Welcome to Democracy, Western Style

Don't You Just Love It - What a System!

It happens every time. CEOs of major corporations receive huge compensations when the company does well. When the bottom line is slipping, who takes the pay cut or is told they have to accept a zero increase - those same executives or the employees? HINT: it isn't the first group.

In politics it is the same - from local mayors to premiers, governors, prime ministers, and presidents. When things go well they vote themselves increases in salaries, benefits, and pensions. When things are not going so well, then what? 

Isn't it still true that we the electors put these people where they are and our taxes pay them salaries, benefits and pensions to work for US, the electorate? If workers of a failing company take the hit does it not follow that politicians who work for the voters should also take the hit when, for example, a government shuts down? What did its employees or its electorate do to be so-punished?

What am I missing here? Let them eat cake or at least humble pie.


The Brewster

Carding and Random Searches

OK to Check for Alcohol But Not for Guns?

This is a sensitive one but here goes anyway. Perhaps that is my point - why so sensitive?

Here in Toronto we had a very bad year for homicides in 2018, a lot of them gun related. This is generating the usual debate about whether police should stop and search people or not. Some groups say that this practice results in discrimination against members of minority groups. Others - especially police officers both active and retired, say some of those groups are the ones shooting each other.

The really sensitive issue is actually the practice of "carding" when those stopped have to produce personal ID and must "justify" their presence. The police then record data about this person. I totally understand the indignation this causes even though it has not happened to me. Yet.

What I don't get is this:

Every year around Christmas and New Years the police step up their RIDE program (Reduce Impaired Driving Everywhere) and randomly pull over cars. The drivers have to roll down their windows and speak to an officer who is checking for the symptoms of drinking - primarily the smell of alcohol on the driver's breath. Most people are in favour of this, unless of course it is YOU and you have indeed been drinking! It is still thought by most to be in the best interests of everyone using our roadways.

The practice is "random" because it is often at night. The officers can not see the driver or whether they are or are not a member of a visible minority. In addition they often stop all cars on a given street, whether the driver has shown erratic driving patterns or not.

In a similar fashion, we accept the necessity of scanning everyone before boarding an aircraft. It is in the best interests of all of the passengers. EVERYONE is scanned.

My suggestion is to supply police with the same types of hand-held scanning devices used in airports. Make it legal for police set up a mini "RIDE" type program for pedestrians and cars.

Those stopped will quickly be scanned. If nothing shows up they go on your way - no ID is needed and no data is recorded. This will only take seconds. I would even support the pulling over of cars at random just like the Christmas RIDE program. In this case all occupants AND the car could be legally and briefly searched.

On the other hand if someone is carrying illegally, they are arrested on the spot.

This might be inconvenient but how could any one group complain if all parties are scanned? Surely it would go a long way towards reducing the shootings that we are witnessing in broad daylight .

Before reacting remember - it is normal at airports and at Christmas for alcohol and it is generally accepted. Alcohol is not used deliberately to kill other people. Not so for guns.


The Brewster

An Ounce of Prevention is Worth Ten Pounds of Ass Pain!

Do It NOW. Later is Too Late

Everyone must have experienced one of those "If I had only …" and suffered great regret when you didn't. Here are some examples:

If I had only :

• sold (or bought) that stock
• asked that girl (or guy) to go out or marry you
• not had that extra drink
• bought that house years ago
• saved those playing cards or comic books
  

Here is my recent and really agonizing experience. I lost my wallet and most of my ID. What a pain. There is a lot you have to do to minimize risk and loss. You probably know the obvious ones - they all involve calling various parties to report the loss and get replacement cards and ID.

My big regret was that I did not strip my wallet some time ago of all unnecessary items. I once did this. It needed purging again. You really only have to carry ONE credit card and possibly one debit card for financial purposes. Do NOT carry more.

Years ago I did put the following into practice and it helped me when I finally lost my wallet:

• Carry my cash in my pocket, not my wallet. This time I slipped up and lost $50 which was in the wallet
• Keep a valid debit card in my pocket with the cash so that I can still obtain cash from a bank machine after the wallet is lost. This I did have.
• Keep any other credit cards safely at home
• Do not carry my social insurance card, birth certificate, or health card in my wallet. I had lapsed into carrying my health card and all of my credit cards.
• Display personal contact information in the wallet. In this case it has not yet helped.

The good news is that there appears to be no fraudulent use or attempts to use my cards. That probably means somebody took the money and trashed the wallet or that it is still not found.

Here is the really, really bad part - the part that can benefit YOU if you act now, not later. This has happened before - 3 times and I always found it. Once it was in my house and twice honest people turned it in. 

So I advise:

• Put the above practices in place
• Keep a list and photocopy of everything that you DO carry with you.
• List the contact numbers of all companies and authorities you will have to call to report the loss. DON'T KEEP THIS IN YOUR WALLET!
• The big Kahuna: Buy a good tracking device and use it. This is what I failed to do. They can help you find it and even alert you when it gets too far away from you. The better ones will not only track your wallet, keys, purse etc. but in reverse, since most of them run one component on your phone, you can use that wallet or purse gadget to find your lost phone!
• Finally as a guy - but women could also do this - I no longer carry a wallet. I bought 2 very inexpensive leather card holders just larger that a credit card. They are like a mini wallet or billfold. In one I keep my driver info - licence, insurance, and ownership. It goes deep into one pocket. In the other will go one credit card and one debit card. It will be inserted into a separate packet. These are quite flat and not bulky. I will continue keep my cash separate.

In closing let me say DO IT!    DO IT!    DO IT!    NOW!   NOW!   NOW!

The Brewster

Lose Weight on Zero Dollars

Discipline is the Best Diet

We are almost at that time of the year when so many people make resolutions and don't keep them. Many of these will be about weight loss.

I must say up front that my genes - most likely my father's - keep me reasonably slim naturally. So yes, the following is easy for me to say. I maintain however that an extra 5 - 10 pounds on me shows more than the same 5 - 10 pounds on a much larger person. It is all relative.

Perhaps I have a second advantage. In the early 1970's I worked in London England and at that time they were experiencing a severe sugar shortage. I had to do without. I did and now I don't miss it. I learned to like coffee and cereal with zero sugar - even oatmeal. You get to TASTE the ingredients. OK I confess to real maple syrup on my oatmeal. They also went through a "bog roll" or toilet paper shortage. I might have lost a few pounds searching for it. I definitely do not miss that. 

Having stated the above, I am proud that I work very hard to maintain my weight and fitness even if I don't have a "weight" problem. I am not a fitness expert but I believe what I explain below is common sense and applies to anyone.

So here is my simple approach. One thing is assumed throughout - you have the discipline to follow these recommendations:

1. You do not need to pay a fitness instructor for classes or lessons. Many people do so anyway and they are happy with the results. Good for them. I do this on my own. 
2. You do not need to spend money on special food or to join a points club. Many people do this also and they are happy with the results. I don't.
3. Exercise alone is not the solution. You also have to control what you eat. This goes for any eating or exercise routine. You need both.
4. Learn this measurement and USE IT: 4 grams of sugar = 1 teaspoon of sugar. (It is actually 4.2 grams but make things easy on yourself.) 

That's it. The big one for me on the food side is number 4. Just look at the INGREDIENTS list on packages. In Canada we have laws that mandate this information. Search for sugar and divide that number of grams by 4. You get teaspoons of sugar.

Take a look at some of these common items for starters and be prepared for a shock:

• Any non-diet pop (soda)
• Fruit juice
• Muffins
• desserts
• milk - that's right, milk.
• sweetened cereals
• ketchup

I used to drink a lot of fruit juice and thought it was healthy. In moderation I am sure it is. Then I started applying the formula. YIKES. Now I try to stick to Tomato Juice or V8 types of fruit cocktail. They are lower in sugar.

Here are the things that I think help me most. I : 

•  rarely drink pop - maybe in a mixed drink
•  never put extra sugar (except for that maple syrup) on anything
•  always read those sugar labels and avoid the heavy hitters
•  rarely eat dessert anymore - that's not NEVER but it is not a regular part of a meal
•  seldom eat fast food
•  drink lots of water 

Now for the exercise part. I go to a gym 4 times a week - early morning works best for me. As a side benefit most of the people with whom I now socialize I met at there. Yes I do pay a membership fee but I don't feel the need to hire personal trainers. If you are not a gym person find something else you like - walking; riding; jogging; squash; tennis; swimming; sex. Anything to burn calories and keep your body - especially the abdomen and intestines -moving and contracting. A side benefit here is rare constipation.

Once you get to the point that the above is routine and habitual it will be much easier. I have for may years been the same weight as I was in university. I receive compliments - "for my age". It is very rewarding and that is an incentive in itself.

In closing I refer again to the heading. It takes discipline - lots of it - not money. If you are paying someone for an easy solution they are stealing from you.

Live Long an Perspire!

The Brewster

Happy and Very Merry Holiday

Live Long and Prosper Perhaps?

Here it is December and already I have seen several articles against using the greeting "Merry Christmas" or even the use of Christmas colours and symbols in public. Some of you will have noticed by my spelling of "colours" that I am not American. I happen to be Canadian but more on that later.

This debate is complex and you could add new angles to it from many directions. Here is my contribution.

The good news is that it probably happens in any multi-cultural society. Many feel that the existence of such societies alone is admirable. I believe that there is a more basic problem here. Our annual debate occurs in multi-religion societies and the religious element of culture tends to surface at this time of year. Other elements - language; diet; dress; music; traditions; other religious festivities - continue throughout the rest of the year. Sometimes they also cause problems. I have not resided in one, but I suspect that countries that enjoy only one culture including religion have no such debates.

For many years now Canada, its politicians and its citizens have placed me and my fellows on some kind of international pedestal as a model of multi-culturalism. That is partly true compared to other countries but there are still ill feelings just below the surface. I have written about this before and it is a topic unto itself. Talk to any tenant who lives with cuisines other than their own that result in pungent, pervasive, and to some, offensive odours in their building. You will hear a lot of words that do not support the notion of the Canadian Oasis.

It can be said that anyone who emigrates to Canada and becomes a citizen has to expect such differences and that nth generation citizens should not have to change our traditions and laws to accommodate them. The opposite is also true. If we are going to encourage multi-culturalism then we should support it fully. All of us in this country originate from immigrants with the sole exception of true indigenous peoples.

It wouldn't hurt any of us who happen to be Christians to learn several greetings beyond "Merry Christmas" and "Happy Hanukkah". On this point, Christians and Jews have long co-existed in Canada and tolerated our religious differences. It also would not hurt non-Christians and those who are more secular to be more tolerant of long-held Canadian Christmas traditions and greetings.

If any one religion is so passionately against another that its followers feel violence and hatred for others then I suggest such people chill out. I would even say they don't belong.

The solution has always been right there within reach for almost any problem on this globe: The Golden Rule. For those who don't know it you must look it up. I just read that most religions include some similar tenet. Now if all of us would just follow it ...

I was not a Trekkie but perhaps Spock nailed it. We should just say "Live Long and Prosper" at this time of the year.

Beam me off Scottie


The Brewster