Protest/counterprotest

How many turned out? Plus, driving an EV through a climate disaster

I went to both of the rallies held outside city hall yesterday. You can read the report on what happened here (the Prince George-centric stuff comes under the subhed “bullying claims”). For the purposes of today’s newsletter, I just wanted to give you comparison photos of each crowd.

Here’s the morning one that has an issue with the current teaching of gender and sexuality:

And here’s the afternoon:

The school board did, eventually, say something about this in a letter signed by chair Rachael Weber and superintendent Pam Spooner:

The Board of Education for School District No. 57 is responsible for providing an education system that is a safe, welcoming environment, free from racism, discrimination, harassment, and violence and that is inclusive and affirming for all students, staff and community members.

The Board and staff recognize and value diversity and celebrates diversity within its school communities and believes that each individual contributes to the richness of the school environment.

The Board of Education recognizes and reaffirms its commitment to the anti-discrimination principles and values contained in the B.C. Human Rights Code, the Canadian Human Rights Act and the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. It also recognizes the need to provide a safe environment, free from harassment and discrimination, while ensuring that all students, employees and families, are treated with respect and dignity while being welcomed and included in all aspects of learning and school life.

Do with that what you will.

Meanwhile, there was an apparent stabbing at PGSS but not much information about that, either.

Here are the other reports on yesterday’s events:

• Parents rally for right to shape what kids are learning in schools

• Emotions run high at anti-SOGI demonstration in PG

• No Space for Hate counter-demonstration garners large crowd, one arrested

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Electric cars and climate disaster

Jamella Hagen

I very much enjoyed this piece titled “We like our EV because it's green. But for escaping wildfires — maybe it's not the best option yet” written by Jamella Hagen of Whitehorse. It documents her experience driving through B.C. with an electric vehicle during this summer’s wildfires, and the challenges it posed — particulary in B.C.’s northern half, incluidng Prince George:

In Prince George, the level 3 charger was slower than I expected. The charging station also had no windshield washers as most gas stations do, which meant we had to drive the next stretch of smoke-filled skies and reduced visibility with a windshield full of bugs. We ended up pulling into Fort St. John, B.C., in pitch darkness with only 62 kilometres of remaining driving charge.  We gratefully slept while our truck charged, only to find at lunchtime the next day that the Fort Nelson level 2 charger was the slowest yet, and we would have to spend another night after only travelling 381 kilometres. 

In an accompanying interview, she notes that the infrastructure actually improves once you cross over into Yukon and she also has this line, which I think is super-important, as well:

In addition to realizing the infrastructure of charging stations in the north was not as robust, I was also surprised to find EV chargers often located in inconvenient places, such as the edges of town, behind buildings, or at the far side of box store parking lots. If I was travelling as a single woman, I would have found myself missing the comfort of a brightly lit gas station on a lonely stretch of highway. 

As a new EV owner, I’ve written about the surprising sparsity of charging stations, as well. Like Hagen, I enjoy having the vehicle for day-to-day life but with the current infrastructure in place, I worry about what will happen if I need to rely on it during a disaster.

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700 subscribers

Northern Capital News just passed another milestone and holy cow, I never thought it would have this much uptick. I really appreciate your support and a reminder — the best way to spread the word is to share with other people who might enjoy it.

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Quick news:

• Canada’s federal housing advocate says Prince George has been high on her radar as having “among the worst practices” in the country when it comes to homeless camps.

• In McBride, you can no longer wash vehicles or water lawns due to the drought.

• The Prince Geoge Cougars are gearing up for their 30th season (read my post on the franchise’s storied past here).

• And the Spruce Kings are adding to their coaching staff.

• Mousetrap is already a hit for Theatre Northwest.

• The Cariboo Corn Maze south of Quesnel opens soon!

• Fortunately, I don’t have to make this commute but apparently the closure of University Way has been a nightmare. Here’s a letter to the same effect.

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