David Arthur Johnston
Are you associated with or running as part of a slate? If so, which one?
No.
Do you live in the municipality where you are running, and if so, for how long? If not, what is your connection to that community?
Yes. 22 years give or take a few months.
What is your occupation, and for how long?
Pragmatic monk. Poverty-avowed for 19+ years. Married to this city.
Tell us about your previous elected and/or community experience.
Fought City Hall for 7 years to catalyze the BC Supreme Court’s recognition of the right to sleep only to discover tent-cities are inherently untenable during an addiction epidemic. Now put in a position where a miracle is needed to counter the scheming that has drowned all public space in an ocean of anxiety.
I am intimately acquainted with the political string-pulling of our very own manipulatively-dark ‘deep state’ and I can smell a Charter violate Bylaw from 50 yards away.
Why are you running? What’s your motivation?
I’m more qualified than a stick and see a possibility of Victoria surviving a blatant global economic, and environmental, collapse with a grain of innocence and nobility.
We need tent-cities but they categorically cannot happen while the crack/crystal meth/heroin market exists. Which is very interesting because the inception of tenable tent-cities also means an end to the condominium Hellscape AND a blanketing of the whole city in gardens. We must ask ourselves ‘who has the most to lose from ending the addiction epidemic?’
What are your top three issues?
There can be no fundamental civic progression while the addiction epidemic exists. Every other possible presumed issue (parking, housing, climate change, etc etc) cannot be truly tackled until we have the capacity to adapt without the arbitrarily-imposed ‘necessity’ to pay for sleep.
Another issue I have is that everyone who believes in human exceptionalism (pride/free-will) is a literally insane victim of brainwashing, conditioned from birth to deny the fact that we are generic life divining through our experience towards the best peace we can conceive.
Also, we need a framed picture of a uniformed Malone (Sean Connery) hanging at VicPD.
What’s your vision for your community in 25 years?
A MadMaxian Rivendell where even the most naïve are too smart to be lied to. A place where people are no longer concerned about locking their doors. A world-renowned example of enlightened stalwartness surviving the Hell-like harshness of Heaven’s beginning. Everyone a ninja. Everyone a hippy. Everyone royal.
What’s one “big idea” you have for your community?
My noble ideal will likely be a far cry from the noble reality.
A multifaceted plan which all parts are seriously interdependent. A court-offered (and voluntary) ‘diversion’ of a tobacco-allowed 3 month detox for addicts. Dryish tent-cities (within walking distance of downtown) for those graduating detox. A new free/creatively-affordable deputy certification program that teaches conduct (protocol, the nature of conscientiousness and why innocent presumption is so important) and combat taijutsu (I’ve in mind a grand obstacle course that will attract the respect of police forces and militaries worldwide). A never seen before grand gardening project that, among many initiatives, will offer to every residence gardeners to convert their lawnspace at the cost of half of what is produced.
