On the Road Again 2017 #6

This train trip has been a bit of a roller coaster in terms of being on time. It left just over an hour late, Three hours later we were not only on time but in fact a bit ahead of schedule. Three hours after that I would estimate that we are at least an hour if not two behind schedule. In the last hour we have spent far more time waiting for freight trains along some siding or another than we have moving. It could get frustrating if I did not know that by tomorrow morning we might have made up all of the time we have now lost - or we could be three hours late- either way it has nothing to do with me - it is totally beyond my control.

The stop in Hornepayne which is suppose to be 50 minutes was only 10. Anytime saved here was quickly frittered away by the train sitting on a siding for awhile just ten minutes outside of Hornepayne.

Train is very quiet - there are lots of seat empty although the attendant told me that at Sioux Lookout 30 people are getting on. However that will be late tonight and I have every intention of being sound asleep - using both seats.

There is only one child on this part of the train. She is, I would guess, around 18 months old. She and her mom got on at Sudbury Junction where it was dark outside and the air was fully of ravenous black flies and mosquitoes. However, the only thing that that child wanted to do was to go outside and practice her climbing up and down steps. Any other activity, especially being inside caused loud screams. Ear drum piercing screams. Poor mother, she was less than happy. Of course the half dozen other passengers waiting for the train were not all that pleased either. While I have had my ear phones in for most of the day, it would seem that the young child is much quieter on the train - much to everyone's relief. I think however, that mom is having to work fairly hard to both keep her daughter entertained and corralled.

There are two young couples on the train. I think one of them is from England and the other is perhaps from Germany. At one of our many stops in the middle of nowhere, one of them noticed an animal swimming in creek. They pronounced it as either a beaver or an otter. I give it a quick look, suggested that I thought it was a beaver and they believed me. There were less sure when I suggested that the train trip was like a ride at Disney World and that the animals were trained to swim along side the train for the passengers entertainment.Just doing my bit to entertain the visitors.

There is an interesting older woman who got on at a small stop after Sudbury. I can't quite figure out what it is, but I suspect that she might have some sort of dementia, either that or she is just use to having people answer her questions more than a few times.She is pleasantly dressed and groomed but there is something about her that is just a little bit off. She has managed to have both of the reasonably young train attendants waiting on her. Perhaps she is just smart. I have never seen a VIA staff person going to buy water for a passenger.

Just east of Longlac we waited on siding for the east bound  VIA train. When it past us - looked just as empty.

On the Road again 2017 #5

It strikes me as I watch the passing of an endless stream of images framed by the steel frame of the train's window, that I am less emotionally engaged in this trip than any other that I have taken in the past 15 years. Normally when I head west, it is at the end of a long spring where my anticipation for my summer trip builds after numerous dreams/fantasies about hitchhiking and at least a few attacks of spring fever. But now for the second summer, I am heading west  to go back home. In fact, with the exception of hitching from Winnipeg to the west coast tomorrow morning, my trip is over. It feels wrong to me- as if I have done something out of order. I never promised that any of my writing would make any sense but this feeling may make less sense than normal.

My pack is perhaps the lightest it has ever been. I am not planning on doing a lot of camping and therefore I am carrying only the basic necessities (although because of the internal frame on my fifteen year old pack, it is surprisingly heavy -even when empty). But the fun I usually  have in packing my stuff, of deciding what I need and what I really don't need was done a month ago -  when at least part of my agenda was figuring out what I could fly with. (I just at this moment remembered that I never bought gas for my stove. If I stop somewhere in the middle of nowhere I will not be able to make tea- dumb). The process of my packing has been backwards and I suspect that the gas is not the only thing I have forgotten.

I also suspect that the other reason why I have invested less energy into this return trip is that my thinking for the past month has been focused on past trips. I have just finished the first draft of my "book". I started last June trying to develop some sort of a framework for sharing the stories of the various drivers I had met in my travels. I worked on it again in December when I visited Sudbury and for the last month I have spent a few hours most days re-reading and editing some of those stories. It is a surprisingly exhausting process. As I read the different journals that I originally produced and the hundreds of blog entries that I have generated in the last seven years, those stories reminded me of those events ; they have allowed me to re-live those trips; to visit again some of my drivers. So many of those freshened memories needed to be savored, to be touched in my mind for a few minutes. So often those memories reminded me of another time, of another driver, of another scene from some other trip and I would spend half an hour trying to find my notes on that trip as well.

So by being lost in the past - delightfully so - I have had less energy and perhaps less need to dream of the upcoming trip. I am not sure what the next step in the process should be. I suspect that my just over 117,000 (150 single spaced pages) is far too long and now I will need to spend hours going through it, chopping/deleting those delightful and important memories. And of course this trip will generate a whole new set of images to be savored in the future.

On The Road Again 2017 #4

"sitting in a railroad station, got a ticket for my destination".... I wonder how many times I have typed or at least thought those words in the past 15 years. I  have lost track of the number of times I have sat either in the Sudbury Junction train station or at the other end in Vancouver waiting for yet another train. It is always with a sense of sadness and excitement that I wait for and eventually board the train. It is, in many ways, the beginning and the end of a journey. Every time I get on a train I am either heading out to visit friends and family, hopefully to have an small adventure along the way, or I am returning to my home, ready to get back into the grove of playing with wool and hanging out with friends. There are days when it all feels rather humdrum. It is not that I am not excited about the traveling but I have counted all of the cracks in the station ceiling a dozen times before and heard all of the groaning questions from first time passengers about why the train is so late probably even more often.

VIA has devised an interesting method of torture for such first time passengers at the Sudbury Junction train station. On the wall there is a large flat television monitor. On that monitor is listed the number of the train (#1) , what track it will arrive on (only one of the two tracks is reachable from the wooden boardwalk that leads from the station), what time the trains is scheduled to arrive, what time it will actually arrive at and in a fiendishly clever way of driving people mad .... what is the current time. What is particularly fiendish on the part of VIA is that if one arrives 40 or so minutes early, the scheduled time of arrival and the actual time of arrival are the same. Sometimes, the video screen states that the train will even arrive a few minutes earlier . However, about 15 or 20 minutes before the train is scheduled to arrive, the actual arrival time starts to gradually move forward. Sometimes everyone gets excited because it appears as if the train will be arriving within the next 8 or 10 minutes; then all of a sudden the numbers change and the train is going to be 12 or 14 minutes late; this cycles continues - sometimes for well over an hour. People are teased that the train's arrival is imminent and then hopes are dashed once again as the board informs all that no- the train will be 14 minutes late.

After a while all but the most optimistic  have been continued to accept that the train is late now and will be late all day, and the next day and the next. If there is a particularly friendly station master who can properly commiserate with the crowds, he or she can get people laughing at the trains lateness - surely the first step to accepting that one's train will not arrive at one's destination on time.

Like I said fiendishly clever....

Pipeline Debate (again)

It has been argued that Alberta, to maintain its economy, needs access to markets that need oil, and that the USA market is not as accessible or as open as once presumed. Therefore an expansion of the pipeline to B.C.’s shores is required. The argument for this position is reasonably compelling. Alberta is a landlocked province; it has no access to the rest of the world without transporting its oil through another jurisdiction. As well, it does not get in the US full market value for their product. A year ago when it was clear that the US government was not going to allow the TransCanada Keystone pipeline to proceed, it seemed as if Alberta needed another way of getting its product to market. As well, because of new drilling techniques including fracking and horizontal drilling, the US is able to access more of its own buried oil. Therefore the need for Alberta to find new markets was obvious.

However, if the above assumptions are not true, then the need for the expansion of the Kinder-Morgan pipeline is less obvious. I came across a report from the Parklands Institute – an Alberta non-partisan centre that suggests that the above assumptions are inaccurate. The report titled Will the Trans Mountain Pipeline and Tidewater Access Boost and Save Canada’s Oil Industry? argues that (1) that the two pipelines slated for either expansion or development to the USA will be approved and that there is still the possibility that the Trans Canada East pipeline, which is still under review, will be approved – once these pipelines are built, there will be enough capacity to ship Alberta oil;  (2) that if Alberta oil is shipped to Asia, it may sell for less than it is sold for in the US due to the cost of shipping; (3) that US still needs to import 46% of its oil from off shore and that its primary sources of Venezuela and Mexico may not be reliable

If the above report is accurate and reasonably unbiased, the argument that BC has some responsibility as a member of a federation of provinces to at least consider the wellbeing of other citizens in that federation and therefore should not block the Kinder Morgan pipeline on principle alone, holds significantly less water. There may be all kinds of reasons why the pipeline expansion should not go through including the fact that it may cross over unceded First Nation land. There are also could be compelling reasons why it should. 

It may be that we need to have, as a country, some sort of discussion as to what we can do to both protect the environment and ensure that all Canadians have equal access to supports and service. Unfortunately most of us do not know all of the facts to participate in that discussion. Furthermore, I am convinced that it is almost impossible to have the discussion in a calm, rational way. I suspect that facts, which should be absolute, can be (mis)interpreted in a myriad of ways that will ensure that no one will want to, or be able to look at the issues from a critical point of view.

Part of the problem is that both sides of the debate are afflicted with tunnel vision. The environmentalists can only see oil producers (and all of the businesses that are associated with it) as being intentionally evil, ruthless polluters whose only reason for existing is to get rich while raping the planet. Anyone who supports such people is equally as bad and deserves to be shouted down and not listened to. On the other hand those who are engaged in the extraction of crude see environmentalist as naive tree huggers who live in a fantasy world where everyone but them pays more taxes, where service are free and we can all run our cars on air. Of course neither characterization is accurate, but people cling to them. It is so much easier to feel victorious in a debate when one can demonize the opposition.

We teach or at least I hope we teach young people that when they debate an issue, while one can attack an opinion, one should never attack the person expressing that opinion. If we were ever taught that - we clearly have forgotten it. Until we adults can get to the point where there does not have to be a winner and a loser in the debate; until we can accept that some if not most of the people on the other side are not that different from us; until we can learn to look at fact in a rational way, no solution can be found that will allow us to move forward together. We really need to grow up and learn how to talk to each other as friends and neighbours – not as the enemy.

Donald Trump is Right

Donald Trump is right - that is a statement that I never thought I would make - but he is. There is no doubt that if the USA fully followed/enacted/pursued the Paris Agreement on climate change to the fullest extent possible, that many US businesses would be negatively affected. All of those companies that are involved in the production of carbon based fuel, the owners of oil fields and coal mines, the private hydro generating companies that use dirty coal, the automotive manufacturers, and perhaps even all of those large box stores that rely on the thousands and thousands of trucks that are on our highways to maintain their “just in time” retail model would either lose money or some cases go out of business. Hundreds of the richest people in the USA might end up with less money in their bank accounts. At the other end of the financial spectrum there will be a large number of individuals who may not be able to make the kind of intellectual shift required to working in and using complex technologies. To many of us in the centre, we may want for example, to embrace a lifestyle that produces little or no carbon emissions but will struggle to be able to afford to buy that new electric car. The changes that we all face – will be a challenge and we, in the short term, may find them uncomfortable. So from Mr. Trump’s small, ever elevated ivory tower – as far as he can see , it is understandable that he believes that reducing the USA’s carbon footprint will negatively impact that old economy he has promised to make great again.

 

Of course the man is a fool who clearly cannot see past the end of his nose. By focusing on what is best for his country in the next few years, he ignores what will be best not only for the USA a decade from now, but in fact what is best for the whole world. By limiting his country’s participation in a new and exciting economy where innovation and creativity will be both celebrated and rewarded, he condemns that country to having to play “catch-up” when they finally realize that they have no choice but to adapt.

 

However, what is particularly sad and frightening about Trump’s decision to renege on his country’s commitment towards the Paris Agreement is that it is a classic example of a protectionist state that assumes it has the right to only engage with the rest of the world when it is advantageous to them. Mr. Trump and his like-minded citizens see nothing wrong in taking as much as they can from developing countries, of making obscene profits from the selling of those resources and then turning around and suggesting that the USA owes nothing to those countries. Trump’s business model of taking whatever you can and to maximize profit regardless of anything/anyone else is no longer a particularly effective model for corporations. That model may have worked in a world where countries, companies and people were at best only connected by telegraph wires – but in a world where most of us accept the fact that we are all connected, that what happens in Texas or Kabul does affect us all – sometimes surprisingly quickly, companies can no longer ignore that what they do today will affect the rest of the world. Trump by supporting this narrow view that one county, place or person is more important than any other is condemning his country to become a second rate influence in the world.

 

By refusing to participate in a world wide effort, Trump has re-confirmed an isolationist policy that refuses to take any responsibility for the USA’s contributions to the climate change problem. He has rejected the argument that the USA has any moral responsibility to the rest of the world. What makes this a particularly dangerous approach is that it opens the door for other countries and major international companies to argue that they too do not have a moral responsibility to be good citizens.

The Man Who Would be King (Maker) (part 2)

No one could/should ever say that Canadian politics are boring. While they may be less bombastic than those to the immediate south of us, our politics at both the national and provincial level can be just as complex and at times full of backroom deals. The convoluted dance that the British Columbia Green Party has just had with its two prospective partners is a case in point.  

 

Weaver, along with his party of two other Greens, has within the last 24 hours made clear which of the two partners they will be taking to the national stage. It should surprise no one that in the final analysis, the BC Greens had no choice but to partner with the NDP.  For the Green party to ally themselves with the B.C. Liberals – their provincial adversary in so many battles - for any period of time would have offended far too many of the Green supporters. On the surface, it would appear that the agreement between the NDP and the Greens is, if not a match made in heaven, at least an arrangement that will be not lead them back to that part of hell known as the powerless opposition. But both parties need to be cautious of being seduced by the glamour of it all. While Weaver may see their new “relationship” as an equal partnership – they are in fact hooking up with a partner with a lot of baggage.

 

The Greens have allied themselves with a political party that may “owe” certain interests – i.e. the unions. As noted by the Globe and Mail, the B.C Teacher’s Federation has already indicated that it will be asking for more money for the school system. It is so easy to promise the near impossible when one is on the opposition side of the legislature – it is so much more difficult to deliver on all of those promises. Those who follow Ontario politics know all too well how union supporters can turn against “their” party when they don’t get want they want. I also note via Facebook, that the Union of BC Indian Chiefs has said that it is time to implement all of the various recommendations that have been made to at least try to rectify our rather disastrous relationships with First Nation communities. I suspect that there are other interest groups in the province who are assuming that they will have their needs addressed. It is unlikely that everyone will get all of their issues resolved. Compromises that may satisfy no one will need to be made.  

The NDP need to understand that the Greens have little to lose by being demanding in terms of priorities and solutions. They will try to wave the whip for the next four years or until such time as the NDP get tired of being bossed around by a three person non-party. One has to wonder how stable the agreement to work together will be when the NDP cannot quickly deliver on all of its promises, or how long NDP backbenchers will sit quietly by while their issues are not being addressed.  

I support the concept that that environment must be, if not the first thing that is considered when discussing provincial policy, a critical component in any decision. I think that means that the expansion of the Kinder-Morgan pipe line, the building of the Site C dam and Liquefied Natural Gas projects in North Western B.C. are all back on the table. It is hard to see how any of them can be approved. I am however, most curious as to how the new government will generate sufficient income to support its plans to expand health care and education funding while maintaining a balanced budget. While it is tempting to suggest that (1) there is some waste within the government that could be cut and (2) that some people (the rich) need to pay their share (and more) – is suspect that is not enough. The provincial of government will need to expand its income and clearly it will not be from the expansion of any of the present industries. I cannot help but remember the negative and unsupportive response of “big” business when Ontario voters elected an NDP government.

The Greens are gambling that the next four years will be smooth sailing and that they will get enough of their agenda on the table to please their supporters, and to garner new ones; The NDP party is gambling the same thing. I am not sure if both parties can be winners at the end of this coalition.

Who will send in the Clowns?

A day or two ago, the Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey Circus had its last show. After 146 years of preforming to millions of people – the show is no more. That circus and its various reincarnations had, as one commentator said, been around longer than had baseball. For at least some of those millions of people who saw the circus at least once - it is the end of an era. For some of us romantics - there is one less place to run away to. For the thousands of people who made at least part of their living through the circus – they will earn less money next year. For the relatively small number of people who worked at the circus full time, they have not only lost their jobs – they have lost a way of life.  While there are a lot of reasons why the show closed after struggling for years to survive financially – it is still, in many ways, sad.

 

There are a lot of people who are celebrating the closing of the circus. All of those people who moaned about the cruelty towards the animals, how unfair it was to cage animals so that both city and country folk could pay money to be both afraid and amused at the antics of animals doing things/tricks that were unnatural to them. The great wail of anguish that arose whenever people thought of fierce jungle cats bowing to the authority and power of the man with the chair and the whip; of the obscenity of some great bear dancing or pretending to wrestle his trainer; of elephants walking /moving in time to some unheard beat – only to stand on a far too small platform; of horses endlessly cantering around a sawdust covered circle while their riders danced on and off their backs and the dogs – small breeds usually- sometimes wearing silly customs, doing tricks for little rewards. The very existence of such animal acts proves that mankind still believes that we have the right to use our power to dominate other animals regardless of those animals’ innate intelligence or nobility. All such acts are proof that we have a long way to go in demonstrating that our humanity extends to all beings.

 

While I am sympathetic to those lofty concerns that drive people to quietly boycott or loudly protest such things as circuses, I find the duplicity somewhat troublesome. At the Royal Winter Fair in Toronto and at countless hundreds of small and large town fall fairs around the country, animals are put on display; some like the fancy chickens are placed in small cages and left there for hours so that the folks can admire and be amused, while the larger animals such as horses are required to prance, jump and pull heavy weights at their owner’s’ command. At dog shows, the over bred, over-washed and manicured “man’s best friends” are paraded around – and are required to be perfectly and unnaturally behaved.

 

I am not sure who one should feel sorrier for. The lion that spends his life confined to small cages and when let out it is obliged to jump through hoops of fire, or the dog that is so well bred that it is almost guaranteed to health problem in what should be its healthy middle years. Both animals have been bred and trained for our pleasure and all too frequently to prove that we can at least control something in our lives.

 

The circus may be a form of entertainment that has passed its time. Its end may be a sign that we as a species are more aware of our obligations to other beings. But I am not too sure if the closing of a world famous circus is proof of anything except that we have found other ways to get our pleasure and to demonstrate our control. At best it is an incredibly small victory that means little in terms of how the animals we say that we love are treated. At worst it is just pretend. The big money makers in the growing pet industry will on one hand help with the celebrations and other hand rake in even more cash.