Recently in Policing Category

11 members of a workforce (the 'security force') of 10,000 sent home (see story at the foot of the page) was an "extremely minimal number."

But if one window gets broken and a little paint spilled it triggers (!) a massive security response.......

It's all about security

For a full size image of this poster.....

If nothing happens to threaten 'security' security forces will say 'see, we did a good job.'

If something happens they will say 'see, we were needed'.It's a 'post 9-11' version of nuclear deterrence.

<Critical Mass is a monthly cycle ride in Vancouver, growing in popularity each month, which has start points and a destination but no planned route between these.>

So let me get this straight. The gasoline addicted drivers, the Mayor (Happy Planet) and the Chief of Police (I see a stapler) don't like the once a month Critical Mass bike ride because it is not formally organized, doesn't post its route in advance, may delay the journeys of others and can cause tension with other road users.

What exactly then is the twice daily car commute? Drivers in their tens of thousands leave their houses without posting a formal route, join in what is essentially a huge game of follow my leader without any rules, able to change direction and route without any consultation, cause massive gridlock, pollution and delays for others, and slow down or endanger travellers using other modes of movement.

This lemming like event happens twice a day, every working day and yet is seen as normal. Isn't this the point of the Critical Mass monthly ride? By reducing the situation to the absurd it forces us to reconsider what we see as normal, and view car obsession and commuting as repetitive, thoughtless and addicted behaviour.

Imagine the response if car drivers ('...because there are so many involved...') had to post their routes in advance, keep the police informed of their overall intentions, identify leaders, and enter into discussions with the authorities about the effect of their journeys on other road users.

Sort of harm reduction for gasoline addicts. Sounds fine to me.

In the flush of bidding for and winning the right to host the Olympics, nobody talked about how staging them might mean limiting civil liberties.

It's only now, with seven months until the 2010 Winter Games begin, that organizers and compliant politicians are revealing plans to make it more difficult to exercise our fundamental constitutional rights to free speech, peaceful assembly and free expression.

For months now, police have been knocking on the doors of known activists and tracking them down in their neighbourhoods to "chat" about their Olympic protest plans. But that's only part of it.

An omnibus bylaw that staff insists is "critical to the success of the Games" goes to Vancouver city council today.

The bylaw relaxes rules for Games-related events, limits free expression and speech in public and private spaces, and grants sweeping discretionary powers to Mayor Gregor Robertson and City Manager Penny Ballem to do whatever is "warranted," "necessary or desirable" to ensure the Olympics' "safety and security" and "protection of commercial rights."

It also claims none of this is intended to impact political expression or the right to lawful protest.

That might not be the intent, but it may be the result. And rather chillingly, we may never know whether any of this is legal because there's little time left for anyone to initiate a court case against these rights-challenging changes before the Olympics begin in February.

Gerry Bellett

Vancouver sun

From the Georgia Straight, original here:

On a covered sidewalk on West Cordova Street, where the smell of vomit and urine hangs in the air, Ken Foster talked about what it takes to push the boundaries of his art.

A homeless artist whose work is well known on Vancouver's Downtown Eastside, Foster paints on materials he picks up in alleys, like discarded construction signs.

"I'll sell it for $6, maybe, and with that buy a can of paint," Foster related. "And so I end up doing 10 paintings before I finally get enough supplies to make one painting that is actually pushing a boundary of any sort, or furthering, you know what I mean, like, any sort of importance."

When the Georgia Straight caught up with the 37-year-old street artist, Foster's challenges were a lot greater. A Sharpie pen was all that was left of his possessions because of the recent street sweeps by city crews and the police on the Downtown Eastside.

"The last time, they threw out my wheelchair, $150 worth of paint, my backpack, my ID, and I don't own anything other than what you see right here," he said, showing the pen.

Foster recalled one incident. "They said, 'You have half an hour to get that cleaned up; get somebody to help you move it out of here,' " he said. "So I had gone. I came back 15 minutes later. It wasn't even half an hour. And they had thrown it all, and they're laughing at me."

And the police who accompanied the city crew? "They're laughing at me too," Foster said.

Dave Dickson is leaving.

That name might mean nothing to you, but it's widely known in the Downtown Eastside.

Dickson spent more than 20 years walking the DTES beat as a member of the Vancouver Police Department. Now retired, Dickson works as the sex trade liaison for the VPD.

The liaison position was created two years ago--for Dickson--to help bridge the gap between law enforcement and the street.

Almost every day, the 57-year-old Dickson travels from his Surrey home to the syringe-speckled streets and alleys of the DTES. He doesn't have an office or a budget. He relies on street smarts, honed during his days on the force. He's on a first-name basis with prostitutes, drug addicts, street people and government and non-government workers in the area.

His relationship with prostitutes is unprecedented. He's the only man allowed inside the WISH women's shelter. His contacts on the street, combined with his access to police computers, help him locate missing persons for organizations such as Strathcona Mental Health.

Just ask the police and doctors on the front line - harm reduction doesn't work

MARGARET WENTE

The Globe and Mail

July 12, 2008

VANCOUVER -- Sergeant Mark Steinkampf knows every back alley in Vancouver's Downtown Eastside. He greets the regulars by name and doesn't miss much. On street patrol one balmy evening, he spots a new face - a young, attractive woman on a bicycle. He motions her to stop.

"I can see that crack pipe in your bra there," he says. He pulls it out and dangles it in the air. "You're under arrest. Let me read you your rights." He drops the crack pipe and crushes it beneath his shoe.

The woman doesn't have drugs on her. If she's smart, she'll get out of here fast and he'll never see her again. If she's not, her prospects aren't good. A year from now, she'll likely be ravaged by drugs and infections, turning tricks to get the money for a fix. If she's very unlucky, she'll wind up like another girl, whose body was found by a dumpster, stuffed into a plastic bag like so much garbage.

Vancouver is famous for its innovative approaches to drug treatment. Twenty years ago, it launched a bold experiment to tackle the problems of the notorious Downtown Eastside. The guiding idea was harm reduction. If you couldn't cut off the drug supply or jail all the addicts, then at least you could reduce the secondary damage - HIV, hepatitis and the like - by giving people clean needles. You would surround them with medical and social services. Addiction, all agreed, was an illness, and addicts deserved compassion and respect.

From The Globe and Mail

BEARCAT
Vancouver police to get armour on wheels

ANNA MEHLER PAPERNY

June 25, 2008

The Vancouver Police Department is beefing up its fleet, and the new machine's no puny gizmo: The city has approved $345,000 for an armoured rescue vehicle that will act as a mobile ballistic shield.

Inspector Tony Zanatta of the Vancouver police emergency response team says the armoured car will let officers go where they couldn't go safely before. They will be able to approach armed suspects with vehicles and barricaded in houses, deal with bomb scares and transport wounded people out of dangerous situations without fear of being shot.

"It's not a tank, it's a tool. It's simply that. It's a shield, it's a ballistic shield that's mobile," he said.

Some police forces in U.S. cities - including Los Angeles and New York - use Lenco "BearCat" armoured vehicles, one of the options Vancouver is considering.

VPD veteran says province must renovate 18 single-room occupancy hotels
 
Mike Howell
Vancouver Courier

Wednesday, June 25, 2008


CREDIT: Photo-Dan Toulgoet
Makeshift shelters, including Mark Tobiasson's lean-to in Oppenheimer Park, populate the Downtown Eastside.

A senior Vancouver police officer says homelessness in the Downtown Eastside is the worst he's seen in his 23 years on the job.

Supt. Warren Lemcke, commander for the north part of the city, said the dire situation won't change until the provincial government renovates the 18 single-room occupancy hotels it purchased over the last year.