 By Staff
August 30, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
The Rocca Sisters, who promote themselves as the #3 real estate agent in Canada, report that “The most significant news in all of our trading areas is that sales are way down. Burlington is no exception. With sales down over 17%, prices up by over 22% and days on market down by 30% Burlington can only be described as incredibly unbalanced in favour of the seller.
 Courtesy Rocca Sisters – #3 Real Estate agents in Canada They are working with “several buyers that are looking in the under $600,000 price range for a detached home and it feels like we are looking for a needle in a haystack. We don’t see this changing very much going into the fall. Ideally more sellers will look to the more affordable areas such as Stoney Creek, Grimsby, Waterdown, Ancaster and Hamilton and cash in on the unprecedented increases in values we have seen over the past year.”
Residential selling prices are at a level most analysts are saying is not sustainable – but prices have been holding for longer than most experts expected.
 Upgrades being done to the mall at Appleby Line, north of Upper Middle Road. Meanwhile upgrading of building at two malls in Burlington indicate that the commercial sector is expecting stronger demand for space. The mall in the centre – north part of the city where the CinePlex movie theatre is located is undergoing a significant change; a second level being added.
 Mall where CinePlex movie theatre is located is undergoing an upgrade. In the north western side of the city another mall is adding a level.
These properties are owned by large mall operators who have considerable depth on the market research side.
 Th hole in the ground that will grow into a 22 storey condominium – described at the city’s legacy site when it was approved in 1985  That is a lot of re-bar – part of the Paradigm project on Fairview next to the Burlington GO station – project will consist of five towers when completed. Commercially there are four large developments that are at the close to completion and just past the hole in the ground stage. The additions to the Joseph Brant Hospital are at the point where the building will be “closed in” within months; the ADI Develoment Group is adding to the height of their condominium project on Dundas at Sutton; Bridgewater, the 22 storey condominium on the south side of Lakeshore Road at Elizabeth is still at the big hole in the ground stage and the Paradigm, the Molinaro project on Fairview next to the Burlington GO station is at the fifth storey level on the west tower.
By Pepper Parr
August 30th, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
The heat is clearly on – staff in the city’s transportation department have taken to thanking people who have used various means of communication to let the city know how they feel about the “road diet” New Street has been put on while the city experiments with dedicated lanes for bicycles on the north and south side of the street between Guelph Line and Walkers Line.
The decision to spend the $250,000 on the pilot project was made by city council July 18th.
It is a change – and people don’t really like change – particularly in Burlington.
 Director of Transportation Vito Tolone is a well informed on transportation matters. What he could not be expected to know was how the public was going to react to the idea of putting dedicated bicycle lanes on New Street. Members of council are supposed to know what their constituents think. In a media release the city said they wanted to thank the hundreds of people who have taken time to comment about the New Street road diet one-year pilot program and assure people that their comments are part of the findings of the pilot.
The Gazette recorded more than 60 comments to which we add the 21 that we did not publish due to the offensive language; some people got very exercised over this one.
It is unusual for city hall to put out a media release – before a project has had a chance to create some data. While there will be data – right now there is just a lot of noise.
Vito Tolone, director of transportation for the city said: “We are hearing what residents have to say, responding to a variety of questions and reading and collecting each comment to include in our pilot findings.” He adds that the “road diet is a one-year pilot program that aims to create a complete street that allows for multiple forms of transportation and enhances the safety of the road for motorists, cyclists and pedestrians.
“Through the city’s strategic plan process, we heard from residents who told us they would like safer places to cycle and more transportation choices when it comes to getting around their city,” said Tolone. “Throughout the one-year pilot, the city is using technology to track all forms of transportation along this stretch of New Street, including cyclists, pedestrians, buses and cars. We will also be collecting data on the average speed travelled and the number of collisions to help us understand how the road is being used.”
 Six of the seven voted for the New Street Road diet – Councillor Sharman voted against the pilot project. Tolone said his department is going to collect “four seasons of data in 2017”; one can only hope that with the uproar, and this is certainly an uproar, that the city will not wait until it has all the data in hand – regular reporting to the public goes a long way to meeting that “transparency and accountability line” that the city trots out regularly.
The pilot looked like a reasonable approach – what neither council nor staff was prepared for was the reaction – most of it before the pilot really had a chance to start. Council voted 6-1 for this (Sharman voted against it – what does he know that the other six don’t know).
 Existing lane configuration on the left – the road diet on the right. New Street is due to get a new asphalt surface in 2017 – council thought this was a good time to do a pilot project before they began laying down the new surface, when the section of New Street between Guelph Line and Walkers Line is scheduled to be resurfaced.
Conducting the pilot project before this work takes place means there will be no added cost to either return the road to its current setup if the pilot is not successful, or to keep the new bike lanes if the pilot program is adopted.
The pilot project now has the distinction of having a page of its own on the city web site. For more information about the New Street road diet, including responses to some of the most frequently asked questions from the community about the pilot, please visit www.burlington.ca/newstreetdiet.
 By Staff
August 30th, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
The Intercounty Baseball League today announced the schedule for the 2016 championship final series between the defending champion Barrie Baycats and Toronto Maple Leafs. Barrie finished the regular season in third place while Toronto finished fifth.
Barrie won the season series between the two teams, 5-1.
 IBL CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES FOR THE DOMINICO TROPHY (Best of Seven Series)
GAME 1 – Tuesday August 30 at Barrie 7:30 pm
GAME 2 – Wednesday August 31 at Toronto 7:30 pm
GAME 3 – Saturday September 3 at Barrie 7 pm
GAME 4 – Sunday September 4 at Toronto 2 pm
GAME 5 – Tuesday September 6 at Barrie 7:30 pm
* GAME 6 – Wednesday September 7 at Toronto 7:30 pm
* GAME 7 – Thursday September 8 at Barrie 7:30 pm*
* If necessary
Don’t expect the Barrie Baycats to take the championship for the third consecutive year – they are up against the Toronto Maple Leafs – THE scrappiest team in the league this year. They do not go down easily.
 By Pepper Parr
August 30, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
Teresa’s uniquely sculptural fine art stained glass is an artistic trademark featuring multi layers of glass panels with spun wire. Her use of a refined colour pallet creates a mood and atmosphere that is distinctive to Teresa, making her one of Canada’s most notable emerging stained glass artists whose work is in a number of prominent homes in the area.
 Teresa Seaton and Slam poet Tomy Bewick joined talents to do a remarkably moving installation at the third annual No Vacancy event last year. Seaton is one of 17 artists who will set up her installation for the 7:00 pm opening of the Fourth Annual No Vacancy event taking place on Friday. September 16th at the Art Gallery of Burlington. Each year the No Vacancy events are given a unique name – this year, their fourth they are calling the collection of installation MoonGlade.
Each artist determine how the want to use there art to create a space that you walk into – one doesn’t just look at art hung on a wall – you interact with it.
Jim Riley, an installation artist in hiw one right, as a “three dimensional art form that is often specifically designed to use the walls, floor and space of a room as a sculptural artwork itself. The artist uses objects, video, sound or other material to create the artwork. The audience enters in to the space and becomes part of the actual artwork as opposed to passively looking at one sculpture, one painting one video or other singular artwork.”
 Teresa Seaton was awarded a commission by the city of Burlington to create a piece of public art for ward 3. Seaton graduated from York University, BFA in drawing and sculpture, then completed her Graphic Design Diploma at Sheridan College leading her to successful career as Senior Designer and Creative Director with clients from Toronto to New York.
 Teresa chose stained glass to express her artistic voice in 2001. Working full time as a stained glass Artist she opened the doors of Teresa Seaton Studio & Gallery in 2013. Teresa’s gallery features a large selection of her latest works and now exhibits the work of established and emerging Canadian artists.
Last year Seaton worked with Slam poet Tomy Bewick; together they used his poem and Seaton’s stained glass feathers to tell a unique story.
Their performance was close to the best, if not the best installation last year.
Friday, September 17th, 7:00 pm to 11 pm in Brock Park, behind the Art Gallery of Burlington and inside the art gallery as well.
Burlington’s Member of Parliament Karina Gould will be leading a public consultation on Electoral Reform at the Mainway Recreation centre in the auditorium on Saturday September 10th at 12:30.
She wants to hear what her community has to say about the changes Justin Trudeau promised to deliver in the way of electoral reform. The Gazette is publishing a three part series on what the election reform options are.
This is the first of the three parts.
 By Jay Fallis
August 30th, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
If you have been following politics recently you may know that there is a debate currently waging over what type of electoral system Canada should use for the next election. As someone who studied electoral reform I thought it may be valuable to give readers a taste of why our current First Past the Post system needs to be changed. Although there are advantages to First Past the Post: strong regional representation, a simple ballot, an efficient counting method; there are many significant disadvantages.
First and foremost, the number of voters that are represented by FPTP is far below that of the average system. In elections past, support from just over a third of the country has given a party a mandate with 100% of the power. In fact, in the most recent election, despite a landslide victory, the Liberal Party only amassed approximately 39.5% of support from the electorate according to Elections Canada. That means that essentially 60.5% of Canadian voters in 2015 had no say in how their country is going to be governed over the next term.
 There is seldom a lack of candidates – deciding how we choose the winner is what the public has been asked to voice their views on. This problem is also evident in riding results. Each federal election, there are dozens of cases where an individual candidate will win with 30% to 35% support, leaving the remainder of the voters out to dry. In the 2015 election, there were several instances where this occurred, most notably in the riding of Saint-Hyacinthe—Bagot, Quebec. According to Elections Canada, approximately, 71.4% of those who voted in that riding had no say in the result.
Yes, our First Past the Post system does an excellent job representing each individual region, but how well is it actually representing the voters within these regions? This seems like a relevant question when considering other systems have the ability to represent these regions more adequately.
Along with misrepresentation, the presence of negative electoral rhetoric can be attributed to First Past the Post. Although in 2015 we did see the use of positive advertising surge, the reality is that each party used negative advertising. In our system, voters only get a single selection. It is logical for parties and politicians to use negative ads and sentimentality to show that other parties are not as viable, and that their party is the option to go with.
In all other systems we could choose from, voters are given the ability to make more than one choice. In these alternative systems, politicians and parties no longer have to prove that an opponent is the wrong choice because a vote given to the opposing party will not necessarily mean a lost vote for their own party. Furthermore there is incentive to eliminate negative advertising because it repels strong supporters of other parties who would have the ability to select more than one party under a reformed system. In essence, to adopt reform is to eliminate annoying election rhetoric.
 Voters lined up waiting to cast ballots in a school gymnasium Finally, in the past, First Past the Post has produced flawed results. It is one thing for a party to be over represented; it is another for an undeserving party to come to power. An excellent example of this is the British Columbia election in 1997. To make a long story short, the winning party received approximately 2% less support across the province than did the party of the official opposition.
With support more spread out across ridings, the governing party was able to win 6 more seats than the opposition and form a majority government. It is anti-democracy that a party can accumulate the most support yet still lack the ability to govern and have no input in passing legislation. Although a case like this is rare, introducing reform would eliminate such a case from reoccurring.
Change can be unnerving, especially when it involves something as important as how a country is governed. However, when a system is so flawed that it is producing undesirable results to this extent, it should be clear that a change is necessary.
 Jay Fallis is a graduate of the University of Toronto where he earned a Master’s Degree that focused on electoral reform.
He writes a column for a daily newspaper in Ontario, the Orillia Packet and Times,
By Staff
August 30th, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
To accommodate track work at Union Station, GO Transit has made some schedule adjustments beginning Monday, Sept. 5, 2016.
 The current 4:28 p.m. train departing Aldershot GO station will leave three minutes earlier at 4:25 p.m., affecting all station times along this trip.
Please adjust your travel plans accordingly. Use tripplanner.burlington.ca or call 905-639-0550 for next bus departure information in real-time.
By Staff
August 30th, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
The Intercounty Baseball League today announced the schedule for the 2016 championship final series between the defending champion Barrie Baycats and Toronto Maple Leafs. Barrie finished the regular season in third place while Toronto finished fifth.
 The IBL championships offer some excellent baseball. almost worth the drive into Toronto to catch one of the games. Barrie won the season series between the two teams, 5-1.
IBL CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES FOR THE DOMINICO TROPHY (Best of Seven Series)
GAME 1 – Tuesday August 30 at Barrie 7:30 pm
GAME 2 – Wednesday August 31 at Toronto 7:30 pm
GAME 3 – Saturday September 3 at Barrie 7 pm
GAME 4 – Sunday September 4 at Toronto 2 pm
GAME 5 – Tuesday September 6 at Barrie 7:30 pm
* GAME 6 – Wednesday September 7 at Toronto 7:30 pm
* GAME 7 – Thursday September 8 at Barrie 7:30 pm*
* If necessary
Don’t expect the Barrie Baycats to take the championship for the third consecutive year – they are up against the Toronto Maple Leafs – THE scrappiest team in the league this year. They do not go down easily.
By Staff
August 30th, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
By gosh and by golly there is another paid holiday coming up for all of us – and that includes those tireless workers at city hall.
A number of the city’s administrative services will be closed Monday, Sept. 5, 2016 for the Civic Holiday.
 There might be a couple of very conscientious bureaucrats putting in a couple of hours during the holiday weekend – there are more of them you think. City Hall: Will be closed on Monday, Sept. 5, reopening on Tuesday, Sept. 6.
Parks and Recreation Programs and Facilities: Activities and customer service hours at city pools, arenas and community centres vary over the holiday weekend. Please visit www.burlington.ca/calendar for a complete listing of weekend drop-in program times and www.burlington.ca/servicehours for hours at customer service locations.
Burlington Transit and Handi-Van: On Monday, Sept. 5, Burlington Transit will operate a holiday service and the downtown Transit Terminal will be closed. Regular service resumes Tuesday, Sept. 6. The administration offices are closed on Monday, Sept. 5 and will reopen Tuesday, Sept. 6. Call 905-639-0550 or visit www.burlingtontransit.ca for schedule information.
Roads and Parks Maintenance: The administrative office will be closed on Monday, Sept. 5, and will reopen on Monday, Sept. 6. Only emergency service will be provided.
Halton Court Services: Provincial Offences Courts in Milton and Burlington will be closed Monday, Sept. 5.
Parking: Free parking is available in the downtown core, on the street, municipal lots and the parking garage on weekends and holidays.
NOTE: The Waterfront parking lots (east and west) do not provide free parking on statutory holidays.
 On the left – that is the Premier of our province flipping those Fearman’s ribs at a recent Rib Fest, she told a Gazette reporter that she also knows how to make an apple pie. Rib Fest takes place get dates – make some time to chomp of those ribs and enjoy the day with friends.
 By Staff
August 29, 2016
Burlington, ON
As the summer winds down and parents are counting down the days till their children return to school, Halton Regional Police are looking forward to a safe start to the school year.
The ninth annual Project Safe Start will run between Monday, August 29 and Tuesday, September 13, 2016. The focus of this traffic campaign is to educate and remind everyone to take extra care when driving and to look out for children in school zones, residential areas, playgrounds and parks.
Halton Regional Police’s goal is to raise awareness about how to keep our children safe on the roads through high-visibility enforcement of traffic laws in and around school zones throughout Halton Region.
To keep children safe while heading to and from school it is important to remember the five Safe Start “S’s”:
1. Safe speeds – Watch for the flashing 40km/h zones. Motorists are required to slow down where school zone signs are posted. Fines increase within many of these zones within Halton Region.
2. Seatbelts – Drivers and passengers should always buckle up on every trip. Seat belt use saves lives and reduces injuries in motor vehicle collisions.
3. School zones and school buses – Slow down and take extra care to look out for children in school zones and residential areas. Red flashing lights and an extended stop sign arm signals that the school bus is stopped and traffic in *both directions* are required to stop for students entering or exiting a school bus.
4. Stop signs – Motorists must come to a complete stop at a red stop sign. Allow time to stop, think, observe and proceed.
5. Safe operation – Distracted driving is dangerous. Motorists should follow the rules of the road and operate their vehicles safely. Drive now and text later!
 Signs are pretty clear. Police still nabbed 4 speeders speeders during an All Hands on Deck which had the Chief of Police out writing up tickets. The two officers shown here were kept busy. School zones should be safe zones. Enforcement will be on speeders, aggressive drivers, and the use of hand held devices while driving. Seatbelt compliance will also be strictly enforced. Frontline officers, District Response officers, Education Services officers, High School Liaison officers and Senior Command officers will all be taking part in this campaign.
On Thursday, September 8, 2016, Senior Officers, Specialist Units, Divisional Commanders and Police Executive officers will participate in the “All Hands on Deck” component of Project Safe Start.
This high visibility enforcement and education campaign will positively affect driver behaviour around school zones throughout the year and have overall lasting safety benefits to members of the community.
Halton residents have ranked traffic concerns as their #1 policing priority in surveys. Halton Regional Police Service recognizes this concern and engages in various campaigns throughout the year in efforts to educate the public and enforce the Highway Traffic Act and other traffic related legislation.
Pedestrians, cyclists, motorists and police all play an integral role in ensuring safer roads within the Halton Region. We ask that everyone do their part in ensuring our Region’s children return to school safely.
This may turn out to be a difficult day for some police officers who have to pull a driver over. In a recent report RoadWatch initiative police officers were abused and treated with little or no respect.
 Police pulling cars over – and having to put up with abusive drivers. Were they carded? Here is a sample of the comments police reported:
• “Really…. I’m usually the first person to complain about that”
• “OH there’s a stop sign there?”
• “Just let me drive home, I just live around the corner a few blocks, I can make it” This driver failed a road side screening test and his licence was suspended
• “I guess there isn’t enough crime to keep you busy”
• “But I was just involved in a car accident the other day”
• “You’re a F……….. liar”
• “I was just holding it for directions”
• “Please we are very late for the train”
• “I’ve phoned and complained about the traffic on this street”
• “Sorry Officer I’m on my way to get my nails done”
• “I’m speeding because I have an infection and I’m on my way to shoppers to pick up the medication”
Over the course of the three days 371 traffic stops were initiated for Highway Traffic Act violations and 238 Provincial Offence Notices were issued.
The Gazette doesn’t understand why the police officers did not take the drivers into the station for a conversation.
By Pepper Parr
August 29, 2106
BURLINGTON, ON
“We will make every vote count.” That was one of the election promises made when the country decided it had had enough of Stephen Harper and elected Justin Trudeau as Prime Minister.
“We are committed to ensuring that 2015 will be the last federal election conducted under the first-past-the-post voting system”, he said
 Then Liberal leader Justin Trudeau drops his vote in the ballot box as his daughter Ella-Grace and son Xavier look on. And added that: “We will convene an all-party Parliamentary committee to review a wide variety of reforms, such as ranked ballots, proportional representation, mandatory voting, and online voting.”
“This committee will deliver its recommendations to Parliament. Within 18 months of forming government, we will introduce legislation to enact electoral reform.”
 And that is what is behind a community meeting Burlington Member of Parliament Karina Gould is holding on Saturday September 10th at the Mainway Recreation Centre in the auditorium beginning at 12:30 and running until 3:00 pm
The government created an all-party committee on electoral reform.
The Government’s main objective is to replace first-past-the-post with a system that will deliver better governments for all Canadians and asks the committee to focus on five key principles to get this done:
The link between voter intention and election results;
How to foster civility in politics and increase voter participation;
Steps to strengthen inclusiveness and accessibility;
Ways to safeguard the integrity of our voting system; and,
Taking into account local representation.
That is what the town hall meetings, which are being held across the country by at least all the Liberal Members of Parliament, are going to be about.
This is complex stuff; rife with the potential for “unintended consequences”.
Elections are about power and the right to govern want gets done with the public purse.
Starting tomorrow, Tuesday, the Gazette will publish a three part series on what the issues are; what the opportunities are as a background to understanding of what the issues are.
What are the options? In a series of articles Jay Fallis, a University of Toronto student who recently completed a Master’s degree in political science sets out some of the possible options. His three part series will begin tomorrow.
 By Cindy Hunter
August 29, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
Whilst enjoying a cup of mint tea and reading my book the other day at a local coffee shop, I happened to overhear some distressing comments from one of the gals seated at the adjacent table. Sweetly and discreetly (so she thought), she dissed a fellow patron of the establishment with the following comments: “Look at that woman pushing the stroller. See the makeup on her face? My heart breaks for the wee one. How can a mother who spends so much time primping possibly give her child the attention it deserves? I swear, I could just cry.”
On overhearing the commentary, what I felt at that moment was not a grossly misplaced, anxious sense of concern for the child (who appeared to me to be comfortable, content and in no distress whatsoever). Nor did I usher in any feelings of condescension or disdain for the mother. What I did feel was sadness and disgust at the uncalled for remarks – the likes of which are all too common.
 The emotional hit for a person being bullied is incredible. It has led to suicide particularly within the teenage cohort. A woman’s right to wear makeup (or not) is just that – a right. Every woman has the right to choose how she wishes to present to the world. If that means she dresses in blue jeans and T-shirt every single day, she’s entitled to do so. If, rather, she clads herself in haute couture, more power to her. Whether she’s a walking, talking advertisement for her favourite tattoo parlour and/or chooses to shave her head and cultivate grass up there is really no one else’s concern.
As someone who has spent decades in the work force and made an individual choice to apply facial paints every morning, I can vouch for the fact that slapping on the foundation, mascara, eye liner, shadow, lipstick and whatever else becomes such a fast-paced part of the routine that it might use up all of ten minutes. No kidding. It really is that quick when you do it every single day.
Let’s assume for a moment, hypothetically, that the mother of a young child is a knitting fanatic – so much so much that she partakes in the activity for a good forty-five minutes or so every single day, ten minutes here, ten minutes there. Maybe the bulk of her knitting is accomplished when her spouse is spending cherished one-on-one time with the youngster.
How many other women do you suppose would begrudge her that daily forty-five minutes of knitting based on the trumped up excuse that it was taking time away from her small child?
Here’s a hint: None.
Here’s why: You’d be hard pressed to find any woman who perceives knitting as a threat.
 A dramatic way of making a point: how many of the people in the photograph actually bully people? Smooth talking troublemakers, along with their attendant, multitudinous, gullible shills, would have you believe that nonchalant, slickly packaged hatefulness (as per the above example) is no big deal – in fact harmless, really.
The reality is that it’s a form of bullying.
Such malevolence, in no small measure, and even though perpetrated behind the target’s back, plays a role in shaping collective beliefs and behaviours within families, within workplaces, within neighbourhoods and within society at large – which is, of course, the intent from the get-go.
We hear a lot about bullying among youth, but bullying is also rife within our adult population. For instance, in the specific realm of workplace bullying, Dr. Heinz Leymann, a research pioneer in the field, identified workplace bullying as ‘endemic in work forces’ throughout the world. As well, he estimated that 10% of those bullied take their own lives.
Whether the target is a young person or an adult, regardless of race or religion, bullying is bullying, the ultimate goal of which is to strip the victim of all dignity, in other words, to annihilate someone’s quality of life, or even, literally, the life itself.
Bullying can be kindled by something as seemingly ho hum as a critical remark about someone’s appearance – but the remark is oftentimes executed with a view to heap on subsequent helpings of covert ridicule, in concert with other means of degradation (i.e. ostracization), at any opportunity, until the desired lynch mob mentality is produced. At this juncture, the tiny mound of burning kindling morphs into a grotesque, yet (for many) scintillating pyre.
Bullies – whether Ph.D. wielding, illiterate or somewhere in the middle – excel at the dark art of fabricating and promulgating excuses to scapegoat. The excuses don’t have to be clothing or makeup related. They can be as simplistic as criticizing the expression on someone’s face when that person is merely going about her own business or as brazen as spreading preposterous rumours, based on abject conjecture, about the person’s sex life or level of adult beverage consumption.
 Are you doing any of this? If you are – do you know why? Are you one of the cultivated abettors and you just happen to be single, lonely and in need of a mate? Have no fear. Your ringleader will spend every waking minute of every day for as long as it takes to unearth and introduce you to your perfect potential spouse. Voila! Here he is.
The favour is essentially a bribe, administered as insurance that you don’t fall prey to an attack of conscience regarding your personal role in the persecution of the target.
Bullies look the same as you and me. Bullies will effectively hoodwink you into perceiving them as veritable pillars of society and as being compassionate to the point of saintliness. (Crocodile tears in church anyone?)
When presented with evidence of their bullying, bullies will often audaciously retort, “Me? Bully? Why would I?”
Indeed.
So what can be done?
 Student being bullied by a group of students; happens every day in high chools – how do you put an end to it? Each of us is sole proprietor of an individual mind. Very often, if we pause and tune in to our innermost knowing selves, we can discern between someone’s legitimate grievance against a third party versus when the complainant is aiming to stir the proverbial pot.
Rather than accept those (ahem) ‘friendly’, seductive invites to hop on board the Bully Bandwagon, it sure would be nice for those of us with a conscience to stop taking the bait and to collectively evolve down a path of maturity, authentic respect, and common sense.
The shade of her lipstick evoked an image of lacquered eggplant. Ultra dramatic. And it looked gorgeous on her.
By Staff
August 28, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
What a game!
What a playoff season!
While Burlington didn’t make it out of the quarter finals the InterCounty Baseball League has been very exciting.
Will the hot playoff season do anything for the Burlington Bandits; probably not.
It’s hard to tell what the people who own and manage the Bandits think – they don’t return telephone calls or emails. Tough to build any franchise loyalty that way,
 The Barrie Baycats will be playing to win a third consecutive IBL title. The final game of the best of 7 semi-final series between the London Majors and the Toronto Maple Leafs went into the ninth inning with a 5-4 lead. They couldn’t hold it.
Toronto scored six runs in the top of the ninth inning to upset the regular season champion London Majors 10-6 Sunday night at a game played at Labatt Park. The Leafs, who dropped the first two games of the series, will face defending champion Barrie starting this week.
 With evening games usually starting at just after 7 pm spectators can expect to be watching the game under lights. London led 5-4 going into the ninth, but the Leafs tied the game when Connor Lewis doubled home a run. Grant Tamane gave the Leafs the lead with a two-run home run off a light pole in left field. Sean Mattson added an RBI single and Ryan White singled home a pair to finish the inning.
Dan Marra went 3-for-5 with two runs, Jonathan Solazzo added a pair of hits, and Jon Waltenbury had three hits, two runs and an RBI.
Justin Cicatello (1-1) picked up the win in relief, giving up an unearned run on two hits in 5.1 innings. Cicatello struck out four without walking a batter. Starter Brett van Pelt went 3.2 innings and gave up five runs on seven hits, walking four and striking out two.
For London, RJ Fuhr had two hits, two runs and two RBI. Keith Kandel had an RBI, Michael Ambrose had two hits and drove in a run, while Humberto Ruiz went 2-for-4 and scored twice.
Elis Jimenez (2-2) pitched into the ninth inning but gave up six runs (three earned) on 11 hits over 8.1 innings, walking one and striking out six.
iNew 880 am in London put it very well when they reported: “The Majors will have great successes to look back on through the winter, but they were hungry for the team’s first title since 1976 and no matter what they try to focus on, the ninth inning of Game 7 will be tough.”
The finals will be between the Barrie Baycats and the Toronto Maple Leafs; a team that has proven to be very scrappy.
It will be an interesting and exiting series.
 By Staff
August 27, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
They did it – the Toronto Maple Leafs have forced a seventh and final game against the London Majors . Game 7 will determine who Barrie in the IBL final. They crushed the Majors 16-4 Saturday night at Christie Pits to tie the best-of-seven semifinal 3-3.
Justin Marra homered and drove in four with a pair of runs to lead the Leafs, while Grant Tamane had a three-run blast in the eighth inning. Sean Mattson had two hits, two RBI and two runs, Jonathan Solazzo went 3-for-4 with two RBI and a run, Ryan White had two hits with a pair of RBI and scored once, and Jon Waltenbury had four singles and two runs.
Dan Marra singled and scored twice, Brendan Keys drove in a run and scored twice, and Connor Lewis had a double, RBI and three runs.
Mike Wagner (4-0) picked up the win, allowing three runs on 11 hits over 6.2 innings, walking three and striking out seven.
For London, RJ Fuhr doubled, tripled and had an RBI with two runs. Byron Reichstein had two doubles and an RBI, Chris McQueen and Kyle Gormandy each singled twice and scored once, and Keith Kandel had an RBI.
Owen Boon (1-2) was pulled after five outs and gave up eight runs (two earned) on eight hits, walking one and striking out one.
Game 7 is Sunday night in London at 7:05.
London will have the home field advantage but that may not be enough to take a gritty baseball team that has come back again and again to win.
The Barrie Baycats are getting a rest – they are going to need everything they have if they find themselves going up against the Toronto team.
This just might be a Hwy 400 series final.
The Maple leafs ground out a seven game win over the Brantford Red Sox to win their quarter final series.
 By Ray Rivers
August 28, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
Canada’s Lester Pearson won the Nobel Peace prize for his pioneering work in peacekeeping during the 1956 Suez crisis, a conflict which threatened to pit the US against fellow NATO members the UK and France.
Canada has been one of the strongest supporters of peacekeeping from that get-go. That is until the previous federal government and Mr. Harper virtually shut down the country’s contribution to UN peacekeeping operations and changed our global affairs perspective from honest-broker to aligned-party.
 Canadian armed forces serving as United Nations Peacekeepers But then Mr. Harper had shunned the UN and it had in turn shunned Canada, shutting us out of a Security Council seat many thought would go to Canada. We once led the world with 3300 peacekeepers in the field, today there are just 34 – down to a mere one percent of our historic past. An all-time low at a time when the demand for UN peacekeeping operations is at an all-time high.
So, in keeping with the international re-engagement Mr. Trudeau promised during the last election, his government announced a dramatic reversal of previous policy, substantially increasing both financial support ($450 million) and peacekeepers (600). Ironically this announcement came on the very day that Mr. Harper announced his resignation from Parliament and politics.
In an article in this paper three years ago, I raised the fact that the Harper government had been supporting growth for Canada’s manufacture and export of arms, noting that this comprised the sum total of his industrial economic policy. There are a large number of armament exporters in the world. The USA, Russia, France and China dominate the international market.
The United NNations 2014 Arms Trade Treaty (ATT), governs the international trade in weapons for its signatories and restricts sales to nations which use them against their own populations. Over 130 nations have signed and almost 90 ratified this treaty but China, Russia and Canada have yet to do so. In addition there are UN nation-specific sanctions and arms embargoes which must be observed by all UN member nations. South Sudan and Libya are two sanctioned nations.
 It is an ugly brute of a vehicle that can only do harm to the people outside of it.
It was an unfortunate discovery that Streit, an Ontario company, had been selling armoured vehicles through a third party in 2014 to both of these nations. The federal Liberals were caught off-guard and holding the bag left them by the previous government. This became particularly embarrassing since it followed the Trudeau government’s refusal to disallow another Harper era mega deal to sell armoured vehicles to Saudi Arabia.
That deal, worth $15 billion dollars and negotiated in 2014, would make Canada the second largest arms supplier to the Middle East, after the USA. The hypocrisy was ripe when a former Tory cabinet minister, Tony Clement, raised the issue, presumably to embarrass the governing Liberals with the tricky dilemma over this lucrative job-creating deal that his government had negotiated.
It was a tough decision. After all it is hard to call yourself a peacekeeper when you are peddling weapons of war to the very people whose cross-fire may put you in harm’s way. So there were no tears by the federal Liberals to finally see the backside of Mr. Harper as he heads off for new employment better suited to his particular skills.
I didn’t disagree with everything he and his government accomplished in their time in office – but he was a disaster in foreign affairs, and that goes for his regressive policies in criminal justice and prison management as well.
 Former Prime Minister Stephen Harper. Mr. Harper presided over the poorest economic growth rate in Canada’s modern history. His efforts to water down environmental protection notwithstanding, he never built a single oil pipeline. His fixation with petroleum contributed to the economic collapse of his adopted home province. And not least of all, we should remember how he hid in a closet during that gun fight on the Hill.
The British government recently declassified a number of papers from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, included in a link below. These are pretty frank depictions of how the Brits viewed our leaders in the eighties – Mulroney, Turner and Pierre Trudeau. Though nobody who lived through that era should be surprised.
 Former Canadian Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau is seen here performing a pirouette in Ottawa after the proclamation of the Constitution Act April 18, 1982. Despite all of Pierre Trudeau’s antics and progressive (radical) policies, what most worried them was his 1984 peace campaign. It is hard to understand how his naive bopping around world capitals on what ultimately became a hopeless venture would trouble anyone. How could seeking peace be dangerous? A “bloodless and over-intellectual approach” was their bottom line.
I suspect that Canadian diplomats had some equally choice words for Maggie Thatcher, as well. In the present day I would expect someone in our Global Affairs would point out that David Cameron was even more naive than Pierre in calling that stupid Brexit vote. I wonder how today’s British diplomats regard the younger Trudeau – the darling of the international press in his first year in office. He is flamboyant, but not quite like his father.
And I wonder how those foreign eyes would sum up Mr. Harper – other than to say, as I do, goodbye and good luck.
 Ray Rivers Ray Rivers is an economist and author who writes weekly on federal and provincial issues, applying his 25 years of involvement with federal and provincial ministries. Rivers’ involvement in city matters led to his appointment as founding chair of Burlington’s Sustainable Development Committee. He was also once a candidate for public office at the provincial level.
Background:
Defence Industry – Streit – More Streit – South Sudan Sanctions – Saudi Weapons – Canada Exports to Mid-East – Burlington Gazette Oct 2013 – Abandon Peace Keeping –
Back into Peace Keeping – Suez Crisis – What UK Diplomats Really Thought –
By Staff
August 26th, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
One more game and London will be playing the Barrie Baycats for the Intercounty Baseball League pennant.
But don’t count on this semi-final series ending quite that easily.
The Toronto Maple Leafs have come back from the edge time after time.
The London Majors won a 7-5 game 5 over the Toronto Maple Leafs Friday night at Labatt Park.
London leads the best-of-seven semi-final 3-2 and can wrap up the series Saturday night in Toronto.
 They will be playing under the lights on Saturday. Cleveland Brownlee led the Majors with a single, double and three RBI. Carlos Arteaga singled and drove in two, LeJon Baker had an RBI and run, Chris McQueen had two hits and a run, and Keith Kandel singled and doubled.
Oscar Perez (3-0) went the distance, allowing five runs (four earned) on 13 hits with a walk and nine strikeouts.
For Toronto, Jonathan Solazzo singled, doubled and hit his fifth home run of the playoffs. Solazzo finished with two RBI. Ryan White and Jon Waltenbury drove in a run apiece, while Grant Tamane had three hits and scored once at the top of the order. Sean Mattson doubled twice and scored twice, and Brendan Keys added a pair of hits.
Marek Deska (1-3) took the loss, giving up five runs on eight hits over 5.2 innings. Deska walked one and struck out three.
The winner of the series will face defending champion Barrie in the final.
By Staff
August 26, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
He’s back!
The guy who runs one of the more successful networking groups for small business operations in the area – held his first group meeting last night – at a time when the rain was just pouring down.
 First Social Fusion meeting for the independent operators crowd. As James Birchill put it – remember he is a shameless self-promoter – “ The weather outside was frightful … but the attendees were so delightful! … I know, I should go … I should go.”
After a season long hiatus Burchill held his first Social Fusion network meeting at the Beaver & the Bulldog at the Waterfront Hotel – it went well.
That as many people showed up with the rain going full bore and non-stop was a pleasant surprise.
The September meeting is scheduled for the 22nd – register here if you think you want to attend.
Planning for another Trade Show for this community is in the getting ready stage. The venue may change – the Performing Arts centre added a hefty $5000 to the price of renting their space which was out of the price range Burchill has to work within.
One can only wonder why the BPAC price had to be hiked quite that much.
While summer isn’t yet over – Burchill is thinking about a private Christmas Dinner – something that would come in at about $35 a plate. You can make it your “corporate” Christmas Party. Expect Burchill to come up with some really swift idea for a gift exchange – that could be hilarious.
By Staff
August 26, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
The debate continues but the marked bike lanes on New Street are almost ready to go.
One bike user gave it a go day before yesterday – he liked what he saw. It is a very quick trip – 49 seconds on a weekday.
We will have a look at the traffic on a weekday morning and in an evening as well and see what it looks like.
Keep in mind that this is a pilot project.
New Street road diet – video clip
The bike rider did say: “I was skeptical, but it’s nice – even if VERY bumpy!”
 By Staff
August 26, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
Burlington Transit announces an earlier start to Route 10 weekdays
Route 10, runs on New to Maple, will now starts earlier weekday mornings. It begins at Appleby GO station at 5:28 a.m.
An additional trip starting at 5:48 am has also been added.
By Staff
August 24, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
Game 4 of the Intercounty Baseball League semifinal between London and Toronto Wednesday night took almost four hours to complete and featured a little bit of everything.
There were four home runs, a bench-clearing incident and subsequent protest in which players left the field, an ejection, and a game that ended up 8-2 in favour of Toronto.
The Maple Leafs tied the best-of-seven series 2-2 with Game 5 scheduled for Friday night at Labatt Park in London.
 Toronto Leafs beat the London Majors in this game – stands could have been fuller. Justin Marra went 3-for-4 with a home run, two RBI and two runs in the win. Sean Mattson hit a three-run blast as part of Toronto’s four-run first inning, and Jonathan Solazzo added a solo shot to lead off the eighth. Brendan Keys singled and drove home a pair of runs.
Brett van Pelt (2-1) picked up the win after going eight innings and allowing two runs on five hits with six strikeouts and three walks.
Majors starter Elis Jimenez (2-1) took the loss, giving up eight runs on nine hits in seven innings, striking out six and walking three.
Offensively, Keith Kandel hit a solo home run, while Brett Sabourin had the other RBI. LeJon Baker singled twice.
Baker was also involved in the incident that led to a lengthy delay to end the top of the fourth inning. A close play at third base with Baker and Solazzo led to pushing and shoving and the benches clearing.
Words were exchanged between players from both teams, and an alleged racial slur directed at one of the London players resulted in the Majors leaving the field in protest for 65 minutes.
Barrie Baycats will go up against either London or Toronto in the final playoff. Play resumed and the game was completed prior to the midnight curfew at Christie Pits, but not before Toronto reliever Adam Garner was ejected with two outs in the ninth inning for throwing a pitch after time was called.
The winner of the series will face defending champion Barrie in the final.
This is baseball at its best.
Will it be a 401 or a 400 series?
2016 IBL playoffs
Semifinals
Kitchener Panthers vs. Barrie Baycats
Barrie wins series 4-0
Game 1: Barrie 8, Kitchener 1
Game 2: Barrie 2, Kitchener 0
Game 3: Barrie 10, Kitchener 5
Game 4: Barrie 3, Kitchener 0
London Majors vs. Toronto Maple Leafs
Series tied 2-2
Game 1: London 5, Toronto 0
Game 2: London 9, Toronto 6
Game 3: Toronto 7, London 4
Game 4: Toronto 8, London 2
Game 5: Friday, Aug. 26 at London; 7:35 p.m.
Game 6: Saturday, Aug. 27 at Toronto; 7:30 p.m.
Game 7: Sunday, Aug. 28 at London; 7:05 p.m.
By Staff
August 24, 2016
Burlington, ON
A trial for an animal rights activist charged with mischief for giving water to pigs that were in a sweltering truck on their way to slaughter began this morning.
 Anita Krajnc Anita Krajnc of Toronto faces jail time or a maximum $5,000 fine for providing water through the narrow openings of a metal trailer to the pigs as they were headed to Fearman’s Pork Inc. in Burlington, Ont.
Krajnc, 49, is part of the group Toronto Pig Save, which held a vigil outside the pork processing plant on June 22, 2015.
The comments being made by readers who are following a twitter news feed by CBC reporter Samantha Craggs are diverse to say the least.
Worth tuning into.
The protesters have been on the scene for a number of years – they are persistent. Fearman’s is taking a beating in the public relations world.
 That pig may not be human but the look in its eye says it is in serious distress. The charge of mischief is for giving pigs water in a sweltering truck while they were on their way to a slaughterhouse in Burlington.
Krajnc said her group stands on a traffic island at Appleby Line and Harvester Road once a week to “bear witness” to the animals going to slaughter at Fearman’s Pork Inc.
‘In legal circles, people are scratching their heads’ said lawyer Gary Grill.
On June 22, Ktajnc said, temperatures were high, and her group poured water through the holes. In court documents, Halton police refer to it as an “unknown liquid.”
The Halton police have had to manage calls from the slaughter house every week – at one point the protesters managed to actually get to what is called the hog chute – the spot where the pigs are off loaded from the truck into the plant.
On June 22nd, Krajnc said the driver got out and told them to stop, and she quoted a Bible verse at him about giving water to the thirsty.
“He said, ‘They’re not humans, you dumb frigging broad,'” she told CBC News.
The pork farmer who owned the pigs, Eric Van Boekel of Oxford County, contacted police the next day, court documents say. Police investigated and pursued the mischief charge. Punishment for the charge ranges from a fine to up to 10 years in prison.
 Anita Kranjc supporters outside the courthouse Gary Grill, Kranjc’s Toronto-based lawyer asked: “Taxpayers are paying for this.”
Grill said the question isn’t how he and co-counsel James Silver will defend the case, but how the Crown will prove that what Kranjc did was criminal mischief.
Kranjc, 48, said if she is fined, she will refuse to pay.
The trial continues.
|
|
