Western Expresso

[Wpg_Guy]

Originally Posted by LilZebra

As of Thursday morning Sep. 23 I'm leaving here for good.

I've applied for MAID (medical assistance in dying) and was approved as of last Thurs.

My reasons are that I'm experiencing too much physical pain (more leg neuropathy, total blindness in right eye, photosensitive in left eye, too much dialysis sessions, too many diabetes pills, too many homecare visits) that I've exceeded my theshhold for pain.

Too bad I won't seec the opening of rail transit here.

Closing this chapter in my soul's evolution and abbout to start a new one.

You've all been great acquaintences over the years. Many thanks,

Hope to see some of you in the afterlife.

Till then...

James A. Jaworski (aka LilZebra) signing out.

Cheers James, thanks for your years of contributions here.

[peg]

Originally Posted by LilZebra

As of Thursday morning Sep. 23 I'm leaving here for good.

I've applied for MAID (medical assistance in dying) and was approved as of last Thurs.

My reasons are that I'm experiencing too much physical pain (more leg neuropathy, total blindness in right eye, photosensitive in left eye, too much dialysis sessions, too many diabetes pills, too many homecare visits) that I've exceeded my theshhold for pain.

Too bad I won't seec the opening of rail transit here.

Closing this chapter in my soul's evolution and abbout to start a new one.

You've all been great acquaintences over the years. Many thanks,

Hope to see some of you in the afterlife.

Till then...

James A. Jaworski (aka LilZebra) signing out.

Thanks for all of your insights and comments James. Your contributions here will be missed.

I hope you and your soul find peace wherever you may end up. Hopefully, it is a place with rail transit .

Best of luck with everything and take care

[OTA in Winnipeg]

Originally Posted by LilZebra

As of Thursday morning Sep. 23 I'm leaving here for good.

I've applied for MAID (medical assistance in dying) and was approved as of last Thurs.

My reasons are that I'm experiencing too much physical pain (more leg neuropathy, total blindness in right eye, photosensitive in left eye, too much dialysis sessions, too many diabetes pills, too many homecare visits) that I've exceeded my theshhold for pain.

Too bad I won't seec the opening of rail transit here.

Closing this chapter in my soul's evolution and abbout to start a new one.

You've all been great acquaintences over the years. Many thanks,

Hope to see some of you in the afterlife.

Till then...

James A. Jaworski (aka LilZebra) signing out.

Very sad news James. I wish you a great journey.

[Authentic_City]

Originally Posted by LilZebra

As of Thursday morning Sep. 23 I'm leaving here for good.

I've applied for MAID (medical assistance in dying) and was approved as of last Thurs.

My reasons are that I'm experiencing too much physical pain (more leg neuropathy, total blindness in right eye, photosensitive in left eye, too much dialysis sessions, too many diabetes pills, too many homecare visits) that I've exceeded my theshhold for pain.

Too bad I won't seec the opening of rail transit here.

Closing this chapter in my soul's evolution and abbout to start a new one.

You've all been great acquaintences over the years. Many thanks,

Hope to see some of you in the afterlife.

Till then...

James A. Jaworski (aka LilZebra) signing out.

Take care James / LilZebra. Wishing you peace on your journey.

[Riverman]

Originally Posted by djforsberg

It's par for the course for the shills of the fossil fuel industry. They really don't have any other arguments except these same ones they have been repeating for 15+ years. As their arguments stay the same, our climate changes along with the extreme weather and other phenomena that comes from it, whether it's stronger hurricanes, more frequent floods, larger and quicker temperature swings, shorter fall and spring seasons, the spreading of bugs and diseases northward, the thawing of permafrost which releases both methane and ancient bacteria, dryer conditions resulting in more wildfires, and the drought that has been plaguing much of the prairies for the past several years. People can bury their heads in sand but they're still going to be effected be climate change whether they choose to accept it or not.

Your Greta-based alarmist attitude is moronic and has been throughly debunked by many experts.

https://nationalpost.com/sponsored/news-...ODyQAgH3Ejv_bkTMNgb04ecmN56uVz9WT2xyy8JI

[TimeFadesAway]

Originally Posted by djforsberg

Your link is sponsored content from a corporate-owned, highly-conservative publication, and is not journalism. This isn’t debatable anymore. You’re sounding like someone still debating the efficacy of the Covid vaccines or wearing masks. Just stop, you’re embarrassing yourself.

Here's a pretty solid rebuttal of the book mentioned in the sponsored National Post article. Note that this rebuttal has not been sponsored by anybody with something to gain.
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/a-new-book-manages-to-get-climate-science-badly-wrong/

[rrskylar]

Delete

[xubiqtss]

Originally Posted by WinCitySparky

I’m also supportive of hard core enforcement. It’s the only way the message is going to get out that the shacks aren’t for the scum.

Pretty amazing how willingly people buy into this strategy of policing away social problems, despite it historically never working anywhere.

Resources need to go to root issues, not moving the problem out of site for it to fester elsewhere.

[Only The Lonely..]

Originally Posted by xubiqtss

Pretty amazing how willingly people buy into this strategy of policing away social problems, despite it historically never working anywhere.

Resources need to go to root issues, not moving the problem out of site for it to fester elsewhere.

I don't think it's about sweeping away social issues.

It's about not using transit shelters to drink and smoke meth in. Our downtown transit infrastructure is unusable right now and it shows in the increasing number of safety incidents on buses.

If these people want help there are places they can get it.

[Biff]

I think most people realize that we need to get to the root of the problem and spend the appropriate amount of money to make changes at an early level....and no, policing wont solve any of the underlying issues.

There are however, still laws and rules that everyone has to follow and you shouldn't get a pass because everyone is afraid to offend people.

If I took my son and said we are going to set up a tent and camp out amongst the trees of the City Hall courtyard, we would be moved along or arrested within 10 minutes. I am not allowed to drive down Portage throwing garbage and needles out my window. Why are disadvantaged people allowed to do such things?

I don't quite understand why everything changed 2 to 3 years ago that our downtown started to look so disheveled. I get that Covid took the big working population away with WFH but that shouldn't have changed the crews and police from maintaining a clean, safe neighborhood.

What is with all the tents in Memorial Park....when did camping there become acceptable? I also agree fully with posts above regarding bus shelters...they need to be either removed or policed in some way.

Everyone is terrified of saying or doing anything that may offend.

[WinCitySparky]

Originally Posted by Only The Lonely..

I don't think it's about sweeping away social issues.

It's about not using transit shelters to drink and smoke meth in. Our downtown transit infrastructure is unusable right now and it shows in the increasing number of safety incidents on buses.

If these people want help there are places they can get it.

Exactly

[WinCitySparky]

Originally Posted by Biff

I think most people realize that we need to get to the root of the problem and spend the appropriate amount of money to make changes at an early level....and no, policing wont solve any of the underlying issues.

There are however, still laws and rules that everyone has to follow and you shouldn't get a pass because everyone is afraid to offend people.

If I took my son and said we are going to set up a tent and camp out amongst the trees of the City Hall courtyard, we would be moved along or arrested within 10 minutes. I am not allowed to drive down Portage throwing garbage and needles out my window. Why are disadvantaged people allowed to do such things?

I don't quite understand why everything changed 2 to 3 years ago that our downtown started to look so disheveled. I get that Covid took the big working population away with WFH but that shouldn't have changed the crews and police from maintaining a clean, safe neighborhood.

What is with all the tents in Memorial Park....when did camping there become acceptable? I also agree fully with posts above regarding bus shelters...they need to be either removed or policed in some way.

Everyone is terrified of saying or doing anything that may offend.

Thanks for articulating this in proper fashion. Just because someone is homeless doesn’t mean they aren’t an absolute garbage human being.

[GreyGarden]

Originally Posted by xubiqtss

Pretty amazing how willingly people buy into this strategy of policing away social problems, despite it historically never working anywhere.

Resources need to go to root issues, not moving the problem out of site for it to fester elsewhere.

I agree that resources should go to the root causes, but I do think there is something to be said for just moving the problem elsewhere. When I think of vibrant and lively downtowns in Canada, Toronto or Vancouver or Montreal certainly haven't solved the root causes underlying social issues, if anything, being poor in those cities is even more challenging given the housing crisis. Rather those cities have attempted to move the problem elsewhere as was on full display when they cleared tent encampments this summer. I certainly don't agree with this approach or think it is just, but I think it at least kind of works in terms of making a place look appealing and safe - which those cities certainly are for the most part. But, for what its worth I'd be angry and upset if Winnipeg Police forcibly cleared the tent encampments that were set up around Memorial Park - especially given the racial demographics amongst Winnipeg's struggling population. I think doing that is unfair and unjust and a bad use of the City's resources. I don't think that "woke identity politics" or whatever people are upset about these days is making our cities dirty or unsafe, I think that the decision to clear a tent encampment is a really serious decision that isn't easy to make. It's easy to say that a law that says don't camp under a bridge applies equally to everyone, but in reality the impact of the law targets poor and vulnerable people. Enforcing laws that target a particular demographic should require serious deliberation and thought.

I obviously care and want Winnipeg to have a lively, attractive and vibrant downtown that people want to be in. It's why I joined this forum. But I also think it's wrong to try and achieve that at the expense of other people who are really struggling. My desire for people to be treated fairly and justly outweighs my desire for a dense, vibrant and attractive downtown.

[thebasketballgeek]

I agree with a lot of grey garden’s point the disenfranchised and marginalization of a certain ethnic group is what further exasperate this cause. I don’t want to say this but if the majority of those addicts were white this issue would most likely be swept under the rug and far less exaggerated like in Calgary and Montreal. Not everyone in the Air Canada park or on Higgins and Main are drug addicts some are just people who unfortunately are homeless from other factors.

Another downtown similar to us that might have an even worse perception of downtown from its residents is Edmonton. Apparently the situation is so bad that downtown residents are telling people to actively avoid going to the area because it’s too dangerous. There is massive amounts of needles everywhere, people shitting on the streets, daily gun shots, and daily unpleasant interactions. The 8-9 times I’ve been to Downtown in the last 2 months I’ve never felt that it was an unsafe are, and half of those trips were cycling. Maybe it has to do because the colour of my skin is brown (I’m not indigenous btw just a visible minority), but any interactions I would have is just them asking for a smoke or lighter.

With virtually every major Canadian city being unsuccessful in helping these people this can and should be treated as a federal issue and it starts with decriminalization of these drugs and further funding for safe injection recovery sites, social services, and shelters. We can and should learn from Portugal on this issue.

[zalf]

Just to put some very rough numbers on things, before the pandemic in 2018 (the last year for which there is good data) there were ~500 homeless people either sleeping rough or in shelters.

The Pollards are building a 47-unit housing first building for $8 million.

Just multiplying out the those numbers says you could massively cut homelessness for $85 million, plus maintenance and staffing. That seems like a spectacularly good investment, and there are presumably economies of scale to be had.

I have to imagine that the problem is political will rather than fiscal capacity.

[davequanbury]

Originally Posted by zalf

Just to put some very rough numbers on things, before the pandemic in 2018 (the last year for which there is good data) there were ~500 homeless people either sleeping rough or in shelters.

The Pollards are building a 47-unit housing first building for $8 million.

Just multiplying out the those numbers says you could massively cut homelessness for $85 million, plus maintenance and staffing. That seems like a spectacularly good investment, and there are presumably economies of scale to be had.

I have to imagine that the problem is political will rather than fiscal capacity.

Ziaf, I'm curious where you got that number (~500) from because the 2018 street census talked to over 1500 people who were experiencing homelessness https://streetcensuswpg.ca/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/2018_FinalReport_Web.pdf

[zalf]

From the same source, davequanbury. I was only looking at those listed under "Unsheltered" and "Emergency Sheltered", since those are who would need housing most. Although I did make an error with 500 when that ought to have been 600.

Anyway, my broader point doesn't really hinge on the specific counts. I'm saying that providing housing for the most needy isn't all that expensive, very likely saves money over the long run, and is the morally right thing to do, but political will to do this has been lacking in the past. That said, for the first time that I recall, housing affordability was a significant federal electoral issue.

Relatedly, and because this is a construction thread, does anyone know if anything has happened yet locally with that federal Housing First money that was announced like a year or so ago?

[WinCitySparky]

Originally Posted by zalf

Just to put some very rough numbers on things, before the pandemic in 2018 (the last year for which there is good data) there were ~500 homeless people either sleeping rough or in shelters.

The Pollards are building a 47-unit housing first building for $8 million.

Just multiplying out the those numbers says you could massively cut homelessness for $85 million, plus maintenance and staffing. That seems like a spectacularly good investment, and there are presumably economies of scale to be had.

I have to imagine that the problem is political will rather than fiscal capacity.

You can build all the shelters and create all the jobs and hand out all the solutions you want, but in a lot of cases it’s all a waste of time as they simply don’t want to be helped or be part of any system. That is what people just don’t seem to grasp. There is no fixing them to function unless they 100% buy in and are willing, and trying to think about the solution from where we stand is as much the problem, and why there has been no solution except feel-good bandaid bullshit.

[pspeid]

Originally Posted by WinCitySparky

You can build all the shelters and create all the jobs and hand out all the solutions you want, but in a lot of cases it’s all a waste of time as they simply don’t want to be helped or be part of any system. That is what people just don’t seem to grasp. There is no fixing them to function unless they 100% buy in and are willing, and trying to think about the solution from where we stand is as much the problem, and why there has been no solution except feel-good bandaid bullshit.

Well, aside from giving oneself license to do absolutely nothing this isn't a very helpful statement. Yes, there are some people who are homeless because they prefer it that way. For some it is easier to live on the street than face the pressure of maintaining a job, taxing rent and taxes, and running in the rat race.The key word here is some. Some, not all. Some people who find themselves homeless would never in a million years have expected themselves to be homeless. Sudden financial disasters can happen to anyone. Add personal tragedy, addictions, any number of traumas and you have the potential for homelessness. There are people who are able to end their homelessness and turn their lives around with help from that "bandaid bullshit" so colourfully referred to here. So what's the solution? Put more resources into ending homelessness and help some people, or just write off everyone one finds personally offensive? Personally I prefer the former, but I guess whatever helps you sleep at night.

[blueandgoldguy]

Originally Posted by WinCitySparky

You can build all the shelters and create all the jobs and hand out all the solutions you want, but in a lot of cases it’s all a waste of time as they simply don’t want to be helped or be part of any system. That is what people just don’t seem to grasp. There is no fixing them to function unless they 100% buy in and are willing, and trying to think about the solution from where we stand is as much the problem, and why there has been no solution except feel-good bandaid bullshit.

What percentage of those who are currently homeless do you believe "don't want to be helped?"