"I'd like to comment on BC, and racism. In the Fraser Valley, BC, you'll see some of the most disgusting displays of racism. Take Abbotsford, BC for example. On the west side the public schools are nearly 99.9% Punjabi. Why? because the white people figured out they can move to the east side of town. Or, the white people (the Dutch and the Mennonite) put their children in their own schools. Now, the fault is firmly on the shoulders of the public school district, which built beautiful, newer schools on the "white" side of town. They allowed the problem to grow and fester and grow and fester until it's virtually intractable to fix. How depressing and sad for "multicultural" Canada that we are all carved up into our ethnic groups like this.
Also, is it not incredibly racist to see the Chinese as only dollar signs? To invite people from a communist country to come over and buy up all your real estate? This is of course colonialism--where those with the most money get to buy up the land. So, while there is some poetic justice for the "cakers" sadly the Indigenous are just going to continue to be dragged down with the rest. What a joke Truth and Reconciliation is! Wouldn't it be more honest just to let the Indigenous know they don't stand a chance? I mean that at least would take some courage. Then the Indigenous would know exactly where they stand."
"I'd also like to comment on how BC got itself in such trouble with the Chinese/China. (And think about, for a moment, the sad state of the education system in BC. The choice schools are so filled with international students, coz they come with the money honey, that local smart kids can't even get spots! Some districts have signed 'Aboriginal Enhancement Agreements' but try holding those districts to their word and getting your own super smart kid into an excellent school. Fat chance!) Back to the Chinese--the "cakers" thought they were "smarter than" the Chinese. They thought they would know if they were being taken advantage of because white people are inherently smarter than the Chinese! How stupid! How completely stupid and foolish to think that you are smarter than an imperialist country that has existed for 4,000+ years, and is just coming out of Communism. As if that was ever going to end well for Vancouver. And even when the LOCAL Chinese Canadians were calling it out--they turned it on them and accused people of colour of being RACIST against the Chinese! Nice one "cakers"--smart.
Canada is 150 years old and it's still doing business as it always has--exploiting the land, exploiting its people, and chasing the dollar. Now, wouldn't it be something if we actually had VALUES in this place? Where we valued our children, where we built great schools--oh yes, our schools are just crap right now. They emptied out the city of Vancouver and drove everyone out to the Fraser Valley--so the Valley's schools are filled to the brim. And the housing continues to be built with no planning--no new schools being built. No new parks. Money, money, money, money. And you ask local Canadian people to speak out. To fight. It's always crickets. Always. I feel so sad for this country. I worry about the future of my own children here."
"How about how they killed off the natural diversity of the forests, making deals with Monsanto, and killing off all the trees like aspens that are natural forest fire guards? So now, we can't even enjoy our summers because we are drowning in smoke. (Note one Canadian who has true values, visit the site stopthespraybc.com, Mr. James Steidle is giving up all his time and risking his safety to expose the disgusting mismanagement of BC forests.) Now, to be fair Washington state and California are also killing off all the natural diversity in their forests that work to keep the forest healthy and help to repel forest fires naturally. But you'd think BC would understand that the one thing we should take very, very, very good care of is our forests. But nope, the kill off any trees that aren't seen as having dollar signs attached to them. And, as the kill off the natural biodiversity, there is less food for the wildlife to eat--animals like moose are dying off. So, for Canadians to claim they value their natural landscape is really silly, isn't it? As for the rain, if you learn to see it as nourishing the beautiful woods, then it can be beautiful. But it's hard to love the rain if you hate everything else. I think really for BC the problem is more the corruption, which makes everything seem grey."
"I have to say I am really impressed by anyone who comes here as a newcomer (I'm assuming you're a newcomer?) and cares about the state of the Natives. Again, this is something Canada has down a TERRIBLE job on. See, it is WRONG to invite people in and invite them to settle on land that is basically stolen, whilst pretending as a nation that we are "doing" Truth and Reconciliation. For example, how many Chinese millionaires are educated on their way into Canada that they are buying land in Vancouver that is unceded? None are, of course--and millionaires don't tend to really care if they are settling on stolen land, right? They're like, I paid for this land so how dare you tell me it's stolen. But if Canada truly valued justice, it could try to attract newcomers who care about values, justice, and true multiculturalism. But really, Canada is just trying to attract newcomers with money. This is very dangerous because regardless of cultural backgrounds, we are all human--and humans who really care about money tend to just really care about money. Thus, unless we have more newcomers like the author of this blog--like dude, you totally get social justice, we need more people like you--well, I don't see much hope for Canada."
"Okay, on Chilliwack. Do you know about the draining of Sumas Lake? If not google it, lots on it online. But basically Sumas prairie was once a beautiful lake--a lake the Sumas people based their lives upon. It was their food source and also their source of transportation. Well, when the Dutch/Mennonites came they decided they would use their talents for draining things to drain that lake. "They" (meaning the Brits and the Mennos/Dutch) all "voted" and decided this would be a great idea. The Sumas people thought it couldn't be done--but oh, it was done. And in fact, to this day the lake water is drained into canals. They exposed fertile farmland. And, they got VERY rich off that fertile farmland--I believe they purchased that fertile farmland for VERY cheap. The Sumas people wept and wept--they watch fish flap and die. They saw their way of life literally drain away. I'm not sure if they have yet to be adequately compensated. But really, what compensation would ever be enough?
Next time you drive out to Chilliwack think about that sad story. Ironically, of course, every few years there are worries about Sumas prairie FLOODING. Because, of course, it's meant to be a LAKE. This only happened in about 1920. If you tell locals about it some of them will say things like, "Oh yeah, that was my grandfather who helped drain that lake--it was amazing what we did." They still don't get how BAD it is that they did that."
I'll add my own two cents: I've lived in northern BC and it is a HELL HOLE! The scenery is beautiful, but that doesn't make up for the violence, stagnant education and work prospects or the criminals and sickos that hide out there.
ReplyDeleteThe Okanagan is shit unless you're rich, and is now full of drugs, crime and ugliness - not even remotely worth it. I was glad to leave!
Chilliwack is creepy and stinks of SHIT driving in and out, and all the other dumpy BC towns are just as bad. Surrey is called "slurrey" for good reason, Richmond is like living in little China (not that I have anything against the Chinese, but I can't speak Mandarin or read the signs or afford to live there) Burnaby is crap and third most expensive place to live in Canada.
Vancouver is overrated, UNAFFORDABLE and grey 80% of the year - DEPRESSING AF! Averaging 50 hours of sun a MONTH in the winter time! GREY GREY GREY, misery. Want to escape to the island? Good luck finding work! Good luck with affordable housing! Want a $700,000 condo? Not to mention the cost/time of taking the ferry and problems with the traffic/storms and drowning if the Big One hits and the tsunami wipes out the island.
SO OVER BRITISH COLUMBIA! SUCK IT, BC !
Keep the comments coming and I'll keep adding them to the post!
maybe don't post this but you could write on it--here is a post on how cakers see Natives--the Anglican Church in Canada divided in half--the Anglican Church had been involved in residential schools, like majorly so--the liberal side has owned this and continues to apologize and tries to make amends--the conservative side refuses to apologize and is filled with nasty racists--case in point, this blog. Note the comments, note how these lovely Christian people call the Indigenous "aborigines." https://www.anglicansamizdat.net/wordpress/fred-hiltz-calls-for-apology-for-spiritual-abuse-of-indigenous-people/#comment-19680 Note the nasty, nasty, nasty comments.
ReplyDeleteOnce upon a time Canada was a decent place to live. I remember this place in the 1970s and the 1980s. People were happy, you could still breathe, and all the social services still worked. Now, I'm sure life was not good at that time if you were an Indigenous person. But, that was the Canada that people wanted to come to. I think that wave of immigrants who came just after WW1 and WW2 truly built something better, they were desperate, and they worked hard and pulled together to build what was the good Canada. And what they built was so good that their children grew up having very good lives--and entitlement crept in. The baby boomers did not pass on the values of their depression era parents to their own children. They didn't live by those values. In fact, they became very selfish and very greedy. Indeed, they have sold out their own children and their own grandchildren. The evil is BC is particularly shocking. If you cross the border into Lynden you can almost immediately feel a lighter energy. It's normal there. Come back into BC and you can feel an oppression. I am embarrassed to be a Canadian. We can't figure out who we are or how to live! No values, just greed. And yet, we encourage newcomers to come here! I feel very worried for my children's futures. They are growing up in a much more polluted--in more ways than one--BC than I experienced. And yet it goes on.
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