Torontoist is officially in election mode. In the run-up to the big day, we'll be profiling some of the most closely contested ridings in the GTA, looking for the bellwethers and offering snapshots of electoral districts in transition. Photo of Peggy Nash by Miles Storey/Torontoist. Parkdale-High Park is the stuff of leftie dreams, a riding where the only real question is whether you hate Stephen Harper, or really hate Stephen Harper. Bisected by Roncesvalles Avenue,......

So, your buddy just flew in from his exotic, six-month trek throughout Thailand. You're at work when he lands, so you send your older sister to go pick him up (she owes you a favour, as per usual). She drives to the airport, picks him up, and he returns, full of coconut curry and stories of full-moon parties. He doesn't bring back any drugs, or snakeskin shoes, but on the ride back he buys......

That’s right! Ontario Power Generation, that ever-so-lovable corporation owned by the Government of Ontario (responsible, according to their Wikipedia page, for 70% of Ontario’s electricity) are being forced to change their name by Prince, after he noticed that “Ontario Power Generation” (founded in 1999) is suspiciously close to the name of his backing band, the New Power Generation Or! We’re lying, and it’s in fact Ontario Power Generation, the local band (unrelated to Prince or......

Government fires head of Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission Linda Keen. However, it is understandable, considering that Ms. Keen went public about government interference in her job and threats of being fired if she shut down the Chalk River reactor for being potentially unsafe. We mean, you can't say she wasn't warned that her bosses were mendacious assholes, is our point. Mitt Romney wins Michigan Republican primary. The former Massachusetts governor, thought to be made......

Bad news if you're a lacrosse fan: the 2008 National Lacrosse League season has been cancelled. Pick your joke: 1) "I'm sure all three of you are very disappointed"; 2) "Players are refusing to play until they get reimbursed for their bus tickets"; 3) "My God, this is the national sport we're talking about here! Why isn't Stephen Harper doing something, for the love of God?"; 4) "So, why are the Toronto Rock still......

To no one's surprise, yesterday's Ontario election (read our liveblog of the results here) was a big victory for the status quo, with voters giving the Liberals another majority and soundly rejecting Mixed Member Proportional voting. Dalton McGuinty was pleased, having given his acceptance speech the day before the election, while John Tory, having lost bids to become mayor of Toronto and Premier of Ontario, needs only an unsuccessful run at the PM-ship to......

The City of Toronto may have been calling for one cent of the GST, but we may end up spending a pretty penny in penalties for the image used in that ad campaign. The marketing campaign, which appeared on bumper stickers, buttons and in bus shelters, uses a coin photo sourced from the Royal Canadian Mint. The problem? Any image of Canadian currency is the intellectual property of the federally-run Mint, and the City......

Operating a public transit system is a difficult job, continually plagued by budget cuts, aging infrastructure and rampant customer dissatisfaction. We've always been fans of GO Transit, however, which has generally proven to be clean and reliable despite being operated by the Government of Ontario (hence, the acronym "GO"). When the 2005-06 provincial budget was announced and included more than $300 million in funding for GO's operating and capital costs, transit enthusiasts were ecstatic.......

Actor Darryl Pring is a big guy (you might recognize him as the farmer on the bouncing tractor from the "Milk Rap" ads). Pring is also a funny guy who has written and produced a play called Fatty, which will be touring Fringe Festivals (including the Toronto Fringe ) across Canada this summer. Dubbed a "fictional true story" Fatty is adapted from the novel I, Fatty by Jerry Stahl. The play tells the story of......

First incandescent light bulbs, now toilets: at the recommendation of David Miller, the Ontario government will consider banning conventional toilets to promote low-flush toilets. Low-flushies use only 6 litres of water per flush, while regular toilets will use anywhere from 13-25 litres to flush. Not only would the ban save Toronto 26 million litres of water per day, it would eliminate the need for $60 million in water and sewage-treatment capacity. Here's a ban......

Morris Panych shows abound in this city. In the past few years alone, we've had Vigil, The Dishwashers, The Government Inspector, Habeas Corpus, Take Me Out, Amadeus, Sweeny Todd and The Girl in the Goldfish Bowl. After What Lies Before Us, The Overcoat is his second Canstage show of the year - and it's only February! He has become a theatre artist of a very divisive nature - some people love his whimsical physicality......

Claws were out at Sunday's Liberal leadership debate. Bob Rae accused Michael Ignatieff of waffling on foreign policy. Stephane Dion compared Rae, former NDP premier, to spendthrift icon Rich Uncle Pennybags ''giving monopoly money to the people''. Ken Dryden compared politics to his hockey career and drew applause. But all agreed one thing: "Liberals, we need to get back to power as soon as possible." Toronto's famous entertainment promoter, Gino Empry, died this weekend at......

Every five years, Canadians are required to disclose their information to the Federal Government. Lucky citizens are thrilled to fill out an eight-question form and the less fortunate among us must spend a bit more time at answering 53 questions. Many of us have received the questionnaire in the mail and others will have found a letter in the mailbox asking them to fill in the blanks online. We’ve been bombarded with Census ads because......

Mr. Speaker, can the Prime Minister please explain why the newly redesigned Government of Canada website very much resembles the Conservative Party of Canada website? Why does the new Government of Canada website also share press releases from the CPC site? And can the Prime Minister also explain why the colour blue - a very Conservative hue of blue - now appears on the publicly-funded site? And, finally, can the Prime Minister please admit......

The last time the Toronto Blue Jays touched post-season turf Jean Chretien was two days away from his first Majority Government, Aerosmith's Get a Grip was Billboard's #1 album and the Adorable Sports Writer was likely sporting an undershave. Sadly it's been one partially locked-out and ten full seasons since Joe Carter hit one of baseball's most memorable home runs. However during that span, some pretty decent teams have filled the Skydome/Rogers Centre's home dugout.......

Torontoist nearly spat out his coffee this morning after reading this story on the Spacing Wire. It turns out that the Ontario Government somehow might find the money to help fund the extension of the subway from Downsview all the way up to York University. That's right, the York Subway, that long-held Toronto dream might just become a reality. The total cost of the extension will be somewhere around $1.5 billion according to the Star,......

A couple interesting flip-flops in the new government today - namely a crossing of the floor and an unelected senator and Minister of Public Works and Government Service. Although Harpsy is flipping and flopping like a fish out of water, these moves are not without precedent. According to our numbers, the last time there was a cross-over cabinet member was Belinda Stronach in the Martin tenure and the last unelected cabinet ministers were Stephane Dion......

Guantanamo Bay, Abu Ghraib, extraordinary renditions, security certificates, Maher Arar, enemy combatants, torture, all of them erosions of democracy and symptoms of a larger problem. Government abuse of power isn't anything new, and as the sole holder of power and force in most societies, our elected "representatives" can often do so with impunity. The Alphabet City Festival, looks at how "the war on terror" has created a whole new set of bogeymen, irrational fears and......

2.Belinda Stronach, Liberal, Newmarket Aurora Belinda, the Good Minister of the Government Side, killed off her wicked counterpart when she rode her broomstick across the floor last spring. And what a breathetaking view it was to watch her do it! With her mix of power and finesse, Ms Stronach could even be inspiration for a new hip-hop dance move entitled "Cross the Floor." It would go something like this: First, perfect a finishing school strut......

Thank goodness the city mixes valid observance days with silly, public relations days, because if we had only 'official gingivitis prevention days' to make light of, we'd start to wonder about the proclamations issuing forth from City Hall. Oh wait, Multiculturism Day is a Government of Canada proclamation. Perhaps the Feds take on the 'real' days, and leave the salad ones to local crats. In any event, this newish day (Officially proclaimed as such in......

The people behind So Good Soy Milk must be nuts. This can be the only explanation for the following release: Join all the action today as Dundas Square is transformed into a summer vacation oasis, complete with a beach, tiki bars, live music, and ... cows in Hawaiian shirts. Why, you might ask? With more and more Canadians making the switch from dairy milk to soymilk, many cows are finally enjoying much-deserved vacations. And the......