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......

At random intervals, two Torontoist staffers square off to debate an issue that's important to our city. We invite our readers to join the debate in the comments section following the post. Last Friday June 29 was designated a "national day of action" for First Nations people to raise public awareness on Native issues. While most of the activities were peaceful, there were some groups which went further, engaging in illegal blockades of roads and......

Lush" src="http://www.torontoist.com/attachments/toronto_marcl/taraspencernairn.jpg" width="640" height="340"> Corner Gas may not be everybody's cup of Ruby coffee, but we've always been big fans of Tara Spencer-Nairn, better known to Canadians these days as Officer Karen Pelly. Though "Karen" has a large stable of drooling fans with cop kinks, the spring issue of Lush brings us Spencer-Nairn out of uniform and as fashion-hot as a smoking Glock 22. The shoot was photographed by Paul Wright, who also captured Hilary......

Yesterday, the first in a series of public meetings with the United States Coast Guard resulted in the suspention of live-fire machine gun drills on the Great Lakes until greater safety and environmental inquiries are made. The live-fire drills have been operating on all five lakes since January, only recently gaining public attention and inciting outrage in the recreational boating, fishing and cottaging communities. The U.S. Coast Guard, a division of the Department of......

The city defends its bike ring and posts after the Star wrote a piece yesterday saying that a two-by-four can be used to break apart the popular bike lockup posts. City staff will investigate whether vandalizing the posts with a two-by-four is possible. British law enforcement break up a suspected terrorist scheme to blow up planes heading into the US. As a result airports, including Pearson, are implementing new security procedures. If you're flying......

Things get worse for the TTC. In light of GM Rick Ducharme's resignation the TTC have decided to tell him to leave right away instead of waiting around till November. Ducharme is fighting this and threatening to call his lawyers. He also pins the blame for his resignation on interference by TTC Chair Howard Moscoe and even Mayor Miller . Many councillors are now calling for Moscoe to step down. Ducharme is the third TTC......

Elected municipal officials across Toronto now have four-year terms thanks to Queen's Park. Citing the increased complexity of municipal affairs the province rushed through a bill lengthening municipal government terms. The reform divided council and raised criticism from local activists like former mayor John Sewell. Anti-poverty groups are peeved at Jane Pitfield and want her off the city's homeless advisory committee. They're angry over her desire for a by-law that bans panhandling. Residents near the......

Graffiti is one of those hot button issues in any large city. For some it's a symbol of urban decay and crime, a sign that a neighbourhood will soon be overrun by gangs, drugs and other unsavoury elements. For many others, it's a vital form of artistic expression for those who are disenfranchised and for whom the traditional gallery and art establishment isn't accessible nor relevant to their day to day experience. This weekend's 10th......