Tea & Two Slices is a long-running local news round-up by NEEDS frontman and veteran dishwasher Sean Orr, who lives and works in Gastown, deeply aware of his privilege.

We live in two Canadas. One Canada where a board member of local civic party can brag about going to the Superbowl, and the other where we not only deny vaccines to a remote indigenous community because they were two minutes late to confirm but we frame it as “a gift”: Officials apologize after more than 200 vaccine doses pulled from remote B.C. community. Because the genocidal colonial project is vicious and never ending.

We live in two Canadas. One where we use restart funds to cover the pay cut of Translink’s CEO, and another where small businesses and music venues continue to drop like flies.

This is a country that takes vaccines from a fund that helps developing countries and where boomers are complaining about being trapped for wintering in the States: B.C. snowbirds ‘trapped’ in Arizona want exemption from $2,000 quarantine. The entitlement here is wretched and stinking. You want an exemption? You’re lucky we don’t just throw you in the gulags to live out your miserable selfish existences. This is a province where people are on the verge of eviction everyday and you have the nerve to demand special treatment for luxuriating in the warmth of a country riddled with COVID19?

But what else do you expect? We are a shining city on a hill of wanton entitlement, the poster child of banal self indulgence: 100 cheeseburgers, mood lights and exotic dancers: Search warrant details alleged pandemic penthouse party. The VPD have enough resources to constantly harass poor people but they can’t bust a fucking house party? They seemed to have no problem doing that a decade ago when their budget was half what it is now. Wait, they couldn’t be using the pandemic to blackmail us into increasing their budget, could they?

Not that it matters, but the one place that dared to freeze a police budget just gets completely ignored: New West council backs down on proposal to freeze police budget after police board disapproves. What is the point of pretending to have local representation when we have this outdated, bureaucratic, glorified “farm team” of a system? Believe it or not, Mr. Horgan, cities can make their own decisions. You can overhaul the Police Act now.

But that’s how we roll. We are a gutless, paternalistic, neoliberal outpost that relies on some antique notion of bootstrap personal responsibility to absolve the government of having to actually make decisions: Pandemic fatigue cuts support for Dr. Bonnie Henry, Adrian Dix: survey. The Sun spelled “fucking incompetence spliced with sociopathic indifference” wrong.

Oh, and insincere. Don’t forget insincere:

Reign of Error

This thread will explore the endless errors, evasions, obfuscations, insincerity and incompetence of Bonnie Henry. Please feel free to respond publicly or DM me if you wish to contribute useful and accurate information. Sources are helpful. pic.twitter.com/Un4u3Dk9nR

— Ron Hughes (@RonaldNHughes) November 17, 2020

Exhibit B:

Bringing COVID home to kill your grandma is also known to cause devastating effects

Why doesn’t our public health officer understand least harm? https://t.co/zD5fj1wCeP

— oplopanax 🏔️🧗 (@lithohedron) February 4, 2021

Reckless, selfish indifference: Out-of-bounds snowboarder not very grateful for help, North Shore Rescue says. Gulag.

Search in Vancouver senior’s killing leads to confrontation between police, residents of homeless camp. Weird what happens when you constantly criminalize the homeless, offer them no place to go, and chase them around the city from camp to camp without offering a shred of social support. As long as we continue to police the symptoms instead of the causes, this will keep happening. If the criminal had been found in an apartment, would we be saying “apartments create and harbour criminals”? Probably not. So why do we say it when they live in a tent?

Why detached home prices in Greater Vancouver have been rising, while condo prices have stayed static. House prices going up just puts upward pressure on condos down the line so people pointing to condo prices not going down as a good thing sound like Lloyd from Dumb and Dumber saying “so you’re telling me I have a chance“…

That being said, there’s gonna be a whole lot more supply of condos on the market as the pandemic is forcing families to realize they can’t live in a shoebox: Real estate agents report ‘ripple effect’ with more investors in Fraser Valley.

Greater Victoria’s vacancy rate inches above 2%, but rents still rising. Go on, tell me that increased supply will bring down rents without rent control mechanisms.

Because rent should be tied to the unit, not The Hobbit: A look inside: Vancouver’s Hobbit House is now available to rent. $6,200/month for a house that looks cute on the outside and like a white-washed cookie-cutter condo on the inside = Peak Vancouver (again).

Meanwhile: Vancouver real estate: $8.9 million listing declares “house is of no value”, $1 million discount offered. And yet the ensuing bidding war will mean it sells for $2 million over.

This is the Fyre Fest of 2021 so far: The Downside to Life in a Supertall Tower: Leaks, Creaks, Breaks. Holy shit, I really needed a laugh. Thanks for that, rich guy.

This isn’t going to end well: Developing: NPA directors sue Mayor Kennedy Stewart for defamation. Isn’t defamation when something is a lie?

Oh, and while it should be a good day when Canada lists the Proud Boys as a terrorist organization, expanding the war on terror is probably a bad idea.

Vancouver Family Reaches Settlement Over Racist Video Fallout. Oh, and if you’re BIPOC, here’s a survey about police in schools.

Good news of the day: BC couple uses AMC frenzy stock gains to give back to local school library.

Predators: Skip The Dishes adds ‘B.C. Fee’ due to province’s commission cap.

Western Canada’s first Starbucks Reserve Bar closes in Vancouver. Unfortunately it will probably get replaced by a Starbucks.

Satire of the day: Jeff Bezos to Become First Amazon Worker to Get a Break.

RIP: Condolences pour in at news Vancouver artist, art-car maker, and assembler extraordinaire Ken Gerberick has died.