| March 26, 2009 14:05
12B Hallway

12B Hallway

A girlfriend of mine recently celebrated her birthday at some person’s place. Turns out, this person runs a unique dining concept of running a home restaurant. Actually, this concept is not very new… In fact, it’s very old! This is probably the oldest  form of a restaurant.

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