Two women hit crossing Avenue at Glegrove

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West-central traffic was badly snarled during rush hour following an accident on Avenue Rd. and Glengrove Ave. about 4.30 Tuesday. Two women pedestrians were taken to hospital with one said to have life-threatening injuries after being struck by a vehicle. From the picture here, courtesy of a South Bayview Bulldog reader, it appears the car which hit the pedestrians was headed south. It collided with the blue truck and the driver of that vehicle can been seen in the foreground talking to his family about the situation. He was unable to leave before the investigation was over. Yellow tape was strung extensively at intersections north and south. We can report that there was an apparently lengthy exchange between a police officer and a nearby resident of Glengrove about her decision to proceed to her nearby driveway despite, it appears, the presence of police. As is frequently the case when law-abiding motorists do not follow the strictest direction, the discussion was about “running down the officer.” The woman was seen to be near tears in her protestation that she at no time tried to run down the officer, nor did she. This is an unfortunate refrain from police in emergencies when they feel a driver has not obeyed their direction exactly. It must be clear to the police command that it is an unacceptable suggestion to drivers who clearly had no such intent. 

Trouble, trouble for Mike Duffy, Mayor Ford

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Accusation and innuendo are just everywhere for Senator Mike and Mayor Rob. First the senator’s latest problems because they are newer  and maybe a little easier to take in. The CBC says that RCMP Cpl. Greg Horton believes Duffy “hired a friend as a consultant over an approximate four year period, and paid him a total of approximately $65,000 during that time, for little or no apparent work.” Horton said in the affidavit that the friend, Gerald Donohue, was interviewed by investigators “and acknowledged that he produced no tangible work product for Duffy.” Donohue, a former technician who worked for CTV and CBC, told investigators that he did Internet research and provided verbal advice to Duffy, Horton wrote. We’ll have to wait to see where this one goes. As to Mayor Ford, the Toronto Star (of course) says that Mr.Ford’s friend Sandro Lisi attempted last March to swap drugs for a stolen cellular phone believed to belong to Mayor Rob Ford. That investigation, the Star reports, brought about the multiple arrests of June 13. You will have to draw your own conclusions about what this might mean for the future of the mayor, if anything.  Can a phone be a smoking gun?  And how do you smoke a phone?  Trouble, trouble. 

Agile seal performs nimble balance to foil shark

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Astonishing pictures taken by photographer David ‘Baz’ Jenkins as a lucky seal is able to balance itself on the nose of a hungry White shark and then slide off to at least temporary safety. The escape was recorded by Jenkins during a shark tour off the coast of Cape Town 

Daylight game for East York vs Leaside High

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The annual Autumn tilt between East York Collegiate and Leaside High School will take place this Thursday, Oct. 10. This year it will be played in daylight. East York Mirror 

Elgie House, 262 Bessborough, to be heritage site

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Courtesy of Anthony Regan

John Parker (Ward 26) has sent a general e-mail reporting on the status of the Thomas G. Elgie House, 262 Bessborough Drive. He says that the Toronto Preservation Board last week voted to recommend that City Council state its intention to designate the property a heritage site. He recalls that the large property is located on the heights south of Talbot Park overlooking Leaside High School. Mr. Parker notes that the most recent residents were Mary and Sven Linholm, who are said to be well remembered and fondly so by Leaside residents. The proposed designation identifies specific “heritage attributes” in accordance with the legislation. These include “the building known historically as the Thomas G. Elgie House”, “the original centre section of the two-storey house form building with its scale, form and massing,” the “original red brick cladding and trim on the exposed elevations of the original main body of the house,” “the gable roof and trim, brick chimney and original fenestration” on the east facade (facing Bessborough)” and “the original window opening” on the west wall. Mr. Parker’s mail is lengthy and will be of interest to those who know the property. It may be read in full  on this page.

Elizabeth Smart publishes “My Story” memoir

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Elizabeth Smart 2002

Elizabeth Smart has published her own account of her nine month kidnapping in 2002, a crime that rivetted the attention of millions. Smart was 14 when she disappeared from near her Salt Lake City home. Now 25, Smart tells of her experiences in “My Story,” a memoir published this week by St. Martin’s. “I want people to know that I’m happy in my life right now,” Smart told the Associated Press in an interview. “I also, even more so, want to reach out to people who might not be in a good situation. Maybe they’re in a situation that was similar to the one that I was in.” Smart was kidnapped from her home by Brian David Mitchell, an itinerant street preacher. He and his wife, Donna Barzee, held the girl captive and denied her food and water. At a remote location, she was chained and raped. “There was a point that I stopped crying,’’ Smart told Meredith Vieira on NBC on Friday night. “It’s not just because I didn’t feel pain any more, not because I didn’t feel sorrow. It was just to keep going. I mean, it just was to survive, to live.” Smart is now married and finishing work on a degree at Brigham Young University. Her book was co-written by Chris Stewart, author of the “Wrath and Righteousness” religious thriller series, who is now a congressman from Utah. 

Celebrity “engaged” after 6 years and 3 chldren

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It’s like the weather forecast called for high levels of nitrous oxide (laughing gas) all week. Carson Daly, 40, is “engaged” to Siri  Pinter, 31, his effective spouse and mother of his three children. The gossip journals say he is “finally ready to settle down”.  But of course. What expectation would the woman possibly have of a guy after only six years and a barely noteworthy three kids? He’s only 40. (More gas please)  But now the cat is out of the bag. Engaged! Wow! Can we call Carson and Siri an “item” do you suppose? Or does that come after another six years. Such a heavy chemical giggle. (This cylinder is vintage!). We hope the two betrothed are as high as the Bulldog on an “I do, I do” dental anaesthesia cloud. 

Woman, 80, robbed at Castle Frank station

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Toronto Police Service report:  An 80 year old female reports that on Saturday, October 05, 2013 at approximately 1315 hours, she was on the westbound platform at Castle Frank Subway Station when she was approached by a male suspect. The suspect threw the victim to the ground and removed two gold chains from the victim’s person. The suspect then fled the scene in an unknown direction. The victim sustained minor injuries and was transported to a hospital by Toronto EMS. Police are requesting the assistance of the public in identifying the following described person in connection with this offence. Description of Suspect: Male, black, 20 to 30 years, 5’8” to 5’10”, 130 to 150 pounds, medium build.

The pathological, self-hating ban on Halloween

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Now a school in Port Colborne near St. Catharines has declared an end to Halloween. Instead, the administration at McKay Public School will have an “orange and black”: day with no costumes. Earlier this week a school in Winnipeg did the same thing. A common thread running through cases of Halloween cancellation is that school authorities have no explanation or reasoning whatsoever behind their decision. “Why are you doing this?” parents are asking. There is only silence in return.  How is it that a time of childish dressing-up fun is now to be forbidden in our schools? Is there a secret fear that Halloween is rooted in ancient religious rituals? Does it offend somebody (no names please) in a spiritual or practical way? Are school authorities fretful about naughty costumes or the simple high-spirited behaviour of children? The suspicion grows that whatever the nominal excuse, these decisions are born in our society’s pathological need to somehow zero-tolerance itself to a higher-state of perfection. Who cares if this spoils the fun for a lot of kids? What matters, it seems, is our hatred of the harmless way that we are.

Balloons, fireworks colour the skies across world

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The eye-catching events shown here take us from Albuquerque, New Mexico to Sydney, Australia. The balloon event is always a crowd pleaser and the weather was surely never better than this weekend. It is the 42 annual balloon fiesta. In Australia, it is the 100th anniversary of the  Australian Navy. The country has put on what it calls one of the most ambitious firework displays ever..

Malaysia pledges $36 billion petro-investment

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Najib Razak and Stephen Harper 
National oil giant Petronas will invest $36 billion to set up a liquefied natural gas plant in Canada, Malaysian Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak announced Sunday as he stood with Prime Minister Harper at a news conference. This will make Malaysia the largest foreign direct investor in Canada, Najib told reporters after receiving a courtesy call at his office in Putrajaya from Harper. “Malaysia is confident in the policies of the Canadian government and sees a wealth of opportunities in opening up the country’s energy industry to new markets,” said Najib. “There is a 30-year timeline for the CAD$36 billion investment and Petronas is very positive about taking this decision. We have a high level of confidence about Canada. “Malaysia strongly believes that this decision will not only be supported by the present Canadian government but future ones as well,” he added. Najib said Canadian companies in Malaysia also shared the same confidence about doing business here as well as about government policies. Echoing Najib, Harper said feedback he received from Canadian companies in Malaysia, such as Scotiabank and Manulife Financial Corporation, was very positive.

Cops have good leads in cat beheadings case

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Police in York Region are pleased with the more than 250 calls made to them related to the discovery of six cat heads in east-end Stouffville. “A big thank you to the community,” said PC Laura Nicolle. “There are some good, good leads investigators are working on.”  York Region