By Jason Menard
Amidst the lament of shopkeeps in the downtown area and discussions of empty seats at early events, some are question what the World Figure Skating Championships mean to London, Ontario.
The simple answer? Potential. Hope. A future.
And, most importantly, opportunity — to both build upon the foundation set by successfully staging a global event and to learn from our mistakes. Continue reading
By Jason Menard
You’re almost there, Gary. Winnipeg’s back, Quebec City may be on its way, and the National Hockey League’s realignment of teams into (relatively sensible) geographic regions has earned the league much praise. But one cosmetic change could make this realignment a historic success.
And that’s by embracing the league’s history. Continue reading
By Jason Menard
He said it to us in confidence — a half-whispered commiseration designed to contextualize our sadness. “If we knew how this day would feel,” he said. “Nobody would ever have a pet.”
These words were uttered by our vet as we found ourselves in tears awaiting the end of our cat Chloe’s suffering. It was a gentle sentiment, but one that’s not exactly correct.
It’s a half truth, and I’ll get to the other half by sharing our story. Continue reading
By Jay Menard
Name-calling, questioning people’s intellectual capabilities, mocking, snide supercilious comments, mean-spirited personal attacks? It’s somewhat sad that the very behaviour that we discourage amongst our children has become the culture of choice for on-line discourse in London, ON.
I learned very early on that you don’t have to like someone and you don’t have to agree with them. But you have to be respectful of everyone and their perspective. And, most importantly, you have to value their efforts and ideas.
Sadly, it’s a lesson lost on many of those who purport to work for a better London, Ontario. Continue reading
By Jason Menard,
Some may say he’s a political lightweight. Some may say he’s nothing more than great hair and a winning grin. Some may say he’s all style over substance.
And some may say that Justin Trudeau is exactly what the Liberal Party of Canada needs. Continue reading
The M-Dash by Jason Menard 