TD Bank is said to be ready to lay off hundreds, maybe several hundreds, of employees this week. The down-sizing will hit the ranks of both retail and wholesale employees and may include department heads. Reuters says that about half the municipal bond traders employed by TD in New York will be let go. It isn’t clear just what that number might be. Only a cynic would say the slimming down falls into the tumultuous period of election day and beyond by anything but pure coincidence.
McDonald’s New China Burger has concrete-coloured bun
by •
Diners have taken to social media to suggest the bizarre snack of two pork patties, bacon and Sichuan pepper sauce was inspired by “concrete or pollution”, while one asked, ‘burger or rock?’ The bun’s odd gray hue was said to be “the colour of despair.” The limited edition meal is available in China until November 3 and is the latest in a series of hamburgers made with buns dyed black, red and even pink. Mailonline
West Coast Kids now open at Bayview and Manor Road
by •
Karen Becker
Karen Becker was back at a familiar spot Sunday morning as the new West Coast Kids store opened at Bayview Ave and Manor Road. It’s a familiar place for Karen because the new WCK premises are where she ran her successful business Moms-to-be-and-more for so many years. She has polished a reputation as the go-to lady in children’s clothes, general wares and furniture over 21 years with Moms. Now she has teamed with the friends she has known for many years to manage the new WCK store. CEO Robyn Moar and her mom, the founder of WCK, are in town with other staff to help get the store open. The Vancouver-based firm has six stores out west and has made the leap east with Karen Becker’s help. They have a real asset in Karen who was saying Sunday that she is going to keep standards high. “We built a great business and I think my being here is going to help maintain what we did, keep the customer service levels high and keep the product knowledge and staffing high.” The four-storefront lineup of space on Bayview is large. It will rival in size some stores found in smaller plazas. Upstairs is a breathtaking collection of furniture focussed mainly on children beds and cribs. On the street level there is an array of clothes, toys and functional infant and children’s accessories. Karen was also giving credit to Mom’s staff, some of whom have returned with her. She sees them as important in any plan to grow. Everyone recognises a move from West to East is difficult transition but as Karen says “They’re a growing company, so growing is growing.” The WCK on Bayview will be open Mon-Tues 10 until 6, Wed-Thurs 10 until 8, Fri and Sat 10 to 6 and Sunday 11-5.
U.S. regulators allow the use of word “Diet” on soft drinks
by •
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) in the U.S. has rejected a consumer group’s call for an investigation into whether Coca-Cola Co., PepsiCo Inc. and other manufacturers have falsely advertised artificially sweetened soft drinks and food products. The complaint contends the claim is false and could cause users to actually gain weight. The California-based group, U.S. Right to Know, filed citizen petitions in April asking the agency and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to stop companies from branding products with the word “diet” if they contain an artificial sugar substitute, including those containing aspartame, the most widely used sweetener. But the FTC said it has “carefully considered” the science of such ingredients and decided to take no action. Mary Engle, the agency’s associate director for advertising practices said “We considered a number of factors related to resource allocation and enforcement priorities, as well as the nature of any FTC Act violation and the type and severity of any consumer injury.”
Winning ticket sold in Ontario in $64 million 649 jackpot
by •
Police covered up Rob Ford’s drunk driving says former aide
by •
West Coast Kids says it will open Sunday, October 18
by •
The new West Coast Kids store at 1646 Bayview Ave (at Manor Rd) has tweeted that it will open for the first time at 11 a.m. Sunday, October 18, 2015. The large four-store space was vacated by Moms-to-be-and-More at the end of April this year. Later it was announced the space would be taken by West Coast Kids and that the long-time owner of Moms, Karen Becker, would manage the WCK operation.
Kansas City Royals lead Blue Jays 2-0 in ALCS
by •
The Toronto Blue Jays are down 2-0 to the Kansas City Royals in the American League Championship Series after dropping Game 2 of the best-of-seven set. Alex Gordon drove in the tiebreaking run in a five-run seventh inning and the Royals rallied to edge Toronto 6-3 at Kauffman Stadium.
53 Div. police volunteers in Leaside graffiti paint-over
by •
This good-looking group of 53 Division volunteers supervised by Sergeant McGhee was out in Leaside Community today (Saturday, October 17, 2015) on Graffiti Paint Over Blitz. With the officers were Students and Employees. Several areas were painted including roof top areas. The 53 Division would like to thank the Youth in Policing Initiative, Toronto Police Service, the students along with the Community Members who supported this Toronto Police Service Initiative. More pictures
$700 million lawsuit alleges payments to Ontario Liberals
by •
A $700-million lawsuit alleges the Ontario Liberal Party favoured a Florida wind turbine company because it paid $18,600 in donations to the party before the 2011 election . New York Times
Creator of homeless hoax fib well satisfied with himself
by •
Toronto Life has a short feature on Anthony Chelvanathan, creative director of Leo Burnett ad agency, in which the author, Courtney Shea, is permitted to touch the raiment of Mr. Chelvanathan. Nothing in this piece about fibbing. No, no. This is about the amusing prank Leo Burnett played. Ha ha ha. You see, Mr. Chalvanathan had this “insight” into how people talk about homelessness but don’t do anything about it. Well, that insight isn’t actually correct. People may not wish to have the homeless living next door to them but they do support and pay for a rather extensive City department of professional people which works with the homeless. Courtney does not ask the extraordinarily cool-looking Mr. Chelvanathan how he’s doing with his own face-to-face program with the homeless. Really well, no doubt. Sad that Courtney could not talk to the decent woman of modest means who lives over a store next to the fictional 62-bed shelter. She cried when she heard this would happen right beside her small flat which she pays for out of a taxed salary. Cried. That was what made the media laugh just so so hard.
Guelph-based auto parts maker bets big on aluminum
by •
The little-known but enormously successful Canadian auto parts maker Linamar Corporation has bought 100 percent of the shares of French aluminum casting firm, Montupet S.A. The deal is said by Linamar to be a move to solidify the company as a global powerhouse in aluminum casting and machining. The success of the Ford-150 pickup is seen by Linamar as a profound once-in-history shift to greater use of aluminum in autobodies. The Guelph-headquartered company paid a rich $105 Canadian for the shares. Linamar has plants in Canada, China, France, Germany, Mexico, the U.S. and India.