What a week. What a heat wave.
It seems to be the only thing people were talking about, probably because it was impossible to avoid.
For some it's real joy -- they love it -- they spend January snowstorms dreaming of weeks like this.
But for others, particularly the elderly without air conditioning, it can be a frightening time.
We had a ride-along with Urgences Sante this week, and did they have their hands full.
The ambulance service reported a huge spike in calls, and our hats go off to the paramedics who worked so hard to help so many people.
So I wonder what on earth took the city of Montreal so long to open its cooling centres and to extend the hours of its pools. They announced it on Wednesday: day three of the heat wave.
Toronto took emergency measures on day one.
Officials in Montreal can read a forecast as well as anyone, so why couldn't Montreal react in the "heat of the moment?"
CSIS head should be thanked
Politicians can be so sanctimonious.
Some of them are demanding the resignation of Canada's spymaster Richard Fadden. (I think he hurt their feelings.)
I think we should thank Mr. Fadden.
He accomplished exactly what he set out to do in talking about the influence foreign governments have on Canadian soil and with some Canadian politicians.
Canadians are now talking about foreign infiltration -- yes, we do have spies under our beds.
It really would come as no surprise that perhaps some Canadian politicians have fallen under their influence.
If you don't think politicians can be bought, I have some Bre-X shares you might be interested in.
Consider this: it is estimated by CSIS that foreign intelligence operations cost Canada over $12 billion a year.
We have world-class research here, in aerospace, biotechnology, communications, information technology, and other fields.
Some countries are eager to have it for themselves, on the cheap.
This means we lose our competitive edge, and ultimately jobs and national security are at stake, While the United States and other countries have sent hundreds of cases involving spying to trial in the last two decades, Canada has not prosecuted a single one.
Case in point: one of Canada's real achievements has been the Blackberry, developed by Research in Motion in Waterloo. It is world-class technology.
Do you think it's a coincidence that a few years ago, China unveiled its own version called the Redberry?
I wonder where they got the idea and the technology.
I for one would like to hear more from Mr. Fadden. And I hope he does name names to the proper authorities.
The threats are real.
Our politicians and the granola crowd sometimes live in Wonderland, oblivious to the threat that the red queen means business.
Mr. Fadden did us a service. We should praise him and not bury him.
