Ian Bushfield
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Ian Bushfield
@bushfield.ca
1.1K followers 1K following 1.4K posts
Humanism and politics. 📍 Coquitlam, BC

Work @bchumanist.ca
Podcasts: PolitiCoast & Cambie Report
More on me https://ian.bushfield.ca
Posts Replies Media Videos
Reposted by Ian Bushfield
kwardvancouver.bsky.social
Grand Chief Stewart Phillip, UBCIC President:

“By ending the decriminalization pilot, the Province is failing to treat addiction as a public-health issue, not a criminal one, and is doubling down on policies that have already caused immense harm to First Nations.“

www.ubcic.bc.ca/ubcic_deeply...
January 16, 2026 at 6:40 PM
bushfield.ca
$40 for 40

I turn 40 today so why not support human rights and civil liberties with a gift to @bccla.bsky.social

bccla.org/donate/
Donate - BC Civil Liberties Association
Donate to leave a lasting impact. BCCLA actively advances human rights and civil liberties, through litigation, law reform, community-based legal advocacy, and public engagement and education. Your su...
bccla.org
January 16, 2026 at 4:55 PM
bushfield.ca
In light of this news release from the province: news.gov.bc.ca/releases/202...

I repeat that crime stats are easily manipulated to suit political narratives. www.straight.com/city-culture...
Public safety investments deliver strong, measurable results
Historic investments in policing reduce crime rates, keeping communities safe
news.gov.bc.ca
January 15, 2026 at 5:29 AM
Reposted by Ian Bushfield
parismarx.com
Quite frankly, it’s outrageous that Mark Carney is cutting Statistics Canada. If he was Stephen Harper or Pierre Poilievre, I feel like this would be getting a lot more backlash.

Carney of all people should know the importance of high-quality data and information about the country.
Statistics Canada to cut 850 jobs in 'dark time' for public service, union says
Federal statistics agency entered its workforce adjustment period Monday, sending notices to thousands of employees.
ottawacitizen.com
January 15, 2026 at 12:35 AM
Reposted by Ian Bushfield
kwardvancouver.bsky.social
“You can’t say decriminalization failed if you never actually tried to make it work.”

and, as with safe supply, this *failure* was the government’s INTENDED goal

Their purpose has always been to maintain the status quo
bcgreencaucus.ca/bc-greens-de...
BC NDP's Decriminilization Pilot Project Set Up to Fail
While people die every day from the toxic drug crisis, the NDP government is backing away from evidence-informed policy supported by experts.
bcgreencaucus.ca
January 15, 2026 at 12:13 AM
Reposted by Ian Bushfield
papapishu.bsky.social
Seeing Zohran instantly getting a bunch of shit done in like a week makes you realize that politicians could always do that on some level if they wanted it bad enough and very few of them actually do.
January 15, 2026 at 1:23 AM
Reposted by Ian Bushfield
kwardvancouver.bsky.social
42 people died from unregulated drugs while in a medical facility between January 1 2023 and August 31 2025 in British Columbia

Here is the list.

Remember when people were complaining about drug users in hospitals ?
Unintentional unregulated drug toxicity deaths by medical facility of injury, January 1 2023 - August 31 2025 2023 Fraser Health Abbotsford Hospital : 2 Burnaby Hospital : 1 Royal Columbian Hospital : 1 Surrey Memorial Hospital : 2 Interior health Cara Centre : 1 Island health Nanaimo regional hospital : 1 Seven Oaks Mental Health : 1 Vancouver Coastal Richmond hospital : 2 St Paul’s hospital : 2 Vancouver general : 4 2024 Fraser Health Caremax medical clinic : 1 Interior health East Kootenay hospital : 1 Kelowna hospital : 1 Penticton hospital : 1 Royal Inland hospital : 1 Island Nanaimo regional hospital : 2 Panama house : 1 Royal jubilee hospital : 1 Vancouver Coastal Dr Peter Centre : 1 Mount Saint Joseph’s : 1 St Paul’s : 6 2025 Fraser Health Chilliwack general : 1 Timber Creek Tertiary Care : 1 Interior health Kelowna general : 1 Island health Eagle park health care facility : 1 Wexford Creek long term care : 1 Northern health Dunrovin Park Lodge : 1 Vancouver Coastal St Paul’s hospital : 2
January 2, 2026 at 10:33 PM
Reposted by Ian Bushfield
kwardvancouver.bsky.social
”We continue to claim that we believe in vacuous slogans which we contradict with our policy choices and our budget decisions.”
“This does not mean the work ends here. We remain focused on strengthening the approaches that are helping people get timely, appropriate care. Our priority is, and always has been, to make sure people can get help when and where they need it. We continue to believe that addiction is a health issue, not a criminal justice issue.
January 14, 2026 at 9:39 PM
bushfield.ca
"Despite the hard work and good intentions behind the pilot, it has not delivered the results we hoped for. For that reason, we will not be asking the federal government to renew the exemption."

Really? Where's the data? Where's the final report on the pilot?

news.gov.bc.ca/releases/202...
Minister’s statement on status of the decriminalization pilot program
Josie Osborne, Minister of Health, has released the following statement on the status of the decriminalization pilot program:
news.gov.bc.ca
January 14, 2026 at 9:20 PM
Reposted by Ian Bushfield
stephenharrison.bsky.social
VicPD talked on their podcast about how they may involve themselves in the 2026 municipal elections, just like they did last time. Police in politics in #yyj! I left in the lead-in from 2022 where they complained about Isitt comparing the library budget to theirs. open.spotify.com/episode/2xyy...
Todd Mason, 17m 00s: But we got to remember the last few years, first of all, as I can remember, the budget that's been given to us has just been to keep the lights on. That's what they've had to pare it down to, is okay, this is the budget to keep the lights on. And that's the budget we've gotten. So we haven’t had the money to update the fleet, hire officers above attrition, all that sort of stuff. Angela van Eerd, VicPD union president: We're playing catch up. Mason: We are playing catch up. Van Eerd: We are playing massive catch up. Mason: A decade long. Tom Stamatakis, Jr., VicPD union executive board member and media spokesperson: Massive catch up. Mason: So that's why this next election is so huge. If you value public safety and value officers who are not burning out all the time, then you got to get out and vote for people who support public safety. It's as simple as that. … Stamatakis, Jr., 18m 50s: So in terms of the municipal elections, last municipal elections in 2022, we actually were, the union was quite progressive and we conducted a symposium, an online virtual symposium where we invited all the new city councillor electorates to come online. And we had two because there was a lot of candidates. I can't remember how many, but there was like, I think there was like 20 or something like that. And so basically asked each councillor what their views on public safety and specific questions surrounding safety in the City of Victoria, just to give voters the opportunity to see exactly what each person, what their thoughts were and how they were going to progress. We actually got a lot of props from our partners from across Canada. And yeah, we're still debating if we're going to do it again this upcoming year. … And so, yeah, we’ll see what’s going to come with that. Transcript from True Blue Podcast, “VCPU director at large Tom Stamatakis” (02/25/22) Stamatakis, Jr., 26m 00s: I, I think it's just the pivotal road that we need to take in order to get our messaging out. Whether that be social media, um, these podcasts or generally for us to reach out and have people understand the challenges. And not only that, but to also reach out to the demographic of people that maybe, um, haven't heard our voices before. And that is also in an effort to get people out there to vote when it comes time for municipal elections. … Stamatakis, Jr., 27m 00s: I think we, as our union, and the way I would like to move forward in terms of marketing and in media is, is getting out there more so that people understand. … Transcript from True Blue Podcast, “VCPU director at large Tom Stamatakis” (02/25/22) Stamatakis, Jr., 30m 32s: … Ben Isitt comes out with this ideological comment. He's like, “Wouldn't it be great to live in a world where the city librarians get the police budget and the police have to work within the library budget?” And I'm like looking around like what the fuck you know, like what world, that's not even comparing apples and oranges, that's like comparing apples with like this chair. … Matt Waterman: But that, and I agree with you that that's, we're doing it here and I know it's been kind of talked about and from a marketing standpoint or public relations standpoint, is we wanna do it as the, as the next municipal election rolls around, we wanna be out there letting people know that, hey, we're tired of this rhetoric. Garbage rhetoric. Uh, and we want some action. And, and, but the important part is, you're right. We've talked about it. We need to, we need to reach out to the voter that's gonna make a difference. Cause guys who call up in the radio station and say the same thing that live in Central Saanich, it doesn't affect, uh, the outcome of an election. You know, they're not a voter. So, uh, we've talked about it. It's, it's a challenge to get those people out, but, uh, I'm hopeful that we can help influence people. Stamatakis, Jr.: Yeah. So in preparation for that, I think we're, we're structuring in terms of the committee that we have for marketing in just having a structure to see how we roll it out. And plan it out. Um, what's gonna be different avenues that we can reach out to the most amount of people and, and just get more and more people involved. I mean, municipal politics have never been a huge turnout, but I think, yeah, the things that have happened in Victoria recently, it's a pretty hot topic and uh, our hope is that more and more people get out there that will support public safety.
January 14, 2026 at 5:50 AM
bushfield.ca
The anti-Garfield
dieworkwear.bsky.social derek guy @dieworkwear.bsky.social · 5d
Bill Watterson is my favorite cartoonist. I adored the relationship btw Calvin and Hobbes as a child. But as I've gotten older, these strips feel even more tender and insightful. My respect for him grew when I learned of his stance against merchandising. Such principles are almost unheard of today.
Excerpt from Wikipedia reads: "Fight against merchandising his characters For years, Watterson battled against pressure from publishers to merchandise his work, something that he felt would cheapen his comic through compromising the act of creation or reading.[21][22] He refused to merchandise his creations on the grounds that displaying Calvin and Hobbes images on commercially sold mugs, stickers, and T-shirts would devalue the characters and their personalities. Watterson said that Universal kept putting pressure on him and that he had signed his contract without fully perusing it because, as a new artist, he was happy just to find a syndicate willing to give him a chance (two other syndicates had previously turned him down). He added that the contract was so one-sided that, if Universal really wanted to, they could license his characters against his will, and could even fire him and continue Calvin and Hobbes with a new artist. Watterson's position eventually won out, and he was able to renegotiate his contract so that he would receive all rights to his work. Later he said that the licensing fight exhausted him and contributed to the need for a nine-month sabbatical in 1991.[23]"
January 14, 2026 at 6:40 AM
bushfield.ca
We should absolutely have a publicly-owned social media network run by letter-carrying crown corporation and it obviously has to be called Canada Postr
January 12, 2026 at 3:44 PM
bushfield.ca
Something positive in these dark early days of 2026
January 9, 2026 at 9:12 PM
bushfield.ca
Two people want to be @onecityvan.bsky.social first Mayor: @wazaroff.bsky.social & Amanda Burrows. I spoke to them both for the latest episode of Cambie Report (which is very much still a thing!)
www.cambiereport.ca/e3-281-oneci...
E3-281 OneCity’s mayoral candidates
William Azaroff and Amanda Burrows both want to be OneCity's first Mayor of Vancouver
www.cambiereport.ca
January 9, 2026 at 9:09 PM
Reposted by Ian Bushfield
kwardvancouver.bsky.social
Clint Mahlman, president and chief operating officer of London Drugs, is also a cofounder and chair of Save Our Streets, the coalition of businesses lobbying for more policing and more punishment of poor people.

He got what he demanded

globalnews.ca/news/1160295...
London Drugs closing its Woodward’s location, citing safety, operational issues - BC | Globalnews.ca
The store, number 78, located at 150-351 Abbott Street, must close due to safety and operational issues at the location, according to the organization.
globalnews.ca
January 8, 2026 at 1:42 AM
Reposted by Ian Bushfield
julieslalonde.bsky.social
Good, investigative journalism + activism from outraged community members is how we get the job done.

"The Vancouver Symphony Orchestra has released an open letter to the classical-music community, pledging to never again ask a sexual-misconduct complainant to sign a confidentiality agreement."
VSO says it won’t use confidentiality agreements in cases involving sexual misconduct
Open letter follows Esther Hwang’s allegations that the organization put pressure on her to sign an NDA to settle a sexual-assault complaint
www.theglobeandmail.com
January 8, 2026 at 2:56 PM
bushfield.ca
In the face of the American threats to our sovereignty, Canadians wanted to elect a Churchill but it's increasingly clear we got Chamberlain
January 6, 2026 at 3:48 PM
Reposted by Ian Bushfield
lindsaytedds.bsky.social
Many people still think of poverty as something that happens when people don’t work. But the reality is different: majority of people who live in poverty in Canada are working or live in families who work. @gillianpetit.bsky.social and my 2026 chart to watch www.theglobeandmail.com/business/eco...
42% of those that live in poverty are working.
January 4, 2026 at 5:48 PM
Reposted by Ian Bushfield
parismarx.com
The United States is a rogue actor throwing the world into disarray. It hosts war criminal Netanyahu, sanctions ICC and European officials, launches strikes around the world, and now kidnaps foreign leaders.

Western allies need to stop it if they truly believe in human rights and international law.
January 3, 2026 at 2:04 PM
bushfield.ca
I get the USA is effectively immune from international law and hell even its own laws when it comes to invading sovereign nations but you'd think the Rule Of Law West could marshal some condemnation.
January 3, 2026 at 3:30 PM
bushfield.ca
Just in time for Christmas, the chapter I wrote with @stewartprest.ca on Vancouver's modern political history is out in the new City Politics in Canada. Pre-order from UofT Press.
A book titled City politics in Canada being held by Ian Zoom in on chapter 7 Vancouver
December 20, 2025 at 11:33 PM
Reposted by Ian Bushfield
stewartprest.ca
Looking forward to my copy arriving! Wrote the chapter on Vancouver with @bushfield.ca.
lturgeon.bsky.social Luc Turgeon @lturgeon.bsky.social · Dec 18
Santa came early this year and I just received my copy of City Politics in Canada, edited by Martin Horak, @jacklucas.bsky.social and @bigcitypolitics.bsky.social. I wrote the chapter on Ottawa (dedicated to the late Caroline Andrew).
Photo of the book City Politics in Canada. Picture of the chapter by Luc Turgeon on Ottawa in the book.
December 19, 2025 at 6:00 PM
Reposted by Ian Bushfield
indivisiblevan.bsky.social
At our October 18 No Tyrants rally, @bushfield.ca of @bchumanist.ca said, “We can’t look south and be smug and complacent. These same forces are at work right here in Canada.”

This is what he was talking about.
December 16, 2025 at 9:15 PM
bushfield.ca
Great work Calgary. You really showed those dreamers who thought the ideological centre of neoconservativism in Canada was the place where there should be fewer government restrictions on home construction.
livewirecalgary.com/2025/12/15/c...
Calgary moves forward with proposed amendment to eliminate citywide rezoning - LiveWire Calgary
Calgary city councillors have voted in favour of beginning the process to amend the city’s land-use bylaw to revert to the state of pre-citywide rezoning. They voted 13-2 in favour of moving ahead wit...
livewirecalgary.com
December 15, 2025 at 9:56 PM
bushfield.ca
I look forward to Dallas Brodie telling us how cancel culture came to her free speech party.
www.castanet.net/news/BC/5893...
Dallas Brodie fires back after ouster as OneBC leader, party alleges she yelled at staff - BC News
Dallas Brodie has been ousted as OneBC’s leader by the party’s board of directors.
www.castanet.net
December 15, 2025 at 7:07 AM