Caught between the moon and New York City

It’s the best that Doug Ford can do

Jun 3

Here’s my transcription of Premier Doug Ford’s Arthur anecdote at the end of his schools-are-closed press conference this afternoon. “Like a little butler.” pastebin.com/KK0fzdq1 Screenshots of text transcript linked in pastebin URL.

Screenshots of text transcript linked in pastebin URL.

As part of informing Ontario that in-person school’s out for summer, partly to stay on track for a broader reopening plan, Doug Ford told the tale of meeting a boy in his backyard to discuss a compromise of outdoor graduation ceremonies. “Arthur” being the surname of a rabid detractor may be just a coincidence, but the kid was rewarded with a parody account on Twitter.

Scene from the Sky Palace

Edmonton Journal @edmontonjournal

“They do not need their leaders to break the rules, and do it on the top of the castle. That is not how you lead during the crisis, and I think all Albertans are getting very tired of these repeated failures of leadership,” #ableg #alberta

Photos show Kenney, cabinet ministers defying outdoor gathering rules on Sky Palace patioPremier Jason Kenney’s office is defending photos that show the premier and senior cabinet ministers sitting on a patio at the Federal Building, saying they’re…edmontonjournal.com

A day after Alberta’s premier tried sticking up for Canadian history, Jason Kenney’s office was defending photos that showed him and cabinet ministers on a patio at the Federal Building in Edmonton by explaining it wasn’t breaking any rules. Nonetheless, it gave Rachel Notley an opposition opportunity to take a swipe at them all.

“Porter Airlines warned of losses, threatened to leave Toronto’s island airport in dispute with terminal owner.” The Globe and Mail found details of a battle pre-dating the pandemic, which led to competing lawsuits amidst a shutdown. Porter is reportedly pursuing a passenger jet service, which isn’t allowed at Billy Bishop.

Parking a public argument

The site of a former encampment at Toronto’s Fort York has been repurposed for a fake one as part of a location shoot for Titans. Controversy over how to treat tent cities shifted to the attempted clearing of one at Lamport Stadium, arguably to restore its appeal. But this follow-up rode the ratio by driving discourse to another dimension:

Jesse Kline @accessd

In @nationalpost I argue parks are little more than "vast swaths of land smack in the middle of large urban centres that could house hundreds of people, but are instead being used as a toilet by half a dozen dogs." They should be abolished or privatized.

Jesse Kline: City parks are a waste of space. Here’s why they should be privatizedPart of the problem is that governments have blurred the line between public and private propertynationalpost.com

Simu Liu popped off about the crashing halt to his sitcom. The fifth and final season of Kim’s Convenience debuted on Netflix, and its most outspoken star used the occasion to explain the tensions surrounding its end. Liu added that he has no interest in reprising his role in the spinoff series Strays.

Finally, it’s all coming back now

Aline first came on the radar last fall as a French film inspired by the life of Celine Dion, then it landed in pandemic postponement purgatory. But it was for the best, because a premiere out of competition at the recovered Cannes Film Festival is increasing the fascination with it, especially the storyline about a romance with her way older manager: