Photo: "towering over nature" by f. crouzat, member of the blogTO Flickr pool.

What's happening in the GTA (and sometimes beyond):

A proposed new law could dramatically impact privacy and the way people use the internet in Canada. Currently, if police or other high level authorities want to connect an IP address to a person, they require a warrant to force your internet service provider to fork over your personal details. But under the new law, no warrant would be required. The potential for abuse of power and violation of privacy is clear, and in my opinion, outweighs the benefits of quicker access to suspected criminals' details.

Here's a wild idea that is likely nothing more than a lucid pipe dream - rather than tearing it down, add another layer to the the downtown stretch of the Gardiner Expressway, complete with bike lanes and concession stands. As if the aging, crumbling, raised roadway needs an addition that requires even more maintenance. And can you imagine how ugly and under-utilized this would be from November to April? [sarcasm]Maybe we could make it an ice skating path during the winter.[/sarcasm]

A wealthy developer is looking to take a huge gamble, and build a massive new Chinese-themed mega-shopping complex up in Markham, at Kennedy & Steeles (where three smaller but similar malls already exist). The timing seems way wrong, but who knows - maybe this guy is onto something. He's the 58th wealthiest Canadian for a reason, after all.

Leslieville succeeded in keeping the big box retailers out, but now the space that was in question is being eyed by the TTC as the new home for a maintenance and storage facility for the incoming fleet of new streetcars. Seems like a good location to me, strictly geographically speaking... just southeast of the core, where the most frequented route are. But down in the portlands makes even more sense, since it would be further from residential.

Ottawa really doesn't want Toronto to have a piece of the economic stimulus pie, to put towards the purchase and building of transit infrastructure, namely the new TTC streetcar fleet. Why not? Because the stimulus pie aims to feed local job creation in the short-term, and those 5700 long-term jobs would be up in Thunder Bay rather than in Toronto.

And there's a rough and tumble "gang" that hangs out at Bluffers Park, that are allegedly responsible for roughing up a passerby, and now the city is being pressured to remove them. Why can't the wild cats and domesticated dogs just get along?