Dinner was cleared up and the boys were in bed, Anthony, Alex and I were watching the end of the game and it was obvious that in this game the Bruins were the better team.  We were disappointed, but it was a great run and the Canucks did a great job keeping themselves in the game. I was happy to see the way the Canucks and the Bruins congratulated each other, and while one team was ecstatic and the other was disappointed, there didn’t seem to be any potshots taken at each other. The Bruins got the chance to skate around with the Stanley Cup and the stands stayed full and fans of both the Canucks and the Bruins cheered. Then outside all hell broke loose.

To say that I am glad that we decided not to take the boys downtown Wednesday is an understatement. To say that I am glad that the boys did not see the fire and destruction on tv is an understatement. To say that I was appalled, disheartened and, I say it, fascinated by the images pouring over the tv may also be an understatement. Shock, dismay, fear, horror, anger, fascination, relief all were part of my emotional array. I will also cop to feeling a lot of judgement towards all those who took part in the riot and all those who stood by, took pictures, shouted cheers and generally didn’t get the hell out of the way so the police, fire and ambulance services could do their jobs.

There has been a lot of talk and writing about the role that social media and *smart* crowds had in both the ramping up of the riot and the path to justice for those who both started and continued the riot on our downtown Vancouver streets. Thousands of people made the lives of all our first responders much more difficult by staying and following  the gang of miscreants. Hundreds of people took the lead of the people with hammers bashing in windows of storefronts as a sign that they should go in and loot as much as they could. People stealing chips and make-up and purses. People getting caught up and helping to burn cars. Most of my thoughts and tweets about all this while watching it unfolding on  television were telling people to get out of the way and go home, and how the hell do I explain this to my 6 year old? (I was not the only one to wonder how to tell my children about the riot, and my friend Lexi has an excellent post here.)

Now a couple of days later, I have explained at least some of it to my 6 year old. I told him that there were a lot of people, bad people, who decided that this was a good time to be destructive and set fires. That these bad people decided that it would be fun to destroy property and make thing difficult for the police and unsafe for the other people around them. He asked questions and I answered them as best I could. One of the questions that hurt my heart the most was when Aidan asked “What if I do something that  is wrong and the police don’t like it?” This hit home because I am sure there are a huge number of parents who are asking themselves the same thing, What if it were/is my child that was in this situation? What would I do?  How do you, as a parent, stop something like this from happening with your children? I told Aidan that I really hoped he would never do something like this, and at 6  years old we left it at that for now. But we still have opened a dialogue into something I hoped we wouldn’t need to for several years at least.

Let me clear, I do think that the people who started the fires, breaking of windows and looting should be punished, but I think that some parts of social media are taking things too far and the whole thing is starting to feel like a virtual lynch mob. The public shaming of people who are not yet convicted, the emailing of people’s work places, the naming of minors, making sure people do not get scholarships, all of the name calling and publishing of addresses and phone numbers seems like the call for *justice* is going too far. There have been some very insightful blog posts about the Vancouver Human Search Engine and the dangers of crowd-sourced surveillance.  There have also been a number of facebook pages, tumblr accounts and blogs dedicated to outing and then shaming and punishing those people who have been named. The comments on these posts are what are really starting to scare me. A lot of anonymous people are outing people as people who are pictured in any number of cell phone pictures and video as well as all the media footage. Then people are using the information that these anonymous identifiers gave out and are trying to make these people’s lives a living hell. I am not saying that these people who committed the criminal acts of Wednesday night do not need to be punished. I just think that they should be punished by the legal system we have in place.

One of the reasons that I was (and am) so against having the Harper Conservatives in power as a full majority government is that their platform includes a number of changes to the Youth Criminal Justice Act. They want stiffen penalties for not only the youth, but also for adults. There is not a lot of chance for reparation or rehabilitation in the laws that the Conservatives intend to change. It is obvious that a lot of the looters that were stupid enough to run into stores and steal things and pose for facebook photos were under the age of 18. A lot of these people were probably drunk, or with a bunch of other teenagers and yes they made really bad choices. Yes I think that these people need to have some punishment. I don’t think that rushing to judgement without the courts, or even making sure that the people that have been outed anonymously are actually involved in the arson and vandalism is helpful to anyone in Vancouver.

Does it make me feel better to read about a 17 year old high school student who allegedly set a police car on fire? Not really. Does it make me feel any better to not know if the people hiding behind anonymous actually have the correct person that the photo depicts? Not at all. In fact reading the comments on that post and others like make me sick to my stomach. Having people take a 17 year olds life and make sure it is fucked up beyond all measure makes me feel terrible. How is it helpful to write to the college that this person got into and telling them about the role they allegedly played in the riot? If this is not the person photographed they have no shot at getting a decent life back, they are ruind at 17 years old. Even if this is the kid who made a colossal mistake, shouldn’t we leave it up to the courts to decided if he should be tried as an adult and named? (I have not linked to the blog post naming this kid because I don’t know if this is the correct person pictured, and if he is then he is underage and I don’t want to be complicit in what I think is wrong.)

There is another case of someone turning themselves in and while initially I was happy about someone doing so, again I looked at the comments and I was sick to my stomach. People wanting this person to get life in prison, hurling insults and anger without even the possibility of any compassion.

I think that we need to be aware that our words and actions have consequences. The words and actions of those involved in the riots, the words and actions of those of us watching from a safe distance on tv, the actions and words of those who stayed and watched and recorded from way to close, they all have consequences. Maybe it is time to leave the investigating and punishing of the rioters to the police and the courts and be part of the positive words and actions. Be the people who helped clean up downtown, those who are telling and showing people what our Vancouver is really like. Be the positiveness that comes out of tragedy and loss. Be the people that I want to tell my children to emulate. Show some compassion and let those that feel remorse for what they did to make redress for what they have done.

© 2011 Left Coast Mama | Permalink | 6 comments
Related: catharsis, Gwen, parenting, Police Incidents, rants, Vancouver.]]> http://leftcoastmama.net/2011/06/17/what-bothers-me-most-about-the-vancouver-riots/feed/ 6 http://leftcoastmama.net/2011/05/04/la-traviata-a-review/ http://leftcoastmama.net/2011/05/04/la-traviata-a-review/#comments Thu, 05 May 2011 00:19:14 +0000 Gwen http://leftcoastmama.net/?p=2655 . . . → Read More: La Traviata: A Review]]> La Traviata is the  finale of the Vancouver Opera’s 2010-2011 Season and I was invited to blog the opera on opening night on 30 April 2011. I happily accepted and I loved the experience.

In the first two acts before the intermission we meet Violetta and Alfredo, the star crossed lovers. For three months they are happy and locked away from the world until Alfredo’s father makes Violetta give up Alfredo for the sake of his daughter.  He doesn’t tell his son what he is doing and makes Violetta feel guilty enough for her past life that she lies to Alfredo and tells him she is going back to her benefactor the Barron. Alfredo believes and is consumed with jealousy.   In the next two acts we have Violetta trying to party herself to death and Alfredo making a total fool of himself. Alfredo’s father becomes so  upset at his son’s behaviour, and because Violetta is so sick, that he (Alfredo’s father) relents and tells Alfredo of Violetta’s sacrifice. In the last act Violetta is dying and Alfredo and his father make is just in time for her death.

The singing was beautiful and it was a great mixture of big group numbers and solos. Erin Wall as Violetta was fabulous. Her control in her singing blew me away especially in the last act where she spends half the act singing while  lying down in a bed. Her voice is very clear and not over done with vibrato. David Pomeroy, who played Alfredo, was good too, but he didn’t blow me away like Erin did. I think this is perhaps because I identify much more with Erin’s voice and character, not that I am in any way a courtesan, because of her sacrifices. The other characters and opera chorus were good and the whole production was beautiful.

One thing I was not prepared for were some of the random thoughts that came through my head, especially when it came to Violetta’s sickness. Since she had tuberculous one of the first things that jumped out at me is how sad it is that people used to die from diseases that are now preventable and treatable. Then I thought about how diseases like tuberculosis are coming back  into the mainstream. People are getting mumps and measles and other fully preventable diseases because of a decrease in vaccinations. Then I felt anger that not only was Violetta dying without her lover, but that so many people are unnecessarily sick in real life.

The thing that I love about opera is that no matter how odd it might be to have a whole story told in song, there is always something to draw you in further. A good opera makes you feel, even if you don’t understand the language. There were so many times I was so entranced by the music that I forgot to take a peek up to the subtitles.

La Traviata plays April 30, May 3,5,7,10 & 12, 2011 Call 604.683.0222 for ticket information.

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Disclosure: I was invited to the April 30th show and I was given two tickets. I was encouraged to blog about the opera but not required to. All opinions on this blog are my own.

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© 2011 Left Coast Mama | Permalink | No comments
Related: outings, Singing, Vancouver.]]> http://leftcoastmama.net/2011/05/04/la-traviata-a-review/feed/ 0 http://leftcoastmama.net/2011/04/30/vancouver-opera-la-traviata/ http://leftcoastmama.net/2011/04/30/vancouver-opera-la-traviata/#comments Sat, 30 Apr 2011 21:58:10 +0000 Gwen http://leftcoastmama.net/?p=2628 . . . → Read More: Vancouver Opera: La Traviata]]> Tonight I am going to the opera and I get to be one of the bloggers on display. I am looking forward to the spectacle of the dresses, drama and of course the singing. I love opera and if I had the guts and voice for it, it might be something I would have done as a career. In my years as a Dalhousie music student, I am sure my vocal teacher would have laughed at that statement, but it is true. I came to love opera and I am so in awe of those that have the vocal and acting talent to pull it off well.

Tonight the Vancouver Opera company is putting on Giuseppe Verdi’s  “La Traviata” with Erin Wall as Violetta and David Pomeroy as Alfredo.

Violetta and Alfredo; Photo by Tim Matheson

Violetta is a consumptive courtesan who takes up with Alfredo. As with most opera things do not go well for the couple as Alfredo’s father doesn’t apporove and convinces Violetta that Alfredo’s sister will never get amrried if she and Alfredo are still together. Alfredo, not knowing what his father has done, meets up with Violetta with another man at a party and things do not go well. It is not until Alfredo’s father realizes how sick Violetta really is that he relents and tells Alfreo what he has done and consents for the two to marry. In the end Violetta and Alfredo don’t marry, but she gives him a small portrait of herself and prays that he and the woman he does marry are happy. She then dies.

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© 2011 Left Coast Mama | Permalink | No comments
Related: Gwen, Singing, Vancouver.]]> http://leftcoastmama.net/2011/04/30/vancouver-opera-la-traviata/feed/ 0 http://leftcoastmama.net/2011/01/07/making-the-most-of-our-view/ http://leftcoastmama.net/2011/01/07/making-the-most-of-our-view/#comments Sat, 08 Jan 2011 06:00:10 +0000 Gwen http://leftcoastmama.net/?p=2147 . . . → Read More: Making the Most of Our View]]>

The view from our dining room window.

Since we moved in 6 years ago we have had a fantastic view.  As you can see our fears have finally come true, someone is developing the rundown (and short) building behind us.  For a short time our view has improved, but it will soon merely be the wall of a building.  So while the view is still here we are taking full advantage.

The view across to the Granville Street bridge.

Darkness Falls.

The Yacht Club.

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© 2011 Left Coast Mama | Permalink | One comment
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