On This Day

Today I am celebrating my 42nd birthday. I thought it might be fun to see who shares my birthday and what else happened on this day. I found all this at: On this day.com

Louis XVIII (France) 1755
Rock Hudson 1925
Gordon Lightfoot 1938
Martin Scorsese 1942
Danny DeVito 1944
Lauren Hutton 1944
Lorne Michaels 1944
Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio 1958
RuPaul 1960 
Daisy Fuentes 1966
Ronnie DeVoe (New Edition, Bell Biv DeVoe) 1967



1558 - Elizabeth I ascended the English throne upon the death of Queen Mary Tudor.

1603 - Sir Walter Raleigh went on trial for treason.

1796 - Catherine the Great of Russia died at the age of 67.

1869 - The Suez Canal opened in Egypt, linking the Mediterranean and the Red seas.

1880 - The first three British female graduates received their Bachelor of Arts degrees from London University.

1904 - The first underwater submarine journey was taken, from Southampton, England, to the Isle of Wight.

1913 - The steamship Louise became the first ship to travel through the Panama Canal.

1913 - In Germany, Kaiser Wilhelm banned the armed forces from dancing the tango.

1970 - The Soviet Union landed an unmanned, remote-controlled vehicle on the moon, the Lunokhod 1. The vehicle was released by Luna 17.

1979 - Iran's Ayatollah Khomeini ordered the release of 13 female and black American hostages being held at the U.S. Embassy in Tehran.

1988 - Benazir Bhutto became the first woman leader of an Islamic country. She was elected in the first democratic elections in Pakistan in 11 years.

1990 - A mass grave was discovered by the bridge over the River Kwai in Thailand. The bodies were believed to be those of World War II prisoners of war.

Green Party of Ontario Choses New Leader

Mike Schreiner was elected leader of the Green Party of Ontario on November 14, 2009.

A leading advocate for independent businesses and sustainable communities, Mike Schreiner is well known for his leadership in co-founding the award-winning Local Food Plus organization and brings a proven track record in business and leadership roles to the GPO leadership.
A respected, successful entrepreneur, Mike started his career in Toronto operating his own food distribution business for over 10 years that specialized in delivering local and natural foods to homes in Toronto.
Building on that success, he established Local Food Plus, which worked to bring farmers and consumers together to promote financially, socially and environmentally sustainable local food systems.

Full Story

Congratulations Mike, you will be a great leader for Ontario Greens!

Pigs in Toronto get shot first

Unionized staff at Mount Sinai Hospital are calling for the resignation of its board of directors after members were given early H1N1 vaccinations meant to be reserved for health workers and those at high risk of complications.

"What we are seeing evokes scenes from the Titanic, the privileged pushing to the front and leaving vulnerable women and children to a chilling fate," said Sharleen Stewart, President of the Service Employees International Union, Local 1. "This was a serious ethical lapse by the board and the CEO and a profound error of judgment by the chairman. The chair is left with no choice but to resign."

This is disgusting, but of course in Toronto, nothing will be done about it. Par for the course.

Scientology 101

Yonge street in Toronto is home to a large Scientology building. I pass by regularly and am often offered information by members. On more than one occasion, I've been offered, and taken information being handed out by protestors. As an atheist, and someone with a bit of common sense, I feel that Scientology is really nothing more than a scheme to make money, by what amounts to nothing more than a cult. However, I shouldn't pass judgement so quickly since I don't know much about Scientology, which is what I aim to find out in a new series I am calling Scientology 101. 


More after the jump.

Accusations fly at Oshawa lesbian assault trial

As the trial for an Oshawa man accused of beating a lesbian couple continues, some Oshawa residents say the November 2008 incident stems from hatred towards homosexuality and ignorance within the suburban community.

"It's a closeted community where the gays and lesbians hide . . . because of fear of being beaten up, bashed or harassed," said Jayme Harper, Ontario director of Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG), a gender-identity and sexual orientation support charity.

Harper said he also notices "a higher tone of racism in the Durham Region."

He and about a dozen members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered community in Oshawa have attended both days of the trial for 44-year-old Mark Scott, who pleaded not guilty to two counts of assault after Anji Dimitriou and her partner, Jane Currie, were verbally and physically assaulted outside their children's elementary school.

Both Dimitriou and Currie told Ontario Court Justice Katrina Mulligan that Scott attacked them in the parking lot of Gordon B. Attersley public school.

Both women testified that Scott asked Dimitriou, "Which one of you f------ 'men' talked to my kid?" Both women said he called them "dyke bitches."

They told the court Scott punched Currie once and Dimitriou twice.

Read the full story here. For some reason I can only seem to find any coverage of this story at Global News, I guess the others don't think suburban gay bashing is important? This story is from Friday.

The Poppy Campaign

The following is from the Royal Canadian Legion (Dominion Command) Website:

Each November, Poppies blossom on the lapels and collars of over half of Canada’s entire population. Since 1921, the Poppy has stood as a symbol of Remembrance, our visual pledge to never forget all those Canadians who have fallen in war and military operations. The Poppy also stands internationally as a “symbol of collective reminiscence”, as other countries have also adopted its image to honour those who have paid the ultimate sacrifice.
This significance of the Poppy can be traced to international origins.
The association of the Poppy to those who had been killed in war has existed since the Napoleonic Wars in the 19th century, over 110 years before being adopted in Canada. There exists a record from that time of how thickly Poppies grew over the graves of soldiers in the area of Flanders, France. This early connection between the Poppy and battlefield deaths described how fields that were barren before the battles exploded with the blood-red flowers after the fighting ended.
Just prior to the First World War, few Poppies grew in Flanders. During the tremendous bombardments of that war, the chalk soils became rich in lime from rubble, allowing “popaver rhoes” to thrive. When the war ended, the lime was quickly absorbed and the Poppy began to disappear again.
The person who was responsible more than any other for the adoption of the Poppy as a symbol of Remembrance in Canada and the Commonwealth was Lieutenant-Colonel John McCrae, a Canadian Medical Officer during the First World War.

Movember Appeal

I have decided to join a global movement that is bringing much needed attention to prostate cancer.  I’m doing this by growing a Moustache this Movember, the month formerly known as November. My commitment is to grow a moustache all November and I am hoping that you will support my efforts by making a donation.  The funds raised go directly to Prostate Cancer Canada.

What many people don’t know is that 1 in 6 men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer in their lifetime. Prostate cancer is the most common cancer to afflict Canadian men with 25,500 diagnosed and 4,400 dying from the disease each year.

Facts like these have convinced me I should get involved.  

To make a donation, you can either: 

•    Click this link http://ca.movember.com/mospace/93711/ and donate online using your credit card or PayPal account , or
•    Write a cheque payable to ‘Prostate Cancer Canada’, referencing my Registration Number 93711 and mailing it to: Prostate Cancer Canada, 145 Front Street East, Ste. 306, Toronto, ON M5A 1E3, Canada.

All donations are tax deductible to the extent permitted by law. 

Prostate Cancer Canada will use the money raised by Movember for the development of programs related to awareness, public education, advocacy, support of those affected, and research into the prevention, detection, treatment and cure of prostate cancer.

For more details on how the funds raised from previous campaigns have been used and the impact Movember is having please click [HERE]. 

Thank you,


Mark Daye

Anti-Olympic protests force 2010 torch relay to divert in Victoria

Protesters agitating for years against the 2010 Olympics took their first chance to disrupt Games planning Friday and forced a diversion of the torch relay just before the Olympic flame was to be triumphantly presented at a community celebration wrapping up its first day on Canadian soil.

Several hundred anti-Olympic activists, angry that billions are being spent on the Olympics instead of housing and health care, blocked Victoria city streets for hours.

Full Story

Way to go protesters, you all deserve medals!

Happy Halloween

Hundreds turned away as flu vaccine runs short

Hundreds of angry, frustrated people were turned away from the Etobicoke Civic Centre this morning after health officials announced they were running out of H1N1 vaccine.

The centre had 2,500 shots of the vaccine but the lineup far exceeded that number. Many people who were turned away left furious at the system.

Earlier, pregnant women and the elderly braved the cold winds and young children jumped in puddles, but as time went on, frustrations in the crowd started showing.

Inside the clinic, where a crowd pressed against the information desk, Joseph Almonte held two coveted cards, numbers one and two in the lineup for the vaccine.

Obama lifts ban on US entry for those with HIV

President Barack Obama said Friday the U.S. will overturn a 22-year-old travel and immigration ban against people with HIV early next year.

The order will be finalized on Monday, Obama said, completing a process begun during the Bush administration.
The U.S. has been among a dozen countries that bar entry to travelers with visas or anyone seeking a green card based on their HIV status.
"If we want to be the global leader in combatting HIV/AIDS, we need to act like it," Obama said at the White House before signing a bill to extend the Ryan White HIV/AIDS program. Begun in 1990, the program provides medical care, medication and support services to about half a million people, most of them low-income.
Read the full story

Christopher Skinner Vigil Video

Hundreds Attend Christopher Skinner Vigil

Hundreds of people came out to an emotional and moving vigil tonight for a young gay man, Christopher Skinner who was first viciously beaten, then run over with an SUV on Adelaide Street in downtown Toronto last Saturday, October 18.  Christopher was making his way home around three a.m. from celebrating his sisters birthday at a downtown nightclub.

In a moving tribute, we heard about Christopher's passionate love of life and his fellow man. Christopher was described as someone who was very outgoing and always making new friends.

Observing a moment of silence, the crowd raised their candles and looked to the sky in a show of solidarity honoring the memory of Christopher.

Many in attendance, including myself, did not know Christopher, but felt it was important to show support for his family and friends. And to show that we are not afraid, and we will not let Christopher be forgotten.

Observers on the street applauded as we walked from the corner of Church and Wellesley in the heart of Toronto's gay village south to Adelaide and Victoria streets where Chris was savagely beaten and run over. A haunting rendition of Amazing Grace was sung by some in the crowd, as marchers signed the banner bearing Christopher's name that had led the vigil to the downtown corner.  

If you have any information about the murder of Christopher Skinner, pleasce contact Detective Stacy Gallant at 416−808−7410 and Detective Doug Dunstan at 416−808−7406, Crime Stoppers anonymously at 416−222−TIPS (8477), online at www.222tips.com, or text TOR and your message to CRIMES (274637). 

Toronto Police News Release: Homicide #43/2009

Toronto Police News Release: Homicide #43/2009 Update

Toronto Police Release Additional Security Video In Christopher Skinner Murder

Three new video clips released Saturday show Skinner trying to hail a cab at different points on Adelaide St. The first is at 2:36 a.m. in the Entertainment District, where he seeks a cab then walks east.The second clip, 15 minutes later, shows Skinner looking at what police believe is his cellphone or iPod.The third and longest clip has Skinner east of Yonge St., not far from where he was killed.

Universal Cell Phone Charger Approved

This is what I consider to be a victory for anyone who has cursed the mobile industry, and the wasteful and greedy manufacturing of more than 50,000 tonnes of redundant phone adapters each year.

A new charger, that will work with any handset has been approved by the International Telecommunication Union, which is a body of the United Nations.

It has also been estimated that greenhouse gas emissions will be reduced by 13.6m tonnes each year.

Read the full story at the BBC.

Candlelight Vigil for Christopher Skinner: Sunday, Oct. 25th at 8PM

Candlelight Vigil to be held Sunday for Christopher Skinner

A young gay man, Christopher Skinner, was savagely attacked and murdered while walking home from his sister's birthday party this past Saturday night in downtown Toronto. Although the police have been reluctant to call this a 'hate crime', Chris's sexuality was undoubtedly a factor in this otherwise unprovoked attack. It is a stark reminder that queer bashing is still an all too common occurrence in Canada.

Chris's murder has left many of us feeling shaken, angry, scared and frustrated. To all queer communities and allies - this is a call out for a CANDLELIGHT VIGIL ON SUNDAY NIGHT AT 8PM AT THE CORNER OF CHURCH & WELLESLEY. If enough people show up and want to, we can march. Bring a candle, a sign, a flower, whatever. 
Please pass this invitation along to anyone you know who might be interested.

War Criminal/Terrorist Speaks at Iconic Montreal Hotel

Former U.S. terrorist President George W. Bush spoke at the iconic Queen Elizabeth hotel in Montreal today, to an audience of ( I suspect) fat, rich, french businessmen.
In what is the most ironic thing I've heard today, the Queen Elizabeth hotel is the same hotel where John Lennon and Yoko Ono staged their bed-in and recorded the peace anthem "Give Peace a Chance" in 1969.
Read all about it in The Toronto Star

Olympic Whores Can't Stop

I read an interesting post today in Randy Starkman's Olympic blog, which highlights just one more reason why I will never support the scam that is the Olympic games.  As you are probably aware the Olympics makes huge money in sponsorship deals, deals which in my opinion are, pardon my french; bullshit.


For example: McDonalds is the "Official Restaurant"! Give me a break.  Yeah, I know you love the sappy, feel good commercials, but do you really think these elite "amateur" (which brings me to another item in the Olympic scam, but that's for another day) athletes eat at McDonalds? If you do, I've got some oceanfront property in Arizona to sell you.


So the point Randy is trying to make is this: Why should CTV "storytellers" be selected to carry the torch before, say children or real amateur athletes. I hope the people at CTV will rethink this disgusting and shameful scam.

Read Randy Starkmans post here.

Video of SUV in Christopher Skinner Murder

Toronto Police released this video today of a black SUV suspected of killing Christopher Skinner last weekend. There is speculation that Skinner was targeted because he was gay.

Sarah Palin to be on Oprah

In what Harpo Productions is promoting as a "world exclusive," Oprah will interview Sarah Palin November 16th, the day before the former Alaska Governor and Republican Vice Presidential candidate's book "Going Rogue: An American Life" is released.


This should be good.  Palin is an idiot and Oprah always asks the questions that the audience would ask.

The Fun Theory

Chretien receives Order of Merit from the Queen at Buckingham Palace

Former prime minister Jean Chretien has been awarded the Order of Merit by the Queen in a ceremony at Buckingham Palace.

Seventy-five-year-old Chretien is only the fourth Canadian to be presented with the order. The others were neurosurgeon Wilder Penfield and former prime ministers William Lyon Mackenzie King and Lester B. Pearson.

The award, called a "gift from the sovereign," is given to those who show "exceptional distinction" in the arts, learning, sciences and public service.

Source: 680 News

Was Skinner murder gay bashing?

Homicide officers are sifting through mounds of security footage hoping it will lead them to the identity of the suspects responsible for attacking, running over and killing Christopher Skinner early Sunday morning.

"We have officers out gathering every piece of video tape we can find along Adelaide St. between the entertainment district and all the way as far as Church St.," said Det. Stacey Gallant, the lead investigator on the case.

Some of the victim's friends have voiced their concern the assault may have been related to the fact Skinner was gay, said McAreavey.

"Christopher was not the type of guy to pick a fight with someone," she said. "The only reason I could see something happening like that would have been because he was gay.

From: The Toronto Star
Toronto Police Report

Global Day of Action

Saturday is the Global Day of Action on Climate Change.  Please join Toronto Greens and other Torontonians to celebrate life and this planet we love, and to demand a good future for ourselves, our children, our communities, our grandchildren.  Take part in the global movement initiated by 350.org to press world leaders for the decisive action climate change demands.

World leaders are gathering in Copenhagen this December to negotiate a global agreement on climate change for the post-Kyoto period.  The decisions they make will determine the world our children and grandchildren inherit.  Failure to commit to the dramatic changes that science demands could leave a vastly impoverished planet this century, no longer able to sustain us all.

Emerging science indicates that the emissions reduction targets being discussed in Copenhagen are likely too weak, and Canada is proposing targets well short of this inadequate range.  The Green Party of Canada is joining with Canadians to press our government for the commitments we need.  Now is the time for Canada to take responsibility.

What can we do?  Participate in any/all of the following on October 24:

2 pm - Join Toronto Greens at the 350.org Rally for Climate Action in Queen's Park organized by the Toronto Climate Campaign.

4:30 pm - Gather with Toronto Greens at O'Grady's Tap & Grill, 171 College St.

6 pm - Watch The Age of Stupid with U of T Greens at Sidney Smith Hall, room 2102, 100 St. George St.  See the movie for $10 or buy a Green Party membership for $10 and see the movie free.

Please spread the word:  bring your kids and grandkids, bring your friends and neighbours, tell your colleagues and your classmates ... lots of participation will make a huge impact!

We have one Earth, for all of us to share.  Help make October 24 a celebration of our Earth, now and for the future. 

Toronto Wins World Pride 2014

The world will now get a taste of Toronto's famous Pride festivities, after the city won a bid to host the 2014 World Pride event.

World Pride promotes gay, bisexual and transgender issues internationally through parades, festivals and other cultural activities.

The world event will be hosted during Toronto's regular Pride week, but will have extra events including an opening ceremony, a human rights conference, and networking events, as well as Canada Day and U.S. Independence day parties.

Toronto beat out Stockholm with 78 per cent of the ballots in the second round of voting on Sunday.

Pride Toronto organizers say last year's Pride Week infused $136 million into Toronto's economy, created 762 jobs across the province, and drew close to 750,000 tourists for the festivities.

Pride Toronto's website says Toronto's Pride Week is one of the biggest in the world, with more than a million people turning out every year.

Organizers say they hope to attract tourists who may not have considered Toronto for their vacation.

London will host the world event in 2012, a few weeks before the summer Olympics will be held there. World Pride is expected to double London's usual number of participants to 1 million people.

The first World Pride was held in Rome in 2000.

Toronto was announced as the winner Sunday at the InterPride 2009 conference in Florida.