Mar 21
Ontario has been going through a bit of a tomato madness the past few weeks. It all got started when Heinz shut down their Leamington, Ontario plant. The shutdown was part of a manufacturing industry exodus from the province, a trend many argue is in part due to Ontario’s outrageously high electricity costs. Each shut-down …
Mar 20
Last July an officer in the Toronto Police Service shot and killed 44-year-old South Sudanese immigrant Andrew Loku inside of his apartment building. A few days later a group of anti-cop protestors organized a protest under the banner of #BlackLivesMatter Toronto. The protesters gathered and blocked the intersection of Allen Road at Eglinton Avenue interrupting the journies …
Feb 24
I woke up on Saturday morning to read a shocking article about Buzzfeed Canada’s Senior Writer Scaachi Koul. I wasn’t upset with Buzzfeed’s intention to hire a diversity of writers; variety is a good thing, particularly when it comes to words and ideas. There’s also nothing illegal about running ethically managed affirmative action plan. If …
Jan 23
Courtroom 125 was quickly packed when the doors opened on Friday morning. Gregory Alan Elliott’s family and friends congregated towards the right side of the gallery, Stephanie Guthrie and her supporters on the left, and journalists dotted in-between. The room was overflowing by the time the judge walked in, he first ordered extra chairs and …
Sep 11
Last Friday was the one-thousand and eighteenth day since Gregory Alan Elliott was arrested and charged for alleged criminal harassment of three politically connected social justice activists. The arrest caused Elliott to lose his job after over a decade of employment as a graphic artist with the City of Mississauga. Elliott’s bail terms have restricted him …
Aug 06
[Note: I’m not a lawyer. I’ve done my best to understand yesterday’s hearing, but it’s possible there are complexities in the law that I don’t fully understand- if so, I openly welcome corrections] Wednesday morning marked a new and unexpected chapter in the prolonged misadventures of Gregory Alan Elliott’s trial. Elliott was charged with criminal …
Oct 22
I had a long night on Monday working early into Tuesday morning finishing off my story analysing Toronto city councillor’s expense reports. It was nearly daybreak when I got into bed- exhausted, I slept like a log. I was awakened by someone telling me the police were at the front door- quickly throwing on my …
Aug 07
Introduction: In November 2012 a group of leaders from NGOs, unions, academia, first nations and militant anarchist groups converged for a conference at the University of Toronto. Their goal was to come up with a strategy how to interfere with Enbridge’s plan to reverse their Line 9 pipeline- limiting Canada’s ability to export our oil …
Jul 08
The Ontario Trillium Foundation is a provincial government agency whose purpose is to build “healthy and vibrant communities” by “strengthening the capacity of the voluntary sector”. Causes they support include arts & culture, environment, social services and recreation. Trillium promote themselves on their website as “Ontario’s leading grant-maker”. Trillium grant recipients get more than just …
Jun 11
One of Toronto’s most entertaining political battles over the past few months has been between radical feminists and ‘men’s rights’ campaigners. Both sides are saddled with angry extremists, so their intolerance for each other has made for some spectacular viewing. The situation leaves many people wondering how far each side is willing to go to take …