The old building I've been living in decided to replace the windows with modern, state of the art products. Aside from the extreme noise that will disrupt tenants' lives for months to come, there is the problem of removing asbestos caulking from the window frame. Asbestos, as you know, can cause mesothelioma, one of the worst cancers known to science. The building is located across from a park that is the playground of families and children. In this process I have learned how Vancouver City Hall operates: with negligence and complete indifference to the well-being of the public or the tenants. After bouncing the inquiry from one department to another, they passed the buck to Work Safe BC, formerly the Workmen's Compensation Board. The agency says their mandate is limited to protection of the workers, and public health protection is the City's responsibility. The City refused this claim and passed the buck to the landlord as the final stop. As I was worrying about asbestos risk I learned to my shock the other day that my new windows will only open 3 inches since the City's building code passed in 2014 dictates it. The bylaw officer offered an ambiguous explanation that this was about preventing people from falling out of the window, similar to the suicide fence they built on Burrard Bridge. If we can't jump out of the window and the western side of Burrard Bridge is out of the question, how the hell can we commit suicide? Are we living in a Gulag or what? She refused to email a copy of this provision since, she said, this is proprietary material that belongs to the Queen's Printer. If anybody knows the Queen, I'd appreciate your help. Aside from preventing me from getting enough fresh air for my suite the new windows will be a definite fire safety hazard since they'll be blocking one of the escape routes in the event of a fire in the building. Between the "geniuses" at the City Council and a dysfunctional Third World bureaucracy on West 12th Avenue, however, nobody seems to be listening.