Comments on: Some Observations About Toronto: People and Spaces http://www.lawsocietyblog.com/archives/206 Notes from the intersection of law, society, technology, economics, and culture Tue, 06 Jan 2009 08:23:16 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.2 By: Ben Nelson http://www.lawsocietyblog.com/archives/206#comment-1044 Ben Nelson Tue, 30 May 2006 20:25:15 +0000 http://www.lawsocietyblog.com/archives/206#comment-1044 All my early memories of Toronto are dismal. (I'm not just saying that because they're my hometown's rival.) As you indicate, it's an ornate slab of concrete with holes stuck in it where people live. Don't be fooled; some of those holes include the destitute poverty from the eyes of the average citizen, largely because of the edicts of Mr. Mayor Mel "Big Boy" Lastman, who years ago clamped down on both the homeless and the window-washing teens. No idea where they are now, so I guess Canadian poverty is easier to hide than the American sort. (I can tell you, though, that I've heard it reported that Toronto, Hamilton, and Kingston are the three most centralized places for halfway houses in Ontario.) But yeah, the architechture can be astounding and lovely (no doubt arising from ordinary free-ish market causes than anything like a plan; i.e., maybe big firms only hire a select cabal of architects). And I was a happy boy when the Blue Jays won the world series twice in a row in the early nineties, and was delighted by the Sky Dome's sunroof. (It is evidently now called the "Rogers Centre" by some infidels.) And there are real thriving markets around there, along with shops where they actually sell cultural products, art, etc., and actually somehow make a profit. All my early memories of Toronto are dismal. (I’m not just saying that because they’re my hometown’s rival.) As you indicate, it’s an ornate slab of concrete with holes stuck in it where people live. Don’t be fooled; some of those holes include the destitute poverty from the eyes of the average citizen, largely because of the edicts of Mr. Mayor Mel “Big Boy” Lastman, who years ago clamped down on both the homeless and the window-washing teens. No idea where they are now, so I guess Canadian poverty is easier to hide than the American sort. (I can tell you, though, that I’ve heard it reported that Toronto, Hamilton, and Kingston are the three most centralized places for halfway houses in Ontario.)

But yeah, the architechture can be astounding and lovely (no doubt arising from ordinary free-ish market causes than anything like a plan; i.e., maybe big firms only hire a select cabal of architects). And I was a happy boy when the Blue Jays won the world series twice in a row in the early nineties, and was delighted by the Sky Dome’s sunroof. (It is evidently now called the “Rogers Centre” by some infidels.) And there are real thriving markets around there, along with shops where they actually sell cultural products, art, etc., and actually somehow make a profit.

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