One of the things I am proudest of about my country, Canada, is its inclusiveness. I love diversity. I can travel around the world without leaving my home city, Vancouver.
I also love that my country does a decent job taking care of its sick. Our health care system has its problems, but I am grateful every day that I live here and not in a country where only the very rich have any meaningful care or choices. I love that we are compassionate and that our inclusiveness encompasses the terminally ill, allowing them to die in peaceful dignity, surrounded by their loved ones in beautiful, accessible environments.
The University of British Columbia has a perfect spot for a hospice. Unfortunately it is beside a condominium in which 80% of its extremely wealthy residents believe that having dying people next door will bring them bad luck.
Having chosen to immigrate to Canada – presumably because of its reputation for inclusive social values and accommodation of diversity – and having been welcomed into our country, they are puzzled that we seem inclined also to include people they would prefer to exclude on grounds of superstition.
- Jane argues that Canada is a democratic country and that most of the condo residents do not want terminally ill people next door. Her vision of democracy dismisses the opinion of the Canadian people who welcomed her here, that caring for the dying is a higher priority than accommodating superstition.
- Maggie compares telling someone’s dying mom to go bleed to death somewhere else because her ghost might upset the neighbours to refusing to touch a trophy because it might jinx a hockey game.
- Keri eagerly argues for her own right to speak, seeming to believe that exercising it obliges her listeners to do everything she tells them to do.
- David pleads for a humanistic solution… Even after a bath break to mull it over, I still don’t know how to begin to respond to such chutzpah.
If there were real and meaningful concerns that were being ignored, such as pollution, noise, or higher crime rates or risks of fire, I could understand. I would support indulging the condo owners’ superstition if all they wanted were to put up some weird-looking phantom traps. But if they believe that their superstition is a good reason to treat suffering fellow humans like convicted pedophiles, my sympathy snaps. It seems to me that it is the terminally ill who are at risk for misfortune from these solipsistic whiners.
These condo owners have resources. They can afford to hire ghost-busters. Or move (until it is their turn to die). There must be plenty of rich people happy to snap up luxury housing beside quiet, respectful neighbours.
Maybe UBC should consider relocating the hospice after all and putting up a halfway house instead.
If UBC caves to these ludicrous demands, I swear that when I die I will haunt every single unit at Hawthorn Place, 2688 West Mall, until every person who opposed the hospice is driven out.
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