By now, every Canadian has read the news of the tragic death of Marie-Josee Fortin, who died after her and her husband became lost after skiing out of bounds at Kicking-Horse ski resort.
Sure enough, that grand piece of garbage, the Globe and Mail, is a work today throwing blame at the RCMP, "SOS is what it says".
And, most of the newspapers online over the last few days have similar comments, while the reality of the cause of Ms. Fortin's death is clear, obvious, yet oddly absent from comment in these journals.
I've been skiing for probably 30 years, and I've occasionally skied out of bounds, in younger years, when I was young and stupid, and more recently, in the company of ski patrol or guides. And, any skier can tell you this is an absolute fact - warnings to those skiing out of bounds are clear and obvious on every ski hill in North America, and they are definitely present at Kicking Horse ski hill.
So, why is Ms. Fortin deceased today? Because she and her husband decided to tempt fate, ignore warnings, over-estimate their own skill level, and got caught being stupid. That simple. Tragic, but simple.
Now - certainly, I'm sure her husband, deep down, understands his own error, and to his credit, he has not laid any blame on anyone - but the media is happy to do so - and in doing so, the media is sowing the seeds for more tragedy.
How? Well, the so-called caring small "l" liberals in society are preoccupied with perpetuating the myth that the government will always protect us from our own ignorance and stupidity. Look around.. run your autoplant into the ground - well, here's some money.. Have a bunch of kids you can't afford.. don't worry, Ken Dryden will have the government look after them when they're inconvenient.. over and over again, the government, urged on by the public themselves, and particularly our media, take it upon themselves to assure no one suffers from their own folly.
Well - you know what? There are consequences to the things we do - sometimes, tragic consequences. And rather than create the myth that we can be protected from ourelves, perhaps the time has come to send a different message - one of accountablity and personal responsibilty.
Life is dangerous and sometimes brutish. Be careful. Keep your wits about you. And, if you choose to be ignorant or stupid - well, be prepared to feel the consequences, which, as we've seen, can be tragic. This is life, and, sadly, sometimes, this is death.
9 comments:
It is my understanding that they didn't even have back packs nor had they notified anyone as to where they were.
Oh, I forgot, the RCMP are supposed to be mind readers.
Love your blog. Cheers.
Not mind readers, SOR. There is no mind reading necessary when you get 4 or 5 SOS calls and don't do what you are paid to do: properly investigate.
If the two skiiers had skied off the trail and gone off a cliff, I am 100% in agreement with this post about their own responsibility for their own decisions.
But the RCMP, as well as the ski lodge, completely failed here. The RCMP has a duty to protect the health and safety of its citizens so their failure is bigger than the ski lodge because they knew there were distress signals and did nothing about it. The ski lodge fails in its moral duty as a citizen by being lazy and dismissive of multiple calls for help.
That is what I just don't get about this. One SOS can be dismissed, but multiple?
Absolutely the couple bear a huge responsibility for their own decision and risk. But that does not mean that every action thereafter must automatically be absolved of any responsibility.
And please note, I am talking about responsibility and not liability here.
You don't need a mind reader to predict that Ted will quickly support the MSM to continue to bash the RCMP.
I am proud of the RCMP and living in Western Canada we respect and admire the RCMP for doing their best to protect us from others and ourselves. They are responsible caring human beings doing their job to the best of their ability.
But that is never good enough for TED!!!Predictable response from Ted.
Although I may be biased growing up in an RCMP family in Labrador, but we went outdoors a lot, to some remote places in Newfoundland and Labrador, wether it be by boat, canoe, ski-doo, or truck.
We never needed to call for rescue, because we always took sufficient equipment and food, and were in areas that never had cellular reception, or CB presence. We always told our spouses where we were going, and when we were due back. A we have gotten it some predicaments, such as broken down motors, capsized boats, but we always got through it because we were prepared a trained to travel safely.
So in this case, these back country skiiers, went out of bounds, without proper equipment. These cases are a drain on SAR resources which are primarily devoted for downed aircraft, and naval distress. Those that go into the back country must do at their own risk, and be prepared.
Fay, this has nothing to do with "The Media" and even less with rote RCMP bashing.
My comment is about a simple basic concept of "good samaratinism" and our responsibilities as citizens.
When someone calls for help for whatever reason and you ignore them, you have failed morally because you didn't want to bother checking to see what was wrong or because it was inconvenient. To me, "someone else's problem" or "they made a mistake so they deserve all the consequences" is the worst kind of selfish citizenship.
When you are hired and trained and paid to respond to such calls for help, and you don't, you have also failed in your duty.
The RCMP officers I know are good citizens and good officers. They went into the RCMP to make this country better and to protect its citizens. When anyone get harmed and they could have or even think they could have helped, they beat themselves up over it even when there was nothing they could do.
So I bet you anything all of them as well as all of RCMP officers directly involved in this are not, like you, trying to pass the buck, but realize that they could have helped, should have helped and they didn't.
Thank goodness the RCMP is not run by the likes of Fay and other "not my problem/it's their own damn fault" conservatives like you.
As I thought, the RCMP do take their responsibilities seriously Ms "not my problem" Fay:
"RCMP admit it was a mistake that the mounties did not call search and rescue crews on February 21st when they were notified of an S-O-S symbol found in the snow."
Predictable Ted! Are you trying to tell us that Canadians that vote Liberal have higher moral standards?
I thought we are all equal in Canada. I will try harder to live my life up to your standards. But my advice to you Ted ,don't judge others until you have walked a mile in their shoes.Otherwise this is more Liberal spin of " Do as I say not as I do"
I am still waiting for the Liberal Party to live up to their responsibilities and pay back the Adscam money they stole from Canadians.
I admire and respect the RCMP for trying their best to live up to their responsibilties. The Liberal Party not so much! What say you Ted?
So now this is about the Liberal Party, Fay??? And you tie it to some made-up missing money from Adscam????
I bet even a hyper-petty partisan like Harper couldn't even bend this issue like that. Now THAT is petty partisanship designed to change the topic from the discussion at hand to a whole new level. Well done.
I said nothing about the Liberal Party so I have no idea what you are talking about. I did say that I prefer citizens like those who chose to join the RCMP and believe that they can make a difference and should try to care for their fellows over your approach of "not my problem/it's their own damn fault".
I really can't stand people who want to make every issue about partisan party politics. It really shows a small mindedness and a separation from how most people live and think.
Just to clarify a couple of points:
a) the couple wandered 27 kilometers, leaving at least 4 sos signs..
b) while the couple got lost Feb. 15, the first notice of their SOS sign wasn't for two days, when a local skier noticed the first SOS sign, and notified the resort..
c) the resort, Purcel Helicopter Skiing, and a member of Search and Rescue all became aware of the sign - however, no one at that point notified the RCMP until Feb. 21 when two more signs were seen and the RCMP were notified - who then contacted Kicking Horse, and being advised that KH undertook a search and had no indication of any missing persons - no search was undertaken until Feb. 23, when a missing persons report was filed by the family of the missing skiers.. who were found the day following, Feb. 24.
So - the point being, yes, it is tragic that something could have been done, but wasn't. But, at the end of the day, while circumstances could have saved the woman's life - the fault is squarely the couple's own.
As I understand, when the first skier found the SOS, a search of that area turned up nothing.. and, again, four separate signs, wandering 27 kilometers from the hill.. certainly, the RCMP could not have acted before they were notified..though yes, they could have had someone attend the initial SOS scene once they were notifed, just to be safe.
Tragic? Definitely.
Could the RCMP, SAR, KH have saved her? Probably.
Anyone's "fault" but the couple? Nope.
But - that being said, I don't think it's a "Liberal/Conservative" issue - but it is a "l"iberal issue in the sense as I stated that we need to perhaps let people be more aware of their own need to assure their well-being and less dependant upon others to guard them from themselves.
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