Arthur Weinreb

Memories of a justice system gone wrong

Last week, Ontario Superior Court Justice David McCombs ordered the taped interview of schoolgirl killer Paul Bernardo released to the public in its entirety.

Bob Rae speaks for “President Obama”?

In a statement last week, Liberal MP Bob Rae showed how desperate the once mighty Natural Governing Party is these days. Rae said that Stephen Harper and the Conservatives are in deep doo-doo if Barack Obama wins the presidency next November because of the NAFTA leak that occurred earlier this year. It was leaked that Obama has no intention of renegotiating NAFTA and only said that he would in attempt to gain votes in states such as Michigan that have lost manufacturing jobs. Rae indicated that a President Obama would not be too pleased with the Conservatives which the former NDP Ontario premier referred to as “a Republican farm team”.

 Toronto “if it only saves one life” crowd rides again

The city of Toronto has passed a bylaw controlling in-ground swimming pools. The new bylaw imposes the toughest standards in North America and will require all new in-ground pools to be fenced in on all four sides. And new fencing that is constructed around existing in-ground swimming pools will likewise be required to be placed around the entire pool. The purpose of course is to prevent people, especially small children from wandering into pools and drowning. Perhaps this bylaw is not all bad. All of the so called legal owners of in-ground swimming pools should consider themselves lucky that the social engineers haven’t passed a bylaw that would make these pools illegal. After all, more people have drowned in these Toronto pools than have been shot to death by legal gun owners. Thank you, City Hall.

“Gun-toting Yanks” not welcome in Toronto

Toronto mayor David Miller announced measures to be taken to keep legally owned guns out of Toronto, last week. The proposal calls for the use of zoning and other bylaws to prevent new gun clubs, firing ranges and firearm manufacturers from opening within city limits. The city also intends to cancel leases that Toronto holds with two gun clubs and it will be illegal for anyone to store firearms anywhere within Toronto’s boundaries. As a justification for these measures, the mayor points to the murder of John O’Keefe a few months ago. O’Keefe was innocently walking by a strip club on Toronto’s main street when he was killed by a disgruntled patron who was trying to take out a bouncer.

Knife crime ignored while Toronto goes after legal gun owners

A week ago, Britain’s second most senior judge called for tougher sentences for knife crimes including that of simply carrying a dangerous blade. Sir Igor Judge said that crimes involving the use of knives were reaching “epidemic proportions” in Britain and that attacks where knives were the weapon of choice “have recently escalated”. According to figures from the Home Office for 2006, of 1,226 young people (under the age of 18) that were found guilty of carrying a knife, only 72 of them served any jail time.

Carbon taxes – even Jack Layton gets it

Last Thursday, NDP leader Jack Layton spoke at a fundraiser for an Ottawa homeless shelter. Layton took the opportunity to slam Stéphane Dion and the Liberals for their election plank of imposing carbon taxes on Canadians. The socialist greenie incurred the wrath of his global warming co-religionists when he spoke out against taxing all Canadians in order to save the planet.

A perfect example of a government in action

An interesting article appeared earlier this week in the National Post about the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. Dr. Michael Pilon, a retired army major, has been trying to get the federal government to do something to protect the integrity of the monument. Pilon was the man who filmed a young person urinating on the Tomb on Canada Day two years ago. That incident caused an uproar throughout the country. Pilon has noted that many people use the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier as a bench and he’s found people fast asleep on the grave. One problem is that there is little signage and poor demarcation of what exactly the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier is.

Dion misreads the public

Liberal leader Stéphane Dion finally announced to no one’s surprise that a carbon tax will be a central part of the party’s platform during the next election campaign. Taxes will rise on such products as home heating oil (but not gasoline) to discourage Canadians from emitting carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, not to mention discouraging them from heating their homes.

National security – it’s now a private matter

Recently facts began to emerge about the former girlfriend of Foreign Affairs Minister, Maxime Bernier. It has now come to light that 38-year-old Julie Couillard was associated with members of biker gangs.

What can be done about the 41,000 missing deportees?

In a word, nothing.

Eco-anxiety – a condition whose time has come

A recent Harris/Decima poll asked Canadians how they felt about the environment. The poll relied on respondents completing online questionnaires that may have resulted in responses different than if it was conducted by the usual telephone polling. The pollster received responses from 10,000 Canadians. Over three quarters (76 per cent) of those who filled in the questionnaire believe that the environment is not simply a fad and will be a dominant issue for years to come.

The TTC is not an essential service

At some point, Toronto City Council will debate a motion to request that the provincial government declare Toronto’s transit system an essential service. The introduction of the motion follows the strike that didn’t materialize after a last minute tentative agreement that was reached and then the walkout with no notice when the employees failed to ratify it.

The “why bother” society

Earlier this month, a British think tank, Reform, released a report entitled, “Shifting the unequal state: From public apathy to personal capability”. Reform describes itself on its website as “…an independent, charitable, non-party think tank whose mission is to set out a better way to deliver public services and economic prosperity.”

TTC union boss deserves a medal

And undoubtedly Bob Kinnear will get one!

The Liberals – caught between a rock and a hard place

British peer Lord Desai was recently quoted as saying of his prime minister, “Gordon Brown was put on earth to remind people how good Tony Blair was”. The time will shortly come, if it is not already here that the same thing will be said of Liberal leader Stéphane Dion. He is well on the way to making Paul Martin, known not only in Canada but on the world stage as “Prime Minister Dithers”, look decisive.

Toronto – was there ever a possibility of a transit strike?

Probably not. Last week, 640 am talk show host John Oakley opined in the National Post that there would not be a transit strike this week. According to Oakley, the union would threaten a strike until Sunday at which point a deal would be reached and Mayor David Miller would breeze in from China and play the role of the superhero.

Dalton: he truly is the education premier

As a result of a financial shortfall, the Toronto District School Board (TDSB) has voted to close 39 school swimming pools by 2009.

Using universal health care as a weapon

A couple of weeks ago a serious car accident took place on Highway 401 in the Toronto area. A speeding van containing seven people lost control and flipped over. The driver was subsequently charged with criminal negligence causing bodily harm.

The Liberals – they don’t even pretend anymore

It has never been a secret that the Liberal Party of Canada is all about power. It is often said that the Liberals only have two core principles - they believe in God and they believe that God is a Liberal. And nobody is really sure about the first one.

A further attack on property rights

Ontario Liberal MPP Mike Colle is introducing a private member’s bill entitled the “Unlawful Firearms in Vehicles Act”. The bill provides for lengthy license suspensions for drivers of vehicles in which a gun is found. The proposed legislation also allows police to seize vehicles where there is reason to believe that the vehicle contains a gun. Not surprisingly Colle, who never brags about being an original thinker, has modeled his private member’s bill after Ontario’s street racing legislation.