Tag: provincial politics

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Privileges For Me but Not for Thee

vicky

There has been much confusion over the past week over what the rules are for people living in long-term care facilities.  This has made it very hard for residents to plan for the holiday season.   But today (Dec 22nd ) at 6:00am, we were told that we are not allowed to leave the building except for medical appointments. And if any of us disregard this rule, we need to get a negative PCR test before we can return.

Now for people who have a home to go to where they can wait up to 72 hours for those test results, that is no problem   But for the many people like myself who do not, we would be homeless for 2-3 days.

It is infuriating.  People who live outside of long-term care facilities or other Institutions – including the staff – are able to go about their days and even attend parties of up to 10 people.   It is blatant paternalism and infantilism towards people with disabilities who live in long-term care.  We are autonomous human beings and these decisions should be left to us. 

This idea of privileges for me and not for thee is misguided paternalism. And it must end.

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Thank you So Much! I Literally Owe You My Life.

vicky

Hello humans! Here’s the deal. I have a lot of feelings about this whole moving thing and I don’t see my therapist until the 13th so I’m writing this all down and you’re coming with me.

 

 On the one hand I feel fucking ecstatic because I and many other people have been fighting for this for a very long time in some cases decades. On the other hand I am getting a swanky condo on the south end paid for by taxpayers while there is a housing crisis.

I was not expecting anything as nice as what I’ll be getting honestly. I expected a basic bachelor apartment with slightly bigger rooms to accommodate my wheelchair and my other mobility equipment. What I’m getting looks like something Carrie Bradshaw would live in. Which don’t get me wrong, I’m very happy about it but I feel like I don’t deserve it when there are other people who work very hard full-time jobs and can’t afford the basics they need to live. I know I worked really hard for this but it almost seems like overkill. How do I justify this when people are literally starving on the street!? The only way I can think to do that is by using the tools I’ve been given to fight for the right for other people to have the same opportunities. I promise with everything I have that I will fight every day to make sure that I am worthy of these opportunities made possible by the taxpayers of Nova Scotia. You’re paying my bills so it is my job to make sure you don’t fall through the cracks either.

A few weeks ago a woman reached out to me on Facebook to tell me about a problem she was having. She then apologized because she felt that since it wasn’t a housing issue it wasn’t my problem. Let me make something very clear, if you are a person disabled or not and you are suffering, that is my problem and I will do everything in my power to make it right or to reach out to people who can make it right if I cannot. I don’t care what time it is, whether it’s the weekend or a holiday. If you need help and you think I can provide it, message me. I may not get back to you right away but trust me I will take care of it to the best of my ability. The taxpayers of this province have given me a gift. The least I can do is help you in return.

Anyway, that’s all I had to say, have a nice day!

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Well Shit

vicky

Well, this is a pickle for me. On the one hand I am very glad that Iain Rankin will no longer be representing the entire province on the national stage as I think he has a lot to learn about communicating with his constituents, I didn’t expect Nova Scotia to vote against its own interests! If the pandemic has shown us anything it is that Nova Scotians need more public support not fewer. Conservative governments are known to cut social programs and other things that support everyday citizens in living their lives with dignity and autonomy. One of the main problems I think is that some people, particularly on the conservative side, think you should just “Pull yourself up by your bootstraps”. However, how are you supposed to do that when you can’t even afford boots!? The only way to get people out of poverty is to give them enough money to start with. If we’re not going to increase the minimum wage to an affordable living wage (it still shocks me that this is not the same thing). Then we must be willing to step in and provide the necessary tools for survival! Universal basic income would be the easiest way to do this. I’ve heard people say that if we introduce universal basic income that nobody will want to work. Let me explain something to you about universal basic income. They are not giving you money to live in a penthouse apartment eating steak every night. This would be just enough money to survive. For some people this would be enough and yes they would not work but most people want to have things that are not necessities like cable and a cell phone or higher priced clothing or a million other things that provide joy in our daily lives . Therefore they would have to work to get those things because they can’t survive without them. Furthermore I don’t know about you but if I didn’t have a job to go to or do I wouldn’t have a purpose and I would be very bored. I feel like many other people would feel the same. This way people will be able to get jobs they at least somewhat enjoy and won’t have to take work that makes them miserable in order to survive. This would also force business owners to increase the wages to attract workers.

One thing people are concerned about is automation because it would take away jobs apparently. To me this is the same argument as “if everybody has a car, that will put the horse and buggy drivers out of business!” Technology and society changes and we have to be willing to adapt. The world didn’t collapse when different transportation services were invented or when different forms of communication were invented. Change is good, please don’t fear it. 

Are we in for a rough couple years? Absolutely, but I believe on the other side there will be a better, more equal society where people don’t have to fight to stay alive. That sounds pretty good to me, what about you ?