Provincial Politics – Page 30

Bill Davis: The Last Progressive.

August 10, 2021August 9, 2021 by Peter Lowry

There are few conservatives left to fit the Bill Davis mould. When I first met him at Queen’s Park, he was the young minister of education. Compared to what we have in that job today, Bill was a beacon of hope. As a liberal, I had no problem liking and respecting Bill. And I liked the people around him.

Bill had all the trappings and jargon of the conservative but he mixed it with decency. His word could be trusted. He had a wonderful sense of humour.

He had to relinquish the education job when he became premier. We were spending almost five times the money on education. It was worth it. Our community colleges were the jewels in Bill’s political crown.

I had to introduce Bill as Premier of Ontario to a few hundred people at an international luncheon one time. There were few votes for him there. He accepted. He came. We had some good laughs. He delighted the audience.

Bill was always a great booster for Brampton and Ontario. He was a true Canadian. He enriched Ontario.

One of his standing jokes was when seeing my wife at a function, he would sidle over and implore her to run in the next election for the conservatives. He knew our neighbour was the sitting MPP but he would brush that aside. He also knew that his wife Kathy and my wife were friends. They had worked together as court of revision for our riding in a federal election.

Bill was a conservative with a conscience. When he said that ‘bland works,’ he could have also said that elegant works and that keeping your word works. He was all those things.

The only time Bill disappointed me was when he retired in 1985. He knowingly hurt his party by his last-minute repentance and giving full funding to Catholic education in Ontario. It cost his party, cost the province and ushered in the learning liberal years of David Peterson, the wasted NDP years of Bob Rae and the ‘uncommon sense’ years of Mike Harris.

Bill is gone and his party has opted for conservative cant over honesty. He will still be honoured.

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Alberta’s not ‘second class.’

August 9, 2021August 8, 2021 by Peter Lowry

For once we have to agree with premier Jason Kenney of Alberta. Just the other day, the Toronto Star ran a news story with the headline ‘“Alberta’s not second class,’ Kenney says.”

But Kenney is second class! This guy is a fraud, a misogynist, a con-man and an embarrassment for the wonderful people of Alberta.

He was Stephen Harper’s hatchet man in the worst federal government that Canada ever suffered. When the Ottawa gravy train ended for Kenney, he came back to Alberta, bought a truck, painted it blue and set out to convince Albertans that he was their saviour.

He took on Brian Jean of the Wildrose Party at the OK Corral—his one-time fellow member of parliament. It cost Alberta the services of a caring and strong community supporter. Mr. Kenney’s only idea of community seems to be the Calgary Petroleum Club and roof-top dining.

But what few are able to understand is Kenney’s constant and unflagging hatred for Ottawa and things liberal. This writer is probably better able to castigate Justin Trudeau but if the PM ever does anything smart, I am willing to acknowledge it.

Kenney’s thinly disguised hatred for Quebec is another problem. His approach is like scratching at a scab. He wants to keep it raw and bleeding. The fact that the prime minister got that narrow-minded government in Quebec to accept the child-care funding is a kudo for Trudeau. The deal is very clear: parents in Quebec will end up with reasonably priced and first-class daycare for their children. The feds are going to pay a fair share of the cost. The same deal is available to all provinces despite Mr. Kenney’s claims.

If Mr. Kenney will not meet the standards, he is letting down Albertans who need and want well-run and regulated daycare at the same reasonable cost as in other provinces. What surprises this writer is that with all the time Mr. Kenney was there, he should have learned how to make friends in Ottawa. If he was not such an arrogant bastard, he would get along much better.

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When Daylight Comes.

August 8, 2021August 7, 2021 by Peter Lowry

It will be like having another Christmas. We’re gonna have an election, we’re gonna have an election. Thinking about this opportunity for Canadians, I was musing the other day about Erin O’Toole’s chances. No, no not his chances of being elected prime minister. That horse left the stable a long time ago. I am talking about his slim chance of winning in Ontario’s Durham riding. A lot of good liberals live in that electoral district. What if they got off their asses and booted out that carpetbagger O’Toole?

There is going to be sure to be another conservative leadership event anyway. And this time, the Tories might be smart enough to do away with preferential voting. After all, what they got the last two times should have taught them something about voting systems.

There are only two things wrong with Mr. O’Toole’s proposed conduct of the campaign. Their names are Jason Kenney and Doug Ford. And frankly Canadians are tired of Alberta premier Kenney whining about how badly his pollution-producing province is being treated. This is the province that, in the fat oil-rich years, cheerfully told easterners to freeze in the dark. It is a province that has never had a provincial sales tax. Premier Kenney is a phony and a fool and we all know it. He invested a billion and a half dollars in a pipeline that was promptly cancelled by in-coming President Joe Biden of the United States.

And yet Kenney bitches and whines some more about prime minister Justin Trudeau who is busy building him a doubled pipeline over the Rockies to Vancouver. This pipeline is to pump the most polluting oil source in the world—from the Athabasca and Cold Lake tar sands—to ocean going ships and send it around the world.

But we can hardly leave Ontario premier Doug Ford out of the equation. This neanderthal is prime minister Justin Trudeau’s secret weapon. In vote rich Ontario, Doug Ford spells the death toll for conservative ideas and policies. He is hardly going to hide in his kennel for the duration of the election.

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Playing Pandemic Politics.

August 7, 2021August 6, 2021 by Peter Lowry

There was some interesting political posturing this past week in Ontario. New democratic party leader Andrea Horwath came out of semi-retirement to embarrass herself and, in the process, she reminded Ontario voters that the Ontario liberals really do have a leader. Horwath even called him Mr. Del Duca. What it all added up to was more pig-headed posturing from premier Ford, voters finding out that Horwath is as confused as ever and being reminded that the provincial liberals really do have a leader.

The real winner out of this ménage was the liberal leader. Any chance he gets for some ink is a win for him. And especially when he is on the side of the vast majority of Ontario residents.

It seems Mr. Del Duca made the relatively unnoticed suggestion that health care and education workers should get vaccinated against COVID-19 or find a new line of work. It seems Ontario’s dim-witted premier said something like “firgetaboudit” and then forgot about it. Meanwhile our NDP leader was invited to be interviewed by the CBC and was asked about Mr. Del Duca’s suggestion. And that was when she blew it.

Ms. Horwath climbed on her high horse at the question and ridiculed Mr. Del Duca for his silly suggestion. It seems she puts her idea of charter rights ahead of the safety of medical patients and school children.

It was not until her caucus of colleagues at Queen’s Park got in touch with her, that she found out she had done wrong. Her NDP warriors wanted to woodshed her for her putting the Canada’s charter of rights and freedoms ahead of the safety of sick adults and children.

What Ms. Horwath did not seem to understand is that there is a growing anger among the Ontario population that anti-vaxxers and other thoughtless people are endangering the rest of us. Despite the excellent response by about 80 per cent of Ontario residents 12 and older, some people remain willing to risk ill-health and death rather than get vaccinated. She had to take back her careless remarks.

I am a strong believer in individual rights. I also believe if you want to play Russian roulette with your life, you may—but not near me.

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Emancipation Day?

August 3, 2021August 2, 2021 by Peter Lowry

For a guy who pays close attention to politics in this country, I should admit I’m embarrassed. I was so busy celebrating Simcoe Day in Ontario I had no idea what this new Emancipation Day is about. We really have to stop tearing down statues, reviling former leaders, changing what we call holidays and changing words in the dictionary.

I am no etymologist but I do treasure the words of the Oxford Dictionary in its various dimensions, rely on Ernest Fowler in understanding grammar, admire John Bartlett for his handy references and also make my share of typos, as well as grammatical and spelling errors. It seems we like to write but we have forgotten how to edit.

I draw the line at somebody, somewhere, decreeing that “indigenous” means, if your ancestors came here 15,000 years ago, your people are “from here.” Perverting our language is not going to make anybody feel better about themselves. I find my aboriginal and métis acquaintances much prefer the respect and fair treatment they deserve as Canadian citizens. I have always known that many of their ancestors got a bum deal from past European settlers. There are some reparations needed. We have to resolve this by working together.

And what can really annoy me is the newcomer to Canada who discovers that the streets are not paved with gold, that there are some of us who are not as tolerant as they should be and the newbies condemn the rest of us for it.

Frankly, I think I have travelled enough in this world to realize that there are lots of nice people and some assholes everywhere. Get used to it.

And, speaking of assholes, I hope the next time we see some people tearing down an old statue, that the people doing the pulling are under the statue when it falls. That would be justice for all!

What really leaves me cold is the eagerness of politicians such as Toronto councillors to spend ratepayers’ money on fixing what they consider errors of the past. Is Toronto so confused that we have to rename Dundas Street? I never knew nor cared who the street was named after. I hardly care what you call it but it will always be Dundas to me. It is the same as the O’Keefe Centre, SkyDome and when the Cleveland Indians come to play the Blue Jays. Some people just need a better appreciation of history.

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Ontario’s Johnny Appleseed.

July 31, 2021July 30, 2021 by Peter Lowry

Ontario residents must have this image of the Ontario premier skipping along the Macdonald-Cartier Freeway (Highway 401) throwing loonies and toonies left and right. That is his answer to every problem he hears about. He says he will throw money at it. He tells us he is generous with the taxpayers’ money.

But the question is: Will he really spend it?

This subject was posed very recently in Babel-on-the-Bay.com. It was when the Ontario budget office informed us that our hospitals had been unable to spend a billion dollars in the past year that had been available for them to spend. This was at a time of stretching the limits of intensive care, of closing our hospitals to visitors and volunteers, of closing hospital kitchens and settling for poorer quality catered foods, of telling those caring for patients that they would not get raises but needed to work longer shifts. At a time when money was available, our hospitals were not getting the money needed to do their job.

But that does not stop the supposed free-spending ways of our premier.

Why just the other day, Mr. Ford said he was shocked to learn that there might be a backlog in surgeries and other medical procedures because of the demands for care of COVID-19 patients. This is based on the information from the hospitals that they turned away about 25 per cent of necessary but not time sensitive procedures. What the hospitals do not know and are concerned about is the number of people who did not come to the hospitals’ emergency facilities during the peak of the pandemic. The drop off was significant but there is no way to put a figure on an expected surge in patients as the pandemic subsides.

The first $300 million was in the spring budget anyway, so nobody seems impressed with Mr. Ford’s additional $24 million.

But is this real money or just more of Mr. Ford’s phantom money?

All we can advise Ontario voters is they should try to stay out of hospitals until the hospitals have returned to putting some decent food on patient trays.

And there should be a nice chilled apple on every tray in honour of Johnny Appleseed, who, it is reputed, visited Ontario in the early 1800s with his seeds, so that Canadians could also enjoy apples.

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Ontario’s Super-Saver Premier.

July 26, 2021July 26, 2021 by Peter Lowry

Maybe there are those of us in Ontario who do not appreciate our premier for his uncaring ways. Did you know that he saves taxpayers money even when he really should have spent it? We got the word the other day. The independent Financial Accountability Office of Ontario told us how Doug Ford’s government had saved us $9 billion. And that was when we knew he needed to spend more.

It was when he first slipped into office that he cut the spending on autistic children. There were complaints about that. Nobody seemed to notice though when he reduced the funds for the Ontario Disability Support Program (ODSP). It sure looks as though Doug doesn’t give a damn about those people.

It is so bad in Ontario that sociologists are now referring to the close to a half-million people on ODSP as our modern-era hunter gatherers. They are always out hunting for free food and the small change they can beg from citizens, or they have to steal. It is as though we are telling these unfortunate people to beg on the streets or to be criminals or starve.

But the real criminals today are the local health integration networks (LHINs). These people are so busy fighting for their jobs that they have no time left to do their jobs. They are taking it out on the hospital patients because of an uncaring government. Ontario had to budget for extra funds because of the pandemic and yet the Ministry of Health throttled back the funds and there is a billion dollars unspent—not because it was not needed—because it was held back by our conservative government.

After spending a month in hospital last year with a leg in a cast, you learn a lot about how hospital funding is being strangled. The hospitals had to close their kitchens and the catered food is awful. (I lost ten kilograms of body weight because I couldn’t get out of there fast enough.) They never had enough nurses to cover the shifts. (These are the same nurses whom the conservatives denied any wage increase.) The weekly surprise for hospital staff was what materials were not delivered to fill needs in looking after patients. No wonder, they had a billion left over!

And who suffers from this stingy, uncaring government? We all do.

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The worth of a person.

July 25, 2021July 25, 2021 by Peter Lowry

Now that restaurants are re-opening across Canada in the wake of the recent wave of the pandemic, there are the expected complaints from hospitality businesses in finding it difficult to hire staff. Surprise, surprise, what did you expect? Especially in an industry relying on the demeaning system of gratuities to earn a living wage? It is time to put an end to gratuities in North America.

I remember the story of a friend visiting Tokyo with his wife. He thought he could defeat the no-tipping rule there by tucking some money under his plate. The restaurant owner ran after them for two blocks to return the money. The tourist did not realize he was insulting the proprietor. He was inferring that the owner did not pay his staff an adequate wage.

And, obviously, here in Ontario and in the rest of North America, we do not pay wait staff a proper wage. We are depriving these people of their dignity. We are paying them minimum wages and counting on the generosity of the customers to compensate for the stinginess of their employers.

And we are not even distributing these honorariums fairly. The system is so unbalanced as to be a disgrace. Is this the food chain in which people who like this type of work have to move up the ladder of life? Do they start as teenagers at fast food shops and work their way up to the expensive and ostentatious bistros with dinner charges, accompanied by just the right wines, that cost hundreds of dollars on the expense account?

And what is the difference between the two environments? It is the same job. It is the same terrible hours. The employees at the low end cannot all be young trainees. The employees at the top end cannot all be old and grey.

And why should all tipping be the same ’recommended’ 15 or even 20 per cent?

This was all confused when we had to pick up from our favourite restaurant or let Uber or others deliver. Why would you tip the driver the same percentage as you would tip for the service in the restaurant? Let’s turn this truck around.

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A passport to Freedom.

July 24, 2021July 23, 2021 by Peter Lowry

It is called a laissez passer. It is similar to a passport but identifies the role of the individual at the United Nations or one of the non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and their role with the United Nations. It is issued by the United Nations to assist their personnel and NGO officials in carrying out their duties around the world.

And all I want is a laissez passer to get me where I want to go as a fully vaccinated person in Ontario. I have done my duty as a good citizen. I have hunkered down during all the lockdowns. I have foregone travel in my own province. I have worn those goddamn masks that make it hard to breath, easy to sneeze and fogs up my glasses. I got both of my vaccinations as early as possible. And now—after a year and a half of pandemic panic, I am supposed to be free. I have places to go and things to do. Why should I be held back by the anti-vaxxers and those who shilly-shally over getting their shots.

If it is their right to refuse to be vaccinated, it is my right to be released from lockdowns. I want a laissez passer.

The Blue Jays are coming home and I want to be there to cheer them on. There is nothing to match a warm sunny afternoon at the Dome. Those of us with both our shots are more than enough to fill those seats and cheer the boys on.

I want to go to the casino and challenge the live dealers. I want to play table games with real people. Show your laissez passer and welcome to the table.

I want to go out to dinner at a decent restaurant—without all the fooforaw of masks and plexiglass dividers between diners. I want to browse the wines at the LCBO without keeping the next deserving customer from getting in.

And who has the information needed for your personal laissez passer? None other than that poor, simple-minded premier of Ontario: Doug Ford. The records are there as to who got their shots and when. Our district health boards gave us our vaccinations and have all the records. All I want is a nice handy, wallet-sized card that I can show to skeptics. I deserve a laissez passer.

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Give Me Shelter.

July 9, 2021July 8, 2021 by Peter Lowry

There is little reason to ever respect Ontario premier Doug Ford. It is not just that the man is untrained and unfit to be premier. It is the nature of the task that the man has taken on. He has no idea what it really requires.

The job requires compassion.

Recently I wrote a commentary about building a better society. I got some ribbing from readers about being a socialist because I said everyone in our society has to have shelter and clean drinking water. Despite global warming, Canadians are going to need shelter for many years to come. And it is our provincial governments that have to make sure those shelters are built.

We can hardly stand back and watch housing costs skyrocket in our cities. We have to reduce the pressures on the market by building more affordable and geared-to-income accommodation. It is the province that can make that happen. It is the province that can convince the builders.

Rather than build an unnecessary highway to the development lands of his builder friends, premier Ford needs to put the tax dollars into affordable housing—where it is needed most. He can let the federal government help but the constitution leaves the resolution to the provinces.

It is because compassion belongs here.

Healthcare is not a football to kick around either. Under the Ford government, Ontario’s hospitals have deteriorated, rapidly. Covid-19 does not get all the blame. Nurses, doctors and other healthcare workers are being mistreated. Hospitals are falling in community approvals. The food they are feeding patients is awful. The quality of care is falling. We are seeing racism, discrimination and uncaring in services. Staff are overworked and weary. Patient advocacy has become a joke.

Without compassion, hospitals are just unfriendly places in which to die.

And what about our schools. Remote learning is a failure of technology. We can hardly replace the human element in teaching our children. And education is not an exercise in public relations.

Without compassion, education becomes a rote exercise.

Without compassion, provincial governments fail us.

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