Thoughts on BC Politics and More

Deaths related to drug overdoses have declined nine per cent in BC over the past year. But experts says it’s unclear whether the falling numbers signal a trend, or simply a dip, while the reason behind the decline is also unknown. Data released by the BC Coroners Service this month show 1,925 people died in drug overdoses in the first 10 months of 2024, a nine per cent reduction over the same period last year ... declines across multiple jurisdictions point to the possibility that what B.C. is seeing is part of a larger downward trend, unlike previous drops, which weren’t sustained, said Dr. Alexis Crabtree, a public health physician with the BC Centre for Disease Control. But differences in the drug supply — and differences in approaches to drug use — between cities and regions across North America have made it difficult for experts to pinpoint a specific cause for the decline ... CLICK HERE for the full story

John Twigg John Twigg is a long-time independent journalist, writer and communications consultant now living in Campbell River. He was Premier Dave Barrett's press secretary from 1972 to 1975, a financial editor in Regina in the 1970s-80s and an independent member of the Victoria Legislative Press Gallery from 1987 to about 2010. His Friday night radio program, on Christian radio station Spirit-FM , is on hiatus at the monument due to the COVID-19 situation The ancient Chinese curse " May you live in interesting times " is perhaps never more apt than now in these days of COVID-19, also known as the Wuhan Virus for the name of the city where the pandemic originated ostensibly in a research lab. With multi-millions of deaths from COVID-19 expected around the world, including maybe a million in the United States, thousands in Canada and hundreds in B.C. (unless a simple antidote is soon found or suppression strategies are successfu...

  If you are a Facebook friend of my mom then you may have seen her post announcing that her partner Tex has tested positive for COVID-19 and she is a presumptive case. The novel coronavirus has disrupted every part of our lives. It’s not just a community state of emergency, it’s global. Up until they received their diagnosis a couple of days ago, for our family COVID-19 was a disease that was affecting other people. Like most British Columbians we have been hearing the recommendations and orders from Dr. Bonnie Henry, British Columbia’s Chief Medical Officer, and taking them increasingly seriously. My family has been restricting our movements and limiting our interactions with others. Other than a quick trip to the legislature I have been limited to our property for the past week. My mom and Tex attended a conference in Toronto and returned two weeks ago feeling unwell. Thankfully over the past few days they are not getting much worse, however they...