Contents
- News from the Library
- ''The Shadow's Project:
- Mankind’s Debut (The Humming Song)
- Dear my friends,
- Shadows of Hope - Gaap Gui Cha
- Shadow Masters and Mistresses
- The Truth can Hurt
- "Dying for a Home: Homeless Activists Speak Out"
- LEGACY?
- I always thought you would come to me
- It’s Rapture Time
- Daddy Don’t Go
- BECAUSE WOMAN's WORK IS UNDERPAID OR UNPAID
- My love is like red raspberries
- It’s the Olympics, stupid
- Global Warming
- DECISIONS
- Wandered from the light
- Trying to escape this lucid nightmare
- Living
- In the dream
- You Must Think
- Neighbourhood News
News from the Library
Did you know that the library now has DVDs, videos and books on CD? And coming in early May, we’ll also have music CDs. As of May 2, you can borrow up to 2 DVDs, 2 music CDs, 2 books on CD and 5 videos at a time on your Carnegie library card. Remember, there are no late fees on a Carnegie library card, but please try to bring your DVDs and CDs back so that other people can enjoy them!
New Books
The Freedom Writers Diary by the Freedom Writers and Erin Gruwell (305.23) traces an English class’s journey against intolerance and misunderstanding. You’ve seen the movie (with Hilary Swank), now read the book.
In One Pot Wonders (641.82) James Barber turns his hand to stews, fishcakes, chicken and other dishes using a handful of ingredients and just one pot. Designed for cooking on a small boat, they’re just as useful for cooking on dry land. Sweet & Sour Peanut Butter Noodle Soup, anyone?
Whether you’re a geek or a novice, sometimes computers can get the better of you. The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Computer Basics by Joe Kraynak (004.16) lets you get up close and personal with computers. From finding lost files, to sending e-mail, to publishing your own web page, this book shows you how to get the best out of a computer.
Our 3rd floor display case is still broken. You can see these books & more in the display case in the library. Ask at the front desk of the library if you want to reserve one (or more) of them.
Beth, your librarian.
''The Shadow's Project: Addiction and Recovery-We're All In this Together" experience was at first difficult because of being new yet being with familiar faces -because of the topic- & the lack of trust on my behalf.
One of the issues I brought in the production was racism; I face it just like any person(s) in this society. It came with my background - being from the tsyu (beaver) clan of the wetsuwet'en territory. Experiences there allowed the comments or assumptions put upon me by others to burden my journey to continue on ... continue what was intended, to share my gifts with others.
I am in search of that...I know it's within me; it's just these negative thoughts of myself are embedded and clouding my gifts
The first two weeks in this production were tough but I managed to tough it out -heck I made it to the opening night!!! I am in recovery from whatever substances I got my hands on to numb the pain ... but I got tired of it. I didn't like the hangovers or the blackouts...
I did this on my own without any agencies and before I had my son, Uligan (wolf) Dinee (man)!
This was the beginning of my journey of healing the wounded heart I have endured as a child. Sharing my experience took a lot of courage. I enjoyed expressing my creativeness and say thank you to the production and the cast.
My challenge now is to cope in a positive way with this illness of depression, with the help of local agencies in the down town eastside, and my sisters, and my son for being himself-the Uligan.
Humour is what my late grandparents taught me when in despair. I have this tendency to beat myself up for not completing my goal(s) ... but heck there's always tomorrow and this play allowed me to complete a step in the right direction.
I raise my hands to you and honour you for making this production come to life-
In Respect,
Priscillia Mays Mankind’s Debut (The Humming Song)
Mankind’s Debut (The Humming Song)
PART I: Darwin’s story is a sad tale for sure, growing up with less self-esteem then a head-on train crash in his head (no pun intended) he won’t have noticed anyway; his thoughts betray him, his soul abandons him, and the only thing Darwin the Apostle ever asked was the ability to sleep and never wake up again.
1st Bridge: (Darwin’s story has no substance just abuse.. those in power who tell us what we are and aren’t allowed to use, bridges and rope, ledges and hope, keep thy dream as a predator his prey, mankind’s debut right before god take one last glorious look and call it a day.)
PART II: The nerve to bring more life (and death) into the world, soon to be a lifeless rock floating towards the sun, but process is progress says the mad scientist in me knowing full well the future scares the hell out of me. I see people with invisible guns in their mouths but they still dutifully deny reality; we are nothing but a footnote in a poorly constructed song – because words maqke one cry I’ll try to make this a hmming song.
2nd Bridge: Bridges and hope, ledges and rope, keep thy dream as a predator its prey, mankind’s debut right before god take one last glorious look no, not today.
PART III: We see disease and faulty cures on a daily basis (imagine if I had a heart to break), sorry we’re out of stock since TIMEX went into the organ business and then went out and smashed every clock; never seen the hope and faith erode so quickly, icebergs under the tip are just cubes, going once going twice is our future paradise locked away in a mislabeled test tube, when and who will end it is out of the high deep blue, Mankind’s debut right before god is when things began going askew.
Last bridge: Darwin’s story has no substance just abuse, those in power who tell us what we can and cannot use, bridges and hope, ledges and rope, keep thy dream as a predator its prey, mankind’s debut right before god take one last glorious Darwin.. I can only look away.
Robert McGillivray
Dear my friends,Dear my friends,
In these past weeks, I have been involved in a Downtown Eastside "Shadows Project: Addiction and Recovery, We're All in This Together." It’s been shown since last Thursday, April 19 and lasts until next Sunday, April 29, 8 - 9:00 pm, and is followed up with a discussion session for people who would like to participate. I am a member of the speaking chorus in this show and there is more than just music and singing.. stories on addiction and recovery with many images and lighting effects. We’ve had over 100 people attending each night in the past three nights.
Each night we have a guest chair the after-show discussion with members of the audience who would like to give their feedback on the show and on issues related to addiction and recovery. The audience's responses have been very overwhelming and positive with hopes on dealing with addiction and recovery. The show [was] held in the Russian Hall, 600 Campbell Avenue, seven blocks east of Main. It [was] pay by donation or pay as you can. There were over 30 people in the cast, from the country's lowest income neighbourhood, the Downtown Eastside, who work[ed] hard to make this unusual production speak for the people who are addicted and trying very hard to recover, both prominent issues of this country.
All the best,
Susan [Po Shan Wong]
Shadows of Hope
Last spring, Savannah Walling and Rosemary Georgeson brought twelve writers along with them to Fathom Labs on Galliano Island for a week of script writing. Savannah and Rose were strict task masters. They made us work twelve hours a day but they also fed us three square meals a day too and they even gave us Sunday off.
On our last day, Marie Clements of Fathom Labs took the bunch of us inner city urbanites to the beach and asked us to write…..a love poem. The night before, one of the writers, Wendy Chew had us all up until midnight telling us stories of “Gaap Gui Cha”. This is a tea “cha” made from boiling both the male and female “Gaap Gui” which is highly prized as an aphrodisiac by both men and women,
I wrote this love poem for the ones I had come to love as a family- the ones I was with at the moment – the writers on the Shadow Puppetry Play – you know who you are.
Mary D
Gaap Gui Cha
I don’t need no Gaap Gui Cha
To fall in love with you
Give the Bear back his balls.
Give the oyster back her shell.
‘Cos I don’t need no vial of
Sweet flying aphrodisiac
All I need is one single drop
Of your true and bitter spirit.
Gaap Gui Cha
I fell in love with the lady from Toisan
She sang sad songs and poured
A cup and a cup and a cup
From her bottomless bottle of bitter wine
Gaap Gui Cha
I fell in Love with the man wearing a cowboy shirt
To reclaim the word of his Interior Salish People
A gentle warrior who sees as much
Beauty in death as there is in life
Gaap Gui Cha
I fell in love with a woman
Whose voice even makes a Hallelujah sound sexy
She could have worked for a 1-800-number
Instead, she decided to become a gospel singer
Gaap Gui Cha
I fell in love with a comedian
Itchin’ and scratchin’ and sayin’
That the bedbugs didn’t bother him
So why should they bother us?
Gaap Gui Cha
I fell in love with the squatter
Who pitched her tent under the stars
You can join her – just bring your own butts
to her smokin’ only zone
Gaap Gui Cha
I fell in love with the man
Who dropped me like a hot hash brown
To marry a Kentucky fried bride
Umm-mm-mmm – finger lickin’ good
Gaap Gui Cha
I feel in love with Sweet Marie
Cos she knows that we can’t live on water
And loaves of bread alone.
Uh-oh no.. We all need some kinda candy
Gaap Gui Cha
I fell in love with a Rose
But I nearly destroyed her
Stealing and poisoning her land
Turning it into a burial ground
Gaap Gui Cha
I fell in love with a dragon-lady
But didn’t respect her gifts
I took and I took and I took
Until her treasure singed my soul.
Gaap Gui Cha
I fell in love with a Holy Family
Mother, Father and Son
Holding creation like wild pink salmon
Glittering and wriggling in the palm of one hand.
Gaap Gui Cha
I fell in love with you:
Chinatown / The Downtown Eastside
I’ll let go of my pride
Get down on my knees
Ask you to be my groom and my bride
Cos’ I don’t need no Gaap Gui Cha
To fall in love with you.
Mary Duffy
Shadow Masters and Mistresses
“We’ve come from nowhere to somewhere and today we’ll find out where that somewhere is”. Larry Reed cryptically tells us this after an intensive weekend of creating shadow puppetry magic last April at the Ukrainian Cultural Center.
The process had started earlier for most people. Many of us had begun as community writers the previous summer under the direction of Savannah Walling and Rosemary Georgeson. Many others performed as actors or musicians in a sample section of the play presented during the Heart of the City Festival.
This spring you’ll get to see the final results of a Herculean effort, involving two and a half years and almost an entire community examining the many permutations of addiction in our lives. I know the final effort will be as magical for the audience as it was to be part of behind the scenes. If not, it certainly won’t be the fault of our many artist mentors who were brave enough to take on such a brutal and unwieldy beast as addiction in an effort to dissect its roots and hold them up to the light in an effort to provide some modicum of healing.
I suspect whether or not the final effort gets rave reviews will not matter as much to the creators as the process itself which was conducted every step of the way with integrity. This process was hugely consultative of the community, involving hundreds of contributors at every level bringing their own particular gifts and experiences to depict a dragon which has devoured so many lives.
That weekend at the Ukrainian Center we came together as a community to learn new ways of looking at shadows and dimensions. Sharon Bayley wrangled us into labour teams to cut strips for frames for the shadows to flit across. Patrick Foley and Melissa Error drew their hearts out. Rosemary Georgeson fed us to the gills. Then, under the direction of Larry Reed and Tamara Unroe, we all became “Mirror People” sitting on the floor to create the cheapest yet most spectacular special effects just by choreographing cutouts and waving concave and convex mirrors back and forth.
“Is this not magic?!” Muriel Williams asks.
Then the actors get behind the screens to do their part. Sue Blue, transformed by a gigantic mask into a grandmother, cradles an equally gargantuan shadow puppet baby that Stephen Lytton affectionately christens, “Chucky.” And, here amidst the shadows, real life and love blossoms among young actors Montana and Meghan.
We have all been brought together in a whirl of magic and mirrors – but there’s no smoke here to
obscure the truth
By Mary Duffy
Postscript: This was written last April after Larry Reed’s work with us at The Ukrainian Cultural Center. I’m looking forward to seeing the final production this April at the Russian Hall which will add the compelling layer of music to the work of the writers, actors, artists and puppeteers. I am truly grateful to have been given the opportunity to play a small part in this process which connected me so hugely to a community I had worked in for seven years.. but only truly got to know through
the soul in its shadows as I was leaving.
The Truth can Hurt
At a recent meeting at city hall, councillors discussed how they could increase citizen involvement in shaping the city for the upcoming 2010 Winter Olympics.
Councillor Kim Capri recounted one of her memories of the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympic Games, saying: “One of my favourite stories from Salt Lake City was the story about the schoolchildren that wrote the little welcoming letters to every single visitor that went on their pillows at night, basically saying good things about their city or inviting them to events or, you know, just celebrating Salt Lake City.
“And from what I know of Vancouverites I can only imagine that our citizens would come up with equally as exciting and heart-touching ideas.”
(Regular Council Meeting, April 03, 2007).
In the interest of civic participation, I am conducting a UBC-based opinion survey in order to document how Vancouver residents truly feel about their city and the coming Games. Both praise and criticism are welcome. If you would like to make your voice heard, copies of the survey are in the Carnegie Action Association office on the 2nd floor of the Carnegie building. To contact the survey's organizer, phone Mike at (778)327-9563
You're invited to THE LAUNCH OF a new book:
"Dying for a Home: Homeless Activists Speak Out"
By CATHY CROWE
WHEN: Saturday, May 6, 2-4 pm
WHERE: Gallery Gachet, 88 E Cordova Street
In Dying For A Home Crowe brings us voices of ten homelessness activists advocating for change. The word homeless conjures many stereotypes, but rarely does it suggest bravery, courage, charisma, or intelligence—qualities demonstrated by each of these determined individuals. Crowe gives us a chance to meet these extraordinary activists, many of whom have lived on the street for a decade.
* Free admission, refreshments served
* Door prizes
* Books on sale from People's Co-op Books
For more information, contact 604 872 1134
LEGACY?
It has been some time since I've contributed anything to this news letter. As usual I find myself in opposition to those self serving aspirations of the few at the expense of the many. These occurrences do follow a trend that I call evolution. The root of this evolution can be traced back to the twentieth century if you will but indulge me.
World society did not escape the Twentieth Century unscathed. The three major calamities of that century were the First World War, The Depression (dirty thirties) and The Second World War. During these major catastrophes the family unit suffered tremendous blows to its structure. So much time was devoted to desperate foraging for the bare essentials to the point of clinging to life itself. Therefore children slid down the rank of priorities, so much so that the product, if you will, post war, was incomplete. Childhood had passed them by and now they must face and shape the world with the tools they were able to develop, for the most part, by themselves.
Raising a child includes many intangibles that are normally developed through relations between children and their parents, relatives and friends. These are then passed through the generations and, all the while, nurtured as an essential, sacred and precious legacy. As can be expected, these elements were sorely diluted as the stugg1e for survival ensued through the early twentieth century. Repair of these damages has been illusive on many fronts. This begs the question: "if you never had it, how can you pass it on?"
The baby-boom was, for the most part, adolescent during the nineteen-sixties. The first generation, post war, tested their strength; defying many political powers and rebelling against the establishment. Change in the nineteen-sixties was major and, for all intents and purposes, seemed "for the better". But the economy turned volatile when the baby-boom surged into the work-force. We (the baby-boom) had created, by our very existence, unending work for the previous generation, (New hospitals, schools, and universities) as the tidal wave passed through these institutes toward the work force. Our arrival devastated the existence of employment. The birth of double digit unemployment became a nemesis to society. No government admitted that this was a problem. They all promised, in vain, that unemployment would end. They did and still do call those people who receive assistance from government lazy and incompetent.
These circumstances have lead to dismal depressing subsistence to many people who found it necessary to gravitate to the Down Town EastSide (DTES). The geography here has seen its own evolution as a community was shaped out of skid row. Thanks to the literal blood, sweat and tears of crusaders who devoted their very lives to alleviating the struggles of the defenseless masses. Community centres and other necessary institutes were born as a result of their tireless toils and, in the long run, some of these people had literally given their very lives in the process.
This brings me to the area which causes me concern. My tenure at Carnegie Community Centre, thus far, is nearing the ten year mark. The concerns of this centre became my focus through this duration. So many of the clientele here still hurt and/or carry baggage from lives gone by. There is a quiet majority through the membership who would rather either deflect unpleasantries or fly from them. To date, the staff and volunteers have been successful maintaining a peaceful oasis in one of the most dangerous districts in the world.
There were so many people responsible for the reputation (living room of the D T E S) that we still try to uphold. In the twenty seven years of operation Carnegie has seen what you might call generations develop and then dissipate. Many people start to actually succeed in doing well for fellow recipients. In the midst of this, predatory eyes keenly watch from the side lines. Unfortunately we can't all perform the same tasks. Further, we can't all be good at them. So the birth of one person's jealousy toward another rears its ugly head as the destruction of all the good will intended in the first place.
So goes the syndrome of the generations that pass through Carnegie. Obviously it isn't as attractive as it used to be, what with an ever declining budget for the good things in life. These days we are witnessing new priorities that demand the funds we used to be able to enjoy. Now those funds are paid to ambulances for overdoses as the drug trade is alive and well in our D T E S. The influences of the drug trade permeate through the very fabric of our community. If that weren't enough, commerce has found renewed value in the real estate of our community.
With all of this important stuff happening in what seems to be a battle waged upon the neighborhood's poor, we still see rivalries among ourselves. How bizarre! There was a time when we could uphold the attitude that this is actually the living room of the D T E S. This community centre earned the reputation to be the oasis where a person could afford peace of mind and forget about [or think about, or rally to deal with] life's hard knocks for a spell. We created the atmosphere where a person didn't need to have their guard up 24/7 because danger didn't live here. Then the Liberal government caused a huge turnover in this place and we ended up with new faces who became the majority.
The concerns of these people are not of the same fabric that existed before their arrival. These people could care less about the struggle to open this place and keep it open that took place through the years to date. They could care less that there were people hard at work here, making it possible for them and future generations to find this refuge.
The baggage that seems to accompany so many new people is quite evident in the language, attitude and the battle ground scenarios that ensue. There just doesn't seem to be enough experience here to sooth these troubled souls as quick as we used to. The big picture is that there is never a shortage of poor people who may or may not have been abused. They will continue to arrive here and hopefully we will have recovered from our own pain so that we may be of some help.
By GERALD WELLS
I always thought you would come to meI always thought you would come to me
In the shape of a beautiful lover
I never dreamed you would steal my heart
With no shape at all
I always pretended I needed arms to hold me
And lips to kiss away my pain
Yet I find fulfillment
In the embrace of empty space
I always wished you would speak to me
With words of tender sweetness
Now I know you whisper silently
Of your undying love
I always knew I would find you
Although I foolishly looked with my eyes
You were here all along
Hiding just out of sight in my heart.
X It’s Rapture Time
It’s Rapture Time
It’s rapture time mine unfound friend
Fifty thousand children killed. Let’s not pretend
Their killers aren’t invisible, they just don’t talk
I’m not sorry. I broke your leg, let’s go for a walk
Cross mountains of rotten stones and charred bones
Where you left shadows of weeping willows all alone.
It’s rapture time.let’s go where you left baby spirits crawl
When we git there you’ll take the plunge, take the fall,
You know what I’m talking about – don’t play the fool
You are abusers n’ killers of Indian Residential Schools
Many eons pass your church is still of the walking dead
Of poisonous lies, devilish injustice What do you dread?
It’s rapture time go to where aimless treks must cease
Truths prevail, lies die, 50,000 baby spirits shall rest in peace and a mass of silence will awaken one day
When our ancestors of Four Directions shall show us where they lay
Mine spirit cries, mine spirit roams and will continue to roam ‘til fifty thousand murdered babies remains are
buried and their spirits brought home.
All my relations
William Arnold Combes
Daddy Don’t Go
I wanna go home, don’t touch me
Mother be gone in a shrewish wake
Please be not there and do not stare
Just disappear into a distant sphere
Sisters don’t fight, don’t argue, don’t you dare
If you do I’ll cover my ears again and again
A terrible nursery rhyme, this factual fable
That happened once upon a time, heard
From my cradle
When innocence reigned as preordained
When nightmares too over, took shape,
With all of you to blame
From heavenly pleasant to too brief dreams
Thoughts of various surreal empowering themes
But beware of brother, out of sight/out of mind
Spinning spidery webs also left behind
Winners/losers, jeepers/creepers, what’s the score
Who knows? Who cares anymore?
Night falls slowly, we’ll all be silenced
Say nothing, whisper curses as ill winds blow
Awful memories pass – they move from to to fro
Teardrops fall from my seemingly angelic face
As spirits wane and wither, til nothing –no trace.
All is done and I lay me down to sleep
Twilight dawns and slumber creeps
The sandman sprinkles stardust on my face
I wish I were, I wish I was in time’s distant space
A perfect Shangri-la, completely unharmed
Endlessly thrilling, vibrantly alive and charmed
The most, the best, karmically pure times
A cozy safe home where nursery rhymes
Run to the beats of divine grace
Through encroachingly mysterious, mystical verse
Robyn Livingstone
BECAUSE WOMAN's WORK IS UNDERPAID OR UNPAID[This piece appeared in the DE Womens Centre newsletter and was submitted anonymously]
BECAUSE WOMAN's WORK IS UNDERPAID OR UNPAID & what we LOOK like is more important that WHAT we do & iF WE GET RAPED IT IS OUR FAULT & iF WE LOVE WOMEN IT'S BECAUSE we can't get a real man & if we expect community care for our FAMILY we are selfish & if we stand up for our rights we are LOUD & if we don't we are typical weak females & iF We WANT TO GET married WE ARE OUT TO TRAP A MAN & iF WE DON"T WE ARE UNNATURAL & BECAUSE we aren't deemed responsible ENOUGH TO DECIDE if WHEN AND HOW WE WANT TO GIVE BIRTH WE ARE FEMENISTS
My love is like red raspberries
My love is like red raspberries
Sweet and dark and juicy
Bringing memories of hot August days
Rolling in the hay
A scent of sun and grass
My love is the song of locusts
Lazy whirring from the dust;
Childhood games: wild and free:
Grasshopper, give me some molasses
My love is the salty tang of the ocean
The sound of surf on windy beach,
The comfort of all that inevitable
Back and forth; that in and out.
Wilhelmina
The crows did not come today.
I did not see their blue-black shapes
Waiting in my tree.
I guess crow's breakfast time is past
Anyway, I will throw the bread;
It will disappear.
But I will not see those bright, inquisitive eyes
Nor witness the graceful plummeting to earth:
A ritual that has given my morning meaning.
Wilhelmina
It’s the Olympics, stupidIt’s the Olympics, stupid
The title of this article is not meant to insult you, dear reader. It’s just a paraphrase of a sign that hung in Bill Clinton’s campaign office, when he was running for President against George H. W. Bush, which read, “It’s the economy, stupid.” It was intended to emphasize a supposedly obvious point as to why Bush was going to lose the election (which he did, by the way).
My usage of it is intended to challenge the authorities who continue to deny that the 2010 Winter Olympics and their accompanying protests play no role in government policy making.
I’ve already written about how the Harper government’s March 19 federal budget completely ignored homelessness in Canada. (The Carnegie Newsletter, April 1, “Homelessness: too important to ignore, Pt. 2”) Also in the aforementioned issue, Vancouver East NDP MP Libby Davies is quoted in Hansard as denouncing the 2007 federal budget for the same reason, among other things.
The February 20, 2007 provincial budget was billed as “the housing budget” by the Liberals. This claim was widely criticized as bogus and de facto window dressing.
In a Vancouver Sun article on February 26 by Frances Bula, the opening quote goes: “The province’s so-called housing budget has so little money for actual housing that Vancouver will be lucky to get half the units it needs to meet its target for cutting homelessness by 2010, says an internal memo from the city’s housing director.”
In an interview in the article, provincial Housing Minister Rich Coleman “insisted that there is much more to come in terms of new housing. He said there will be much more news in the next 60 days…”
On April 1, 2007, The Carnegie Newsletter printed my article describing the accelerated gentrification of the Downtown Eastside caused by the developer speculation resulting from the impending 2010 Olympics, and how residents were becoming more worried about the future of their homes.
On the next day, the Canadian Press released an article titled, “Poor kicked out of their homes for 2010 Games and UN must monitor: NDP MLA.” This described a valiant effort by Vancouver-Mount Pleasant NDP MLA Jenny Kwan to involve the United Nations to act as a watchdog on behalf of human rights to check the mad rush of developers to buy out Single Room Occupancy hotels in the Downtown Eastside, and evict their tenants, so as to build more expensive edifices in preparation for the 2010 Olympics.
Meanwhile, during the past year, legitimate protests (and otherwise) had been proceeding (sometimes noisily, and often extremely publicly and effectively) against the 2010 Olympics, frequently in combination about disappearing housing and lack of affordable housing.
On April 3, the news that Rich Coleman had forecasted broke. The provincial government bought 15 residential buildings from their owners, promised to renovate them (without disturbing the tenants), and build an additional seven supported housing buildings providing another 287 living spaces.
In an April 4 article by Maurice Bridge in The Vancouver Sun titled, “Provincial government becomes landlord to poor and homeless,” there was this quote: “Although Campbell said the province was not swayed by repeated demonstrations and legal battles over low-income housing, [Pivot lawyer David] Eby said he believes public pressure led to the hotel purchases. ‘I think it’s a direct result of the concerted advocacy that has taken place by Downtown Eastside groups… I know that without the advocacy we’ve had around housing in the Downtown Eastside, this announcement wouldn’t have been made today.’”
On April 12, in an article by The Globe and Mail’s Rod Mickleburgh titled “ICBC getting in the Olympic spirit,” there was this quote: “B.C. Public Safety Minister John Les defended the heightened security [at the ICBC announcement]. ‘Ninety-nine point nine per cent of British Columbians are fed up with that nonsense (anti-Olympic protests). … The Olympics are going to be a great event, and we are not going to have much tolerance for those kinds of activities.’”
I attended the showing of “Five Ring Circus” (about the coming of the Olympics to Vancouver) at the Carnegie Centre. When the announcement came in the film that 78-year-old Olympics protestor Betty Krawczyk was sentenced to be put in jail for 10 months, people in the audience booed.
Didn’t sound to me like ninety-nine point nine per cent of British Columbians were fed up with the protests. Sounded a whole lot more like what David Eby said.
By Rolf Auer
Global WarmingGlobal Warming
People, people come on! This is a rude awakening. We as humans are not realising we are responsible for this and everyone needs to come to their senses.
Our waters are warming up, our trees are dying, the air we breathe is so polluted... Recycling should be a major thing.. riding bikes would help.. so much carbon dioxide goes in our air. It’s given Mother Earth less oxygen to survive, what with all our human errors. Children need to be taught by example how to save our planet and especially our environment.
Locking up your bins won’t help; more & more garbage is going to land ‘mines’/ We need a rule, a law, that makes all companies that pollute our air & water pay stiff fines. Raise the price of gas so that people would learn to cope using bicycles or just another way to get back `n forth.
It is getting so scary to live in this world; there will be more & more disasters all over the world. Due to our stupidity we are killing Mother Earth.
All four corners of the globe need to come together and work together, criticizing the building of bombs and stop the killing that solves nothing.
Come on people, wake up and smell the pollution.
All my relations.
Bonnie E Stevens DECISIONS
DECISIONS
Why does life have to be this way, why do I never have money for stuff, how come that everyday I pray things just seem to get more and more rough? People always talk about the things they want, and the things they have they always flaunt; to me this seems rude and brings upon me a bad mood. Why –because I have nothing- & the reason is ‘drugs’: Some people say it’s cool; some people say it’s fun; some people say it’s easy all because of the large amounts they’ve done... but none of this is really true, I say to myself ‘if only I knew’
..but I didn’t and now it was too late; in my twisted mind I’d sealed my fate. The only thing I knew was to smoke my drugs and chill with my crew, but everybody has a second chance, another opportunity to change their stance.. this may be hard or it may be a breeze.. for me I smoked a cigar just to have it ease but this would only last so long before I went back to doing wrong. The worst thing was the high didn’t last and next thing you know I’d need another blast. I couldn’t see then but I can see now, I was wasting my life and I didn’t know how our lives depend on the decisions we make. A beautiful piece of work that drugs would love to take. Now I’m here trying to get some help, to move on in life and forget the days I was dealt. We can’t kick the habit all on our own so do yourself a favour and grab the phone; look up your local help line and things will turn out fine
David Brian Little
Wandered from the lightWandered from the light.. the world becomes obscure.. how do I know right from wrong while my intuition’s blurred?
Lost soul, abandoned dreams, sporadic and sedated
I can only blame myself for this nightmare
I’ve created
My hollow heart breaks each time I visualize
your face
Now’s the chance to right my wrongs, though the past I can’t erase
Reminiscin’ on the good times.. the past becomes so painful
I take a breath, a tear falls – for all my
fallen Angels
Lisa Black Trying to escape this lucid nightmare
Trying to escape this lucid nightmare
In which I exist
Though I’d rather know truth
Than live my life in bliss
Feeling hopeless, blind in darkness
Searching for Heaven in Hell
Trying to find light in this hole
In which I fell.
Praying for guidance but no one seems to hear
My inner child’s crying out
But I’m captivated by fear.
I cry sometimes because I feel so alone
That you always haunt me wherever I go
Searching for the escape I could never find
Emotions roll ageless in my synthetic mind
Lisa Black
LivingLiving
Life can be a mystery
We cope day to day
We try to plan our future
and sometimes we succeed
Failure is no big deal
Just pick up the pieces
And try a little harder
Never be ashamed to ask for help;
Swallow that pride, go for that success.
It will overcome your fears.
Knowledge is the greatest accomplishment
No matter if it is big or small.
Just keep striving for the best.
Bonnie E Stevens
In the dreamIn the dream
I always play the fool
In the dream
My defenses always fail
In the dream
My desires are never fully satisfied
In the dream
My heart is broken over and over.
Wide awake
I always play the fool
Wide awake
My defenses always fail
Wide awake
My desires are never fully satisfied
Wide awake
My heart sings its endless joy.
X
You Must Think
(Thoughts on taking part in public “consultation”)
You must think I have nothing better to do.
That I actually enjoy wasting my time.
And cooling my heels in the lobby
You must think I’m dumb.
And a patsy.
You must think I can’t tell the difference between
a silk purse and a sow’s ear.
You must think big words bewitch me.
And pretty pictures beguile me.
And lots of stats and footnotes bother me
And thick reports – they bewilder me.
You must think I don’t know a put-on from a put-
down.
You must think ten hours go by like ten minutes at
one of your processes.
You must think I feel proud to see my name on
one of your email address lists.
You must think I look forward to endless rounds
of meetings and late nights and missed dinners.
You must think I don’t notice your condescension
when I speak.
You must think it doesn’t bother me to make nice
with officials and developers.
That I’m impressed by you making speeches.
And moving motions
And amendments.
And calling the vote.
You must think I don’t know you made up your
mind before we even started.
And that you don’t care if I realize it or not.
You must think I don’t know the meaning of the
expression, The fix is in.
Well, I do know. ‘Cause I’m not befuddled, beguiled, impressed, convinced, or bewitched, both
ered or bewildered.
In fact…
I’m going to go out and hug a tree instead.
And join a sit-in.
And rewrite your billboard, and stand in front of
the bulldozers.
And dump garbage on your lawn.
And do things that I wouldn’t put in print.
My things. Not your things.
Know what I’m saying? You think about it.
Bob Sarti
Neighbourhood News
*A note out of the ether has the current clump of miscreants passing themselves off as the provincial government trying to silently slide through an amendment to the Tribunal Act. This body of law has ramifications in about 9 other Acts like Workers Compensation, many Medical and Human Rights articles and, of course, Tenants`Rights.
Right now, the Tribunal itself has the option of declining jurisdiction where Human Rights are in question. That means they have a whole series of actions that a person can take if his or her rights have been violated by a landlord, say, that the Tribunal can either allow or disallow. At present any high school kid could make a convincing argument that being discriminated against on the basis of Race, Creed, Colour, Place of national origin, Gender, Religion, sexual orientation, source or level of income or other socio-economic factors is a matter of one`s human rights.
Corporate and slum landlords (and probably most business and corporate employers being forced to sit as equals at Labour Relations Tribunals) find this pesky. The `good deal`(for them) new bit is:
46.3 (1) The tribunal does not have jurisdiction to apply the Human Rights Code.
(2) Subsection (1) applies to all applications made before, on or after the date that the subsection applies to a tribunal.
The amendment, part of an otherwise bland omnibus piece of legislation, specifically forbids any legal tribunal to even consider whether your rights have been denied. Now, if it was just a matter of duplication, okay, then you`d take it to the Human Rights Commission and ask them to hear the case
BBBBBUTTT the same bunch of mean, greedy bottom feeders eliminated the Human Rights Commission a couple of years ago. Ipso facto this amendment, if voted into law, eliminates the possibility of applying the Human Rights Code to almost anything. Isn`t democracy grand!
*On the cover of the last issue there was the ad about the Shadow`s Project and `We`re All In This Together` To most people that is a universal truth. Some soul basking in the glow of enlightened self-interest, scrawled `NO WE`RE NOT` in the blank white space lower left and slid it under the office door. Not a sign of the times but a signal of how far we have to go.
By PAULR TAYLOR
