"Why are you closed?" G20 video is a hit

The video of the irate shopper outside a closed Toronto Eaton Centre after it was locked down on Saturday due to G20 protests has gone viral. Now, as is customary in YouTube success, scores of remixes, re-dubs, and re-edits are popping up all over the internet.

5-metre G20 fence rule was bullshit

Toronto's Chief of Police Bill Blair admitted today that the so-called "5-metre rule" never actually existed. The much-publicized law was supposedly passed by the provincial government prior to the G20 Summit in secret and allowed police to arrest and detain any individual who came within 5-metres of the security perimeter and either refused to provide identification or would not state their business for being at the fence.

Blair's admission that the law never actually existed comes on the heals of allegations of improper police conduct during the summit that led to hundreds of people being detained for little more than being present at peaceful protests.

I myself even had a first-hand experience of the 5-metre rule. While waiting for a Greyhound bus in Toronto on Thursday afternoon, I decided to take my camera down to the fence and take some shots. After about half an hour or so, I was approached at Front & Bay by an RCMP officer who demanded to know why I was there and why I was taking photographs of the security fence. I was fully compliant, showing him my passport, talking about my blog, showing him the photographs. After about ten minutes, he let me go about my business. The revelation that the officer may not have actually had the authority to cause me that minor inconvenience (and I might also add, a rapid heartbeat) has me angered. I can only imagine the anger now welling in those that were detained in the east detention facility for over a day.

Read the reports on Blair's admission by the CBC and the Toronto Star.

The G20: When fear turns to defiance and anger

Guelph Mercury reporter Rob O'Flanagan immersed himself in the chaos of the downtown Toronto "Red Zone" on Saturday afternoon. I urge you to read his riveting account of the scene and the thought-provoking question he poses: which comes first, the riot or the riot police?


Read Mr. O'Flanagan's column here.

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Love, it seems, will always prevail - even in the midst of a $1.2 BILLION riot squad. Take that, Paris!

G20 Required Viewing

Well, Toronto is (slightly) back to normal today after a whirlwind weekend of rule and order - G20 style. Here are some select videos from the weekend.


Stay out of my head, Rex Murphy! While Rex's self-voice-loving banter usually rubs me the wrong way, this editorial sums up the G20 perfectly.

Rule #1 of peaceful demonstrations: never, and I mean NEVER, gather to sing the national anthem and then attempt to take a nap in the middle of the street with riot police around. It is like their biggest pet peeve.

No, that is not the set of a Michael Bay movie. It is a riot in downtown Toronto with burning police cruisers in the background. You would think that $1.2 BILLION could've bought some fire extinguishers.

MORE TO FOLLOW

C&C Presents: a list of things you will not be able to do in Toronto this weekend

As the G20 Summit gets set to rock Toronto this weekend, make no mistake: this is not TIFF or the Virgin Music Festival. Toronto will literally be ground to a halt as 20* of the most important people in the world flood the city.

Here are just some of things you will not be able to do in the city this weekend:

• The CN Tower: it'll be closed to the public but the elaborate lighting effect system that was added a few years ago will be used to display the flags of visiting nations. Wonder how much that'll cost? Expect rolling blackouts as visiting delegates snap a salute to their 553-meter flag.

• The Rogers Centre: closed too, but we can hypothesize that should city jails become overcrowded, Rogers will be quick to offer up their massive containment facility. Katrina, anyone?

• See a show: all Mirvish theatres will be curtained for the entire week, and many others will be dark this weekend. Not such a downer, since the streets of Toronto will likely be dramatic enough for any critic's tastes.

• The Art Gallery of Ontario: closed for the weekend. However, thanks to protesters, the AGO will be presenting a selection of defaced public spaces when they reopen with a new collection entitled "Fenced Out."

• A club: Yeah, Richmond will be closed off this weekend, so anyone looking to let lose in the Entertainment District will have to settle for Guvernment, Queen West, College West, or if you're feeling really adventurous, Dundas & Sherbourne. There aren't any clubs there - just a lot of crack and guns.

• Go to work: if you are one of the thousands who work in the King & Bay towers, stay home. The Financial District will grind to a halt this week - ironic, considering the G20 Summit is all about finance and economics. Oh well, Canada's economy is doing better than most.

• Second City: it lies within the security perimeter "Red Zone" as it is being called, so there will be no laughs in Toronto this weekend. But hey, I hear that Karate Kid movie is good.

• Drive around: as if Toronto couldn't get any worse for motorists. Well, it will this weekend so DON'T DRIVE!

• Travel: since all the world leaders are expected to arrive and depart through Pearson International, the airport is expected to be a zoo. Union Station is also closed, with some GO and Via trains rerouted to Oakville - but not all. The TTC expects intermittent delays along all lines above and below ground, the PATH system will be closed, and as already mentioned, driving is out.

• Walk about freely: with thousands of cops on the streets, expect random bag checks, security check points, street closures, snipers, helicopters, and those are in the safe areas. If you happen to find yourself in the midst of a protest, expect sound and water cannons, riot police, tear gas, pepper spray, rubber bullets, and Tazers. Careful, RCMP, you don't need another one...

That's just a short list of some of the things you will not be able to do. I should also mention if you are looking to catch a glipmse of your favorite celebrity world leader, you will be out of luck. Thanks to the 3-meter high security fence, you won't be able to see a thing. I guess we'll all just have to rely on the fair and impartial media to provide us with the details of these G20 meetings.

Oh God, it's going to be a long week.

*CORRECTION: Although the G20's name would suggest twenty major leaders, there are in fact 25 nations (including six guest nations not typically part of G20 events), 2 regional organizations (the European Council and the European Comission), and seven international organizations participating in this summit. For a detailed list of participants, click here.

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The Great Fake Lake was unvieled today at the Direct Energy Centre at Exhibition Place. The lake, with a price tag of $57,000, is part of the $1.9 MILLION Experience Canada tourism pavillion in the G20 media centre. The outrageous cost of the media centre, and specifically the fake lake, became a contentious issue in the House of Commons in past several weeks. The lake itself became the icon of the controversial $1.2 BILLION cost of the G20 Summit.

Full story here.

Daily Quote

"Sprayed with reflective paint, this barrier shimmers in the sun, making it impossible to take pictures of things on the other side. On the elevator a colleague and I were discussing the fact that it was impossible to shoot through. I felt compelled to explain to the other passengers that I meant "shoot" as in video camera. Though I suspect these metal fences would do a good job of deflecting bullets as well."

- Don Pittis, CBC News reporter
Describing the G20 security fence that now surrounds the Canadian Broadcasting Centre (headquarters of the CBC).

Read the full article here.

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A city worker puts the finishing touches on the three-meter high security wall surrounding the Metro Toronto Convention Centre in preparation for the G20 Summit this weekend (June 26-27). The wall is just one of the more visible signs of the intense security being put in place in Toronto, which includes thousands of uniform and plain-clothes offices, snipers, traffic diversion, a sound cannon, and now a water cannon.

Daily Quote

"Even the French are saying the costs of the summits are getting out of control, and France knows something about extravagance, Mr. Speaker."

- Michael Ignatieff, Liberal Leader
Today in the House of Commons during question period speaking about the $1.2 BILLION cost of the upcoming G8/G20 summits.

Daily Quote

“We have a government here that has to create an artificial lake when Canada has more lakes than just about any other country in the world. It is the taxpayers who are going to end up at the bottom of the fake lake with a fake Muskoka behind them. How can the Prime Minister justify wasting taxpayers’ dollars this way? It is absurd!”

- Jack Layton, New Democratic Party Leader
June 7, 2010 during question period in the House of Commons in response to the Conservative government's plan to build a $2 MILLION artificial lake in the Direct Energy Centre for the upcoming G20 Sumit.

Read the full story here.