mississaugasnow

That meme is almost one of the worst out there. We're really going to compare traveling to Europe to fight Nazis that have conquered most of Europe and North Africa to being nervous of Covid? Being lock downed for most of us is challenging but lets not compare going to War to liberate Europe as the same thing as risking my health to go to a shitty mid level manager job in a random 3 story suburban office.

While I agree that currently this isn't the Spanish flu and unlikely to reach that magnitude. What I am positive about is when not if another Spanish flu scenario happens there will still be large parts of the population that will say "meh, I need that gym pump so ill roll the dice" or the guy saying masks won't save us ect..

Having this debate with a few friends. The Ontario government has restricted in the big cities things like restaurants, gyms, museums, weddings etc.. A lot of the industry has taken to social media saying its not their fault its schools, construction, ect.. If Ontario kept them open but said okay the fine for not adhering to the rules will now be a 500K fine and closure for 1 month. Do you think they would be happy since apparently they are all following the rules, or do you think they would balk at it and say no way. Generally curious in what peoples opinions are. I personally think the businesses would freak out and balk but that's just me, some friends said the businesses would gladly take that deal. I also want to point out that were not communists up here that drive box cars and listen to whatever the government says haha. Ontario citizens are starting to debate and "break" the covid laws like what's happening in the US. (not the crazy right wing stuff, that wouldn't fly here haha) https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/hamilton/hamilton-police-ancaster-parking-lot-car-show-1.5731583

The concerning trend is the spillover into rural southern Ontario. Ford looked a bit shaky and emotional today which doesn't make me feel great lol. I hope im wrong but I almost feel like the train is moving too fast to stop now and he knows it.

CBC has learned that the new daily cases for Ontario will be between 900-1000K in the last 24 hours. The province has scheduled an emergency meeting for 11:30am to see what can be done Yesterday was the most ever recorded at 797

As a Canadian it does get a bit tiring hearing conservatives say "move to Canada" and liberals say "im moving to Canada" I get that its mostly used as a talking point but as Stebo pointed out we actually control our border and immigration and no just showing up to the Canadian border saying you want to live here doesn't work. A guy I work with is from Louisiana and he married a Canadian and still had boatloads of paper work to do and money spent to accomplish it. Also Ottawa doesn't run the entire country. British Columbia and Alberta are about as politically similar as Alabama and California. We literally have 1 province Quebec who had a referendum to leave Canada in the mid 1990s. If Ottawa ruled with an iron first as the guy from SC makes it sound like, I doubt Quebec would be given that choice. End Rant haha

I think sometimes that we believe too much in individuals using common sense. I live in the GTA which is experiencing a situation going out of control, but currently working in rural Ontario. This past week I was at dinner and this guy with his elderly father and family started saying he's not wearing a mask and had a temper tantrum because they live in a non hot spot so why follow city rules. That type of attitude is why we won't be able to get a handle on this. Right beside his temper tantrum was a table of 6 guys from Toronto (hot spot) so who cares that he's in a non hot spot.

The economic reasons for not doing a shutdown are interesting and understandable. However, staying open doesn't mean businesses won't struggle which I think gets lost in the messaging. The seasonal company I work at just had to shut down an entire division for 5 days because of covid. We were operating with covid rules in place but now we've cracked open the emergency plans. This will slow down productivity even more and obviously increases costs but if we didn't have any measures in place the entire company could have been at risk of being shut down for days instead of just one division. All summer Ontario and most of Canada looked across the border with confusion. Now the rest of Canada is also looking at Ontario with confusion as we've shown no appetite to slow down the virus. Quebec was with us for the most part, but as someone mentioned earlier they've peeled away and have done a limited lock down now of the two biggest cities in the province, leaving Ontario to continue down this road alone.

Ontario is going ahead with full in class for grades 1-8 and high school is 50% of the week in class. We have a population of 14.5M and have now had 6 consecutive days below 100 new cases in the entire province. The entire province has seemed to accept the masks and I just came out of the beer store and people had no problem with waiting 10 minutes outside because it was 2 people in the store at a time. I think it all came down to leadership to set the example and our conservative premier (governor equivalent) stressed since early march the severity of this and only had a few hiccups along the way.

Ive actually wondered this myself haha. Yesterday I noticed signs saying you have to pre pay outside for gas if you dont have a mask. 10 people have been ticketed in Brampton already for not wearing the masks. Just like the tickets for the parks earlier in the year, my guess is enough tickets get handed out and people will listen.

lol what? Is this a serious post or sarcasm, I work construction for a living and wait until I tell you about mask wearing when mixing cement/sanding. I guess you might be one of the old vets I stumble upon who laugh at people working in concrete dust with masks on. To them wearing a mask when working in construction isnt proven to help and no one will convince them otherwise. Aside from the fit tests the company makes them get but then right away they take the mask off

Ontario is about to enter stage 3 outside the GTA and Windsor. Indoor restaurants and bars and almost all business can reopen with heavy regulations. This stage is where California, Texas, Florida all fell apart. Ontario is in for a nervous 3-4 weeks to see what happens. Though mask use is mandatory in most of the population centers and not wearing one gets you shunned. One guy tried to walk into the gas station today and they told him to leave and the rest of us with masks were openly making eye contact with him when he came in. Unlikely he does that again as the embarrassment level must have been extreme haha

Ontario has 14.5M people and were now down under 200 a day with 30K a day testing and death rate dropping as well. Looking at States with similar population and the numbers are massive. The historical partnership and historical linkages of how our two countries grew is interesting and were seeing it play it out in trust of government and perceived freedoms. Sault St Marie Ontario and surrounding towns- The government has asked us to shut down and slow the spread so lets close and do our part. The government has asked us to wear masks and we should listen. I was in a Tim Hortons in Northern Ontario recently and they werent messing around with the 5 people in a store at a time. They asked us to wait outside and we did, when we were in and more people came in they asked again and without fighting it they waited outside. Sault St Marie Michigan and surrounding Northern MI- Nope shutdown is dumb, wearing a mask is dumb, the government is trying to crush my small business and if I want to open I will. Not my business though on how you guys want to fight covid on your side of the border. Its just interesting to see an imaginary line we drew in the sand and the corresponding outlooks on society that follow. Edit**** Ontario has also really dropped the ball regarding LTC and the investigations and possible criminal charges coming against some will be interesting. So we are not perfect, far from it.

The border is remaining closed until minimum late June now though it also separates two different reopening plans. Ontario just announced were about 90% open now. All construction, storefront retail, marinas, golf, tennis, indoor/outdoor sport facilities in general (no gyms) Libraries can reopen to pick up/drop off, on and on. Lol even maid service is back for those who can afford it. Essentially just malls, restaurants, gyms and movie theatres remain fully closed.

Thanks for clarifying. Here in Ontario and I would imagine most states there is a disconnect between smaller cities and rural vs bigger cities. The low population of South Carolina might explain some characteristics as Northern Ontario cities are also asking for Ontario to reopen and I imagine they're calling us in the Southern part sissies. Its all relative though because I travel all over Ontario for work and sometimes the Northern Ontario clients come down to Toronto and sweat buckets and talk about how nerve whacking the 18 lane wide 401 is by the airport. They also ask how does anyone get used to driving like that haha. For me thats where I can call them sissies haha

Ive been looking at traffic jams in North America since mid march and I havent seen a change in South Carolinas cities? Though to be fair, I never really looked at Charleston or Columbias traffic before, but at 8:30am today there is zero traffic and it shows all green on the interstates? Is there normally traffic jams in those cities? Atlanta, Houston, Dallas all show relatively easy commutes still even though they are open. The reason im interested is I live in Hamilton and commute to Toronto now that my job is back (4 weeks deemed non-essential construction) and my commute should take 65-90 minutes because its bumper to bumper but right now im doing it in 40 minutes at 7:30am with it feeling like a sunday evening drive.

After a 9 day battle with Corona (test results took days to get back) my grandmother passed away this morning in her long term care home with no one able to visit her in her last days. I know we can debate whether lockdowns are worth it or and whether the elderly would have died in a few years or months regardless of the virus, but at the end of the day shes not here anymore because of this virus.

Ontario is about to lay out its reopening plan. Some rumors have it beginning as early as this weekend or early next week.

Lol, what? Sorry I cant let this go haha The average price of a detached home sold in Toronto last month was $1.04 million, versus $617,658 for condominiums. The average price of a home in Toronto and its suburbs rose 7.1 per cent from a year earlier to $843,637 in November https://business.financialpost.com/real-estate/toronto-housing-prices-extend-gains-amid-tightening-supply Our Cottage Country In Muskoka, we are seeing people in their 50s and 60s cashing out with significant amounts of money, as well as those who are coming into money and want to get out of the rat race,” said Bob Clarke, sales representative, Royal LePage Lakes of Muskoka, in the release. “A 300-foot lot on southern Lake Joe once would be about $1.6 million. Now, if I found one west-facing it would likely be $3.0 million. That puts pressure on 100- and 200-foot lots.” https://www.mymuskokanow.com/90449/cottage-prices-on-the-rise-in-2019-despite-flooding/ I normally wouldnt do this but when I travel the US (especially southern, but also Buffalo) I get asked if Canada is similar to the Soviet Union. I wish I was kidding but your analysis paints a bleak depressing white apartments, limited economic activity and food banks when that isnt true. Also, I must say im jealous that you get to live in South Carolina. Vacationed in Hilton Head a few years ago and enjoyed every minute of it, I hope you have a good weekend and enjoy the nice weather while were getting a late season wet snow.

Yikes, not trying to get very political here but how come immigration is such a hot issue down there but whenever someone praises Canada they get told to move here? How easy do you guys think it is to move here? Sorry, just as a Canadian its tiring to hear people say "Just move to Canada if you like it so much"

That update today ended my construction work. Have to say im relieved as watching those numbers rise and no change to the list was a bit scary. Currently were planning for a 2 week shutdown but expecting it to last all of April.

It sucks, but I want to thank everyone that works in legit essential services. Doctors, nurses, to grocery store employees- gas stations attendants. I might have to deal with a couple individuals on sites but those people are the ones allowing us to have some sense of society during this.

Big jump today in Ontario with 351 new cases. I work in construction and the rumor mill is ablaze right now with when/if we will be shut down. Some companies have suspended operations while others havent, creating scheduling nightmares. The essential services list actually muddied the waters instead of making it clearer. Edit* Ill chime in on Rogue lol, hes clearly reading some website (or twitter) that is stating these as facts and he isnt looking for secondary sources to support any of these claims.

The US is skipping that and giving it to every citizen. The Bill is stuck in the Senate but most indications are most Americans are going to get 1 Thousand. Depending how long it goes for they are almost experimenting on a large scale with Universal Basic Income. Lots of people that haven't lost their jobs have indicated they will donate the money but will be interesting to see. I believe this 1 thousand will be different from EI and other indirect programs they are doing as well. I might be wrong on that though.

I havent heard anything about the $950 either per family for 15 weeks. EI easier to get ive heard and that makes sense since Canada just had 500K file for unemployment. In a weird way the US is more to the left of us politically as no politician in power here has floated the idea of just giving Canadians money. To limit the spread of false information which is running rampant these days. Here is a link to the official Canadian government response as of today. This is subject to change* https://www.canada.ca/en/department-finance/news/2020/03/canadas-covid-19-economic-response-plan-support-for-canadians-and-businesses.html