this post was submitted on 12 Jul 2023
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This is pretty awful. Surely there must be something that can be done for the families of those unfortunate women - if nothing else, perhaps a federally funded search or private funding?
At the very least, the city could agree to sit down with the protesters and have talks with them.
The funding is better used for something -- anything -- other than the search. I don't mean to be cold hearted, but at the estimated cost of $200M, we could literally build a new hospital. Or fund a university education for five thousand students. Or pay for 400 new teachers for ten years... Or...
The companies hired to do the search would be the only ones benefitting. It'll be on cost-plus contract with ballooning expenses. And when they fail, what then?
What will do more to benefit society, and those harmed?
Disclaimer: I run a company that, among other things, provides ground penetrating radars. I would probably be looking at a windfall if the search goes ahead.
I don't dispute any of this. However, the reality is that the province isn't proposing to spend that money on anything. They just said "it's too expensive, please go away" to people with a very legitimate complaint and a long history of being ignored or outright oppressed by that same government.
If the government had approached them and said, "It would cost $200 million and be extremely dangerous to the searchers and the environment. What if we did X, Y, and Z with $200 million instead and named X a memorial to the missing victims?" then this would be a different conversation.
I agree the money could be put to better use, but it's not even being proposed. The money is just being used as an excuse to swat down people that have been swatted down their entire lives.
I'm not a fan of going ahead with the search. The risks to the searchers and the environment (risk of toxic leaching, etc) is too great in my opinion.
However, my opinion here can't matter. This has to come down to the families and advocates. And the government has made NO overtures to them beyond, "gee, that must suck, sorry." So failing a better offer, I don't blame them for continuing to hammer the only point they have available to them.
I disagree. In the end, it's your money the government would be spending, and democracy is still the rule.
Nevertheless, you're absolutely right in that it's a very sticky situation.
That's exactly it. At least keep talking to them and try to find a middle ground proposal.
So the article links to another which mentions a report that was made on the feasibility of conducting the search, and it seems that this is disputed somewhat. It's claimed by the other side that there is a way to conduct the search in relative safety, and the report outlines what measures would need to be taken.
Anyways, I find myself in complete agreement with what you wrote:
To me, the above is an argument for starting the search now (instead of waiting longer and making it even riskier and more expensive later).