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On New Media Paywalls, Bad Parking Jobs & Taxing Mayoral Promises

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by Sean Orr | We’ll believe it when we see it: Empty home tax coming to Vancouver. “Vancouver housing is first and foremost for homes, not a commodity to make money with” – Gregor Robertson June 22, 2016.

Too bad it’s coming 8 years later than it was originally promised: “What I will work to implement as mayor is a speculator tax” – Gregor Robertson, June 6, 2008.

What do Michael Smyth and Bill Tieleman have in common? They both just realized that the housing crisis – which has been building for 30 years – is a real thing:

How big is this pot of money? It’s more than the government got from lotteries and casinos. More than the carbon tax. More than tobacco. More than liquor. More than royalties from forestry, mining and natural gas combined.

As Ian Young writes: “It’s amazing how many people realise the importance of fire extinguishers only when their house is burning down. It’s a bit like finding God on your deathbed. 2015’s market didn’t happen in a vacuum. There’s a pretty clear list of folk who are culpable in having let it happen

Predators: Couple who urged Langley homeowners to sell fail to mention they’re realtors. They can regulate themselves!

Media watch: It now costs more to read the National Observer than it does to Netflix and chill. National Observer goes behind a paywall.

Meanwhile, the following twitter exchange plays out like an episode of Silicon Valley. Observer associate editor Sandy Garrossino blames advertisers for the Observer’s failure to monetize 80,000 worth of crowd-funded seed money; dismisses Daily Hive’s Farhan Mohammed because he’s a man; admits they have a way lower overhead than print media; and then is smug enough to suggest they are saving democracy.

As usual, Nicholas Ellan with a huge burn:

True story: I just wasted my last free National Observer article on a story about a frog.

Headline/Alberta of the day: Supreme Court of Canada dismisses penile swab appeal by Edmonton man.

Vancouver drivers represent:Canada’s worst parking job leads police to hit-and-run suspect.

On Ken Sim’s So-Called “Swagger” and ABC’S Class War

Sean Orr is back from his hiatus with a rundown of the local headlines that have been running on a ticker tape through his mind over the past six months...

On Post-Election Recuperation, Platform Paradoxes and Refund Communities

In his latest read of the local news headlines, Sean Orr finds irony in "safety, affordability, and sustainability", and shouts out a bunch of amazing local organizations working on the frontlines.

On Running for City Council, Playing Whack-a-Mole with Homelessness, and the Public Washroom Deficit

In his latest read of the local news headlines, Sean Orr finds a park ranger with a grudge, a gross misuse of air quotes and Tripadvisor slander.

On Living in a City Preoccupied with Street Cleaning, Chandeliers, and Campaigns Against the Homeless

In his latest read of the local news headlines, Sean Orr hones in on the recent Langley shootings, and the ongoing criminalizing and dehumanizing of the homeless population.