The South Bayview Bulldog

Former General Motors Vice Chairman Robert Lutz is saying that the big car firm was forced to kill its Pontiac brand by the U.S. federal government. Not only that, the government was not so hot on keeping Buick and GMC. Buick was saved because it was the best-selling car in China. If it were forced to eliminate Buick at home. GM argued, the Chinese consumer would quickly lose interest in it. That warning worked. The GMC brand survived when GM insisted it was the heart and soul of its truck business. The crisis is still less than five years old and many will recall how Barack Obama essentially fired GM President Rick Waggoner in 2009 because he would not declare bankruptcy. “I badly wanted to keep Pontiac,” Lutz is quoted as saying recently by Jalopnik.com.  Pontiac, Lutz argued, was on its way back after years of mismanagement. The  Solstice sports car and Pontiac G6 were new and had a great future, Lutz said. Washington  wanted to get GM down to Cadillac and Chevrolet. They said “you don’t need all these brands. You need one prestige brand, and one mass-market brand.” 

Memories of the 70s and 80s

Eglinton Public School at the corner of Eglinton Ave. W. and Mount Pleasant Rd. is celebrating 100 years at this location today (Saturday, October 26, 2013). In addition to an afternoon of speeches and festivities at the school, the Friends of Eglinton (retired teachers, principals and former students) are hosting a soiree at the Granite Brewery across the street beginning at 4.30 p.m. 

The complex morality of Saudi Arabia is being tested again by women who insist on driving. The hussies. But really, what a strange place it is. Allied with the libertine United Sates, and dependent on it really, but full of fundamental jihadist crusades that threaten the future of the earth. Now it is said that more than 60 Saudi activists have clambered behind the wheel of a car and driven it around when they know it is strictly forbidden for women to do this. Saudi professor and campaigner Aziza Youssef said her group has received 13 videos and another 50 phone messages from women showing or claiming they had driven. She said they have no way to verify the messages. If the numbers are accurate, this year’s campaign is the most successful effort yet by Saudi women demanding the right to drive. Youssef said they have not received any reports of arrests or women being ticketed by police. A security official said that authorities did not arrest or fine any female drivers on Saturday. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media. Anyway, see you later honey. Don’t forget to buy gas. 

When Kelly Elaine Dolson decided to put aside a nursing career, at least for the time being, it was to pursue a passion even more compelling. Kelly now brings all her nurse’s instincts  to help clients recover and feel better at her Pilates and Training practice at 856 Millwood  Rd. Whether treating  clients in her small classes or one-on-one, Kelly focuses on “understanding the disease process” as she puts it, as she applies her knowledge of how bones and muscle are supposed to work  “You have to know this not to do any harm,” she reminds the listener. From all accounts, three years in at her Core Body Science Pilates and Training studio, Kelly is doing just fine. For many years this operating room and intensive care unit RN worked at Mt Sinai. It is a profession she loves and she fondly remembers patients for whom she cared. But with her years of training and education (Centennial College Nursing, York University Economics of Health and Ryerson, Nutrition) Kelly decided to embark on a field where she could be of even more help. Now  from her storefront in the venerable commercial strip just east of Rumsey Road, Kelly works at bringing out the healthy side in her clients. She seems like a good person to know.