Mike Farwell

No, I’m not kidding. I looked it up. And this is how the dictionary defines “opposition” — the action of opposing, resisting, or combating. Do you think Liberal leader Stephane Dion has a dictionary? Maybe he’s still reading it, but is still in the “OK’s.” That seems to be his answer for everything. I blogged a couple weeks back about my disappointment with the Liberals for walking out on a vote in the Commons on the Conservative crime bill. As if Dion simply said, “OK troops, let’s leave rather than do our jobs.” Then came the motion to extend the mission to Afghanistan. “OK,” says Dion, “as long as you make this one tiny amendment.” And so the government survived again. Next came Tuesday’s budget, and Dion could not “OK” that quickly enough. The budget itself was just that — OK. But Dion says he sees nothing in it that should bring down the government so he, and the Liberals, will give it their collective “OK.”

I have it on fairly good authority that Dion met with Prime Minister Harper pre-budget, and agreed in advance that he would support it. And a little birdie has also told me that Dion wanted to put the Liberal election machine in motion two weeks ago, but the machine did not respond. And so Dion sways in the breeze, appearing as though the only thing he opposes…is being in Opposition.

If you’ve used the 4-0-1 recently, I can certainly understand your frustration in being slowed by the annual late-winter ritual of “pothole repairs.” I was a victim myself as I made a trip to Toronto early Saturday morning. But what seemed even worse was the trip back home later that same day. While I was able to maintain the 100 km/h speed limit the entire time, I found myself swerving often to avoid the very potholes that these crews are apparently spending so much time repairing. The ensuing problem, of course, is twofold. One, the 401 is an absolute mess — a situation that is almost unacceptable for a highway that is so integral to travel and commerce in this part of the country. And two, if you thought the pothole repairs were a problem now, brace yourself. By the looks of things, we have a long construction season ahead.

On a related note, it’s not much easier getting around in the city these days. Certainly not on the sidestreets anyway. I’m reminded of the primitive corduroy roads every time I travel down a street that is not a main arterty. You’re lucky if you can travel 10 km/h, and unwise if you try to go faster. I know our cities are growing and the February snow has been just short of relentless. But this situation also smacks of the unacceptable. Whether we need more plows or longer shifts to get to these streets cleared before the snow freezes to impassable chunks of ice, something must be done. The days of corduroy roads are long behind us because we’ve apparently advanced as a society. You just wouldn’t know it by trying to drive through the city these days.

I’m still trying to figure out what all the fuss is about. Why do so many people seem so upset with Kitchener city council getting free tickets to the Elton John concert? There are six councillors and a mayor. That’s seven free tickets. Seven! And even if you want to factor in the 400 or so seats secured by the Kitchener Memorial Auditorium for staff, suppliers, and other vendors, I still fail to see the problem. I crunched the numbers. It works out to six per cent of the available seats. That left 94 per cent for you to buy.

I suppose most of the frustration stems from the fact that city councillors and staff had access to tickets that the general public did not. Boo-hoo. Do you have any perks at your job? Are you just jealous that the city’s perks are better? Just for a moment, imagine this scenario. Imagine that a developer came to Kitchener looking for prime real estate for his new business. Does it not make sense that the mayor, or the councillor in the ward where the real estate exists, should be able to take this developer to a hockey game — or concert — in the city?

I’m appalled by the coverage of this in the local paper. Being in the media, I can tell you firsthand about the perks in my business. They’re not great, but they certainly exist. I get tickets to shows on occasion. I have more “stationwear” than I can shake a stick at. CD’s? How many would you like?? Sometimes, if I do a particularly good job, my boss will treat me to dinner. And as a Rogers employee, I get a discount on all of my Rogers services, including cable and cell phone. Do you want to send letters to the editor about these inequities as well? Perhaps the columnists at the paper would like to come clean about the perks they receive?

Maybe perks in the workplace are a bad idea across the board. But they exist — everywhere. Whining about those that others receive makes us look like very petty people. If you really think the situation is unfair, apply for a job with the city. Or become one of those people who spend tens of thousands of dollars in advertising at the Aud. Those would be the people who get to take advantage of the 400 seats set aside by the Aud, by the way. Just remember that when you become one of the privileged few, you have to give back your concert tickets. Because you don’t deserve them, remember?

Winter weary sun worshippers, take heart. Spring is closer than all this snow would suggest. Now for some, the surest sign of spring is the sight of a robin, while others will rely on what Wiarton Willie tells them. Not me. My methods are much more primitive.

I bought a bag of milk at the grocery store the other day. When I got home and opened it, I noticed that the bag’s plastic tie showed an expiry date of March 1st. March! Just the sound of the month makes me feel warmer. In other words, by the next time I’m buying milk, the snow should have at least begun to melt.

Maybe I should drink it faster…

What a pathetic display of political gamesmanship in the House of Commons yesterday. Rather than vote on a Conservative crime bill, the entire Liberal contingent in the Commons walked out. Naturally that allowed the bill to pass with ease. And theoretically, I suppose it’s assumed that it allows the Liberals to save face. By not voting, they’re essentially trying to say they disagree with the crime bill proposed by the minority government. Of course, if they really disagreed with it, they could have voted against it! That is, after all, their job.

I know this is not the first time this has happened, and I know also that it will not be the last. But much like “crossing the floor” to change party allegiance, this is a “loophole” in our political process that drives me nuts. When a school schedules exam weeks, students can’t simply skip out and not suffer a penalty. When your boss says it’s time to sit down for your annual review, you don’t get to opt out because you’re not going to like what she has to say. So why do we allow this in the House?

The fact is that the only reason the Liberals didn’t want to vote against the bill is because their participation in the vote would have defeated it. And since it was being tabled as a matter of confidence, a vote against the bill would have been a vote that toppled the government and sent us to the polls. And we all know the Liberals want no part of an election. Their leader has not warmed to the party, much less the public, since his surprising win last winter. The party is not ready to face the electorate and the result of a vote now would most likely spell a Conservative majority. To which I say, too bad! The Liberals chose Stephane Dion as their leader. Now, the party must move forward with that decision, for better or worse. And if worse means the Conservatives are allowed to govern with the majority they so desperately seek, so be it. The Liberals have no one to blame but themselves. Making a mockery of the political process along the way is nothing but a disservice to Canadians.

I’m pretty sure something fell from the undercarriage of my car this weekend as I tried to merge onto the expressway from Bridgeport Road/Erb Street on Saturday afternoon. You know the spot. It’s just as you take the right lane which turns into the on-ramp and takes you to the Lancaster Street exit. The potholes were larger and deeper than any I have ever seen. Truly. You could have lost a small child in there, not to mention something critical to keeping your car running. Consider this your fair warning.

Here’s another free tip. Once you’re actually on the expressway, beware as you try to exit at Frederick Street. The same problem exists there. Seen any bad spots yourself? Too bad the “worst roads” campaign doesn’t start again til fall.

 Winter can’t end soon enough, but we have a long construction season ahead.

I was out shovelling early this morning (for the fourth time since the flakes began to fall yesterday — but who’s counting?) and it gave me the chance to chat with my neighbour, who was also enduring another bout with the snow. He travels often for business and had just returned from a trip to China. You may have heard about the snowstorm that recently devastated China, just in time for the Chinese New Year. Turns out we’re luckier than we sometimes realize, despite all this snow.

As we took a break from all the shovelling, my neighbour explained to me that, in China, many people don’t even have something as simple as a shovel. Instead, they were using what essentially amounted to a shovel handle to try and push and sweep the snow out of the way. And forget about the rural roads. While there were trucks that could carry salt, there was no system of delivering it to the ground like our mighty machines can. Instead, several people would walk beside the truck with dustpans and spread what salt they could by hand. Something to remember the next time the plow caves in the end of your driveway.

I’m just looking for the bright side in all of this because 570 News Weather Specialist John Wilson is calling for a few centimetres more this weekend. Can’t wait.

Whew! After more clicks of the mouse than I’d care to admit, I’m finally here. And yes, many of those clicks were caused by pressure from the boss who now has a new daily routine that goes something like, “Farwell, have you blogged yet?”

You must have heard recently about the 18-year old poker prodigy from Waterloo. Mike McDonald scored a cool 1.4-million dollars (US) playing in a tournament in Germany last weekend. We interviewed Mike for a story we did on 570 News and, in order to get in touch with him, we had to go through his “people.” So not only is this recently minted grad of Waterloo’s WCI a millionaire, he also needs “people” to now help him cope with his newfound fame. It occurs to me that if I had “people” I could have had this post, well, posted…some time ago.

I’m here, and that’s what counts. I promise you’ll be hearing more from me soon. And here’s to hoping the boss is reading this.