When Taking Photographs (poem)

When taking photographs,
I merely record what is on the canvas
provided by the world around me.
Whether it is a gorgeous sunset
or city lights dancing on the water,
my purpose is capture the moment.
Even though these pictures are mine,
they are shared freely with my circle of friends.

Japantown in Vancouver (satire)

After the war, all the property in Vancouver (Japantown) was never returned to Japanese-Canadian, except for the Japanese Language School.

While both the government of BC (2012) and of Canada (1989) has given the Japanese an apology, the city of Vancouver had never apologized or returned any of the property stolen in 1941 until this year. Indeed, the apology back in September sounded hollow, as did the BC apology last year.

Federally, $21,000 merely bought votes for the Progressive Conservative Party. Most survivors of Japanese internment camps thought it was a tax rebate.

Though there is news that Japantown will be rebuilt. However, any Japanese-Canadian thinking they'd get it for free is sorely mistaken, even though the city of Vancouver owes us Canadian-born Japanese big time.

I'd only live in Japantown IF it was subsidized housing and the city of Vancouver subsidized a rehab centre for the drug addicts who want to recover, regardless of who you are.

When that new Downtown Eastside housing development gets final hearing, I hope that the new tenants actually care for the people living in the area, apart from their fellow condo owners and shop keepers.

Maybe one of the new tenants of the development might even volunteer for the Lookout Society who manage the homeless shelters near Oppenheimer Park. Hopefully, none of this NIMBY nonsense will go on at this development, but I'll wait and see.

For the homeless and drug addicts of the Downtown Eastside are truly representative of the 99 percent, too.

---

References:

Japantown, Vancouver: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japantown,_Vancouver

Plans for New Downtown Eastside Housing Debated: http://www.vancourier.com/news/plans-for-new-downtown-eastside-housing-debated-1.710755#

Vancouver apologizes for Japanese internment: http://www.vancouversun.com/news/Vancouver+council+apologizes+Japanese+Canadians+1942+support+internment/8958222/story.html

BC government apologizes to Japanese Canadians: http://www.straight.com/news/bc-government-apologizes-internment-japanese-canadians

Another Rant about Good and Evil (satire)

When I was a young pup, public school had some weird creepy video to scare kids into being paranoid about pedophile killers by showing forested areas that the Earth Day people later said was sacred.

At the time, out in suburbia in the South Fraser region, we'd read about the riot that the Beatles almost caused in Metro Vancouver. That ruined it for rock and roll for me, and I was too naive to fathom the music that the RIAA pimps to us.

Even so, the Beatles was a different matter. We borrowed an album from a neighbor in the late 60s. Today any Beatles song comes on, I can sing to it, albeit tone deaf and off key. :)

What does that have to do with the creepy propaganda to get kids to be aware of pedo bears?

Well, Canada was up in arms over rock music in the 60s. The fans were worse, and only calmed down after the shadowy Cannabis czar fled America for the safety of Vancouver BC. Rock music was rumored to corrupt people who listened to it. Even men who do evil used it to cozy up to their prey.

Today, nobody cares about rock and roll. The new threat is reality TV, with a crazy guy kicked off one show and a cat fight on another. Imagine if some poor lass decided Snooki is her role model in Lotusland! >:)

As for videos we were forced to watch for our own good, they only led to the politically correct climate that sniffs out the disturbed characters in our post modern world.

Music isn't the threat nor is TV. It is within each of us to choose between the greater good or the greater evil.

When we choose to create evil karma, society reacts, sometimes against the evil doers and sometimes neglecting to discover them.

When we choose to create good karma, society may praise us and nominate us as treasures. If that happens, then we shall work even harder for the greater good of us all.

Do You know The Way to Go?

If you use Vancouver Airport then it is now cheaper to use the CANADA LINE to YVR.

At Waterfront Station the Canada Line station entrance is to the left once you're inside Waterfront entrance.

From Skytrain level you walk same direction train is going to Westcoast Express/TransLink Ferry up escalator and turn right to main lobby and to right at convenience kiosk.

I pity older foreign travelers who don't use maps or even know their way around the city to find the library to plan their way back to the airport by transit using free computer access.

Nowadays a smart traveler has a smartphone and goes to internet cafes in Vancouver to plan their travel.

Training a new visitor to use a map and cardinal directions ought to be the Tourism Bureau's responsibility, not a random person at the Skytrain station.

Nurturing Jeanne's Nature (story)

As I sat in the chair the voice of the speaker faded slightly, and then seemed to disappear into the distance.

All I could hear was the muffled murmur of the speaker, whose name was Jeanne. Even the laughter of the audience could barely distract me.

Thus was I in the zone, going with the flow as it were.

It felt great to be unfettered like this! I relished in the simple realization that here was an "I" that was at one with all people in the room yet was still an individual. Though words cannot describe this duality of all-as-one and the One.

Indeed, this One is not apart from all-as-one yet is a vital part of the One.

As Jeanne continued her monologue, I found that I could follow her and simultaneously focus on my inner journey with little effort.

"It wasn't until later" she said, "that I realized that I am not the only person to whom this happened."

Nor I!

Although I am not unique, and have a lot to contribute to the community, the synchronicity that has colored my life recently is a welcome bonus for me.

Gratefulness and thanksgiving offers a greater bounty than mere pettiness can; of this I am sure, though it cannot be proven by reason alone.

Having reflected deeply on this, I could not speak of it without sounding mad. So I sat there in silence, contemplating its deeper meaning.

"Self and the other are concepts formulated by the mind. As objects of the mind, they have no independent existence from it."

This thought came to me in the form of the inner voice, the internal narrator that notes what happens around oneself yet gives scant warning that danger is near.

For danger is rarely noticed when the distraction of the libido overwhelms the person's tendency towards paranoia.

Paranoia in this case is when a person whose inner dialog does not reliably distinguish between friend and foe. When libido is in its proximity, paranoia is forgotten momentary.

"...I'd forgotten to be self conscious when schooled under his love."

And I too forgot to be conscious of love. It was unnecessary in this context, in a room of fans who admired Jeanne.

Thus it is self love that keeps self respect intact. At root here is my willingness to listen to Jeanne, whose open narrative uncannily echoes my own thoughts.

"...echoes of my thoughts faded away. I could see that I was home."

Ah, Jeanne, I feel at home with my ears bathed in the beautiful timbre of your voice.

"My voice when speaking maintains a timbre to command attention."

And attention I give thee, Jeanne.

At this point in the narrative, I will have to give an overview of what happened next, so as not to confuse people using the current form.

Once Jeanne finished speaking, I made the point of standing up and clapping. Then the rest of our group clapped in unison.

Near the end of the queue, I stepped up and said, "Jeanne, such a lovely book-signing! It is as though what you said echoed in every thought in my head. What I mean is, sychronicity."

Jeanne smiled, saying graciously, "Thank you. To who should I sign your copy of my book to?"

"Just sign it; 'To the lover, by the beloved'." Jeanne paused, and looked at me questioning. "That's from Rumi, isn't it?" she asked.

"Yes, Rumi knew but never acknowledged emptiness. For every created moment, the creator plays a vital part, as though to learn the world by the act of its creation."

Jeanne's eyes glazed over for a moment. "Hmmm... OK then." she said, as she wrote in longhand script, "To the Lover, by the Beloved".

"So, thanks, and if you're available, please join me for a bite to each at the local pizza place."

"Well, I..."

"Jeanne, you can get two slices with a drink for $4.25 or a slice and pop for $3.25!"

Her eyes widened and she smiled brightly. "Ok, you got me sold! I'm a sucker for a cheap date."

Inwardly I smiled. This lady lives by a strict budget even though she's a world-famous author.

During our pizza "date", Jeanne told me about her view of meditation and how it opened up her eyes to an alternative to the usual zeitgeist of the West.

Zeitgeist in context of Western society refers to what the status quo worships without question: individualism as influenced by Jewish and Christian thought with overlays of neo-Platonian, Cartesian and recently secular philosophies.

Even atheists worship this zeitgeist as humanism, having pared away or negated the overtly religious sources.

At this point in the narrative, again I revert back to the continual flow...

Zeitgeist, the soul of a society, its status quo held in awe.

"I still wonder about what I wrote in your copy of my book."

Your book is about synchronicity.

"And your comment about synchronicity..."

Synchronicity is represented by the creator in the act of creating the created. He learns by that act what's involved...

"...in creating. His creation also teaches him what he created..."

Yet under it all, we are all one.

"All one..."

"Jeanne," I said, interrupting her, "you actually wrote 'From the Lover to the Loved'."

Oh, did I?" She laughs. I smiled, and replied,"Yes, but the love of which Rumi spoke is both between man and God, and God and man."

"Yes, yes! God created all of us out of love, because his original creations, the angels... That led to rebellion."

"Yes, and in that act of rebellion, Shaitan had ego arise, even though it was assumed by Christologists that as a creature who could only do God's will, in rebelling, Shaitan did not need to have ego."

"Well, angels and demons, they don't need ego since they exercise the will of divine Ego, God himself."

"True, but Jeanne, be it love or creation, it's best to leave Ego out of the equation."

"Why? Ego is will."

"Well, according to Buddhism, that will can be tainted by delusion, such that Buddha Nature is obscured by afflictions."

"True enough." Jeanne looked at her watch, and pursed her lips, lips so red...

"Oh, my! I must depart."

"May I give you my number?" I asked.

"Can't stay. Gotta go! Email me at the address on the inside back cover of my book!"

So when I got home, I read her book called "Loving-kindness: Is It Nature or Nurture?".

According to her thesis Nature is Buddha Nature while Nurture is meditation. Nature is also other power. Nurture in contract is self power. By using both forms of spiritual action and power, one accesses loving-kindness as though it is a divine gift.

By the time I finished her book, it'd been about a week. During that time I also did my Buddha Remembrance, chanting the Nembutsu seven times after each chapter, and usually twenty-one times in the morning and evening, after awakening in the morning and before falling asleep at night.

As a True Pure Land Buddhist, I'd be inculcated in this ritual since my teens. It is said that once you dedicate yourself to Buddha Remembrance, you will see changes happen such as joy, ability to interpret sutras, and most importantly, Bodhi Mind.

Bodhi Mind is the mind that aspires to be Buddha and desires to help others to Buddhahood with the help of the spiritual compassion and wisdom.

Although I have seen the changes in my life, when I found others who wrote of the same thing, I needed to listen to them and check them out, to see if their Buddhist-inspired message is close to what the Buddha taught.

That was why I was at Jeanne's book signing at the local bookstore.

After reading much of Jeanne's book, I realized that she had excluded one other thing: that mind is a quality of human nature and the heart, of nurture. Together they are referred to as heart-mind to signify the delicate balance between reason, emotions and feelings.

In my email to Jeanne, I told her of this. It was noon, and I didn't expect to receive a reply in the next 24 hours.

When I checked my mail after supper, I saw in my email reader,

From: Jeanne
To: Stephen
Date: 20130125.1346
Subject: Re: You missed the heart-mind

>in your Nature vs Nurture.
>
> Meditation helps moderate the balance between reason and emotions.
> For without establishing the heart-mind, one is either biased to
> nature or nurture, i.e. controlled by emotions or controlled by
> reason and logic. Holistically, it is vital to remain balanced.

I agree with you here! If you reread the Chapter on Nature and Nurture
you would see that I do mention heart-mind.

BTW I enjoyed our "date". Want to try sush at Ichiban-ya?

So I wrote back to her quickly.

From: Stephen
To: Jeanne
Date: 20130125.1351
Subject: Date is on!

Sure, meet you in an hour!


To get to Ichiban-ya, you take a bus to Scott Road Station and catch a Skytrain to Vancouver. Burrard Station is the nearest station to Ichiban-ya, which is near Robson and Thurlow.

It's run by Chinese, but their food is authentic. The sushi, the sashimi, and even the robata is delicious.

I say this because I have been there enough times to know, plus Jeanne knows that too, because it came up in the previous Friday's conversation.

So after walking down into the dimly lit restaurant, I scoped her out and sat across from her.

"Hi, how was transit?" she asked.

"Long but exciting."

"how exciting?"

"Well, because I'm meeting my favorite local author on loving-kindness and how to apply it to this life..."

She smiled. "Oh, you just have a fan's crush on me. Though I'm greatly intrigued by your thoughts on heart-mind..."

I grinned and sighed. "It"s more than a crush, Jeanne..."

At this point in the narrative, we had a dinner date. We ate, and then we tipped well...

"I can't believe the bill came to over $30!" I exclaim as we walk toward her apartment in the West End.

"Well, it was your fault for orderin' the big sake."

"Hey, I was only, only tying to impress you by pretending to be saké host."

"Yes, but you poured more often for me than I could for you."

"Yes, I did! And you point is?"

"My point? My point is, are you trying to take advantage of me?"

"Jeanne, yes, but in a good way. Though you have advantage over me."

"Well, I am 5'9 and you are 5'1. Also I outweigh you by... never mind about my weight!"

"Lady, looks good from where I am staggering..."

"Oh you!"

"Oh, and you could have two small sakes when I asked you if we should go for two small saké or a large to share..."

"But I love sake!"

"See? I wasn't trying to take advantage of you. I was just indulging your love for sake."

At this point in the narrative, we arrived at Jeanne's apartment in the West End. something is supposed to happen at this point, and the narrative has to use a few euphemisms that go beyond "taking advantage of a woman". However, I was so wasted, being 5'1, that I passed out while waiting for her to "slip into something nice."

Sp she undressed me, slid me into bed, and snuggled up to me. Only when I awoke, I thought we had "done it".

She looked so sexy in her nightie.

When she awake, I looked into her eyes and asked, "Did we um...?"

"No, I took your clothes off and slid you into bed. It's not up to the lady to take advantage of the guy."

"Oh. Hey, that's sexist."

"No, it isn't. You and I know once I chose the big bottle, we were going to get lucky."

"Ok then, I'm sorry for passing out on you."

"Wanna make up for it now?" she ask, slyly grinning at me.

At this point in the narrative, we enter a slippery slope into pornographic. All I can say is, I got mojo! ;)

Bentall fountain

The Man Who will Save Colombia's Poor

Thiis man used to be my neighbor when I lived in Aldergrove until 1980.

This man is why Vancouver has a lot of successful charities.

Unfortunately he couldn't save an icon of Vancouver, that opera or whatever it was called. However, I feel activities which need charity to survive need money management to survive.

As well, it needs a new gimmick to keep various non-profit organizations from going belly up.

For Frank Giustra may be rich, but it's not up to him to rescue organizations that subsist on charity and become its patron.

Rather, it is the obligation of all people who've never been to public school, and who graduated from great colleges and universities bot in America and Canada, as well as around the world, to attend a charity and develop your philanthropic endeavors.

I'm proud of you and Frank Giustra.

Thanks for the charity.

First a Moment About My Favourite Cellphone Unlocker

Earlier today, I changed my blog's background theme.

we now interrupt this blog entry with a moment about my favourite cellphone unlocker

Then I went to get my Samsung A767 unlocked at my favourite place to get cellphones unlocked. Before I rant about the change of background theme on my blog, I'm going to do my first advertisement in a blog, which is a customer satisfaction plug rather than a paid advertisement. After digging in my wallet to find beyond SCREEN, I realized the proprietor has a website. If you are in Vancouver and don't know where to get your cellphone unlocked, then please check out beyond SCREEN. This is the second time I got one of my cellphones unlocked for $20. When my Samsung smartphone was unlocked, it took less than 30 minutes. This time around, it took 24 hours for the proprietor to get the unlock code and unlock my phone. I also paid upfront for getting the A767 unlocked around 11 AM yesterday after he copied my IMEI and personal information, and returned about 24 hours later with my phone. This time, he unlocked the A767 in less time than it took with my smartphone.

we now return you back to the rest of today's blog entry

GooglePlus members in my circles may have noticed my new blog theme.

Rather than the decidedly black theme, we're presented with a brown background theme. I must've been mentally constipated when I picked that theme. However, it appears to be a winner because one of the previous posts I wrote has gotten 10+ hits since posting it at 5:39 PM today.

Okay, sure, sometimes the first post of the day gets a lot of hits, but not within 4 hours of posting.

I think the last time I got 10+ hits was with the Sex Sells Commentary on Use of Women in Consumer Marketing. Though it only hit 11 the last time I reviewed my blog's webpage statistics.

Ok, wait a minute. 10 web hits isn't rare. As well, it turns out that my poems are sometimes popular and sometimes not. Ok, so it isn't the brown theme. It's the circumstances of that poem. ;)

Oh well! It might be a slow night. 0_o

Cyberbullying on Clubvibes

It's also cyber bullying when a popular online forum for club goers labels the woman who has a psychotic episode because of unconscious elektra complex transfered to an imagined love interest who'd spurned her for being too pure.

I don't know what her anxiety attacks and paranoia over imagined stalkers are called, but schizophrenia comes to mind.

the saddest form of bullying is of schizoid females who are unconsciously afraid of being intimate with a BF but are willing to show their boobs online.

Sad to see bullying is a pastime for problem drinkers  with sociopathic meanness.

My Transit Fare Proposal

I sent the following fare proposal to Translink. When whoever reads and responds to e-mail replies, I'll add it as a comment. Anyway, here's the fare increase proposal:

Why can't Translink make the two zones north of Fraser all one zone at $3.75 & south of Fraser (Surrey, Delta & Langley) $2.25? Crossing the new two-zone boundary would be $1.50. After all, the majority of riders use the system north of the Fraser River & they should pay more because they get all the perks like Canada Line, bus stops with Next Bus times, and the Millennium Line. Eventually (in 5 years) the fares can go up to $4 North of Fraser and down to $2 south of Fraser with a $2 boundary fee, due to the fact that the population growth north of the Fraser River will eventually rise faster than all the municipalities South of Fraser River (Delta, Surrey, Langley). This is more reasonable a fare raise than what was currently proposed because, as I've said before, more people north of the Fraser River use the system than Delta, Surrey & Langley! Now that I've given you my proposed fare schedule, let your beancounters crunch the numbers & I bet it will help afford putting in faregates at Main Street Station and Metrotown Station as well as support the corporate welfare of $60K per transit council director!!

---

For people who don't live in the Greater Vancouver Regional District (GVRD) or even Delta, Surrey & Langley, I suggest you Google "Translink" and do some research. The way Translink raises fares unjustly imposes a greater fare increase ridership in Delta, Surrey & Langley, who actually subsidize ridership north of the Fraser River. There are actually more riders in the GVRD who never cross a zone but only pay $2.50, but every time someone buses in from south of the Fraser River, they pay double before 6.30 PM weekdays. As well, for the 90 minutes that their ticket is good for, most people within the GVRD north of Fraser actually get to more places they want to than the few people who bus all the way out of Langley. It takes about a half hour to get to the Skytrain in Surrey from Langley, and about 45 minutes to downtown Vancouver. For most places in Vancouver proper, you're no more than a half hour from shopping and other amenities. This leaves the average person riding the bus with about 20 minutes of shopping & time to return home on that ticket!! Compare this to the 15 minutes & the fare home ($2.50) for the poor people travelling from Langley. This suggests that in about 10 years time, it'd serve the ridership south of Fraser to raise the time limit to 2 hours.

---

Results of email: the usual thanks, we're sticking to the fare prices. thanks for contributing.

I'm astounded because the current fares do not increase ridership. My rider ship went up because my disability allows me a yearly bus pass for $45. The planned fare hike is not going to make riding a bus as attractive as lowering it. Translink will need to do something to change our minds that their fare hike in the coming months actually to raise ridership.

Hope After Vancouver Riot

June 18, 2011: It began with the burning of a truck. It ended with riot police moving along a dwindling, unorganized yet intoxicated crowd.

In between were five hours of a large crowd of gawkers watching this spectacle of senseless violence unfold.

As instigators overturned cars and trucks, some of the crowd became emboldened to participate by the apparent lack of aggression by the Vancouver Police, who still managed to move along everyone.

This was mob mentality in action, fueled both by alcohol and high emotions after the Vancouver Canucks lost to the Boston Bruins 4-0.

The police did their job well, but succeeded in dispersing some of the crowd up and down Seymour with tragic results after valiant efforts by concerned citizens protecting the Bay.

Even so, the hopefulness returned when the main body of rioters were contained on Howe between Georgia and Robson Street.

Meanwhile back on Seymour St, one young man began the first of street clean-up by picking up garbage.

And thus began the love for Vancouver which resulted in volunteer clean up crews on Thursday and Friday.

---

Reference:
What is mob mentality: making sense of Vancouver riot: http://video.citytv.com/video/detail/1000432900001.000000/what-is-mob-mentality-making-sense-of--vancouver-riots/

Fukushima Nuclear Reactor Accident: Fallout's Immediate Threat

My condolences to the people of Japan. My thoughts and prayers are with you.

On March 11, Japan had a very large earthquake hit it. The resulting tsunami damaged the Fukushima nuclear plant.

As a result, 3 of the six reactors were damaged, and the other 3 reactors were already shutdown for maintenance.

Of the 3 damaged reactors, 2 of them suffered nuclear meltdown, which caused a few explosions and released radioactive material into the air.

Fallout of this material is now circulating in the atmosphere.

According to a graphic simulation of the fallout from the reaction, all that fallout is going to end up dispersed as follows. The Aleutian Islands in America and the Kuril Islands of Russia will be getting more exposure to radiation than western North America.

Judging from the graphics, very few of the fallout will reach Vancouver. So we may get a slight amount of radiation exposure, but not enough to harm us immediately.

It'll take up to 20 years to see how the results of this accident play out.

However, California and Mexico may be exposed to very slightly higher levels of radiation. Still not enough to harm anyone immediately.

Again, much concern for the people of Japan.

Reference:

Fallout graphic of Fukushima nuclear reactor accident: http://aeronomie.be/multimedia/video/daiichi3-washout_bira-iasb_animated.gif
Fukushima 1 Nuclear Accidents: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fukushima_I_nuclear_accidents

Top Ten Cities of 2010

1 VIENNA AUSTRIA 108.6
2 ZURICH SWITZERLAND 108
3 GENEVA SWITZERLAND 107.9
4 VANCOUVER CANADA 107.4
4 AUCKLAND NEW ZEALAND 107.4
6 DUSSELDORF GERMANY 107.2
7 FRANKFURT GERMANY 107
7 MUNICH GERMANY 107
9 BERN SWITZERLAND 106.5
10 SYDNEY AUSTRALIA 106.3

Source: http://www.mercer.com/qualityoflivingpr#City_Ranking_Tables

Today's Corporate Bailouts are a form of welfare fraud!

With the recent announcement that eBay will close its Vancouver office at the end of September 2009, what this actually means is the owner of the company realizes a lot of his investments went tits up during the mortgage fallout back in October 2008.

So he can't afford his lifestyle now, so he assumed western Canada does not need a call centre & that Salt Lake City is a better place for one.

Even so, that CEO didn't lower his income to a sane level... Noooo! Instead, he assumed employee wages are an expense he's better off without, just so he can afford his luxuries!!!

People think Amway is an MLM scam, but global corporate monoliths are the most humoungus of scams, mainly cos if the economy flounders, they can beg for welfare from the State.

Truth is, compared to people living on welfare, corporations get the biggest share of welfare in the form of bailouts from the State using our tax dollars.

Even the biggest welfare fraud artists gets chicken feed compared to the automakers and those banks!!!

SO THE BIGGEST WELFARE FRAUD IS DONE BY CORPORATIONS, AND THE ONGOING CORPORATE BAILOUTS MAKE THOSE CORPORATE ELITES HYPOCRITES WHEN THEY COMPLAIN ABOUT LITTLE FISH DEFRAUDING THE WELFARE OFFICE AGAIN!

BOTH THE BANKS AND THE AUTOMAKERS ARE DEFRAUDING THE TAXPAYERS, BECAUSE THIS RECESSION WAS MANUFACTURER BY BAD DECISIONS THEY MADE, AND WE HAVE TO FOOT THEIR BILL IN EXCHANGE FOR BANK FEES AND CARS WHICH ONLY PROMOTE GLOBAL WARMING.

Therefore, the rich should STFU about the handful of the poor and the homeless supposedly defrauding the government when white collar crime and corporate bailouts are an even bigger form of welfare fraud!

AND CORPORATE ELITES ELECTING TO DO SO - THIS INCLUDES CLOSING EBAY VANCOUVER - ARE THE BIGGEST WELFARE BUMS OF ALL!

FRAK THE RICH!

Vancouver to Port Moody by Translink Trainbus, January 4, 2008

BC Premier Sets Good Example for BC Drinkers

Well, the side effects of former lush and Premier of BC, Gordon Campbell's cash grab from the pockets of 20something drinkers is confirmed: Wakefest will not operate in Kelowna again, due to the lack of moderation shown by Wakefest patrons, many of whom showed up without a ticket.

The crowd got so bad the Kelowna RCMP almost panicked and called in the riot squad, which would have been wonderful to see in action throwing tear gas to pacify the crowd as they stumble away with eyes tearing.

Other venues cancelled due to hard drinking rowdies:

• Vancouver's First Night Festival


• White Rock's Sandcastle Competition


• North Vancouver's Hose Reel Festival


• Kelowna's Regatta


• Vancouver's Sea Festival

WTF is with people who drink to excess and then act out of control? Don't they care that the BC government is laughing all the way to the bank?

Probably not, but with government coffers bursting at the seams with millions of provincial sales tax dollars you'd think someone with a sober head in Victoria is actually pressuring bars, clubs, lounges and restaurants to put up pro-moderation posters to curb thirsty patrons' excessive drinking.

Sadly though, most recreational drinkers just laugh at the posters and drink more.

Downtown Vancouver Nightlife Changing, Hopefully for the Better

Obviously, the party scene on Granville Street appears to be working. About eight months ago, Vancouver was made aware that VPD needed money to pay overtime to police assigned to the bar crowd along Granville Street, where bars and clubs are being concentrated.

However, it appears that a lot has changed over the past 3 years in Gastown with the Purple Onion closing and the Brothers restaurant leaving. Yet the last bastion of unruliness, the Sonar, is still open, only to kick out drunk patrons when all bars close at 3AM. Unfortunately, it will probably take more gentification of the area to pressure the Sonar into closing its doors for good.

Because the Sonar is not part of the Granville bar watch, and its bouncers not obligated to pat down patrons for weapons, it's only safe for dancing by yourself while getting very drunk.

Even so, gentrification will slowly make Gastown safe for yuppies, provided they party on Granville and only quietly drink and eat at the Chill Winston Restaurant in Victory Square, which has been in business for a year.

What really bothers me is that Chill Winston appears to allow people to get throughly inebriated without eating. When I was out working at the stage at the confluence of Water, Alexander, Powell and Carrall, I spotted one gentleman who plopped down and drank a lot of ale over 3 hours, only to be rendered inebriated. This almost violates the BC Liquor Control Act.

A Blast from the Past: The Britannia Nine Incident, Vancouver

In this entry, the comment will show both sides of the notorious Britannia Nine incident which shows the BC Liberals as a bunch of thugs using police to incite a riot consistently.

The only people willing to keep the peace were brutalized by the cops.

Welcome to the New World Order in BC brought to you by Premier Gordon Campbell.

It's amazing what greed does to people in power.

Essentially the SLAPP legislation and the Britannia incident criminalizes public protest.

And this violates the Canadian Rights and Freedoms act.