What used to be a clean, prosperous city is now overrun by thugs and gangs. Retired police officers are being called back into service because noone else wants to work the streets of Toronto (can’t blame them).

Mediocre policies like the handgun ban which waste millions of my taxpaying dollars have been going on for too long now.

Toronto just bought landfill site in my neck of the woods. Purchase price $265 million. That’s what the aluminum is needed for.

Most cities are able to make money on garbage and recycling because of the price for newsprint and aluminum now.

Sorry, I’ll just meakly leave you up there on your high horse. You seem to enjoy it. I actually know who the person is who takes my bottles and it is an elderly lady, and perhaps her husband, who I have seen at various places around the city. When I discovered it was her goign through my blue bin, I thought I’d make it easier on her. She probably needs the $1-2 more than I do.

SL

From the city’s perspective, I don’t think they are actually explicitly trying to keep the poor people down. I think many municiapal politicians would like to do something like provide more affordable housing and beds, but a lot of that money comes from the province and feds (or, more realisitically, deosn’t come) so there’s little they can do. Seems more like a busted system, since apparently the recycling program is bleeding money because of the lost revenue, so the politicians make a choice… wrong choice, right choice, who knows, follow the money.

And jonZor, you must have very respectful and honest homeless people where you live, inviting them onto your porch to take things. Personally, I prefer to help out the unfortunate and down and out by making financial contributions to shelters and food banks instead of putting MY money towards booze, dope and ciggs for the “scavengers”. I also like to save my bottles for the local kid’s sports teams and the boy scouts that come around every so often.

Stageleft, I think you may be onto something with your two points. A. For sure this is just a ruse to take away from the conservative’s plot to blow up buildings and such to keep everybody living in fear.
B. I’m pretty sure that the Cons just really enjoy kicking people when they are down. Like, I mean, doesn’t everybody? You are for sure onto something big there. Maybe you should follow these conspiracy theories up with some more good posts.

(a) a distraction to move focus away from something else, and

(b) another way of keeping those who are already down right where they are.

Anybody willing to take bets that at least one of the talking points they come out with in the fall won’t mention it as a way of controlling homeless people and panhandlers?

Better to spend the money clamping down on these people than on affordable housing or beds in shelters?