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[EnderD_503]

Originally Posted by Linus

From what I've been reading (via CBC and HuffPost.ca) this guy is actually worse than Mel Lastman -- and that is saying a lot.

Oh god...dude...not even the same league as Lastman. Lastman wasn't exactly world's best mayor, but Ford is like a parody of the worst redneck bigot you could possibly think of. Not even the conservatives wanted his support in the past two election campaigns. Have you seen the TweedleRob and TweedleDoug caricatures? They've been vandalized all over the city, lol. He really is the worst mayor this city has ever had. From privatizing garbage pick up west of Yonge, to him and Doug's whole "hey, let's build the world's largest ferris wheel on Toronto's lakeshore! And a giant mall! Tourists will flock!" venture, to selling off/trying to sell off the city's low income housing units (cause we need more condos! everyone wants to buy condos! Never mind poor people can't find places to live! They're just lazy anarchists!), to lying about the whole transit city deal with the province...to every other stupid idea the dude has ever had. This city is going to be a mess by the time he's done with it. He's even mentioned trying to decamp the Occupy movement currently set up in St. James park. And if he does I get the sense the shit will really hit the fan, cause a surprising amount of people here are supporting the movement.

I also wonder if Rob or Doug (aka co-mayor) have any knowledge whatsoever of Canadian culture in general. First Doug claims he has no clue who Margaret Atwood is, now Rob doesn't know who Marg Warrior Princess is ()...seriously, where have these guys been? Under a rock?

And yeah...this whole 911 call on Marg was just beyond stupid. I keep thinking to myself "no, he can't be THAT fucking stupid"...then he goes and does something stupider than the last time. Apparently he tried to deny calling police dispatch "bitches" and throwing insults at them...little did he realise...it's a fucking 911 call. They record it you moron! You can't deny something they've recorded you saying, and the police ain't exactly your biggest fans as of late.

Then he tries to lie about how the Marg thing went down, saying she came running out of the van scaring his young daughter who supposedly went screaming back into the house "and freaking out." Uh...duuuhh, you don't think there were cameras filming the whole thing, Mr. Ford? As Marg said "unless the child was in his suit coat, there wasn't any child there." And of course, he has to tell us how intimidated and afraid he was. And again gotta love Marg's reply to that one "I'm a 60 year old woman with a plastic sword..."

So yeah, in conclusion, he is definitely fucking worse than Lastman. Lastman I didn't question as a sentient being. Ford is like a character you'd expect to be in Family Guy or the Simpsons. Fucking hate the guy and his "gravy train" bullshit with a passion, and can't believe how many idiotic people who haven't been able to figure out that not paying taxes = no money for city/no money for public services fell for his campaign. Oh well, never mind he's shut down all sorts of museums, is screwing everyone over by wiping out public services...but damn, at least he got rid of those pesky vehicle registration fees! *megaeyeroll*

Did I mention I really fucking hate him?

[betenoire]

Kobo Vox (it's in COLOUR!) has just been released - retails at 199.

http://www.thestar.com/business/arti...ark-price?bn=1

I'm really digging the looks/reviews of this toy. I don't have an ereader yet - but I think this is the one I will get. It looks FANTASTIC.

Things about it I think are cool:

1 - Kobo is Canadian.

2 - cheaper than the Nook Color. So there.

3 - Has an AFFS+ (advanced fringe field switching plus) screen, which is apparently used on technology in fighter planes. Basically it means "you can see the screen outside in the daylight" - which is pretty amazing.

4 - The "Pulse" social feature is kind of a virtual bookclub intergrated into the book itself. You can see how popular a book is, how many people are reading it at that moment, discuss the book, etc. It's apparently the most advanced/useful/fun "social" feature on any ereader thus far.

5 - Their own android app store! And they are all FREE. So there.

6 - You can view books from other devices on Kobo and vice versa - which not all ereaders support.

I think I might buy this for myself soonish.

[Cin]

If you are interested you can send an email at Leadnow
http://www.leadnow.ca/keep-canada-safe

[EnderD_503]

Seems like TweedleRob and TweedleDoug are looking to dislodge Occupy TO protesters from St. James Park fairly soon.

Even the St. James church is supporting the protestors' cause, which I think is important. A large number of Torontonians have really supported Occupy Toronto. Our community among others have showed support by bringing food and so on to those occupying St. James. Even local restaurants have been donating food to them, and the below article even says that the church allows them to use the kitchen twice a week.

Ford has already placed himself at odds with most Torontonians, including many who stupidly voted for him. I think evicting the Occupy folks, especially with the church partially owning the land they're camping on supporting them, will only further create discontent.

Occupy Toronto ready to legally resist eviction if necessary

November 8, 2011 20:11:00
Raveena Aulakh
Staff reporter


Police crackdowns, court injunctions and warnings: around the world, the Occupy movement is being pushed and it is being shoved.

In London, England, a court battle will begin in coming weeks as lawyers for St. Paul’s Cathedral and the city work to evict about 500 protesters from the church grounds.

Closer to home, Quebec City’s mayor has asked protesters to pack up. Vancouver is seeking a court injunction. In Victoria, activists are moving to an area closer to City Hall in a compromise to make way for an outdoor skating rink.

In Toronto, the protesters, about 500 of them, are well entrenched at St. James Park at Jarvis and King Sts., co-owned by The Cathedral Church of St. James and the city. Quietly, they have dug in their heels and tents in preparation for the long haul.

Will there be one?

Mayor Rob Ford said a few days ago that he is “working on a plan” for St. James Park. While the mayor’s office did not respond to a request for comment, deputy mayor Doug Holyday said city staff are reviewing the situation.

“They’ve made their point,” he said in an interview with the Star. “Now it’s just them squatting in the park … that can’t go forever. Over the next few weeks, we will see an end to this matter.”

So the question is, can the city evict the protesters?

The issue is very complicated, says John Mascarin, a Toronto lawyer who specializes in municipal law.

It’s tough to say what the city can do without examining ownership documents or the legal statutes that may apply to it, he said.

“But as the owner of the land, the city has the ultimate control,” he said Any municipality, if it owns land, has a right to treat the land as any other owner and could put restrictions on the use of land, he said.

Mascarin doesn’t think co-ownership makes a difference. “The city still has an upper hand.”

Of course, he agrees there may be counter-arguments, saying it is a public space and is being used for democratic purposes.

What complicates the matter is that the church has indicated, through a letter on its website, that it is not in favour of evicting the protesters.

“We are talking to the police, the city, the protesters, neighbours … everyone,” said Douglas Stoute, dean at the church.

He added the church and the city have shared the land for 50 years.

George Rust-D’Eye, one of Canada’s leading municipal law lawyers, says Toronto, like Vancouver, may be looking at court proceedings.

Meanwhile at St. James Park, protesters are aware of what’s going on at protests in other cities.

They say they understand that while activists around the world are still demonstrating against corporate greed, authorities seem to be losing patience and are attempting to push them out.

But Occupy Toronto will not provide any reason to be kicked out, said Anna Crooke, a media relations officer with the movement. “We don’t allow drugs or alcohol here,” she said, adding that there are regular security checks to ensure that St. James Park is safe.

She also said the fire marshal has visited the camp twice to check for fire hazards and given it an all-clear.

Occupy Toronto is one of the most organized of the movements, to the point of becoming a talking point for activists in other cities.

The protesters are doing everything right, said Crooke, adding that the group has sanction from the church to be there. The church also lets them use its kitchen twice a week.

“If there is any move to evict us, we will fight it,” she said. “We will go through proper procedures but we will fight it.”

But if the city does evict them, Crooke says there is a back-up plan firmly in place.

“We have been offered several venues in the downtown area,” she said. “We would go there if evicted. But we won’t stop this movement.”

Source: http://www.thestar.com/mobile/news/a...medium=twitter

[Softhearted]

"A new safety approach aimed at getting airlines to police themselves could endanger passengers, particularly those flying with smaller airlines, aviation experts warn.

In 2005, Transport Canada began changing over to a system that critics say essentially leaves airlines to regulate themselves, instead of primarily relying on federal inspectors to oversee airplane safety as they had before.

The federal department says the new approach, called safety management systems (SMS), makes flying safer, but critics disagree."

rest of the article at: http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/story/...m-flights.html

_______

Maybe I'm cynical, but can we totally trust private big corporations policing themselves?

[Linus]

Originally Posted by Softhearted

"A new safety approach aimed at getting airlines to police themselves could endanger passengers, particularly those flying with smaller airlines, aviation experts warn.

In 2005, Transport Canada began changing over to a system that critics say essentially leaves airlines to regulate themselves, instead of primarily relying on federal inspectors to oversee airplane safety as they had before.

The federal department says the new approach, called safety management systems (SMS), makes flying safer, but critics disagree."

rest of the article at: http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/story/...m-flights.html

_______

Maybe I'm cynical, but can we totally trust private big corporations policing themselves?

No. The US did this in the 80s (I think that's when it was) and there was a flurry of accidents. There are still questionable incidents today and a lot of questionable practises (I mean, I've heard of flights using duct tape to keep certain parts together -- I know it's strong but.. ).

I really do think this is a bad idea. I know Harper is keen on impressing the likes of Limbaugh, Palin, etc. but I don't think he should do it risking Canadian lives.

[Linus]

http://www.cbc.ca/news/yourcommunity...y-at-work.html

Are you shitting me? This isn't just about raising money for veterans; it's about remembering those that never made it back...