Jeremy Corbyn ~ agent of change

"We are not doing celebrity, personality, abusive politics - we are doing ideas. This is about hope."






Jeremy Corbyn, the leader of the British Labour Party is under attack. As usual. Not so much by people, but by established members of his party, and by the elites oh nation. Corbyn is often portrayed in the British press as inept and divisive, as a man who became party leader by accident and has no prospect whatsoever of ever becoming prime minister. Yet, there is he, bringing thousands of new, and younger, members into the party.



"Because I've never had any higher education of any sort, I've never held in awe those who have had it, or have a sense of superiority over those who don't."









It's an odd kind of situation, and the similarities with  Bernie Sanders are obvious: an older white guy attracting young people with a message that hearkens back to a different time altogether, to a time when workers' rights and civil society actual meant something. A time when creating a level playing field for people through education, health care and progressive taxation, was the accepted and expected norm.  In the UK Margaret Thatcher changed all that and the policies of  the war criminal Tony Blair and his gaggle did nothing to change it. Jeremy Corbyn is having none of that, thank you very much, and many seem to be in agreement.

"We're not going back anywhere, we're going forward, we're going forward in democracy, we're going forward in participation, we're going forward with ideas."








He calls himself a democratic socialist. He's vegetarian. He rides a bike, takes transit, and doesn't own a car. He's 67 years old and a bit dishevelled. Possibly because he rides the buses and bikes.

"We know the gap between rich and poor is widening. We know living standards are stagnating or falling and insecurity is growing. We know that many people feel left behind by the forces unleashed by globalisation - powerless in the face of deregulated corporate power."

The Blairites are particularly irritated by Corbyn's willingness to embrace the old ways in a new way, and in the process grab the attention of all kinds of citizens who know something is wrong with the way Britain has been doing things. He's shaking up British politics by offering an alternative to the elites.


"If we are only seen as protectors of the status quo how can we expect people to turn to us when they can see that status quo has failed? We must stand for real change, and a break with the failed elite politics and economics of the past."

It remains to be seen if Mr Corbyn will ever become Prime Minister in the UK, but his message, and the appeal of his back-to-leftist-basics, is resonating. On both sides of the Atlantic. Donald Trump, and his ilk around the world, need not be the only opportunity for real change in our society. Bernie Sanders was on to something. And so is Jeremy Corbyn.

Here in Canada, we need to catch up.

By Jim Murray. Copyright 2016.

Bâtard Boulangerie et Café

Bâtard has several definitions:

1. It's a hybrid of different cultures and styles
2. It's also an oval loaf based on the baguette
3. A story by Jack London, and after spending three months in Yukon ourselves one winter...
4. And, it's unique individual of questionable parentage

In Vancouver however, Bâtard is a great boulangerie and café in Fraserhood.

Bâtard is a family business created by Chris Brown of Rise Artisan Bakery (he's the former owner on Ecco il Pane) and Bruno and Sally Born (and daughter Elsie Born) of Finest at Sea on Arbutus. Whatever the lineage, Bâtard is a fantastic bakery and more.

The building is over 100 years old and and some of the exterior features are original. On the inside, things have been opened up with the bakery and epicierie on one side, the café on the other. There are local products as well as some interesting European items too.

The pastries are excellent, with the croissants being the best in Vancouver.





















The sandwiches are wonderful, mainly because of the bread, but the ingredients are fresh and made-in-house, like the roasted chicken that went into this Chicken Club.

Coffee, as one might expect, is highly sufficient. There are better coffee shops in Vancouver, but this place is special because of the excellence of its bakery.

Bâtard is located on Fraser Street between East 23rd and 24th Avenue.

Photos by Jeem. Copyright 2016 by Jim Murray.

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Snow in our neighbourhood ~ turning to slush

It happens almost every winter on the southwest coast of Canada and while the rest of the country takes it for granted, here in Metro Vancouver, snow is a big deal. Even if is only ten centimetres at most.













Many of us, especially those working in the public sector, devoted employees all, hope for a snow day, and a paid day off. Sadly, it seldom happens.




Instead we get a day, perhaps two, of winter weather. Sidewalks are sometimes cleaned, as per municipal bylaws throughout the region, but usually not.

Kids build semi-snow structures and snow people, and the city slows down ever so slightly.












In a day or two or three, the rains will return, and winter will be washed away completely. Until next time. And some of us, like our lawyer-friend, BT Mendelbaum (disbarred), will spend the entire winter watching, waiting and praying for the next potential snow day.

Photos by Jeem. Copyright 2016 by Jim Murray.

The first big snow of the season ~ in Vancouver's Van Dusen Garden

It's December and the first snow of the winter has arrived on the Left Coast.

People in the rest of the nation watch their news portals and wonder why in the world people in Metro Vancouver get excited about a wee bit of snow; why bridges are closed and traffic snarls to a halt. The rest of the nations seems to know how act, and drive and walk, in the snow.






And every time snow arrives on the south coast a social media debate ensues about the proper use of umbrellas in the snow. Obviously we have too much time on our hands.

There's an amazing quiet that comes to the park after a snowfall.

Walking through Van Dusen Garden is a wonderful experience after a snowfall.

Especially when it only lasts a day or two.

Photos by Jeem. 

Copyright 2016 by Jim Murray.

The Better BC Rally ~ the first of the campaign

It was billed as a Better BC Rally and it came at the end of a Provincial Council meeting of  New Democratic Party leaders and activists from throughout BC (of which your faithful scribe is one).

Over five hundred people queued outside Ballroom A at the Pinnacle Hotel in downtown Vancouver. It was hot in the lobby, but that was nothing like the heat felt inside the ballroom once things got going.

We were greeted by a sign that will become ever more common at public events in the coming years, especially at political rallies where the public is the actual backdrop for the event itself. No longer are there any places in which to feel a sense of privacy because there are cameras everywhere and everyone is sharing photos without getting anyone's permission. Still, the sign did seem a wee bit harsh to our lawyer, and friend, B.T. Mendelbaum (disbarred).

The crowd was warmed up with speeches by new candidate Anne Kang, and the young-but-not-new MLA Spencer Chandra Herbert. Anne is running in Burnaby-Deer Lake, while Spencer rules the West End.

Jinny Sims spoke, given the difficult task of asking for money. Asking for donations is unfortunate, but essential, especially in a province where foreign donors, wealthy Realtors and rich corporations buy their audiences with the Premier. That's one of the reasons this huge crowd showed up ~ to work to end the influence of big money in politics. So, Jinny was given a tough job, and she did it with style and humour, and on May 9th she will become the new MLA for Surrey-Panorama.

Finally, about the same time as B.T. Mendelbaum almost passed out from the heat, the star of the afternoon appeared, our next premier, John Horgan. And the phones were busy.

John is an interesting guy. He appears to be very comfortable in his role as leader, and he shines when speaking one-on-one or in small groups. In larger settings, like this one, he delights in the energy of the crowd. In this speech, at the first big rally of the campaign, John was easy-going to the point of diverging from the teleprompter on occasion and simply riffing about the topic at hand. Nice touch that.

His speech hit the key points that mattered to this crowd, and probably to most of us: jobs, health care and education, affordability, good government and the environment. 

John's address was serious, angry at times, delivered with a great sense of humility and a natural sense of humour. Brilliant thought B.T. Mendelbaum, regaining their composure and glad they were dragged to this thing after all.

The end of the rally came with John's obligatory selfie, trying, as always, to get as many people in the picture as possible. And after sixteen years of an entirely different approach to government... that's a refreshing concept.

Photos by Jeem. Copyright 2016 by Jim Murray.