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Torontoist Week in Review: August 31 to September 4
A lot happens in the course of a workweek. Here’s a look back at the top stories from the past five days that you might have missed or might care to revisit.
Cast photo of National Lampoon Presents: Full House the Musical! A Tanner Family Parody! courtesy of Rock-It Promotions.
Packed with jokes about fetal alcoholism, queef solos, dildo interludes (and let’s not forget, an appearance by Perez Hilton), National Lampoon Presents: Full House the Musical! A Tanner Family Parody! shocks without a discernible message.
From the article:
The male understudy takes the stage and asks the crowd if it’s excited, and promptly informs us that Perez Hilton, the celebrity blogger, is the star. It’s a fact you couldn’t avoid if you wanted to: his somewhat-sinister face is the first thing you see on the show’s website, and “STARRING PEREZ HILTON” dominates most of the banner outside, as well as all promotional material. The understudy then tells us we’re all family now, and instructs us to hug our neighbour. The three-quarters-full audience looks around. Luckily, I have an empty seat next to me, but before I know it, a stranger has pushed her torso into my neck and whispers, “We’re family now.” She seems to be enjoying herself, but for me, this show already has too much personal-space invasion. And it’s going to get worse.
The Young Urbanists League, an active and open community of urban planners, community organizers, and municipal-policy wonks, take to Facebook to voice their own visions for Toronto.
From the article:
It’s a process that’s being replicated by many of her Facebook group’s 1,200-odd members, whose ranks keep ballooning as word-of-mouth spreads. YUL (pronounced “yule”) is an active and open community of urban planners, community organizers, and municipal-policy wonks—plus a mixed bag of artists, students, journalists, and other ardent fans of the city. In just over a year, the group’s become a vital resource for them to exchange job opportunities, event listings, and their own visions for Toronto’s future development.
Surrounded by media, Cecil Peter clutches a photo of Andrew Loku and calls for the elimination of carding during a public consultation at the Toronto Reference Library. His question sheet reads: “End carding.”
A public consultation on carding leads to frustration and anger, with most in favour of abolishing the controversial police practice.
From the article:
The meeting was the last of five consultations across the province, held to inform the ministry’s legislation on the regulation of carding; the only Toronto stop was tacked on to the tour last minute, a product of community outcry. But the rigid format imposed on the crowd instead ignited tempers and caused angry outbursts—a majority of which called for the elimination, not regulation, of carding.
Jen Agg
Food industry professionals come together to eliminate sexism in the kitchen.
From the article:
“I’ve definitely put myself in positions where I don’t necessarily have to deal with that stuff because I’ve owned my own businesses for a long time,” says Agg. “[But] in certain business relationships, I’ve definitely felt like if I were a man, this would not be happening.”
Today in Serious Journalism is Kelli Korducki’s Q&A with Scratchy the Safety Cat, the Annex’s most famous safety-vested feline.
From the article:
Chances are that if you’ve been in the western reaches of the Annex these past few months, you’ve seen Safety Cat. The neon orange-vested feline, whose real name is Scratchy, has become something of a community fixture. He’s even gotten real dead-tree media coverage for his “wonderfully goofy” contribution to community spirit.
With Safety Cat about to say goodbye to the Annex as his owner heads off to graduate school in England, we chatted with him about safety, getting pats, Jane Jacobs’ theory of the public character, and more.