Morning Brew: May 16th, 2008

toronto skyline sunsetPhoto: "Toronto Sunset" by iliaa, member of the blogTO Flickr pool.

Your Toronto morning news roundup for Friday May 16th, 2008:

Steal a hummer and drive it over a police car as you attempt your getaway. What sounds like a common feat in GTA IV actually happened yesterday in Markham. Three young men face a slew of charges. Perhaps they should get a hotshot lawyer to blame it on the game.

Increasing fuel costs may lead to another TTC fare increase next year. At $2.85 per ride, it had better come with a shoe shine and a smile, or else the Toronto transit riders union will be forced to strike without warning at 11pm on a Friday night, forcing drivers to not have to deal with the annoyances and dangers that come with the job. In other news, the TTC is proud to announce that the system should be fully wheelchair accessible by 2017 (three years ahead of previous estimates).

Toronto tourism is a joke. What better way is there to give it a boost than to appoint world-renown comedian Russell Peters a global ambassador to Toronto? Pardon my pessimism, but cracking jokes about Toronto in London and Moscow seems like less likely a successful strategy than, say, improving our city and making more attractive a place for tourists to come and enjoy themselves.

--

It's Victoria Day long weekend! Because the weather forecast looks miserable, we'll likely want to buy and do stuff around the city on Monday. Here's a summary of what's open and what's closed.

A Toronto nursing home has been reprimanded for unacceptable conduct and is tentatively barred from taking on new residents. When a resident is choked to death by a restraining device, you know something isn't quite right at "Leisureworld".

Tobacco retailers in Ontario have just 2 weeks remaining to comply with new provincial laws that force them to eliminate cigarette displays. Will hiding smokes from view in stores reduce the number of people that light up? Will a pack-a-day smoker forget to buy them if they're not in view? It'll be interesting to see the effect this new law has.

Reader Reviews and Comments

Submit a Review or Comment

Taking down the cigarette displays is about reducing brand penetration (i.e. extending the marketing ban from print publications and billboards into stores) and hopefully reducing smoking uptake as a result.

Oh - and I, too, want to improve or city (but not both)!

Posted by: Greg at May 16, 2008 9:05 AM

GTA IV incident= Now they can start blaming video games for the criminals actions... Cue in Banning GTA IV in Toronto! Lets see what government official raises their voice...
"Police said the suspects jumped into a Hummer and then drove over the hood of a police cruiser. The vehicle travelled up the windshield before falling off.

Then the Hummer hit another car in the street before it reversed into a second police cruiser and then continued driving on the sidewalk running over a foot patrol cop, 2 drug dealers and a prostitute.

An APB was put out and brought the situation to a 3 STAR crisis in where more squad cars were dispatched and a helicopter. The chase ended when their vehical was too destroyed to drive"

FTW

Posted by: akswun at May 16, 2008 9:09 AM

Typo fixed :)

Posted by: Jerrold at May 16, 2008 9:16 AM

Jerrold.
Try not to be to positive this Friday morning !

Posted by: apetimberlake [TypeKey Profile Page] at May 16, 2008 9:46 AM

We all have our up days and our down days :)

Posted by: Jerrold at May 16, 2008 9:49 AM

Sometimes in GTA, I like getting in a semi and just driving the wrong way on the highway for kicks. Good times.

Posted by: Adam at May 16, 2008 9:58 AM

Re TTC (and the Riders' union): you took the words right out of my mouth. :)

Posted by: Matt at May 16, 2008 10:06 AM
Sometimes in GTA, I like getting in a semi and just driving the wrong way on the highway for kicks. Good times.
Sometimes in the GTA, I like getting in a pair of shoes, turning off the tv and going outside.

nature fight

Posted by: Ben at May 16, 2008 10:28 AM

Re Ben

I don't know if you realize, but in GTAIV you can actually pick your shoes, watch TV in your apartment (or limo), and obviously, leave said apartment. In that what you said actually can be done in-game.

I know your point, but the unintentional irony of it I couldn't help but point out.

Posted by: serotonin at May 16, 2008 11:03 AM

Oh, today is Friday.

Can't wait another set of cheesy photos in the "Toronto Portraits" section. :)

Posted by: Zack at May 16, 2008 11:27 AM

^^^Why don't you get up off your blogger armchair and show us what you've got, Zack. --> http://blogto.com/contribute :)

Posted by: Jerrold at May 16, 2008 11:31 AM

And sometimes in the GTA, I wish people would stop complaining, and elect a government with a backbone, instead of one that supports unions holding people hostage at midnight on a Friday night.

Oops. Asking too much.

Posted by: Trev at May 16, 2008 12:24 PM

haha classic! Thanks Jerrold!

I don't think you're asking too much. Not enough of us are asking.

Posted by: John at May 16, 2008 1:33 PM

Post a comment

Remember Me?

Email This Entry

Email 'Morning Brew: May 16th, 2008' to: Message (optional):
Your email address:

Please type the verification code displayed in the image:

By forwarding this entry to a friend, we do not opt you or your friend into
receiving any additional mailings from blogTO. We hate spam too.
Disclaimer: Comments and blog entries represent the viewpoints of the individual and no one else.