Vancouver General Discussion Thread

[GeeCee]

Probably gonna be down until next year, I imagine? I wonder if they have to replace the cable or if it can be repaired. And then there's inspecting and repairing all the cars.. ugh.

[jollyburger]

I guess Translink will have to beef up their security for the SFU gondola now.

[whatnext]

Originally Posted by Klazu

Preliminary investigation suggests a cable on the gondola was cut

Very odd. Who would have a grudge against the gondola?

I see it has made CNN.

[SpongeG]

Didn't someone cut the Capilano suspension Bridge cables a number of years ago?

[Metro-One]

What a fucking bizarre act of vandalism. I hope who did this is caught and actually receives some true punishment (personally I feel they should do about 5 years or more of community service, essentially working for the city of Squamish and the Squamish First Nations should become their life)

[Migrant_Coconut]

Originally Posted by whatnext

Very odd. Who would have a grudge against the gondola?

I see it has made CNN.

Better yet, who'd be upset enough to bring an angle grinder all the way up Squamish and up the mountain in the early morning... to spend half an hour cutting through a 5-6cm steel cable? This ain't just some random junkie or vandal passing through the area.

Time to see who's been recently let go and/or denied a bonus, or which locals've been ranting about "destruction of unspoiled natural beauty" or "all the damn new people coming in."

Originally Posted by Metro-One

What a fucking bizarre act of vandalism. I hope who did this is caught and actually receives some true punishment (personally I feel they should do about 5 years or more of community service, essentially working for the city of Squamish and the Squamish First Nations should become their life)

Ironically, there's an unpopular opinion suggesting it WAS somebody from the First Nations. There was a lot of pushback during the planning stage, which led to major concessions (% of revenue, etc).

[GeeCee]

Could be some kind of misguided protest against the SFU gondola project? Some of the residents below the proposed route have been quite vocal in their opposition.

[Klazu]

Originally Posted by Metro-One

What a fucking bizarre act of vandalism. I hope who did this is caught and actually receives some true punishment (personally I feel they should do about 5 years or more of community service, essentially working for the city of Squamish and the Squamish First Nations should become their life)

There is no way an absolutely crazy act like this won't warrant some serious jail time. Damage done will be counted in millions of dollars, so prison will be happening.

[svlt]

Originally Posted by GeeCee

Could be some kind of misguided protest against the SFU gondola project? Some of the residents below the proposed route have been quite vocal in their opposition.

That would be a huge stretch - not on your speculation, but whichever a'hole actually went and did this would have thought it would somehow be a factor in diminishing the SFU gondola's chances of approval. What's the angle? Build this and I will come and cut that one too while people are riding it?

This sort of thing dangerous vandalism deserves serious jail time and hefty personal fines.

[MIPS]

I'm still trying to comprehend how dangerous cutting the line would of been.
IF you are halfway up the mountain you still have several tons of raw steel in the cable itself and I'm not including the weight of the gondolas which themselves can weigh several hundred pounds individually. Cutting that would cause the bundle to rip apart after a certain point. You would not want to be near this as the force can amputate.

[jollyburger]

I'm guessing it would be similar to when a tow rope snaps and recoils back but probably with more force considering the dimension of the wire.

[WarrenC12]

Was this gondola unpopular with anybody? Locals? Enviro groups? I hadn't heard anything and was shocked when this happened. It's not a simple matter to do on a whim, this took planning and some "expertise".

[whatnext]

Sea to Sky Gondola hopes to reopen by Spring 2020. I wonder if the selfish jerk who sabotaged it gave any thought to those working there? I hope they catch them.

[whatnext]

Looks like the city finally listened to business and police complaints about the tent city in Oppenheimer Park:

VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) – Moving day is coming for the people who have been living in Oppenheimer Park on the Downtown Eastside. Park Rangers and Vancouver police officers were at the park on Monday morning serving notices to the more than 200 people who live there.

It was a tense scene, as residents told officials they have no place to go.

One man told the Park Board superintendent, who was speaking with residents as rangers tucked notices under tent flaps and handed them out, that he had previously been camping in another park...

...The residents have been camping in the park for over a year, but locals have become more and more frustrated with safety concerns and impacts to local businesses.

“There have been 17 fires in the park since February,” the city statement says. “VPD has also expressed concern regarding the number of violent incidents occurring in the park.”...

https://www.citynews1130.com/2019/08/19/oppenheimer-park-tent-city-eviction-planned/

[SpongeG]

Sea to Sky Gondola closure leaves couples scrambling

Regan Hasegawa, Multi-skilled journalist, CTV News Vancouver

@rhasegawaCTV
Published Sunday, August 18, 2019 7:11PM PDT

Fallout from the sudden closure of the Sea to Sky Gondola earlier this month wasn't limited to the thousands of tourists who can no longer ride the attraction or the 75 seasonal employees who were prematurely laid off as a result.

Dozens of events – including several weddings – planned at the top of the mountain have had to relocate because of the cable police believe was deliberately severed.

“My heart just sank to my stomach and I just couldn’t believe this was happening,” said Caroline Hyatt, wedding coordinator and owner of Love and Confetti.

...

https://bc.ctvnews.ca/sea-to-sky-gondola-closure-leaves-couples-scrambling-1.4555141

[Feathered Friend]

For those unaware, the Vancouver Sun and Gordon Clark (allegedly) have found themselves in some hot water for publishing this ignorant op-ed.

Link to an archived version of the removed content:

Mark Hecht: Ethnic diversity harms a country's social trust, economic well-being, argues professor
OPINION: Canada should say goodbye to diversity, tolerance and inclusion to rebuild trust in one another and start accepting a new norm for immigration policy — compatibility, cohesion and social trust.

MARK HECHT Updated: September 6, 2019

https://web.archive.org/web/201909070219...ust-economic-well-being-argues-professor

Background on how it was (somehow) published:

Author Of Anti-Immigrant Vancouver Sun Op-ed Explains How It Got Published
Mark Hecht says he was inspired to submit to the Sun because of similar writings on diversity by columnist Douglas Todd
ARTICLE BY JONATHAN GOLDSBIE SEPTEMBER 7, 2019

On Friday evening, the Vancouver Sun published an opinion piece by Mark Hecht, a geography instructor at Calgary’s Mount Royal University. The column decried “the dogma of diversity, tolerance, and inclusion” and praised the virtues of homogeneity and exclusion. It cited research by the anti-Muslim Gatestone Institute...

Hecht, who self-published a 2016 book on “Why Europeans Naturally Invaded The New World,” tells Canadaland in a phone interview that he sent the piece to Gordon Clark, the Sun‘s editorial page editor, who told him it was “interesting.” He says he hasn’t heard anything from the paper or its editors beyond that, not even when they decided to retract it....

Hecht says he first offered his piece to the National Post, but got no response. He says he then came across a column touching on similar subjects by the Sun‘s Douglas Todd, which made him believe that that paper might be more receptive to it...

https://www.canadalandshow.com/mark-hecht-explains-how-vancouver-sun-oped-got-published/

[GeeCee]

I find it really hard to believe that the decision to pull the piece came so late that it was impossible to halt the publication. Clearly they weren't sufficiently bothered by it to 'stop the presses' and either delay the print version, or skip the day entirely.

It's Postmedia, though, so I suspect it's just another example of saying the quiet part loud. With situations such as this, and Jordan Peterson's popularity, it really makes me wonder how Canadians got such a reputation for being nice.

[Klazu]

Has anyone seen any updates on what went on with the gondola? Did RCMP discover any evidence of vandalism?

[SpongeG]

Yes they said it was vandalism.

[SpongeG]

Originally Posted by Feathered Friend

For those unaware, the Vancouver Sun and Gordon Clark (allegedly) have found themselves in some hot water for publishing this ignorant op-ed.

Link to an archived version of the removed content:




https://web.archive.org/web/201909070219...ust-economic-well-being-argues-professor

Background on how it was (somehow) published:



https://www.canadalandshow.com/mark-hecht-explains-how-vancouver-sun-oped-got-published/

I just saw this story on facebook and most of the commentators seemed to be in favour of the article and angry at the newspaper for trying to suppress free speech and it degrades from there