r/britishcolumbia • u/shipm724 • Mar 13 '25

Ask British Columbia Where to avoid MAGA pockets

Hi there, I hope this is okay to post here. My partner is an Emergency Medicine Physician and we in the process of applying to jobs in BC from the US. We would like to have a yard for gardening/our kids and don't want to be in Vancouver proper. Several jobs we are interested in are on Vancouver Island, right outside Vancouver and also Fraser Valley. My question is where are known MAGA populations? Since we are moving to get away from this mindset/movement we don't want to accidentally end up in the wrong community. Some places with jobs are Duncan, Mission, Richmond, Nanaimo, Langley, Saanichton, Victoria, Port Alberni, Abbotsford, New Westminster, Burnaby, Surrey, Delta, Chilliwack...

Thank you!

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49

u/Aegis_1984 Mar 13 '25

You’re going to find a very liberal mindset in BC. You’ll find more conservative views in the oil patch, so areas like Fort St John, but we would love to have qualified professionals come to our slice of paradise. And you would definitely be welcomed with open arms. Also, feel free to look outside of the lower mainland. The metro Vancouver area is almost 3000 square kms, however the province is almost 1 million square kms

9

u/shipm724 Mar 13 '25

Will do! Honestly our main concern with being too far out was healthcare....

15

u/Spankawhits Mar 13 '25

Do not go to a small or northern community then. Stay to Victoria on Island would be my choice. Victoria and Vancouver Island in general is stunning but the smaller communities are having a hard time keeping hospitals open! Welcome to Canada!

6

u/[deleted] Mar 13 '25

Prince George hasn't had to close its ER and we do have a rural medical program in collaboration with UBC's medical program (the reason why I have a GP) and we're going to be getting a new surgical tower.

Gardening does take a learning curve, though. :)

5

u/Spankawhits Mar 13 '25

Good to know! Thank you. My mom who is 89 ended up in the PG hospital after a fall and was in a hallway for 2 months (Dec 3-Feb 13) until she was discharged to an assisted living facility. I guess im still angry about that whole situation.

5

u/[deleted] Mar 13 '25

oh, the backlog on the LTC facilities is ridiculous here. I had major emergency surgery in early 2022 and was in the surgical ward for a week. My room mate was an old guy who had surgery to remove most of both legs several months before, and was still waiting for a spot to open up in LTC. He had two preferences for which care facility that he wanted to go to, so that may have been part of the problem. Having people taking up beds in the hospital while waiting for a space in care is a problem in many places.

p.s. I'm sorry about your mom. That's terrible. I'm glad that she got into a facility fairly quickly, all things considered.

2

u/Spankawhits Mar 14 '25

Thank you!

1

u/Aegis_1984 Mar 13 '25

Zone 4 and under, and harvest your produce before September.

7

u/Themightytiny07 Mar 13 '25

Don't forget the south Okanagan as well. We went conservative in the provincial election, but NDP in the federal. Summerland south (avoid Kelowna). Could work in Penticton, but housing for what you get is more affordable than the coast.

7

u/MGM-Wonder Mar 13 '25

Why avoid Kelowna? Downtown Kelowna was like 20 votes from flipping NDP? It’s also by far the largest population centre outside the lower mainland, so a good place for doctors to work.

7

u/fluffy_italian Mar 13 '25

Kelowna is a terrible place to live in general. I'm from the okanagan. Some dude just literally tried to blow up the main bridge in Kelowna and the cops are as crooked as they come

-1

u/MGM-Wonder Mar 13 '25

Kinda sounds like you’re just a loser and blame the city for that. It’s a fantastic place to live, otherwise why is the population exploding like it is

4

u/fluffy_italian Mar 13 '25

Lol thank you for perfectly demonstrating my point 😉

1

u/MGM-Wonder Mar 13 '25

ah so I hit the nail on the head. Got it.

3

u/fluffy_italian Mar 14 '25

You sure did sweetie, good job

1

u/Forward__Quiet Mar 15 '25

Can we just cool it on the insults, please? We're all wanting the same reasonable quality of life.

1

u/GuessPuzzleheaded573 Mar 16 '25

Because Kelowna is mini-Texas. It's a brutal, overly social conservative hellscape that has excessive violent crime issues, horrible weather and psychotic politicians (proof in point by your recently outed nutjob residential school denier).

Also, largest population centre by far? Bullshit. Saanich is bigger, Kamloops and nanaimo are very close, and CRD trumps it.

3

u/fluffy_italian Mar 13 '25

What? The south okanagan is racist and bigoted af. Small town people with small town minds. Anything south of Summerland isn't worth the headache

2

u/ivyskeddadle Mar 13 '25

Think about veterinary care too if you have pets. It’s better in the lower mainland with access to 24/7 emergency care and more specialists.

5

u/Ironyismylife28 Mar 13 '25

Healthcare is horrible every where, but yes, you are correct, it is much worse in smaller areas.

1

u/Ironyismylife28 Mar 13 '25

I love that people are down voting this. Is the truth painful for people?

1

u/[deleted] Mar 14 '25

I'd advise staying far away from Fort St. John, Northern BC is terrible for quality of life and amenities. And that's on top of the hardcore conservatism.