Apology to London’s LGBT Community Must Come From Council
When I first arrived in London (much younger) the Mayor of the day was defending herself and her council at the Ontario Human Rights Tribunal for refusing to declare Gay Pride Weekend in the city. As a gay person who was still in the closet at the time, it certainly made it feel like the city really didn’t want me or–anyone like me–to make London home. Continue Reading
Time to Axe the Vacant Property Tax Rebate
Talking with Ward 14 Councillor Jared Zaifman and 980CFPL host Craig Needles about the recent move by City politicians to eliminate the 30% rebate commercial and industrial landowners get if their properties sit vacant for more than 3 months.
The Election Sign By-Law Must Be Consistent and Fair
You don’t have to love election signs, but they are an important part of our election process. They are a relatively low cost way to let the public know who is running in their area, and especially important for those running against an established incumbent. Continue Reading
Talking Tourism Goals for London
On October 25th, I had the chance for the third time this year to sit down with the chief of Tourism London, John Winston. The impact of tourism on our local economy is really underestimated by most London residents, but it is huge.
Oct 18th AM980 Roundtable: Councillor Jared Zaifman & Shawn Lewis
AM980’s Craig Needles talks with Shawn Lewis & Councillor Jared Zaifman about the passing of the Tragically Hip’s Gord Downie, and also Council’s latest…the possibility an International Plowing Match in London and should we really want one?
Why All Londoners Should Stand with Striking Cami Workers
The reality is the economic under pinnings of London have been allowed to slowly rot away over the 20 years I’ve called this city home.
First the internet’s digital revolution came for the white collar jobs, as the insurance and financial sectors downsized dramatically.
Then automation started coming for the blue collar manufacturing jobs, that so many in the community looked down on as unimportant. And it wasn’t just the auto sector, places like Phillips lighting, where I once worked disappeared too.
And throughout, corporate greed, empowered by so called free trade agreements, and the hollowing out of worker’s rights by provincial governments, made even good paying jobs more precarious.
So in the face of that, it’s more important than ever that when our friends and neighbours go out on strike like the workers at CAMI have done, that we rally around them and say, enough is enough! Continue Reading
Politicians “Experience” and Years in Office Are Not Equal
Some politicians hold office for many years because they are good at getting results for the people they represent. Others simply benefit from the “incumbent advantage” of name recognition and vote splitting to hold on. So the public should never mistake years in public office with the experience needed to “get the job done”.
Recently, this was evident in the debate around the proposed “adult entertainment license” for a new strip club in east London’s Ward 2. Continue Reading
AM980 Roundtable Aug 30, Jeff Preston & Shawn Lewis
Talking about the issue of strip club licensing that is affecting London’s Argyle neighbourhood, about whether it’s time OHIP covered mental health service costs for citizens, and about the CAMI strike vote in Ingersoll.
AM980 Roundtable, featuring Caranci, Caranci, and Lewis
From today’s AM980 London News Roundtable…with 2x the Caranciness as both former City Councillor Roger Caranci & his son, former Conservative MP staffer Nathan Caranci were on the air with me and London’s best talk radio host Craig Needles, talking downtown development, BRT and whether or not police should be welcome at Pride.