pensionpat -she/her, stay home, mask, vaccinate

#IStandWithTrudeau #IStandWithCarney #IStandWithKinew. #IStandWithZelensky

[pensionpat -she/her, stay home, mask, vaccinate @pensionpat]

@servicerotties I haven’t been on twitter for a while. When I do the first and sometimes only account I check is Team Servicerottie. I love the tweets and all the lovely comments people tweet. 💗

[Team Servicerottie🇨🇦🐕‍🦺🦽 @servicerotties]

"We can bring a menu outside to you, and you can wait and we'll bring your meal out to you." That's what a taco place in a trendy shopping district told me on a chilly fall day. Other people were going inside where it was warm and enjoying their meal there. My only option was to wait outside and eat my tacos in the cold. I declined. Nobody wants to sit out on the sidewalk in the cold eating their taco.

It's not that I was dressed inappropriately or smelled bad. I wasn't drunk or unruly. It wasn't even the service dog quietly sitting beside me. The reason I couldn't go in was that there was a single small step in front of the door and no way my power wheelchair could get up it. A portable ramp would have easily mitigated the situation, but the restaurant wasn't required to have one so they didn't. If any member of another marginalized community was told they needed to stay outside, there would be protests and people would be up in arms. But here it's seen as completely acceptable when it comes to people with disabilities.

There's hundreds, maybe thousands, of buildings like this in our city that are off limits to people like me. This week our Alberta government voted on accessibility legislation that coulda have changed that by making reasonable attempts to remove barriers a requirement, like in this case, having a portable ramp. The entire UCP party voted no. Instead of voting yes to making our province more accessible, they voted to continue segregating people with disabilities when there are reasonable alternatives to include them.

This legislation wouldn't have meant small businesses needed to spend mass amounts of money to completely rebuild their locations. Not every place can become completely barrier free. Legislation would have meant making efforts to do feasible things to remove barriers and have staff trained on how to provide accommodations. Things like a portable ramp, or a large print paper menu at the coffee shop whose menu is written on a chalkboard that could be difficult for some people to see. It might mean the next time the lines in a parking lot are repainted, the accessible stalls need to be brought up to current standard. Most people have no idea how inaccessible many things are until one day they become disabled and suddenly even accessing essentials becomes a huge challenge. It would have taken decades, but this legislation would have started the ball rolling to address a lot of these issues.

This isn't just about not being able to get tacos though, it also means job opportunities. Up to 70% of the built environment has major barriers. In these places you will find accountants, insurance agents, small retail shops, and a variety of other businesses and services. Sure, the Human Rights Act says there is a duty to accommodate to the point of undue hardship, but that means instead of having a plan in place and offering accomodations, people with disabilities are left to ask, plead, or beg. When told no, the only recourse is a Human Rights Complaint which can take over a year before they even advise if they accept your complaint, and likely another year or so before it's addressed. Because of this, most times it's easier to just go without than trying to negotiate for that accommodation.

At some point everyone becomes disabled, even temporarily. That shouldn't mean that you suddenly become a second class citizen. But this week our government re-iterated that it's more acceptable to have a disabled person left outside than it is to require a business to get an inexpensive threshold ramp. I really try hard to be independent and be productive, but it's really freaking hard. I suspect the majority of those that voted against this bill wouldn't have the resiliency to cope with a significant disability if it hit them.

But enough said. This second class citizen has dogs to train and obedience trials to get ready for because despite being disabled, I'm dedicated, talented and good at this.

-Admin

[Team Servicerottie🇨🇦🐕‍🦺🦽 @servicerotties]

Admin Post:
Last night something happened that made my heart swell so big it almost hurt… in the very best way. ❤️

Back in the fall, sweet black Lab puppy Mars, a service dog prospect, spent a few precious weeks with us for some exposure training. He was only 5 months old — playful, curious, and a little unsure of the big city world. Whenever something new worried him, he’d quietly tuck himself just behind my wheelchair, peeking out from his safe spot while I gave him all the time he needed to feel brave.

Last night, I brought baby Rottweiler Kenji (our big Moose) to his very first group class without Chesnyy. After class, the dogs got some joyful off-leash play time… and one of the staff brought Mars in to join.

He entered the room a bit nervous — so many more dogs than he normally sees in the training room, so much energy. But the moment his eyes found me… he came straight to me. ❤️ Not bouncing wildly, but gently placing his front paws on my lap, covering my face in soft, trusting kisses. Then he stayed right there, pressed close, choosing me as his safe place in a room full of uncertainty.

He could have gone to his breeder. He could have stayed with the staff who see him every day. But out of everyone in that room… he picked me. The girl in the wheelchair he’d only known for those few short weeks last fall.

Even once he relaxed and started playing, he kept coming back to check in with me, like I was his anchor.

I don’t know if there’s any deeper compliment a dog can give than saying with their whole heart, “You make me feel safe.”

And as if that wasn’t enough to melt me completely… Kenji was an absolute superstar on his very first night in this class. The youngest dog there by far, he tackled targeting (even into a tricky plastic tote!), stayed mostly focused through all the distractions, redirected like a pro, stayed perfectly polite and quiet, and had a wonderful time playing with the group. A few folks even mistook our growing Moose for Chesnyy!

It was great. My heart is still overflowing. Two special boys reminding me why we pour our hearts into this work — the quiet trust that lingers, the beautiful growth, and the pure love dogs give so freely. 🥹❤️

[Team Servicerottie🇨🇦🐕‍🦺🦽 @servicerotties]

I got a certificate in the mail! It says I'm the number one Rottweiler in Canada in rally obedience again this year. My human teammate uses a wheelchair. I hope this demonstrates that with love and patience you can train your disabled human to do all sorts of great things.

But all that aside, I don't know why she insisted on a tiara and flowers for this picture. I would have much preferred being wrapped in bacon.

#Dogs #GoodestGirl

[Rural Albertan 🇨🇦♥️ @albertan_rural]

This should have a million retweets…literally. This is the moment to be loud, to be heard. We cannot let this govt trample any more of our rights. #saynotogerrymandering #stopthesteal

[The Breakdown @TheBreakdownAB]

WOW!!!

Nenshi just revealed that not only do any of the people Smith claim to have met in the US have any record of her…

But when she greeted Trump at the G7, he had no idea who she was!

This is AFTER her taxpayer paid trips to Mar A Lago & PragerU!

#abpoli #ableg #cdnpoli

[Audric Moses 🇨🇦 @audricmoses]

The web of corruption allegedly surrounding Sam Mraiche is STAGGERING. As I've said before, the main goal of today's conservative governments is to transfer public dollars into private coffers. Alberta is the blueprint for that.

unblocked 👉 https://t.co/8haOE4uxlB

#ableg

[The Breakdown @TheBreakdownAB]

On Melewka…

Athana knew.

This province owes her a debt of gratitude. She has done more than any other person in bringing this corruption to light.

And Dani owes her severance for wrongful dismissal.

#abpoli #ableg #cdnpoli

[Kate from Kharkiv @BohuslavskaKate]

ZELENSKYY: War no longer has distance. Drones already fly 3,000–5,000 km today, and soon they'll reach 10,000 km. Every day, Ukraine faces 350–500 drone strikes. Imagine any country dealing with that. No continent is safe anymore. Distance is now a matter of months, not decades.

[Alberta NDP @albertaNDP]

Danielle Smith can jet off to Saudi Arabia in the middle of a teachers’ strike on a secret, foreign-funded private plane, but calls programs for disabled Albertans and seniors “overly generous.” That tells you everything.

[Vicki Campbell🇨🇦 @merry123459]

She’s ripping Albertans off blind and many of them think she’s doing what’s best for them and standing up for democracy. She’s corrupt, she’s a liar, she’s a grifter and she’s convincing. And she’s very good at it. Especially at reeling in gullible, misinformed people.

[MondoAB @MondoABx]

The biggest and most expensive scandal Alberta has ever seen.

And Danielle, Jason etc gaslight us.

They lie about what the Wyant report said.

They lie.

[Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський @ZelenskyyUa]

Russia must clearly see and truly feel that Ukraine will be in Europe – and that this cannot be stopped. That is why we are carrying out internal reforms and working externally to secure a clear date for Ukraine’s EU membership.

If there is a clear date, it will mean that Russia will not be able to block our accession in any way. You see how different things get blocked, and how difficult it is for a united Europe to implement even decisions that have already been made. This must not be the case with opening the clusters for Ukraine or with our accession – this is a matter of trust, security, and the future.

From an address to the European Council meeting (3/3).

[MandelaMushroom 🇨🇦🏳️‍🌈 NEVER VOTE CONSERVATIVE @SpeakUp407]

Who the fuck does Danielle Smith think she is in restricting our personal medical decisions legally available under a FEDERAL program!!
It’s time for Smith’s government to get out of peoples’ personal lives. She has already done enough harm.
#MAID https://t.co/rn7LA2jb3p

[Parksy @PfParks]

Anyone find it odd that a self professed “Libertarian” Premier is meddling so much in personal Autonomy?

This govt is in between the doctor and the pt/family on:
Addictions care
Transgender care
End of life care
And soon reproductive care…

[Occupy Democrats @OccupyDemocrats]

BREAKING: Trump’s ICE just threw a 7-year-old Canadian girl with autism and her mom into one of their worst prisons for NO REASON WHATSOEVER!

Edward Warner, an American citizen from Kingsville, Texas, was driving home with his Tania Warner and their daughter, Ayla Lucas, from a baby shower when all of a sudden they were stopped at a border patrol checkpoint and demanded to see their papers.

Tania showed them her Texas driver’s license, work visa, and actual visa, informing the goons that she was a Lawful Alien Allowed to Work, as Tania is originally from British Columbia.

“I presented mine and she presented her Texas driver’s licence, her work visa and her actual visa,” Edward, who is American, told CTV News. “After that, they took her in, saying that they needed to fingerprint her to get more information, and she never came back out.”

The goon squad said there was an “error” with Tania’s Employment Authorization Document and needed to send their fingerprints to Border Patrol headquarters in Washington, who refused to let them go.

“It’s scary, it’s really frustrating, especially when they have paperwork that’s good, and it doesn’t come up in the system as being good. It didn’t come up as having paperwork at all,” said Edward to the Canadian media.

Tania and Ayla were thrown into the gulag at the Rio Grande Valley Central Processing Center in McAllen, Texas, a site notorious for housing little kids in chain-link cages during Trump’s first term.

“It’s no place for a seven-year-old to be,” Edward said. “They’re using, like, space blankets in order to cover up. She’s having to use the mat from the floor to get a proper cover to keep warm. This food is terrible … it’s overcrowded, very loud, and they’re just very stressed out right now,” he said of what he’s hearing from his family, adding that they’ve only been able to have two short phone calls a day.

This is what happens when you build a machine designed to incarcerate people for profit with no regard to the law or to basic human decency. There’s a private prison company making a fat profit off of locking up this poor little girl and her mother and an evil bald man in the White House, Stephen Miller, ordering the Border Patrol to fill quotas of arrestees, no matter who they are or whether they deserve to be thrown into a disgusting prison, served mouldy food, and forced to sleep under bright lights on piss-soaked floors.

Tania and Ayla and every other innocent child in these camps need to be freed, IMMEDIATELY, and their cells filled with the men responsible for this absolute miscarriage of justice.

[Parksy @PfParks]

Everyone should read and care about this….

Over a Billion has likely been funnelled by govt to this company in backroom and sole source deals… no transparency or accountability from govt reg their spending…

[Nate Pike @NatePike]

In October of 2024, @thebreakdownab ran the first major story on the Skybox Scandal which later became “Corrupt Care”

I’m so proud of the work the team did, and if you watch that episode, so much of what’s in the media now was there.

The truth will always out.

#abpoli #ableg

[Carrie Tait @CarrieTait]

SCOOP: RCMP execute search warrants tied to Alberta's health procurement controversy; at least a dozen officers were at MHCare Medical Corp.'s headquarters on Wednesday
https://t.co/OyWZFOkNcp

[Richard Knack @RichardKnack]

Is March 19th resignation day in Alberta Government ?
“Expense scandals” would be peanuts compared to healthcare scandals and Turkish Tylenol with today’s government.
Private plane trips.