From the Salmon Arm Observer
Published: October 27, 2009 6:00 PM
Denial allows people to think that more growth is somehow “smart” or sustainable as long as we stack people on top of each other. All the while, we can ignore the failures of this practice everywhere it has been tried.
Denial allows us to believe that we can create “compact, walkable cities,” when in reality rental and real estate prices in these cities invariably become so expensive that those who do the work cannot afford to li…
Continue
Added by Rick Shea on October 29, 2009 at 10:00am —
No Comments
“At its best, schooling can be about how to make a life, which is quite different from how to make a living.” (Neil Postman)
1
I suppose that my first teaching position should have been the wake up call.
After all, there I was, a brand new shiny teacher, still wet behind the daybook, replacing a somewhat older teacher who was on a five month stress leave. But I didn’t see the signs, likely because Chase Secondary School at that time was a very well run community school, the students…
Continue
Added by Rick Shea on October 15, 2009 at 7:00pm —
No Comments
There once was a near-hairless ape,
created as though for a jape.
He lived in a Garden
watched o’er by a Warden,
and eternally longed for escape.
At first this poor ape ran ‘round bootless
and felt, in his psyche, quite rootless.
He hungered for learning
but, at every turning,
results of his efforts were fruitless.
Still, figures and facts, he’d compile ‘em
‘til, self-proclaimed king of his phylum,
he now rules the Earth,
but, for what it’s worth,
the Garden is now an asylum.
Continue
Added by Rick Shea on October 13, 2009 at 9:10am —
No Comments
The Salmon River has responded well to the considerable efforts of local citizens and groups. Bank stabilization work and efforts to improve spawning areas have resulted in several thousand salmon making their way up the river to spawn annually. Herons, osprey, kingfishers, and numerous other species rely on the river as well. Consequently, the idea that Salmon Arm council, or any other politician and any level, would allow any change to the current habitat, and especially any change which would…
Continue
Added by Rick Shea on July 27, 2009 at 11:33am —
No Comments
There are several ways to reduce human population.
The first one is to let Mother Nature take her course, as she typically does with any population which has overshot its limits. The resulting Malthusian collapse would be absolutely devastating, and, of course, not a very desirable situation. Unfortunately, that is where I believe we are headed, and people like James Lovelock seem to agree.
The second one is to begin consciously reducing our population through a variety of means, specified bel…
Continue
Added by Rick Shea on May 28, 2009 at 8:30am —
No Comments
One of the fundamental principles of “Smart Growth” is to increase residential density by infill in existing areas, and by redeveloping existing residential areas more densely. The claim is that this will somehow create livable cities, reduce energy requirements and emissions, save farmland, and protect green space. Or, as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency puts it, “density is (an) integral component to the creation of neighborhoods that offer convenience, value and a high quality of life…
Continue
Added by Rick Shea on November 19, 2008 at 10:00pm —
No Comments
It is not racist or misanthropic to try to protect the environment and our children’s natural heritage. Yet that is typically the knee-jerk response to those who point out environmental reasons for halting human population growth. Those reasons cited include the current human-caused “Sixth Great Extinction,” collapse of ocean fish stocks and other sea life, emissions and pollution affecting our oceans and our weather, soil exhaustion and continued loss of arable land to concrete and asphalt, and…
Continue
Added by Rick Shea on November 11, 2008 at 12:03pm —
No Comments
Sent to Salmon Arm council
Good morning.
I would like to thank you all for your work in thoroughly examining the "Smart" centre proposal, and in bringing the issues to the public. It certainly was no easy task, as there clearly were many opinions on all sides of the issue.
The tied vote on council was, I believe, an fairly accurate reflection of the feelings of the community, and a reflection of the emergent worldwide dialogue on sustainability.
Other communities which have also defea…
Continue
Added by Rick Shea on November 11, 2008 at 10:00am —
No Comments
Sent to the local print media today:
Dear Sir:
If the proportion of speakers at the recent public hearing who were in favor of the so-called “Smart” centre development is any indication, those who continue to claim that they speak for some sort of “silent majority” in favor of box stores are clearly out of touch with reality. Yet they continue to harp that Salmon Arm needs “progress” – presumably the same sort of progress as Kelowna and other strip mall cities. Progress can mean many th…
Continue
Added by Rick Shea on October 31, 2008 at 3:27pm —
No Comments
One of the rationalizations for continuing our current economic system is that we appear to live in an era of unprecedented prosperity and health. We can buy all the toys imaginable, we live longer, and so on.
That of course is an extremely short-sighted snapshot taken now, or perhaps in a recent utopian past in the imagination of someone from a developed country.
Homo sapiens is currently causing the sixth great extinction of species on this planet. Homo sapiens is currently about half way th…
Continue
Added by Rick Shea on October 17, 2008 at 11:58am —
No Comments
Sent to the local media, and to Salmon Arm council:
Dear Sir:
So, Glen Bury claims that there is considerable “misinformation in the public realm” in Salmon Arm surrounding the proposed big box destruction of some of our invaluable wetlands.
Never forget that, at the bottom line, Bury and company are only interested in one thing: profits.
Local communities, local businesses, the environment, and even the truth are typically just obstacles to overcome in order to make these profits. The…
Continue
Added by Rick Shea on September 23, 2008 at 7:11am —
No Comments
Dear Sirs:
I welcomed the announcement of the multi-evening public meeting regarding the proposed development at the mouth of the Salmon River. I work every Monday evening, and thus looked forward to attending the Tuesday evening session. The recent clarification that the Tuesday and Wednesday sessions may not be held prompts me to submit my comments in writing, given that I may not have any other opportunity to do so.
The so-called “Smart” Centre development violates every principle of sustai…
Continue
Added by Rick Shea on September 16, 2008 at 8:54am —
No Comments
Sent to the local print media and to Salmon Arm council today:
Dear Sirs:
I almost feel sorry for Salmon Arm Councillor Kevin Flynn. Almost.
Every time he comments on growth and development, he demonstrates again and again how shallow and irresponsible is his understanding of environmental issues.
His latest and greatest is the amazing comment that the large number of waterfowl and other life around Shuswap Lake is evidence that more development can occur.
Flynn clearly does not unde…
Continue
Added by Rick Shea on August 12, 2008 at 3:32pm —
No Comments
Salmon Arm councillor Flynn has called for removal of CASSSA from the group studying the "information gaps" surrounding the "Dumb Centre" proposal.
Dear Councillor Flynn:
Good for you. CASSSA has a lot of gall to host a rally in opposition to the Smart Centres proposal.
Similar citizens’ groups in hundreds of cities across North America show precisely how dangerous the situation can be. Such groups have misled councils to reject these valuable meccas of consumerism, and instead have or…
Continue
Added by Rick Shea on July 22, 2008 at 7:16am —
No Comments
Sent to (B.C. Premier) Gordon Campbell and assorted others, July 4 2008
Dear Premier Campbell:
The advertising promoting our shiny new carbon tax claims that, by 2020, the reduction in GHG emissions will be roughly equivalent to removing 800,000 cars from the road (787,000 according to the British Columbia government website).
According to Statistics Canada, British Columbia is growing more rapidly than most other provinces. At the current annual growth rate of 1.4%, British Columbia’s popula…
Continue
Added by Rick Shea on July 5, 2008 at 12:30pm —
No Comments
Sent to Salmon Arm council, the Observer, and the Lakeshore News May 27, 2008
Is democracy really so completely and utterly dead in Salmon Arm?
The Community Charter states that councils are “established and CONTINUED by the will of the residents of their communities” (emphasis mine). In short, councillors are not just subject to a satisfaction survey every three years at election time, they also must rely on the will of the residents on an ongoing basis.
So what does Salmon Arm council do wh…
Continue
Added by Rick Shea on May 29, 2008 at 7:34am —
No Comments
From the Salmon Arm Observer, May 21, 2008
What will you do when the oil runs out? Some say that that is not really the right question.
Just as U.S. oil production peaked and began declining in the early 1970s, global oil production is predicted to peak and begin declining before 2010. Even oil industry executives and scientists are beginning to support this claim, despite the fact it means the eventual end of business for many of them. But there will still be some oil available, if we’re will…
Continue
Added by Rick Shea on May 29, 2008 at 7:23am —
No Comments
From the Lakeshore News, April 25, 2008
Mary Halliday’s letter in your April 18th (“City economy endangered”) is an almost perfect example of why the planet is facing so many problems today. Ms. Halliday comments that many people “do not have the time or energy” to think about our problems and their solutions.
Ms. Halliday’s “Chicken Little” scare tactics about interfering with growth and so-called “progress” are pretty typical of the lack of thought about the consequences of what we are doing…
Continue
Added by Rick Shea on May 29, 2008 at 7:00am —
No Comments
From the Salmon Arm Observer (the letter referenced here also appeared in the Lakeshore News, under the name "Halliday")
May 07, 2008
I find it interesting that exactly the same letter promoting more unhindered growth in Salmon Arm, with the exact same wording, has appeared in two different newspapers under two different names. That makes my response to the letter in your paper easy, as all I have to do is change the name in a previous letter, so here it is.
Elsie Peters’ letter in your April…
Continue
Added by Rick Shea on May 12, 2008 at 7:30am —
No Comments
(from the Salmon Arm Observer, March 05, 2008, but shortened by the editor before printing)
Regardless of whether or not the SmartCentres development proceeds, the citizens of Salmon Arm are making a crucial point.
That point was a belief held dear by Thomas Jefferson that governments only govern by “consent of the governed.” Salmon Arm city council is doing an excellent job, to this point, of seeking that consent with regard to the future of Salmon Arm.
Clearly, there is a division of opinio…
Continue
Added by Rick Shea on March 17, 2008 at 9:30pm —
No Comments
Denial can be a cold comfort
