The South Bayview Bulldog

Every freedom-loving person in the world must surely admire Taiwan president Tsai Ing-wen Wednesday as she stands up to China’s unelected president-for-life Xi Jingping. Xi has been trying to bully the little democracy into submission  He told a typically docile crowd of party members this week that he reserves the right to use force to bring Taiwan under its control. But he will strive to achieve peaceful “reunification” with the self-ruled island that has a bright future under any future Chinese rule. Tsai shot back that it is China which should embrace democracy. It was the Taiwanese who more than 30 years ago set the example of free enterprise prosperity on Beijing’s doorstep. China was finally shamed into adopting the same economics in about 1980. But bitter Communist oligarchs like Xi have no gratitude

Carl Hantske of 680 News summarizes a sad episode of apparent youthful folly overnight in Vaughan. Below is the York Region Police report.

On Monday, January 1, 2019, just before midnight, police responded to a single vehicle collision in the area of King Vaughan Road and Kipling Avenue. Upon arrival officers located a blue Kia Sportage that had left the roadway and collided with a tree, with a driver and four passengers all suffering from injuries. The driver of the vehicle, a 17-year-old female from the City of Vaughan was taken to hospital suffering from minor injuries. One of the passengers, a 16-year-old male was also taken to hospital with minor injuries and a second passenger, a 16-year-old female from the City of Vaughan, was taken to hospital with serious but non-life-threatening injuries. Two additional passengers, a 16-year-old male from the City of Vaughan, a 15-year-old male from the City of Vaughan were taken to hospital suffering from life-threatening injuries where they remain.

See later post

New Year’s seahorses/Ripley’s Aquarium

Ripley’s Aquarium Canada has announced the birth of a herd of lined seahorses Tuesday. The news is in a release which recalls that seahorses are curiously hatched by the male of the species after the female deposits her eggs in his pouch. The aquarium’s husbandry team reports the jelly bean sized babies were born at the aquarium early New Year’s Day as part of an ongoing conservation and education program. Seahorses are small marine fishes in the genus Hippocampus. They have a head and neck suggestive of a horse. They have an upright posture and a curled prehensile tail. The new baby seahorses will be on public display later this month.

Dipping in hard hat style on the Lakeshore

The Toronto Polar Bear Dip has a style all its own. Gotta love these guys in hard hats. In Brooklyn there is also style but they don’t seem quite so macho keen. Then, the New York City ban of styrofoam went into effect Tuesday. They say 60 million tons of the stuff gets dumped there each year. And finally, don’t miss seeing the HoneyBeez Dance Squad from Alabama State University. They are making it big in more ways than one. You go Beez.

All styles permitted

Waiting for the sweeper

Families eat, socialize

One of a number of food trucks

Dover Boys Lake Erie perch stand

Odd Zamboni

Old brickworks are curious

She takes moody picture of friend

Mixing of genders in common area may make some uncomfortable

Time to skate

New Year’s Day saw a good number of families and couples at Evergreen Winter Village at the old brick works, 550 Bayview Ave.

https://twitter.com/JohnstonPhotog/status/1080137719534239744

Sunnybrook Hospital has announced the arrival of baby Sebastian as its first baby of 2019. Parents Rachel and Riccardo welcomed their second child, sweet Sebastian Antonio at 12:02:56. He weighed 3770.5g (8 lbs, 5oz)

https://twitter.com/specialeventsTO/status/1079975075368132609

Only a night from old to new;
Only a sleep from night to morn.
The new is but the old come true;
Each sunrise sees a new year born.

Helen Huint Jackson, 1892

A Vancouver man has died after he became stuck in a street side used-clothing bin, police report. The victim, 34, was found Sunday morning by an off-duty doctor who happened to pass the bin. The man was unresponsive and stuck partway in the opening of the bin. Paramedics attempted to resuscitate him, but he was pronounced dead at the scene. In July a woman died in a bin in Vancouver while in March 2016 a 20- year-old-man died in a clothing bin in Surrey. In September 2015 a woman died in a bin at Pitt Meadows near Surrey and a man died in a bin on Hespeler Rd. in Cambridge in November. A sixth person died in Calgary in 2017.

Weather Network

A large truck sideswiped as many as five poles on the Gardiner Expressway westbound at Dufferin St. Monday morning. Police say there were no injuries but lots of debris. Video