 By Pepper Parr
September 26th, 2020
BURLINGTON, ON
 A silent protest. There they were.
Set out ever so neatly within Civic Square – more than 230 pairs of shoes.
They were part of a silent protest about what we are not doing about climate change.
It was billed as a climate strike inviting everyone in Burlington to join in demanding that all levels of government act immediately on the urgent climate crisis.
The social distancing rules had to be respected. How do you do that?
The people who organized the event identified two places where the shoes could be dropped off. The Rolling Horse Community Cycle in Aldershot and a private home in Millcroft.
Participants were invited to insert a note inside their shoes to convey their message about why urgent action on climate change is important to them.
This was a silent protest. There were no opportunities for speeches or public announcements or political leader photo ops.
After the silent protest the shoes were collected and returned to hosts or donated to a local charity that will distribute them to those in need.
Many of the shoes had notes in them – setting out the wish, hope, aspirations and dreams of those who had walked in those shoes earlier. Similar Shoe Strikes were to take in Oakville, Milton and Halton Hills; those situations didn’t work out very well.
Oakville found that their plans were upset with the COVID-19 rules on how many people could gather in a group.
Milton ran into bureaucratic problems – the need for a permit and the need for insurance.
Fridays for Future will be co-coordinating similar Climate Strikes throughout Canada. Locally, organizers come from a cross-section of groups: Burlington Biodiversity Team, Students for Change Halton, BurlingtonGreen Youth Network, Burlington Citizens Concerned about Climate Change (BC4), and local residents.
By Staff
September 25th, 2020
BURLINGTON, ON
For a small city with eight cannabis retail locations and five applications for a license to operate in Burlington the latest drug bust on the part of the Halton Regional Police is disturbing.
The evidence the police were able to show after a week long investigation in the City of Burlington by the 3 District – Street Crime Unit has led to charges against the following individual:
Rakeem AMOAH (18 years old from Burlington)
• Unauthorized Possession of Prohibited Device
• Possession of a Prohibited Device
• Possession for the Purpose of Selling (3 Counts)
• Possession of Property Obtained by Crime
• Possession of a Controlled Substance (Oxycodone)
• Sell Cannabis
On September 24th 2020, Investigators from the Street Crime Unit and Criminal Investigations Bureau executed a search warrant at a residence in the City of Burlington. As a result; the following items were seized:
• 81 grams of Cannabis
• 71 x 500mg of Edible Gummies
• 1 Oxycodone Tablet
• 2 High Capacity Extended Handgun Magazines
• Various Ammunition
• 3 Digital Scales
• 2 Cellular Telephones
• $14,410 Canadian Currency
• $10,147 American Currency
$2,235 worth of Cannabis and Cannabis Edibles were seized as a result of the search warrant. (Photo attached).
AMOAH was held for a Bail Hearing on September 25th, 2020.
Anyone with information in regards to this investigation is asked to contact Detective Scott Heyerman of the 3 District Street Crime Unit at 905-825-4747 ext. 2342.
Tips can also be submitted anonymously to Crime Stoppers. “See something? Hear something? Know something? Contact Crime Stoppers” at 1-800-222-8477 (TIPS) or through the web at www.haltoncrimestoppers.ca.
By Staff
September 25th, 2020
BURLINGTON, ON
There will be short duration rolling road closures in Burlington from Monday September 28, 2020 at 10 p.m. to Tuesday, September 29, 2020 at 5 a.m.
There will be eight trucks in the convoy – the biggest will weigh 320,000 lbs, the smallest 50,000 lbs.
 Three of the eight trucks in the 8 vehicle convoy. The trucks are taking the load to a ship in Hamilton that will sail to France and offload there.
The job done consists of huge frames with lots of pipes for fuel processing.
Nearly 2 years in the making, from design assistance, route surveys, feasibility studies and a multitude of meetings, finally on Monday evening, September 28th the convoy will start their engines.
More than 70 third party contractors were involved in getting a convoy with varying overall dimensions up to 125’ x 26’ x 24’4” and gross weights from 260,000 to 320,000 lbs, will start out on a journey from Burlington, ON to the Port of Hamilton.
These rolling closures are for a Superload Project move from the Town of Oakville to the Port of Hamilton. There are seven loads moving in convoy with support vehicles including utility trucks and police escorts.
The following roads will see temporary road closures on the night of the move to ensure a safe passage of the convoy, please refer to the attached map:
• Michigan Dr – road closed on both directions from 10:00pm to midnight
• Intersection of Burloak Dr & Great Lakes Blvd / Michigan Drive – road closure in all directions from 10:30pm to midnight
• Burloak Drive between Great Lakes Blvd and North Service Road – northbound direction lanes closed from 10:30pm to midnight. Traffic will use the remaining lanes.
• Intersection of Burloak Drive and North Service Road – road closure in all directions from midnight to 1:00am
• North Service Rd between Burloak Drive and Appleby Line – road closure from midnight to 1:00am
• Intersection of North Service Rd and Appleby Line – road closure in all directions from 1:00am to 1:30am
• North Service Road between Appleby Line and Walkers Line – road closure in all directions from 1:30am to 2:00am
• North Service Road between Walkers Line and Guelph Line – road closure in all directions from 1:30am to 2:00am
• North Service Road between Guelph Line and Brant Street – road closure in all directions from 2:00am to 2:30am
• Intersection of North Service Road and Brant Street – road closure in all directions from 2:30am to 3:00am
• Brant St. from North Service Rd. to Upper Middle Road – northbound lanes closed between 2:30am and 3:30am. Traffic will use the remaining lanes.
• Intersection of Brant Street and Upper Middle Road – road closure in all directions between 3:30am and 3:30am
• Brant Street from Upper Middle Road to Dundas Street -northbound lanes closed between 3:30am and 4:00am. Traffic will use the remaining lanes.
• Intersection of Brant Street and Dundas Street -road closure in all directions from 3:30am to 4:00am
• Dundas Street from Brant Street to Kerns Road -westbound lanes closed from 3:30am to 4:30am
 Eight trucks transporting heavy equipment to a ship in Hamilton. Please note that travel times may vary according with conditions on field. Emergency vehicles passage will always be maintained.
If the move is unable to commence the night of Monday, September 28, the contingency dates for the move through Halton Region are Tuesday, September 29 to Wednesday, September 30, 2020 from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m.
The move is being conducted and managed by Precision Specialized Inc. based out of Burford, Ont.
By Ray Rivers
September 25th, 2020
BURLINGTON, ON
OPINION
Part 2 of a 3 part series:
In 1976 the World Meteorological Organization warned of a very significant warming of global climate. In 1992 the UN held an Earth Summit in Rio in which climate change became the major topic. In 1997 the world agreed on the Kyoto Protocol, under which wealthier nations would commit to measured reductions and poorer nations would receive help to reduce theirs.
So what happened? Well, Bush and Harper pulled out of Kyoto and Trump is pulling out of the Paris agreement, the latest effort at global action. The oil industry, which had been studying and must have known the effects of their products on the earth’s climate since the 50’s, engaged in a massive dis-information campaign to challenge the science around global warming.
 This was the target – how are we doing so far? And the oil and gas sector, and their ideological entourage of right wing politicians, were successful. As late as 2015 less that half of all Americans believed that climate change was a serious problem and a year later they elected a bon fide climate change denier as president. The industry pulled a page out of the tobacco companies playbook for deception, denial and mis-information. Unlike the tobacco giants, however, they have yet to face their day in court.
Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions for the most part are either carbon dioxide (CO2) or methane (natural gas). Methane is a very powerful GHG, upwards of 30 times more effective than CO2, but it is relatively short lived compared to CO2, which can last for hundreds of years.
Methane emissions can be natural as from wetlands, landfill and sewage facilities, melting permafrost, or released as a byproduct of farming from fertilizer or meat production
Methane emissions also come from the extraction, production and transportation of fossil fuels, primarily natural gas. And, along with coal and oil, total fossil fuels make up as much as three quarters of all greenhouse gases (GHG) emitted to the atmosphere. And since the industrial revolution we have increased the carbon in the atmosphere by 30% – an amount which has been increasing just about every year.
 Gov. Gen. Julie Payette delivers the throne speech in the Senate chamber in Ottawa. So what are we doing about this now? On Wednesday the Governor General read a speech from the throne outlining the federal government’s aspirations and plans for legislation they will be introducing. The throne speech is directional, devoid of specific and detailed plans. And this speech for the most part was just a reiteration of last fall’s Liberal election campaign promises, but it made the point that attention to climate change will be one of the four cornerstones of Liberal policy going into the future.
The government promised to create thousands of jobs by retrofitting homes and buildings. It promised to make zero-emissions vehicles and public transit more affordable. It will maintain its carbon pricing policy, subject to a favourable Supreme Court ruling on it’s constitutionality. It will move to exceed its 2030 Paris emission goals. It will make meeting the goal of zero net carbon emissions by 2050 the law of the land.
There was a promise to make Canada a world leader in clean technology by launching a fund to attract new investments in zero-emissions products and cutting corporate taxes in half for those companies. The speech noted that Canada already has the natural resources needed for zero-emissions vehicles and batteries, such as nickel and copper.
A Clean Power Fund will connect surplus clean energy to regions that are transitioning away from coal. And the government will uphold campaign promises to ban single-use plastics by 2021, protect a quarter of Canada’s land and oceans in five years and plant two billion trees by 2029.
Energy was only mentioned twice and the government was almost silent on any goodies for the fossil fuel industry, a marked change from previous years. There was no mention however, that the feds will finally end the subsidies that flow to that sector – something they have been under pressure to do for at least a decade.
Will this be enough when it come to combating Canada’s contribution to climate change? Probably not, but it is the most forward looking set of environmental commitments since former PM Brian Mulroney championed sustainable development back in the late eighties. And unless the NDP or Bloc decide to support the government on the upcoming non-confidence vote we will all be in an election, just as we move into Canada’s second COVID wave.
 Leader of the Opposition in the House of Commons Erin O’Toole Currently COVID quarantined Conservative Leader O’Toole didn’t spell out his objections, other than mentioning his concern with the prospective price tag. And there is no way he can politically support a program which doesn’t promise more oil extraction and pipelines for the west. Much like former PM Harper and leader Scheer, he is captive to the fossil fuel barons and their supporters in Alberta and Saskatchewan.
Trudeau noted that electric vehicles and their batteries will soon be manufactured in Canada, primarily at Ford in Oakville and Windsor, to get drivers out of the gas burners. But the UK is going further, moving to ban the sale of all petroleum powered personal vehicles by 2030. And Norway will be doing that by 2025. Banning the sale of new carbon powered vehicles would be a far more effective policy than even the federally mandated carbon tax.
Absent from Trudeau’s speech was something about the residential and commercial use of fossil fuels in heating and cooking. A ban on sales of gas appliances for new homes and business would have been a measured step to reduce our carbon footprint. And one only hopes that somebody will ban those – so popular they’re out of stock – backyard propane heaters which mostly just heat the outdoors.
It would be fair to say that this throne speech really only addresses the proverbial tip of the fossil fuel iceberg (apologies for that oxymoronic metaphor). But it is a good start and reinforces the results of the last election. Canadians everywhere except the prairies want Canada to move into the post fossil fuel era.
And that is the achilles heel for Mr. O’Toole, the new leader of Conservative party. Despite moving with great speed to modernize existing Tory policy positions, he can’t help but try to keep the separatist Wexit movement from eating up his petro-country base. That political entity has recently rebranded as the Buffalo party, and O’Toole must be praying that like the four legged buffalo they too will almost disappear.
Background links:
How Much Warming – Global Warming – EV’s –
Oil knew about Climate Change – Cows –
Ray Rivers writes frequently on environmental matters
Part 1.
By Scot Stevens
September 23rd, 2020
BURLINGTON, ON
Steve Nash, the Hall of Famer, is now the new head coach of an NBA outfit – the Brooklyn Nets.
During his nineteen-year career, Nash had a reputation for being one of the most fascinating point guards in the business. And now he gets his opportunity to recreate that magic as a coach.
There’s a combined hope that Nash’s arrival will see the duo of Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving continue with the Nets. And if this happens to be the case, it’s worth checking out the odds on basketball whenever the team is in action. Durant missed out for the entire season in 2019/20 due to a ruptured Achilles tendon injury. At the same time, Irving was limited to twenty appearances due to a persistent shoulder problem which required surgery.
Nash knows Durant well, thanks to his previous role as a player development consultant with the Golden State. So, this will stand him in good stead when he gets to work with the team as head coach. The familiarity between the staff and players continues, as Jacque Vaughn, who was leading the Nets when the season ended, will take on the role of lead assistant moving forwards.
The Nets head coach position was always going to attract a lot of suitors, because of the infrastructure and players. Therefore, it will come as no surprise that Sean Marks, the Nets general manager, met with multiple high-quality candidates, and could have made a case for any one of them landing the role. After the talk of Marks being keen on hiring Gregg Popovich, his former boss, colleague, and Spurs coach, came and went, he brought in a former teammate in Nash.
The forty-six-year-old, who hails from Johannesburg, South Africa originally, has the quality which Marks was looking for, and they will serve him well as he leads the Nets through their next era. As a coach, the two-time MVP star is a natural leader, who knows how to communicate effectively and will prove to be a fantastic mentor for the players at his disposal. He also has a high-level of basketball intelligence, which will rub off on those around him. But, most importantly, Nash is known for being a team player. He puts the collective first, and it’s this selfless attitude which is undoubtedly a crucial reason why he got the job.
Jacque Vaughn reverting to his former role as the lead assistant to the Nash as head coach will be a boost to everyone as well. He was in the running to continue as head coach for a while, according to Marks. It will come as no surprise after steering the Nets after the restart, without a lot of top players, to the Eastern Conference’s number seven seed position.
He knows the organization and its values inside out and will help Nash to drive the culture in the right direction.
He’s also an excellent coach on the court, who can enable the development of players.
By Staff
September 23rd, 2020
BURLINGTON, ON
The Regional government has pushed a little harder on the need for people to wear face masks.
On September 16th they approved multiple amendments to the Mandatory Mask By-law, where it is mandatory to wear a face covering or non-medical mask in certain indoor public places across the region.
These amendments were made to provide further clarification and requirements related to age, employees working in designated staff areas and enclosed common areas in apartment/condominium buildings. Amendments to the by-law take effect at 12:01 a.m. on Wednesday, September 23, and remain in effect until November 30, 2020, unless extended by Regional Council.
 Face masks now required in a condo or apartment laundry room. Key amendments to By-law 47-20 include:
• clarification that every person aged five (5) years old or older is required to wear a non-medical mask or face covering in certain indoor public places;
• the requirement that employees working within a designated staff area (not for public access) need to maintain a physical distance of two metres from colleagues; and
• the addition of enclosed common areas of apartment or condominium buildings, including the lobby, elevator, laundry room, meeting rooms or other common use facilities as “public places”.
“Halton Region Public Health continues to urge residents to follow all public health measures and remain vigilant to reduce the severity of a second wave of COVID-19,” said Dr. Hamidah Meghani, Medical Officer of Health. “In addition to wearing a mask in indoor public places, please continue to physically distance, wash your hands often, limit non-essential social gatherings and stay home when you are sick (even with mild symptoms).”
It is important to remember that some individuals are exempt from the by-law. As the by-law continues to be in effect, Halton Region reminds residents to continue being kind and supportive of others in our community who may be exempt. Every person’s situation is different and not all exemptions may be visible. The provision that no person shall be discriminated against for not wearing a non-medical mask or face covering due to an exemption, remains in the by-law.
“Halton Region’s Mandatory Mask By-Law continues to be an important part of our community effort to stop the spread of COVID-19,” said Halton Regional Chair Gary Carr. “These amendments were based on feedback received from the Halton community to ensure there is a consistent by-law in place across the region and further protect each other during the pandemic. Thank you to all residents and businesses who continue to take this pandemic seriously and follow public health direction.”
By Pepper Parr
September 22nd, 2020
BURLINGTON, ON
PART 2 of a SERIES: The first piece in this series of articles on the incredible success the citizens living in the Appleby Village part of the city had when they went up against a developer who had filed an appeal with the Local Planning Act Tribunal (LPAT) .
The first the larger public heard about how things had turned out for the citizens who were opposed to the Appleby Village development was when the Mayor announced during a Council meeting that there was a settlement offer from the developer.
The development project in the east end goes back to 2014 – the developer had a plan that got put on hold when the Region realized that the Storm Water System could not handle the amount of flood waters; that a larger pipe would have to be put in place.
That put the project on hold for two years.
Jeremy Skinner, an east end resident who spends his free time going to community meetings, had become friendly with Ward 5 Councillor Paul Sharman and got into the habit of attending his meetings.
Skinner wondered if there were people in the community who were as curious as he was about how such a development would get past the Planning Department.
 There is a very vibrant community surrounding the site. The area in the center in grey is the land that has undergone significant re-development during the past ten years. The X is where the high rise and town houses are going to be located. The Gazette had been following the story but not as closely as Skinner.
Skinner put together a flyer and dropped them off at homes in the immediate area of the proposed development which at that time was for two Residential Condominium Apartment Towers with one at 12-storeys and the second at 17-storeys. These were subsequently changed to 17-storeys for both towers when the matter got to an appeal application.
The residents who bordered the proposed development of Appleby Village were shocked to receive invitations to attend the initial LPAT Pre-hearing Conference for the First Capital (Appleby) Realty appeal for lack of City decision to amendments to the Official Plan (OP) and the By-law (ZBL). They got the invitation either because their homes were within a boundary set out by the city or because they had attended a meeting and put their names on a sign up sheet.
 Public art is set at the north west corner of the Village. Goats. The Official Plan (OP) and the Zoning Bylaw ( ZBL) for the 6.6-hectare site were defined as a maximum of 12-stories.
Nothing was happening while the Region improved the storm water pipes. That work was completed by the end of 2016.
At about the same time there were rumblings within the development community that the Ontario Municipal Board was going to undergo a significant change. Word at the time was that municipalities were going to have more involvement in the process – that belief supported by the new name. Local Planning Act Tribunal. The LPAT acronym turned out to be very misleading.
The new act came into effect on December 12th. Many developers, believing they could read the tea leaves, filed appeals wanting to be heard under the old OMB rules. First Capital filed their appeal on November 17th, 2017 which meant their appeal would be held under the to-be-replaced OMB rules and procedures. It also meant that the city’s Planning Department was out of the game – the city lawyers now had the file.
By this time Skinner had become quite active in the community and recruited what he called “street captains” people who would distribute another flyer to households.
 The invitation Jeremy Skinner distributed to the neighbourhood. Sixteen people took up the invitation – Skinner now had his community group.
They met on a number of occasions figuring out what their approach should be and what was actually possible. They knew the development wasn’t going to be taken off the table – but believed they could get changes that made it better for everyone in the community.
 It’s an active site with a very good restaurant, a Starbucks, an LCBO, a bank and a supermarket. The first LPAT appeal meeting took place at city hall on May 1st where those seeking Registered Participant status were advised to group themselves with other residents who had common concerns and identify representative speakers who would make statements at the hearing.
That was initiative enough for Skinner to host a neighbourhood meeting on the 26th of June 2018 at Pineland Baptist Church. “At the meeting, we reviewed what was known about the development application, and then considered our response based upon what we believed was possible to win at LPAT and what would be required to do so.
“We decided not to challenge the Developer or the City on matters such as: the number of buildings; building heights; number of residential suites; the number of their guests’ vehicles in underground parking; and impact on traffic for the developer and the City to resolve” said Skinner.
“This was due to the high costs to hire LPAT recognized Subject Matter Experts and suitable Legal representation. Instead, we decided to focus our efforts on documenting our issues of “transition compatibility to our bordering residential neighbourhood properties” and the need to “improve and make safe pedestrian egress to the site”.
“We drafted and ratified a proposal letter complete with eight conditions summarized below which, if satisfied, would result in the community group withdrawing our objection to the proposed development and instead to follow the City’s lead. It was sent to all LPAT parties and the LPAT Case Coordinator on the 8th of July 2018.
 These were the conditions the community took to the developer.
There were numerous meetings with the developer’s architect and senior people at First Capital. The residents knew that the development was eventually going to get approved and that they really didn’t have much clout; the developer wanted to get on with the construction and move the file forward – getting rid of the residents was the price they would have to pay.
At a subsequent LPAT meeting (Preconference Hearing # 2 ) Eileen Costello, a lawyer,with Aird and Berlis, counsel for the developer, advised LPAT that on the 30th of October, 2020 they would be submitting a revised development plan that was being submitted on a Without Prejudice basis and that “discussions have continued with the City”.
Ms. Costello stated that they have looked at the information submitted by the local residents and intend in the future to take a revised proposal out for communication and discussion with the residents.”
What this meant was that the residents had prevailed – the developer was going to go along with much of what the residents had proposed.
 Green = development pedestrian egress & townhouse front yards Now the challenge was to make that point with the city and to get the Planning Department back into the game. They were no longer part of what was happening – the moment the developer filed the LPAT appeal the city’s legal department was in control of the file – not that the city had all that much going for their side of the difference of opinion on the development.
Jeremy Skinner delegated at city hall on a matter that was part of the CLOSED SESSION agenda.
He started out telling the Council members that the day before there had been a ZOOM meeting that his group had been invited to attend. The developer set out the changes they had made.
Those changes were enough for the Appleby Village community group to withdraw their objections.
In a short report on the city web site the scope of the win for the residents is set out:
The settlement between the City and First Capital resolves the issues in dispute between the City and First Capital on the basis that First Capital and the City will seek LPAT approval of a revised development concept for the property. The City and First Capital will request the LPAT withhold a final order approving the development until the City and First Capital are satisfied with technical studies that are required to support the revised development concept.
The revised development concept proposes 368 dwelling units in both apartment and townhouse forms located on a portion of the site of the former Appleby Mall that currently contains a parking area adjacent to existing retail/commercial uses. The revised development concept reduces the building heights of the original proposal from 12 and 17 storeys, down to a 9 storey and two 12 storey buildings that are in compliance with the Official Plan. The revised development concept also: increases setbacks from Pinedale Avenue; reorients and redesigns the buildings to achieve compliance with the City’s Urban Design Guidelines; introduces townhouse units at the base of the buildings; and provides enhanced landscaping, among other things.
The City and First Capital will attend at the LPAT hearing scheduled to commence on November 2, 2020 to seek approval of the Zoning By-law amendment and revised development concept by the LPAT.
End of part 2
Part 1.
By Pepper Parr
September 22, 2020
BURLINGTON, ON
 The flu shot is free – and it doesn’t hurt THAT much. Flu shots – flu shots – not the hoped for COVID-19 vaccine – this is the normal seasonal flu we are to be protected against.
Great – the province has ordered more than 5 million doses and is spending $70 million.
So I can call my doctor’s office and head in for that quick jab in the arm?
How do I do that?
And that’s the rub – there is no protocol in place for all of us to get the flu shot.
Those in long term care homes are first on the list – good.
The seniors are next – so how do we seniors learn where we are supposed to go and when?
Have you noticed that the medical people tend to avoid email – so they will call me?
The pharmacies are said to be given permission to get into the game. That’s being worked out.
The province released step 1 in the six step plan they have to keep us all safe. Meanwhile the increase in people infected rises. No idea what the other five steps in that plan are – many suspect that just what those others steps are has yet to be worked out.
The graphic below is evidence enough – that curve is going in the wrong direction. And we the people are the only ones who can change its direction.
 The slope of the curve is now rising steeper than it was when we had hit a peak.
By George Wolfson
September 23rd, 2020
BURLINGTON, ON
There are very few men who know the elocution. And those who have mastered it perfectly are even fewer.
One thing pleases — you can master this tricky science quickly, and most importantly, you need to do this! It is enough not to delay the transition from theory to practice.
What Are You Doing Wrong?
The overwhelming majority of guys fail at the very first stage of communication with Ukrainian women. And for a long time they are lost in conjectures — why so, and not otherwise. In fact, there are a huge number of reasons.
By the way, finding out which ones can significantly improve the situation. Let’s consider the most common ones:
 The overwhelming majority of guys fail at the very first stage of communication ● Complete lack of experience. Of course, guys who rarely date and communicate with the opposite sex have a much harder time;
● Low self-esteem. Insecure guys are a thousand times more difficult to start a conversation with a strange girl. Doubts and fears overcome them and eventually win;
● Experience of past failures. Young people who have previously experienced problems communicating with the opposite sex are finding it harder and harder to cross this barrier. With each subsequent attempt, they program themselves to fail.
The tips below in the article will help you to improve the situation and learn how to communicate with a girl correctly.
1. First impressions count
If to talk about real communication, then your appearance is the first thing to worry about. Words, gestures, facial expressions and voice timbre — all this will be later, when the girl, after evaluating your appearance, decides to start a dialogue with you. Therefore, this point shouldn’t be ignored in any case.
You should pay attention to:
● presentable appearance;
● clean shoes;
● no bruises or abrasions on the face;
● friendly smile.
2. Topic for conversation
The main secret is to keep the topic of conversation at the same time casual and unhackneyed. Start with what is close to you, because the girl’s tastes and hobbies aren’t yet known to you. Further in the process, you will already be guided by her answers and build a dialogue so that it is as comfortable as possible for the girl. Neutral topics that are best suited for starting a conversation include the following:
● plans for the next weekend;
● pets;
● scope of activity;
● favourite hobby;
● the last book read;
● culinary tastes.
Important: avoid such questions that the girl can answer “Yes” or “No”. Reveal her in the process of conversation!
 You will already be guided by her answers and build a dialogue so that it is as comfortable as possible for the girl. 3. Taboo on monologue
Dialogue should prevail in your communication. If only you speak, your interlocutor will get bored or, even worse, consider you a narcissistic arrogant who isn’t interested in anything other than his own interests. If the monologue comes only from her, she will regard you as an inerudite interlocutor, unable to keep a conversation and a person who simply has nothing to answer.
4. End the conversation on the most interesting point
You shouldn’t wait until all interesting topics are revealed, and in your conversation, a lively dialogue will suddenly be replaced by meaningful awkward pauses. Having finished the conversation without waiting for this terrible moment, you will be able to intrigue your interlocutor and make her look forward to a new meeting.
By Staff
September 22, 2020
BURLINGTON, ON
Residents are invited to take part in the interactive online events and activities during the 11th annual Culture Days.
Culture Days is extending beyond the traditional Culture Days weekend to a more inclusive and interactive four-week schedule of activities. Kicking off Sept. 25 and running until Oct. 25, Culture Days invites everyone to participate in and show appreciation for arts and culture in their own community and nationwide.
 This year’s theme is Unexpected Intersections – encouraging creative and outside-the-box thinking to reveal new avenues of discovery, learning, and expression. In light of the current situation with COVID-19, Culture Days is featuring digital presentations, do-it-yourself activities and self-guided programs.
The Culture Days website showcases thousands of virtual and in-person activities. Visitors can find small-gathering or self-guided events near them, while going digital allows participants to virtually cross the country and discover live-streamed performances and other online presentations.
You can find a Culture Days event HERE
About Culture Days
Culture Days has become the largest cultural event in Canada, attracting an estimated 2.5 million annual attendees to thousands of free activities and performances hosted by artists, cultural organizations and municipalities in hundreds of communities across Canada.
By Pepper Parr
September 22nd, 2020
BURLINGTON, ON
We are going to hear a lot about the 2026 Commonwealth Games and the bid Hamilton is making to have them held in that city.
The original Games were held in Hamilton in 1930 – known then as the British Empire Games.
The Empire no longer exists and if the Games do come to Hamilton for 2026 there is no certainty that there will even be a Commonwealth.
But we digress.
Back in May the Commonwealth Games Federation asked the Hamilton contingent to consider a bid for 2026 because it likely wouldn’t be challenged.
 That got the Hamilton people changing gears and getting really serious – even though the number to pull this off is set at $1.4 BILLION – much of which would come from the federal and provincial levels.
Mayor Meed Ward is meeting with top level lawyers at Gowlings in Hamilton where she will chat with the Paletta people about how Burlington can be part of the pitch that is being made to get the games to Hamilton for 2026. No word on whether this is to be a virtual meeting or in the Gowling Board room that is big enough to let everyone sit six feet apart.
 Bronte Creek Meadows: Zoned as Employment – would an Olympic Village qualify? The Paletta’s have significant property interests in Burlington – some of which are zoned as Employment Lands – what if there were a Games Village on the Meadows on Upper Middle Road where it turns into Burloak.
Bronte Park is right across the street – can you see the picture that is developing?
The Mayor will be meeting with Louis Frapporti, Managing Partner at Gowlings and a huge believer in all things Hamilton.
It will be interesting to hear what the Mayor has to say at the September 28th City Council meeting.
Now if the Mayor would get into the habit of holding regular media events we could put the question to her.
By Staff
September 22, 2020
BURLINGTON, ON
Wrong building, wrong place and miles outside the Official Plan and zoning for the property.
The development was to be located on the west side of Guelph line just south of New Street.
The Staff recommendation was to refuse the application for official plan and zoning by-law amendments submitted by Weston Consulting, on behalf of Valour Capital Inc. for the development of a 13-storey residential building on the property located at 420 Guelph Line.
CARRIED
Council debated this one for more than an hour and urged the developer to do a makeover and perhaps work with an abutting property owner.
The immediate area already has several development applications in the works – five years from now you will probably not recognize the area.
 The developer was asking for too much and the neighbours didn’t like it.
By Staff
September 21st, 2020
BURLINGTON, ON
Isn’t there some kind of limit?
Is this what the city bought into when it approved having cannabis retail locations in the city? We could have said no.
The Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO) has received an application for a 15th cannabis retail store in Burlington called Verde Luv Inc. The proposed location at 1900 Walkers Line, Unit 7 is now up for public comment.
 People lined up outside a cannabis store in Burlington. This application does not meet the City of Burlington Council approved guidelines. A previous application, currently under review by the AGCO, for a 14th cannabis retail store in Burlington has a proposed location at 3505 Upper Middle Rd., Unit D003 and is within 500m of this applicant’s location. This is “clustering” which is discouraged; each applicant should propose a location that is at least more than 500m from another cannabis retail store in Burlington.
Written comments about the proposed location will be received by the AGCO until Sunday, Oct. 4, 2020 and may be submitted online at www.agco.ca/iAGCO. The AGCO will accept submissions from:
• A resident of the municipality in which the proposed store is located
• The municipality representing the area in which the proposed store is located and/or its upper-tier municipality.
Comments submitted to the AGCO should relate to the following matters of public interest:
• Protecting public health and safety
• Protecting youth and restricting their access to cannabis
• Preventing illicit activities in relation to cannabis
After Oct. 4, the AGCO will consider all written comments and available information to decide whether the application for the proposed store location will be approved.
Currently there are eight licensed cannabis retail stores in Burlington, including three approved since the ACGO moved to an open licensing system for cannabis retail store applications earlier this year. The eight stores include:
• Relm Cannabis Co. 4031 Fairview St. Suite 103
• Corner Cannabis 3007 New St.
• The Hunny Pot Cannabis Co. 1505 Guelph Line, Unit 3-4
• Friendly Stranger Plains Road 1025 and 1059 Plains Rd. E., Unit 3
• Pioneer Cannabis Co. 1200 Brant St., Unit B-004
• mihi 3500 Dundas St., Unit A1B
• Canna Cabana Burlington 2400 Guelph Line, Unit 2
• Welcome Cannabis 1401 Plains Rd., Unit 5
Six additional cannabis retail stores are under review by the AGCO and one is out for comment, including this one.
By Staff
September 21st, 2020
BURLINGTON, ON
A Pre-Application Community Meeting will take place this evening between 7 p.m. and 9:30 p.m.
Millcroft Greens is hosting a virtual consultation meeting this evening to discuss a proposal to redevelop portions of the Millcroft Golf Course. The owners are proposing to develop five (5) parcels of land for residential uses. The intention is to also make design improvements to the existing course layout while retaining an 18-hole golf course.
 Current golf course layout.
 Proposed golf course layout.
The meeting will have an interactive format with live questions and answers.
Telephone and video-conferencing participation options will be available. Millcroft Greens is working with representatives of residents’ groups (Millcroft Against Development and We Love Millcroft), city staff, the Mayor and Council to design the format of the meeting.
This consultation meeting is the first step in a comprehensive review of the draft proposal. The purpose of the consultation meeting is for Millcroft Greens to address key questions and obtain community feedback prior to the submission of any development applications.
The City will assist with hosting the meeting in a virtual capacity and the meeting will be hosted and broadcast live from Council Chambers. Councillor Bentivegna and Mayor Meed Ward will be in attendance to listen to the discussion and hear from residents, they also welcome any resident feedback.
Participate On-Line via Zoom: https://zoom.us/j/94419494959
Webinar ID: 944 1949 4959 (internet connection required – Zoom User Guide available at www.burlington.ca/millcroftgreens)
Participate by Telephone: 1-647-374-4685 (audio only)
By Staff
September 21st, 2020
BURLINGTON, ON’
Halton Police are advising the public that there is an increase in bicycle thefts in the City of Burlington over the past few months.
Theft of bicycles continues to be a concern in Burlington and Halton Police would like to remind the public to ensure their bicycles are locked up when they are left unattended.
Police also encourage citizens to report any suspicious persons.
Locations that have been targeted by bike thieves:
• Burlington GO Stations
• Shopping Centers and Plazas
Police are reminding the public of the following prevention tips:
 A video of what police believe was of a person suspected of stealing bicycles in Burlington at the YMCA • Ensure your unattended bicycle is locked up to an immovable object.
• If possible, select a bike rack with at least two points of contact in order to lock both the frame and wheels..
• Consider removing a tire or seat to discourage would-be-thieves.
• U-locks provide a greater deterrence to theft when compared to cable locks. Consider using (2) locks.
• Lock the bicycle in a well-lit and attended areas whenever possible.
• Ensure your garage door is closed when a bicycle is left inside.
• Document information of the bicycle (have serial number and photo of the bike) to provide to police if required.
• REPORT SUSPICIOUS ACTIVITY TO POLICE IMMEDIATELY.
Halton Police have made a number of arrests after bicycles have been stolen in Burlington over the past few months and will continue to target these crimes of opportunity. Community safety is a shared responsibility. If you see suspicious activity in your neighbourhood, please report it immediately.
Anyone with information in regard to this investigation is asked to contact Detective Constable Matt Spina of the 3 District Criminal Investigations Bureau at 905-825-4747 ext. 2338.
Tips can also be submitted anonymously to Crime Stoppers. “See something? Hear something? Know something? Contact Crime Stoppers” at 1-800-222-8477 (TIPS) or through the web at www.haltoncrimestoppers.ca.
By Staff
September 21st, 2020
BURLINGTON, ON
A Shoe Strike
What is a shoe strike.
First it is taking place on Friday September 25th.
Why?
WHAT: A unique youth organized climate strike inviting everyone in Burlington to join in demanding that all levels of government act immediately on the urgent climate crisis.
HOW: Due to social distancing, the climate strike will be held in a representational manner, with the community invited to share a pair of their SHOES to represent their participation. Shoe Strikes have been effective in several locations and countries around the world. Participants are invited to insert a note inside their shoes to convey their message about why urgent action on climate change is important to them. Youth organizers will summarize the notes and relay them to local political leaders.
NOTE: This will be a silent protest. There will be NO opportunity for speeches or public announcements or political leader photo ops.
 Shoes can be dropped off in advance at: Rolling Horse Community Cycle (650 Plains Rd E #2) & 2466 Newport St. (a house near Headon Forest Dr.) beginning on Tuesday, Sept. 22nd & up until Thursday, Sept 24th. Shoes can also be placed at the shoe strike location (tent. scheduled at Civic Square, City Hall, Brant Street) between 10am and noon on Sept. 25.
WHEN: Friday, Sept. 25 – Shoe drop off from 10am to noon. Silent Shoe Strike display from 12 noon to 2pm. After 2pm shoes will be collected and returned to hosts or donated to a local charity that will distribute them to those in need.
WHO: Similar Shoe Strikes will take place in Oakville, Milton and Halton Hills on the same day, approx. at the same time.
Fridays for Future will be co-ordinating similar Climate Strikes throughout Canada. Locally, organizers come from a cross-section of groups: Burlington Biodiversity Team, Students for Change Halton, BurlingtonGreen Youth Network, Burlington Citizens Concerned about Climate Change (BC4), and local residents.
By Staff
September 21st, 2020
BURLINGTON, ON
Released last month, Always Remembered, is the sixth book about the Expos to be written by Danny Gallagher, a former Sudbury Star sports reporter and Sudbury Shamrocks baseball player, who called the Nickel City home from the mid-1970s to the mid-‘80s.
 “What I wanted to do was keep the Expos legacy alive with this book,” said Gallagher, reached at his residence in Oshawa, Ont.
“Writing about the past allows the fans to experience all of those feelings from the past in the present, now, and hopefully, it contributes in some way to bringing back baseball to Montreal.”
 The 264-page volume is a collection of vignettes, some short and some longer, from throughout the team’s stay in La Metropole du Quebec. Gallagher zeroed in on some of the most well-known names and events in the history of the Expos, as well as part-timers who played significant roles in their own way.
Burlington Centre on the 26th – Gallagher will be on hand from 1:00 to 1:30.
By Pepper Parr
September 20th, 2020
BURLINGTON, ON
They are an 1100 member strong organization that lace up and play the “good old hockey game” on rented ice around the city.
Saturday night was the season opener – it was a lot different than it was last year.
To start – the season at this point is in place for up to Thanksgiving – the COVID infection rate is impacting everything.
Several of the eight divisions got ice time – on ice that wasn’t quite up to the standard most of the players wanted, at least at the Central
 They laced up under street lights and entered the area through different doors – in for those starting – out for those who had played their game. Arena where the players laced up in the dark on plastic chairs set out six feet apart.
A carpet was spread out and there was enough light to get the laces in place.
Many of the players arrived in pickup trucks, got into their shoulder pads, knee pads and jerseys along with the hockey pants and walked over to where the chairs were to lace up their skates.
Players going in to play hockey went in through one set of doors – those who had completed a game came out a different door.
In between the games everything gets wiped down.
The league make up has eight divisions with usually six teams in a division.
Those teams get balanced after 10 games – in a normal season.
COVID normality has changed everything in what is usually a 50 game season.
Scot Cameron who does media for the club, as well as play goalie for one of the teams, was waiting for the ice time his team had been allocated.
 Larry Hallett, goalie for the Black Hawks in the Green Division rolls his equipment out to his vehicle after a 4-0 loss on ice he didn’t think was up to scratch. Larry Hallet, who plays goalie for the Black Hawks in the Green Division, was rolling his pads out to his vehicle and commented on the ice, then ventured into comments on the game he had just played.
“It was 4-0 for the other guys” he said, “the puck seldom left our end of the ice.
“The game was basically over ten minutes after it started – almost every power play resulted in a goal for the other team.”
Larry seemed OK with that. The challenge for these guys was the shape they were in and the length of time since they were last on the ice.
And there is always another game.
By Ray Rivers
September 18th, 2020
MOUNTSBERG, ON
These are scary times especially if you are grandparents. When it comes to educating our youth, no one should doubt that school boards, teachers and maintenance staff are doing the best they can in the circumstances. But then nobody can say the schools are as safe as they could be – or used to be before the pandemic hit us. The circumstances have changed.
Seven months have passed since the schools were shut down as part of the provincial COVID-19 lock-down. The Premier warned us that this was not going away, that we’d have to change how we do things if we are to avoid getting infected. So what about the children? Aside from some widening of the aisles between students’ desks very little seems to have changed.
Yes, there are the masks and the single cohorts and the managed crowd control, coming and going. But the students, for the most part, are still captive and crowded within their inadequately ventilated classroom environment for most of their day – another petrie dish for the virus and another opportunity for viral transmission.
 Leo taking part in a class exercise So when my wife and I had heard that school would be returning pretty much business-as-usual, we reached out to the parents of our youngest grandchildren and offered to help with their children’s grade 2 and 4 French immersion schooling. There are in excess of 20,000 children who receive homeschooling every year in Ontario, so we’d be in good company, we thought.
Fortunately the education ministry had announced that parents could opt out of sending their children back to the classroom and engage in their program of online or distance learning instead. Students would pretty much get their regular course load but learn at home rather than trucking off to school. The Halton Board sent out requests to parents asking them to opt for the option of their choice.
Teachers, apparently some also teaching regular classes, would appear online through the application of Google online conferencing tools, mainly Google Meet and Google Classroom. Teachers use various media to assist in their online teaching and students are even invited to submit contributions, such as, photos.
There are three teaching blocks of 100 minutes each covering the 8:45 am to 3:05 pm day, and duplicating the essence of what would be learned in a regular classroom. Students may even be given homework assignments. And the online platform allows students to see their teacher as well a number of fellow students, making the experience feel a little less remote.
When we undertook to invite the children to our house we expected that we would be heavily involved in preparing classes. Both of us do have some pedagogical training. As it turns out our role is little more than supervision and coaching as the teachers do the heavy lifting of bringing the curriculum to life on the small screen.
How is it going? Well there was some minor stumbling at the beginning, something one should expect with the introduction of this new way of conducting regular classroom instruction. But the students appear to be excited about what they are doing. And the teachers, in our experience, have been wonderful, clearly competent, enthusiastic and responsive to the needs of the students and their coaches.
While being able to conduct regular classes online sounds pretty amazing, the truth is the technology is still not as user friendly as it could be. But the biggest problem is the size of the online classes. There are close to thirty students in each of the children’s classes.
 Bea doing math. It is impossible to practically see all of one’s classmates on a computer screen. And so it is a difficult for the teacher to stay on top of what everyone is doing. And that makes it a huge challenge for effective immersion language training, for example.
Going through the roster of students can take an inordinate amount of time and that can be really boring to those waiting their turn. Students can lose interest and drift off, even with the best of teachers. And that is the big fear – that students will lose interest, shut down, and their performance will reflect that failing.
This is the same problem one sees in over overcrowded regular classrooms only magnified by the remote learning complication. The solution is obvious – hire more teachers for distance learning. In a country where the unemployment rate is currently above 10% and governments are spilling money like rain water, you’d think this was more than possible.
Of course teachers need some training and a program to follow but this is not rocket science – unless they actually are teaching rocket science. And of course experience counts. But our children are the future, why wouldn’t we want to invest more in their education?
Distance Learning –
Online Learning –
 Ray Rivers usually writes about politics and the environment. His grandchildren are doing elementary school as distant learners.
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By Pepper Parr
This year’s theme is Unexpected Intersections – encouraging creative and outside-the-box thinking to reveal new avenues of discovery, learning, and expression. In light of the current situation with COVID-19, Culture Days is featuring digital presentations, do-it-yourself activities and self-guided programs.
That got the Hamilton people changing gears and getting really serious – even though the number to pull this off is set at $1.4 BILLION – much of which would come from the federal and provincial levels.
Shoes can be dropped off in advance at: Rolling Horse Community Cycle (650 Plains Rd E #2) & 2466 Newport St. (a house near Headon Forest Dr.) beginning on Tuesday, Sept. 22nd & up until Thursday, Sept 24th. Shoes can also be placed at the shoe strike location (tent. scheduled at Civic Square, City Hall, Brant Street) between 10am and noon on Sept. 25.
“What I wanted to do was keep the Expos legacy alive with this book,” said Gallagher, reached at his residence in Oshawa, Ont.
The 264-page volume is a collection of vignettes, some short and some longer, from throughout the team’s stay in La Metropole du Quebec. Gallagher zeroed in on some of the most well-known names and events in the history of the Expos, as well as part-timers who played significant roles in their own way.
Ray Rivers usually writes about politics and the environment. His grandchildren are doing elementary school as distant learners.