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Do we care about accusations of RCMP wrongdoing?

akurjata.substack.com

Do we care about accusations of RCMP wrongdoing?

And I explain the alien lights and talk about snow umbrellas. Read to the end for something I truly do not understand

Andrew Kurjata
Feb 27, 2023
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Do we care about accusations of RCMP wrongdoing?

akurjata.substack.com

February started with news that five RCMP officers will stand trial for the death of an Indigenous man in Prince George — two for manslaughter and three for obstruction of justice, as people who witnessed the arrest were allegedly told by police to delete the footage of it. And the month is ending with the province ordering a new investigation into allegations that RCMP officers in the city harassed Indigenous teenage girls and then failed to properly investigate when video allegedly showing that harassment on tape went missing.

And the public reaction in the city to these two rather explosive news stories is, as far as I’ve seen, basically non-existent.

Correct me if I’m wrong, but I haven’t seen a single statement from an elected official representing the city on either of these issues. Nothing from our MPs, nothing from our MLAs, nothing from mayor and council. After the manslaughter charges were announced, the city did boost the police budget and I didn’t hear this come up once during debates.

And it’s not just politicians: The story of the province ordering a new investigation into the abuse allegations was printed in local media outlets on Friday, and it didn’t crack the top five on either the Citizen or CKPG’s most-read stories list. I’ve barely seen it posted on social media. I have seen far, far, far more discourse about the fact people are sleeping in tents on 1st Ave. (and not in a sympathetic, we-should-help-them way) than I have about the fact that multiple RCMP officers who have worked and may still be working in the city have been accused of — and in the earlier case, charged with — major crimes. People have spoken to me privately about it, but there have been no editorials, no letters to the editor, no grappling with this informatation when deciding whether to raise taxes to pay more for the police force who hired and continues to pay for these officers. I’m not saying there should be protests or defund-the-police movements, but — hear me out — maybe some acknowledgement it has happened?

I get it’s uncomfortable. I’m uncomfortable writing this, if I’m being honest. But it’s also true. Ian Mulgrew in the Vancouver Sun spoke to the sister of one of the alleged victims of RCMP wrongdoing in the city 20 years ago, who says the accusations were “swept under the rug” by police back then and she’s hopeful it won’t happen again. We’ll see.


Wait, do we not keep snow records?

Twitter avatar for @Martmanpg
Marty Anderson @Martmanpg
PG residents today... 😂 #snowmageddon #princegeorge @CityofPG
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11:03 PM ∙ Feb 25, 2023
48Likes7Retweets

Did you notice it snowed? At least the weather is that good winter level now, where you can actually enjoy it. I got out on snowshoes on Saturday and skied out of my driveway on Sunday. And while it was a lot of snow it wasn’t enough for DoorDash to shut down delivery services here, apparently:

Twitter avatar for @jarmstrongbc
Jordan Armstrong @jarmstrongbc
This #bcstorm warning is getting real. NO DoorDash service Saturday night & Sunday morning! 🍱 🍔 ❄️ @GlobalBC
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1:14 AM ∙ Feb 25, 2023
456Likes135Retweets

Weirdly, though, Environment Canada apparently doesn’t measure snowfall?? At least that’s according to this article from My PG Now:

According to Environment Canada Meteorologist Bobby Sekhon, it’s not quite clear just how much snow fell on Saturday.

“We stopped keeping records for snowfall at Prince George in about 2009, so we cannot say if this was a record snowfall or not because we do not have the official measurements,” Sekhon said.

“It’s been hard for the [automatic stations] to pick that up, all they can pick up is the snow on the ground, and I know the snow on the ground, it changed by about 15 centimetres, but that doesn’t take into account ant drifting snow, compacting snow, that kind of thing.”

Except last week Environment Canada posted about the amount of snow that fell in the city so… I’m confused?

Here are a few more good posts about the weather:

Twitter avatar for @Steph_Coates47
Stephanie Coates @Steph_Coates47
Yup, we have just a *little* bit of snow around @SprucelandTrad1 today. Check out one of our courtyards that is so beautifully blanketed! ❄️ Here’s hoping it’s warm enough tomorrow so we can actually enjoy it! @SD57PG
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8:25 PM ∙ Feb 21, 2023
6Likes1Retweet
Twitter avatar for @cnolin
Catherine Nolin @cnolin
❄️ Can confirm ❄️ #CityofPG https://t.co/o286lN1AsQ
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Twitter avatar for @globeandmail
The Globe and Mail @globeandmail
Environment Canada forecasts heavy snowfall across much of B.C. https://t.co/jXgFRixHPV
10:51 PM ∙ Feb 25, 2023
Twitter avatar for @huguesmassicot1
Hugues B. Massicotte @huguesmassicot1
In the middle of a snowstorm, "Robby" the robin is a survivor and prefers saskatoon berries over blueberries, in the absence of mountain-ash berries. Then, he/she has a well-deserved "nap"! 🧐👍
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8:12 PM ∙ Feb 26, 2023

Snow umbrellas

Twitter avatar for @TheVilms
Vilma @TheVilms
I can’t tell if Vancouver snow umbrellas are brilliant or soft.
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8:06 AM ∙ Feb 26, 2023

So a few years ago I started noticing people using umbrellas in winter and tried to figure out if it was a new thing or not. I felt like it was but when I started asking people using them when they started, they said they’d been doing so for years — although many were not from the city.

Twitter avatar for @akurjata
andrew kurjata @akurjata
QUESTION: Are umbrellas in the snow becoming more common? I feel like I never saw one in use until a few years ago, and now I see them regularly? Or is this just the Frequency Bias coming into play? #cityofPG #BCStorm
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6:01 PM ∙ Jan 3, 2020
1Like1Retweet
Twitter avatar for @akurjata
andrew kurjata @akurjata
I ran out of the office to ask a woman carrying an umbrella about this. She told me she's used an umbrella in the snow "forever" but she also thinks foreign students are increasing her ranks
Twitter avatar for @akurjata
andrew kurjata @akurjata
QUESTION: Are umbrellas in the snow becoming more common? I feel like I never saw one in use until a few years ago, and now I see them regularly? Or is this just the Frequency Bias coming into play? #cityofPG #BCStorm https://t.co/f9qAHEwTSV
7:31 PM ∙ Jan 3, 2020

All that said — it’s a good idea! It wouldn’t do much for you on a day like Saturday, when the snow was blowing sideways but on a day where it’s a wet, soak-through-your-tuque snow, I say go for it.


Where are people without shelter supposed to go on Sundays?

And while we’re on the topic of how we deal with winter, this is an issue:

Twitter avatar for @JulsBudau
Juls Budău @JulsBudau
Just a reminder that this winter storm will continue into tomorrow and there will nowhere for unhoused people to go in Prince George on Sunday between the hours of 11am and 6pm besides one small atco trailer running on a struggling generator.
6:26 PM ∙ Feb 25, 2023
29Likes17Retweets

Twitter avatar for @PG_Designs
PG Designs @PG_Designs
On this day in 1969 the Spruceland theater opened. The 726-seat Spruceland Theatre, located at the Spruceland Shopping Centre in Prince George, was opened by Famous Players on Feb 26, 1969. It closed Sep 30, 1992. #princegeorge #nostalgia #nostalgiamarketing #alwaysbecreating
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10:41 PM ∙ Feb 26, 2023

Light pillars, not aliens

Twitter avatar for @victorhansen191
Victor Hansen @victorhansen191
Crazy lights in Prince George #ufo #CityOfPG #alieninvasion
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5:36 AM ∙ Feb 25, 2023

I also saw this post and had to bring back an article I wrote a few years ago about the phenomenon of light pillars.


Other news:

Here’s what else is going on:

  • Good article about what getting a vet school at UNBC would mean for the region’s veterinary crisis. It wouldn’t solve everything!

  • In perhaps not great news for the goal of getting more people living downtown, an unfinished apartment building on Quebec — across from the new pool — is for sale. Asking price is $15.9 million.

  • There are two major expansion to the hospital planned — and local taxpayers could be expected to contribute $264 million to make it happen. Northern Health says they are still in the planning stage.

  • A report going to city council on Wednesday says the city needs to hire 32 more firefighters and open a new fire hall in the BCR site due to “almost stunning growth in local call volume.” Part of this is fire calls but there are also medical calls impacting firefighters — something I wrote about here. The report itself is pretty interesting and I’ll probably pull at it more later this week.

  • At council tonight, the city is looking for funding options for a new refrigeration unit for the ice rink in the Elks Centre — one of the few city facilities in the Hart.

  • A disabled Prince George woman is still fearful about leaving her home, months after she was hit by a city bus while crossing the street in her mobility scooter.

  • The Jeane Clarke history awards were announced, with Lheidli T’enneh member Jennifer Annais Pighin and Elder Edie Frederick winning the Service Award for their work preserving Dakelh language and history.

  • Also, a portable bar has been nominated for two provincial small business awards.

  • Telus workers held a rally for better wages.

  • A few local athletes won medals at the Canada Winter Games in Charlottetown.

  • Reddit helps track down local pool tables and places to shower if your water goes out.

  • We find out who gets the Freedom of the City today.

  • Finally, what on earth is this?

observedinpg
A post shared by observed in PG (@observedinpg)

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Do we care about accusations of RCMP wrongdoing?

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1 Comment
Christine Callihoo
Feb 27

Andrew, well asserted; agree: "Do we care about accusations of RCMP wrongdoing?" I encourage you to submit this to the PG Citizen as an opinion piece. Let's get comfortable with being uncomfortable - a space where we learn the most about ourselves.

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