West Coast Odysseus

The photograph of the flower above was taken some days ago in the small garden mentioned in a previous post. The garden is, indeed, small, but it has much value just the same.

I just finished watching Star Trek: The Next Generation‘s episode “Frame of Mind,” an episode that explores the unconscious mind of Riker as he is injected with mind-altering drugs by his captors. The episode was one of the most memorable episodes when I first watched it, and it repaid a second viewing easily. Certainly, it’s one of my favourites, thanks to the way in which it explores questions of memory, perception, mental illness, personal darkness.

I also just finished watching “Rightful Heir,” the story about Worf’s pilgrimage to find Kahless, a kind of Klingon Messiah. The story is exceedingly well-written, and is of interest to students and practitioners of religion. The fundamentalists within Hinduism, Buddhism, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam would do well to watch the episode with open minds, while those of a more liberal theological persuasion would find much within the episode that mirrors their own experience. Speaking personally, I have for some time identified more with Worf than with any other member of the Star Trek: The Next Generation characters. For Worf, life is a struggle, keenly felt, in the heart. He searches fruitlessly for answers while finding himself, one painful and embarrassing step at a time.

Spring-time blossoms
Sprouting bursting power
Soon have their own fall

I’m not very happy with any of this year’s haiku; in fact, they’re typically getting less than five minutes’ thought, but other concerns are more pressing right now.

Branches and blossoms
Know each other
Unlike you and I

The Vancouver Cherry Blossom Festival page on haiku indicates that the whole 5-7-5 syllable counting is now considered inappropriate in English, since a syllable in Japanese doesn’t necessarily correspond to a syllable in English. Accordingly, I’m going to be striving more for the images than for a particular syllable count.

The poem is a darker one this time, but with a hint of hope: it is possible for us to see each other clearly after all.

For Ian

The place I’m staying in has adjacent to it a very tiny little garden with some tulips. Today, when I looked out the window, I saw the sun shining brightly on these tulips, and I took a picture through the window screen. It looked blurry, so I went out and took some more pictures. Up close, it’s easy to see that the tulips are dying now. When looking at the images on my computer, I decided that I rather liked the blurred look, and then I used the Windows Live Photo Gallery program to process it a bit more. I quite like the resulting “Tulipscape,” and I hope you do, too.

Please note that reproduction on a non-commercial, non-institutional basis is welcomed, provided that my name and/or a link to this page are included. For other reproduction rights, please email me at nathan@nathanbauman.com.

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Note: this post was bumped by a few hours to allow it to sit on top of the several political posts I wrote today.

The following is a copy of the email I just sent our premier regarding BC Ferries:

Dear Premier:

I am writing in regards to recent news in the Globe and Mail about BC Ferries and Powell River, among other places. I am very concerned about the disastrous effects of mismanagement of the ferries, and am writing to ask you to reverse the government’s course on this.

Essentially, when BC Ferries raised the rates to exorbitant levels, most residents had to think twice about whether to take them. This led to a dramatic drop in the number of passengers and a corresponding drop in revenue.

I would like to ask you to direct BC Ferries to reduce its rates on all routes where they have risen in the last few years, but particularly the routes that serve distant communities.

This will allow people to travel again and increase economic activity across the province.

Also, I do not think that BC Ferries should be considered a luxury, notwithstanding many of the superfluous features the newer ferries possess. A commenter on the Globe and Mail article put it succinctly (and please excuse the few typographical errors):

“I think the problem with the ferry service is that it fancies itself as a cruise line. Fancy cafeteria, white spot, lounges, tvs etc. what it needs to be is a barge with a place for walkon passengers, safety equipment, washrooms, and a deck for vehicles. I’m expected to stay in my car on the drive to kelowna why not now sail to Comox? If I want entertainment, I’ll watch a movie in the car, do a crossword, or recline and have a snooze. I travel about a half dozen times a year and from what I see a good number of passengers never make it to the ‘passenger deck’. Where all the staff and costly creature comforts are. I think ferry executives are trying to offer th same service levels as in Europe but with a fraction of the population and population densities.”

This commenter is right. BC Ferries should get back to basics and provide the service of transporting people and goods. Please ensure that BC Ferries reverts to being considered an extension of the highways that connect the cities and towns of our province.

Thank you for your consideration.

Sincerely yours,
Nathan Bauman

The following is a copy of an email I have just sent Stephen Harper on governmental oversight:

Dear Hon. Prime Minister:

Today I am writing in regards to what I perceive to a troubling tendency regarding the withdrawal of governmental supervision and oversight.

I read recently that cuts to the Canadian Revenue Agency may hamper the ability of the agency to police its employees to make sure they are not committing fraud with our tax files.

I have also read over the last few years of the layoffs of government-employed scientists who monitor things like the weather and pollution. On the West Coast where I live, we have oil leaking from two sunken vessels, and yet the government wants to increase oil tanker traffic in coastal waters. If the government cannot protect us from existing oil spills on the coast, how can we expect it to protect us from a truly massive oil spill that increases in likelihood with increased oil tanker traffic? Most British Columbians I know are, on this issue–and like me–opposed to the Enbridge pipeline for reasons like these.

At the same time, I now read that the government will allow companies to bring over more foreign workers and pay them less than what they pay Canadians to do the same jobs. My concern regarding this is simple: when you have a population who work harder for the same money, whose passports are essentially owned by their employers, you are going to get abusers of the system who will deny workers wages, breaks, and other basic human rights. When this happens, though, it will happen not in spite of the system, but because of it. I have already read of African tree-planters in BC who were denied basic necessities and not given their wages. With the increased number of temporary workers, who will monitor the companies to ensure that they treat these guest workers fairly? The system seems rigged to allow for, if not reward, exploitation.

Even the military suffers from this problem. When our soldiers are suffering and dying in Afghanistan, your government is cutting the number of military staff who specialize in suicide prevention. I know the number of suicides is low, but perhaps that is because of these officers’ work. In any case, it seems an inappropriate time to engage in cost-cutting of these important officers.

In short, when the government cuts the jobs of those whose job is to monitor systems, people, weather, pollution, the government loses credibility to implement oil pipelines. The government seems to be conniving at the exploitation of foreign workers. The government seems to have no regard for the soldiers who give their lives for the values that Canada holds dear. All this greatly saddens me as a Canadian.

Mr. Prime Minister, I would like to ask you to keep our institutions and systems working by maintaining previously existing levels of oversight of our vital institutions like the ones mentioned. When cuts need to be made, perhaps there are other wiser choices which do not involve the reduction in vital services.

Thank you for your consideration.

Sincerely yours,
Nathan Bauman