Archive for January, 2006

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04
Jan

Cynics Unlimited in the Mainstream Media … Sort of

By Cynapse 0 Comments
Categories: Politics, The Art of Blogging and Toronto

Some good news and some bad news … The good news is that, despite being online for less than a week, people are reading Cynics Unlimited. This is evidenced by a Toronto Sun quotation taken from The Jane Creba Factor while reporting on bloggers venting their grief. The bad news is that the quotation in question (“one has to wonder whether we’d all be falling over ourselves to demand government action had Jane been another Mohamed or Shaquan”) was attributed to Jack’s News Watch. Fortunately, Jack is a standup guy and searched for the actual origin of the quote to redirect inquisitive Sun readers. Much respect is due.

Speaking of Jane Creba, Jack’s website links to a Globe and Mail editorial by Margaret Wente. This truthful-though-not-quite-complete summary of the causes behind gun violence are indicative of the epic battle brewing between two groups of thinkers:

  1. Those who think racism/exclusion and little else contribute to the current state of the predominantly black-on-black warfare taking place in Toronto (largely socialist and/or black types)
  2. Those who think black culture and little else contribute to the current state of the predominantly black-on-black warfare taking place in Toronto (largely conservative and/or white types)

Of course, our trifecta of government incompetence has aggravated the situation by staging a hasty conference on how to combat gun crime … without the attendance of any actual leaders (Mayor, Premier and Prime Minister respectively) or an invitation to the black community groups who have been campaiging for months to create such a conference. Predictably, the black community groups held a press conference to vent to an all-too-eager media, which will in turn sell a lot of papers by furthering tensions. How can it not be inferred that the government is STILL not legitimately interested in bringing peace to Toronto? By catalyzing a conflict between two groups of law-abiding Canadians citizens with 99% similar objectives they’ve achieved exactly the opposite.

Toronto Sun Article Featuring Cynics Unlimited Quote (PDF)

Jane Creba, Toronto, Gun Violence, Margaret Wente, Cynics Unlimited, Jack’s News Watch

03
Jan

Can Stephen Harper Win a Minority Government?

By Cynapse 1 Comment
Categories: Election 2006 and Politics

After years of defeat, disappointment and disastrous political strategies, things finally seem to be going Stephen Harper’s way.

Recently published polls indicate that if an election were held today, Harper’s Conservative Party could win a minority government with 33% of the popular vote. Harper’s gains in Ontario, which has remained elusive to post-Mulroney Conservative parties, were most significant with 38% of the popular vote vs. Paul Martin’s 36%. Harper’s often-maligned image has also made gains, with 36% of survey respondents saying their opinion of him has improved (28% said their view of Harper has worsened). Compare this to Paul Martin, whose image has suffered in a whopping 50% of respondent’s eyes.

Decima Research Poll

Ipsos-Reid Poll

Having learned from history, Stephen Harper is not ready to declare victory yet – the Conservative Party of Canada looked set to win a minority during the previous national election, until a last-minute surge by the Liberals relegated the Conservatives to opposition status once again. It is widely believed that the Ontarian fear of Harper’s socially-conservative “hidden agenda” led to a last minute switch back to the Liberals.

Does Stephen Harper need to fear another such defeat? The answer may depend on just how dissatisfied Ontarians are with the Liberal Party. While the initial round of scandals (including the much publicized Gomery / AdScam Inquiry) had only a marginal effect on the opinion of Canadians who didn’t already have a conservative-driven vendetta, more recent missteps have seriously shaken voter faith in the once-dominant Liberals:

  • The recent Goodale scandal served to illustrate that the previous AdScam scandal was closer to Liberal routine than chance incident. The RCMP is currently investigating whether the department of Finance Minister Ralph Goodale leaked details of changes to the income trust tax policy to investors ahead of its official November 23rd release. Hours before the policy became law, stock trading soared unexpectedly for companies whose stocks were to benefit most from the policy changes
  • The surge in gun crimes throughout the Greater Toronto Area highlighted the ineffectiveness of the $2 billion national gun registry. Only after the murder of Jane Creba –Toronto’s 52nd gun death of 2005- did Martin seriously address the loose enforcement of laws that directly contributed to several of the deaths

It would be easy to assume that the Liberals have merely ignored the mounting problems for too long and Canadians are fed-up with the seemingly monthly scandals/boondoggles. This is probably part of the answer, but one also has to consider the economic effect of these problems. Investor confidence in Bay Street will be severely shaken if the RCMP does find evidence of inside knowledge being passed to select investors from the government. Increasingly negative media coverage of Toronto gang-fueled violence is already affecting both business and tourism downtown.

These economic problems go to the heart of the Liberal election strategy of selling their economic record. While Canada has economically flourished over the past few years, the future remains uncertain. Aside from the aforementioned problems, Canada’s increasingly strained relations with its largest trading partner are adding further jitters to Canadians on Bay Street and beyond. Fluctuating prices of raw exports have factored heavily into Canada’s economic growth, and these fortunes could turn on any international policy or economic change. A weakened tourist and/or business sector could leave Canada extremely vulnerable, especially provinces like Ontario that rely less on the export of raw materials.

With this in mind, the federal election would once again appear to be Harper’s to lose, as Liberal inaction and corruption are easing Ontario’s traditional hostility toward the Conservative candidate. As long as Harper continues to press on sure victory issues (crime, fighting corruption, taxation) while avoiding Ontario-repellents (abortion, bible-bashing, healthcare privatization) he could easily become our next Prime Minister. Canada requires political change in order to remain economically and politically viable; thus many wait in hope that Stephen Harper doesn’t pull another defeat from the jaws of victory.

01
Jan

The Jane Creba Factor

By Cynapse 30 Comments
Categories: Politics and Toronto

Boxing Day 2005 marked an important turning point for Toronto’s “Year of the Gun”. A brazen mid-day shootout between up to 15 youths resulted in the death of 15 year old Jane Creba and injuries to 6 others (all but one have been confirmed unconnected to gang activity). Creba, like thousands of other Torontonians and out-of-towners, was out deal-shopping with her family when she wandered into the path of a bullet intended for one of the youth combatants.

Toronto Shooting Victim Jane Creba

The reaction to this senseless murder was instantaneous and unprecedented:

  • Lucia Campisi, the first paramedic on the scene, spoke candidly in TV interviews about the trauma she suffered and the subsequent counseling she now receives after learning her efforts were not enough to save Creba’s life.
  • A candlelight vigil for the victim quickly became a major political event, attracting hundreds of mourners (instead of the usual dozens of mourners who attended vigils for other victims), advocacy groups and a who’s who of politicians seeking (re)election in 2006
  • A online guestbook was setup online for friends and family to send condolences to Creba, and instead was flooded with heartfelt condolences from as far away as Australia
  • A online guestbook was setup online for friends and family to send condolences to Creba, and instead was flooded with heartfelt condolences from as far away as Australia
  • News columnists across Canada predicted doom and gloom for Toronto. Toronto Sun writer Connie Woodcock, in a column titled ‘Farewell, Toronto’, declared never to return to the city for her commercial needs: “Next time I feel like going shopping, I’m not getting any closer to Yonge and Dundas than the Oshawa Mall. I’ve never heard of a shootout there”
  • The Toronto Youth Cabinet, a grassroots community group previously ignored by politicians and much of the media (despite their constant suggestions on how to combat gun violence) suddenly found themselves on national TV via CTV Newsnet
  • Prior to this shooting, public interest in Toronto’s spiraling gun violence problem was lukewarm at best. Despite the efforts of the local media to draw attention to the escalating violence and the social problems behind this violence (best exemplified by CityTV’s Stop the Violence Web/TV campaign), the response of the average Canadian was “Let them shoot each other”, “Liberals / Caribbean immigrants / Mike Harris / 50-Cent is to blame” or “I hate Toronto anyway”.

So why the sudden outpouring of grief and emotion from the far corners of the nation and beyond? First, look at what it is most likely NOT the cause of the sudden public interest:

  1. The uniqueness of a Toronto murder. Jane Creba was the 78th and final Toronto murder victim of 2005
  2. The existence of gun violence in Toronto. Creba was 52nd and final Toronto murder victim of 2005
  3. A shooting in a highly visible area. 21 year-old Dwayne Taylor was shot to death at Dundas Square (just blocks away from the Creba shooting) nearly half a year earlier. The venue was equally crowded, being in the midst of the annual Caribana festival, and police were present during the time of the shooting
  4. The innocence of the victim. 18 year-old Jason Huxtable –a recent high school graduate who planned to study Business at Seneca College- was gunned down by a 15 year old boy for the unspeakable crime of visiting a girl who happened to live in the wrong housing project. 26 year-old Livvette Olivea Miller was killed in a manner similar to Jane Creba – the mother of four was caught in the crossfire between rival gang members at a crowded North York dance club
  5. Media coverage. As stated, local coverage of gun violence has been comprehensive. Apart from CityTV’s campaign, the Toronto Star and Toronto Sun have also run specials on gun violence and the social conditions behind them. Each shooting, and the profile of the victim(s) involved, has been well publicized

So if all of these factors could have logically been the cause, what’s left? The obvious thing no one wants to admit: Jane Creba is a 15 year old all-Canadian white girl who comes across as “everyone’s daughter”. While most of the limited public interest in previous Toronto shootings focused on the general menace of gangs (resulting in half-baked quick-fix solutions and/or slurs against the demographic of the shooters) there has been a concerted effort to focus on Creba as a valued life:

“It’s touched each one of us in Toronto, one of our own sisters, her life cut short by a gun,” – comment to the Toronto Star

“what a tragic end to a life with such potential. My heart goes out to the Creba family, and Jane’s friends. I only wonder why such a horrible things have to happen to such a wonderful young life” – posted to Creba’s online memorial

“I cannot imagine the pain you must feel at this moment on the tragic loss of Jane, She looks like a great person and I know that she’ll be miss alot. Toronto and the entire nation is standing side by side, mourning with you at this time. I sincerely hope that you can find the inner strength in the days and months ahead and my thoughts and prayers go out to you all.” – posted to Creba’s online memorial

Why were Huxtable and Miller not worthy of this sympathy? The apparent double-standard makes one wonder what people really meant when they were ok with ‘them killing each other’. Were people really referring to just the gang members?

The positive outcome of this sad double-standard is that the politicians and judicial system, under intense public pressure, will finally work on creating new laws and enforcing existing laws to keep those accused and convicted of gun crimes off the streets. It’s unfortunate that 52 people had to be killed by handgun before mayor David Miller and provincial/national politicians realized this problem wasn’t going to go away via blaming the U.S. or banning guns that are already prohibited. Still, one has to wonder whether we’d all be falling over ourselves to demand government action had Jane been another Mohamed or Shaquan.

We live in a democracy and politicians –who still need to be re-elected no matter how worthlessly they behave while in office- are ultimately captive to our collective will. As such, the people of Canada must begrudgingly share blame in the death of Jane Creba.

Update: Jane Creba – 1 Month Later

Update (June 13): Deaths = 1, Arrests = 25, Lessons Learned = 0

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