Anyone might begin to question the quality of the steel being used as the TTC dealt with another cracked rail Wednesday morning during the rush. It was fixed by 10 a.m. according to TTC customer service tweets. The transit body said travel between Bloor station (where the crack occurred) and Union station was doubled from ten minutes to 20 minutes. Cracked rail at Bloor station caused morning delay.
Neck jewellery was the object of criminal intent of these four men, according to police. They say a man, 20, was targeted for distraction and robbery by the foursome. It occurred at 2 a.m. (what a surprise) at Duncan and Pearl Sts on December 29. If you know them, call 52 Division police.
A celebration of life is scheduled for Wednesday (today) for Beverly Cooke (nee Willoughby) at Humphrey’s Funeral Home on Bayview Ave. She died at her home in Port Dalhousie (St. Catharines) on Thursday, January 25, 2018 after a courageous battle with cancer. Beverly Cooke was for many years a Kindergarten Educational Assistant at both Blythwood Public School and Rosedale Junior Public School. Obituary
Some stories we liked this Wednesday include the jarring career change of Toledo Blade reporter Taylor Dungjen (upper left). She found that her appetite for police news made her want to be a cop. See it below. Then upper right, the Car 2 Go people are trying to get the City to sell up to 2,000 residential parking permits to companies that run so-called “free floating” car rentals. We’ll see. Below that, we find the “super blue blood moon” which you did not get up early to observe. The Toronto Star tries to explain it. Lower left, Amazon, JP Morgan Chase and Berkshire Hathaway sent drug stocks reeling Tuesday when they announced they will start their own health plan to serve a combined billion employees. Bottom right, the parents of Otto Warmbier wept as Donald Trump paid tribute to the boy who was locked up and beaten in North Korea. He was sent home to die. And lastly, an informative video report below on the contentious Facebook app for children.
Snow in amounts of maybe 4 cm is forecast for Wednesday. And then Friday, sub-zero daytime temperatures will return and the Weather Network suggests they will extend into the middle of February.
The suspension of two policemen, Vito Dominelli and Jamie Young, for allegedly consuming marijuana edibles of some sort has illuminated the concern about the hallucinogenic nature, if any, of such products. The CBC writes Tuesday that Ryan Vandrey, associate professor of psychiatry and behavioural sciences at Johns Hopkins Medicine in Baltimore, says it is known. “Folks tend to be more prone to have hallucinations if they have a family history of psychosis, but there have been cases, even one recently in my laboratory, where somebody without a family history of psychosis has had hallucinations following acute dosing with cannabis,” he said. In other parts of the US, legislators in places like Colorado, where recreational marijuana is legal, are concerned that edible pot products are just too much like normal candy and snacks such as brownies and cookies. They fear the temptation or simple misunderstanding that flows from such look-alike food. The two officers work at 13 Division and are reported to have somehow obtained the edibles through legal visits to marijuana dispensaries. An earlier report said that one officer was in a tree when support units found them but the CBC says they were both found in their patrol car.
Prominent Canadian broadcast pioneer and former president of CHUM Limited, Jay Switzer has died. He passed away in Toronto Monday with his family at his side after a brief battle with brain cancer. He was 61. Kevin Beggs, chairman of Lionsgate Television Group, who got to know Switzer in the early days of the company in the late 90s, remembers Switzer as a “larger-than-life figure.” Switzer began his broadcast career working a switchboard for Toronto’s City TV in 1972. His mother Phyllis was granted the station license and founded the broadcaster. By 1984, Mr. Switzer would be credited with helping to launch an array of successful CHUM specialty channels, including MuchMusic, Bravo, Space and Pulse 24, later CP24. In 2002, he became president and CEO of Chum Limited. He stepped down from that role after CHUM was acquired by then CTVglobemedia in 2007.
HOLLYWOOD SUITE
Three years later, Switzer would help launch Hollywood Suite, a Toronto-based company that manages four channels that broadcast classic movies. In a statement, fellow Hollywood Suite co-founder Jeff Sackman said Switzer had made a lasting impact on the broadcast industry. “Jay defined friendship, loyalty, fairness, selflessness, and basic human decency. He will be proud to know that these traits have been passed on to so many others who will pay it forward, ensuring that Jay’s legacy is intact and the world will be a better place
First, a very smart report from City News scribe Danielle Michaud on a move to call a new Halifax CFL team the Explosions. Oh dear. Then, the New England Patriots were showing off their private Boeing 737 aircraft as they landed in Minneapolis for the Super Bowl. Below that, the CBC is calling it the dirty little secret of government gambling. It says that 50 percent of the revenues of Ontario casinos comes from problem gamblers. Finally, culture vultures will enjoy the success of the Malta Baroque Music Festival now underway in its sixth year.
A conventional take on the scheduled March leadership convention of the Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario is that the heavyweight contenders are Doug Ford and Caroline Mulroney. Name recognition and political credentials bulk large for both as does their desire to defeat Kathleen Wynne, ending the 15-year Liberal suzerainty of the province. Ford is a pugnacious defender of the people’s money while Mulroney is a lawyer, businesswoman, wife and mother. She has the Mulroney name and has already been acclaimed in the Conservative heartland riding of York-Simcoe.
https://twitter.com/TO_WinterOps/status/958146198723993600
A man and his girlfriend have complained to the OSPCA after finding what they call “mass cruelty” to dogs at a Barrie-area dogsledding aventures business. CBC
A blue Honda Odyssey like the one at upper left was stolen overnight off Randolph Road. The owner is offering neighbours a heads up. No word on whether it was left open or if thieves did a lock pick. To the right, that logo heralds the February 1 puck-drop of the Leaside Select Invitational Tournament for 2018. More than 2,000 kids played hockey last year. The amusing front page of Leaside Life with Goeff Kettel facing off against columnist Will Ashworth reminds us that Mr. Ashworth and his family are moving away from Leaside. Local friend Wilmar Kortleever has penned a nice farewell on Leaside Community and Ashworth has responded with equal grace. Lower left, south Leaside residents are asked to keep a sharp eye out for, um, Lazer Eyes, the mesmerizing pet belongs to Johannah J. This cat is not to be confused with Shady, another black and white who is bunking for the moment in North Leaside. Bottom centre, Select Bakery at 405 Donlands is hiring. Could be good. Then, in the same neighbourhood, it’s never good when banks close but the Gyro Bar at 1050 Coxwell is making suitable use of the building. TD left behind an ATM.
