Steve Tornes
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stevetornes.bsky.social
Steve Tornes
@stevetornes.bsky.social
260 followers 450 following 240 posts
CNV Resident. Graduate of Urban Studies, focused on Transportation. Hosted & produced The Trip Diary through SFU's VOCE. On the Board of Directors for Vancouver Writers Fest. Opinions my own.
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stevetornes.bsky.social
Map of the Road Network of Kelowna
Made using R Studio
Map of the Road Network of Kelowna Colour coded to show Highways, Roads, Avenues, Streets, Drives, Crescents, Trails, Lines, and Others Black background
November 30, 2025 at 11:29 PM
stevetornes.bsky.social
Cleaned up my code a bit for this map of the Road Network in North Vancouver
November 30, 2025 at 11:12 PM
stevetornes.bsky.social
My reading theme for the year is the environment, which I chose so I could understanding why we commit to fossil fuel extraction in the face of climate change
Here is one of the best arguments I've heard, from Wim Carton and Andreas Malm
"For companies to extract oil and gas (and, to a lesser degree, coal), they must sink enormous amounts of capital into their fields: platforms, terminals, derricks, pipelines, ships, trucks, refineries and all the cumbersome rest. A globe-spanning landscape of fixed capital, it primes its owners for defence of business-as-usual. If a capitalist invested in an offshore oil platform in the year 2024 and drilling is declared illegal in 2025, he will lose tens of billions of dollars. He will not recoup his investment, let alone see any profit from it. The never-ending investment in fossil fuels therefore creates a self-reinforcing inertia and obstructive force blocking a switch to other forms of energy. A transition would render the whole landscape of fixed capital in fossil fuel production worthless: the assets would be 'stranded' or, more precisely, capital would be subjected to *political destruction*. Most vulnerable would be the oil and gas companies themselves, but banks and asset managers and other types of capitalist entities with stakes in their businesses could likewise be hit by a shock of all times, if mitigation were ever to commence for real. Against this danger, the present mode of production posits *capital protection*. (xiv)" - Carton, Wim, and Andreas Malm. 2025. The Long Heat: Climate Politics When It’s Too Late. London New York: Verso.
November 22, 2025 at 6:37 PM
stevetornes.bsky.social
Had a bit of fun making a new map of the False Creek area
Still a work in progress, but I like the direction

#rstudio #rayshader #vancouver
A map of False Creek, Vancouver The buildings pop out to show dimension. Also shows streets, parks, and water
November 7, 2025 at 12:59 AM
stevetornes.bsky.social
I made a new kind of map
This one is of the City of North Vancouver, with City Hall right at the centre
Still a work in progress, both in understanding the code and in the design

Big thank you to @milos-makes-maps.bsky.social who made a great tutorial video and shared his code!

#rstats #rayshader
A map of the City of Vancouver using rayshader
November 1, 2025 at 2:52 AM
stevetornes.bsky.social
Feels like the same iceberg inverted
October 18, 2025 at 12:40 AM
stevetornes.bsky.social
A fun map I made of the Kootenay Region
With elevation, rivers, and major roads
Zooming in, you can see all the rivers and ridges

#rstats #rayshader #britishcolumbia #bc
Map of the Kootenay Region, BC With elevation, rivers, and major roads
October 6, 2025 at 3:19 PM
stevetornes.bsky.social
Had some extra time this past week, so for fun, made a map of the Fraser Valley - Census Division

Made using #RStudio
Map of the Fraser Valley Census Division
September 24, 2025 at 7:34 PM
stevetornes.bsky.social
Hindenburg, the previous president of the Weimar Republic, was 84 years old when he defeated Hitler in his second presidential campaign. People were concerned about his age, health, and fitness. He gave Hitler the chancellorship. Hindenburg died in office 2 years later from cancer

5/5
Passages from the book, Takeover by Timothy W. Ryback "By late January 1933, Bella Fromm had begun to suspect that Hindenburg was drifting into dementia. She had seen him a few weeks earlier looking frail, disoriented, inattentive, almost childlike in his demeanor, as had an increasing number of presidential observers. 'They understand now that Hindenburg has been lulled to sleep by his staff,' Fromm wrote. 'That he is too weak and senile to resist their influence and their plotting.' This clutch of palace policy advisers had been given a name, the 'Kamarilla,' derived from the Spanish 'camarilla,' or little chamber of intriguers. Marie von Hindenburg sensed her uncle's failing capacities along with his increasing reliance on his son, Oskar, no longer just a presidential errand boy and geriatric attendant, taking his father's arm as they ascended and descended stairs or entered or exited a vehicle, but now said to be helping shape presidential policy. (255)"
August 9, 2025 at 3:49 PM
stevetornes.bsky.social
Because their parliament was always at a standstill, things could only get done by executive order by the President, which amassed power in the executive branch
The Nazis refused to work with other parties, and would only support stability if they were given complete power
Structurally unstable

4/5
Passages from the book, Takeover by Timothy W. Ryback "Of course, there were fascists on the far right and Communists on the far left, though the center mostly held. But with the financial crash of 1929, the radical right and the radical left surged at the polls. With the legislative branch blocked by factionalism and obstructionist politics, Hindenburg found himself resorting increasingly often to his constitutionally mandated emergency powers. During his first five years in office, Hindenburg had not issued a single Article 48 decree. Between December 1930 and April 1931, there were nineteen pieces of legislation compared with two Article 48 decrees. From April 193I to December 1931, the Reichstag was unable to pass a single law, while Hindenburg issued forty emergency decrees. In 1932, there were fifty-nine presidential decrees, compared with only five pieces of legislation. (110)" "That morning, Hindenburg received a briefing paper outlining the legal basis for suspending the constitution and establishing a presidential dictatorship through his Article 48 powers. The two-page legal brief noted that in every state there were political or social challenges 'against which the constitution provided no protections,' in particular, the manipulation of legal processes or obstructionist tactics that could lead to legislative gridlock and a constitutional crisis. The paper used the term 'Verfassunglähmung,' or constitutional paralysis. In the face of legislative gridlock, the president, as the elected representative of the majority of the people, had not only the right but, in fact, the duty-out of 'loyalty to the constitution in its totality'—to suspend due process and amend the constitution as he thought appropriate for remedying the governance crisis. In brief, Hindenburg had the legal authority, indeed, the responsibility to shape the state to his will. (257)"
August 9, 2025 at 3:49 PM
stevetornes.bsky.social
The Weimar Republic was incredibly polarized
Politics just couldn't function and there were constant elections
People were willing to work with Hitler to cling to power in a very unstable system
The Nazis offered themselves as the only solution for fixing a problem they were responsible for

3/5
Passages from the book, Takeover by Timothy W. Ryback "Why not turn Hitler's problem into Papen's problem, Strasser proposed. With 37 percent of the electorate and 230 seats in the Reichstag, Hitler had the capacity to paralyze the legislative process. If Papen and Schleicher could not deliver the chancellorship to Hitler, the National Socialists would simply go into obstructionist mode. Papen would be forced to rule by executive decree. The Communists would mobilize, the Papen government would collapse, and Hindenburg would be left with the starkest of choices: Hitler or chaos. The Strasser strategy seemed clear, simple, and sensible. (55-56)" "\[Hitler] laid out the Strasser game plan, pointing out that since he had the largest party in the Reichstag, it was impossible to create a functioning majority without him. He could cripple the Reichstag and, with it, the democratic process. Hitler's mood brightened at the thought. 'Without my party no one can rule Germany today,' he said. He could make or break any government. (85)
August 9, 2025 at 3:49 PM
stevetornes.bsky.social
There was an incredible amount of political violence, including an early coup attempt (Beer Hall Putsch), and armed paramilitary groups that killed opponents
The legal system was more lenient to right-wing forces
There was less accountability for right-wing nationalist, anti-democratic forces

2/5
Passages from the book, Takeover by Timothy W. Ryback "Hitler knew that the application of laws and decrees was ultimately left to prosecutors and judges, who were generally conservative and often exercised judicial leniency in cases involving National Socialists. In a 1922 statistical study, Four Years of Political Violence, Emil Gumbel criticized the judicial system for the disturbingly frequent number of acquittals in cases involving right-wing defendants. 'Subtly [the judge's] soul sways along with the murderer, covered by a mask of proper procedure,' Gumbel wrote. 'The murderer goes free.' (48-49)" "Hitler himself could have faced extradition, extended imprisonment, or even execution for high treason following his attempted 1923 putsch. Instead, he was given a scandalously light prison sentence. The presiding judge allowed Hitler to use the courtroom for extended tirades and spoke of the defendant's 'noble' and 'unselfish' motivations. The prosecutor, in his closing statement, praised Hitler for his 'honest efforts to inspire belief in the German cause.' (49)"
August 9, 2025 at 3:49 PM
stevetornes.bsky.social
As someone who takes regular notes of books and online articles, I'm worried authors will use AI without attribution, creating a self-referential body of work full of 'hallucinations', totally corrupting my note-taking system
Because my notes are designed to always connect and build upon each other
My notes taking system
June 15, 2025 at 3:44 PM
stevetornes.bsky.social
Reread @astra.bsky.social 's book, Democracy May Not Exist, but We’ll Miss It When It’s Gone
Such a reflective the book
It opened up a new way of looking at the world for me the first time I read it
And it's more timely now than before as it inspires us to envision a better world

My favourite quote
“... I do not accept that xenophobic policies qualify as democratic simply because they have been approved at the ballet box-instead such tendencies embody the 'tyranny of the majority' Alexis de Tocqueville warned against long ago. Racism in any form is inherently antidemocratic, as I understand the term, for it denies the foundational equality of human beings that democracy demands. Democracy, in my view, cannot be reduced to majoritarian preferences and popularity contests, but requires a more robust framework that protects minority rights from intolerant, illiberal prejudices, however widespread those prejudices may be."
April 24, 2025 at 2:37 AM
stevetornes.bsky.social
Societal Healthcare Benefits of Decarbonization “Drew Shindell, Nicholas Professor of Earth Science at Duke University (and lead IPCC author), recently spoke to Congress about his team's latest research, testifying that, even leaving climate damages out of the models, decarbonizing quickly enough to halt global warming at 2°C would, in the next fifty years, prevent roughly 4.5 million premature deaths, about 3.5 million hospitalizations and emergency room visits, and approximately 300 million lost workdays in the United States alone (even though US air quality is relatively good). (68)" Guenther, Genevieve. 2024. The Language of Climate Politics: Fossil-Fuel Propaganda and How to Fight It. New York, NY: Oxford University
March 30, 2025 at 11:31 PM
stevetornes.bsky.social
Actually, this explains a lot about my career trajectory
Can't say I was ever good at the game though
Image from the SNES game Paperboy
March 29, 2025 at 4:05 AM
stevetornes.bsky.social
Just saw that Canada's GHG inventory data was released, so I made an updated graph showing Canada's GHG Total Emissions by Province and Industry Sector from 1990 - 2023 (Mt CO2)

#Canada #Environment #ghg #climatechange
Graph showing Canada's GHG Total Emissions by Province and Industry Sector from 1990 - 2023 (Mt CO2)
March 22, 2025 at 10:07 PM
stevetornes.bsky.social
Very much enjoyed this graphic novel memoir, All Our Ordinary Stories: A Multigenerational Family Odyssey, by @teresawong.bsky.social

The brushstroke ink painting moments were really moving
We read the Joy Luck Club for our book club because of this book
So well done, worth checking out

#booksky
Image of the book, All Our Ordinary Stories: A Multigenerational Family Odyssey by Teresa Wong
March 21, 2025 at 12:23 AM
stevetornes.bsky.social
20 books that have stayed with me or influenced me
One book per day for 20days, in no particular order
Last day!

No explanations, no reviews, just covers

Day 20 - Autobiography of a Corpse by Sigizmund Krzhizhanovsky with Joanne Turnbull (Translator)

#Books #BookSky 💙📚 #BookChallenge
December 14, 2024 at 5:36 PM
stevetornes.bsky.social
Korea votes to impeach President
The beginning of a longer process, and it's disappointing to see partisanship in the vote
But mass protests led to this moment. Encouraging to see, in what feels like a global wave to authoritarianism and right-wing extremism
Looking forward to the inevitable K-Drama
Headline from the Guardian: South Korean parliament votes to impeach president
December 14, 2024 at 5:34 PM
stevetornes.bsky.social
20 books that have stayed with me or influenced me
One book per day for 20days, in no particular order

No explanations, no reviews, just covers

Day 19 - The Origins of Totalitarianism by Hannah Arendt

#Books #BookSky 💙📚 #BookChallenge
December 13, 2024 at 1:23 AM
stevetornes.bsky.social
20 books that have stayed with me or influenced me
One book per day for 20days, in no particular order

No explanations, no reviews, just covers

Day18 - The Mushroom at the End of the World: On the Possibility of Life in Capitalist Ruins by Anna Lowenhaupt Tsing

#Books #BookSky 💙📚 #BookChallenge
December 11, 2024 at 4:59 PM
stevetornes.bsky.social
20 books that have stayed with me or influenced me
One book per day for 20 days, in no particular order

No explanations, no reviews, just covers

Day 17 - I Am a Cat by Natsume Sōseki with Aiko Ito (Translator)

#Books #BookSky 💙📚 #BookChallenge
December 10, 2024 at 5:08 PM
stevetornes.bsky.social
20 books that have stayed with me or influenced me
One book per day for 20 days, in no particular order

No explanations, no reviews, just covers

Day 16 - Other Minds: The Octopus, the Sea, and the Deep Origins of Consciousness by Peter Godfrey-Smith

#Books #BookSky 💙📚 #BookChallenge
December 9, 2024 at 4:44 PM
stevetornes.bsky.social
20 books that have stayed with me or influenced me
One book per day for 20 days, in no particular order

No explanations, no reviews, just covers

Day 15 - Notes of a Crocodile by Qiu Miaojin with Bonnie Huie (Translator)

#Books #BookSky 💙📚 #BookChallenge
December 8, 2024 at 11:24 PM