DOES THE GOVERNMENT REALLY WANT OUR INPUT

In tribute to Ray Ferris I will be re-posting some of his insightful and helpful articles. 
this one originally posted February 12, 2012

DOES THE GOVERNMENT REALLY WANT OUR INPUT?

 by Ray Ferris

author of the book “The Art of Child Protection.”

You can purchase it at rtferris@telus.net

“Some time ago submissions were invited to the provincial standing interparty committee on the representative for children and youth. It is this committee which selected Ms. Turpel-Lafond and with whom she dialogues and to whom she reports. I made a fairly long submission and copied the minister, and deputy minister. In it I used the Bayne case to illustrate some of the serious flaws in the protection services and to suggest some remedies. I emphasized that I was not advocating for the Bayne case, but simply using the Baynes to illustrate some of the problems. Even before submissions had been invited, I had sent a similar letter to the minister and the deputy minister. I eventually got a reply.

OUR FIRST HYDRO BILL IN OUR NEW CARRIAGE HOME

If I make one claim now, you will know where this piece is going. “We hardly had any lights on and we didn’t use any electric heat, and yes we take a shower each day.”

That’s right. You’ve got it. We have lived in our new condo/townhouse/ carriage home complex for 60 days and yesterday we received our first hydro bill. We immediately took issue with the exorbitant total amount. A punch line is coming but before I deliver it, get this.

Smart Meters they’re called. BC Hydro in British Columbia, is implementing Itron smart meters to all customers by the end of 2012. They enable hourly remote 2-way communication between the meter and the central information gathering hub. BC Hydro promoted to consumers that smart metering offers potential benefits including an end to estimated billing, a major source of our collective complaints. When Christine called BC Hydro she was met with a congenial response and then this predictable default but now superfluous answer. “It is only an estimate.” Really?

JOSIAH IS HOME TOMORROW & PRIVACY - SOMETIMES YOU HAVE TO GIVE IT UP / 586

JOSIAH IS COMING HOME TO STAY TOMORROW!
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We have become large on privacy matters. Companies and corporations are bound now by privacy law which affects what information can be published with regard to employees, partners and clients. But we are a confused society. Our privacy is forfeited at every turn. We are all under surveillance whenever we walk beneath street cameras, swipe cards, surf the net. Increasingly sophisticated computer systems now track for companies and government what you are searching online whether you are at home or work. Surveillance was once a word associated only with law enforcement but is now an unavoidable aspect of life in our world.

Ask Paul and Zabeth Bayne and Derrek Hoare what life is like when you relinquish a private life.