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Newsstand: July 19, 2010
Illustration by Matt Daley/Torontoist.
Ripped from today’s headlines: trouble inside and outside Queen’s Park, money tight for Caribana, Honda Indy attendance down, woman assaulted in Chinatown, and Harper blasted by iconic potheads.
For the second Saturday in a row, a couple of hundred people gathered in Queen’s Park to demand a federal public inquiry into police action during the G20. Inspired by the now-infamous viral video of a police officer threatening to arrest a protester for blowing bubbles, about sixty in attendance on Saturday took to blowing bubbles in peaceful protest. The Queen’s Park “bubble-in” was just one of several public calls for an inquiry over the weekend, with hundreds of other concerned Canadians showing up to marches held in Montreal and Quebec City.
There promises to be even more excitement behind the doors of Queen’s Park today as the OPP prepare to release info regarding the criminal investigation into “irregular financial transactions” between provincial government ministries and outside vendors. The OPP raided several ministries at The Macdonald Block near Queen’s Park and Bay Street on Thursday in response to reports of such shady dealings. The Macdonald Block houses several Ontario government ministries and offices such Energy and Infrastructure, Consumer Services, and Education. The OPP is remaining fairly hush-hush with regard to pending charges but says that their anti-racket branch is heading up a thorough (and lengthy) investigation.
This summer’s Caribana festival (a.k.a The Scotiabank Caribana Festival 2010) is just around the corner, but organizers say the event is coming up short on cash. While Caribana has been strapped in the past, organizers claim they will need to scrounge up around one hundred thousand dollars in order to meet the expectations of the festival, which an Ipsos Reid study showed generated four hundred and eighty three million dollars for the provincial economy last year alone. Caribana chair Joe Halstead says that the festival will not run a deficit, but that they may have to cut costs in more discrete ways, such as erecting smaller performance stages and recycling T-shirts from previous years. As long as they don’t skimp on the steelpan.
The wonderfully named Australian auto racer Will Power was first past the finish line at this weekend’s Honda Indy, edging out defending champion Dario Franchitti. But some reports indicate that the pop of Power’s champagne cork in the winner’s circle was heard by few, with attendance at this year’s race far below expectations. Beyond the grandstands, revenues at on-site beer gardens and hot dog stands were reported down, indicative of a consistent loss of interest in the annual race. Officials remain unfazed, however, with Charles Johnstone, VP of Honda Indy Toronto, claiming they have a five-year plan in place to increase attendance.
A sixty-four-year-old woman was sexually assaulted while riding her bike yesterday morning near Baldwin and Spadina in Chinatown. The victim describes the man as “unkempt” and police are asking for the public’s help in identifying the attacker. The suspect is described as a white male in his forties, approximately 5’9″ with a medium build. He was last seen wearing a brown sweater with a white shirt underneath, cut-off jean shorts, brown running shoes with no socks, and a baseball hat. Police ask that anyone with relevant information call the Sex Crimes Unit at 416-808-7474, or call Crime Stoppers at 416-222-TIPS to report anonymously.
Just For Laughs may have rolled out of Toronto last weekend, but the festival made national headlines this weekend when aging stoner icons Cheech Marin and Tommy Chong took a few “pot shots” at Stephen Harper and his government’s marijuana policy while in Montreal for the annual comedy festival. Chong (who hails from Edmonton) lambasted the Conservatives’ stance on pot legality and criticized Harper’s apparent kowtowing to former U.S. president George W. Bush. “I would tell Stephen Harper to let go of George Bush’s butt,” Chong told the Canadian Press. “Your head’s too far up there. Get your head out of his butt. He’s gone. George is gone. He’s history, Stephen.” The prime minister’s office could not be reached for comment in response to Chong’s rather blunt condemnation of party policy.
Happy Monday, everybody. Smoke ‘em if you got ‘em.