It was disheartening, to say the least, to hear the news about the Victoria resident who hosted not one but two parties over this past weekend. Three words went through my head when I first read the headlines about this: what the hell?
The host was slapped with a $2,300 fine the first night. On the second night, a guest who was belligerent to police was fined $230.
Now, considering the police will likely want or require everyone’s names for contact tracing, I’m not quite sure what stopped them from fining everyone who chose, by their own will, to walk into that crowded and sweaty one-bedroom suite. Hell, if that’s not worthy of consideration for a charge of endangering the public, or mischief endangering life, what is?
For hardcore weekend partiers, a $230 slap on the wrist could be viewed as part of the cost of having a good time. If the host was—in more way than one—loaded, a fine of $2,300 could also be seen as the cost of having a good time.
But, really, a charge shouldn’t be out of the question for this. The foolish, reckless, and disgusting act of jamming people into a one-bedroom suite during the COVID-19 pandemic is not only a slap in the face to those of us who have been working hard to practice physical distancing, but is reprehensible, considering cases were already going up quickly, and we’re about to enter the start of flu season.
And, bigger picture, let’s face it: in terms of keeping COVID-19 under control, BC has shit the bed.
I know that I could have been doing a lot better these last few weeks in terms of washing my hands, wearing a mask, and keeping my distance; I’ve been doing those things, but I could have been doing them better.
But the trouble is this: part of our decision-making process is that whenever we make a decision, it’s always with the best information we have at that time. A spreading and evolving pandemic changes faster than our opinions.
But let’s backtrack a bit: I can’t be the only British Columbian who has wondered where that definitive and stern but also solicitous and empathetic provincial guidance—the guidance that so soothed the 2020 March Madness—has been.
I can’t imagine the pressure these people are under from Horgan and Trudeau, and I especially can’t fathom the pressure the former is under (even if some of it is a result of his own judgment).
Last week, I could almost see provincial minister of health Adrian Dix biting his tongue during question period; I understand the economy desperately needs to recover, and that’s hugely important for all of us. But fall is coming. Now is not the time to bite your tongue, buddy. Two house parties in two nights, despite colossal fines, is either a loud middle finger or a loud cry for help.
Either way, it’s loud.