Police hunt entitled jogger who trampled Sunnybrook flags

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53 Division Police in South Bayview have not forgotten an insult to Canada’s war dead that occurred outside Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre when a man kicked down flags and made an obscene gesture to those commemorating Remembrance Day. It happened on Sunday, November 11, 2012. Police say it was mischief and they’re looking for help in identifying the man. The suspect is described as white, 5’9″-5’11”, 170-180 lbs, bald. A photograph of the suspect has been released. Anyone with information is asked to contact police at 416-808-5300, Crime Stoppers anonymously at 416-222-TIPS (8477), online at www.222tips.com, text TOR and your message to CRIMES (274637), or Leave A Tip on Facebook. Download the free Crime Stoppers Mobile App on iTunes, Google Play or Blackberry App World. It’s been suggested that joggers genrally might have an interest in identifying this man in the interest of keepiing their image bright. As they know, joggers share the streets, road and parks with everyone else.

Girls 16 and 11 run away to big city of Ottawa

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It’s a case of two  girls running away from their home in the little town of Prescott and it has their parents frantic with concern. Police believe they’re in Ottawa. They are 16-year-old Adrianna Copenace and 11-year-old Harmione Quill. The girls disappeared Friday morning and they were last seen at the Prescott library. Adrianna is described as being 5’3″ tall, weighing about 107 pounds, with shoulder-length brown hair and brown eyes. Harmione is described as being 5’6″ tall, weighing about 100 pounds, with brown hair and eyes. Anyone with information on their whereabouts is asked to contact the Smiths Falls OPP at 1-800-310-1122.

Stockholm Solution meeting set for Leaside

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The Stockholm Solution is a system of traffic fees on vehicles used in the Swedish capital to eliminate congestion. It is said the fees go up or down depending on the number of vehicles trying to enter the city centre. The Stockholm Solution will be the subject of an address by Lars Henrikson, the honourary Swedish Consul to Toronto at a meeting of the Rotary Club of Toronto Eglinton. Traffic Congestion: The Stockholm Solution is described in a notice sent Sunday to media and others. The notice adds, “It Works! And the citizens like it!”  The meeting is set for Wednesday November 26, 2014 between  6:30 and 8:00 p.m. at Leaside United Church 822 Millwood Rd at McRae Drive. The Stockholm Solution is extensively discussed and explained in this Wikipedia entry called Stockholm Congestion Tax. Canadians may know the London congestion tax best. 

Globe writers fret “inequitable” school gift-giving

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Two education reporters are fretting about the effect of voluntary giving on the part of parents in school areas where there is enough money in the home to do that.  For most families, it’s just a few dollars that can be set aside for this purpose, not hundreds. The implication of the article last week in the Globe and Mail is that somehow it would be better if every school received exactly the same number of dollars whether from taxes or those that are gift-given. Caroline Alphonso (above) and Kate Hammer say that a mere $45 per year was raised privately per pupil by Thorncliffe Park Public School. The two writers say this “raises questions” of equity in the public-education system. Alphonso and Hammer don’t mention — because they don’t know about — all the things rich parents do for their kids totally unrelated to school No doubt about it, it’s better to have money. But it’s mighty inequitable. The writers acknowledge that the Toronto and District School Board makes grants to high-need schools but they say this cannot “catch up with the hundreds of thousands of dollars schools in the city’s richest neighbourhoods raise.” Maybe not. But realistically lots is done to help poor schools (and possibly more should be done). As to Thorncliffe Park, it is closely linked to Leaside and Davisville Village. The connections are many and intimate. They range from charities that focus on that neighborhood to the enrolment of Thorncliffe kids at the the arena facility in Leaside. The country’s largest newly-opened kindergarten housing as many 700 toddlers sits beside Thorncliffe School. School gift-giving is also greatly supported by business, as was the case in the dirt-to-turf campaign at Maurice Cody. It is also Leaside business that funds much of the giving directed to Thorncliffe Park. 

Bus, car collide on Kipling Ave. with fatal results

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A car and a TTC bus slammed into each other on Kipling Ave. north of Rexdale Blvd early Sunday (November 9, 2010) killing one in the car and injuring as many as nine others. It’s not clear why the crash happened but after the impact the bus hit a another car and then rolled what appears to be  maybe 100 feet across a small plaza where it smashed through the window of a branch of the CBIC. Two of the occupants of the car are said to be in critical condition.  The bus has a black box which should indicate what was going on with the operation of the vehicle at the time of the accident.

Did American jets get ISIS kingpin al-Bagdadi?

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U.S. warplanes have targeted a convoy of cars which was believed to contain a most wanted passenger — Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, leader of the upstart Islamic movement ISIS and apparent would-be boss of the entire world if he had his way. The attack occurred near Mosul in Iraq this weekend in an attempt to kill ISIS leaders. But the U.S. Central Command spokesmen Col. Patrick Ryder said he could not confirm that Bakr al-Baghdadi was in the convoy. Ryder issued that information in response to news reports indicating the ISIS leader may have died or been injured. 

Harper, Chinese talk currency hubs and hockey

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Prime Minister Harper has signed an understanding said to be worth as much as two billion dollars as a means of facilitating trade between China and Canada. He has also talked hockey and it seems possible at least that the NHL will play a game or two in China as early as next fall. Early today (Saturday, November 8, 2014) it was announced that a currency hub, or clearing bank, would be created by the two countries. It would speed the currency conversions necessary between the Chinese yuan and the Canadian dollar when companies wanted to do business. The creation of such a specialized bank is said to be a first in North America. Many say it will lead to a large increase in business between the countries. And Saturday night it was also time to talk hockey in the Middle Kingdom as Harper spoke about the the NHL’s interest in accepting a Chinese offer to “establish business relations.”  TSN is reporting that there may be NHL games played in China as early as next year It noted that four members of the management of Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment have flown to Beijing for talks. The prime minister is quoted as saying: “I must say in passing, how delighted I am to learn that our great Canadian game, hockey, now has a following here in China.” Speaking at a business meeting he said, “I’m told you even have NHL games on your television. “I know you’re also bidding for the 2022 Winter Games. So we’ll watch how that goes, and we’ll see you on the ice!” 

Further warning about South Bayview break-ins

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Toronto Police Service has issued a second alert about  residential break-and-enters in the area of St. Clair Avenue and Mt. Pleasant Road and  Avenue Road and Davenport Road  There have been four reported between Thursday, November 6, 2014 and Friday, November 7, 2014. Homes left insecure were specifically targeted and two vehicles were stolen from the area. Police are reminding residents to lock their doors, secure their windows, activate home security alarms, and lock vehicles. Police are asking area residents to review their security cameras and report any suspicious vehicles or people in the area.