New resolve
illustration by Maria Rondon
A few suggested New Year’s resolutions
EVERY JANUARY, PEOPLE all over the world set resolutions for themselves in the new year, which, inevitably, they break. However, the spirit of them is still good—to let the changing of the calendar equate to a blank slate and act as a chance to correct past mistakes. So with that in mind, here are a few suggested resolutions for a number of people in 2010.
Prime Minister Stephen Harper:
To work through your problems, rather than skip town and hope everyone forgets about them. Okay, Mr. Harper, you’re already facing an uphill battle here, because you’ve already technically broken this one. But since that did occur in late December, I’ll give you a pass and let you try this one out in 2010. The fact is, Canadians are getting sick of you pulling stunts like proroguing Parliament just as, coincidentally, a minor scandal over detainees in the Afghan war was brewing—one only needs to look to Facebook for proof of this. This year, I want to see you come together and try to work with the rest of Parliament, and put a stop to the ceaseless, petty bickering. Don’t let me down, Prime Minister.
Gee-Gees men’s basketball:
To defeat those accursed Ravens for a change. For the past three years or so, I have followed the U of O men’s basketball team pretty closely, mostly in my capacity as a journalist here at the Fulcrum. That doesn’t mean that I’m not also a fan, though, and I see an unfortunate pattern is starting to emerge with the Gees: great seasons that are capped by defeats at the hands of the Carleton Ravens. Yeah, I get it: the Ravens are perennially and deservedly one of the best teams in Canada, but it would be great to turn things around and sock it to ‘em for a change. The Gees haven’t won the annual Capital Hoops Classic since the inaugural event back in 2007 (and haven’t beaten the Ravens in any other games since, as a matter of fact), and I would love nothing more than to see Ottawa even the score. Make 2010 the year you show Carleton who’s boss.
The City of Ottawa:
To stick with things that you’ve started. Flashback: 2006! Ottawa was in the midst of a municipal election, one that eventually saw Larry O’Brien emerge triumphant as mayor after a campaign that had two cornerstones: one, freezing property taxes, and two, cancelling a nearly $800-million light rail project. While the first promise gradually slipped away as it became unworkable, the second was swiftly carried out and Ottawa’s light rail plans were scrapped. While the plan was certainly far from perfect, its cancellation led to a lawsuit and years upon years of delay with regards to building rail transit in Ottawa. Now, with another election coming up this year, it’s time for the people and politicians of Ottawa to learn from the past. So to City Council and mayoral hopefuls, keep this in mind as you prepare your platforms: both Lansdowne Park and the new Ottawa transit tunnel have undergone extensive planning in the past couple of years, and cancelling either will undoubtedly lead to more delays, more lost money, and more unfortunately unfinished projects. Don’t let Ottawa become a national laughingstock.
People of the world:
To rediscover the joy of reading a newspaper. Yes, yes, this is entirely self-serving; I’m aware of that. But part of the idea of New Year’s resolutions is to set lofty goals, and I think it’s about time we tried to relearn the value of newspapers. It’s true that, in the Internet age, the news can be found nearly instantaneously online; but in my experience, it doesn’t compare to a physical newspaper. For example when you browse the website of the Ottawa Citizen, all you see are the headlines and if they don’t grab you, there’s nothing to compel you to read the story. But when you flip through a newspaper, all the stories are laid out in front of you, making it hard to avoid reading most of them and giving you a better feel for everything that’s going on. Plus, nothing beats sitting down with a hot cup of coffee and a crisp, new paper—I speak from experience here. So, next time you’re looking to kill some time, find a newspaper, sit down, and read. You may be pleasantly surprised. (Oh, and for the record, Metro and 24 Hours don’t count.)
