I haven't heard much about this lately, until the Star's editorial today. I'm actually quite (pleasantly) surprised at the position they took.
After the diplomatic incident and accusations of police brutality, we're left with this:
"...at least two have now admitted seeing a female police officer punched in the face by a member of the soccer team."
"An investigation by Toronto police revealed Chilean players threw batteries, coat-hangers, and arm and footrests from the team bus at police and that officers were punched, spat upon and kicked in the groin."
The tasers and pepper spray were used in response to these actions.
Anyone still think the police over-reacted?
Thursday, August 2, 2007
Wednesday, August 1, 2007
Toronto's Fiscal Crisis
So we all know this story now. Our mayor tried to get some new taxes passed, failed, and threw a hissy fit threatening to shut down the Sheppard subway line and several TTC bus lines.
Let's review:
1 - Our city council gives themselves hefty pay raises a little while ago, even though we're facing this great budget crisis.
2 - The day after Miller tells us about the great budget crisis, the city "spends $1 million to hire bylaw officers to oversee dogs in off-leash parks."
3 - City councilors not only got a nice raise, but they also have huge expense accounts that they abuse regularly!
4 - And finally, today I read that the number of TTC employees making over $100,000 is now 277!
I know that even if the city corrected a lot of these mistakes, we'd still face a huge budget shortfall. But I think our mayor's approach of complaining + raising taxes is the wrong one. The steps should be taken in this order: A) Get spending under control and do a top to bottom full audit of the city's expenses, B) Pressure the province to upload the costs downloaded by the PCs, and then, only then, consider option C) Raising taxes if we're still short.
I believe that most Torontonians will not stand for a tax hike as long as we continue to see the taxes we already pay wasted so egregiously.
Let's review:
1 - Our city council gives themselves hefty pay raises a little while ago, even though we're facing this great budget crisis.
2 - The day after Miller tells us about the great budget crisis, the city "spends $1 million to hire bylaw officers to oversee dogs in off-leash parks."
3 - City councilors not only got a nice raise, but they also have huge expense accounts that they abuse regularly!
4 - And finally, today I read that the number of TTC employees making over $100,000 is now 277!
I know that even if the city corrected a lot of these mistakes, we'd still face a huge budget shortfall. But I think our mayor's approach of complaining + raising taxes is the wrong one. The steps should be taken in this order: A) Get spending under control and do a top to bottom full audit of the city's expenses, B) Pressure the province to upload the costs downloaded by the PCs, and then, only then, consider option C) Raising taxes if we're still short.
I believe that most Torontonians will not stand for a tax hike as long as we continue to see the taxes we already pay wasted so egregiously.
My Healthcare Story
Two weeks ago, I suddenly had shooting pain in both of my arms. Taking Tylenol didn't help, so I headed down to the Emergency Room. The doctor there diagnosed a Repetitive Stress Injury, and sent me home with Advil.
Two days after that, I had some severe swelling and pain in both arms and legs, which led to ER Trip #2. The doctor recommended I keep taking Advil, and see my family doctor during the week.
The next night, I had a new type of pain in both arms and legs, which led to ER Trip #3. After a five hour wait in excruciating pain, I finally saw a doctor, who suspected something viral. He sent me home with some really strong painkillers.
I finally saw my Family Doctor a few days later, and he immediately realized that it is a localized allergic reaction to something, and sent me to a Rheumatologist at Toronto General Hospital (TGH).
When I got to TGH, I was told to wait in line at the ER (this is trip #4), and when I finally saw a doctor, who wasn't a Rheumatologist (even though my Family Doctor specifically requested a Rheumatologist). I was sent home again.
The next day, I saw a Dermatologist, who also suspected an allergic reaction. After hearing my (ridiculous) story, she pulled a few strings and got a Rheumatologist to see me immediately. I finally got some proper medication prescribed, which improved my condition drastically right after the first dose. The doctors still don't know what happened, but at least the medication is working.
This is the first time I've been sick enough to need to go to a hospital, and the experience has utterly shaken my faith in our healthcare system. If you don't think medicare is broken, you're a moron.
I have several points:
1 - It's not that we don't have good doctors, we actually have some great ones. It just took too long for the system to get me to the right person.
2 - My brother and I were discussing that it would've been quite expensive if we'd paid for these ER visits out of pocket (I believe each visit costs over $300). On the other hand, I would have been willing to shell out up to a thousand dollars to see the right doctor right away and get treatment faster.
3 - I understand the Triage system in ERs, but the wait times are still ridiculous. This might have something to do with understaffing, because on Trip #3, the doctor who saw me was the only one working in the ER. To his credit, he stayed an extra hour to wait for my test results and prescribed something that actually relieved my pain.
4 - During ER Trips #2 and #3, I had blood tests done. My family doctor does not have automatic access to those results, he has to call the hospital and have them faxed to him. Even more ridiculous is the fact that I, the patient, will not be given those results! After seeing about 8 doctors within a week, it's painfully obvious how important electronic health records are. Any doctor I see now should be able to access my records, prescriptions, and test results from the past week, but they can't.
Two days after that, I had some severe swelling and pain in both arms and legs, which led to ER Trip #2. The doctor recommended I keep taking Advil, and see my family doctor during the week.
The next night, I had a new type of pain in both arms and legs, which led to ER Trip #3. After a five hour wait in excruciating pain, I finally saw a doctor, who suspected something viral. He sent me home with some really strong painkillers.
I finally saw my Family Doctor a few days later, and he immediately realized that it is a localized allergic reaction to something, and sent me to a Rheumatologist at Toronto General Hospital (TGH).
When I got to TGH, I was told to wait in line at the ER (this is trip #4), and when I finally saw a doctor, who wasn't a Rheumatologist (even though my Family Doctor specifically requested a Rheumatologist). I was sent home again.
The next day, I saw a Dermatologist, who also suspected an allergic reaction. After hearing my (ridiculous) story, she pulled a few strings and got a Rheumatologist to see me immediately. I finally got some proper medication prescribed, which improved my condition drastically right after the first dose. The doctors still don't know what happened, but at least the medication is working.
This is the first time I've been sick enough to need to go to a hospital, and the experience has utterly shaken my faith in our healthcare system. If you don't think medicare is broken, you're a moron.
I have several points:
1 - It's not that we don't have good doctors, we actually have some great ones. It just took too long for the system to get me to the right person.
2 - My brother and I were discussing that it would've been quite expensive if we'd paid for these ER visits out of pocket (I believe each visit costs over $300). On the other hand, I would have been willing to shell out up to a thousand dollars to see the right doctor right away and get treatment faster.
3 - I understand the Triage system in ERs, but the wait times are still ridiculous. This might have something to do with understaffing, because on Trip #3, the doctor who saw me was the only one working in the ER. To his credit, he stayed an extra hour to wait for my test results and prescribed something that actually relieved my pain.
4 - During ER Trips #2 and #3, I had blood tests done. My family doctor does not have automatic access to those results, he has to call the hospital and have them faxed to him. Even more ridiculous is the fact that I, the patient, will not be given those results! After seeing about 8 doctors within a week, it's painfully obvious how important electronic health records are. Any doctor I see now should be able to access my records, prescriptions, and test results from the past week, but they can't.
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