ALL-CANDIDATES DEBATE

(Provincial By - Election Toronto Centre on 4^th February, 2010)

Wellesley Community Centre- Room B

495 Sherbourne Steet

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Date : Monday 18^th January, 2010

Time : 6:30 p.m. to 9 p.m

Candidates :

Glen Murray (Liberal Party)

Pamela Taylor (Conservative Party)

Cathy Crowe (New Democratic Party)

Stefan Premdas (Green Party Of Ontario)

Knowledge is power - elect the right person!

Present the social issues and needs of the St. James Town Community and Area  For more information call :

Gene Lara : (416) 934-0171

Everett Collrin : (416) 929-7358

A public service of the St. James Town Safety Committee and The Warehouse Mission

Stefan Premdas unanimously elected to be the Green Party of Ontario Candidate for Toronto-Centre by-election.

Born in Trinidad and Tobago in 1978, Premdas immigrated to Canada with his family as a young boy and has lived in Toronto-Centre for many years. He spent that time investing his energy into making his community a better place to live.

Premdas has been involved in numerous charities and community service programs over the years and is currently a member of Casa Loma KIWANIS.
As Certified Job Creation & Employment Specialist, Premdas has provided workplace accommodation, job coaching and pre employment life skills training the past 4 years, with 2 years of previous experience as a certified community health ambassador for South Riverdale Community Health Centre.
In his role as an Employment Specialist, he worked collaboratively with 29 disability employment agencies, acting as the service sector rep to the airline, banking, social/charitable services sectors, advocating for equality & diversity within the workplace.

“I am very pleased to have Stefan Premdas represent the Green Party of Ontario in this by-election. He personifies the type of community building that the Green Party believes in with his extensive community experience. I am very proud to have him carry our party’s banner.”
- Mike Schreiner, Leader of the Green Party of Ontario

“I am very excited to be the Green Party of Ontario candidate for this by-election. I will work tirelessly to listen to residents in Toronto-Centre and to share with them our Green vision.”- Stefan Premdas, Green Party of Ontario Candidate for Toronto-Centre

Heather Rips On Harper

I came across the following beautiful piece of literature at the UK's Guardian website and had to tell you about it:

"Harper, that strange vengeful man you will see in February clapping awkwardly as Olympians leap off mountains and shoot past in the luge, has been on a mission since his youth to turn Canada into a pale, watery version of the United States of America. Even then, the US was well into its identity-switch into the undereducated, paranoid, self-destructively aggressive overspent mess we watch now with grim fascination."

The editorial by Toronto's Heather Mallick is entitled "Shafting democracy in Canada" it was published on January 1, 2010.  I suggest you read it and do as Heather and I did and join the Facebook Group Canadians Against Proroguing Parliament.

We cannot just sit idly by and watch the man treat us like some tyrannical parent treats a child.  Write to your MP! Write to Harper and remind him that the office of PM is an elected office and he represents us, Canadians!

Voters in Toronto Centre will go to the polls on Feb. 4.

Voters in Toronto Centre will go to the polls on Feb. 4. 

Premier Dalton McGuinty set the date Wednesday to fill the vacancy left by former deputy premier George Smitherman, who has left to run for mayor of Toronto.

Interested in getting involved with the Green Party campaign? Join us at the following meetings:

Campaign intro meeting: Friday, January 8th at 7:30 PM - 9 PM 15 Maitland Place (map here)

If you are interested in volunteering for the upcoming by election, this meeting is for you!

Candidate nomination meeting: Sunday, January 10th at 12:00 PM 15 Maitland Place. (map here)

Come nominate our candidate for the 2010 Toronto Centre by-election, and then get the campaign started on the right foot with some voter outreach!

For more information, contact Jason Merling at jasonqb@rogers.com or Mark Daye at medaye@rogers.com.

Annual General Meeting

What: Toronto Centre Federal Green Party Association AGM
When: Friday, February 5, 2010 at 6:30 p.m.
Where: The 519 Church Street Community Centre

Please come help us review our 2009 successes, and plan for our future.

All members are encouraged to consider volunteering to fill one of our association’s executive positions. They include the following.
Chief Executive Officer
Financial Agent
Membership Chair
Fundraising Chair
Organizing Chair
Communications Chair
up to 5 Members at Large

If you are interested in volunteering, please email one of the following.
miller.cameron@rogers.com (our current Financial Agent)
rebecca.harrison@greenparty.ca (Ontario Organizer, Southwest Region)
voteellen@greenparty.ca (Ellen Michelson, our current nominated candidate)

Anyone is welcome to attend;  you must be a paid-up member of the Green Party of Canada, and a Toronto Centre resident, to run for a position or to vote.  If you are a lapsed member, you are welcome to renew at the meeting to re-acquire voting privileges.

We’re hoping to see you on Friday, February 5!

Happy New Year

As we bring the year to a close, I wish you all the very best for a prosperous, safe, happy and healthy 2010. The new year is already presenting some new challenges and new directions for me and I am looking forward to them.

I will continue with this blog, although I will try to post on a more regular basis. I know that I've been a bit lax lately. My friend, and federal Green Party candidate Ellen Michelson who is in China now informed me that my blog is blocked there, which only inspires me to continue to bring you news relating to free speech and human rights, which to me are basic human rights that everyone, in all countries deserves.

This is why I was so against China being awarded the Olympic games in 2008 and why I continue to have a major beef with the IOC and their strange ways of rewarding countries that continue to abuse and torture their citizens. But that is just one of the many problems with China. We here in the west continue to fund their growth and power with our wallets while occasionally making weak remarks about human rights.  Of course we want human rights for all, but it is also easy to ignore the plight of those on the other side of the world in return for cheap blue jeans.

On another note, I've taken my interest in politics a step further by recently accepting the position of CEO for the provincial Green Party Constituency Association. I'm very excited about this new endeavor and I am looking forward to growing the party membership in the Toronto Centre riding. It's a time of renewed excitement for the provincial greens now that we have a new full time leader with Mike Schreiner taking the post. I've met Mike a few times and I like him very much and I think he is the right man for the job. You will certainly be hearing and seeing a lot of Mike in the coming months as he is working hard to spread the green message. We will also be having a by-election this coming year, here in Toronto Centre, since the Liberal MPP, George Smitherman stepped down to enter the Toronto Mayoral race. I have so much to learn and have already met so many interesting and diverse people through the party. If you would like any information or have any questions about the green party please don't hesitate to contact me.

It is an exciting time for the Green Party at the federal level, I predict 2010 will be the year we will elect our first MP in Canada.  Once that happens we are going to see  continued growth and more MP's and MPP's as time goes on. I hope you will join us and be a part of history!

Durham Region Health Loses Personal Information of over 80 Thousand People

Personal health information for 83,524 people has gone astray with the loss of a USB key in Durham Region.


The device contained data collected from everyone who attended H1N1 or seasonal flu vaccination clinics in the region between Oct. 23 and Dec. 15. It was lost on regional headquarters property at Rossland Rd. and Garden St. while being taken to a local clinic, said a health department news release.

The information stored on the USB key includes personal information such as name, address, phone number, date of birth, health card number, doctor's name and any health details provided at the time of vaccination.
A search of the area failed to find the device but the health department doesn't believe it was deliberately taken.

A letter will be sent out to those affected. Anyone with concerns or questions is advised to contact Durham Health Connection Line at 905-666-6241 or 1-800-841-2729.

It seems to me that we hear about this sort of thing more and more often these days. It has to make one wonder how safe all this technology is in the hands of the typical government or healthcare worker.  This will also do nothing to encourage people to get a flu shot in the future.

12 Days of Christmas

12 Days of Christmas video clip re-worked Indian style. Performed by animated popstar, Boymongoose and Indian boyband.

Vigil at the 519 to protest the "anti-homosexuality" legislation in Uganda. Please attend!

Pride Uganda Alliance International coalition will be holding a vigil at 519 Church St. Community Centre on Friday, Dec. 18, 2009 at 5:30-7:30 PM to protest the "Anti-homosexuality" proposed legislation under debate in the Uganda parliament.

The legislation calls for life imprisonment for queers, and imposes a 3 year sentence on anyone who fails to turn in homosexuals to the police.

Please come along and show your support!

Rachel Maddow: U.S. ties to Ugandan anti-gay bill

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