Birds literally make nest out of needles (Vancouver Drug Epidemic)

[Ace]

Just too crazy not to make a thread out of...

http://www.nationalpost.com/m/wp/new...out-of-needles

[Jason14h]

Looks fake haha

[Northendzone]

Industrious bird adapting to their surroundings. I for one will welcome these bird overlords

[flylock shox]

Shame the article didn't mention how the pigeon got in. Could be anything from a hole in the wall, to an open window, to the fact it was someone's pet.

I visited and SRO many years ago, and it was a level of squalor I've never seen anywhere else in North America. Just an awful existence. I'd hoped they'd generally improved since then but this one, maybe not so much.

[OutOfTheCube]

It just looks like a bunch of needles in a sink though?

[Robbob]

I think I need sleep. When I read the title I imagined the bird nest from the Beijing Olympics.

[afc wimbledon]

Originally Posted by Jason14h

Looks fake haha

That was my thought. Pidgeons aint the brightest birds in the world but even they can find better nesting material than this and I've never seen any bird make a nest that would be so accessible by predators

[Zevo]

Crackhead pigeons don't always make the best life decisions.

[flylock shox]

Originally Posted by zevo

smackhead pigeons don't always make the best life decisions.

fyp

[bluck]

The jokes are fine and whatnot; however, this really is an epidemic here in Vancouver. The image does a good job of highlighting just how bad things are in the city. I lost a friend last year due to fentanyl and things have only got worse since. I urge you all to take this matter seriously and if you have any friends or even if you need help yourself please reach out to someone and get the help you need.

Thank you.

[savemedrzaius]

I've travelled to a lot of places all over; mostly in North America and Asia. I have never felt in danger or afraid when walking around a city except in Vancouver.

About 7 years ago I stayed at a hostel called St. Clair Hotel-Hostel. I was a recent graduate and needed to save money. It had really good reviews online and seemed like a good location.

I had jetlag so at around 5:30 in the morning I was up and couldn't sleep so I thought I would go for a walk. I open the door and right outside is a guy shooting up. He doesn't even care I'm there. I've lived in Toronto for years and I've never seen that in my whole life.

Later that day I must have walked into the really bad part of downtown Vancouver. It was literally druggies everywhere. And these people were really messed up. Definitely on hard drugs. They were really aggressive and some might have had mental problems as well.

So anyways that was 7 years ago and I thought it was a hellhole so it must be disgusting now if it has even gotten worse.

[Ozy_Flame]

Don't worry about that. Most people can't afford houses in the inner city, so the suburbanites don't have to worry about drug problems and crime in Burnaby, Surrey, Abbotsf....Oh wait.

[afc wimbledon]

Originally Posted by savemedrzaius

I've travelled to a lot of places all over; mostly in North America and Asia. I have never felt in danger or afraid when walking around a city except in Vancouver.

About 7 years ago I stayed at a hostel called St. Clair Hotel-Hostel. I was a recent graduate and needed to save money. It had really good reviews online and seemed like a good location.

I had jetlag so at around 5:30 in the morning I was up and couldn't sleep so I thought I would go for a walk. I open the door and right outside is a guy shooting up. He doesn't even care I'm there. I've lived in Toronto for years and I've never seen that in my whole life.

Later that day I must have walked into the really bad part of downtown Vancouver. It was literally druggies everywhere. And these people were really messed up. Definitely on hard drugs. They were really aggressive and some might have had mental problems as well.

So anyways that was 7 years ago and I thought it was a hellhole so it must be disgusting now if it has even gotten worse.

Actually it hasn't got worse, the Downtown Eastside is disappearing block by block to the ravages of hipster gentrification, where once Honduran Crack dealers plied their trade now artisan sandwich shops sell vegan cubana's.

The addicts are moving on masse to Surrey.

[OMG!WTF!]

I know this makes me a terrible person but I feel bad for the birds.

[getbak]

Bird people don't believe it's actually a pigeon nest: http://www.calgaryherald.com/news/na...059/story.html

[activeStick]

I live downtown far away from the Hastings / Carroll cross section where many of them gather but even at the entrance to my condo's underground parkade, I'll regularly see addicts gather around to get high due to the cover from the rain. I'm about a block from Yaletown's semi official boundary.

Addicts have become more mobile due to being slowly forced out of the blocks just east of Gastown.