Lancaster

Once again, I have to bring up Japan as the example of how things are done very vastly different with drastically better results. Maybe Canada needs to stop telling everyone to buy in and instead just copy the strategy of somewhere that is doing better? Japan with 126 million people, with the elderly making up 28%, has 1.7 million cases of infection and 18000 deaths. Higher population density, higher uses of public transportation, less restrictive lockdown, no covid passport, no lower rate of vaccination, more elderly folks. Canada with 38 million people, with the elderly making up 16%, has 1.6 million cases of infection and 28000 deaths. Lower population density, more use of private transportation, more restrictive lockdown, introduced covid passports, high rate of vaccination, less older folks. Should be clear as day that Canada has made mistakes and are continuing to make mistakes. Instead of just following the politicians' playbook by blaming the unvaccinated folks or that people need the 3rd or 4th booster shots, maybe Canadians should start questioning the competency of the public health officials and the politicians.

Questioning is very important, especially when there are jurisdictions with different strategies and different results. If outcome is uniform or predictable, there wouldn't be much to question. As it currently is, there are way more questions that needs to be asked and questions that needs to be answered.

Well.. that is what everyone in this thread is doing. If it was only medical professionals allowed to post here, this thread would probably be like 2 pages max, lol.

You just target their stars. Kassian takes a run at Hughes.... you have Horvat take a chop at McDavid. Have Petersson "accidentally on purpose" crash into Mike Smith when driving to the net. I think it was Ferraro that said once you start targeting the star players, the star players will tell their role players to ease off.

Yep, just throwing ideas out. I'm no health expert, I don't know if the vaccine is really the right course or not, but perhaps I'm just instinctually a skeptic. I see Japan doing it better, we as a society should be replicating their model more. We should be expecting our government to really figure things out, rather than just rolling out restrictions and setting up nearly irreversible situation that is dividing people. I'm not a huge fan of vitamin pills, but they do play a role in those who are unable to get their full nutrients via their regular diet. Great for kids who hates their fruits and veggies, lol. Plus vitamins has been around for decades, there's way less hesitancy as the "long-term impact" is well established. Having healthy food that's affordable would really help going forward. Like when Whole Foods is selling 1 organic apple for $1.... that is creating a barrier to many. There are way too many unknowns out there or stuff that needs further research. I'm not expert here, but the delta strain (I'm assuming also future strains) can still be caught and spread by those vaccinated, while their symptoms are more muted, but wouldn't only the strongest viral mutations survive and thus spread again? Kind of like how doctors say to follow the exact instructions when taking anti-biotics as the bacteria keep getting stronger each generation... is it similar with viruses? Then there's some early studies about how natural immunity and especially if you caught covid previously is vastly superior to vaccine immunity. Perhaps that's why Japan is doing better? Their infection rates were extremely high (by their standards), but death rates really low... thus maybe they have achieved better herd immunity than here? Seems more prudence to wait for the more facts rather than using incomplete data sets and implementing rules and regulations that's undeniably intrusive.

If health is the fundamental issue, why the need to push the vaccine to a population that generally wouldn't need it? Shouldn't the vaccine to be provided to those in a higher risks categories like the elderly and those with chronic issues then? Why the rush to push the vaccine to those who are under-25 and to kids, the group least likely to be severely impacted by the coronavirus (according to the stats)? As for solving the short-term... Have government vouchers provided to each household for over-the-counter vitamin pills, NAC, vouchers for fruits and vegetables, subsidized organic products, tax rebate on fitness products, health products becoming tax deductible, etc. Wouldn't really help in the immediate short-term, but probably see more noticeable results in the medium term and longer term. Have junk food requiring minimal nutritional standards or at least having the reduction of salt, unhealthy fats, less processed stuff, etc. I mean Japan imports the majority of their food and Canada is a breadbasket... yet Canada is unable to provide sufficient healthy food for it's own populace? My suggestions won't solve everything... but is definitely a foot on the right direction.

So is covid infection a cultural issue then? From the beginning we've been told to social distance, the elder to stay away from others, wear masks, avoid grouping up for transit, etc.... all those things which BC has an edge over Japan at, but has worse results. When I mean "be like Japan", I don't mean you need to change culture, just mirror what they have been doing in handling the coronavirus. They've been doing more or less the opposite as here and they've slowed down infection rate and have way less death than Canada, even though they are like 3-4x the population. They're doing something right and Canada is probably doing something wrong. Of course nutrition and diet is hard to fix overnight. It's true that the average junk food in Japan is not as bad on your body compared to those in the West ($3 rice bowl in Sukiya is way healthier than $3 burger from McDonalds).... but then it circles back to personal health being the largest contributing factor in dealing with covid. Why aren't there more focus on what we can do here locally and now? I mean if everybody ate an apple per day, drink a protein shake, have a glass of OJ, take some Flintstone vitamin pills and have a healthier diet; plus everyone should walk at least 30-60 minutes daily, it would probably be more effective in handling Covid in the long-term. Yet it's pretty much treated as misinformation if you mention it, but why is that? In every other scenario with every other ailment, your doctor will probably say to eat right and exercise.

Team toughness is more important than just actual physical size (although that does help). If Hughes get run at... Horvat shouldn't be afraid to clobber someone with a big hit, same with JT Miller or Myers. At the same time, Hoglander, Petersson shouldn't be afraid to throw some elbows or whack a few ankles if they see the opposition taking liberty on their teammates. A honey badger is a small, but there's a reason bears don't mess with them. The Canucks need to be like a badger.

I think we should figure out what fundamental differences are there that are causing such different results. They have higher density, they travel more on public transit, a more elderly population, privately owned health care facilitates that is funded by the government, etc. All initial indicators would have all of us believe they should have it way worse than here. In Canada and the US, they're treating the covid shots like some holy grail to solve all issues... yet it seems that the real solution is more nuanced. There are probably numerous different variables in play.... personal hygiene, health, diet, water quality, etc. I really wish the powers that be can be upfront about it. Instead of just running with the same mantra of "We BC do gud... we guuder than 'merika N alBertazz!". I mean if I was in Japan, I would be assuming that with the way BC is handling Covid, that the hospitals must be treating patients with leeches, voodoo or something. 100 cases out of 30 million people in Tokyo.... what should that say about how we are handling it? When government is acting with such adamant authority that their course of action is the correct one, in face of actual proof of other working strategies, that is most frightening. It's no longer about doing what is best, it's about maintaining power. I have no idea regarding protestors in Japan.... but usually they're not too overly intrusive when they do protest (unlike in the West). That being said, I do know that hesitancy is a very common issue over there. Most people I know there aren't vaccinated or are only vaccinated if their job requires it (eg. flight attendant, multi-national consultant, etc). None of my wife's family are vaccinated and it's not like they're some crazy right-wing religious crackpots living at some rural commune in Hokkaido. Just the averaged educated people working in public education or business owners in Osaka. My in-laws are somewhat local community leaders (or at least very active in community affairs), so it's safe to say many of their peers probably hold the same point of view of they do. Considering my in-laws are those who survived WW2 (including being at Hiroshima) and all their siblings and peers are still alive and kicking during this covid pandemic, they must either be lucky or doing something right.

To be fair, draft position plays a huge role in it... for TBL, Stamkos was draft #1 overall, Hedman was draft #2. Two franchise players in subsequent years. Colorado with MacKinnon going #1, Landeskog as #2. Makar and Bryam #4, Ratannen and Jost being top-10 picks. The Canucks screwed up on Virtanen and Juolevi.... but Horvat at #9, Boeser #23, Hughes at #7.... and earliest pick with Petersson at #5. The Canucks didn't have the same quality of draft order as the other two teams. That being said, TBL has done better outside of the 1st round... but one can take more risks when you have less holes in your lineup to fill.

Lets not forget, Juolevi was one of the "Big 3 Finns" of the draft year. That depending on positional need, any of them could be chosen over the other. Olli being ranked #6, JB didn't take a long-shot with it. It wasn't like he like Burke and was drafting Bryan Allen or anything. I was never disappointed with the pick, but I always thought they should have draft Tkachuk... just because I thought his offensive skills and style of player would be able to extend the productiveness of the Sedins for many more years. That if the Canucks main defensive need was an offensive defenseman. They have pretty good 2-way defenseman in Alex Edler who was still in his prime, 2 very good prospects at the time in Ben Hutton and Nikita Tryamkin, Chris Tanev being a stalwart on defense and Sbisa supposedly on the cusp of being an impact player. But... there's no offense-first defenseman and there hasn't been one since Ehrhoff left town. Since Chychrun was also supposed to be competing to the #1 overall that draft, I would have assumed that the Canucks would pick him.

My wife is Japanese and my kids also dual, so we could enter Japan if we really really want to. But there's not many direct flights via award travel to Osaka.... we're somewhat out of luck, unless we hotel quarantine. If quarantining for 2 weeks, Covid won't kill me... but 2 weeks of non-stop Baby Shark and Cocomelon.... Depending on the sources, some has Japan's rate at 60%, some around 70%. A major uptick leading up to the Olympics, but still lots of hesitancy. But regardless of what the actual numbers are, the question remains on why there is a huge discrepancy regarding their infection rate vs here. If higher vaccination rate means lower infection, why are the numbers between Japan and Canada so vastly different? You'd assume that it should be Japan that has a much higher rate than Canada... but currently the reverse is happening. If those experts are unable to figure out why Canada is failing, maybe Canada should re-evaluate their game plan. As a Canadian, I want the government to follow other places that are doing it right, not just winging it and hoping it works. If when it doesn't, doubling down on it. I mean remember when "if everyone just wore masks...."? Their lockdown is far less restrictive than the "lockdown" here. People (depending on which part of Japan) were still allowed to go dining, travel, happy ending massages, whatever. Just a lot of the restrictions were very stupid.... no serving alcohol at a restaurant after 8pm... but dining still allowed until 11pm or weird rules like that. In Japan, face shields are accepted in lieu of face masks. Japan's lockdown has been a joke. People still went to work in Japan. People still lived their lives normally in Japan. My wife's family kept travelling throughout Covid when they got those government travel vouchers and still kept going this year. Most people I know in Japan would also be travelling if they weren't still working. Of course, maybe the majority of them from Kansai may play a role, but my buddies in Tokyo still going to the bars with their friends and stuff, bring their kids to play dates, etc. Japan is already thinking about restarting their travel program again. There are still TV shows and journalists legitimately questioning the narrative of vaccinations, to explore using alternative medicines, etc. Imagine some journalist on CTV or CBC doing the same or top level doctors promoting alternative therapy.... they'd be cancelled and placed in limbo faster than Stephan Robidas' tenure with the TML. Canada is generally not as authoritarian than other countries, but this is Canada, we should be moving the away from it, not towards it. With everything that has gone on in the past 2 years, this is definitely not a dictatorship.... but Canada has moved closer towards it.

Whether the vaccine is worthwhile or not, the question remains on how Japan has done squat and ended up better than Canada. Shouldn't we be more like Japan instead? People are too hung up on what errors the US is making. Instead of just focusing on what does not work, why not focus on what is working? One of the reason it's political is because many are mixing in politics in it. If I said I am American and didn't get vaccinated.... what assumptions would be made? That I am a Trump supporter, bible thumping, white dude who only graduated from high school? Whether or not that is even accurate, the same playbook would be used against me regardless. Many people are pro-vaccine and are against the passport, but they're still labelled as anti-vaxxers. It's just simply divisive politics. In a secular society, some people treat politics as their religion. Go against their political opinions (especially if it related to covid), then you're fair game for a 21st century inquisition (eg. cancelled, online harassment, doxxed, unfriended, etc). I know some people who immigrated to Canada and are thinking of moving back to their home country as they feel Canada is become way too authoritative.... too different from the Canada they initially fell in love with.

Unfortunately still in YVR. Wanted to go over, but 10-14 days hotel quarantine with 2 toddlers? No way, lol. Lots of restriction over there, but still comparatively less than in Canada. Feels like Canada is trying to "push the envelope" to see how much the public will tolerate and once there are pushback, label that group with derogatory terms and get the "converted" to go after said group. Any questions get blasted with the motto "Listen to the science" which is akin to "Shut up!". Question the people who are in the position of authority (eg. following their funding, past professional connections, etc.) and it's a "conspiracy theory". Headlines are filled with biased interpretation of numbers and stats to follow a narrative. Alternative treatment that requires more funding and research are immediately dismissed as "horse medicine" or "junk science".... even though there are plenty of articles prior to 2019 of stuff like ivermectin, NAC, etc... being used to treat pneumonia, SARS, influenza, etc.... stuff that are closely associated with COVID. But it's against dogma to mention it. There's like zealous mob mentality going on in Canada. Not gonna say it's 1984 or whatever... but talking to my parents who went through the Cultural Revolution in China... they say it's not too far off. One definition of insanity is repeating the same thing over and over again.... Canada is starting to feel like that. "Quick! Everyone get vaxxed! Cases are rising?! More Vax! Still rising? Must be those who aren't vaxxed are to be blamed! More vax!" Whereas Japan is "let kinda wait and see.... everyone... try to be good" and they're doing better than here. Why aren't Canadians pissed at the government for their current ineptitude? Why aren't people questioning the decisions made by the government more? Why are people accepting that current implementations are far inferior to those like in Japan? Why is the government and those who support them are so keen on doubling down instead of just admitting that maybe they have no idea what they are doing and maybe they're making mistakes?

Haven't been on CDC in a long time. Life is less stressful when you need to be be argumentative with strangers online. Anyways... Tokyo currently.... a metropolis of about 30+ million in an area about the same size as the Lower Mainland.... their daily rate is about ~100. Was 89 just a few days ago. BC on the other hand has a population of 5 million, but about 500-700 case daily. In Japan their vaccination level is way way lower than those of other industrialized economies (none of my wife's family are vaccinated). Can't really say they nipped it in the bud at the beginning either as just last year the government were handing out travel vouchers for their citizens to travel more domestically, to go eat out more, to go out to shop more, etc.... all to boost their economy. Yet with everything that has happened, their rate of transmission is lower, their total death count is way lower than Canada too. I know there have been lots of gaffs as some people dying with causes "unknown" or people with Covid being turned away from the hospitals, etc.... but 10/10 Japan's results has been better than Canada.... and their government hasn't really done much or "competently". If this is the case, one must wonder why BC and Canada has done what they are doing. With vaccination levels among the highest in the world, the introduction of covid passports, etc... yet cases still continue to rise unimpeded... perhaps maybe there are other issues that should be accounted for? That draconian measures in place are doing more harm to society than any benefits in battling the coronavirus. People will point out that Japan does mask wearing more or better... but have anyone actually seen people without masks on locally? Perhaps it's just me, but everywhere I go, I see people wearing masks all the time. The only time I don't seem masks are when people are outdoors at the park or just walking. So what is that is making Canada worse than Japan? Japanese are healthier? That debatable... but longest lifespan may have something to do with it. If it is all about underlying health, then Canada is overreacting as a whole. One thing I always wonder.... we all know smoking is bad for your health. A smoker will generally get sick more often than a non-smoker, chronic smokers will definitely be weaker when combating pneumonia, influenza, etc. Yet there are reports that whether or not one is a smoker does not statistically make one more or less susceptible to catching or having a bad reaction from Covid. Sounds very off.... I mean if I said smokers aren't more likely to get the flu, people would immediately point out cow manure on it. What about those who abuse drugs, drinks too much, perhaps vaping too often (chemical from vapes are very bad too).... it should make you question how the stats are being reported. How the numbers are being reported is very important too. I mean the "regular" flu and pneumonia deaths has practically disappeared these past 2 years, since those who would unfortunately succumb to the flu has instead caught Covid. In Canada, an average of 8000 people each year dies from the flu..... so times 2 for 2 years of covid and it's approximately 16000 deaths. Covid has claimed about 28000. For all intent and purposes, the coronavirus is about 75% more deadlier than the flu. To put things into perspective, in a hypothetical scenario, if there's no covid and someone just said that the flu season is going to be 2x more dangerous than previous seasons.... would you still rush out to get the flu shot (assuming you don't)... or would you just go "huh.... I guess I should just be careful"? Just some food for thought.

Partially, but you have to view firearm in context of the laws and regulations in place. Then you have to view firearms in the greater context of criminal activities. Look at the actual data instead of rhetoric and you should realize that banning guns or heavy gun restrict is pointless and ineffective. Actually, you haven't defined "assault rifle" yourself. You just said, refer to a dictionary. But sure, lets play your games.... Merriam-Webster: "any of various intermediate-range, magazine-fed military rifles (such as the AK-47) that can be set for automatic or semiautomatic fire." Sure... but that means military rifles.... so an AR-15 is not a military rifles since it's not used in the military, XCR is not a military rifle either, that any rifles that shoots with .22lr should not be classified as an "assault rifle" either. If you still think an AR-15 is an "assault rifle", then either means the definition is being stretched or it's being used improperly. The reason I used "sports car", because I know you probably wouldn't be able to answer it anyways. Whether or not it's related, it's more to point out the absurdity of the term "assault rifle" and how broad it is. If you can't even answer what a "sports car" is... how can you possible define as an "assault rifle" is?

A bunch of people who don't know about a particular subject and assigning a catchy word/phrase that becomes part of everyday language.... doesn't mean it's credible or useful. It's like if everyone suddenly labelled sports cars as "Danger Cars".... and eventually it catches on. Does it automatically means it's really dangerous? From what I gather from your responses, you seem to have minimal knowledge about firearms and you not willing to educate yourself on the topic. Yet you are more than willing to just listen to whatever is popular and use their bias to pass judgement. I'm just going to ask you some simple questions. What is your definition of an assault rifle? What do you think is different between an "assault rifle" and one a hunter uses? Can you define a "sports car"?

A top scoring defenseman is more valuable than a top-line winger. While I wouldn't be opposed to having Matthew Tkatchuk on the team, the Canucks aren't exactly loaded with elite defensemen. Now if Calgary wishes to have a successor for Giordano and wish to throw in an extra 1st rounder or top prospect.... then the idea will be a bit more enticing.

Just because people repeat it often enough that it's included into the dictionary doesn't mean it's a good word to use. There's no defined characteristic, there's no specific formula used to label what is an "assault rifle" from a regular rifle. It's as vague as the term "sports car". How would you define a sports car from an economy car or a family vehicle?

Assault rifle/weapon is a made up term. To simplify things... firearms are usually either handguns or rifles. Handguns are usually either the pistol variety or revolvers. There are more sub-categories, but no really important now, except you need a Restricted PAL and gun has to be registered. For rifles, there's usually just bolt-action, semi-automatic, or fully-automatic. I mean there are technically less common variety like lever-action or even old fashion muskets... but for simplicity.... just 3 for now. Bolt-action are the ones you see in those old war movies like Enemy at the Gate, or in Saving Private Ryan and those sniper rifles. Where you need to manually pull back the bolt and push forward to load the next bullet... then fire, and then manually re-do the loading. For Canada, only a regular license (PAL) is required. Firearm does not need to be registered. Semi-auto... you don't need to pull or manually do anything. Just when you pull the trigger, the gun automatically loads the next bullet. What is "semi" is that you need to pull the trigger every single shot. Some require a Restricted License, some do not. Some needs to be registered, some do not. No real rhyme or reason to whether why one is restricted, banned or registration not required. For fully-automatic rifle, when you hold down the trigger, it keeps firing until you are out of bullets or release the trigger. 100% banned in Canada. The only people who has them are people who owned such weapon prior to being banned. When someone use terms like "assault rifle/weapon"... there's nothing definitive about that. It's a very vague and broad term that has been applied to every single firearm, from those used in the military to firearms minors used to hunt squirrels. Those who are less knowledgeable about firearms would usually describe an "assault rifle" with the follow: large magazine, black, non-wooden, looks like stuff the military would use. The main issue with those attributes is that all those are just pure esthetics. A large magazine does not mean it 100% will carry more bullets, since it can be pinned to hold less. In Canada, your semi-auto can only hold 5 rounds of bullets, regardless of magazine size. The magazine 100% has to be pinned or modified to hold up to 5 bullets.... get caught with one that can hold more than 5.... be prepared to go to jail. As for being made with polymer instead of wood or how it looks "military-style"... how the gun operates actually remains the same. It doesn't make the gun shoot faster or deadlier. I like to use a car analogy.... it would be if you purchased a Silver Honda Civic coupe. It has a 160hp engine. By all metric, it's not a sports car like a Ferrari, a BMW, etc. Now you decided you are going to modified your car to look like those from the Fast and the Furious... you put a spoiler at the back, you use a soup-can muffler, you change the rims to those of alloy, you tint the windows, you put swap the hood to one that is made of carbon fibre (or maybe just put a sticker to look like it), you swap out to have blindly headlights, added skirts and changed bumpers and even paint is red like a Ferrari..... but your engine didn't change. Is your now esthetically modified 160hp Honda Civic a sports car... or just a car that has now been made to look sportier? It's the latter. Same with most firearms.... a "hunting" rifle that has been made to look like those used by the Navy Seals isn't the same gun the Navy Seals would use.... it's just look like it.

Transition from junior to the pros is extremely difficult. Some players are men upon boys, with that extra split second can make a difference between making a good pass or a huge turnover. That little difference in an inch or two here and there may make one an elite player or one unable to keep up with the play. Plus sometimes it's all psychological. Players are too afraid to make mistakes as a bad play may mean being benched and maybe sent back down to the AHL. Potentially hundreds of thousands or even millions of dollars at stake.

Don't people have to quarantine upon arrival anyways? 3 day waiting period where they have to do a Covid test where the will only be let out if negative... Isn't that enforced?

I still don't know why they didn't follow up. If I said I saw someone with a gun, usually an officer would show up to investigate. If someone mentioned that the shooter had a hoard of guns, you'd assume someone would take notice. The police already have the power to check and they have the tip... not a law or regulation, just an enforcement issue.

It becomes a gap where the police has unverified info, but they can't just search on a whim. I know that since I have a firearms license, the firearms officer and/or police can decide to drop by to search my place, although they will give warning first. For someone who isn't even supposed to have a firearm, you'd assume the threshold should be easier to contact a quick check. I mean if it was a meth lab or house making child porn, you'd bet the police will be sending in the entire force to check. That being said, it would really suck if you really don't have firearms and someone with malicious intent keeps telling the police you do. Supposedly public safety vs the rights of the individuals. Not fair if the police just decides to drop by every single day to search your place based on an anonymous tip. Guns is just a tool, you wouldn't ban those military style knives simply because someone might do something with it. Considering that the vast majority of gun violence are committed by people who shouldn't even be in possession of it, targeting people who are currently obeying the law isn't the wrong way to go. The drug dealer with a pistol, a d-bag gangbanger with a sawed-off shotgun, or the crazy guy in NS who smuggled in guns from the US.... all the above are already illegal. So to go, "Hey Lancaster.... I know you're a legal and licensed gun owner, with no history of crime, domestic violence or anything.... but since some gang member shot some drug dealer with an illegally modified rifle smuggled in from the United States..... we're going to punish you for their actions..." that's just crazy. All guns are essentially the same. Just usually the size, exterior and the action that's different. A biathlon rifle is functionally the same as those hunting rifles or "sniper" rifle. Just for biathlon athletes, they have to modify their rifle to be more lightweight and stuff. When it comes down to it... only the receiver is legally a gun....