Grant Patterson
Bio
Grant is a retired law enforcement officer and native of Vancouver, BC. He has also lived in Brazil. He has written fifteen books.
Stories (85/0)
In Canada, Affirmative Action Becomes a Matter of Life and Death
Last night, I realized something very disheartening about my country. I realized that my life is worth less here, because of the colour of my skin. No, I am not a “minority,” whatever that term means anymore. Waves of immigration over the last forty years have so changed the fabric of Canada, that even the woke set has realized the term has lost meaning in communities that are majority non-white. So, now we use the term “racialized.”
By Grant Patterson3 years ago in The Swamp
HOW TO KILL A DEMOCRACY IN FIVE EASY STEPS
HOW TO KILL A DEMOCRACY: FIVE EASY STEPS If you were a doctor, and American Democracy was the patient, what would you conclude about the patient’s prognosis, after the shocking events of this week? Would you conclude that the patient, seemingly near death, had been killed by an acute injury, or a chronic illness?
By Grant Patterson3 years ago in The Swamp
Another Tragedy, Another Missed Opportunity
Scenes from America’s latest racial outrage: A police officer, surrounded by his fellow officers and a watching crowd, kneels on the neck of a black man named George Floyd until he passes out. By the time the ambulance arrives, it’s too late. George pleads with the officers to stop the pressure on his neck, as does the crowd. But it falls on deaf ears.
By Grant Patterson4 years ago in Criminal
Postcards From a Pandemic, Part Six: Bad Times for Little Hitlers
If there’s one group of people who’ve flourished in the global pandemic, it’s the judgy among us. I use the term “Little Hitlers,” an English pejorative for those who never seem happy unless they are pointing out the flaws in others’ behaviour, and making constant suggestions, however unwanted, for the self-improvement of their neighbours.
By Grant Patterson4 years ago in The Swamp
The Blue Wall of Embarrassment
Here’s a maddening misconception about law enforcement that drives most cops crazy: The old “Blue Wall of Silence.” Yes, police culture does demand a certain amount of brotherly and sisterly loyalty. After all, these people you suit up with in the locker room are the same people who may have to pound ass down a blind alley, responding to your “Officer needs assistance call.” They are the same people who may have to drag you out of a pool of broken glass and your own blood under fire.
By Grant Patterson4 years ago in Criminal
Postcards from a Pandemic, Part Five: Hits and Misses
Gradually, in the middle of April, a shaky consensus is emerging: There’s a faint light at the end of the tunnel. Within weeks, those of us living constrained lives of Netflix, long walks, and earlier and earlier cocktail hours, will be forced out of our bunkers to confront what we once called “the real world.”
By Grant Patterson4 years ago in Motivation