After the guy dumped dirt on the memorial, I feel like this is pretty poor optics even if it’s something the City needs to move forward on right now.
I have so many conflicting thoughts about this whole mess…
- Conducting the search seems dangerous and wildly impractical.
- Maybe it wouldn’t have become so dangerous and impractical if we had taken action on this much earlier. The delays have made it worse and each continued delay makes it even moreso I expect.
- MMIWG has been an openly ignored problem for so damn long, maybe dangerous and wildly impractical is justified to make a statement about taking it seriously.
- I cannot and will not judge the activists and families for pushing for the search. I have no way to comprehend how their loss compounds with the systemic discrimination they’ve faced their entire lives and how all of that is exacerbated by the accumulated generational trauma they share. They get to be as mad as they want.
- I do not know what the solution here is, and I’m very glad I’m not in any position of power where I’d be expected to make this decision
- This whole situation makes me sad for the families and angry at the police and government, but that’s a pretty standard position for me.
All valid points. My take would be though with regards to your third point. The problem with MMIWG is there’s been too many ‘statements’ and not enough actual productive action taken. And this would be the opposite of actual productive action, spending 150-200 million dollars to comb through approx 60 000 tons of landfill over 3 years while putting peoples safety at risk to maybe have barely a minuscule chance at recovering what is now, tragically, likely an unrecognizable pile of organic matter. I can understand emotionally why the families want to anyway, but it’s just not a responsible use of time and effort, let alone money. That said, if the gov’t says that money and effort is better spent elsewhere, I would hold them to that, and say that they take that dollar amount and actually put it towards other, more helpful MMIWG causes.
This is pretty awful. Surely there must be something that can be done for the families of those unfortunate women - if nothing else, perhaps a federally funded search or private funding?
At the very least, the city could agree to sit down with the protesters and have talks with them.
The funding is better used for something – anything – other than the search. I don’t mean to be cold hearted, but at the estimated cost of $200M, we could literally build a new hospital. Or fund a university education for five thousand students. Or pay for 400 new teachers for ten years… Or…
The companies hired to do the search would be the only ones benefitting. It’ll be on cost-plus contract with ballooning expenses. And when they fail, what then?
What will do more to benefit society, and those harmed?
Disclaimer: I run a company that, among other things, provides ground penetrating radars. I would probably be looking at a windfall if the search goes ahead.
I don’t dispute any of this. However, the reality is that the province isn’t proposing to spend that money on anything. They just said “it’s too expensive, please go away” to people with a very legitimate complaint and a long history of being ignored or outright oppressed by that same government.
If the government had approached them and said, “It would cost $200 million and be extremely dangerous to the searchers and the environment. What if we did X, Y, and Z with $200 million instead and named X a memorial to the missing victims?” then this would be a different conversation.
I agree the money could be put to better use, but it’s not even being proposed. The money is just being used as an excuse to swat down people that have been swatted down their entire lives.
I’m not a fan of going ahead with the search. The risks to the searchers and the environment (risk of toxic leaching, etc) is too great in my opinion.
However, my opinion here can’t matter. This has to come down to the families and advocates. And the government has made NO overtures to them beyond, “gee, that must suck, sorry.” So failing a better offer, I don’t blame them for continuing to hammer the only point they have available to them.
However, my opinion here can’t matter.
I disagree. In the end, it’s your money the government would be spending, and democracy is still the rule.
Nevertheless, you’re absolutely right in that it’s a very sticky situation.
I agree the money could be put to better use, but it’s not even being proposed. The money is just being used as an excuse to swat down people that have been swatted down their entire lives.
That’s exactly it. At least keep talking to them and try to find a middle ground proposal.
I’m not a fan of going ahead with the search. The risks to the searchers and the environment (risk of toxic leaching, etc) is too great in my opinion.
So the article links to another which mentions a report that was made on the feasibility of conducting the search, and it seems that this is disputed somewhat. It’s claimed by the other side that there is a way to conduct the search in relative safety, and the report outlines what measures would need to be taken.
Anyways, I find myself in complete agreement with what you wrote:
Maybe it wouldn’t have become so dangerous and impractical if we had taken action on this much earlier. The delays have made it worse and each continued delay makes it even moreso I expect.
To me, the above is an argument for starting the search now (instead of waiting longer and making it even riskier and more expensive later).
if nothing else, perhaps a federally funded search or private funding?
Private funding? Who would possibly fund this exercise?
No single entity that I’m aware of would but I was hoping that a number of charitable foundations and NGOs with large endowments might be able to come together.
Even if this did happen, but then they couldn’t come up with the full price tag, it might still be the case that their substantial contributes might be enough to get public funding for the remainder.
I guess the point is that this isn’t even being considered as an option. It’s just a flat no, we won’t even talk about it anymore sort of denial.
