Noteworthy: Fast workers, wedding gifts and John John

By Medicine Hat News on December 9, 2017.

Seeing the construction of the Tim Hortons, 7-Eleven, Petro Canada gas bar/car wash at the Strachan Road/Dunmore Road corner was almost like watching a sped-up video. Those construction workers must have been on 24-7 schedules É It has been an apologetic-filled couple of months for Justin Trudeau and his government. First, to Indigenous Canadians in Newfoundland and Labrador for the government’s role in establishment of residential schools that led to abuses and losses of native culture. Next, to LGBTQ Canadians whose lifestyles caused them federal government and military job losses, discrimination, and social shame. É Trudeau is not alone in these apologies. Brian Mulroney apologized to Japanese Canadians in 1988 for their Second World War internment in Canada and Stephen Harper apologized in 2006 for the head tax the government imposed on Chinese immigrants for nearly 40 years in the late 1880s and early 20th Century ÉWhich brings us to an online cartoon I saw the other day, with a woman saying to her husband “Is there anyone Trudeau hasn’t apologized to?’ And the husband says ‘Yes, Albertans.’ The sins of the father (see NEP) are never forgotten in Western Canada. … There should be some jurisdictional method in the U.S. for somebody to come along and just take the keys to the White House away from Donald Trump. “You’ve conducted yourself like an idiot for too long. The world is laughing at us and it’s time for you to go. Sorry Donald.” É Is there any male in Hollywood who hasn’t committed a form of sexual assault? É It’s sort of lame for a newspaper guy to complain about the closing of newspapers, such as what happened in late November when Postmedia and Torstar traded a truckload of newspaper properties and then said nearly 40 of them — primarily small-community weeklies — would be shuttered. But for example, if the Bow Island Commentator were to close down, which media outlet would be left to tell the Bow Island story? YouTube? É Complaint dept: Opening a story on a website, reading partway through the opening paragraph and then getting your ears blitzed with a video ad that took a few seconds to load. É If you’re lucky enough to score an an invitation to the Prince Harry-Meghan Markle wedding, what on Earth do you do about a gift? Cash? No. Gold-plated candle holders? No. A frying pan? Maybe. Meghan seems like the type to be able to whip up a stir fry on a moment’s notice. É Edmonton Oilers seem to be playing with the ‘Oh, let’s just let Connor do it’ approach.É Newspaper headline: Canada’s jobless rate hits lowest since 2008 as hiring spikes. There’s certainly lots to blame Trudeau and his gang for, but I’m assuming his detractors will find something nice to say about him for those job figures. É Bitcoin might be the future of currency but try as I might, I do not understand how it works. Not a bit. My parents said the same thing about computers. I have only two things to say: Talk slowly while explaining to me how bitcoin works, and get off my lawn É July 16, 2016: Michael Flynn, the retired general who later became national security advisor to the president, starts a “Lock Her Up” chant at a Trump rally directed at Hillary Clinton: Dec. 1, 2017: The same Michael Flynn pleads guilty to lying to the FBI over dealings with Russia. Hillary was not in the courtroom, but you can bet she was silently chanting similar words at her breakfast table. É Every time things start going a little south — workload, unexpected car repairs, a lingering cold, sore muscles, lousy weather — I think back to the five or six friends of mine who passed away during the past 12 months and I don’t feel so bad anymore. É The best stories are the ones about people overcoming adversity, which is why the Tiger Woods yarn is so compelling. É Good for the IOC to ban the Russians from the 2018 Winter Olympics as a penalty for doping violations. Wonder if the IOC has any jurisdiction for doing something about a country interfering in another country’s electoral process? …Three things you’ll rarely see in Canada: A Sasquatch in a remote forest; a 30-mile stretch with no Tim Hortons restaurant; a smile on the face of Ottawa curler Rachel Homan. É Don’t forget that if you’re going to be alone on Christmas Day, the local Kiwanis Club wants to brighten up your Dec. 25 with a noon-hour meal and entertainment at Higdon Hall’s Wild Rose Room. But organizers want you to pre-register, so pick up an application form at various seniors’ homes, the Co-op mall, the food bank and a number of other places. Volunteer extraordinaire John John is the man to contact if you need further informationÉ We’ve been fortunate this week to attend the Olympic curling trials in Ottawa and on Wednesday, thanks to MP Glen Motz and his staff, Barb and I attended Question Period and then got a tour of the Parliament Buildings. In the morning, we watched curlers throwing rocks; in the afternoon, we saw politicians throwing stones.

Bruce Penton is assistant managing editor of the Medicine Hat News. He may be reached at bpenton@medicinehatnews.com