Imagine That

Unless you saw it for yourself, you just would not believe it. Here are some more interesting items for you to consider.

IS DON MCARTHUR LOOKING FOR A NEW JOB

Is one of the editorial writers at the Star looking to be fired? Is he daring them to try to get rid of him hoping for a big severance payment so that he can go out West and get a high paying job with one of the newspapers there?

That was my first reaction when I read his BLOG. Combine that with his story “Watchdog demands audit's release” and he might be attacked as a Naysayer, heaven forbid.

It would appear to me that Don has a few more than seven readers considering the number of people who contacted me asking if I had read his Windsor Star BLOG about the Mayor. You can read it at

http://communities.canada.com/windsorstar/blogs/lifeontour/default.aspx

The last reporters of the Star wrote BLOGs similar to that no longer do so. In fact if you go to the website where one of them used to be found you would read:

• “Not Found: Resource Not Found. The resource you requested does not exist.”

If you think I am brutal in my conversations about our Mayor, then read this

• "When Francis told you in his State of the City address that he wanted to "change the conversation," I didn't think he meant he was going to start swearing like a sailor. It is unbecoming of his office reflects poorly on the city. Could you imagine, say, Prime Minister Stephen Harper telling the nation during the recent leaders' debate that Canada was in "deep ***." Not even the opposition leaders, who were trying to stoke fear in a shameless bid for votes, resorted to the profanity of panic.
  
  The worst of it is that Francis doesn't know any more about the global financial crisis than you or any other person on the street. He doesn't have some red phone in his office connecting him to Wall Street or Bay Street. He reads the same stories in the same newspapers at the same time that you do. He's certainly not a financial analyst. Heck, he's hardly even a lawyer. He just plays one on TV.”

Some of my readers wondered whether or not this signalled that the Star was going to be changing its position with respect to the Mayor. I hardly think so.

As long as Eddie maintains his opposition to the Bridge Company, the Star will still support him.

Why then is McArthur doing what he is doing? I have no idea. It is too cynical even for me to suggest that he has been allowed to write this way just so that the Star can demonstrate that they are presenting an evenhanded approach to the Mayor if someone tried to criticize them. Seriously though, they can hardly make that argument when MacArthur only has "seven" readers. Mind you, the way things are going in Windsor, the Star may only have seven readers before long.

So let us take it for what it is. Another person in Windsor disappointed by our Mayor and letting the world know about it in the strongest possible terms. How many times have we seen that before?

Welcome to the phone booth, Don.

SCHWUNNELS AND ACCIDENTS

I have BLOGGED this before. And I will probably keep on doing it.

The real risk to a border crossing in Windsor is not an attack on the bridge but rather, if Greenlink is built, an attack on one of the kilometre long Schwunnels that Eddie wants built or probably on all of them at the same time.

A major accident in any one of the Schwunnels could disrupt trade between Canada and the United States for hours or days or more.

How can an accident happen? Who knows. They just do.

Here is one story from the Windsor Star that I saw recently:

• “The westbound Highway 401 was shut down for hours and traffic screeched to a halt Monday afternoon after one broken-down transport truck caused a chain reaction collision involving three other trucks.”
  
  During the Thanksgiving weekend, a truck
  
  “jumped a barrier and drove up an embankment at the side of the road.
  
  At one point, westbound traffic was backed up about 20 kilometres on Highway 401 while police tried to determined how to remove the truck.”

Here's another:

• "Crash, big rig fire block Calif. highway
  
  OAKLAND (AP) — Commuters who usually take Interstate 880 through Oakland should probably avoid the area after a crash involving a big rig and several cars.
  
  The California Highway Patrol says both sides of the freeway near downtown Oakland are blocked as flames from the big rig shoot into the air."

Can you imagine the disaster not only to people in the Schwunnel but also to those using the parkland innocently above it if there was an explosion!

I expect that the DRIC people will stand firm and not give in to the childishness of the Mayor on this particular issue.

INTERNATIONAL COMPACT ENTITY

That is something that the Peace Bridge calls themselves. Accordingly,

• "Ron Rienas, general manager of the Peace Bridge Authority, said Thursday that in certain private and confidential matters his organization also is exempt from the U.S. Freedom of Information Act and the Dominion of Canada Access to Information Act, a policy that has been endorsed by the New York State comptroller's office."

I wonder if our City Council should consider using this concept too. Well why bother, they can just say that they want several hundred thousand dollars to produce documents. It accomplishes the same thing.

BOREALIS INVESTMENTS

I read this comment on Marketwatch about the investments made by Borealis in infrastructure assets:

• “Borealis Infrastructure, a 10-year-old pioneer that has developed with other investors a portfolio of infrastructure assets with an enterprise value of over $25 billion, including a nuclear power plant, marine ports, a satellite company, oil and gas pipelines and health-care diagnostic services.”

Yes, yes, yes I noticed the omission of DRTP too. But just so that you do not think that Mr. Nobrega has forgotten about all the money that he has spent in Windsor, he does refer to joint ownership of the Detroit River Rail Tunnel in a Globe and Mail article.

ANOTHER OVERSEAS TRIP

It is really difficult being a member of the Windsor Essex Development Commission. All of that oversees travel can just be so tiring.

I saw in the latest WEDC newsletter that the Chair, Remo Mancini and Tracy Pringle will be going to Germany to attend the International Suppliers Fair in Wolfsburg. I hope they find some time to meet the onion importers too to solidify the relationship.

Darn, they just missed out on Oktoberfest. Oh well, they can always visit Autostadt instead. The town has a very interesting history that you can read about here http://www.wolfsburg-marketing.de/en/23.html

How many trips is this that WEDC members have taken overseas so far? Thank goodness the Credit Union and the area Councils can afford all of this. Perhaps they might take a lesson from the Finance Minister and reduce this kind of travel until some results are actually achieved. Toronto is much closer if they want to take a trip. Wasn't that where this area held its big soiree to bring Golden Horseshoe money here.

If Sandra can help out Fort Erie to try to get a NASCAR track when she visited Dubai, then Remo should ask her to help out Windsor when she goes overseas again.