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Are they NOT removing loose rocks from under the Gardner for the G20?
June 21, 2010 - 10:36am
I was downtown Friday and noticed tons of grapefruit size rocks all along the boulevard on Lakeshore at York.
Are they gonna remove those? They are even under
the trees on the east side of York about 20 metres
from the convention centre and fence.
And I'm not even an expert but I would have removed
those first. I just hope everything goes well but please
remove those rocks.
I think we're ok with a 20 ton elephant sculptures but then the rocks wouldn't get the media attention.
I think the whole reason they are holding it downtown is to get the media attention but I doubt those violent activists will cause any trouble around the MTCC. ..
Thought I would be able to edit the post but sometimes cannot edit.
Here's the other picture of the loose rocks under the Gardner which were there Friday and to me they seem to be dangerous so close to the MTCC. Are they planning on removing them? The Star says they are removing 20 ton elephant sculptures but grapefruit size loose rocks are left behind so close to the convention centre? Doesn't seem wise to me.
And this loose street sign is laying on the ground a block from Allan Gardens where they are holding a lot of the protests and no-one has noticed this? It seems they are missing a lot and I'm no expert.
UPDATE - June 23/2010 - The rocks above have been covered and a fence put up around them, good job but I don't know about the downed street sign.
UPDATE - June 24/2010 - The loose pole on the grass at Carlton/Sherbourne is still there.
Daniel .. Toronto
Daniel2010
It would be hilarious if it weren't so sad. They also yanked up a whole bunch of saplings around the area, claiming that the trees could be pulled out of the ground and used as weapons.
I guess they have to find something for those 5000 police officers to do.
You know, if just one of the tens of thousands of hoodlum "activists" have a pickaxe or even a jackhammer, they will be able to break up the ashphalt on the road for this horde of pinkos to hurl at Toronto/Ontario/Canada's finest. I think. in the interest of safety and security, we should pre-emptively dig up all roads and sidewalks within a 3km radius of the meeting site.
That's what a friend of mine on Facebook was saying about the sidewalk stones. Dig 'em up! Can't have them being used as weapons, after all!
Now that's a good one, ban all cars too in downtown because they could pick one up and throw it. It just keeps getting more bizarre as we head forward. If these activists can cut down a tree and use it as a weapon why wouldn't they just use the axe they cut down the tree with? Why are all these politicians so afraid of the "small people" regular folk?
Daniel .. Toronto
http://bit.ly/Daniel2010
Hey, great photo, Daniel. Love the one of the fence with the CN Tower peeking through.
The security forces made sure reading a newspaper is near impossible over the next week, seems almost every newspaper box in the downtown core has been removed.
I had a real laugh about the cops having the tree saplings removed, tree=weapon apparently.
I've been working on something that let's me pull the clouds out of the sky and hurl them at cops.... better tell the ISU to get rid of those too.
Of course, the smarter thing to do would be to remove all the cops. Then activists would have nothing at whom to hurl rocks/trees/etc.
LOL
Hindsight fail.
As you can see in this last picture they were clearly aiming for the police officer. If he wasn't standing there then they simply wouldn't have thrown stones.
If only that poor cop had a sonic cannon! Surely that would have stopped such egregious damage from taking place! How could the Indian Commission possibly afford to replace that window?
Question: did Toronto have a say in bringing the G20 there? Could Mayor and Toronto City Council have said 'NO!'? Can the federal government override local opposition - if there was any?
So what are protestors - especially the dressed in black, rock throwing ones - protesting exactly? other than some general anti-business, anti-government, anti-society anger.
- how can the average person who spent the day at work and is seeing the highlights on the news relate to the actions of these people other than to say - oh look a bunch of vandals. What's the message that will get the general public on side and in solidarity with the protest?
Bring on the end of western civilization !! isn't probably going to attract all that many. In Canada, Golfer's Digest subscriptions likely dwarf Adbusters subscriptions, so ....
think "Save the Whales" - couldn't be more simple and clear and guess what? - it worked.
SparkyOne,
Ok. just don't tell the cops about my cloud machine PLEASE!
I know the city wanted the meetings held near Exhibition Place and NOT in the downtown core but that was taken out of their hands. The city's idea seemed a hell ofa lot better and would create far fewer traffic nightmares and cost business owners in teh core far less money.
Well if the PIGS don't show up then there will be no violence or destruction. Then you can find humanitarian uses for your cloud gun like giving us shade from the sun!
VGE it should be very obvious what they are protesting, how can you not see it? You need glasses.
I wish someone would destroy my car, it's insured. I'll get my claim back and buy a new car because the insurence company wont try and fuck me over or raise up my monthly bill. My personal effects? Who cares, it's symbolic!
Best of all setting my civic on fire will really send a message to the car companies & banks.
Car dealers would love seeing cars go up in flames
vandalism/destruction may express anger but only benefits the powerful
SparkyOne,
I propose a moratorium for the time being on the snarky back and forth. For the next seven days solidarity is important. i wish you all the best, and I do hope you decide to be out on the streets.
what is the larger purpose of being out on the streets? what will it accomplish?
What is it you want Citizen H? What are the demands? there needs be a clear focus on something people can understand.
End the War - another easy to understand slogan and demand.
What are you protesting - everything and nothing - seriously no one knows.
Between you and I? Deal. And I'm sorry for going after you like I have. I never had a lot growing up. For a while I remember living in a house with a partial dirt floor. In school I remember having my starter jacket stolen from me because someone didn't like the team. I see a lot of this anger as misdirected and pointless. Buring a car might seem like righteous symbolisim (still not sure how) but at the end of the day that car belongs to someone like me, or my mom. You or a struggling student whos working 3 jobs to make ends meat. I'm preaching again sorry! Thank you for throwing out the flag of truce. Lets see what Toronto looks like July 1st.
SparkyOne>
VGE> Canada's treatment of indigenous people's, The g20's aim to further the cause of the global economic elite at the expense of poor and marginalized people the world over, and the militarization of our city as a means of intimidation against those who would speak out in dissent. That's what I'm protesting.
Check out the TCMN website for more info. There are themed days of action all week.
Thanks Citzen H
The first is a good and noble cause but 1000 people protesting for 1000 different causes doesnt't work as well as everyone united with one voice for one cause.
The second is a huge issue and 1st world citizens tend to judge their governments by their own well being and still believe for better or worse that they are trying working in good faith on their behalf. I'm talking about the bourgeois here not leftist activists or students. Are more or less people in poverty on the planet right now than any other time in human history? Does it matter?
Third I agree this is disturbing and crazy expensive - after Seattle and the Quebec City and then 9/11 and 7/7 attacks - governments don't take chances anymore. It's paranoia but it goes back to the negatives of bank burning and the like.
Buring a car might seem like righteous symbolisim (still not sure how) but at the end of the day that car belongs to someone like me, or my mom
But on the other hand, it could belong to Micheal Bryant or Rahim Jaffer.
Think of the lives this might save.
Thanks! But I still don't understand how the feds can run roughshod on a city like this. It's not the same as Trudeau and the War Measures Act, surely?
But I still don't understand how the feds can run roughshod on a city like this.
Because they have the guns to make it so.
It's started already, with one of the first protests for the G20. There were only about 80 people but about 200 officers as they gathered at Allan Gardens and marched to the Children's Aid offices around Yonge/Bloor.
There were no problems but they did occupy an Esso station at Church/Dundas for about 15 minutes without incident. I think this is just the start and wait until the professional protesters get into town from around the world. I just hope they are as peaceful as it was today.
There were even two military helicopers flying over during the protest.
The police are prepared, and they were literally, everywhere.
Daniel .. Toronto
http://bit.ly/Daniel2010
So you are saying 200 hundred officers on behalf of the state protested the right of 80 people to convene a peaceful demonstration? Nice.
BTW, I am sure you will be bringing to light the source of the revenue of the "professional protesters". Receipts idnicating the source of their payments would be good enough for me.
Really, at the end of the day, this idea here is not to suppress rioters obviously, but to intimidate lawful protest and dissent. Nothing will distract the hardcore activist left from making their stand. However, any other kind of protest from other sectors will be intimidated by the prosepect of police violence.
Mission accomplished: Lawful demonstration of protest against the likes of former KGB operative Vladimir Putin has been successfully repressed.
I think this coming week, especially Wed - Saturday - are going to be pure hell for those of us who are working downtown. On my ride home on the subway there were at least 7 police on the subway car. They were all geared up for busting some heads.
Does anyone know if movement is to be restricted downtown around the security area? Call me paranoid but I suspect that the police will be on everyone and anyone who looks even the slightest bit "suspicious". I have really really bad feelings about where this is all going to lead. I suspect Harper picked Toronto because he hates Toronto. No one in their right mind would pick a big city like TO for this event unless they were wishing desperately for something bad to happen. And I am of the belief that something bad is going to happen. I think it will be undercover police, or CSIS goons who will start a massive fight, blame it conveniently on the "violent protesters" and then give people a really good reason for why they should stand behind "greater security and surveillance measures".
I think Harper is not only shrewd but also a sociopath who is dying for a reason and motive to turn TO rightwards. I think he planned the whole thing. The US travel advisory warning also leads me to believe something is being planned by this Con government.
Boom boom - I was wondering the same thing - did Mayor Miller have a say in this at all? Somehow I really really doubt it.
Whistler would have been far smarter and cheaper, since we the majority of the prepatory security system as already in place for the Olympics.