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Michelle Gamage

@michellegamage.bsky.social
6.5K followers 340 following 1.4K posts

Reporter for The Tyee covering health and biodiversity. I write about local research, sex, salmon, toxic drugs, bats, what your grandmother is up to, and all the different ways you can (but haven't yet) become dead in B.C.

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Reposted by Michelle Gamage
Andrea Woo @andreawoo.bsky.social · 05/10/2026
Statement from Connor Bildfell, president of the Canadian Bar Association's B.C. branch, on personal attacks on judges following last week's ruling re: the Drug User Liberation Front
Some recent media commentary on the Supreme Court of British Columbia’s decision in R. v. Kalicum has moved beyond criticism of the decision to attacks on the character and fitness of the judge who made it.

 

Court decisions can and should be subject to careful scrutiny and vigorous debate. People who disagree with a decision may speak out and challenge its reasoning, and our justice system gives parties an appeal process for challenging decisions where appropriate.

 

But attacking a judge’s character or fitness—even calling for their removal—goes too far. These kinds of personal attacks risk eroding public confidence in our justice system and collapsing the important distinction between criticizing a decision and attacking the judge who made it. Judges speak only through their decisions and are unable to respond publicly to such personal attacks, making them particularly inappropriate.

 

Judges must make their decisions based on the law and the evidence before them, after lawyers present arguments to them. While a healthy debate about the merits of those judicial decisions promotes democracy and the rule of law, personal attacks do not.
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Michelle Gamage @michellegamage.bsky.social · 05/10/2026
Want to learn more about the DULF verdict and what the heck it means for drug laws in Canada? Then come join this free webinar I'm moderating today while we have some of the smartest, most involved people break it all down for us. TODAY FROM 12-1.
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Reposted by Michelle Gamage
Andrea Woo @andreawoo.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
Update: Delta Police say two people have died in the “serious motor vehicle collision,” not related to Truth and Reconciliation walk
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Michelle Gamage @michellegamage.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
When kids aren't taught sex ed they learn from porn. "If we learn about sex through porn, we’re learning about the worst of humanity," said Kristen Gilbert, a sex ed teacher. Many students ask her about choking: if they should like it, if their partners expect it, because they see it in porn.
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Michelle Gamage @michellegamage.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
I was surprised to hear Abbotsford School District emphasizes abstinence as the only "truly safe" way to not get pregnant or get STIs. Mainly, because that's not true. Telling kids to not have sex means they still have sex, just in less safe ways. Today for @thetyee.ca thetyee.ca/News/2026/09...
thetyee.ca
Sexual Health Educator Concerned About Abbotsford’s Focus on Abstinence | The Tyee
The school district says it takes a comprehensive approach that reflects community context.
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Michelle Gamage @michellegamage.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
New insult unlocked and tbh it fits and hits so well
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Michelle Gamage @michellegamage.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
About 50 people crammed into the court room to hear the decision, which took Murray 10 minutes to deliver. Applause broke out as she stood, with people openly crying from relief, from happiness, from feeling like someone in power understood the urgency of the crisis.
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Reposted by Michelle Gamage
Jen St. Denis @jenstden.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
A BC judge has declared Section 5(2) of the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act unconstitutional and given Ottawa six months to bring the legislation in line with the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. @michellegamage.bsky.social reports: thetyee.ca/News/2026/09...
thetyee.ca
DULF Wins Constitutional Challenge, Judge Applauds Their Work | The Tyee
Compassion club co-founders Eris Nyx and Jeremy Kalicum will avoid prison and Canada told to update its drug laws.
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Reposted by Michelle Gamage
Jackie Dives @jackiedives.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Murray has declared Section 5(2) of the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act unconstitutional and given Ottawa six months to bring the legislation in line with the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
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Michelle Gamage @michellegamage.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Speaking to Eris and Jeremy, Justice Catherine Murray said, "You selflessly put yourselves to the side for this cause and that’s something most people wouldn’t do. For that I applaud you. You should be very proud of yourselves...
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Michelle Gamage @michellegamage.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
After a year in court DULF co-founders walk free, with a judge praising their work and declaring Section 5(2) of the CDSA unconstitutional (the part that covers trafficking). Ottawa has six months to revamp the law to be in line with the Charter. Me today for @thetyee.ca thetyee.ca/News/2026/09...
thetyee.ca
DULF Wins Constitutional Challenge, Judge Applauds Their Work | The Tyee
Compassion club co-founders Eris Nyx and Jeremy Kalicum will avoid prison and Canada told to update its drug laws.
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Michelle Gamage @michellegamage.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
HUGE news in the drug policy front. DULF co-founders Eris Nyx and Jeremy Kalicum will not face jail time. In this morning's ruling Justice Catherine Murray applauded their work and personal sacrifice to run a compassion club and bring a constitutional challenge before her.
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Michelle Gamage @michellegamage.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
"These facilities were ripe for outbreaks because of crowding, low temperatures that helped the virus survive longer, insufficient ventilation and socioeconomic vulnerabilities in the work force." Alberta's COVID response was a “catastrophic failure”: report www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/artic...
theglobeandmail.com
Alberta’s response to COVID-19 outbreak at Cargill plant was ‘catastrophic failure,’ report says
More than 950 workers at High River plant were infected in 2020, leaving two workers dead and spreading to the community
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Michelle Gamage @michellegamage.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
Hey there's a provincial and municipal election coming up. Who would be brave enough to propose something similar here in B.C.? I would love a 10 per cent discount on all items I have to scan myself at a self-scan kiosk! It's labour that I am doing for free for a grocery giant
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Reposted by Michelle Gamage
Vision Zero Vancouver @visionzerovancouver.ca · 28/09/2026
*taps sign* Hey we hear there's a provincial election coming up. We also hear the cost of living is soaring. You know what would be a cool campaign promise? visionzerovancouver.ca/2024/09/22/b...
visionzerovancouver.ca
Bring Back the BC E-Bike Rebate!
You Want an E-Bike? How about an E-Waitlist? In 2023, BC Provided tax rebates of $350 – $1,400 for e-bikes to low income earners. The budget was for 9,000 people to get e-bikes and the progra…
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Michelle Gamage @michellegamage.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
Sardines in South Africa are facing a mass die off after a virus was imported by humans. They're debating whether to pause fisheries to see if the die off levels out. This will hugely impact fishers, but I'd argue fishers will be hugely impacted either way. www.theguardian.com/environment/...
theguardian.com
Mass sardine die-off pits survival of South Africa’s penguins against fishers’ livelihoods
Known as the ‘energy bars of the sea’ the fish are a key food source for many species, but closing fisheries to allow numbers to recover would cost millions
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Michelle Gamage @michellegamage.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
Okay rabies is very serious but: Me: and I scream from the top of my lungs/ WHAT'S GOING ON. Bats: Heeeeey, eeeeeeeey aaaaaaaaaaay ayay, heeeeey, ay, ay.
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Michelle Gamage @michellegamage.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
1,598 British Columbians have been treated for potential rabies exposure this year compared to 931 potential exposures last year. What's up? Maybe a bit of good news: it seems like public awareness is up and more people know to talk to a doctor if they're touched by a bat thetyee.ca/News/2026/09...
thetyee.ca
Potential Rabies Exposures Are Up Across North America | The Tyee
But the number of wild animals with rabies does not appear to be increasing, the BCCDC says.
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Michelle Gamage @michellegamage.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
This is super duper incredibly kind and very nice praise and I'm just grinning like a goof, don't mind me.
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Michelle Gamage @michellegamage.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
A vendor near Nelson sold toxic mushrooms at a farmers market last weekend. Luckily no one has been seriously hurt, but this could have been catastrophic. Not all potential customers have been notified, so tell your friend to check their mushrooms. Me today on @thetyee.ca thetyee.ca/News/2026/09...
thetyee.ca
Potentially Toxic Mushrooms Were Sold at a Farmers Market Near Nelson | The Tyee
Interior Health is still working to track down customers who bought what they thought were chanterelles.
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Michelle Gamage @michellegamage.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
Five First Nations on Vancouver Island are building out capacity to quickly check the genomics of the salmon in their territories. This will help manage fisheries and conservation, and give First Nations soverignty over their own data. Today by me on @thetyee.ca thetyee.ca/News/2026/09...
thetyee.ca
First Nations Invest in Genomics Testing for their Fisheries | The Tyee
Five Nuu-chah-nulth Nations will soon no longer need to rely on DFO to run data that informs management and conservation.
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Reposted by Michelle Gamage
andrea bennett (they/them) @akkabah.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
There's a lot going on in BC politics (!!!) but I highly recommend taking a minute to read @michellegamage.bsky.social's lovely profile of Jackie Hildering, AKA the Marine Detective, for @thetyee.ca. Michelle went for a northeast Vancouver Island dive with Hildering. thetyee.ca/News/2026/09...
thetyee.ca
An Underwater Interview with BC’s Marine Detective | The Tyee
Jackie Hildering teaches people that we can build a better world. And that depends on a healthy ocean.
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Michelle Gamage @michellegamage.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
Announcing the most incredible interview I have ever done, with one of the most incredible people I've ever met. I met Jackie Hildering, aka the Marine Detective in Port McNeil, and then we went diving for @thetyee.ca. thetyee.ca/News/2026/09...
thetyee.ca
An Underwater Interview with BC’s Marine Detective | The Tyee
Jackie Hildering teaches people that we can build a better world. And that depends on a healthy ocean.
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Michelle Gamage @michellegamage.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
"I'm not going anywhere" Conservative party leader Kerry-Lynne Findlay told Union of BC Municipalities, two days before resigning. What a weekend for BC politics. thetyee.ca/News/2026/09...
thetyee.ca
Findlay Quits as Upheaval Brings BC to Brink of Election | The Tyee
How Conservative disarray and speculation of a snap vote have quickly reshaped the province’s political landscape.
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Michelle Gamage @michellegamage.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
Politicians hiring private investigators to target journalists is so fucked up. BC has defamation laws. If a journalist writes something unfair a politician can sue. So journalists are careful to write the truth. The Cons didn't sue, they just hired private investigators. cheknews.ca/bc-conservat...
cheknews.ca
B.C. Conservatives hire private investigator to investigate CHEK’s Rob Shaw along with current, former MLAs
B.C.’s Opposition Conservative party hired a private investigator to target its critics, including current and former MLAs, as well as CHEK News’ political correspondent.
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Reposted by Michelle Gamage
Mel Woods @melwoods.me · 17/09/2026
In this current Macklemore resurgence (dare I call it a “Mackle-moment”?), today in @xtramagazine.com I argue that it’s worth revisiting the rapper’s famously cringe “love is love” opus and acknowledging that it actually might be good. xtramagazine.com/culture/mack...
xtramagazine.com
Macklemore’s “Same Love” was good, actually | Xtra Magazine
After being dropped by Ed Sheeran’s tour for pro-Palestine comments, the public is waking up to how legit Macklemore actually is
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Michelle Gamage @michellegamage.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
BC Conservative Party leader Kerry-Lyne Findlay says her party will introduce "mandatory compassionate care" if elected. Speaking at the UBCM this morning she also mentioned the "hundreds of millions" spent on the opioid crisis, but didn't mention the tens of thousands who have died. Interesting.
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Michelle Gamage @michellegamage.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
B.C. says 80 per cent of the province now has a primary care provider and more than 4,000 people are getting matched to a family doc per week. Still looking for a doctor? Sign up for the Health Connect Registry to get connected www.healthlinkbc.ca/health-conne...
healthlinkbc.ca
Health Connect Registry | HealthLink BC
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Michelle Gamage @michellegamage.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
This would be an incredible protection for vulnerable people. No one photographs you on your worst days inside your home. People in crisis or living rough deserve the same courtesy.
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Michelle Gamage @michellegamage.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
Know the signs of sepsis: S - Slurred speech or confusion E - Extreme shivering or muscle pain/fever P - Passing little or no urine all day S - Severe breathlessness I - It feels like you're going to die S - Skin is mottled or discolored It's sepsis awareness month. www.newswire.ca/news-release...
newswire.ca
Would You Recognize Sepsis? Less Than Half of Canadians Understand the Life-Threatening Condition
/CNW/ -- Today, Neinstein LLP, Toronto's leading civil litigation boutique, in partnership with Sepsis Canada, the Canadian Sepsis Foundation, and sepsis...
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Michelle Gamage @michellegamage.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
Wrote about the heartbreaking situation of Elizabeth Davis last week, who retired four years ago and has already found herself trapped between poor health and a social service system that is doing a poor job of supporting her. thetyee.ca/News/2026/09...
thetyee.ca
Senior Surprised to Find Herself Unhoused Four Years After Retirement | The Tyee
Elizabeth Davis lost her apartment after months in hospital. She was discharged to a shelter in the Downtown Eastside.
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Michelle Gamage @michellegamage.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
Crab specialist friends: help me out. What kind of crab it this? I was thinking European Green Crab but it doesn't have the right number of spikes beside its eyes. Saw dozens in Cape Scott this weekend.
A small green crab sits on an open palm.A small green crab is held between a forefinger and thumb. A sandy beach can be seen in the background.
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Michelle Gamage @michellegamage.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
Hey new moms in Vancouver, there's postpartum groups you can access to talk challenges, success and how to function (or not) with no sleep. Community is hugely important for treating postpartum. Deets about Motherflock on Insta: www.instagram.com/p/Db_SCLSGv_...
instagram.com
Instagram
Create an account or log in to Instagram - Share what you're into with the people who get you.
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Reposted by Michelle Gamage
Katharine Hayhoe @katharinehayhoe.com · 02/09/2026
I am a scientist – and the answer is climate change. Yes, there is nuance. Yes, it could take a long time to identify the precise mechanisms. But there is no question why ice and snow-related disasters are on the rise. Our planet is warming at an unprecedented rate, and humans are responsible.
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Michelle Gamage @michellegamage.bsky.social · 01/09/2026
Had the absolute pleasure of speaking with Cynthia Thomson, a kin prof at U of FV, who wants to reshape how you think about pain for @thetyee.ca. Pain is SO COOL and is influenced by so much in our life, such as how well you slept, if you're hungry or hanging with a bestie thetyee.ca/News/2026/09...
thetyee.ca
Pain Is in the Brain. And That’s a Good Thing | The Tyee
Cynthia Thomson is helping reframe how we think about chronic pain. There’s hope, and maybe even a cure. A Tyee Q&A.
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Michelle Gamage @michellegamage.bsky.social · 01/09/2026
Health-care organizations from across the country are advocating for the federal government to push back against "two-tier US style health care" as Alberta's new rules allowing private health care kick in today. dayofaction.healthcoalition.ca
dayofaction.healthcoalition.ca
NO U.S.-STYLE HEALTH CARE IN CANADA!
Day of Action for Public Health Care happening on September 1, 2026
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Michelle Gamage @michellegamage.bsky.social · 31/08/2026
I missed how Quebec slapped age requirements on energy drinks earlier this summer after a kid died. The McDonald's energy drink campaign running in B.C. suddenly seems completely unacceptable. A kid died, what the actual fuck McDicks? www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...
cbc.ca
Quebec becomes 1st Canadian province to ban energy drinks for youth | CBC News
Quebec is now the first jurisdiction in North America to restrict access to caffeinated energy drinks — to people under 16, in this case. The new law will come into effect in six months.
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Reposted by Michelle Gamage
Alan Drummond MD @dralandrummond.bsky.social · 28/08/2026
South Okanagan General Hospital emergency department temporarily closed overnight www.castanet.net/news/Oliver-...
castanet.net
South Okanagan General Hospital emergency department temporarily closed overnight
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Michelle Gamage @michellegamage.bsky.social · 28/08/2026
A new project is helping non-profits pool resources to better prepare the DTES for extreme heat. This can include buying in bulk, buying supplies before a heat wave and sharing storage capacity. Mutual aid and community to help tackle the climate crisis. thetyee.ca/News/2026/08...
thetyee.ca
Banding Together to Help DTES Residents Survive Extreme Heat | The Tyee
Non-profits can pool their resources to buy more water, Gatorade and freezies.
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Michelle Gamage @michellegamage.bsky.social · 27/08/2026
BC has mature minor consent, where its up to a health care provider to determine if a youth can provide consent, emotionally and by fully understanding what they are consenting to. Youth don't need their parents consent to get vaccinated, they can seek out vaccines themselves if they want to.
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Michelle Gamage @michellegamage.bsky.social · 27/08/2026
Rates of measles are increasing with kids bearing the brunt of the illness, said Ravi Kahlon, Minister of Health. US cases are once again increasing, which puts Canada at risk. Even if kids are behind in routine immunizations it is never too late to catch up, he added.
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Michelle Gamage @michellegamage.bsky.social · 27/08/2026
Dr. Bonnie Henry is encouraging kids to get vaccinated as part of the province's routine childhood vaccination schedule. Vaccines are free and the best way to keep kids healthy, in school, keeping up with classes and friends, and avoid death. MMR vaccines need two doses, the second one at 4-6 years
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Michelle Gamage @michellegamage.bsky.social · 26/08/2026
Post secondary schools get an updated overdose prevention guideline, encouraging nasal naloxone to be carried and for students to be informed of overdose prevention sites. news.gov.bc.ca/releases/202...
news.gov.bc.ca
Campuses made safer with updated overdose prevention guidelines
Public post-secondary institutions receive updated guidelines to improve prevention, response
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Michelle Gamage @michellegamage.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
138 British Columbians were killed by unregulated toxic drugs in June 2026. Just under 70 per cent were between 30 and 59 years old and three-quarters were men. Just under 70 per cent smoked their drugs. This horrific catastrophe continues, but it doesn't have to. news.gov.bc.ca/releases/202...
news.gov.bc.ca
Unregulated drug toxicity claims 138 lives in June 2026
According to preliminary data reported by the BC Coroners Service, there were 138 deaths due to suspected unregulated drug toxicity in British Columbia in June, equating to approximately 4.6 deaths a ...
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Michelle Gamage @michellegamage.bsky.social · 21/08/2026
I gotta lie down for a bit and blow bubbles but yeah this is great
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Michelle Gamage @michellegamage.bsky.social · 21/08/2026
Oh good, another way to harass and be fucking weird to women online. www.404media.co/subtlefakes-...
404media.co
Subtlefakes: Slightly Altered Nonconsensual AI Images Are Taking Over X
Nonconsensual AI images are getting much harder to spot.
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Michelle Gamage @michellegamage.bsky.social · 21/08/2026
Occasionally, I have the absolute pleasure of re-reading one of my favourite Tyee essays by the late and great Brian Brett. His writing is something to savour, something to daydream over. Happy to have re-read it on a Friday, I’ll be spending this weekend noticing. thetyee.ca/Culture/2024...
thetyee.ca
If Doctors Said This Was Your Last Spring, What Would You Do? | The Tyee
My answer has been to roam the night with pruning shears.
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Michelle Gamage @michellegamage.bsky.social · 20/08/2026
Excellent @sarahkcox.bsky.social article which summarizes the tragic and often ass-backwards way humans destroy habitat and then try to say they're "still protecting the animals" in that habitat. Bull trout, shocked and in trucks. Oh boy oh boy. thetyee.ca/News/2026/08...
thetyee.ca
Shocked, Then Trucked. Why BC Arranges Road Trips for Live Fish | The Tyee
Inside the elaborate effort to haul bull trout around the Site C dam. ‘Why are we doing this?’ asks an expert.
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Michelle Gamage @michellegamage.bsky.social · 20/08/2026
Got to talk with experts in human and animal behaviour to figure out what goes through our ever loving minds when we try to feed wildlife. TLDR: don't do it. (Ever.) thetyee.ca/News/2026/08...
thetyee.ca
Why Do We Feed Wildlife? | The Tyee
How humans justify risk versus reward, and why we should never, ever feed bears Timbits.
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Michelle Gamage @michellegamage.bsky.social · 19/08/2026
Huh, apparently cocaine use is up: "cocaine consumption appears to be trending upward, with between two and three per cent of the adult population believed to have used the substance in the past year,” with around $150 million worth seized from US border every year. www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...
cbc.ca
Cross-border cocaine: How it’s detected and why it’s such a Canada-U.S. problem | CBC News
Cocaine is the most seized substance in the southwestern Ontario region along the Canada-U.S. border, according to data from both countries.
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