by Diane Wilson
Sarah Palin isn't going away.
Never far from the public spotlight, Palin was in the news this past week over Copenhagan and climate change. The Huffington News reports on an exchange between talk radio's Laura Ingraham and Palin, in which Palin says she is not sure whether she wishes to debate Al Gore on the issue of climate change. Nothing to do with competence. According to Palin, "it depends on what the venue would be, what the forum....if it would be some kind of conventional, traditional debate with his friends setting it up or being the commentators I'll get clobbered because, you know, they don't want to listen to the facts."
Okay, that's clear -- she's right, he's wrong. Very reassuring to know that Sarah Palin alone has the correct information and that the rest of the world is making an issue out of climate change when it is not.
Ingraham kept asking Palin about debating Al Gore, perhaps in a proper debate format. Palin's response: "I don't know, I don't know. Oh, he wouldn't want to lower himself, I think, to, you know, my level to debate little old Sarah Palin from Wasilla."
To my mind, this interview is quintessential Palin -- never mind, she doesn't know what she is talking about, just knock the other guy out. Ever the point guard, Palin still runs offense to deliver the message. And, it's always about her and how right she is and how victimized she is. This is personality politics at its best.
My politics and Palin's have nothing in common, and yet I enjoy her, which really disturbs me. Why? Sarah Palin is moderately bright. Not well educated. Good looking. Conservative. Every bone in my body thinks she is incapable of holding any reasonable office in the United States.
However, Palin is not going anywhere soon, because she is open, bright eyed, engaging and fun. Palin is very friendly. And while she talks about and does weird stuff (moose chili, snow machines, the infamous turkey slaughter), she is enthusiastic. Palin takes us to a place we would like to be, where few problems exist, and perhaps she even believes her simplistic narrative. I also think she's got a bit of Teflon in her because she rebounds nicely from skirmishes, unfazed.
Sarah Palin makes the Republican Right Wing more reasonable in a crazy way, and certainly more palatable, which is very spooky. This is clearly the secret to Sarah Palin's success, and the reason she has a good crack at being the Republican Presidential Nominee in 2012. And that means people -- all people -- better start paying attention to Palin, like her or not.
December 13, 2009
December 9, 2009
Trouble at the Bank
Dear Mumsie,
Rather unfortunate news today. Apparently, the Chancellor of the Exchequer has seen seen fit to rob Muffin and Todd of their very special Christmas this year ( according to The Telegraph). Last year had been such a tough slog, had it not, and now that the bank was just getting back on track, I was expecting a rather sizeable down payment on life, shall we say. The lake season had finished and I had such a fine holiday planned!
There is a little wrinkle in my plans, due to Mr. Darling's insistence on taxing my bonus before it leaves the bank. This will affect all bonses of more than £25,000 and it will be applied to all banks operating in the UK, including foreign banks. And, as you well know, I was to get considerably more than that 25,000!
I calm myself with the knowledge that I am far from alone. In fact, this new one time tax will affect about 20,000 people, poor sods. All this in a shabby effort to play to the voters who insist bankers are paid too much. (The public has never been quite right since the British government provided more than £1 trillion pounds to prop up the banks during last year's credit crisis, has it?)
Well, the chit chat around the water cooler was really fine today. One American fellow, who thought he had died and gone to heaven when he was hired in London two years ago, was on the telephone today making arrangements for a transfer to Wisconsin.
As for me, I know I must be chin up and know that bonuses can be deferred and so forth, but still I dread the moment when I must confront our toddlers and try to explain that they will not be going on the private jet to the private villa this year. Perhaps worst of all, they will not have the opportunity to see all of their friends! And that is why Mr. Darling has me so ticked off. It is simply unfair to little children!
Your loving son,
Roger
Rather unfortunate news today. Apparently, the Chancellor of the Exchequer has seen seen fit to rob Muffin and Todd of their very special Christmas this year ( according to The Telegraph). Last year had been such a tough slog, had it not, and now that the bank was just getting back on track, I was expecting a rather sizeable down payment on life, shall we say. The lake season had finished and I had such a fine holiday planned!
There is a little wrinkle in my plans, due to Mr. Darling's insistence on taxing my bonus before it leaves the bank. This will affect all bonses of more than £25,000 and it will be applied to all banks operating in the UK, including foreign banks. And, as you well know, I was to get considerably more than that 25,000!
I calm myself with the knowledge that I am far from alone. In fact, this new one time tax will affect about 20,000 people, poor sods. All this in a shabby effort to play to the voters who insist bankers are paid too much. (The public has never been quite right since the British government provided more than £1 trillion pounds to prop up the banks during last year's credit crisis, has it?)
Well, the chit chat around the water cooler was really fine today. One American fellow, who thought he had died and gone to heaven when he was hired in London two years ago, was on the telephone today making arrangements for a transfer to Wisconsin.
As for me, I know I must be chin up and know that bonuses can be deferred and so forth, but still I dread the moment when I must confront our toddlers and try to explain that they will not be going on the private jet to the private villa this year. Perhaps worst of all, they will not have the opportunity to see all of their friends! And that is why Mr. Darling has me so ticked off. It is simply unfair to little children!
Your loving son,
Roger
October 4, 2009
Turkey: Quite Possibly the Most Important Piece of Real Estate in the World
by Diane Wilson
In the last weeks of summer, we scooted off to Turkey, and were dazzled by the old and the new, the sobriety and the splash, the generosity of the people we met, and the unavoidable, disquieting but hopeful fact of Turkey's geography.
Turkey finds its home in both Europe and Asia. It borders Bulgaria and Greece. It also borders Azerbaijan, Armenia and Georgia. But Turkey's longest borders are shared with Iraq, Syria and Iran. While driving through Istanbul, our guide pointed out the Iranian Consulate and noted that they have had a peaceful relationship with Iran for 300 years.
Home to a mostly Muslim population, Turkey is a secular democratic country established by Mustafa Kemal Ataturk in 1923, following the demise of the Ottoman Empire. The Turkish Armed Forces are the second largest standing force in NATO, and Turkey was a founding member of the United Nations. More recently, Turkey had applied for membership to the EU, and I had thought negotiations were still ongoing. When I was there, the question of membership made people bristle: "We have been rejected by the EU. The subject is now closed."
To a Westerner, the Turkey I saw feels foreign, but in a dreamy romantic sort of way. It was Ramadan and there were calls to prayer from the Blue Mosque. At nightfall, restaurant owners would put their chairs out on the street for locals, who had been observing Ramadam, but activity continued during the day. A constant stream of boats went up and down the Bosphorus. I was most struck by the graciousness of the people I met in Istanbul: "You will come back?" we were asked time and again. When we answered in the affirmative, there was satisfaction: "So you like Turkey."
I do like Turkey, but the more I saw, the less I understood it, having just scampered around Istanbul and Ephesus. What would I find elsewhere in the country? How welcome are Westerners? Come to think of it, how well does Turkey really understand the West. Even in Istanbul, which is chock a block with Four Seasons Hotels, how well do they really know us?
Turkey knows that we are suckers for clothing and handbags with names on them. Genuine Prada and Polo knock-offs are found throughout the Grand Bazaar, along with their other up-market cousins. However, The Grand Bazaar is just for the tourists, we were told. The Turkish people shop elsewhere.
I had made a reservation for dinner atop an older hotel. The selling point was its view of two continents. I was so looking forward to the excitement of seeing both Europe and Asia while dining, but our guide nixed my plan because it was in the wrong neighbourhood. Instead, he sent us to a very opulent four star affair on the Bosphorous. But my original choice still haunts me because I want to know what I missed, even if it wasn't grand luxe. Quite possibly that venue was more authentic. If the West is going to advance its relationship with Turkey, we have to understand it better, rather than having it fashioned for our consumption.
Turkey was once perhaps the most powerful empire. At the height of its power in the 16th to 17th centuries, Turkey or the Ottoman Empire comprised three continents, including much of northern Africa, western Asia and southeastern Europe.
Turkey remains a stunningly beautiful country, whose excellent climate makes it self-sustaining. But today's Turkey must grapple with double digit unemployment and staggering interest rates, realities that were largely absent during our quixotic adventures. This past September, a report entitled Turkey in Europe: Breaking the Vicious Cycle was issued. It is a call to re-engage, and mentions the resentment we noticed on the streets of Istanbul. It also talks about Turkey's key strategic location, due to oil, the Middle East, and so much more.
If the world really does subscribe to location, location, location, then Turkey ought to be the go-to country in the years ahead. With that comes the hope that religious and political divides can be bridged, and a new sharing of knowledge can occur.
In the last weeks of summer, we scooted off to Turkey, and were dazzled by the old and the new, the sobriety and the splash, the generosity of the people we met, and the unavoidable, disquieting but hopeful fact of Turkey's geography.
Turkey finds its home in both Europe and Asia. It borders Bulgaria and Greece. It also borders Azerbaijan, Armenia and Georgia. But Turkey's longest borders are shared with Iraq, Syria and Iran. While driving through Istanbul, our guide pointed out the Iranian Consulate and noted that they have had a peaceful relationship with Iran for 300 years.
Home to a mostly Muslim population, Turkey is a secular democratic country established by Mustafa Kemal Ataturk in 1923, following the demise of the Ottoman Empire. The Turkish Armed Forces are the second largest standing force in NATO, and Turkey was a founding member of the United Nations. More recently, Turkey had applied for membership to the EU, and I had thought negotiations were still ongoing. When I was there, the question of membership made people bristle: "We have been rejected by the EU. The subject is now closed."
To a Westerner, the Turkey I saw feels foreign, but in a dreamy romantic sort of way. It was Ramadan and there were calls to prayer from the Blue Mosque. At nightfall, restaurant owners would put their chairs out on the street for locals, who had been observing Ramadam, but activity continued during the day. A constant stream of boats went up and down the Bosphorus. I was most struck by the graciousness of the people I met in Istanbul: "You will come back?" we were asked time and again. When we answered in the affirmative, there was satisfaction: "So you like Turkey."
I do like Turkey, but the more I saw, the less I understood it, having just scampered around Istanbul and Ephesus. What would I find elsewhere in the country? How welcome are Westerners? Come to think of it, how well does Turkey really understand the West. Even in Istanbul, which is chock a block with Four Seasons Hotels, how well do they really know us?
Turkey knows that we are suckers for clothing and handbags with names on them. Genuine Prada and Polo knock-offs are found throughout the Grand Bazaar, along with their other up-market cousins. However, The Grand Bazaar is just for the tourists, we were told. The Turkish people shop elsewhere.
I had made a reservation for dinner atop an older hotel. The selling point was its view of two continents. I was so looking forward to the excitement of seeing both Europe and Asia while dining, but our guide nixed my plan because it was in the wrong neighbourhood. Instead, he sent us to a very opulent four star affair on the Bosphorous. But my original choice still haunts me because I want to know what I missed, even if it wasn't grand luxe. Quite possibly that venue was more authentic. If the West is going to advance its relationship with Turkey, we have to understand it better, rather than having it fashioned for our consumption.
Turkey was once perhaps the most powerful empire. At the height of its power in the 16th to 17th centuries, Turkey or the Ottoman Empire comprised three continents, including much of northern Africa, western Asia and southeastern Europe.
Turkey remains a stunningly beautiful country, whose excellent climate makes it self-sustaining. But today's Turkey must grapple with double digit unemployment and staggering interest rates, realities that were largely absent during our quixotic adventures. This past September, a report entitled Turkey in Europe: Breaking the Vicious Cycle was issued. It is a call to re-engage, and mentions the resentment we noticed on the streets of Istanbul. It also talks about Turkey's key strategic location, due to oil, the Middle East, and so much more.
If the world really does subscribe to location, location, location, then Turkey ought to be the go-to country in the years ahead. With that comes the hope that religious and political divides can be bridged, and a new sharing of knowledge can occur.
October 2, 2009
Rio Fallout -- Let's Think North American
I have never thought of myself as a person who obsesses about the Olympics, but Rio's win today was thrilling. It was interesting to see the four films on the bid cities -- Chicago, Tokyo, Madrid and Rio de Janeiro. Chicago's promo film failed to send a strong message about a forward thinking environment. Tokyo's was sort of predictable, but more majestic. Madrid was trying too hard. And then there was Rio. All the IOC had to do was take a look at five seconds of this film and say, "Okay, that's it. We're going to hit this place in 2016. That's where the beauty and the passion lie." Clearly, what happens in Rio won't stay in Rio -- the party will be a grand international affair.
Now, as happy as I am for Rio -- and I am! -- I see us all drifting while the newer world gathers momentum. Aside from gorgeous beaches and mountains, Rio has shown us how wonderful it is to be shiny and new. Brazil has been amazingly successful over the past number of years, even swallowing iconic Inco for a cool $17 billion three years ago.
It is time to reinvent ourselves. How about starting to call all of us -- Mexican, American and Canadian -- North American? How about rethinking and repositioning the brand? I think North American could far outsell American at the moment. North America speaks of unity and diversity and newness. If we are going to proceed and outsell, we are going to have to be the go-to people for ideas. We will require some grandeur and some greatness, nothing tired or broken.
America has too many skeletons -- both old (slavery) and new (Iraq) -- in its closet. Canada is too small to make the difference it should be making, because Canada is a truly extraordinary nation. Mexico would add history and culture, and Mexico could really use the re branding as well. If we could ever sort out the cross border trade squabbles (Buy America) and the passport issues and the clogged borders, we could have enormous advantages having an EU type entity called North America. Republicans like Senator Corker who alledge that Canada has a parasitic relationship with America will need to be convinced, as will TV anchor Lou Dobbs.
Chicago's loss and Rio's win together point to a need for a fresh new entity -- North America just might help.
Now, as happy as I am for Rio -- and I am! -- I see us all drifting while the newer world gathers momentum. Aside from gorgeous beaches and mountains, Rio has shown us how wonderful it is to be shiny and new. Brazil has been amazingly successful over the past number of years, even swallowing iconic Inco for a cool $17 billion three years ago.
It is time to reinvent ourselves. How about starting to call all of us -- Mexican, American and Canadian -- North American? How about rethinking and repositioning the brand? I think North American could far outsell American at the moment. North America speaks of unity and diversity and newness. If we are going to proceed and outsell, we are going to have to be the go-to people for ideas. We will require some grandeur and some greatness, nothing tired or broken.
America has too many skeletons -- both old (slavery) and new (Iraq) -- in its closet. Canada is too small to make the difference it should be making, because Canada is a truly extraordinary nation. Mexico would add history and culture, and Mexico could really use the re branding as well. If we could ever sort out the cross border trade squabbles (Buy America) and the passport issues and the clogged borders, we could have enormous advantages having an EU type entity called North America. Republicans like Senator Corker who alledge that Canada has a parasitic relationship with America will need to be convinced, as will TV anchor Lou Dobbs.
Chicago's loss and Rio's win together point to a need for a fresh new entity -- North America just might help.
August 22, 2009
Where in the world is Janet Napolitano? And how Canada is suffering from new US border laws
by Diane Wilson
Canada better start beefing up its relationships with Europe and Asia because our biggest trading partner is making it increasingly hard to play ball. The Americans are rightfully concerned with their rising unemployment. The Americans are rightfully concerned with 9/11 and its repercussions. But their concerns have been amplified by a national anger designed to keep outsiders out and Americans in. That kind of thinking is leading to border havoc -- long and costly delays at crossings -- and a steep decline for Canadian business.
The Globe and Mail reports that the new passport rule, enacted June 1, is keeping Americans out of our great country. In fact, according to Statistics Canada, travel to Canada from the United States in June has sunk to its lowest number since the agency started tracking cross border travel in 1972. Last year, Americans accounted for about 70 per cent of Canada's $75-billion tourism industry. The problem is this: only 30% of the American citizenry have passports.
The largest undefended border is now so defended that it saddens the heart. Drones fly south of Saskatchewan. If you happen to be drinking a Tim Horton's coffee as you cross the border into the US, you best declare it as a food item. Forget cheerful memories conjured up by Queenston/Lewiston or Buffalo/Fort Erie. The lovely flow of people and goods has come to a halt, as if Queenston/Lewiston is about to be returned to its 1812 standing.
This is not good news for wee little Canada or the hermetically sealed United States of America. However, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano, the former Governor of Arizona, has said repeatedly that the northern border must be brought in line with the southern Mexican border. According to The Economist, Napolitano told reporters she wanted to “change the culture” along the 8,900km border. So she wants a real border despite the $1.8 billion worth of daily trade crossing the border. Napolitano talks heat-detecting sensors, surveillance drones and cameras along the the St. Clair River.
Buy American. Erect a big wall on both borders. Treat 'em the same and show 'em there's a new sheriff in town. Big. Tough. And oh so out of of touch with the reality that is 2009. Rather than partnering with Canada to encourage trade and tourism, the US has decided to go it alone and has essentially isolated itself, hoping that money just keeps pouring in from China et al. But we have only to look at other countries and unions, such as the EU, which are designed to foster a free flow of goods and people from countries with different languages and customs. What they share is a strong belief in progress.
Earlier, I was hopeful that Janet Napolitano might change her thinking about our border, but this issue seems to be much bigger than Ms. Napolitano. She merely echoes a chorus from the culture of Lou Dobbs. It is a sad inward looking United States whose people don't get out much. Then again, when only 30% of the population own a passport, you aren't going anywhere!
Canada better start beefing up its relationships with Europe and Asia because our biggest trading partner is making it increasingly hard to play ball. The Americans are rightfully concerned with their rising unemployment. The Americans are rightfully concerned with 9/11 and its repercussions. But their concerns have been amplified by a national anger designed to keep outsiders out and Americans in. That kind of thinking is leading to border havoc -- long and costly delays at crossings -- and a steep decline for Canadian business.
The Globe and Mail reports that the new passport rule, enacted June 1, is keeping Americans out of our great country. In fact, according to Statistics Canada, travel to Canada from the United States in June has sunk to its lowest number since the agency started tracking cross border travel in 1972. Last year, Americans accounted for about 70 per cent of Canada's $75-billion tourism industry. The problem is this: only 30% of the American citizenry have passports.
The largest undefended border is now so defended that it saddens the heart. Drones fly south of Saskatchewan. If you happen to be drinking a Tim Horton's coffee as you cross the border into the US, you best declare it as a food item. Forget cheerful memories conjured up by Queenston/Lewiston or Buffalo/Fort Erie. The lovely flow of people and goods has come to a halt, as if Queenston/Lewiston is about to be returned to its 1812 standing.
This is not good news for wee little Canada or the hermetically sealed United States of America. However, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano, the former Governor of Arizona, has said repeatedly that the northern border must be brought in line with the southern Mexican border. According to The Economist, Napolitano told reporters she wanted to “change the culture” along the 8,900km border. So she wants a real border despite the $1.8 billion worth of daily trade crossing the border. Napolitano talks heat-detecting sensors, surveillance drones and cameras along the the St. Clair River.
Buy American. Erect a big wall on both borders. Treat 'em the same and show 'em there's a new sheriff in town. Big. Tough. And oh so out of of touch with the reality that is 2009. Rather than partnering with Canada to encourage trade and tourism, the US has decided to go it alone and has essentially isolated itself, hoping that money just keeps pouring in from China et al. But we have only to look at other countries and unions, such as the EU, which are designed to foster a free flow of goods and people from countries with different languages and customs. What they share is a strong belief in progress.
Earlier, I was hopeful that Janet Napolitano might change her thinking about our border, but this issue seems to be much bigger than Ms. Napolitano. She merely echoes a chorus from the culture of Lou Dobbs. It is a sad inward looking United States whose people don't get out much. Then again, when only 30% of the population own a passport, you aren't going anywhere!
July 24, 2009
Yes He Can! Obama and Health Care
by Diane Wilson
This week President Obama stood before the American people and made his case for health care. As The Economist reports, reforming health care is perhaps the biggest challenge facing the President. Whether it is or it isn't, this is something that needs doing, as close to 50 million Americans are currently uninsured -- this in a land that is called the wealthiest nation on earth.
In this can-do country that others only seek to emulate, exorbitant health insurance premiums cripple the middle class, and insurance is routinely denied to people with pre-existing conditions. Careers are planned around health benefits. Contract workers lose their jobs, their homes and their health insurance. President Obama pointed out, "If we do not act, 14,000 Americans will continue to lose their health insurance every single day.”
There is one single question that most disturbs opponents of the Obama plan: Who will pay for it? In this what's in it for me moment, the government would be hard pressed to proceed with any initiative that betters life for the citizens. Transportation. Public Buildings. The whole purpose of government is to provide services and protect the public good.
Perhaps the issue has been framed so wrong for so long that people just see red at the mention of public health care. It is possible that people just cannot grasp that we are not talking about some vague issue but rather the health of of their fellow countrymen. America depends on its productivity. That said, productivity and health run hand in hand.
President Obama has said that his health care plan will not add to the deficit and that two-thirds of the program could be paid for by trimming the fat on existing programs. But it is the taxation component that has people riled. It will fall on those most able pay -- the wealthiest -- to shoulder the burden of health care through taxes. This horrific information is offset by the fact that Obama is eager to drive costs down. Given that burgeoning American health care costs are not sustainable, Obama's desire to trim costs should appeal to everybody.
Obama's health care plan will not be popular. His opponents will continue to run ads depicting shoddy medical treatment in Canada. The fear factor will not work because Obama currently has people on his side. He needs to grab the legislators and make health care happen now, or he will miss the opportunity to keep American people -- all American people -- well.
This week President Obama stood before the American people and made his case for health care. As The Economist reports, reforming health care is perhaps the biggest challenge facing the President. Whether it is or it isn't, this is something that needs doing, as close to 50 million Americans are currently uninsured -- this in a land that is called the wealthiest nation on earth.
In this can-do country that others only seek to emulate, exorbitant health insurance premiums cripple the middle class, and insurance is routinely denied to people with pre-existing conditions. Careers are planned around health benefits. Contract workers lose their jobs, their homes and their health insurance. President Obama pointed out, "If we do not act, 14,000 Americans will continue to lose their health insurance every single day.”
There is one single question that most disturbs opponents of the Obama plan: Who will pay for it? In this what's in it for me moment, the government would be hard pressed to proceed with any initiative that betters life for the citizens. Transportation. Public Buildings. The whole purpose of government is to provide services and protect the public good.
Perhaps the issue has been framed so wrong for so long that people just see red at the mention of public health care. It is possible that people just cannot grasp that we are not talking about some vague issue but rather the health of of their fellow countrymen. America depends on its productivity. That said, productivity and health run hand in hand.
President Obama has said that his health care plan will not add to the deficit and that two-thirds of the program could be paid for by trimming the fat on existing programs. But it is the taxation component that has people riled. It will fall on those most able pay -- the wealthiest -- to shoulder the burden of health care through taxes. This horrific information is offset by the fact that Obama is eager to drive costs down. Given that burgeoning American health care costs are not sustainable, Obama's desire to trim costs should appeal to everybody.
Obama's health care plan will not be popular. His opponents will continue to run ads depicting shoddy medical treatment in Canada. The fear factor will not work because Obama currently has people on his side. He needs to grab the legislators and make health care happen now, or he will miss the opportunity to keep American people -- all American people -- well.
July 23, 2009
Toronto: A City in Peril
Garbage and Pandemic Planning
by Diane Wilson
Toronto's month long civic workers strike that has crippled garbage collection has its tentacles in more services than you know. It even affects pandemic planning. In today's The Toronto Star, renowned microbiologist Allison McGeer warns that Toronto may suffer more H1N1 deaths because of the civic workers' strike. I will say that again: Toronto may suffer more H1N1 deaths because of the civic workers strike. McGeer is head of infection control at Mount Sinai Hospital and a noted authority on pandemic planning. She was also the voice of reason during the SARS outbreak.
Apparently, there are about 1,800 unionized employees from the Toronto Public Health Unit on strike. These individuals were supposed to be spending the summer planning for the second wave of the H1N1 virus, which is scheduled to hit North America in September. During the summer, pandemic management advice should have been going out to institutions and plans for vaccination clinics should have been made.
McGeer's comments are in line with the thinking of the World Health Organization, which has declared a level 6 pandemic -- news that should not have been taken lightly. We are told to wash our hands and all that to prevent the spread of germs. But wouldn't our city be cleaner if we took away these towering hills of aging garbage? I worry about the spread of disease through vermin when you have so much uncollected garbage sitting for weeks on end in our neighbourhoods.
Okay, health's not your thing. How about a sagging economy? When the world is sputtering in a global recession and travel dollars are being squeezed like never before, isn't it a crying shame that Toronto has turned off the lights? The ferries to the island are on strike, leaving places like Centreville closed. Public pools are closed. Builders have been unable to collect building permits and have had to lay off employees. Day camps are closed.
Toronto is a city of contradictions. Torontonians are paying five cents a bag at all stores. The idea was that we would use our cloth sacks to bring home the goods and then we would compost and recycle. We are a noble lot of foolish people! We go to all this trouble and expense and now the strike has us throwing all our waste -- compost and not -- into monstrously large green plastic garbage bags, which are tossed next to our neighbours to rot for weeks on end.
Few of us fully understand the reasons these city workers went out on strike, although I bet some of the reasons are very good. Unfortunately, nothing can top the urgency and importance of a global pandemic and a global recession. We have precious few days to get down to serious planning and confront a future in which sick days will be so consumed that prized sick banks will vanish. This strike has run its course. It is time for the mayor and the premier to lead.
by Diane Wilson
Toronto's month long civic workers strike that has crippled garbage collection has its tentacles in more services than you know. It even affects pandemic planning. In today's The Toronto Star, renowned microbiologist Allison McGeer warns that Toronto may suffer more H1N1 deaths because of the civic workers' strike. I will say that again: Toronto may suffer more H1N1 deaths because of the civic workers strike. McGeer is head of infection control at Mount Sinai Hospital and a noted authority on pandemic planning. She was also the voice of reason during the SARS outbreak.
Apparently, there are about 1,800 unionized employees from the Toronto Public Health Unit on strike. These individuals were supposed to be spending the summer planning for the second wave of the H1N1 virus, which is scheduled to hit North America in September. During the summer, pandemic management advice should have been going out to institutions and plans for vaccination clinics should have been made.
McGeer's comments are in line with the thinking of the World Health Organization, which has declared a level 6 pandemic -- news that should not have been taken lightly. We are told to wash our hands and all that to prevent the spread of germs. But wouldn't our city be cleaner if we took away these towering hills of aging garbage? I worry about the spread of disease through vermin when you have so much uncollected garbage sitting for weeks on end in our neighbourhoods.
Okay, health's not your thing. How about a sagging economy? When the world is sputtering in a global recession and travel dollars are being squeezed like never before, isn't it a crying shame that Toronto has turned off the lights? The ferries to the island are on strike, leaving places like Centreville closed. Public pools are closed. Builders have been unable to collect building permits and have had to lay off employees. Day camps are closed.
Toronto is a city of contradictions. Torontonians are paying five cents a bag at all stores. The idea was that we would use our cloth sacks to bring home the goods and then we would compost and recycle. We are a noble lot of foolish people! We go to all this trouble and expense and now the strike has us throwing all our waste -- compost and not -- into monstrously large green plastic garbage bags, which are tossed next to our neighbours to rot for weeks on end.
Few of us fully understand the reasons these city workers went out on strike, although I bet some of the reasons are very good. Unfortunately, nothing can top the urgency and importance of a global pandemic and a global recession. We have precious few days to get down to serious planning and confront a future in which sick days will be so consumed that prized sick banks will vanish. This strike has run its course. It is time for the mayor and the premier to lead.
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