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Thousands protest EI reform
Thousands of protestors across the province of Quebec, in Ottawa and in New Brunswick rallied Sunday against the federal government’s changes to employment insurance.
In Montreal, the construction part of the Quebec Federation of Labour, called FTQ Construction, organized the protest, reports CBC News.
They want to show the Harper government that the changes to the employment insurance will negatively impact Canadian families.
Construction union executive director Yves Ouellet says they have to be heard as a united front against the government.
Since the changes came into effect in early January, laid-off seasonal workers have to look further for jobs that pay as little as 70 per cent of their previous hourly wage.
And people looking for work are forced to accept work located within an 100-kilometre radius from their home.
Head of the Quebec Federation of Labour Michel Arsenault says the new rules like so are robbing students of jobs and encouraging people to lie about their work history.
He says the government’s decision to send bureaucrats to people’s homes to check out their unemployment stories is like living under a dictatorship.
Minister of Veterans Affairs Steven Blaney says Canadians are misinformed about the changes to employment insurance.
He says the reform takes work conditions, schedule and commute into account, and even baby-sitting fees.
He also blamed opposition parties in Ottawa for trying to take away opportunities for workers to have access to additional revenues.
Similar protests also took place in Quebec City, Saguenay, Rimouski, Baie-Comeau, and Sept-Iles.
STORY WRITTEN BY: KURT WEISS
Nicole J. Georges Interview February 25th on With Gay Abandon
Tune in to With Gay Abandon on Monday, February 25th at 1-2 pm to hear a live interview with Portland illustrator Nicole J. Georges, while en route to her reading in Montreal on Tuesday, February 26th, at the Concordia Co-op Bookstore.
Julie will get the lowdown about her new book, Calling Dr. Laura, and maybe some answers/advice for CJLO listeners in need of an expert Nicole opinion. Email the burning questions that are keeping you awake at night to withgayabandon@cjlo.com and Julie will ask Nicole on the air!
Unknown Mortal Orchestra - II
I had never really heard Unknown Mortal Orchestra before listening to this album. I joked with some people at the station that it sounded like it should be a name for a metal band but it is far from it - I found this album to be quite boring really.
It’s very chill and I can imagine it being nice to listen to while lying in a park or making dinner perhaps but I went through the entire thing only half paying attention even though it was the only thing I was doing. The sound reminds me of music that was really popular around 2007 while also sounding a bit like Ty Segall.
Most songs are characterized by light male falsetto with simple driving percussion and it just seems a bit dated and not in a positive way. It reminded me of some of Of Montreal’s lighter songs but not quite getting the energy that Kevin Barnes puts into his music.
The album is a bit all over the place, with songs progressively getting more effects on them until we come to the instrumental “Monki” which seemed a little out of place. The one song that actually stood out to me was “Faded In The Morning”. This song actually had me paying attention to it because his falsetto took on a rock edge along side a more snappy beat. The song mixes electronic baby laughing with a more old school guitar riff which was strange but I thought worked really well. But then Secret Xtians goes back to the usual recipe and I was glad that the album was over.
FINAL MARK : C
Ontario government in hot water
The Ontario government is in trouble, after revealing dozens of documents that it had instead "did not exist," concerning cancelled gas plants.
According to CBC, the Liberals released numerous documents in September, telling the legislature that all the documents had been released, however, an additional 20 000 pages were found a month later.
The latest batch of documents, as reported by the Canadian Press, adds about 600 more pages.
Ontario Power Plant Executives spoke to the media Thursday afternoon to try to explain the unaccounted documents.
Chair of the O.P.A's board of directors, Jim Hinds, said that the OPA had failed to search for the documents under "certain project code words" during the search last fall. Adding that their business is producing electricity, not producing documents.
Progressive Conservative Leader, Tim Hudak, expressed disappointment in the Liberals for using, what he called, such kind of trick. NDP MP, Andrea Horwath, questioned Kathleen Wynne on when she had realized more documents existed.
Wynne replied saying the energy minister had told her on Wednesday, and that it was unfortunate that not all the documents had been released before.
The cancelled gas plant controversy has been dogging the Liberals for months.
STORY WRITTEN BY: CATLIN SPENCER
CJLO News - February 22 2013
Hosted by: Saturn Los Angeles
Stories by: Carlo Spiridigliozzi, Alyssa Tremblay & Catlin Spencer
Produced by: Catlin Spencer
Court rules search warrants needed for private cellphones of convicts
Password-protecting your cell phone could be a stronger defence against prying eyes than you thought.
Ontario’s Court of Appeal recently ruled that police should obtain a search warrant to look through an arrested person’s cell phone upon – but only if the phone is password protected or locked.
However unlocked cell phones are fair game, according to the courts.
The ruling was released Wednesday in response to an appeal from a man arrested and convicted for robbing a jewellery stall in Toronto in 2009.
According to The Canadian Press, Kevin Fearon appealed his conviction because police searched his cell phone and found pictures and texts linking him to the crime.
Rules already exist preventing police from examining someone’s personal computer without a search warrant.
Flickr Photo by: a. drain
STORY WRITTEN BY: ALYSSA TREMBLAY
Language watchdog backtracks on Buonanotte menu
Pasta will remain pasta and not “pâtes alimentaires.”
According to the Gazette, Quebec’s language watchdog has done a one-eighty and has backtracked on its attempt to change the menu at Montreal’s Buonanotte restaurant
An OQLF inspector provided a report on Wednesday urging the removal of names on the resto’s menu such as, pasta, carne, antipasti and pesce and replacing them with their French equivalent.
The descriptions of the dishes on the menu are provided in French.
The change of heart by the OQLF came about, after news of the decision sparked uproar on social media. It also brought about the hastag pastagate on Twitter and an anonymous at Quebec Pasta Twitter account.
The controversy made headlines as far away as the home of pasta, appearing on the website of the famous Italian daily Corriere della sera.
Flickr Photo by: wEnDaLicious
Greek unions march to the streets; social unrest looming
In Greece, more than 60-thousand people took to the streets to protest against the continuing austerity policies the government is making to pay its bills.
Al Jazeera reports that the protesters went on a 24-hour strike on Wednesday.
They represent Greece's two biggest labour unions and account for that country's 2-point-5 million workers.
The protesters marched to parliament beating drums, blowing whistles and calling the politicians robbers.
Riot police fired tear gas at protesters composed of mostly students and pensioners. They were hurling rocks and bottles back.
The protest ended peacefully.
They accuse the Greek government of Prime Minister Antonis Samaras of making deep cuts to wages and pensions; while doing almost nothing to chase rich tax evaders.
Greece's unemployment is 27 percent - where more than 60 percent of young workers are jobless.
The country owes the European Union and International Monetary Fund over 200 billion euros.
Opposition leader Alexis Tsipras says people who thought the government would renegotiate the bailout terms are now faced with the harsh reality of unpaid bills, closed shops and lost jobs.
Alco pollsters head Costas Panagopoulos says if expectations of paying the bills are not satisfied by the summer, whatever is left of the working class will respond with more protests.
Insurance broker and single mother Niki Lambopoulou told Al Jazeera that the government needs to look out for the poor people.
She adds that the government is killing her children's dreams
Secretary general Ilias Iliopoulos of the ADEDY public sector workers union says that a social explosion is very near.
Flickr Photo by: xamogelo
STORY WRITTEN BY: SATURN DE LOS ANGELES
CJLO News - February 21 2013
Hosted by: Catlin Spencer
Stories by: Alyssa Tremblay, Aisha Samu, Chloe Deneumoustier & Saturn De Los Angeles
Produced by: Catlin Spencer
Home prices continue to drop
The prices of homes in Canada have declined for the fifth straight month this January according to the Teranet-National Bank House Price Index.
The Index covers 11 Canadian cities and noted a 0.3 per cent decline reports the CBC.
Four of the 11 cities however, saw an increase in prices from December.
Victoria, Halifax, Quebec City and Ottawa’s prices rose from 2012 but it is still the lowest annual growth rate since late 2009.
The cooling down of the housing market shows a growth in the country’s economy said Bank of Canada governor Mark Carney
Carney believes the trend shows Canadian markets are moving away from borrowing towards relying on exports.
Analysts anticipate further drops in home prices and sales for the future.
Flickr Photo by: Nick Bastian Tempe, AZ
STORY WRITTEN BY: CHLOE DENEUMOUSTIER
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