Bag Taxes

The 5cent bag tax impossed on plastic bags is illegal price fixing, according to a right wing advocacy group. The president of the group, Matthew McGuire , says that the price for bags should not  be a fixed price. Toronto businesses make about $5 million from plastic bags, but McGuire says it could be upwards of $20 million. Toronto Mayor Rob Ford and his council voted to scrap the tax but faced fierce opposition from Councillor Berardinetti. She is hoping that the money from the taxes go to fund city programs.

I think that this bag tax is important to protect the environment. When people have to pay for a bag, they think twice about if they need that extra bag. This has also forced people to start using reusable bags instead of  plastic ones. The taxes from the bags can also go to fund programs to help the environment and raise awareness.

http://www.thestar.com/news/article/1201473--toronto-s-5-cent-bag-tax-illegal-says-advocacy-group?bn=1

Pilots flying in Canadian skys are being hit by laser pointers more than ever. Since 2010, there has been a 25% increase. A West Jet spokesperson said that these incidents are shocking. Many people do not realise how dangerous this can be and think it is simply a joke. A laser can be very distracting to a pilot and most incidents happen when they are near the ground after take off or about to land. The charge for pointing a laser at a plane can be up to $100,000 and up to five years in prison.

This is something that I find to be very serious. A lot of kids think things like this are just jokes but its very dangerous not only to the pilots of the aircrafts, but also to the passengers who trust their lives with the pilots.

http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/politics/article/1201463--laser-attacks-on-pilots-are-on-the-rise-records-show?bn=1

Naked Man Eats Face, Gets Shot

A man was shot to death by Miami Police after he was found naked, eating another man's face. The police were alerted to the incident by a truck driver and an unnamed police officer approached the scene. The officer saw a naked man eating another mans face and told the man to back away. When the man did not stop, the officer fired a shot. The man continued to eat the other man and the officer continued to shoot. The man whose face was eaten was sent to hospital.

I think this is completely crazy. Some guy just ate a mans face and continued to do so after he was shot. It just seems that he was really high and a complete nutcase.

http://www.thestar.com/news/world/article/1201438--miami-police-kill-naked-man-found-eating-another-man-s-face?bn=1

Facebook Shares Fall

Facebook Inc. shares continue to fall as their revenue outlook is questioned by investors. Since Facebook first went public at $45.02 on Friday, stock prices have dropped to $34.03. This dropped Facebooks value from $104 billion to $90 billion. The main problem is that Facebook shares were overvalued and people think they are too expensive. Brian Weiser, a market analyst said this:"If I had a choice between Facebook at $33 a share and Google at $600, I'd still take Google,”. Many analysts are asking the question:"how could one of the most feverishly-anticipated IPOs in history perform so poorly in its public debut and who’s to blame?"

I think that many people are shocked that such a powerful and prevalent company is doing so poorly on the market.  If prices for the stock were set at a more reasonable price , the stocks would most likely be on the rise instead of plummeting.

http://www.thestar.com/business/article/1182186--facebook-shares-fall-again-as-valuation-doubts-rise?bn=1

Sharks Down Under

4 fatal shark attacks in the last 7 months have worried beach goers in Australia. Australians south west coast line has become one of the most deadly areas for shark attacks. Beaches in the area have been closed and planes fly over head to look for more sharks. The fishing ministry in Australia announced a 5 year plan to help reduce shark attacks. One of the parts of this plan is a shark response unit which will tag great white sharks to track were they go to better protect people.

I think that this program is a good idea because it will help us understand more about sharks and how they live. Most people know very little about sharks and are afraid of them for just that reason. With more knowledge on sharks, shark attacks will become less frequent, and when they do happen people wont just freak out.

http://www.cnn.com/2012/04/04/world/asia/shark-attack-western-australia/index.html?hpt=wo_c2

Charities, non profits against Garbage fee Pickup

The city of Toronto is planning on charging charities and non profit organizations for garbage collection. These fees could add up to as much as $20 000 by 2015. Food and clothing organizations would be greatly affected by this because of all the poor quality donations that have to be thrown out. On Monday, more than 70 people packed a committee room to complain about the budget hike. Previously, these organizations were exempt from garbage fees, but these new fees will add almost $3 million into the city. Many organizations will have to cut back on spending and their budgets.

I think that these organizations should stay exempt from garbage collection fees. These organizations are charities that are helping the community with social services, food, clothing and many other necessary things. If money is taken away from these groups, many people will suffer and will lose out on a better quality of life.


http://www.thestar.com/news/cityhallpolitics/article/1179008--charities-non-profits-protest-toronto-s-new-garbage-pickup-fees?bn=1

Thirty years ago, on April 17, 1982, The Queen enacted the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, a new element to the Canadian Constitution. The Charter brought a missing legal tool to the Canadian democracy. It gave Canadians the right of association, speech, religion, equality and due process. Many people opposed the charter, but it has become a very important part of Canadian legislature. The Charter of rights and Freedoms has played a large role in Canadian law. Abortion regulations, religious  symbols and same sex marriage have all been affected by the Charter.

I believe that the Charter of Rights and Freedoms is a very important part of Canada. It unified the constitution and gave Canadians humans rights and also protected them in court. I don't know if life before the Charter was any different because I did not live in that time. What ever the case may be, I think that the Charter is important to all Canadians.

Quebec Student Strike

On March 5th, unions representing over 100,000 university and CEGEP, went on strike to protest the 75% increase of tuition over the next 5 years. The protests in Montreal have been mostly peaceful, but have lead to some arrests. The tuitions will be raised by $325 a year for a total of $1625. Tuition fees in Quebec are the lowest in Canada, and even with the increase in tuition, they will still be nearly $1500 dollars less than the national average of just over $5300.

I think the Quebecois are always making a big deal out of situations like this. They have the lowest university costs in the entire country and they still complain about a price increase. This increase keeps up with things like inflation and cost of living prices.




http://www.mediacoop.ca/story/quebec-students-strike-back/10219

Earth Warming, People Shrinking

The earth's rising temperatures could lead to the the shrinking of mammals including humans. Although early horses were much smaller than their current day counter parts,  during the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum when temperatures rose 10 degrees Celsius, the horses shrank to the size of a cat in 175,000 years. An author from the Florida Museum of Natural History said that after horses first appeared, they got smaller with the rise in global temperature, and then became larger when the global temperatures fell. This is not the first time that scientists have linked climate to the size of mammals. The global climate change that is going on right now might have an effect on the size of humans and mammals alike. 


I think that this is a pretty interesting co-relation that scientists have discovered. I think that a smaller (shorter) human population could help with other problems in the world like food. Smaller people would tend to eat less food. I also find it interesting that horses were very small until humans began to breed them for size and speed. 




http://www.theregister.co.uk/2012/02/24/high_temps_shrink_mammals/

Cheetah Robots

TTC Refreshing Customer Service

The TTC unveiled the first of its refreshed rest stops on the transit system on Monday, but the bathrooms are only the beginning of customer service improvements being employed in the coming months. The new restrooms have new plumbing fixtures that are easier to maintain and keep clean. The floors in certain station are going to be replaced as well, as some of them are nearly 30 years old.  Also on the TTC's agenda is to have cleaner trains and stations. New cleaning schedules will have cleaners working during the systems operating hours, instead of at the end of the day. Some people are asking where the money for this is coming from. TTC Chief of Customer Service, Chris Upfold says that its a matter of priorities. Certain cleaning services at TTC offices has been cut back to clean the areas that customers use. The improvements in the system will not only be in cleanliness. There is going to be more accountability in for TTC employees to be punctually and reliable.

I think that the TTC and other transit systems owe it to the customers to  be a clean and welcoming environment. This article shows that the TTC management is taking strides and making an effort toward being a more user friendly service. I believe that with small changes like the ones that are being implemented here are going to make a difference in customers satisfaction, which will in turn draw more people to using the TTC.



http://www.thestar.com/news/transportation/article/1136960--ttc-flushes-stinky-washrooms-bad-service-from-the-system

immigrants Wanting Warmer Welcome

While Toronto based employers believe they have successful programs to integrate new Canadian workers, only 49% of new Canadians believe that these programs are useful. 34% of a survey of 560 professionals who earned their degrees in other countries found that employers do not  adequately  address cultural differences in the Canadian workplace. Among their suggestions for improvement is an orientation that includes more information and advice about Canadian workplace culture and orientation that is specific to the job they were hired for.  It has also been found that health-care workers with foreign  credentials are twice as likely to find work that those with business and finance backgrounds.

I think this is an important issue in Canada. If more new Canadians are comfortable in the workplace, they are going to be more productive in their work. This is key for our whole economy to be able to grow and come together as one.


http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/careers/career-advice/on-the-job/immigrants-looking-for-a-better-welcome-in-canadian-workplaces/article2334417/

Android Goes on Power Trip

Android phones are constantly being updated and improved with new technologies. With out fail, every few months new Android phones are put on the market for consumers to buy. This  is very different from the model that Apple has built is success on. One phone, one OS and only the features that Apple wants you to have. The  iPhone is updated only once a year and is not a 4G phone, where as all the new Android phone run on super fast LTE 4G. The major players in developing these new phones are Samsung, Motorola, and HTC. All of these phones boast huge screens and all the latest wireless technology. Each one of these phones have their own unique bonus like a powerful battery on the Motorola, the sharp cameras on the HTC or the fast processing of the Samsung phone.

I think this article is a great representation of technology in general. All the amazing advances that go into these phones could not have been dreamed of 15 years ago and truly make our likes easier.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/09/technology/personaltech/android-phones-go-on-a-power-trip-state-of-the-art.html?_r=1&src=me&ref=technology

IPad Education

Now more than ever, schools are using technology and tablets to teach students. A study was preformed by   publishers Houghton Mifflin Harcourt alongside Apple using an Algebra textbook for the IPad. Students who used the IPad were 20% more like to score a mark of "Proficient" or "Advanced" compared to students who used paper texts. Programs that use technologies like this are for the most part in the private sector, but over 600 public schools in the United States have a 1:1 IPad program. 

Another study with 5th graders found that those who played the IPad game Motion Math for 20 minutes a day improved test scores by 15%. Though the IPad has shown to be a rather successful tool for learning, textbooks for ipad have not seen the same success as app based learning. Apple hopes to change this with their new 'iBooks 2' and 'iBookstore'. E-textbooks will be available to purchase on the IPad for a price of approximately $15, a mere fraction of what paper text books can cost.

I connected with this story because we use so much technology here at SAC that I could not imaging going to a school where I didn't have a laptop or a projector in each room. I have experienced first hand that technology greatly improves the learning environment and an IPad is just another tool that can be used to teach new concepts to students of all ages. Now that we have tablets at SAC, I use virtually no paper and I have all my notes in one section. An IPad and things of its nature is very intuitive and in my mind, will help educate people for the foreseeable future.


http://www.cnn.com/2012/01/23/tech/innovation/ipad-solid-education-tool/index.html

Eurozone unemployment hits 10.4%

The European unemployment rate is at its highest since 1998, before Euro was introduced. 10.4% of EU citizens are without jobs, this is about 16.5 million people who do not have a full time job. Economist Martin van Vliet had this to say about the unemployment in europe,  “Look at Greece, where unemployment is some 20 per cent, and it is 23 per cent in Spain. At a certain point this could lead to political unrest.” 

At a recent summit between the European leaders, the focus was shifted away from the debt crisis and was placed of reviving the growth of the European economy, which produces 16% of the global economic output. Even with newly implemented budget pacts, the growing gap between wealthy northern nations and poorer southern nations threatens to overshadow any union wide policies. There is an even more concern in Europe about the unemployment of people under 25. Nearly 50% of young people can not find full time jobs. Since 2008, the unemployment has risen from 7%  and is projected to reach 11% by mid 2012.

I believe that this problem can not be solved over night. The US has a very similar problem but they are taking effective steps to solve the issue. The EU needs to take similar steps in order to become the economic power it used to be. I believe that this can only happen if the countries of Europe are on the same page and want to be more successful. This should start with finding employment for the young people who are going to be in the work force for the next 40 years.

http://www.thestar.com/business/article/1123990--eurozone-unemployment-hits-record-10-4-per-cent

Rogers Follows Bell's Lead

After pressure from the CRTC, Rogers Communications has promised to end throttling the internet connections  for all its customers by the end of 2012. Bell Canada on the other hand said it would end this practice by next month. Rogers has been using throttling to keep the connection speeds and reliability strong, by slowing down the connections of users who play online video games or who use P2P sharing services. A Rogers representative said that "new technologies and ongoing investments in network capacity will allow us to begin phasing out that policy starting in March 2012." In 2009 the CRTC adopted new rules that would allow internet service providers to moniter and control traffic as long as the customers where informed. Unfortunately, there was no way to moniter the situation and the power was abused. The Canadian Gamers' association conducting studies and found that Rogers was severely limiting the connections of World of Warcraft players, findings that were backed up  by the CRTC. This resulted in the CRTC mandating that access to online services could not be restricted.


I believe that restricting internet speeds to those who use a lot of bandwidth and create a lot of traffic should be restricted. The restriction speeds up the connection to those who are not gaming online or downloading large files. On the other hand, the restriction can seem unfair to some. This can also be detrimental to games like World of Warcraft because people will stop playing because their connections are too slow. 
http://www.moneyville.ca/blog/post/1126122--rogers-follows-bell-in-ending-internet-throttling?bn=1