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