Thoughts on BC Politics and More

Monday August 31st is International Overdose Awareness Day. Long before the Covid-19 pandemic British Columbia was dealing with another public health emergency - overdoses and poisonings from toxic illicit street drugs. Since 2016 more than 5500 British Columbians - our friends, family and neighbours - have tragically passed away. Covid-19 has caused increased isolation and limited access to healthcare. One of the results of the Canada-US border closure is the disruption to the flow of street drugs and the supply in Canada has become more toxic. For three straight months more than 170 British Columbians have died as a result of overdose. It is clear the provincial government needs to do more.  The B.C. Green Caucus will continue to advocate for solutions to this health crisis. We are committed to pushing for treatment programs, mental health supports, decriminalization, affordable housing and income supports in conjunction with safe supply to prevent any further loss of li...

By John Twigg I've false-started on a new commentary several times this week and on Friday afternoon I was looking forward to an open church service tonight in Campbell River's beautiful Foreshore Park, that meant this wasn’t going to be a lengthy column.  Well actually it did become longish!  :) Part of my problem is that there's still so much going on nowadays that one simply cannot keep track of it all, let alone make some sense of it that might be helpful to readers. A prime example was President Donald Trump's nomination acceptance speech Thursday evening, and indeed the whole show that he and the Republican Party put on, which whether or not you like him or them you must admit was amazingly professional, even masterful. Obviously, the Donald has learned the media game too, as with real estate, and now on November 3rd we'll see how he has done again in American politics. In a way it's too early to predict because he and the Democratic Party's ...

I have had a few Elders ask me to write about how important the Treaties are to my people, and to explain that a very high percentage of us -- if not every Indigenous person who is at one with the earth -- holds the environment very dear to our hearts. The air, and the soil and the water mean everything to us. We would never do anything to damage the pristine nature of our planet. During treaty talks, our ancestors made sure that if we were to share the land, our fishing, gathering, trapping, and hunting rights must also be integral within the treaties. And they are. That being said, no matter how hard you search for clauses that include welfare in the treaties, you will not find those words. You might also look to see if you can find anywhere that it is written in the treaties that we Indigenous people cannot utilize technological advancement. It does not say that we have to use bows and arrows or spears to hunt with. In fact, under the treaties, ammunition is included! ...