Here Comes The Rain Again

However cynical I am about politics is about to change dramatically. The tides have turned and I am as cynical as ever.

Alberta Premier Ralph Klein recently announced that he would be seeking legal advice in regards to withdrawing from the federal equalisation plan. The province has recently reaped some great benefits due to the upward price of crude oil, stimulating its economy.

So what is equalisation? In Canada's ten provinces, there are those provinces that have a well-developed economy, and are called "have provinces". Other provinces, who can't provide the same government services on their own are called "have not" provinces. They simply couldn't afford it.

The federal government a few years back came out with a plan with much fanfare that tries to lessen this gap from the have and the have not provinces by asking for money to suppliment that budget of have-nots. This is done by contribution from the have provinces. This helps create a uniform way of providing government services.

In Ontario, provincial politicians are raising a little hell about this issue. Allegations flew about Ontarians not getting their fair share of money in, money out. A few billion dollars, perhaps.

But the subways are deteriorating, schools are poorly maintained and built and the health care system is almost in critical mode. What to do?

In my tiny opinion, this equalisation scheme should be cancelled. I could care less whether we need to "equalise" government services. This is just the federal government's way of saying "we're too lazy to develop our country".

Yeah yeah, call me a redneck, but Ontario deserves its own tax money.

Snow on Vicky Day

Whoever came up with the four seasons must be scratching their head right about now. The depressing rain fell as the weather that closely resembles Vancouver has replaced the normal oven bestowed upon Toronto.

Today is the day before Victoria Day. The first long weekend in the summer season. But hold on! It has been unusually cold this week, to the point where the Northern reaches of Ontario will expect snow tonight. Now, normally, we'd be looking towards temperature up to 25 degrees centigrade, but it has been rain all week.

Mother Nature has some mood problems.

If it was warmer than usual, I must admit that I would grip just as much as I am right now. I really don't get why the weather has been so moody lately. This rainy spell should probably be temporary, and I'll probably be griping about the increase in temperatures soon enough.

That quote "April showers bring May flowers" is starting to get confusing.

In Japan, sakura flowers begin to bloom right about now. Well, sort of. Its pink beauty shined like a delicate blossom, leaving those in observance drooling into a slight awe.

Now, why can't we plant more of these sakura trees? People brag, in the fall, about the many colours that are pronounced among the falling leaves, yet all we see from trees right about now is green, green and green.

Last year, I visited Washington, DC. What I expected was the first bloom of the sakura trees donated from Tokyo, but when I was there it was as bald as an aging man. Where's the "beauty" in that?

Ahh well, let's enjoy what we have until the sun burns us.

Just Desserts

Justice for me is a two-pronged approach. I am a proponent of sentencing criminals to fair sentences, but from a human standpoint, I also believe in healing and forgiveness.

Take the case of Min Chen. He was the person who murdered Cecilia Zhang back in 2003. The crime sent shockwaves to mainstream Chinese-Canadians, seeing that something like this could come out of our own backyard.

A few minutes ago, whilst I was gathering my thoughts, the news radio station finally reported on how long Chen had to remain in prison: fifteen years.

Min Chen was a mislead man. His student visa was about to expire, and in order to remain in the Great White North, he had to pay for a marriage of conveinence. Cecilia was his ticket to staying in Canada.

In my honest opinion, if Chen had meant to kill the talented young girl or not is nothing compared to the heartbreak and tragedy caused by him when he entered the Zhang home that night.

The Zhangs will never see their heart and soul, and my heart aches to hear such a tragedy happen within Toronto. Cecilia did not deserve to die, and Chen's greed caused this great misfortune.

I believe in rehabilitation; I am sure Chen will understand his wrongdoing while serving his fifteen year sentence without parole. A man needs to understand the human side of what happened just three years earlier.

The Pizza Day Craze

At lunchtime one day, I picked up my little sister, Jen, from elementary school. Whilst I was waiting for her in the main hallway, two ladies with around thirty boxes of pizza were organising the slices for the students who ordered in each class.

It was then I realised that it was Pizza Day that afternoon. If you are not familiar with the idea, it is where the students could order pizza from the store en masse, where the school acts as a middleman earning a small profit.

I was confused to see all the ruckus in the hallway as I waited for Jen. The lunchladies were telling everyone to return to their classes because the lunch bell hadn't rung and that they were not ready to distribute the savoury goodies just yet. A little baby who apparently participated in this ritual was crying because two or three kids started playing peek-a-boo, and according to one of the lunchladies "she doesn't like being peek-a-boo-ed at".

As I read the mail that I picked up on the way to the school, a couple of boys came along the hallway and started fiddling with the boxes that sat on designation. "Don't touch it! We're not ready yet," a lunchlady quickly snapped, and the two boys quietly retreated to the corner.

The bell then came a sudden rang, and students from all three hallways started rushing through. There came Jen who was surprised that I showed up.

So that's how I got my pizza when I was little!

Scarborough Fair

Are you going to Scarborough Fair?
Parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme.
Remember me to one who lives there.
She who was a true love of mine.
- Traditional English Ballad

Of course, this traditional English ballad is talking about the town in Yorkshire, England, but what about the Toronto suburb (of the same name)? This part of the city has a very interesting history, which sadly has a bitter aftertaste.

It was the wife of the first Lieutenant Governor of Upper Canada who described the Scarborough Bluffs as "extremely bold". Hence the Simcoes named this plot of land Scarborough because its rolling bluffs reminded them of the town back home. As this romantic tale unravelled, the town was eventually transformed to a suburb of multicultural proportions. What baffles me is that the former home of Mike Myers would be compared to this romantic tale of homesickness and memory.

This Scarborough Fair, in her majesty's dominion, has become somewhat of an eyesore in recent days. What saddens me is the growing amount of crime that has stricken this part of Toronto. It is forever unfortunate that the most culturally autonomous part of the Golden Horseshoe has to be seen in this light.

A number of people propose to build a causeway along the bluffs to alleviate traffic. Seriously, is this even a serious suggestion? Would it be as much of a romantic ballad if Scarborough Fair was held in ye olde North York? Cheh.