While Ontario continues to be on fire, Doug Ford spent much of the weekend walking back his ridiculous pronouncements on Friday, re-opening parks and playgrounds, followed by walking back the increased police powers (which was not helped by the fact that most police forces declared publicly that they would not use them – though stories of arbitrary accosting of people of colour did resonate over social media. This was then followed by news that Ford plans to shutter the legislature this week – apparently it’s the one workplace he doesn’t consider “essential” – while there is also talk about a Cabinet shuffle, because gods know this band of murderclowns needs to rearrange the deckchairs on their own personal Titanic one more time. (Speculation here is also that he is facing a very restive caucus, and closing Queen’s Park would make it easier to avoid them). And then, to make it look like he was doing something, Ford engaged in some performance art to phone up consulates and try to secure vaccines from international allies, as though they wouldn’t all laugh in his face. But he’s committed to the narrative that all he needs is more doses to vaccinate his way out of the burning building rather than doing the public health measures he needs to in order to stop the spread of the virus.
Performance art.
Pure performance art. https://t.co/0amlPcNk8x— Dale Smith (@journo_dale) April 18, 2021
FTR, India is currently angry at the US for blocking exports of vaccine ingredients, while also preventing vaccines originally intended for LMICs from leaving India, because their covid numbers are skyrocketing
— Lauren Dobson-Hughes (@ldobsonhughes) April 18, 2021
Meanwhile, prime minister Justin Trudeau announced some additional help for Ontario, some of which will wind up bypassing the provincial government and go directly to municipalities and businesses with things like additional testing and tracing capacity. Even these measures, however, are little more than damage control because they can’t do the things that need to happen, like stopping the spread in industrial workplaces, because they don’t have the requisite jurisdictional authority.
The prime minister announces additional measures for Ontario. It sounds like they will be bypassing the province and going to municipalities and businesses in some cases. pic.twitter.com/MghJ8p8Bik
— Dale Smith (@journo_dale) April 18, 2021
As for the doctors in this province, they’re at a breaking point. Thank the murderclowns for that.
For those who missed it live, here’s Dr Juni’s comments from today’s CBC Radio Ontario call-in program with @CBCdsouza pic.twitter.com/CuhiebrYxh
— James Wattie (@jameswattie) April 17, 2021