Someone tell me why a single penny of tax dollers should be going to the arts when there are so many charitable organizations, who actually do meaningful work, that are struggling in this economy?!?!? 

Because Gael, artists do meaningful work, and every dollar spent on arts funding results in real economic benefit to the community it is spent in.
"Peter Ladner, founder of ”˜Business in Vancouver,’ comments that “Artists talking to business people feel compelled to make the economic case for what they do. Although they’re a sideshow to the real contribution of the arts, those numbers are impressive: a payback of $1.05 to $1.36 for every dollar invested; $12 in economic spinoffs for every dollar spent on the arts."
Kamloops News, October 9/2010

I'm interested to see how much of this funding is sent to the music community, which is hugely under-represented in the public arts scene in Vancouver. 

After enjoying a robust chuckle over the oxymoronic nature of the headline, I realized that, like Gael I hate the arts and the useless freeloading artist-types who continue to bleed our country dry with their high-living, grant-sucking life of luxury.

Let's take all of that loot that's just laying around and continue putting it into hockey - amateur hockey, hockey camps, community hockey, peewee hockey, hockey for toddlers, senior's hockey, cat hockey, hockey infrastructure, hockey museums, hockey education, and hockey lanes on the roads.

People like hockey. Hockey is our art. And it's on TV!

 

This should not be a one or the other scenerio. The arts and the social safety net both need greater funding and no opposition between the two needs to be debated.
Once we have proper and significant funding for the arts and the social safety net we will be flying. Congratulation Vancouver. 

Love it...this is happening the same day as we're to express gratitude at an as-yet-unimplemented recommendation to return to the 2008/09 B.C. Arts Council budget of $19 million, leaving the province in last place when it comes to arts funding. Let's celebrate! 

Hi Gael: what part of the States are you from?

If you were a Canadian, you would never say such a ridiculous thing. If you were a Canadian, you would know that it is the arts that give us unique identity.

The arts define us as a people. Canada is not just an economic appendage of your home country. Canada is the land of Glenn Gould and kd lang, of Margaret Atwood and Emily Carr, of the Group of Seven and Claude Vivier and Maureen Forrester and Judith Forst and Leonard Cohen-- and 100,000 more.

We build US cars in Oshawa, send our Blackberrys around the world, and have a thing or two to teach others about universal health care. Did you know that the average lifespan of Canadians is FOUR YEARS longer than that of your fellow Americans? Thank Tommy Douglas. (He was the Saskatchewan CCF/NDP leader who invented universal health care here, starting back in 1944...) All of this is good, and so is Gretzky and Dionne and Lafleur and The Rocket. I'm proud of all that.

But it is in the arts that we find our real identity as a people. Christopher Plummer and William Hutt, Canadian comics and Canadian singers -- all of these and so much more speak the name CANADA to the world.

Welcome to Canada, Gael. As you live among us, try to respect how and why the arts give us identity. I think you'll be pleased you did.  

While Gael's comment is indeed rather ignorant of the contribution the arts has to forming our communal identity, East Van Arts's sarcastic tone is equally dividing and destructive--perhaps, EVA, you are trying to destroy Gael in order to help her rebuild her view into what you'd consider less ignorant?

I can understand that to a certain extent. But I can also understand how certain people come to hate artists like RF does. That's not to say I agree with RF's seeming suggestion that all artists are free-loading and living a life of that abuses our grant system.

Gael & RF: Grants are in place because Canada believes culture is sometimes not profitable for those who contribute to it (let's call them "artists"). Culture (which benefits society), is sometimes unable to flourish because it cannot always be sold. So, the government hands out grants to artists with the idea that the art they make is valuable and necessary to the nations identity and growth, and that artists (from whom society's culture benefits) need to paid so they can focus on what they do to the best of their ability, instead of dividing their attention between their non-profitable art practice and 2 more jobs to help them sustain their art practice, which ultimately deteriorates their art practice. Our system is far from perfect and has its share of "free-loaders" and "bad art"--but that's part of the price to pay in this system, AS IS YOUR characterization of such people--all systems will have contrasting opinions on how well it functions.

This said, sarcastic American bashing, as you are doing here East Van Arts, is part of the problem that divides us. I sympathize with your pride for Canada, but ask yourself why you are putting down America? What do you intend to accomplish by over-emotionally stating Canada has a better cultural industry? There are American equivalents to our Cohen's and Gretzky's.

I would like to state that I'm not trying to shut anyone up: this discussion is all part of the process, and I encourage discussion. I'm just trying to raise awareness of the fact that we seem to be fighting ourselves, when maybe, getting over our personal egos means we can aim our energy at solving the issue through educating each other with respect.

My opinion on this news article is similar to Marc's: I mostly wonder where the money will really go, and thus how usefully it will be spent (conscious of usefulness being my opinion, of course). My guess is that this will depend on who executes the money's spending, and what they in other words want to accomplish... 

Well then, thank you Lake-Shore for making Toronto the least desirable cultural center for 2011 :D 

Pietro makes a good point, but overlooks a better one.

There are two wretched trends in Harper's Canada and Campbell's BC that must be contested: contempt for the importance of art, and contempt for the truths of science.

Re the former, those who understand cultural identity must contest philistinism whenever it appears. Gael's views are those of the philistine: uncomprehending, fearful, and backward. They must be challenged, every time. They diminish us.

There IS a Canadian identity. It comes to us through our history and geography, our French fact and our national ambition. That identity is most eloquent in our art. It should not be necessary to defend this, but in some circles... and you know the rest.

No one who believes in Canada can disbelieve in Canadian art and culture. Such propositions are mutually exclusive. Canadians cannot allow our culture to be undermined by those who don't believe in ANY culture.

Gordon Campbell thought he could get away with his brutal cuts to the arts, thanks to people like Gael. He was wrong.

We are the nation that gave birth to Jon Vickers and Alice Munro and Karen Kain. Those who denigrate our artists denigrate our country. Shame on them.

 

It must be the vast array of drugs available now that allow crazies to be canadian cultural. 

Considering the little self congratulatory establishment that runs some parts of the performing arts in Vancouver, one can simply wonder how people could live in such denial of mediocrity, provincialism and cultural arrogance! 

from http://www.pch.gc.ca/pc-ch/infoCntr/cdm-mc/index-eng.cfm?action=doc&DocI...

"Our Government is pleased to confer on Vancouver, for the second time in that city's history, the prestigious title of Cultural Capital of Canada"

Minister Moores description of the honour designated as being "prestigious" is almost a slip up: it shows the oxymoronic value of the award. Prestige has to do with dazzling, and etymologically has to do with "practicing illusion or magic, deceptive," and "juggler's tricks"... all the very same desciptions of the how the indie arts culture feels about this award...how it functions, right? This is why we're stirring up so many comments  

The Arts do create a revenue for the city, and they also contribute to our cultural identity, which in turn generates a boost in tourism.I don't think we should say that it is "un-Canadian" to disagree with this grant because Canadians can differ in opinion, but it does seem odd that a city that has been on the receiving end of SO many cuts to arts funding should receive this. I think it's unfair to criticize those who do not see the benefit of being a "cultural capital."

On the other hand, I believe it's great for us and would love to see that money go toward generating jobs for recent graduates, and non-profit arts organizations.

And I would rue the day more money was invested in hockey. Our national sport is lacross, anyway.