Nov 30
There will be another #OccupyCondos demonstration tomorrow at 2pm- this time, in front of the Pantages theatre (or not, could be another decoy!).
This time the group will be joined by Naomi Klein- international bestselling author of No Logo, and Shock Doctrine. Naomi is well-known for her participation in Occupy Wall Street, and has become as iconic of a writer to the movement as Chris Hedges.
It should be an interesting day, not to be missed…
Permanent link to this article: http://www.genuinewitty.com/2011/11/30/naomi-klein-to-join-occupycondos-tomorrow/
Nov 30
Lawyers who provide duty counsel services for those who can’t afford a lawyer will be holding on of their first demonstrations today at the law courts in Vancouver today at 1pm.
They are planning to stop serving all those who cannot obtain their own counsel at the beginning of next year- demanding that legal aid funding is increased back to levels they were in the 1990’s…
The Public Commission on Legal Aid recently wrote a report on this matter. Have a read- if you agree, come join us there today! Personally, I expect this to be one of the most important demonstrations I will attend all year…
Permanent link to this article: http://www.genuinewitty.com/2011/11/30/lawyers-protest-cuts-to-legal-aid-today-1pm/
Nov 29
So, I dove into the deep-end and went to the #OccupyCondo event against the Pantages theatre. Shortly after I arrived I noticed we were marching the wrong way down the road! It turns out the story on the Pantages was a decoy- the real target was Sequel 138– a new development labeled “A Downtown Artist and Housing Project”.
A row of blocked buses and cars turning around on Hastings street.
Permanent link to this article: http://www.genuinewitty.com/2011/11/29/an-evening-at-occupysequel-138-the-demonstration-formerly-known-as-occupypantages/
Nov 28
MCS Altona Anchored off the coast of North Vancouver
One of the more interesting under-reported stories that happened in Vancouver this year was the story of the MCP Altona. The ship left Vancouver on December 23, 2010 carrying a shipment of 350 tonnes of Uranium Concentrate- more commonly known as ‘yellowcake’. I was shocked when I heard this- thought Vancouver was a nuclear free zone? I’ve been following this story since March- it appears it was only finally resolved last week.
On January 3rd, 2011 the ship was half-way between Hawaii and the Midway Islands when the crew noticed that containers (loaded with yellowcake) had shifted in rough seas, the doors had opened, and two drums spilled out an opened in the ship’s hold. The ship had initially planned to return to Hawaii, but the US authorities refused. So, the ship turned-around and came back to Vancouver for clean-up.
The ship arrived back at the Port of Vancouver for cleanup on January 20th. I then took until March 22nd to complete the clean-up, and the containers were then shipped back to Saskatchewan to the company that owned them- Cameco. The ship was then anchored near Dollarton (North Vancouver) and sat there until last week when it was sold last week to an Indonesian company- it has been renamed “Meratus Palembang”, and has been docked a few meters from Harborview park in North Vancouver.
There wasn’t much coverage of this story in the mainstream media- but I did see a story on Global last week. That said, they missed-out on the renaming of the ship- tricky…
But, not a single story in the media questioned why a ship with 100’s of tonnes of Uranium was in the “Nuclear Free Zone” of Vancouver! Disappointing really- because, had they covered the story properly, it would have been a sensation. Wait, why wouldn’t they want a sensation? Is there something more to the story?
I’ll continue to research, and will keep you updated when I find more information. Until then, if you have any info to share, please let me know!
Permanent link to this article: http://www.genuinewitty.com/2011/11/28/vancouver-is-not-a-nuclear-free-zone-story-of-the-mcp-altona/
Nov 27
I’ve been hesitating to endorse this action- the person who setup the Facebook ‘event’ publicly made fun of me for the fact my last relationship weathered poorly through my involvement in the Occupy movement. That said, I can’t let Harsha Walia’s personal attacks effect my feeling’s on Vancouver’s gentrification issues. And, besides, Lauren Gill is one of this demonstration’s organizers- and she’s 100% pure awesome! (1 year later: No, she’s not awesome…)
So, I’m going to take a chance and dive into the deep-end. On Tuesday between 4pm & 6pm, I will attend “Occupy Condos: Take the Pantages!” at 152 East Hastings.
Here’s an outline from the blog entry:
“Condo Developer Marc Williams wants to build expensive market housing at the old Pantages Site in the Downtown Eastside. Condos in the heart of the neighbourhood will cause higher property values, higher rents in single-room occupancies, displacement of current residents, increased policing, and low-income residents feeling unwelcome in their own neighbourhood.
We are tired and angry that the City and real estate developers are being complicit in escalating rents and gentrification instead of building and protecting safe and affordable low-incoming housing. The corporate developers that bankroll City Council are the 1% in our city that hold disproportionate political and economic power and want to make millions of dollars in profit. Meanwhile more people are displaced from low-income housing in the Downtown Eastside and Vancouver’s has become one of the most unaffordable cities for poor, low-income, racialized, seniors, youth, single mothers, and working people in the world.”
There is no mention by the organizers if this is a “Family Friendly” event. Can anyone confirm if it is or isn’t?
Permanent link to this article: http://www.genuinewitty.com/2011/11/27/occupy-condos-take-the-pantages/