People in the suburbs always exaggerate the degree of danger. I now live in quietville, London ON, and people who live in the burbs here often talk of its downtown like it was NYC in the 1970s!

As for T.O., what else can the city council do, really? To solve a problem requires money. I can be as sensible, dynamic and well-planned as I want, but if my ban account keeps getting raided by my relatives then my plans ain’t goin’ anywhere. All i’ve got left is bitching.

I generally agree with you about the reason for Toronto’s chronic lack of funds. (Incidentally, as I understand the bag fee, the stores will be keeping the cash; it is not a tax grab by the city.) On the other hand, the current city council doesn’t seem to be able to do much of anything but whine about the lack of funds, spend months figuring out ineffective ways to come up with more funds, and then pick poorly thought out plans to spend those funds on. I voted for Miller last time around because I wasn’t terribly impressed with the other choices, but I sure won’t be voting for him in the next election. There *must* be more that could be done with what we’ve got.

On the subject of safety, though, while I certainly wouldn’t say that Toronto is absolutely safe, or that there are parts of the city I wouldn’t be very cautious about walking through, I do think that people really exaggerate the degree of danger. I don’t walk down Yonge Street looking over my shoulder. Worries the hell out of my 905 family, I’m sure.

Think of Canada this way: 10 brothers (the provinces) with one grand-dad. Toronto is a grandson, the successful son of the most successful of the 10 sons, Ontario. (Indeed, Toronto is a huge reason why that son, Ontario, is so successful.) None of the grandchildren have any legal rights whatsoever: their dads can take their money any time they want, and grand-dad in turn can take the money from them any time he wants. Toronto is thus legally unable, in any way, to stop the rest of the family from taking huge chunks of his income.

So, if you ask yourself why Toronto’s sons and daughters are unable to afford the programs and police that they need to solve their problems, build new housing, or do anything else for that matter, you might want to ask about seven or eight of the other brothers, granddad, and the other grand-kids, because they’ve got those necessary billions.

Really, the young junkies on Yonge St was startling to see. Worse than Portland, even.

Don’t worry, the SWAT teams will be coming for them.

Plastic is made from the sludge left over after gasoline is refined. Having it break down over time almost certainly sounds better than it will work out to be in practice.

The entire city?
Respectfully, I’m having a hard time figuring out how you walked past the junkies on Yonge St, the prostitutes on Gerrard St, the graffiti gang tags on Queen & Spadina, the teenage burglars at the Beaches (almost 50 break-ins in the neighbourhood since October), the scumbags shooting away on Dundas West & University, and never felt endangered once.

Under proper conditions biodegradable plastics can degrade to the point where microorganisms can metabolise them. This reduces problems with litter and reduces harmful effects on wildlife. However degradation of biodegradable plastic occurs very slowly, if at all, in a sealed landfill. Proper composting methods are required to efficiently degrade the plastic, which may actually contribute to carbon dioxide emissions.
Degradation of oil-based biodegradable plastics may contribute to global warming through the release of previously stored carbon as carbon dioxide. Starch-based bioplastics produced from sustainable farming methods can be almost carbon neutral.
Biodegradable plastics cannot be mixed with other plastics when sent for recycling; this damages the recycled plastic and reduces its value.

Several commenters have made the point about the BS that a biodegradable plastic bag is, but that aside; last time I was in Toronto I walked the entire city without feeling endangered once, and I saw people engaging in free speech and impromptu music everywhere, in ways that would certainly invite harassment around here. I saw a lot of freedom of movement, with good transportation systems provided at a decent price, something no-where to be found around here. The food was much better; even the pop is made with real sugar. Oh, and the cops I met smiled and said hi too, with real warmth. You know, serve and protect and all that. And of course, last I heard, the Canadian authorities had not declared the right to snatch you up and torture you.

Let’s face it people, freedom is not the freedom to get suckered by a scam and bury your children in garbage. I would say there is a real need for unobtrusive regulation in that respect. No, freedom is your freedom to speak, to move as you choose, to be treated with respect by those you have hired to be in authority, and to be healthy and happy. The US has fallen far behind in all of the ways that one could objectively measure freedom, and it’s time to stop worrying about your freedom to be a sucker, and start worrying about all of the freedoms that matter, which you are rapidly loosing as we speak.

To all the people defending these policies on their merits, why not have these arguments and defend them on their merits BEFORE putting the force of gov’t behind them? Why not convince people that it’s the better thing to do? And how does banning re-usable shopping bags make any sense at all?

RESPECT MY AUTHORITAH! People love to FORCE, but hate it when the FORCE being applied to them is something they don’t agree with. Some call it hypocrisy — I believe this to be too tame, and call it EVIL.

and cardboard boxes? seriously? off their rockers.

Thats the bottom line right there. Politicos and the sheep they tend.

Begging the question Radley:
Why would an environmentally-conscious city council ban “biodegradable and compostable plastic bags”?

Doesn’t the government still subsidize recycling?

So exactly what are dog owners supposed to do?

Leave the shit on the sidewalk I guess. Of course, then you’ll get a ban on dogs.