Morning Brew: January 4th, 2008

Photo: "Reflections on Toronto" by blogTO Flickr pooler andyscamera.

Your morning news roundup AND POLL for Friday January 4th, 2008:

The Internet and the ubiquity of social networking sites are proving to be a test for traditional practices like gag orders issued by officials. Crime victims and suspects names sometimes become known to the public and reporters via Facebook these days.

A proposed joint committee of the AGCO and the city aims to crack down on the wild behaviour on the streets of the downtown club district. Abolishing bottle service and better controlling queues on the sidewalk are on their radar.

The highly controversial, new gas-fired power plant that Toronto apparently so desperately needs is slated to be operational by June. This shouldn't mean that we should stop worrying about conservation though.

Some city councillors want to put you and your cell phone camera to good use by following the lead of a successful London, UK citizen reporting project. You snap photos of neglected areas, things unsafe, and eyesores like dumping and graffiti, then upload them to a website where everyone can see them, and appropriate action can then be taken.

Watch that cash register, and look carefully at your purchase receipts - some retailers have not yet done as they should have on January 1st and reduced the GST by a point (whether on purpose or not).

February Family Day poll:
Some love the idea of the new holiday, while others are rather frustrated about it because they're either being forced to work, or use a floater day. Others aren't affected at all.