In recent years the number of people suffering from mental illness has skyrocketed. A recent study at Harvard Medical School suggests that 1 of every 2 people, or 50% of the population will experience some form of mental illness in their lifetime. It is both impossible and impractical to treat that many people with the current system, without change many people will needlessly suffer.
The most effective way to deal with this problem is by adding Mental Health throughout the elementary and high school curriculums. Teaching students about how they may feel at different points in their life along with common cognitive therapies to deal with it would save unmeasurable amounts of suffering and money. Just knowing they are not the only ones who may be feeling the way they do can be a comfort in itself. Of course, this won’t be enough for everyone so knowing when to get professional help and how to spot someone else in crisis would also be part of the curriculum.
I can’t think of any subject taught in school that’s more important than a student’s health. Squeezing in time to teach mental health is not only imperative but critical for the changing needs of future generations.
Push button start, has to be the dumbest thing by far that car makers have come up with. The idea makes so little sense, I can’t help considering that car thieves are designing our cars now.
Most cars now come with a push-button start, a system that uses a bulky fob to emit a radio frequency that unlocks the doors and starts the engine. For even the basic car thief, this signal can easily be copied with a modified computer. You might as well leave your doors unlocked and the engine running when you go to bed at night.
Bulky fobs are not easy to carry in a pocket meaning most people leave them in a convenient place by the front door making it easy for thieves to copy the signal from outside, right through the wall, The signal can also be copied when you drop your car off for repair or anywhere out in public when someone is within 6 feet of the fob.
So far, despite the obvious, how to stop car thefts of push-button start vehicles has baffled car makers, government task forces, and police, all while auto insurance rates go through the roof. The best advice they can offer car owners is to keep their fob in a faraday pouch, offering all the convenience of needing to take your fob in and out of the pouch every time you use the car. The other solution is to put a locking steel bar on the steering wheel every time you stop the car. It seems car thieves can’t get past the $80.00 key lock on these steel bars. I find storing a snow brush bad enough let alone a steel bar on top of that.
Here’s a thought, How about going back to a F#@KING KEY!!!! Put today’s technology into designing a physical key.
The problems with push-button start far outweigh any benefit, for me, there is no benefit, just problems. At the very least, if carmakers insist on continuing to build push-button start cars, add a key-locking steering column. That way there is a good chance your car will still be where you left it.
It is now, 3 months into the 2023 war between Israel and Hamas. Israel has made it clear, they are not going to stop until Hamas is defeated. The longer this takes, the greater the amount of suffering and lives lost. Palestinian civilians are not helpless, they have the power to quickly end the war.
If the Palestine civilians united with Israel against Hamas by providing intel to Israel, the inevitable defeat of Hamas would be quick and the war would be over. Civilians providing Israel with Hamas’s exact locations and other intel would enable Israel to pinpoint targeting away from innocent people, some may even know where the hostages are being held. This collaboration would show Israel that the majority of Palestinians do not support Hamas’s barbaric and violent ways, a critical factor in future post-war relations and solving the issues between the Palestinians and Israelis.
If Vietnam, Korea, and Afghanistan have taught us one thing, it’s that foreign interference does not help in the evolution of cultures. It’s up to “all” the people in that culture to make changes on issues with which they don’t agree. Throughout the world, civilians in non-democratic nations and cultures need to take more responsibility for their governments, otherwise, they will have no choice but to not only deal with the suppression by their government but also the wrath of other nations from the actions of that government.
On July 14th, 2022 my wife, in her 60s, went to a walk-in clinic for a persistent cough that had gone on for over 6 weeks. Concerned it had now turned to Bronchitis or Pneumonia, she needed to have it checked. Unable to get a Doctor’s appointment and not wanting to tie up the Emergency department at the hospital, she went to “Good Doctors” walk-in clinic at 9225 Hwy 93 in Midland Ontario. She was shocked when she was told she had to pay $10.00 before she could be seen by a doctor. Lack of government funding was the only reason given for the charge.
Although $10.00 is not a lot of money to many people, it sets a dangerous precedent. Ten dollars today will quickly turn to a hundred dollars in the future. It represents the beginning of the end, of free health care as we know it. On top of that, she was even charged HST, for a total of $11.30.
Doug Ford needs to end this now! Cutting the gas tax and eliminating yearly registration fees for motor vehicles is not worth it if the sick and elderly are made to make up the difference.
When Canadian truckers started their freedom convoy 2022 to Ottawa, the protest was based on a valid concern, they were against mandatory COVID-19 vaccinations for all. With mandatory vaccinations for truckers crossing the Canada / US border starting Jan 15, 2020 and Quebec talking about a tax for the unvaccinated, the government is slowly taking away the freedom of choice for Canadians. Unfortunately, the truckers lost much credibility when anyone, against any number of COVID restrictions, for any number of sometimes wild or questionable reasons, made it about them.
Before I go on, I would like to state that I am fully vaccinated and boosted. I also support lockdowns when medical resources become overwhelmed. No one that gets sick and can be saved, should die because hospitals are unable to treat them. That being said I support the truckers 100 percent on their original concern against mandatory vaccinations, and question the timing and reasons for mandatory vaccinations for drivers that cross the Canada / US border.
VACCINES SHOULD NOT BE MANDATORY
-When vaccines first became available in Canada they were in short supply and depending on the brand, offered different amounts of protection. It was in the national interest to get as many shots into arms with whatever was available as quickly as possible to slow the spread. We were told to take the first vaccine offered to us. If vaccines were mandatory, imagine losing a loved one to Covid-19 if they were forced to take the less effective Astra Zenica and would have survived if they had the choice to hold out for Maderna or Pfizer.
-As I stated above, I am triple vaccinated with 3 shots of Pfizer. If I was not able to get Pfizer for all 3 shots I’m not sure if I would have taken a different brand. No one knows what the long-term effect could be for each of the vaccines, let alone the effects of mixing them. Had vaccines been mandatory, I would not have a choice as Health Canada has deemed it safe to mix and match vaccines.
-I also question Health Canada’s approval for vaccines. It normally takes years to approve a new drug once developed, yet covid vaccines took less than a year, it only took a few months for Health Canada to declare it was safe to mix vaccines. We were told there is absolutely no difference between Pfizer and Maderna when it came to mixing vaccines, yet Pfizer is safe for kids and Maderna isn’t. In fact, Health Canada flip-flopped several times on what ages different vaccines were safe, undermining their own credibility.
-Listen to the Science is what we are told, but science is large amounts of data that needs to be interpreted. Multiple, equally qualified scientists looking at the same data will disagree with the best strategy to follow. Evidence of this can be seen around the world and even across Canada with the different approaches of Federal, Provincial, and Municipal strategies on dealing with the virus. On top of that, understanding the big picture from other aspects like mental health, the economy, freedoms, rights, and logistics have to be factored in to obtain the best strategy. A medical doctor can only offer expertise on a part of this strategy.
-Common sense has not always been applied when it comes to Public Health’s interpretation of science and its recommendations. In March 2020 Theresa Tam of Canada Health repeatedly stated cloth masks offered absolutely no protection from Covid-19. If my 10-year-old grandson was head of Canada Health back then, and I explained to him, “If a virus is spread mostly through people coughing and breathing”, then asked him “if putting a cloth in front of someone’s mouth who was infected, would make it easier? harder? or have no effect? on other people catching it”. The answer “harder” was obvious to him and he may have saved lives. An article by the Toronto Sun on March 6, 2020, is even more disturbing. Toronto Transit drivers were prevented from wearing masks on the job because of public health recommendations such as “that masks are not only unnecessary, they can be harmful for healthy people”. The article goes on to say “We have had inquiries from employees about the use of masks and when they are educated on the public health position, they agree not to wear them”.
-With all this being said, my point is not to discourage anyone from taking the vaccine but that everyone should have a choice. I personally, would strongly recommend the vaccine to everyone, and I worry about loved ones that remain unvaccinated. This is my choice, and I respect the choice of others!
MANDATORY VACCINATION OF CROSS BORDER TRUCKERS MAKES NO SENSE NOW
Of course, there wouldn’t even have been a trucker protest had the federal government not forced all truckers crossing the Canada / US border to be fully vaccinated starting Jan 15th, 2022. For two years, since the start of Covid truckers have been able to cross the border without being vaccinated. Now, in the middle of an economic inflation crisis blamed on a fragile supply chain, after 85% of the eligible Canadian population is fully vaccinated, and hospital rates are going down, Mr. Trudeau has suddenly decided all truckers crossing the border need to be vaccinated. Why he has done this at this time, boggles the mind. His lack of common sense discredits all other valid Covid restrictions in place and validates those with conspiracy theories such as Covid restrictions are only a form of government’s control of us.
-It’s bad enough Mr. Trudeau is risking the derailment of a fragile Canadian economy but unvaccinated truckers currently pose no more threat than any other unvaccinated Canadian. Canada is currently on fire with Covid-19 with more daily cases than we can count, yet the Prime Minister is still worried the odd case brought in from the US from unvaccinated truckers will make a huge difference. With the limited testing on infection and transmission now, there is no reasonable or scientific evidence to support him. In fact, it’s reasonable to assume an unvaccinated driver crossing the country would pose little risk difference to a driver crossing the Canada / US border. Even if there was a greater risk, a simple 15 min rapid test given to unvaccinated drivers at the border makes more sense than mandatory vaccines.
-Cross-border truckers also pose little risk of transmission. They usually drive large transports that simply drop a trailer at a warehouse and pick up another one. Most don’t unload the trailer themselves and have little contact with people at the warehouse. When working they are usually alone, isolated in the cab of the truck. When in Canada, unvaccinated drivers/people are not allowed to eat in restaurants, go to movies, sporting events, or any place an infected person could spread Covid-19 to large groups of people. They do not have contact with vulnerable people and would not even be able to enter a long-term care facility.
-None of the Covid-19 vaccines currently offered in Canada are a cure for the disease. They are only a treatment for the symptoms should we catch it. They will not stop you from getting Covid-19 and they will not stop you from transmitting it to other people if you do. Vaccinated people are now most likely the main source of the spread of Covid-19. Fully vaccinated people are more likely to be Asymptomatic, contagious with little or no symptoms, unaware they are spreading it, and when not in lockdown have the ability to spread it through indoor dining, gyms, cinemas, and sporting events. Evidence of this can be seen in the recent lockdown in Ontario where indoor dining, gyms, cinemas, and admission to sporting events was implemented to slow the spread. It worked, and hospitalizations dramatically declined. All these activities could only be used by fully vaccinated people and required proof of vaccine to enter. It should have made no difference in hospitalizations if most of the spread was by the unvaccinated.
-Scientific evidence shows the protection of vaccines is temporary, there is already talk of a 4th dose. The more boosters we have, the greater the chance of long-term side effects. I have already had 3 shots and I’m not sure how many more I would be comfortable taking. Thankfully the government is changing its strategy from “trying to eliminate Covid-19” to “living with it“. Building antibodies from catching the virus while under the maximum protection of the vaccine should provide a safe and more lasting resistance.
REPEAL THE MANDATORY VACCINATIONS OF CROSS BORDER TRUCKERS
There is no scientific proof now that mandatory vaccinations of cross-border truckers is necessary to slow the spread of Covid-19. Vaccinated people are probably more responsible for the spread of Covid-19 than unvaccinated. It threatens the Canadian economy and discredits valid Covid-19 restrictions. With 85% of the eligible population vaccinated, almost everyone that wants the vaccine is now protected leaving those that choose to remain unvaccinated most at risk, by choice. In this case, it cuts to the nerve of our freedom of rights, one that can trigger a powerful response.
