The Vancouver Sun has always been a right wing voice, but lately it's been ordered to "be more right wing". We've seen them pushing the boundaries of how far you can go making a case for anti-immigration and racism in polite conversation. If they continue this way, the Vancouver Sun will complete it's transformation into a mini-National Post unless we show them locals won't tolerate this kind of garbage.

The streets of Hong Kong are unrecognizable. Tear gas, police batons, pepper spray, intimidation and torture -- these are only some of the brutalities faced by Hong Kong citizens marching in defiance of one of the world’s most powerful dictatorships. In the past few months, I have watched this beautiful city in which I was born and raised, once free and vibrant, -- suffer under the iron grip of China’s continued and increasing encroachment onto Hong Kong’s autonomy. Since the 80s, the Chinese Communist Party has continued to steadily chip away at Hongkongers’ rights and freedoms, and Hong Kong citizens were pushed over the edge when an extradition amendment bill was proposed that would allow the extradition of anyone who is in Hong Kong to China, to be tried under the Chinese judiciary system instead. Their ‘judiciary system’ has a 99% conviction rate, and is infamous for torture, trumped up charges and forced confessions. If passed, this law would effectively end Hong Kong as we know it. And it’s why 2 million people took to the streets in protest. Hong Kong citizens are fighting for the same democratic freedoms that we have here in Canada. They are fighting to protect their civil liberties that we currently hold: the rights to vote, to gather in protest, and to speak out against injustice. But we’re not set apart from the fight on the front lines in Hong Kong. Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor are two Canadians currently being tortured, and detained with bogus charges in China. The protestors in Hong Kong facing police brutality are directly opposing the expansion of tyranny - not just for themselves, but for Kovrig and Spavor too. Their fight should be our fight. Their cause should be our cause. As Canadians, we have the power to speak up - not just for democracy or in defence of human rights - but for the 300,000 Canadians living in Hong Kong, the many Canadians who have business or family ties to Hong Kong, and the millions of Hong Kong-born Canadians living across this country we call true, north, strong and free. Let us uphold those values and not turn a blind eye. Sign the petition now to urge Minister Chrystia Freeland to impose sanctions on HK and Beijing government officials who have severely violated our human rights laws. --- more info below--- This encroachment on Hong Kong is a direct violation of the “one country, two systems” agreement established in the 80s -- when the Chinese Communist Party agreed to a high degree of autonomy for Hong Kong. They promised Hong Kong citizens their own legal, social and financial systems until 2047, including universal suffrage for all citizens. I knew this promise was hollow even back then, so I left Hong Kong to ensure my own safety and freedom. And to my dismay, I was right: in 1989, the brutal massacre in Tiananmen Square saw the murder of thousands of peaceful protesters. This terrible blight on our history spurred a massive wave of immigration of horrified and disillusioned Hongkongers to Canada. Today, while I fear for Hong Kong citizens’ safety -- I feel incredibly proud as I stand in spirit with the millions of Hongkongers who are undeterred as they march for democracy and freedom. And there is something we can do: the Justice for Victims of Corrupt Foreign Officials Act (Sergei Magnitsky Law) allows Canada to sanction, impose travel bans and hold accountable foreign nationals who are responsible for gross human rights violations and significant corruption. This law exists specifically for situations such as these - to hold rogue foreign government officials to account. Please join me in calling on our government to apply sanctions to those government officials and entrepreneurs, in both Hong Kong and China, who have participated in or are complicit in violating Hong Kong citizens’ human rights with our Justice for Victims of Corrupt Foreign Officials Act. *** UPDATE *** On Sept. 4th, after months of protests and increasing international pressure, HK’s Chief Executive Carrie Lam announced that she would withdraw the Extradition Amendment Bill - but refused to establish an independent public inquiry to investigate police brutality. This is not enough. We must sanction the government officials who condoned gross human rights violations in Hong Kong. Hong Kong and Beijing government officials have allowed the police brutality on the streets of Hong Kong: There is horrific video evidence of officers entering train cabins at busy subway stations and attacking passengers with tear gas and batons. There are rumours of torture and sexual assaults of protesters in Hong Kong’s detention centres. Sign the petition to sanction the government officials implicit in these horrors.

The Amazon Rainforest stands to make "a significant contribution to pulling carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere. Coe [Earth Systems Scientist] likens it not to a pair of lungs, but to a giant air conditioner that cools the planet—one of our most powerful in mitigating climate change, alongside other tropical forests in central Africa and Asia—some of which are also currently burning" (for a more accurate look at the role of the Amazon: https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/2019/08/why-amazon-doesnt-produce-20-percent-worlds-oxygen/). Its loss, together with our lack of political will to stop carbon emissions and the absence of means to capture carbon effectively are posing a severe threat to people worldwide. Importantly, about one million Indigenous people live in the Amazon. It is also home to three million species of plants and animals (https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-49433437). These fires are material and deadly. And their frequency is spurred by Bolsonaro's policies, which have accelerated deforestation, up 88% (https://globalnews.ca/news/5794191/amazon-rainforest-fire-explained/), due to farming, logging, and drilling. "The National Institute for Space Research (INPE) has recorded more than 74,000 fires so far this year [in the Amazon] – an 84 per cent increase on the same period in 2018. It’s the highest number since records began in 2013." (https://globalnews.ca/news/5794191/amazon-rainforest-fire-explained/). Take a deep breath and imagine smoke filling your lungs on a darkened afternoon, just as residents of São Paulo did at 3 p.m. Monday, August 19.

As a result of these cuts, several teachers across the board will lose their jobs. This will create a bigger discrepancy in the student to teacher ratio and fewer classes overall. Students in Mississauga have already noticed fewer course options and electives being cut (Chen). Thus, the courses students are interested in will be eliminated, preventing them from exploring a variety of interests. This will make it harder for them to gain the knowledge and skills they need to be successful. Furthermore, Diane Dewing, the president of the Ontario Teachers’ Federation, is worried about how school boards will explain certain courses moving forward (Chen). “We fear that art classes, which often have small numbers of students, will disappear because there simply won’t be the funding to have that teacher”(Dewing). Forcing teachers to take on a huge number of students whether in the classroom or via e-learning will also decrease the quality of education students are receiving. Not only does it reduce individual support for students, but also reduces the engagement of students in their classes. At a time where mental health issues are skyrocketing among young people and being acknowledged, these cuts will make it even more difficult to support these students (Durkacz). As a student myself with a post-secondary pathway in mind to eventually work in education. Being able to find a job is now a huge concern. Since it presents me with an uncertainty of whether or not I'll be able to find a stable job. This isn't only a problem that applies to me but is a problem for many young well-qualified teachers. So many educators have been waiting after many years of occasional work to get a permanent job, "only to see their hope turn to despair" (Durkacz). The purpose of improvements to the education system should be to improve the well-being and learning of Ontarians instead of doing the opposite, hurting them. If you care about the education for the youth of today, tomorrow, and the future. What are you waiting for? Sign our petition now!

• Noise pollution generated by air traffic has increased significantly above major Canadian cities ; • The quality of life and health of citizens are greatly impaired by low-level flying aircrafts; • Scientific evidence shows that noise pollution generated by aircrafts brings serious health concerns and has effects notably on heart health; • The inaction of Canadian airport authorities and their refusal to implement concrete solutions to minimize the nuisance caused by aircraft flyovers is obvious.

Quite simply, the issues faced that are at a crisis point have been overlooked and ignored by the mainstream, corporate juggernaut; need the people without cynicism and broken,disillusioned hope that what we say is what we'll do...they are ready; look around the world, Quebec, Friday protests, use of social media...it needs to happen now

So we can have life on planet earth

Why is this important? The Project Promotes The Following Benefits to Our Society: + Green Technology. + Jobs. + Clean Environment and ecologically clean world. + Fair Economy. + Strong Democracy.

North Vancouver became the first municipality to mandate that all gas pumps must display stickers to warn consumers that burning fossil fuels causes climate change. Now that Premier Ford is mandating anti-carbon tax stickers across Ontario without including information about the costly effects of climate change, municipalities must step up to ensure consumers are aware of the negative environment effects and economic consequences of climate change. For more on North Vancouver's campaign, see: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/north-vancouver-climate-change-stickers-gas-pumps-1.3323621?fbclid=IwAR2MS_mGrfz2SYtB60OLZZrkKXSOqZ-CxF0FpHiXbBndMWufyO0z_4y4yOk

The newly proposed anti-carbon tax stickers that Premier Ford is requiring all gas stations to display at the pump is a waste of tax payers' money. Ford campaigned on a clear mandate to save Ontarians money and this demonstrates he is not keeping his promises. Furthermore, the stickers are clearly being used as a marketing ploy for conservatives as they fail to mention the Federal government's rebate, which is expected to exceed the amount that a majority of households will spend on the carbon tax. It also fails to mention the environmental and economic consequences of climate change. In forcing businesses to display partisan information, this is a clear overreach of government power.

Just from my own experience I felt like I was going to die from my brain being so used to taking 2 pills every 4 hours along with 1 diazepam every 6 hours for panic attacks and sleeping medication at night so the pain would not wake me up every four hours from the back pain that I suffer from.Then he had his prescribing privilege taken away and I was forced by Him to quit taking all my pain and nerve medications cold turkey and I speak from experience Your brain does get used to taking these medications and if and when your suddenly forced to stop taking these prescriptions all of a sudden people will get deathly sick some having strokes and heart attacks through no fault of their own but from the Ford Conservative Provincial Party closing or limiting the amount of times that Pain Patients can access this Strictly Monitored Pain Care Clinic in St.Catharines ,Ontario. So if these Pain Care Clinics. are closed there will be some patients forced to buy these drugs or stronger ones (morphine) ( heroine) (fenthenayl) on the Street which will lead to many more people overdosing on illegal street drugs and not from their own fault but from the closing of the Pain Care Clinics where the Physicians closely monitor Their Patients all the time .This will ultimately cost the Ford Government more money to treat the overdoses that do not perish. So for the treatment of Patients Pain these clinic have become a last resort for the safe treatment of their Pain. I know it has been for me!!!

Although we understand that the previous model of OSAP may have been unsustainable in terms of funding, we ask that you consider some changes to the new model released, specifically Under the calculator currently on your website, low income students are receiving almost half of what they would have received in the previous model. These are families who need this funding in order to make post-secondary education a reality for them. Making even the smallest increases to these values can make their lives easier. Education is a fundamental human right, and individuals should not be denied it based on their income. For new graduates, any grace period means the opportunity to break into the workforce and gain experience without loans looming over their heads. In today's society, work experience is essential, and any grace period would make those opportunities feasible.