Have You Seen This Payphone?

Why are all of the pay phones in this city ripped out? Between downtown and Burnaby there is not one phone in operation. Every single one has been either taken out completely or destroyed beyond repair.

It doesn’t take a leap of the imagination to think that Telus wants everyone to buy a cell phone, similar to how Coca Cola tore out all of the water fountains in golf courses and universities to replace them with Dasani machines (which, by the way, are just tap water anyway). But the removal to one every few blocks is still maintaining a certain break-even point (not to mention a visual presence), suggesting other factors at play.

But does the government not have an obligation to the public to provide access to telephones? What if there was an emergency?

I don’t know if it has anything to do with the strike. I think there is one going on. At least I was pretty sure when I hooked up a phone line without a hitch last month. But where is this vandalism coming from? Disgruntled workers? People angry at the speed of their dial-up? Telus themselves to spite us all? Other cell phone providers? Rogers, Fido, Bell and Virgin certainly profit from this inconvenience.

In other news: I went to the Vogue Theatre last night for a NABS benefit to see the Cannes Lions 2005. I must admit, I had seen them all online previously, but here is a series from Thailand surrounding sustainability issues. Lost Money

In other other news, the Fraser Institute released a report today stating that we are free to breathe deeper, as the air quality in Vancouver has improved over the last ten years. Most likely due to the Air Care program we all know and love.