BC Premier Declares Fatalities from Heat Wave "Part of Life"The more irresponsible governments at all levels are, no matter what cartel party is in power, the more irrational and absurd their attempts to dismiss the reality of what is taking place. We more and more often hear authorities tell us that we should put up and shut up because (avoidable) deaths "are part of life." During the current heat wave in BC, the Chief Coroner for the province reports scores more deaths than usual. Wait times for 911 calls to be answered and ambulances to arrive in some cases have stretched to hours. Paramedics report they have long pleaded with the government to increase investments in ambulance and other emergency services as the growth in population and demand for health services have far outstretched the available resources. Compounding the problems from the heat, many people in BC do not have air conditioning. Also, many public facilities are closed or have restricted seating during the pandemic, such as libraries, which have removed most of their chairs. Premier Horgan appeared to dismiss any social responsibility or duty of the government to assist the people especially the elderly in the face of the heat wave. He seemed to accuse people of causing their own suffering and death by ignoring government warnings and not taking "personal responsibility" to take care of themselves. In response to stories of the elderly dying from the heat without assistance from professionals, Horgan is quoted in the media as saying, "The public was acutely aware that we had a heat problem.... We were doing our best to break through all of the other noise to encourage people to take steps to protect themselves. But it was apparent to anyone who walked out doors that we were in an unprecedented heat wave and again, there's a level of personal responsibility.... But I believe we did what we could to get information out and we rely also on the public press and media outlets who've done a really good job, in my mind, of making the case. Weather forecasters on all of the networks on radio were making the case, telling people to be wary and we have our internet presence and social media doing that as well." Stories have emerged of the elderly going house to house in search of someone to perform CPR or take their loved one to hospital because emergency services were not responding. People interviewed report that when they went to help their neighbours, the senior needing assistance was already dead. On June 29, Vancouver police said officers had responded to more than 65 sudden deaths since the heat wave began on June 25, "with more casualties being reported by the hour" and the vast majority of the deaths related to heat. Burnaby officers had responded to more than 30 deaths since June 28, many of them also seniors, with heat believed to be a contributing factor in most of those deaths. Surrey police responded to 22 deaths June 28 and at least 13 on June 29. Many denounce Premier Horgan's response to the heat wave as callous. Some began to call on the rest of Canada to come to the aid of people in BC because the government here dismisses any social responsibility, with the Premier saying in the most detached manner, "Fatalities are a part of life" and "there's a level of personal responsibility." The BC social-democratic government is guided by the fundamental premise of the neo-liberal anti-social offensive, originally stated by Margaret Thatcher who declared there is no such thing as society, only families, and that everyone must fend for themselves and stop being a burden on the society she said does not exist. On the basis of this neo-liberal mantra, social services and programs have been privatized. They are considered "personal" or "family" responsibilities and they bear the responsibility for consequences. Canadians are determined to settle scores with authorities who cannot cope with the needs of societies today and the claims the people are entitled to make by virtue of being human.
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