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Wednesday January 29, 2025

Doug Ford's early election call in Ontario is likely driven by domestic political and economic challenges rather than the threat of tariffs from U.S. President Donald Trump.

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Wednesday January 29, 2025 and The Toronto Star

An Election Call Not Just Because of Trump

Doug Ford's call for a mandate to address potential U.S. tariffs distracts from his government's pressing domestic issues and highlights the necessity for Canada to diversify trade relations and reduce interprovincial barriers.

January 24, 2025

As Ontario Premier Doug Ford calls for an early election, the official narrative centres around seeking a “new mandate” to tackle potential tariffs from U.S. President Donald Trump. However, a closer examination reveals that this reasoning may be little more than a diversion from pressing issues at home.

A Convenient Distraction: The notion that Ford needs a new mandate to confront Trump’s tariff threats seems implausible. With a solid majority government and ample time left in his term, Ford already possesses the authority to advocate for Ontario’s interests. The urgency of an early election appears more aligned with domestic concerns, including his administration’s own fiscal missteps and political controversies.

Economic Mismanagement: Ford’s tenure has been marked by decisions that have strained Ontario’s finances. The cancellation of green energy projects, which cost taxpayers an estimated $231 million, is a glaring example of wasteful spending. The abrupt termination of these initiatives not only incurred financial losses but also stalled progress toward sustainable energy solutions.

Further compounding this issue is Ford’s elimination of revenue streams, such as the license plate renewal fees, and his distribution of $200 payouts to Ontarians. These actions, perceived as short-term voter appeasement, have left significant gaps in the province’s budget.

October 16, 2020

The EV Battery Gamble: In a bid to position Ontario as a leader in the electric vehicle supply chain, Ford has invested heavily in EV battery production. While this move aligns with global trends towards renewable energy, it faces potential risks from Trump’s opposition to green energy. The looming threat of tariffs on EV batteries could render these investments unprofitable, leaving Ontario with costly “white elephants.”

Political Vulnerabilities: Ford’s administration is not without its controversies. The RCMP’s ongoing investigation into the Greenbelt development decision, along with other allegations of favouritism and mismanagement, casts a long shadow over his leadership. By calling an early election, Ford may be attempting to secure another term before these issues reach a critical point.

A Strategic Move: With the Progressive Conservatives enjoying a sizable lead in the polls, Ford’s decision to call an early election is strategically sound. Capitalizing on the opposition’s relative obscurity and avoiding the potential fallout from economic and political challenges, Ford seeks to consolidate his power.

Doug Ford's evolution from a controversial provincial leader to a national unifier fills a leadership void left not just by Justin Trudeau, but also Pierre Poilievre, as Canada faces economic challenges similar to the COVID-19 pandemic, while dealing with his lingering past controversies.

January 15, 2025

Trump’s tariffs provides a convenient narrative for Ford’s early election call, the underlying motives appear rooted in domestic concerns. The Premier’s track record of fiscal mismanagement and political controversies suggests a desire to divert attention and solidify his position before facing the consequences of his actions. Ontario voters must critically assess these motives as they head to the polls, ensuring that leadership is accountable and transparent in addressing the province’s challenges.

Opinion: Here are the actual reasons Doug Ford is calling an early election in Ontario

Doug Ford calling an early election might seem like it’s all about taking on the big, bad Trump and his tariff threats. But let’s be real—it’s probably more about avoiding pesky RCMP reports into Greenbelt corruption, and dodging messes he’s made with Ontario’s taxpayer money.

Ford’s been busy billing the people hefty fees for breaking booze and beer contracts, green energy projects, then coming up with his own green schemes; he’s been cutting off revenue streams, and throwing cash around like it grows on trees. Now, he’s trying to shift the spotlight onto Trump, who’s acting like Canada’s potential 51st state is just around the corner and throwing around tariff threats. All the while health care, affordable housing and Colleges are in crisis begging for attention.

Meanwhile, Canada’s federal government is caught up in its own drama, with the Liberals scrambling to replace an unpopular leader and planning their own election.

But back to Ontario. Ford’s election timing is pretty slick. The opposition isn’t exactly roaring right now. The Liberals, usually the main challengers, are stuck in third place with a new leader, Bonnie Crombie, who hasn’t had much time to flex her political muscles. Then there’s Marit Stiles, who’s also fresh to the scene. So, unless Ford trips over his shoelaces in a big way, he’s likely to keep his seat come election day on February 27.

Voter turnout wasn’t great last time, and it’s hard to see what’s going to get people more excited this year. Still, there’s a slice of the electorate that’s miffed about Ford’s spending habits and might see this whole Trump tariff thing as a smokescreen. Those voters want to see some accountability.

In the end, Ford might lose a few seats, but he’s probably not sweating a minority government. If he pulls this off, he’s got a runway till 2029 to keep doing his thing—whatever that might mean for Ontario’s wallet and future.

Please enjoy the January 28, 2024 making-of animated editorial cartoon below.  Posts come out every Saturday as I summarize the week that was in my editorial cartoons. What you’re reading now is regarded as a “note”, which is used to help compose my weekly posts and showcase the animated versions of my daily editorial cartoons. If you like my editorial cartoons and animations, please subscribe to my Substack newsletter, if you haven’t already. A lot of work goes into these cartoons and commentary — Best of all, it’s free!

– The Graeme Gallery

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Saturday April 9, 2022

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Saturday April 9, 2022

What Toronto wanted in the federal budget for housing — and what it got

April 7, 2017

One of the central pieces of the federal budget unveiled Thursday was affordable housing — $10 billion earmarked to tackle the crisis country-wide.

It’s a mix of funding for projects and policy changes aimed at making housing more affordable.

So what was Toronto looking for and what did it get?  And what will the budget mean for one of the least affordable cities in the country?

Much of the $10-billion investment focuses on boosting the supply of homes, something that is key for Toronto. 

February 1, 2017

The city was eyeing an extension of funding for a project it’s partnered on with the federal government: the Rapid Housing Initiative (RHI).

That wish was granted. The budget proposes to extend the program, which creates new affordable rental housing for marginalized people experiencing, or at risk of, homelessness, at a cost of $1.5 billion over two years.

May 7, 2014

The largest portion of the $10-billion budget pledge is $4 billion dedicated to what the government is calling a “Housing Accelerator Fund.” The money will be for municipalities like Toronto to speed up housing development by slashing red tape, and the federal government estimates it can create 100,000 new units over five years.

When it comes to speeding up development, Bailão says the city has projects on the go for which they’d like to partner financially with the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) — mainly its Housing Now initiative, which activates city-owned sites for the development of affordable housing within mixed-income, mixed-use, transit-oriented communities.

November 20, 2019

“I think all orders of government need to work together because if they really want to build 100,000 units … we have 15,000 here in the pipeline that need their financing and we need to make sure that financing is there,” said Bailão.

The question among many advocates is how quickly some of these measures can be implemented in big cities like Toronto, and how much coordination there can be between different levels of government.

“For this city, what’s needed is significant amounts of money and funding that can be spent quickly,” said Matti Siemiatycki, director of the Infrastructure Institute and a professor of geography and planning at the University of Toronto.

“We’re in this crisis. We need all hands on deck, and we need that real coordination and we need a sense of urgency to back it up.” (CBC) 

 

Tuesday January 18, 2022

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Tuesday January 18, 2022

COVID-19 home testing kits: should we be worried about their environmental impact?

March 10, 2021

The highly transmissible Omicron variant has led to renewed interest in home testing kits. The UK is getting through millions of these tests each week, while US president Joe Biden has just ordered 500 million kits to send to Americans.

Along with vaccinations and better medication, the availability of rapid testing has meant that many countries are in a much better place to combat the pandemic than they were a year ago.

As with everything, though, testing has an environmental impact that warrants some investigation. So should we be worried about millions – or billions – of plastic test tubes and swabs?

Wednesday April 22, 2020

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Wednesday April 22, 2020

Single-use plastic is having a resurgence during the pandemic

For those seeking silver linings in the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, the notable drop-off in air pollution has been a recurring bright spot. But while theskies might be clearing up (at least temporarily) while millions of people shelter in place, humans are poisoning the planet in other ways. Increased demand for medical supplies, households stocking up on tons of goods, and fears over COVID-19 spreading across different surfaces has single-use plastics on the rise — and as Wired reports, we’re running out of places to put it.

March 12, 2019

As more plastic waste pours in, the already overwhelmed recycling system is at risk of getting completely buried. Prior to coronavirus, many recycling companies were already struggling to deal with the more than 300 million tons of plastic discarded every year — nearly 50 percent of which is single-use. According to the Earth Institute at Columbia University, only about 10 percent of all discarded plastic products in the United States actually get recycled — a fact the plastic industry knew for years while touting recycling programs that would never be viable. Nearly 75 percent ends up in landfills, where it can sit and erode for hundreds of years, releasing carbon dioxide as it degrades and often making its way into waterways and oceans. It’s likely that as the country produces more plastic waste in this time of crisis, even more will be heading to landfills, as the already inundated recycling firms slow their operations. “Many recyclers, because of health and safety concerns, are also stopping the service,” Tom Szaky, CEO of recycling company TerraCycle, told Wired. “Recycling — that’s been in sort of a crash — is now getting even worse.”

April 24, 2018

Those slowdowns are happening in tandem with a resurgence in single-use plastics. This is happening for a number of reasons, both out of necessity and potentially unfounded fears. Plastic bags have made a comeback during thecoronavirus crisis due to concerns that reusable bags may carry the virus. A number of states and cities have reversed plastic bag bans and some have even instituted restrictions on reusable totes. While it is known that coronavirus can survive longer on certain surfaces, there doesn’t appear to be any evidence that the virus is more viable on a cloth tote than a plastic bag, particularly if the bag is washed after use — though the plastic bag is likely to be discarded after one use, limiting additional exposure. With people worried that the virus can be transmitted through a number of surfaces, the demand for packaged goods is on the rise as well. According to FoodNavigator, demand for packaged goods has skyrocketed in Europe by as much as 111 percent for some items as compared to the previous year.

There is also the fact that the price of oil has dropped dramatically, which makes producing plastic goods cheaper than usual — and they aren’t all that expensive to begin with. Plastics are made from oil, and when the price of oil drops far enough, it can result in it actually being cheaper to produce new plastic products than recycle old ones. And when the demand for recycled goods disappears, more plastic ends up in landfills, slowly eroding and polluting the planet.

Plastic waste doesn’t have the same effect as something like air pollution — we don’t immediately see the damage as it occurs. But the change in our consumption habits will be immediately felt at the landfills that are already being overrun. It will be felt by oceans that are already at risk of having more pieces of plastic than fish by 2050. Even the short burst of uptick in plastic waste could cause significant disruption to the waste and recycling ecosystems. According to Waste Dive, dozens of cities and counties across the country have suspended recycling programs entirely. Rachel Meidl, a fellow at Rice University’s Baker Institute, told Wired, “materials that would normally find its way to recyclers are being channeled to landfills and incinerators.” So before touting that “we are the virus” meme and spouting off to your friends about how the Earth is healing while we’re all trapped indoors, remember that there are a lot of ways we can hurt the planet without ever leaving our couches. (Mic) 

 

Saturday July 21, 2018

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Saturday July 21, 2018

These are dark days for recycling and composting in Hamilton

If you’re among the thousands of citizens who try to do the right things about recycling and waste diversion, these are not good times.

It’s a discouraging double-whammy.

May 2, 2018

Part one happened early this year. After years of imploring citizens to put items like coffee cup lids, Styrofoam and black plastic in the recycling box, city officials had to reverse that. It was, in the words of city recycling manager Emil Prpic, a “market-driven” eco-dilemma. The problem is, virtually no one wanted to buy those recycled goods. In January, China, which was the giant in the buying market, cracked down on imported plastics. It applied new more stringent purity standards that ruled out most of our plastics.

There must be more buyers than China? Yes. But China has been voracious, consuming more than half the world’s recyclables. There isn’t adequate infrastructure yet to make up for that lost capacity.

So in Hamilton, and many other municipalities, recyclables have to be stored or handled by a third party. Tragically, some of this stuff is ending up in our landfills.

That was bad enough, but then more recently the second whammy hit. The city’s composting plant on Burlington Street East was stinking. It has been odiferous for a long time, but recently the problem has been getting worse. Last month, responding to growing citizen complaints, the plant was closed until a solution can be found.

April 24, 2018

So that food and organic waste you have been separating? It’s going into our only landfill site in Glanbrook. Something like 660 tonnes — daily.

So no food waste recycling. Limited plastics recycling, with the most common types — so-called low grade plastics — being not recyclable because no one wants them. If they’re mixed in with other, legitimate recycling, they contaminate them and have to be sorted by hand otherwise the entire load is useless.

Just to add insult to injury, we’re living under a new government that doesn’t appear to believe the environment matters at all, and next door to a superpower that is losing its mind and racing backwards on environmental protection. (Source: Hamilton Spectator) 

 

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