Prisons Before Schools?

The provincial government of British Columbia seems to have its priorities a little out of kilter. Apparently it conducted an audit and found that 311 of the 864 schools in the province's earthquake zones failed their exams. These schools are at high risk of severe damage during a moderate to strong quake.
The Liberal government promised a $1.5 billion program two years ago to upgrade these substandard schools, 80 of which were ranked as "high-priority", but only four have been completed to date and 48 have made it no further than feasibility studies. The government has, however, managed to upgrade various tunnels, bridges and prisons. Yup, prisons. The convicts, apparently, rank higher on the government's list of priorities than the children do.
The legislature in Victoria has been scheduled for upgrades too, but you can bet they won't drag on like the school repairs are doing. God forbid anything should threaten the safety of the politicians.
A parent-led advocacy group, Families for School Seismic Safety, is working to prod the foot-dragging government into a little more determined effort to come through on their promise. They're encouraging parents to lobby for change and have a form letter available on their website for parents to use in writing to the Prime Minister of Canada and the Premier of B.C. Visit the website for the full results of the government assessment of schools at risk, as well as details on the "Classroom Bucket Project".
If you have kids in an earthquake zone school, this might be a really good cause for you to know about and involve yourself in. If you live outside of B.C, but you have a minute or two to spare, this would be a good cause for you, too. Take a little time to write to the P.M. Send an e-mail to pm@pm.gc.ca and ask for the work on these schools to be expedited. It's an investment in the future.