Michael Robert Dyet's Blog, page 11

Trapped in Online Purgatory

Hmmm, when I blow my cork, will you be acharacter witness for me?

If you hear a news report along thelines of the one below, it will probably be about me. I may need characterwitnesses to dig myself out of trouble.

Police were called to a Hamilton neighborhoodtoday after multiple reports of a man roaming the street, wearing only houseslippers and a track suit, gesturing wildly and ranting incoherently. Whenasked what the problem was, the man replied:

“What’s the matter? I’m in onlinepurgatory! They sent me a new credit card which had to be activated. Shouldhave been dead simple! But oh no, not a chance. When I went online to do theactivation, it said I had to change my User Name first. Really? That’s ahassle. It was a perfectly good User Name.

“So I created a new User Name. But thenit said it had to send me a security code. Really? Just to change the User Name?All this damn security business. That should be their responsibility, not mine.I should get to charge them a fee for inconveniencing me!

“Anyway, I had to enter my old User Nameand my birthdate to get the damn code. It e-mailed me the code. But I went backto enter the code, that screen had closed on its own. Three times thathappened! Three bloody times!

“So I switched to having the code sent bytelephone. Got the damn automated message with the code and entered it. Smoothsailing from there, right? Hell, no!! When I went to log in with the new UserName, it said the password was wrong! I’ve had that password for years and suddenlyit doesn’t work? What the hell?!

“So I tried to reset the password. Samedamn rigamarole! Enter the User Name and my birth date to get a security code.Another friggin’ security code! How secure are they if they give them out likeHallowe’en candy?

“So anyway, I do it. Now it says my UserName is incorrect! How could it be incorrect? I just created the damn thingfive minutes ago! Now I’m totally screwed! User Name won’t work. Password won’twork. What the hell am I supposed to do now?

“Call tech support? Oh sure, spend tenminutes wrestling with the answering system to find the right option. Then waita half hour for somebody to be available. When I finally get sometwenty-something techie from offshore on the line, he’ll tell me I could haveused the Chat Support. I don’t want to talk to a damn robot!!!”

Police reported that the man wasbabbling incoherently at this point and seemed to be losing his grip on hissanity. They had no choice but to take him into custody. When attempting to doso, the man blew his cork, took off his slippers and began beating the policeofficer over the head with them. Charges are pending.

Long story short, the cheese is slidingoff my cracker. I may need character witnesses for the competency hearing.

~ Now Available Online from Amazon,Chapters Indigo or Barnes & Noble: Hunting Muskie, Rites of Passage –Stories by Michael Robert Diet

~ Michael Robert Dyet is also the author of Untilthe Deep Water Stills – An Internet-enhanced Novel which was a double winner inthe Reader Views Literary Awards 2009. Visit Michael’s website at www.mdyetmetaphor.com .

~ Subscribe to Michael’s Metaphors of Life Journal aka That Make Me GoHmmm at its’ internet home www.mdyetmetaphor.com/blog2 . Instructions for subscribingare provided in the Subscribe to this Blog: How To instructions page in theright sidebar. Ifyou’re reading this post on another social networking site, come back regularlyto my page for postings once a week.

A Baby Boomer’s “Just So You Know” Declaration.

Hmmm, I think you may have underestimatedmy ability to be stubborn.

As a member of the Baby Boomergeneration, I am rather set in my ways and disinclined to surrender to the “doit our way” pressures that are increasingly being aimed at me. The “that’s justthe way it is” argument carries no weight with me. Hence, I feel it necessaryto make a few just so you know declarations.

To Intact Insurance

I acknowledge your notice that you are goingpaperless and that I can access my policy documents online. Just so youknow, I will be printing all those documents for my files and resenting you asI do so. All paperless means to me is that I have to do the printinginstead of you. And by the way, your Online Service Centre was out ofservice for a full day!

To Utilities Companies

Your labyrinthian voice mail systems aredesigned to prevent me from ever speaking to a living, breathing person. Justso you know, I will persist in cracking the code of your system to reach the Speakto a Representative option no matter how many levels deep you bury it. Andno, I am not interested in chatting with your AI entity regardless of what humanname you give it.

To the Limeridge Mall Rogers Store

Your continuing text messages enticingme to upgrade to the latest, greatest new digital device are deletedimmediately upon receipt. My antique-vintage iPhone still works just fine. Justso you know, I will continue to use it until it rolls over and dies. I do notcare that your iPhone 15 Pro has a Super Retina XDR Display whatever thehell that means.

To all Retail Chain Stores

You clearly see self-serve checkouts asthe way of the future. Just so you know, I will go out of my way to sniff outstores that still offer full-service checkout. Amazon is kicking your assanyway when it comes to service. A day may come when I will not need your storeat all.

To Politicians

You are fond of making a bevy of grandpromises to try to get my vote. Just so you know, I apply the divide bythree and subtract two formulae to determine the number of promises you arelikely to keep. And Doug Ford, where you are concerned, I will cast a write-invote for the ghost of Elvis before I vote for you.

To HP

You continue to nag me about Finishingthe Set-up on my laptop. I have done all the set-up I require to do what Ineed to do. Just so you know, I will continue to click on the Remind Me inThree Days button until hell freezes over or you get the message –whichever comes first.

Just so you know, I am Baby Boomerstubborn and proud of it. Stubborn as a mule. As stubborn as the will of kings.Stubborn as a stone. I will outlast you regardless of what tactics you employto try to convert me to your way of thinking. That’s just the way it is.

~ Now Available Online from Amazon,Chapters Indigo or Barnes & Noble: Hunting Muskie, Rites of Passage –Stories by Michael Robert Dyet

~ Michael Robert Dyet is also the author of Untilthe Deep Water Stills – An Internet-enhanced Novel which was a double winner inthe Reader Views Literary Awards 2009. Visit Michael’s website at www.mdyetmetaphor.com .

~ Subscribe to Michael’s Metaphors of Life Journal aka That Make Me GoHmmm at its’ internet home www.mdyetmetaphor.com/blog2 . Instructions for subscribingare provided in the Subscribe to this Blog: How To instructions page in theright sidebar. Ifyou’re reading this post on another social networking site, come back regularlyto my page for postings once a week

The Last Indulgent Exhale of Summer

Hmmm, what better way to celebrate mynew found freedom than a riverside stroll in the last breath of summer?

The summer of 2023, the first of my retirement years, has been so very good to me. Plenty of bright, sunny days to indulge my passion for exploring the wonders of nature. Enough rain to keep the ponds and marshes full and the foliage lush and green. I have spent more time in the arms of Mother Nature this summer than I have in the last ten years combined.

Summer blessed me by lingering throughoutSeptember. As October approached, I prepared myself for cooler days and a slowslide to the end of the season. But then came the surprise. Summer rallied foran encore into the first few days of October.

If you are the kind of person who lovesautumn most among the seasons, that encore may not have been to your liking.But I welcomed it with open arms and kept up my summer routine of nature hikes.

This past Wednesday I spent an idyllic,few hours on the Rotary Riverside Trail along the Grand River outsideCaledonia. The sweet, whistling drone of Cicadas serenaded me punctuatedby the recurring soft thump of walnuts in their apple green casingsdropping from the Eastern Black Walnut trees that line the trail.

A sibilant breeze rustled the limbs of the trees coaxing a steady shower of leaves to flutter down and around me. The Grand River rolled lazily by in rhythm with the breeze and the chorus of Cicadas. Sunlight played hide and seek with the shade as I strolled down the trail. A small contingent of insects took advantage of the unexpected heat to dance once more

A late Eastern Comma butterfly emerged from the trees and proudly displayed the dead leaf pattern of its outer wing with the namesake white comma mark. Gaudy American Rubyspot dragonlies chased one another along the shoreline.

A Northern Caddisfly dartedhither and thither showcasing its elegant orange-brown markings and itsridiculously long, checkered antennae. A Say’s Trig ventured out from itshiding spot to bask in the sun.

A pair of Ichneumon Wasps got in on the act posing on broad, green leaves at the side of the trail.

The last indulgent exhale of summer was unexpected but so very welcome. The riverside trail was the perfect place to take it in even if I did have to dodge the artillery of golf-ball sized – ocassionally baseball-sized — black walnuts falling around me!

~  NowAvailable Online from Amazon, Chapters Indigo or Barnes & Noble: HuntingMuskie, Rites of Passage – Stories by Michael Robert Dyet

~ Michael Robert Dyet is also the author of Untilthe Deep Water Stills – An Internet-enhanced Novel which was a double winner inthe Reader Views Literary Awards 2009. Visit Michael’s website at www.mdyetmetaphor.com .

~ Subscribe to Michael’s Metaphors of Life Journal aka Things That MakeMe Go Hmmm at its’ internet home www.mdyetmetaphor.com/blog2 . Instructions for subscribingare provided in the Subscribe to this Blog: How To instructions page in theright sidebar. Ifyou’re reading this post on another social networking site, come back regularlyto my page for postings once a week.

Leadership Lessons for Premier Doug Ford

Hmmm, will the hard lessons aboutleadership sink in for Doug Ford?

The Ford government Greenbelt Scandalhas been partially defused by Ford’s announcement that he is backing away fromrezoning greenbelt land for development and his accompanying public apology.But the issue is not going away anytime soon as the opposition parties continueto press for a criminal investigation.

I am weighing in this time on the natureof Ford’s apology. He did his best to turn it into a pat on the back forhimself by proclaiming that leadership is about admitting when you have made amistake. Well, Doug, you and I have different concepts of what constitutesleadership. Let me elaborate on our differences on that topic.

Leadership is about keeping the promises you made. Leadershipis not about making promises you never intended to keep and trotting outthe “things have changed” excuse when the time comes to break them.

Leadership is about listening to the electorate and acting in their best interests. Leadership is not about spewing rhetoric about “being all about the people’s needs” while acting in the best interests of big business who financially supported your campaign.

Leadership is about acting by example by following the rules.Leadership is not about circumventing the rules so you can do as youplease.

Leadership is about listening to the experts when they providetheir informed advice. Case in Point: The Regional Planning Commissioners ofOntario reported way back in March that Ontario’s municipalities alreadyhave 85 percent of the 1.5 million housing units needed in their approvalpipelines. Leadership is not about ignoring any informed advice thatdoes not support what you want to do.

Leadership is about acting with integrity. Leadership isnot about dodging the bullets until there are no more fall guys to offerup.

Leadership is about owning the mistakes you make in atimely fashion and doing what is necessary to fix any damage done. Leadershipis not about waiting until you have no other choice – after multipleauthorities have called you out and multiple cabinet ministers have resigned –and then staging a photo-op to playact humility.

Being the premier of Ontario is unquestionablya difficult and sometimes thankless job. I do not have what it takes the fillthe role. There is no incentive you could dangle in front of me to take on the jobeven if I did.

But when you do take on that role, itcomes with the responsibility of acting honestly, transparently and in the bestinterests of those who elected you. Continuing with the metaphor from my lastpost, it should not get the point where the stench of the stinking fish is sobad that everyone is gagging before you correct course.

~ Now Available Online from Amazon,Chapters Indigo or Barnes & Noble: Hunting Muskie, Rites of Passage –Stories by Michael Robert Dyet

~ Michael Robert Dyet is also the author of Untilthe Deep Water Stills – An Internet-enhanced Novel which was a double winner inthe Reader Views Literary Awards 2009. Visit Michael’s website at www.mdyetmetaphor.com or the novel online companion at www.mdyetmetaphor.com/blog .

~ Subscribe to Michael’s Metaphors of Life Journal aka That Make Me GoHmmm at its’ internet home www.mdyetmetaphor.com/blog2 . Instructions forsubscribing are provided in the Subscribe to this Blog: How To instructionspage in the right sidebar. Ifyou’re reading this post on another social networking site, come back regularlyto my page for postings once a week.

Metroland Bankruptcy: Here Comes the Metaverse

Hmmm, are Baby Boomers the last, crumbling line of defense?

By now you will have heard that Nordstar is putting its Metroland Media Group division into creditor protection under the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act. As part of this restructuring process, more than 70 local newspapers will move to a digital-only format.

600 + jobs will be eliminated in the process. And to add insult to injury, the affected employees will receive no termination or severance pay. They will have to file claims within the bankruptcy process in the hopes of getting some form of payout. In many cases, the legal costs of doing so will be such that it does not make sense to even try.

Perhaps if Nordstar axed a few of the high-paid executives, who waited too long to take action in the face of what was inevitable, they could afford to pay the 600 + workers at least some of the severance they deserve. But it is always the foot soldiers who take the brunt of the impact in these situations.

Admittedly, I do not have a personal stake in the matter. But it does stir mixed emotions in me. My first professional job, 45 years ago after graduating from college, was as a reporter-photographer for a community newspaper. Fortunately for me, I packed in it after 1-1/2 years to go back to school to get my university degree and pursue a different profession.

The reality is that the demise of these local newspapers was a foregone conclusion. It is part of the transition that has been taking place for some time now. We are moving inexorably, from an information perspective, from a print-based environment to a digital one.

The advertising revenue that community newspapers depended upon has dried up as advertisers react to this reality and shift their spend to digital mediums including tech giants Google and Facebook. There is no turning back in this respect. Adapt or die is the rule of the day.

Looking at the matter from the 30,000 foot perspective, it is part of the major paradigm shift of our generation. In terms of interacting and of spending money, we have passed the tipping point. The digital realm now dominates. And this is just the tip of the virtual iceberg.

We are not far away from the day when it will be possible to live 24/7 without ever stepping out the front door if we choose. The Metaverse – defined in broad terms as a digital space where technology allows people to immerse themselves in an online reality – is shifting from a metaphor to an actual fact.

The Metaverse is charging at us with an unstoppable momentum. All of us technology-challenged Baby Boomers, who prefer the physical world to the virtual one, may be the last, crumbling line of defense. Once we are gone, the front doors may be permanently locked and the virtual doors left permanently open.

~ Now Available Online from Amazon, Chapters Indigo or Barnes & Noble: Hunting Muskie, Rites of Passage – Stories by Michael Robert Dyet

~ Michael Robert Dyet is also the author of Until the Deep Water Stills – An Internet-enhanced Novel which was a double winner in the Reader Views Literary Awards 2009. Visit Michael’s website at www.mdyetmetaphor.com .

~ Subscribe to Michael’s Metaphors of Life Journal aka That Make Me Go Hmmm at its’ internet home www.mdyetmetaphor.com/blog2. Instructions for subscribing are provided in the Subscribe to this Blog: How To instructions page in the right sidebar. If you’re reading this post on another social networking site, come back regularly to my page for postings once a week.

When I Grow Old and Wear the Bottom of My Trousers Rolled: God’s Garden

I grow old… I grow old…

I shall wear the bottom of my trousers rolled

~ T.S. Eliot, The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock

Hmmm, what better way to grow old thanto escape into God’s garden of endless grace?

Regular followers of my posts know thatI am a certifiable, unabashed nature geek. There is nothing I enjoy more thanexploring Mother Nature and her endless wonders. You have heard me sing the praisesof butterflies and dragonflies – winged wonders, as I call them.

Since I retired in the spring, I have indulgedmy passion full-time spending several days a week in meadows and on sunny,forest trails pursing and photographing all manner of insects. In the parlanceof those who share my passion, I go on Bug Crawls.

One of my pleasant discoveries is the incredible diversity of flies. You are probably thinking: Flies? House Fly, Black Fly, Deer Fly – What else is there? The answer is: Far more than you can imagine. There are something like 180,000 fly species in the world – 18,000 in North America and 7,000 in Canada. Many of them are quite striking like the Greenbottle Fly at the head of this post. A few other examples:

Bristle Flies, aka Tachinidae Flies, as shown above are a logical place to start. Not hard to figure out why they are known as Bristle Flies given their bristly and robust appearance.

Moving on to Robber Flies, as shown above, so named because of their predatory habits. They wait in ambush and catch their prey (other insects) in flight.

My favourite type of flies are Flower Flies aka Hover Flies, as show above. As their name suggests, they are often found hovering or nectaring at flowers.

As I grow old and wear the bottom of my trousers rolled, I will spend as much time as possible in God’s garden of endless grace. It soothes my spirit, inspires wonder and pushes aside for a time the increasing pressures and worries that life throws at us. My love of nature is surely encoded in my DNA and written on my soul.

~  NowAvailable Online from Amazon, Chapters Indigo or Barnes & Noble: HuntingMuskie, Rites of Passage – Stories by Michael Robert Dyet

~ Michael Robert Dyet is also the author of Untilthe Deep Water Stills – An Internet-enhanced Novel which was a double winner inthe Reader Views Literary Awards 2009. Visit Michael’s website at www.mdyetmetaphor.com .

~ Subscribe to Michael’s Metaphors of Life Journal aka That Make Me GoHmmm at its’ internet home www.mdyetmetaphor.com/blog2 . Instructions for subscribingare provided in the Subscribe to this Blog: How To instructions page in theright sidebar. Ifyou’re reading this post on another social networking site, come back regularlyto my page for postings once a week.

The Greenbelt Scandal: Stinking Fish

Hmmm, will Doug Ford be able to shed the foul odour of the Ontario Greenbelt Scandal?

I expect that the Greenbelt Scandal will become a case study for political scandals in the next edition of Public Administration casebooks. Consider the juicy timeline to date:

FOOTPRINTS OF THE SCANDAL

September 25, 2022: Housing developers, including thedeveloper of three sites in York Region ultimately removed from the Greenbelt,attend Ontario Premier Doug Ford’s daughter’s wedding. Ford says the developerswere personal friends and he has done nothing wrong.

November 18, 2022: The More Homes Built Faster Act2022 passes in the Legislature.

December 14, 2022: Housing Ministry files regulationsimplementing the Ministry’s proposed Greenbelt boundary changes.

THE UNRAVELLING BEGINS

March 9, 2023: Regional Planning Commissioners ofOntario report that Ontario’s municipalities already have 85 percent of the1.5 million housing units needed in their approval pipelines.

August 11, 2023: Auditor General of Ontario SpecialReport on Changes to the Greenbelt released. Key findings include:

Howland sites were selected was not transparent, fair, objective or fullyinformed. Sufficientland exists for the target of 1.5 million homes to be built without the need tobuild on the Greenbelt. Directaccess to the Housing Minister’s Chief of Staff resulted in certain prominentdevelopers receiving preferential treatment.

Among the 15 recommendations made: Re-evaluationof the 2022 Decision to Change the Greenbelt Boundaries. Doug Ford indicates his administrationwill act on 14 of the recommendations but will not reevaluate changes to the greenbeltboundary.

August 21, 2023: Ford announces expansion of “strongmayor” powers to smaller cities allowing mayors to propose housing-relatedbylaws and pass them with the support of only one-third of councillors. Ablatant power realignment to suit the government’s agenda.

ACTIVATING THE POLITICAL SCANDALPLAYBOOK

August 22, 2023: Ryan Amato, Chief of Staff for the Ontario Housing Minister, resigns. Scandal playbook tactic: Designate a fall guy and hang it all on him.

August 30, 2023: Report of Integrity Commissioner indicates Housing Minister Steve Clark failed to properly oversee the process that led to Greenbelt lands being selected for housing development and recommends he be reprimanded. Scandal playbook tactic: Be vaguely apologetic while assembling the golden parachute for the accused.

September 4, 2023: Housing Minister Steve Clark resigns from the cabinet. Doug Ford announces cabinet shuffle. Scandal playbook tactic: Shuffle the cards to deflect attention away from the real problem.

September 6, 2023: New HousingMinister Paul Calandra announces a Greenbelt review that will re-examine landalready removed for development as well as the possible removal of additional Greenbeltlands, or additions to Greenbelt designated land, this time using a fair,transparent process. Scandal playbook tactic: Give the appearanceof responding to the Auditor General’s recommendation using language so nebulousthat in the end nothing may change.

On the Horizon: The specter of a possible RCMP criminalinvestigation. Scandal playbook tactic: Assemble the lawyers and start buildingthe case that the RCMP does not have jurisdiction. Fallback tactic: Throw upthe parliamentary privilege stonewall to assert that Ford cannot be required totestify.

Political scandals are stinking fish.The longer the scandal drags on the more the fish rot and the worse the stinkgets. The stench of the stinking fish of the Greenbelt Scandal are making usall gag. No amount of political playbook tactics will mask the foul odour thatnow clings to Doug Ford.

~ Now Available Online from Amazon,Chapters Indigo or Barnes & Noble: Hunting Muskie, Rites of Passage –Stories by Michael Robert Dyet

~ Michael Robert Dyet is also the author of Untilthe Deep Water Stills – An Internet-enhanced Novel which was a double winner inthe Reader Views Literary Awards 2009. Visit Michael’s website at www.mdyetmetaphor.com or the novel online companion at www.mdyetmetaphor.com/blog .

~ Subscribe to Michael’s Metaphors of Life Journal aka That Make Me GoHmmm at its’ internet home www.mdyetmetaphor.com/blog2 . Instructions forsubscribing are provided in the Subscribe to this Blog: How To instructionspage in the right sidebar. Ifyou’re reading this post on another social networking site, come back regularlyto my page for postings once a

Cyber Scammers: The “Almost Certainly” Rule

Hmmm, it may be the Wild, Wild Cyber West but the same principle applies to protect ourselves.

It is an almost daily occurrence now – communications by text message that aim to defraud us or take advantage of our trusting nature. Case in point: text messages I received recently.

Scotiabank: As a result of new onlinesecurity measures, a temporary hold has been placed on your access cardstarting with 45360. For help reactivating your card, please visit (URL).

Canada Post: We’ve made an attempt todeliver your parcel today but couldn’t get a signature release from you. We canreattempt to deliver your parcel tomorrow once the delivery fee is paid. Pleaseclick this link (URL).

Netflix: Your payment cannot be completed. To keep access to the service please visit (URL) to update your payment.

The perpetrators of the first scam have obviously figured out that all or many Scotiabank access cards start with those five numbers. The perpetrators of the Netflix scam are taking advantage of the wide use of Netflix (I’m in the minority who don’t use it.) And the perpetrators of the Canada Post scam are leveraging the online ordering trend knowing that at any one time thousands of people receiving the message will be waiting for a delivery.

Financial investment frauds top the listof highest losses with people losing on average $150,000. But increasingly,what the scammers are after is personal information – passwords and other sensitiveinformation – that they can use for blackmail, identify theft, publishing fakeads or targeting others on your contact list.

The scammers are increasinglyopportunistic. A new scam is circulating relating to the Canadian federalgovernment grocery rebate: To receive your payment, click here and completethe form.

The sad reality is that there is very little law enforcement can do to track down cyber scammers. From what I have read, at most 1% of them are apprehended and prosecuted. So it is up to us an individuals to know when to hit delete.

A few “almost certainly” rules to follow to protect yourself :

If it seems too good to be true (i.e. financial scams), it almost certainly is not true.If it plays on your insecurities about online data (i.e. your bank access card has been comprised), it almost certainly is not true.If the communication is from someone you do not know, it is almost certainly someone you do not want to know.If there is a URL link in the text communication, it is almost certainly a doorway to fraud. If it involves cryptocurrency – No almost in this case. It is certainly a direct siphon into your bank account.

The cyber world that has come into beingin the last half century is the new Wild, Wild West. But the old metaphor stillapplies with just a slight tweak: Beware of cyber wolves in virtual sheepclothing. Apply the almost certainly rule to protect yourself.

~  NowAvailable Online from Amazon, Chapters Indigo or Barnes & Noble: HuntingMuskie, Rites of Passage – Stories by Michael Robert Dyet

~ Michael Robert Dyet is also the author of Untilthe Deep Water Stills – An Internet-enhanced Novel which was a double winner inthe Reader Views Literary Awards 2009. Visit Michael’s website at www.mdyetmetaphor.com .

~ Subscribe to Michael’s Metaphors of Life Journal aka That Make Me GoHmmm at its’ internet home www.mdyetmetaphor.com/blog2 . Instructions for subscribingare provided in the Subscribe to this Blog: How To instructions page in theright sidebar. Ifyou’re reading this post on another social networking site, come back regularlyto my page for postings once a week.

The Industrious Bee: Our Lifeline

Hmmm, is there a better metaphor for thefragility of our planet than the industrious bee?

When I was a child, I thought of beesrather simplistically. There were Honey Bees and Bumble Bees.Both were to be avoided because they might sting me. That was the extent of mythinking on the subject.

In this first summer of my retirementyears, I am spending several days a week traversing nature trails near and farto observe all sorts of insects. I have learned that there are over 25,000species of bees world-wide and 800 species in Canada of which 400 occur inOntario. Only Honey Bees and Bumble Bees have stingers – and for the record,only female bees sting.

Did you know that bees are ratherimportant to our survival as a species? The U.S. Department of Agricultureestimates that pollinators like bees and butterflies pollinate 75% of theworld’s flowers and 35% of the world’s food crops including fruits andvegetables.

So it seems fitting to offer a visualtribute to these essential creatures, such as the Eastern Carpenter Beeat the head of this post, and the critical role they play.

Pure Green Sweat Bee

Keeping of bees is like the direction of sunbeams. ~ Henry David Thoreau

Western Honey Bee

The bee is more honoured than other animals, not because she labours, but because she labours for others. ~ St John Chrysothom

Flat-tailed Leafcutter Bee

The hum of bees is the voice of the garden. ~ Elizabeth Lawrence

Two-spotted Bumble Bee

The bee’s life is a like a magic well; the more you draw from it, the more it fills with water! Karl Von Frisch

We think of bees as industrious: hence sayings like busy as a bee and a hive of activity. But we really should think of them as a living metaphor for the fragility of this planet on which we live and how we put ourselves at risk if we do not take care of its creatures. The sobering reality is we literally cannot live without bees and they cannot live if we do not protect their habitats.

~ Now Available Online from Amazon,Chapters Indigo or Barnes & Noble: Hunting Muskie, Rites of Passage –Stories by Michael Robert Dyet

~ Michael Robert Dyet is also the author of Untilthe Deep Water Stills – An Internet-enhanced Novel which was a double winner inthe Reader Views Literary Awards 2009. Visit Michael’s website at www.mdyetmetaphor.com or the novel online companion at www.mdyetmetaphor.com/blog .

~ Subscribe to Michael’s Metaphors of Life Journal aka That Make Me GoHmmm at its’ internet home www.mdyetmetaphor.com/blog2 . Instructions forsubscribing are provided in the Subscribe to this Blog: How To instructionspage in the right sidebar. Ifyou’re reading this post on another social networking site, come back regularlyto my page for postings once a week

Greenbelt Gift-wrapped Giveaway: Ford’s Shameful Legacy

Hmmm, will be the Greenbelt Gift-wrapped Giveaway be Doug Ford’s shameful legacy?

I will put my cards on the table. I have never been a supporter of Ontario Premier Doug Ford. I have an intense dislike for the man and his bullying style of leadership. I was employed by an Ontario government funded association for many years. Speaking out would have been biting that hand that feeds me. But I retired in the spring of this year and can now speak my mind.

The Auditor General of Ontario’s Special Report on Changes to the Greenbelt, and the Ford government’s response to it, sheds a bright light on how Doug Ford chooses to operate. The report is 95 pages long but the Executive Summary tells the story. A few excerpts from it:

“We found that how the land sites were selected was not transparent, fair, objective, or fully informed. It also can be shown that there was sufficient land for the target of 1.5 million homes to be built without the need to build on the Greenbelt.

“In conducting our work, we learned about the exercise that was used to recommend the removal of lands from the Greenbelt for housing. It was seriously flawed and was dismissive of effective land-use planning…

“Direct access to the Housing Minister’s Chief of Staff resulted in certain prominent developers receiving preferential treatment. About 92% of the approximately 7,400 acres ultimately removed from the Greenbelt are five land sites put forward by two developers (which included a land site associated with a third developer) who had access to the Chief of Staff in September 2022.”

The report with its 15 recommendations could not be more damning. Ford and his Housing Minister have been in damage control mode since it was released. They have indicated they will comply with 14 of the recommendations but not the one that really matters: Re-evaluation of the 2022 Decision to Change the Greenbelt Boundaries. In summary, their response is:

We will pay lip service to the report but refuse to acknowledge the wrongdoing it reveals. Under no circumstances will we concede we broke the rules and breached the public trust. Notwithstanding all the evidence that what we did was wrong, we are bulldozing ahead with our ill-conceived plans.

A secondary controversy has erupted out of the report: use of personal cell phones and communication devices, rather than government issued ones, by Ministry staff while conducting ministry business. This runs counter to records retention and transparency requirements for elected and non-elected public service staff.

We can be certain that this is not the end of the matter. The opposition NDP and Liberal parties will be hounding the Ford government over the report for some time to come and rightly so. But Doug Ford’s modus operandi will continue to be what it always has been: I’m the boss. I thumb my nose at the rules and official processes and do whatever I want to do.

In answer to the question that started this post: Yes, the Greenbelt Gift-wrapped Giveaway will be Ford’s shameful legacy when his controversial reign as premier finally ends.

~ Now Available Online from Amazon, Chapters Indigo or Barnes & Noble: Hunting Muskie, Rites of Passage – Stories by Michael Robert Dyet

~ Michael Robert Dyet is also the author of Until the Deep Water Stills – An Internet-enhanced Novel which was a double winner in the Reader Views Literary Awards 2009. Visit Michael’s website at www.mdyetmetaphor.com or the novel online companion at www.mdyetmetaphor.com/blog.

~ Subscribe to Michael’s Metaphors of Life Journal aka That Make Me Go Hmmm at its’ internet home www.mdyetmetaphor.com/blog2. Instructions for subscribing are provided in the Subscribe to this Blog: How To instructions page in the right sidebar. If you’re reading this post on another social networking site, come back regularly to my page for postings once a week.