We are now day 7 into Bullying Awareness Week – a vision first started 10 years ago by a teacher in Calgary by the name of Bill Belset after a series of terrible school shootings took place (and were later linked to childhood bullying).  Over the last decade, his message of bringing an end to bullying has spanned the entire globe, bringing in support and events all over the World.  1 week dedicated to bringing attention to something horrible… doesn’t sound like much, does it?  And yet while news media all over the planet announce this week as the official Bullying Awareness Week (it even has its own Hashtag, #BAW2011, on Twitter), I have not yet seen a single News outlet in BC announce it, or even mention it.  Are the news stations so oblivious to the fact that bullying takes place in our Province, the same as everywhere else?  Are they blind to the problems that kids face?  or are they just brainwashed into thinking that Occupy Vancouver is a more important issue?  Maybe a bunch of people living in tents at the art gallery, drinking and doing drugs in public while they declare that they no longer recognize the authority of the police and fire department when it suits their purposes (right up until someone overdoses on-site) are more newsworthy than kids killing themselves to escape the torment they are put through at school and in their neighbourhoods.  Oh sure, a bullying victim kills themselves and the news jumps on it for a few days, crying about how if only something could have been done, or if only we knew sooner, or how can bullying be allowed to get to this point.
And then nothing.  Right back to the Occupies, or Kardashians, or what celebrity got caught in a hot tub with someone that’s obviously not his wife.
I am by far not a major person in the Social Media scene.  I prefer to be behind the scenes, making sure that our sites are running well, and watching other people talk.  But occasionally I want to get a message out.  I have 105 followers on Twitter.  For the past two weeks, I have asked numerous times that people pass the word along about this week, and about a specific bullying case that I am directly involved in.  Of that 105 people, only 8 people actually helped to spread that word.  A special thanks to Shawn Doyle and Patrick Gallagher for doing what they can to help, you two are awesome.  On Facebook, I have 153 “friends”.  How many there have helped to spread the message?  5.  Mind you, the past 2 months have helped me to see how many of those 153 people are actually friends.
How desensitized are people that they can’t send 1 single message over the course of an entire year to bring attention to the problem of bullying?  Are they too busy with their Farmville’s and Youtube spamming and 50,000 posts about your dog and how cute it is when said dog has a bowel movement (the number is exaggerated, the topic is not)?  Maybe they just buy into the saying that bullying is just a part of growing up.  Yep, getting punched in the back of the head while walking to class is a requirement of growing up.  So is standing in a hallway while someone holds your arms behind your back and two people take turns using you as a punching bag.  Or sitting at your desk trying to actually focus on your work (a shocker while in School) while kids behind you occupy their time by throwing things at you all class long.  All part of growing up, right?  WRONG.  Why is society so desensitized to bullying that they are ready to jump up and actively support it, pushing the victims to the side in the process?  Did you know that if a bully assaults a child, and that child fights back, the child that was bullied can face school suspension for defending himself?  And not just suspension, but actual assault charges.
It’s time that the World got a reality check.  Bullying is a real epidemic, more serious than any campers at a city park, and it’s time that people started taking a stand against it.
This is Bullying Awareness Week.  Get aware, people.  It’s real, it’s happening, and it needs to stop.
I put forward that 2012 should be Bullying Awareness Year.  If the News Media can’t put out one story about it over the course of 7 days, maybe they’ll find a slow news day out of 365 that they can report on it.  You know, a day when there’s not a bunch of campers complaining about major corporations while they wear their Nike shoes, and blog on their laptops, and take phone calls on their iPhones.  A whole year to go on the radio or TV and say “Hey people, be kind to each other.  Stop the bullying crap”.
Besides, if the Mayans are right, it might be the last year we can do it.

To quote a movie that had a typical 80′s plot-line, yet was ahead of it’s time with philosophy, “Be Excellent To Each Other”.

Some links you should check out:

http://www.bullyingawarenessweek.org
http://www.bullying.org
http://www.cyberbullying.org
http://www.waltersdefensefund.ca

What the Hell is wrong with the World?  When I went to school, “bullies” were a dime a dozen… some kid always wanted to try to look tougher than he actually was, by pushing around the small kid.  Nothing makes you look like more of a man than picking on a defenseless kid who is just trying to go from day to day the best way they know how, huh?

On Saturday in Ontario, an extremely talented young man killed himself.  He could skate, he could sing, he could act, he had friends and a family that loved him.  He also had kids around him who were verbally abusive towards him constantly.  Why?  Because they thought that his being gay was reason enough for him to be a target of verbal bullying.  Will the kids who called him a “fag” feel guilty for their part in his life coming to a sudden end?  Likely not, they will try to appease their consciences by saying that it was the medication he was on, or he just wasn’t right in the head.  The reality though, is that even when thinking the phrase “sticks and stones may break my bones, but names will never hurt me”, those words do actually hurt.  It is in human nature to want to belong.  Most don’t give a second thought to the idea that pushing these people away with hurtful insults and name-calling can cause long-term lasting damage, but the truth is that it can and does.  The story I reference above about Jamie Hubley is proof of that.  He kept an online journal of his final month, if further evidence is needed.  Even a simple Google search for the words “bully suicide” returns over twenty million results.

Friends of Tami are going through another horrifying case of bullying.  Their son has been the target of bullies for some time now, both verbally and physically.  Recently the father caught sight of one of the bullies on top of his son in his own front yard.  Being the loving father figure he is, he approached the group and removed the bully from his son.  He never once hit the bully (something I myself would not be able to say if I were in that position), and for coming to the defense of his son he was charged with assault.  Really.  Assault, for removing a bully off his own son on his own property.  they are now facing escalating legal bills, losing their home, and having to pack up everything they own and leaving the city they live in.  Why?  Because the courts have decided that they are not there to defend the victim anymore, but instead to come to the defense of the bully.  This is why bullies now know it’s okay that they do what they do, because there is no risk of repercussions for their actions.  That falls back on the victim.

A truly heartbreaking story is that of 11 year old Mitchell Wilson, from Pickering, Ontario.  2 years after losing his mother to skin cancer, he was diagnosed with a debilitating disease called muscular dystrophy.  That was a year ago.  10 months ago, he was robbed by a 12 year old, all for an iPhone he had borrowed from his father.  During the robbery, Mitchell was severely beaten by the unnamed young offender, who was too small due to his disease to defend himself or even run away.  While the attacker was removed from school and charged, the bullying continued.  Mitchell lived in constant fear of running into the bully, to the point that he told his grandmother that he would kill himself if he had to return to school in September.  Early last month he received a subpoena to testify against the alleged young attacker, which would require facing the bully and thief again.  The next morning, Mitchell found his son lying in bed with a plastic bag pulled over his head.  This little man had been pushed to the point that he thought the only way to escape the torment that the bullies had put him through was to escape life completely.

The actions of the bully (of any bully) affect more than just the person they are targeting.  It has widespread and lasting effect.  Does the bully care?  Obviously not at the time, or else they would grow up and not actually be a bully.  The problem is that it’s often years before they realize the hurt they brought to others… quite often, that’s years too late.  On the radio yesterday, they were talking to one man who, as a child, was a victim of bullying… then later in his teen years, a bully himself.  He had found one person in particular to be the target of his abuse, often verbally insulting him, teasing him, taking his favorite things and taunting him with them… it sounds like the only thing he did not actually do was physically assault the boy.  One day he took the boys favorite hat, teasing him with it prior to throwing it on the ground and stomping on it.  Most would not see this as having lasting damage… it’s just a hat, after all.  That night, the boy, whose heart was not strong enough to keep going, gave up.  Doctors determined that it was his medical condition that led to the heart failure, but the bully to this day blames himself for causing it.

Some people are starting to take a stand against bullying.  OptimizedApps have developed a small application for smartphones called “Bully Button” (http://www.optimizedapps.com/bully-button.html).  A simple program, someone under threat simply presses a large button on their smartphone to instantly begin recording all nearby audio… it’s also possible to have it take pictures, if your phone supports it.  it also has “quick dial” buttons to allow for instant access to your parents… think of it as calling for help for the 21st century.  http://www.bullyingcanada.ca is another helpful site, bringing together various stories about bullying across the country, survivor stories, resources, and links to receive assistance to escape the bullying if you are a victim.

Helping the victim to defend themselves is a great start, but it’s certainly not enough.  Bullying needs to stop at the source.  If you see it taking place, step up and stop it.  99% of the time, all it takes is verbal confrontation… and that 1%, two people standing up are better than one.  In order for this World to be “Bully-proof”, people need to stop walking past and pretending they do not see what is happening.  Show your support.  Join one of the many anti-bullying campaigns out there.  Voice your support to your peers.  Share your stories.  Stand up for those who can’t stand up for themselves.  Putting an end to bullying has to start somewhere.  Why not let it start with you?

So, in a few short weeks it’ll be 2010.  It’s hard to believe that another whole year has almost passed.  I mean, yeah there have been times where it may have felt like time has slowed to a crawl, where I wish the day would just end (oddly, today was one such day), but overall the year has seemed to pass rather quickly.  I think back on the time that has gone by, and events that have taken place during that time, and its a blur.

I went from being a yard dawg (a position that I have known since I was 11) to being a Dispatcher, and a shipper for a major retail and distribution outlet for the Fraser Valley…  a bit of a major change in my life, but one I hope I can say I am adapting well to.  It also allows me time to focus some energy on projects outside of the Lumber Yard…  though admittedly, Tami is the one who does most of the work.

For the first time in 9 years, I got to see my best friend Tanis… someone who more often than not was reduced to being a voice on the phone, as distance made actual visits nearly impossible.  That voice on the phone was, for many years, my one voice of reason… a focus point to keep me sane on my little Island.  Well, as sane as one can remain when growing up over there.

A very good friend at work, who was also my then-primary means of travel to and from the store each day, instilled a small bit of fear on myself and the rest of my co-workers, when he was rushed into a triple heart bypass just over 3 weeks ago.  He’s pulled through fine though, and while he has not yet returned to work, I am certain that when he does, we’ll all be in trouble.

My young little cousin Stacia went and got herself married.  Mind you, I guess she’s not all that young anymore (none of us are), but since there were people at the wedding that I had not seen since my teen years (the bride and her sister included), she’ll always be the little kid at Christmas.

Gaming and animation recognition in Vancouver took another hit this past week… well, it’s taken several over the last year-ish, but this one is going to be the one that finishes off the year.

The Elans Awards, a scam awards show founded originally by Holly Carinci and Jack Weatherell, that Vancouver was subjected to for the past 3 years, decided that it was done with Vancouver (and Canada) and moved off to San Diego.  Good riddance as far as I’m (and many others are) concerned.  She is more than free to take her scamshow and go home.  We have dealt with Holly and her antics for some time now (much of it is available here on the site, and more yet will likely be made available soon), and the best thing that can happen to Vancouver and it’s Studios is for The Elans Awards to move as far away as possible, and never come back.  The antics of the producer (and her former “partner”) have polluted the industry for years… from bounced cheques, scamming webhosts and site designers, using show funding (provided by local businesses for the purpose of actually helping pay for a show) to pay for their own vices (bikes and partying come to mind), to general lying and badmouthing of companies in the Country that have worked hard to be where they are, only to be slandered for not jumping through hoops for the producers on a whim and bottle of wine.  The very idea that she has decided to move the show to another city in a different country shows that she has tapped the resources of this one dry, burning every bridge she has crossed along the way.  I sympathize to all the companies that are going to get tied up in this down in the States, but I congratulate Vancouver for managing to survive the worst thing to come to the industry in our Great City.  Better things are definitely coming… and none of them will have the name “The Elans” attached to them.  Do I sound resentful of this farce of an awards show? You’re damn right I do. I refuse to stand and support any group or event that is only out there to rape the industry in hopes of making a quick buck off the hard work of others.  To make a claim of being the elite in gaming awards shows is nothing more than a pathetic attempt to steal hard-earned money from game companies… many of which are struggling right now as it is… all so they can try to win a cheap pewter statue worth less than they had to pay out in order to be “nominated”… all the while stomping on the backs of those with talent and skill to recognize, all because they couldn’t afford to pay the entry fees (and then badmouthing those people behind their backs, calling them cheap and unprofessional).  The Spike Awards takes the time to notice what the industry has to provide, and recognizes them for it yearly.  Why support a second-rate awards show created by the same people who were busted for illegal trading and fined over $80,000, when you can support a real professional awards show like the one put on by Spike TV?  The Spike Awards is everything that The Elans wishes it could be but fails at, as well as everything that The Elans claims to be but lies about.

Things like not paying for the venue until the day of the show (and then badmouthing the venue for not letting people use it anyway) is bad form.  Bouncing cheques used to pay for services while badmouthing that same provider behind their backs is bad form.  Showing up to a show drunk, and continuing on from there is bad form (especially when it’s supposedly your show).  Using money that is supposed to be for a show to buy a motorcycle is not only bad form, its outright stupidity.  Mind you, stupidity seems to run rampant with the show and it’s producer anyway (its REAL producer, that is… personally, I don’t see how someone can be named as a founder of a show already in it’s 4th year, but whatever), so no real surprise there.  I also think it’s kind of stupid to badmouth someone really harshly behind their backs, using an email account on that person’s own server, then not bothering to delete those emails when you pack up and move during the cover of darkness while leaving bills outstanding with several companies.  Not that anyone would do that last thing, but if they did, I wonder if those other companies would like copies…

At any rate, do us a favour, Holly… don’t dent Vancouver’s door with your ass on the way out.  It might cause you some brain damage… and we don’t want to give any indication to Vancouver’s talent that you were ever even here.

Reposted From Village Gamer

Now, from the headline there, you are probably expecting me to go into some rant about how it should be okay to tamper with Apple’s software because you are paying for the phone anyway.  Nope, not gonna go there.  So what’s the point in starting with such a controversial topic?  Well, hopefully over the next few paragraphs, I can explain further.

Apple is claiming that jailbreaking an iPhone will allow the user unlimited uncontrolled access to the cell towers, essentially giving them the ability to make free phone calls.  Yes, this is somewhat true, but HIGHLY misconstrued.  With a jailbroken phone, you COULD make free phone calls, and this has some cell providers very nervous.  Google is working hard to bring their new service, Google Voice, to cell phones everywhere.  And why shouldn’t they?  It’s a great service that allows you to be reachable on a single phone number, no matter where in the World you might be.  It’s like Skype times 2.  Cell phone services like AT&T are worried about this, thinking that it will pull their customers away.  What AT&T are not realizing is that yes, while a user can have Google Voice for making phone calls, they are still going to require some sort of data service to make it usable in non-WiFi locations.  So yeah, WiFi seems to be everywhere these days.  Have you tried to actually connect to any available City-wide WiFi services and use a streaming service like Skype Voice?  You may as well be using 2 cans and some string… work out the math when you have a thousand or so people on wireless… you might rank just slightly better than dial-up… if you’re lucky.  Don’t worry yourselves AT&T, people are still going to need your service… though I’m starting to wonder why.

Apple claims that jailbreaking their phones will give users unrestricted access to the insides of the phone’s Operating System.  Yep, that is actually true, and likely results in a lot of hard resets.  But only the dumbest of the dumb would actually go in there and screw around with something they don’t understand.  Okay, yeah, that sums up a good 80% of the population it seems (with a +/- of 15%, but those are the same people who take the cover off their electrical outlets so they can find out where the electricity comes from, and wake up an hour later in an ambulance commenting on how they didn’t think it would hurt to use a screwdriver on the screw with a wire attached.  Only the more educated and understanding of users would actually even know how to get into the operating system (here’s a hint for the lower-evolved… it doesn’t require opening the phone case), and what to do once they were in there.

Yes, Apple has every right to say to the user that jailbreaking is not allowed.  Heck, they’re right now trying to get the DMCA ammended to include jailbreaking as a form of copyright infringement (huh?).  But what harm is coming from the end user getting all the use out of their phone as they can?  The iPhone and iPod Touch have the opportunity to be the elite in PDA’s… what they don’t have is the functionality to be as big as they could be.  For everything you want the phone to do, you need to track down an App for it.  Can’t find one in iTunes because Apple already has a program that does something a little simular (I’m looking in your direction, Firefox)?  Tough luck then.  Maybe you have the coding skills to make an App that does exactly what you want… you’ll need to pay Apple for the right to make it, then the right to install it on your own phone… all this being based on whether Apple even approves the App in the first place.  Windows Mobile and RIM allow any user to install any program they want… yet Apple is locked right down.

When a user wants to jailbreak their phone, it’s not so they can screw over Apple, or pull one over on their cell service provider… it’s so that they can receive the functionality that the iPhone is capable of providing but that Apple has decided you don’t deserve.  It’s so users can install the Apps that THEY need, and not the Apps that Apple has told them they want.  If a user wants to install a program on the phone so that they can receive greater functionality from it, why not let them?  They know the BS about taking chances on it not working… let them make their own decisions.

While I would not go so far as some by comparing Apple to Hitler and the SS Army, I will go far enough to compare them to Microsoft (*shock* *gasp* *oh, the horror!*).  While Apple as long claimed to be the representation of all that is cool and hip with the computing world, they have begun to slip and fall from grace.  I guess things get lonely at the top.  While Microsoft is working to escape their Monopoly claims and work with the users to bring them what they want and need, Apple is moving in the opposite direction.  Prime example, the OS that the iPhone and iPod Touch run on is a trimmed down version of Unix, which in itself began as open source programming.  Now, you can’t even look at your own folders on it without jailbreaking the phone/iPod and using a third party program to browse the system.

So now I come back to the beginning… why you should jailbreak the iPhone.  Up to this point, I imagine that you were thinking I was talking to the average reader through the article.  Only partially… it’s primarily a direct address to Apple.  Why should you break the iPhone?  Well, because you should have already had it jailbroken when you gave it to us.  Bring back the rights for the user to install what they need, and reclaim your position at the top.  The longer you wait, the harder it’s going to be to dust off all the footprints from being trampled by all the others who have passed you by.

So Apple, Google Android has what it takes… do you?

(Are you confused, what with this article taking place after the last one?  I still really enjoy my iPhone… I just feel that it has the potential to be so much more, if only Apple were to allow it to reach it’s full potential.  Besides, you know how my mind works by now, I should hope.  )

Wow, quite a few weeks of events taking place… I’m not really sure where to start.

So lets just jump right into it with the major highlights, shall we?

Last week (it was Wednesday that everything went down), everyone at my job was called into a meeting with our store manager, human resources person, and all the floor managers.  Not exactly the sort of meeting I wanted to take part in, but it was something that I think most of us predicted coming along.  The first thing I noticed, was that two people were not present at the meeting.  The yard manager, and our store shipper/dispatcher.  While the Yard Manager being missing wasn’t a massive impact, I am torn on the other.  Greg (the shipper) was someone that I and Tami considered a friend.  Sure, I didn’t really see him outside of work, and the only time that she really saw him was when she was dropping off invoices… but he still brightened the day a little bit.  It was fun to come to work in the morning and just chat with him for the 5 or 10 minutes before starting my day, hearing about how his weekend was, or his trips into the interior, or the cabin he and Debbi planned on building for weekend getaways.  Just in general, he was a nice part to my job.  On Wednesday, his employment at Curtis Lumber was terminated, and he wasn’t there anymore.  Instead, I was moved into his office, and essentially given his job.  Not exactly the way I wanted to get a promotion…. but things have happened that I do not have the power to change, so I have to simply accept it and move forward.  At least one of the perks is that I am now off work at 2:30… or supposed to be, anyway.  I’m finding that its usually closer to 3:30 before I actually book off… but at least I’m showing dedication to learning the job and trying to make sure that everything is ready to go for the afternoon and following morning.  But just the same… Greg, I don’t know if you will ever actually see this, but you are missed by the staff at Curtis Lumber… don’t loose touch.

I see that The ELANS have yet again changed their date for the show.  No shock there, as that gives them a few more weeks to try and take people for… I mean, to bring in additional funding for their show.  It actually makes me sick to my stomach to think about what these two “people” are doing… in a time when there are layoffs all over the industry, and companies all over the Lower Mainland and the rest of the country are struggling just to keep their heads above the water, that these two come along and take them for more money under the cover of “buy your way into an awards show”… something that these companies shouldn’t even have to do.  Their work speaks for itself, and they shouldn’t be having to pay hundreds or even thousands of dollars just for a little statue.  Try helping the industry, instead of leaching off it, like you did to people with Tech Investments Inc.  Looking at it logically, how many real award shows change their date so often, all so close to the “actual” date, all the while claiming that it’s to help people get submissions in easier?  The reality is likely closer to their funding not being available for the show due to it being spent on other things.  Wonder how much that new Harley of Jack’s cost…?

We finally got most of the garage cleaned out… okay, thats exagerating a bit.  We cleared a path from one end to the other.  But this is a huge step towards the possibility of converting it into a soundproof games room.  Either that, or we leave it as a storage garage and instead work on building a nice new sunroom off the kitchen.  Either way, I predict a LOOOONG summer ahead.

Vancouver recently hosted a visit from some executives for WCG Worldwide.  Why were they here?  To summarize it, there are some people working real hard to bring WCG’s attention to Vancouver as a possible host city.  Unfortunately, the reputation of two previously mentioned people caused some damage to the reputation for the City, and by the time that it was pointed out that those two are most definitely not associated with the city or it’s Industries (and most definitely not Tami or I or our company), the damage had already been done.  We only hope that they open their eyes to what Vancouver really is, and that the actions and scams of a few do not represent the city as a whole.  Vancouver is an amazing city full of some of the World’s most talented people.  To have the actions of two scammers destroy what all those other people have put their lives towards working on is just… sickening.  Especially when they are doing it under the guise of running an awards show claimed to showcase that very same talent.

Overall, its been a pretty interesting few weeks.  I can hardly wait to see what gets thrown in my direction next.  Expect many rants when such things do take place.  Other than that…

Later.