AXE THROWING
CHILD SAFETY AT PLAY
He was at the very top, a boy, maybe six, perhaps seven years old. His mom, or the person responsible for his safety, was at the bottom, looking up. He seemed unsure of himself.
The boy was at the very top of a play structure, a modern one, by all appearances state of the art. His hesitancy involved coming down a ladder-type feature, with rungs, where a climber could move down or up, depending on which way a child might want to go.
Sometimes the climb up is easier than the climb down because, well, you start low and work yourself high. And you’re not necessarily realizing fully how far up off the ground you might be climbing, what with your eyes being directed upwards, towards the top. But when you’re at the top looking down, you become more fully aware of the drop, and of the reality of elevation, and the further reality of gravity, and what it might do to you if you make some sort of mis-step on the way down, or even before you begin the journey down.
It’s a play structure, though, for heaven’s sake, and so safety was obviously top-of-mind for the people who designed it and manufactured it, not to mention the people who researched it and procured it, in this case on the part of the municipality. And so, as a play structure in a public park, one swarming with kids at times, the assumption is that there is no danger here.
Continue reading “CHILD SAFETY AT PLAY”ISRAEL STRIKES IRAN HARD
I always knew that it was inevitable. But when the Americans told their diplomatic staff in several Middle East countries to pack up and head home on Wednesday, it became imminent.
Israel attacked Iran again, and this time it was for keeps. These two countries have been in a shadow war for decades, and have recently traded blows, right around the time that Israel was putting the boots to all of Iran’s proxy terror groups like Hamas and Hezbollah.
When that it-for-tat business was happening between the two, I took note of the Israeli targets in Iran, and mostly took note of the fact that the Israelis stayed well clear of Iran’s nuclear facilities, something that most international pundits gave Israel credit for, as in credit for showing such remarkable restraint. Those international pundits have a shocking naivety.
Continue reading “ISRAEL STRIKES IRAN HARD”CHOPPING DOWN A CAMERA
We keep putting it back up, but they keep knocking it back down.
A similar start to yesterday’s story, not out of any sense of laziness, but simply a recognition that, well, it would be a hell of a way to start this story as well.
Only this time the players are different.
The we are the City of Toronto, and a concerned neighbourhood group. The they are the people, or maybe just person, who seem intent on committing regular acts of vandalism on city-owned properties and assets. And the it in this case is a traffic camera, specifically a speed-camera, better known as photo radar.
Five times the contractor who supplies and maintains the camera has set it up. And five times somebody has come along and cut it down. You could say this whole thing is a going concern.
Continue reading “CHOPPING DOWN A CAMERA”TOPPLED STATUES AND HISTORICAL ACCURACY
We keep putting him back up, and they keep knocking him back down.
We are the people of Ontario, as represented by the government of Ontario, and as driven by the premier of Ontario, meaning Doug Ford.
They are the people who protest the things that we do, and show their displeasure through paint attacks, graffiti, and pushing things over, even smashing them when possible.
The him is Canada’s first prime minister, Sir John A. Macdonald. Actually not Sir John in the flesh, because he’s long dead, but a bronze statue of him, this one in a prominent position at Queen’s Park, the location of our provincial government.
Continue reading “TOPPLED STATUES AND HISTORICAL ACCURACY”COUNCILLOR ADVOCATES FOR HOME OWNERS
It’s late in the third period and your team is down by three goals. Or it’s the seventh inning, and the boys are down by four, your starter has been knocked out of the game, and your best player swinging the hottest bat was injured back in the third, yet remains in the game, albeit hobbled and a shadow of his regular self.
You’re at a Renfrew Town Council meeting, your eyes are stinging, and you’re questioning all the concepts of good governance you’ve ever learned and experienced. You’re two-and-a-half hours into the meeting, and you’re convinced that if you stay any longer, it may become a police matter, or a health matter, or both.
So you leave the rink. Shut off the television. Gather your belongings and leave.
Continue reading “COUNCILLOR ADVOCATES FOR HOME OWNERS”COMMITTEE COMPOSITION AND ATTENDANCE
Are there attendance requirements for members of municipally-mandated committees?
I understand that people are busy, and I further understand that there ought to be some degree of flexibility when it comes to balancing a person’s personal and occupational life with the requirements of being involved in a committee.
That said, what’s the point of a committee, made up of a number of “civilians,” when half the civilians aren’t present at the meeting?
The last Economic Development Advisory Committee was held a week ago, and had it not been for the presence of town staff and a pair of councillors, the room would have been essentially empty, with only three non-council and non-staff members present. It may be enough for a quorum, but it’s not enough to satisfy the requirements of a mature and responsible advisory committee. And by the way, a quorum is a minimum requirement, and doesn’t in any way convey a sense of responsible government. It simply sets a minimum standard, but is in no way to be confused with effectiveness of purpose. We’re better when we have the whole team on the bench, and weaker when we don’t.
Continue reading “COMMITTEE COMPOSITION AND ATTENDANCE”COUNCILLOR ASKS FOR BAFN REPORT
Props and bravo to John McDonald.
The Renfrew councillor introduced a motion whereby town staff is to identify and and provide all relevant documentation outlining the relationship existing between the Town of Renfrew and the Bonnechere Algonquin First Nation, especially as it pertains to the BAFN presence at Ma-Te-Way.
This is one of two items I requested information on last October, but was told to go stuff myself by Clerk Carolynn Errett and former Acting CAO Kelly Latendresse on the grounds that the request was “political” in nature. And staff doesn’t do political. They told me to direct the question to Council instead. Which was really cool because that was the very body that refused to even acknowledge my request in the first place, much less respond to it.
But now, after eight months, a real live councillor, John McDonald, is going to take a crack at it.
Continue reading “COUNCILLOR ASKS FOR BAFN REPORT”STATIONWALA RELEASES RVH REPORT
Corporate expense accounts have been around for as long as corporations have been around, so it’s no big surprise that top executives at Renfrew Victoria Hospital — RVH — had expense accounts. And as far as corporate accounts go, there’s always been the requirement that receipts be gathered and tendered to back up any expense claims. It’s simply just a part of good corporate governance.
Often, senior officers in a corporation or other high-level institutions need to get out of their offices and connect with other people in the interests of, and often at the behest of, the corporation that they represent. There’s absolutely nothing unusual about that practice, and you can’t expect people to pay out-of-pocket for expenses incurred in representing the corporation. But again, just keep those receipts.
Because corporate credit cards and the honour system are a really poor match.
Continue reading “STATIONWALA RELEASES RVH REPORT”RUNAWAY WATER BILL
Generally speaking, the movement of fluids throughout a home can be heard by occupants of the home, whether it be forced air from the furnace, the air conditioner kicking out comfort on a blazing hot day, or water moving through the pipes doing the chores that water does.
Watering the lawn with a sprinkler, watering the plants and shrubs and flowers, and filling the pool are all uses of water where the occupants of the home can hear, as much as see. If the hose is being used outside, you can hear the water moving under pressure from the inside.
Doing the dishes by hand, or using a dishwasher also produces the sounds of fluids in motion, again in this case water. Taking a shower, drawing a bath, shaving, these all require water, and therefore also make enough sound to be noticeable to anyone in the home.
Either the flushing of a toilet, or a toilet that doesn’t complete the flushing cycle all make water-in-motion noises. So too does every faucet in the house when in use.
My point here is that we generally have a pretty good idea when our water usage is in action, mostly because we can hear it as much as we can see it. So if the water was running, from whatever source, for six consecutive days without reprieve, then we’d have some notice of it, with our ears as much as our eyes.
Continue reading “RUNAWAY WATER BILL”
