Looking for Loopholes

 Direct Answers
from Wayne & Tamara

Looking for Loopholes
Q My boyfriend and I had a great start to our relationship. We were medical students then. We trusted each other and were both clear that cheating is a dealbreaker for us.
     When we moved to different cities to start our specialty training, we saw each other less. Things got busier but we tried working things out, always thinking about the light at the end of the tunnel. Nonetheless, we felt really happy once we met.
     Two years ago, someone anonymously messaged me on a networking site saying my boyfriend was seeing someone else. There was no evidence, but I immediately called him and he denied it.
     One day, I went into paranoid mode and checked his phone while he was asleep. I saw flirty messages. The next morning I confronted him and asked who she was. He said they were coworkers and friends, and he was just helping her review. That was our first big argument.  Of course, I believed him. We even got engaged last year!
     Fast forward to three months before our wedding. Another person messaged me, this time with proof! Turns out, their relationship became physical both before and after he proposed to me.
     Bit by bit, he told me the truth. He admitted they were friends, part of a group who went out together and reviewed in his apartment, until the two of them were left alone. But he never once mentioned this group of friends to me. He said he was afraid I wouldn’t give my permission to hang out with them.
     He said the girl made a move and kissed him first, and his lust took over. After that, they had sex for a few more meetings until he realized what they were doing was wrong. He claims he ended it with the other woman three months ago and was going to tell me.
     My life crumbled. The person I thought I knew best and trusted most, suddenly became a stranger. We broke up and our wedding was canceled.
     A month and a half after D-day, we still communicate. He’s remorseful and readily answers my calls, even though he knows I just want answers.
     I will be flying to another country for 18 months of further training, while he’ll be staying in our home country for his training. He says he’ll fly to see me once he’s done and court me again. He says I’m the person he wants to live with in this lifetime.
     Can a person really change? Will I be able to get past this feeling of betrayal?
Heidi

A Heidi, a loophole is defined as an exemption that can be used to avoid the effect of a law. You and your boyfriend are both looking for a loophole.
     In this case, the law you want to avoid is a law of human nature.
     Your boyfriend’s first line of defense was to lie. His second line of defense was to blame you. (You wouldn’t approve of his group.) His third line of defense was to blame the other woman. (She started it.)
     If you stay with him, his final defense will be, “It couldn’t have been all that bad because Heidi stayed.”
     Of course it isn’t all that bad to him. He’s not the one betrayed. Proceeding as before is what a cheater wants because they are not the injured party. But if you had cheated on him, would he be so lenient on you? Of course not.
     His excuses are the archetypal responses of a cheater who is caught. It’s the classic pattern, but because you haven’t been through this before, you don’t recognize the pattern. Still, your gut told you to cancel the wedding.
     When he blamed the other woman, he admitted he can “fall prey” to any other woman. In trying to wriggle off the hook, he set the hook. He admitted, “I cannot control myself and you cannot trust me.”
     You were not paranoid when you checked his phone. You smelled gas and looked for the leak. That’s realism, not paranoia.
     Perhaps you’ve had to explain to a patient that they have a terminal disease. Now you’re on the other side of that. You must face that your relationship with this man is terminal.
    Reactions to cheating—the disgust, the outrage at the unfairness, the suspicion, the traumatic response—are not something a skillful counselor can talk you out of. They are part of your human nature.
     Counseling can be helpful in many areas, but it cannot overcome the basic needs built into us for trust, for justice, and for love.
     In a marriage, there can be no loopholes. Why? Because with people who belong together, none are needed.
 Wayne & Tamara  

write:  Directanswers@WayneAndTamara.com

New Economic Problems on the Horizon in Canada

by Maj (ret'd) CORNELIU. CHISU, CD, PMSC, FEC, CET, P. Eng. Former Member of Parliament Pickering-Scarborough East As Canadians, we continue to enjoy our short summer and look forward to the fall, though it may not be a very nice one. Inflation continues to raise its ugly head and that means that the Bank of Canada will probably bump up interest rates even further in September. As outlined by journalist Pete Evans’ realistic analysis of the situation, we are not looking forward to getting out of these economic worries any time soon. Canada's inflation rate bucked its recent trend of slowing last month and rose at a 3.3 per cent annual pace in July, Statistics Canada said’. That was an increase from 2.8 per cent the previous month. Gas prices were a major factor pushing up the inflation rate, mostly due to what economists call the base effect. For most of the past year, the cost of gasoline has been a big factor dragging down the overall rate. However, as you may have noticed, prices are up again. Pump prices increased by 0.9 per cent in July. The same month a year earlier, they declined by more than 9 per cent. Gas prices weren't the only type of energy bill that was a big factor in pushing up the inflation rate. The price of electricity skyrocketed in the past year, up by 11.7 per cent. That's more than twice the annual increase of 5.8 per cent clocked in June and the biggest reason for the uptick was a more than doubling of electricity bills in Alberta, which rose by 127.8 per cent in the year up to July. Food prices, another factor that has been driving up the cost of living, eased somewhat during the month, but they are still going up at an eye-watering pace. Grocery prices increased by 8.5 per cent in the year up to July. That is an easing from 9.1 per cent the previous month, but still three times the overall inflation rate. Not every grocery aisle is getting more expensive, or at the same rate. There was some relief in the produce section, with fresh fruit prices seeing their largest month-over-month decline since February 2008, down 6.5 per cent. The price of grapes plummeted by more than 40 per cent last month, according to Statistics Canada. While a slowdown in the rate that food prices are going up comes as some relief, it remains a crisis, which has prompted calls for drastic measures such as price caps on staple grocery items. Other countries, including France and Greece, have dabbled with implementing price controls, where retail prices for core items are capped at a certain level. Similar attempts at price controls in the 1970s had disastrous results, but some policy experts say it is an idea worth exploring, at least on a limited basis. "It's not the '70s anymore, our markets are different," said Vass Bednar, executive director of the Master of Public Policy Program at McMaster University in Hamilton. "We need to recognize that." While Bednar says she does not advocate for a heavy-handed cap on all types of food in perpetuity, she says it makes sense to look into policies that could ensure some basic necessities — baby formula, bread, certain fruits and vegetables — have at least some options that remain affordable. However, Avery Shenfeld, an economist with CIBC, said he does not see the justification for price caps in Canada's grocery business, given the trends we are seeing beneath the surface. "I don't really think we're in need of that here," he said in an interview. "At the end of the day, the best method of fighting inflation isn't to try to pick one or two prices in the economy and intervene in them. It's really to control the pace of spending power [and] moderate growth a little bit." Food prices are not the only thing getting more expensive, either. Mortgages have been another major pressure point in the increasing consumer price index of late, and that problem got worse in July, not better. Mortgage interest costs have increased by 30.6 per cent in the past year. That's another record year-over-year gain, and the largest single factor in the increase in the overall inflation rate. With this said many smart people in the financial sector seem to think a recession is coming. And yet a lot of them also think that before that, central bankers here, in the United States and overseas are going to raise interest rates some more. The fact is fighting inflation is complicated and politically divisive. For central banks, it becomes even more complicated and politically divisive as inflation gets closer to their target, because rate hikes hurt more for less obvious reward. There are few inflation riddles harder to solve than the fact that the Bank of Canada's own interest rate hikes are actually driving inflation higher, with the mortgage cost component continuing to climb. So let us see what is coming and how our politicians will act to ease the worries of Canadians. Any hope?

Afghanistan the new Vietnam

Afghanistan the new Vietnam by Maj (ret'd) CORNELIU E. CHISU, CD, PMSC, FEC, CET, P. Eng. Former Member of Parliament Pickering-Scarborough East It seems that we have learned nothing from the past. The quick failure of Afghanistan is a repeat of the failure of the intervention in Vietnam. On April 29 1975 the evacuation of Saigon was very similar to the evacuation of Kabul in August 2021. After almost a half century and two generations, we are getting the same result. The problem in Afghanistan started with the Soviet invasion on Christmas day in 1979 and ended in mid February 1989 with the withdrawal of the Soviet troops. The Soviet Union intervened in support of the Afghan communist government in its conflict with anti-communist Muslim guerrillas. The aim of the Soviet operation was to prop up their new but faltering client state, headed by leader Babrak Karmal. However, Karmal was unable to attain significant popular support. Backed by the United States, the mujahideen rebellion grew, spreading to all parts of the country. The Soviets initially left the suppression of the rebellion to the Afghan army, but the latter was beset by mass desertions and remained largely ineffective throughout the war. The Afghan War quickly settled down into a stalemate, with more than 100,000 Soviet troops controlling the cities, larger towns, and major garrisons and the mujahideen moving with relative freedom throughout the countryside. Soviet troops tried to crush the insurgency by various tactics, but the guerrillas generally eluded their attacks. The Soviets then attempted to eliminate the mujahideen's civilian support by bombing and depopulating the rural areas. These tactics sparked a massive flight from the countryside; by 1982 some 2.8 million Afghans had sought asylum in Pakistan, and another 1.5 million had fled to Iran. The mujahideen were eventually able to neutralize Soviet air power through the use of shoulder-fired antiaircraft missiles supplied by the Soviet Union's Cold War adversary, the United States. Now back to the future. In 2021, after a presence for 20 years of US lead NATO troops including our Canadian Forces, the result is the same as the Soviets then experienced. The quick disintegration of the Afghan Army supposedly trained by the US and its NATO allies is the failure of an intervention ill conceived and ill managed with lives and resources lost to a cause that was unclear from the beginning. Saigon 1975 (United States), Kabul 1989 (Soviets), Kabul 2021 (US and NATO) seems that something went wrong in that part of the world and that the leaders of the western world just gloriously ignored the lessons of history. No one thought in 2021 that by mid-August the Taliban would be in Kabul. The Taliban's ability to link their cause to the very meaning of being Afghan, was a crucial factor in America's defeat. For Afghans, jihad, better translated as "resistance" or "struggle", has historically been a means of defense against oppression by outsiders, part of their endurance against invader after invader since the time of Alexander the Great. In more recent times, they have first exhausted, then repelled the British, the Soviets and now the Americans. The 'forever war' for Americans was also a long war for Canadians. Never mind that apparently the NATO decision to invoke, for the first time, the collective security provisions of Article Five - that an attack on one is an attack on all - was the initiative of then Canadian NATO ambassador David Wright. That decision launched the US-led NATO intervention that is only now concluding in a controlled disaster. As a result, more than 40,000 Canadian soldiers served in Afghanistan including myself in 2007, with 158 killed between 2001 and 2014. More came home injured or psychologically wounded, and the Canadian Armed Forces reported that as a follow up 191 veterans have taken their own lives since 2011. It is a sad story for generations of Afghani people and a sad result of the Canadian efforts to try to build a responsible society. The Afghan experience is a cautionary tale for future Canadian interventions. The western experience in Afghanistan will oblige policy-makers to think hard about future interventions. Without an appreciation of the history, culture, geography and local politics, we may win battles but we lose the war. As the evacuation of Afghani who worked and supported the Canadian Forces continue at this moment it is a time to reflect. Unlike during the Cold War when Canada was a leading middle power within one of two bounded geopolitical blocs, today it faces the prospect of becoming a marginal state in an integrated - yet pluralistic - international order of global scope. The new era and the rapidly evolving world calls for a Canadian foreign policy that requires a drastic change in attitude. We need to embrace pragmatism over ideology, and strategic thinking over the endless invocation of platitudes. Canada's second consecutive failure in our bid for a UN Security Council seat should make us rethink the notion that the world cares at all about who we are. We need to have qualified people in leadership positions, be proactive internationally, regain the edge we have lost in science and technology and develop expertise in diplomacy. It is time to start the Great Canadian Awakening both domestically and internationally!

BEND OVER TAKE IN THE ASS AND LIKE IT

 

BEND OVER TAKE IN THE ASS AND LIKE IT
By Joe Ingino
Editor/Publisher

“I live a dream in a nightmare world”   

    As a child I remember how much I hated going to the doctor.   As a kid you only went there for a vaccination or a minor check up.   On the first, I remember him lowering my pants and before I knew it.  Boom he had pricked me with a needle on my ass cheek.
  I had no choice.  I was more worried about the fact that my genitalia was exposed then anything else.... Meanwhile I was getting pricked in the name of public health.   My mom would always kiss me in the forehead to comfort me as she slipped me a candy as a treat for being a good boy.
  In modern society it appears the same principles are being employed by the government.   They take us to a place out of fear.  In the name of public health.  Then without really having much choice prick us with a vaccine that in my opinion has not fully been studied or understood.  All they tell us is that it has shown in some fictitious study to have an affect on a virus that even today we(governments) of the world have no clue what it truly is.   
We have an idea.  But no one can without a doubt clearly say they know what this virus is doing across the planet.
   Could this be what they mean by ‘the writing on the wall’.   Could it be that out of our own ignorance we are entrusting governments.  Governments that go on a hit and miss agenda and not on what is best for the people they represent.
   They say that Russians are the most upfront people.  The people with the most real choices.  A people with true freedom.  I say this because as free and democratic the Russian may be.  They are only given one choice.   Therefore the choice is always right and easy.  This mentality appears to be what our so called ‘FREE AND DEMOCRATIC’ nations of the world are employing.
   I say this because it appears that governments across the globe without fully understanding the choice.  Taken choice from their citizens by creating a sublime hysteria over what they perceive to be the magic shield against COVID.   Only to be exposed for their ignorance of the truth by variants of COVID.
   You can’t blame the politicians.  They are flags in the wind of an agenda that is way beyond their intellect and understanding.  
Much like me taking it in the ass.  We are all taking it in the ass and forced to like it.
Just this week.  Some brilliant mind in government decided to put the idiotic idea in the arena of public ignorance, that somehow governments have given themselves the power to pass vaccination passports.   Not only that.   The same brilliant minds put the seed of ignorance amongst public opinionatos that it is OK to refuse services, entry and or opportunity based on vaccination choice.
This is in part sparking the debate over forced vaccination in general.   As it stands if you are not vaccinated for some disease you can be banned from schools and the like.  So why is it that the COVID vaccination has such an opposition?   Simple.  The COVID vaccine is to new and a fallacy.  We must not trust science but depend on it’s byproducts.  We must not enforce compliance but instead promote civil duty, free will and choice.  As a society we have given up common sense.  Basic human decency and for that we are being oppressed by laws and social pressure to comply.   Vaccines that have a solid proven record are obviously good.  Vaccines that are put forth in urgency to attempt to calm and unknown is wrong as it is not logical.  People  lets use common sense.  Let’s stop taking it in the ass in the name that science knows best.
Let’s first completely understand the source then let science find a logical solution that is reasonable and true.  Humanity will never move forward blinded by ignorance.  Open your eyes.

Tales from the war in Afghanistan

 

Tales from the war in Afghanistan
    by Maj (ret'd) CORNELIU E. CHISU, CD, PMSC,
FEC, CET, P. Eng.
Former Member of Parliament
Pickering-Scarborough East
   The military Canadian mission in Afghanistan officially ended in May 2014. There are many memories of it and we always will remember the sacrifices made by the 158 comrades fallen. As I was deployed in 2007 at the beginning of the most violent phase of the war I remember with pleasure working with the Afghani people on the Kandahar base.
The evolution of the situation in Afghanistan and the new political events there with the Taliban rising again it is important that we think about these people who helped our mission with dedication and do something for them and their families.
As Afghanistan is on the brink of descending into a civil war we should set out to rescue those Afghans who worked with Canada's diplomats and soldiers before Taliban assassins find them and kill them. We should have envisaged a prospective of this, when Hamid Karzai, Afghanistan's first president after 9/11, who was forever pleading with the Taliban, his "brothers," his fellow Pashtuns, his "sons of the soil," to talk peace. However, you cannot make peace with mass murderers, as history has repeatedly shown.
The surviving leaders of the resistance during the dark Taliban years warned loudly and often that any effort to reconcile with Mullah Omar's mass murderers would end in disaster and here we are.  Unfortunately their warning fell on deaf ears of politicians who might have done something about it. Down through the years as I followed the events after my deployment there among Afghans, the woolly idea of peace talks was dismissed time and again as a dangerous folly.
The Afghani diaspora have said so, as many Afghani associations and especially Afghani women's associations have expressed their deep concern about dealing with the Taliban for peace. Burhanuddin Rabbani, who headed up Afghanistan's High Council for Peace before the Taliban assassinated him, also said so.
But the unfortunate wisdom in the NATO capitals purported to know better as well as former U.S. president Barack Obama who thought he knew better. Even former President Donald Trump, thought that a peaceful reconciliation between Ashraf Ghani's tenuously democratic government in Kabul and the Taliban's Islamic Emirate, comfortably domiciled in Quetta, Pakistan would be possible.  So the US has bet on the wrong horse again, because the Taliban, supported covertly and sometimes quite openly by Pakistan, has taken a step by step operation to recover the lost territories and influence. Pakistan is a principal participating factor in this equation, but nobody seems to take this into consideration.
President Joe Biden proceeded into this fantasy world with a determination that anticipated a full American withdrawal by September 11 of this year, which quickly accelerated to the objective of having American troops out before the end of the summer, and all NATO forces out with them.
It is clear now that when the foreign forces leave the country without bringing about a positive change in the security, the situation will unfold as predicted. First there will be a civil war and regional instability, and then the Taliban will rule again.
It was known that training more than 300,000 Afghan soldiers and police was never going to be enough as the rule of the Taliban has already been extended over much of the country. The Taliban have taken control of most of Afghanistan's border posts and a bloody civil war is already in the offing.  So that is the reason that Ottawa should continue to set out to rescue those Afghans who worked with Canadians and a network of military veterans who were left behind after 2011 now that the Taliban are closing in.
In 2011, when the last Canadian troops finished their combat operations, a special federal program had allowed about 800 interpreters to emigrate and settle in Canada. But many were left behind.  As the situation in Afghanistan is deteriorating at a rapid rate, the first planeload of Afghan refugees who supported the Canadian military mission in Afghanistan has arrived in Canada. It is the first of a number of flights that the government is promising to spirit refugees out of Afghanistan as the resurgent Taliban retakes control of some districts in the country following the withdrawal of American troops.
The government last month announced a special program to urgently resettle Afghans deemed to have been "integral" to the Canadian Armed Forces' mission, including interpreters, cooks, drivers, cleaners, construction workers, security guards and embassy staff, as well as members of their families. Applicants must still meet all the usual admissibility requirements, including security, criminal and health screenings.
In a statement last week, Immigration Minister Marco Mendicino, Foreign Affairs Minister Marc Garneau and Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan said the government is working "around the clock" to identify eligible individuals. "The government has been seized with the urgency on the ground and is working as quickly as possible to resettle Afghan nationals who put themselves at great risk to support Canada's work in Afghanistan," the ministers said.
They said a team is on the ground in Afghanistan to help Afghans submit applications and provide the necessary documentation. "We are doing everything we can to get every Afghan refugee out as swiftly as possible but we recognize that the security situation can change rapidly."
Hoping for the best for the people who helped Canadians in Afghanistan, we should however never forget our fallen Canadians who fought there for democracy.

Your Cover Letter's Third Paragraph Getting the Reader to Act

 Your Cover Letter's
Third Paragraph  
Getting the Reader to Act
By Nick Kossovan
 If you don't ask, you don't get.
  In the 1992 movie Glengarry Glen Ross, Alec Baldwin's character, Blake, gives a shape-up or ship-out speech to a group of real estate salesmen. He turns over a blackboard on which two sets of letters are written. One set of letters is "ABC." Blake then shouts, "A-B-C. A, always; B, be; C, closing. Always be closing! Always be closing!"
To shorten your job search, envision you're looking for your next client. Finding your next client is a sales process; therefore, you need to A-B-C. When you're in A-B-C mode, you move through an employer's hiring process much faster than passive job seekers.
A-B-C isn't only for when you're at the interview stage, intending to close the deal (obtaining a job offer). To get your network to inform you of job opportunities, get past gatekeepers, and especially to get that covenant interview, you need to A-B-C, which is why your cover letter's last paragraph needs to be a call to action.
Here are 3 examples:
With my 15+ years of sales management experience, I know I can quickly get up to speed as ACME Inc.'s next Sales Director. I'd welcome the opportunity to speak with you regarding my qualifications. Next Wednesday, I'll reach out to schedule a call to discuss my thoughts on who to raise ACME Inc.'s ROI by 25% before year-end. I look forward to speaking with you.
I'm inspired by Callister Inc's success in supporting homegrown businesses. I have several ideas for marketing strategies to increase profitability among your customer base and how I can grow your reach. I look forward to the opportunity to share my thoughts with you.
I'm looking forward to discussing my skills and my 10+ years of international hotel management experience. I've several suggestions I'd like to pass by you on how Grand Budapest Hotel can increase its occupancy rate, a challenge all hotels face during the current pandemic. Please contact me at (555) 916-225-5887 or mary.smitters@hotel.com any time. I'll be in touch next Friday to follow up.
Your closing paragraph needs to:
-Be decisive. Decisiveness projects confidence, which is not to be confused with arrogance. Confidence is a massive turn-on with employers. Before the hiring manager can feel (hiring comes down to gut feel) you can do the job, they need to feel that you feel you can do the job.
-Write to what you can do for the employer, not what they can do for you.
-Offer a teaser. To use another movie analogy, think of Marlon Brando's words in The Godfather, "I'm gonna make him an offer he can't refuse." This sets the foundation for what'll be discussed and therefore puts you in the driver's seat.
-Mention you'll follow up. (Then DO IT!)
The last point is a job search game-changer. Many career experts claim following up is overly aggressive. The way I see it, not following up makes you passive, which is a form of being lazy. I'm repeating myself; employers don't hire lazy.
There's been a few instances where I've been overwhelmed with resumes. Those who called me almost always got an interview. I can recall three times where I hired the person based on a "follow-up" phone conversation.
A few weeks back, a Regional Sales Director for a large pharmaceutical company told me when hiring a sales representative, he only grants interviews to those who follow up. This makes sense since sales success requires being comfortable making calls.
Bottom-line: Following up by phone will set you apart from your competition.
Of course, if the job posting says "No phone calls please.", which is uncommon, you need to respect such instruction.
Regarding signing off, use any of the following:
-Sincerely
-Best regards
-Sincere regards
-Yours truly
-Respectfully
As I've mentioned in an earlier column, there's no universal hiring methodology. Don't stress over small details, such as how to sign off. Throughout your search, focus on communicating how you're able to bring results (value). Such focus will have you A-B-C.
If you're wondering what the other set of letters Blake had written on the blackboard, they were AIDA - Attention, Interest, Decision, Action. This is what your cover letter needs to do.
Nick Kossovan, a well-seasoned veteran of the corporate landscape, offers advice on searching for a job. You can send him your questions at artoffindingwork@gmail.com.

Final Curtain

 Final Curtain
  Q My girlfriend Jessie and I were together four years. Recently, she went on a two-week family holiday. During those two weeks, I went for a night out with my work colleagues. I got extremely drunk and kissed a girl from work.

     I felt guilty the next day, but a few days later I told my friends, who are also her friends, that I wanted to break up with her. I didn’t, but I was confused at the time.
     The following Saturday, she came home. We went out that night, and I was so confused I told her we should break up. She thought I was playing games.

     She left the pub, and I followed. I told her, “I met somebody else.” I shouldn’t have said it that way, as I did not meet another girl. I just kissed her. It was the biggest mistake of my life.
     Over the next few weeks I tried contacting Jessie, but she would not answer her phone or reply to my texts. In the end, sometimes after work I drank too much and sent her text messages, some of which I’m not proud of.

     Because I was hassling her, she changed her phone number. I met up with her a few weeks later, and she talked to me for 20 minutes. She said we may be friends again, but that will be it.
     I was with Jessie four years, and we had a great relationship. I know we had our arguments, but every couple has arguments. The problem is, sometimes when we went out drinking, I would humiliate her about her weight, her makeup, or something else.
     I know I screwed up. I used to mess with her clothes when we were out in the pub, for example, lifting up her skirt, but that’s just me messing around.
     I have seen her a few times since we broke up. I send her a letter every week begging or groveling to give me a second chance. I know the mistakes I made and would not make them again.

     When I called Jessie’s house last Saturday, she wasn’t in. She rang me 30 minutes later and asked why I was still writing to her. I asked, could we meet up for a coffee?, but she said she didn’t want to as I would cry into my coffee, which is what happened last time.

     She says she is happy, and if she went back with me, she would go backwards. She said the next time she sees me in the street, she might say hello or she might not.
My heart inside was crushed. Is there anything I can do to get Jessie back?
Robert

A Robert, how is this a mistake?
     You kissed a girl in a bar. Perhaps you had too much to drink, but you weren’t drunk when you told mutual friends you wanted to break up. And when you broke up with Jessie in a pub, you said you had someone else.

That’s three “mistakes” in a row. That shows intent.
What you didn’t tell us is what you were trying to gain. Did you want to make her jump through hoops to get you back? Were you paying her back for an imagined sleight? We don’t know.
But she did not come crawling back, you did not get makeup sex, and your plan went awry.

     Often with letters like yours, the letter writer thinks they could do better. But the way you went about it, made it impossible for her to take you back. It would make her the beggar in the relationship.

She did what we would have told her to do, had she written us. Don’t take calls from him; don’t let him whisper in your ear; don’t let him wheedle his way back in.
You say you were confused, but you staged such a convincing show it was believed by all. Now you claim it was only an act, but what a great act it was. The audience applauded wildly, and you took a curtain call.

     Your letter is about how you didn’t get what you wanted, not about how you injured her. All your sorry is for yourself. Why are you concealing why you did it? Because it is not something you can say out loud.
     This was the classic breakup intended to hurt, and she was the last to know. You sealed the deal with a kiss. If you can’t be honest with us, at least be honest with yourself.
Wayne & Tamara                                             write:  Directanswers@WayneAndTamara.com

CAN WE AFFORD TO GIVE AWAY 17.7 MILLION?

 

CAN WE AFFORD TO GIVE AWAY
17.7 MILLION?
By Joe Ingino
Editor/Publisher

“I live a dream in a nightmare world”   

    I don’t know about you.   But I keep seeing and hearing of all the people undergoing economic hardships across the region.  Stores keep closing, people keep loosing jobs, mortgages and hope.  
  It seems as the gloom and doom cloud can’t be shaken.   On top of that we could be yet be facing another wave of the Delta variance.
How much more can the people of Canada take.   I must admit that the Federal government has been quick to respond by extending numerous plans to assure everyone in need gets some sort of assistance.
Sadly many people I talk to do not know that they are entitled to apply or for that matter even know how to.
Others get entangled in red tape only to become discouraged and given up.
This week a news item came across my desk.  It read:  Canada donating 17.7M AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccines amid global disparities.
Canada continues to rapidly ramp up vaccinations against COVID-19 but there remain stark inequities in vaccine access globally, the WHO has warned.
  Now don’t get me wrong.  Nothing wrong with being generous and giving.... but should we not be thinking about our people first?
We have a record number of homeless people walking our streets.  We have a record number of people loosing their homes, jobs.   Should we not invest that money in our people?
I know the cry.  The government is doing all they can to assure people do not go without.
I can respect that.  My question is then why the need to give away 17.7 million that could go as a top up to those in need?
This covid thing is not over.  The number are being managed but the threat is still very real.   
I must acknowledge that in th covid model it appears that we found a magic bullet with possible two outcomes.  On the one.  It appears to have an impact on the spread of the virus.  On the other we are yet to uncover the true and real side ramifications of all jumping in front of the silver bullet.
 Will it hit its mark or will it end up killing us.   Did we just prolonged life only to come to realize that the cure is worst than the infection.
The theorist amongst us are already ramping up all kinds of things from the coincidence of the G5 network implemented across north America at the same time as everyone is being forced through fear of illness to vaccinate with nano-tech activator as inhibitors.   The reality of it is.  That we need to assure we Canadians lives quality of life is preserved and that before we give away any money in the name of charity or humanity to other nations, that we Canadians are taken care.

Challenging times for Canada's democracy

 Challenging times for Canada's democracy
    by Maj (ret'd) CORNELIU E. CHISU, CD, PMSC,
FEC, CET, P. Eng.
Former Member of Parliament
Pickering-Scarborough East
  The latest accelerating events connected to the residential school generated crisis, amplified by toppling and destroying statues of historical figures and the churches burned down represent a new trend on the political landscape of Canada. All these atrocities are happening with the political establishment closing their eyes to recent events and the total absence of law enforcement.  How is democracy served or protected by the selective application of democratic rights already curtailed by the erratically established Covid -19 pandemic legislation?
Our nationhood is under threat by recent events. Instead of uniting the nation the political establishment is dividing it in pursuit of selfish and power hungry personal interests. They are interested only in keeping power at all costs.
The globalist declaration of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau that: "Canada has no core identity" is already infamous.   
As a reaction of this declaration many of the political establishment found it imaginative, evocative, even dangerous.  It was, in effect, telling the world that the Canada everyone thought they knew was going through a transformation. What kind of transformation is the big question.
It's clear we are in a dangerous moment, one where a new direction is entirely possible under a reincarnation of newly found Marxist values and where going back to learning from the past seems unacceptable.  
Trudeau informed the New York Times that this "new" country is no longer defined by our history or European national origins but by a "pan-cultural heritage," he ran the risk of overlooking much of what made this country one of the most respected in the world and the results were seen recently in events that rapidly evolved in a divided nation.
We might be heading in a new direction, but where we have come from, despite our many failures, has helped prepare us to preserve a society for inclusion and respect for our fellow Canadians.
We have been more open than closed and more accommodating than militant and the world noticed and respected it.
Recently the term "identity" has morphed into numerous meanings, including "identity politics," and the outcome is more dangerous and dividing than tried to be defined.  
The ideals that once held this country together are now under increased threat.  It's not wrong or unpatriotic to ask how Canada will fare with so many groups seeking recognition and redress, all seeking action at the same time. Is this new identity politics going to push us past the national breaking point?
The main political parties in Canada, with the exception of the emerging Peoples Party of Canada, seem to embrace this dangerous threat to democracy. There is a general acknowledgement that the issues surrounding the residential schools, gender inequities, the casual acceptance of racism, even the trivial manner in which we treat the nation's poor can no longer be accepted and have tainted the very history we have come to accept.  But this does not mean that we should extirpate our history instead of learning from it.
All of these artificially amplified injustices actually give support to Trudeau's claim that Canada is now a "post-national" state, a globalist one, one seeking to transcend its history and supersede the nation-states.  But that sounds more like we are trying to run away from our history rather than accommodating these new directions with our abiding long applied resiliencies.
Until recently, our political world was viewed as a giant struggle between the left and the right.  The left concentrated on wealth disbursal, meaningful work, equity and equality, and democratic reform.  The right rallied around smaller government, fewer restrictions in the marketplace and moral rigour in decision-making.
Suddenly, a new concept has entered the picture, seeking to eliminate past experiences and rejecting the very foundation of this nation called Canada.
Identity is now the great pursuit of the moment and dominates the thoughts of people seeking something different, something more equal.  It makes some sense, given that all these identity-driven forces were most often ignored in our past pursuits of prosperity and respect.  
The confluence of greater indigenous experience and wisdom integrated in our future evolution can only be a good thing since they are a constituent part of our nation. Greater recognition of women's rights and proper place in the workforce is long overdue, as is the acknowledgement that the discrimination of various types that had been present in our past need not be embedded in our future.
But the fact remains that we should remain a nation a special one where we continue to live in peace and prosperity.  We have a story to tell and a world in which to tell it. Should we become a land of opposing factions seeking recognition, we can risk being motivated more by anger and pride than reason and compromise.
The Canadian experience, while never complete, can be torn apart in a time of ill motivated political ambitions. So it is time to have an intelligent political management in paying due respect from all Canadians towards each other if we are to navigate the unchartered waters ahead.
The recent identity politics is becoming more and more a disturbing and manipulative element in a democracy with its competing ideas.  It remains every group's right to seek equal recognition for the groups that have been neglected in our history. However great care must be taken that such a desire not morph into a sense of superiority and ruin the democratic pursuit of our nation.
Democracy has been improved and enhanced the more egalitarian it became which required those in privilege and power to open the access to such things to the marginalized.  But it can become toxic when those seeking inclusion then seek power to delegitimize the state.
So for of the potential challenges we live at this moment in time and, if we are not paying attention as citizens, it can quickly become one of the most dangerous moments in our country's journey, where our hegemony declines and our divisions rule our actions.
What do you think?

The Foibles of Money

 Direct Answers
from Wayne & Tamara

The Foibles of Money
Q I am a career banker with a nice little sideline as an investor. My style is not high risk with bitcoins, penny stocks, and the like. I try to buy the best companies when they temporarily stumble.
 I try to advise others. When my aunt would call and ask, “What do you have for me, son?” I was able to help her make some money.  I have not had results that were as good with my best friend. I was helping him run some money, and at the one-year mark, he had a 95% return; $8,000 turned into $15,600. His portfolio was doing better than mine on a percentage basis, because he was far more aggressive and less risk averse than me. Even so, we could have done better if he had listened to me.  The thing is I advised him to sell one position, or at least one part of it, in which he had a big gain. He and his wife love the industry and she would not let him.

 This stock is down. One stock he bought without us talking, and another he bought against my advice. Now, the $15,600 is down to $13,800. At one time, he was holding cash from a stock sold for a gain. I said sit tight until we find a bargain, but that cash was burning a hole in his pocket. Why?  I advised my younger cousin to buy a pot stock that I have a huge gain in. He researched the industry, and told me he bought another one just like mine. But he lost his ass on the one that was “like mine”. Why? It reminds me of an old episode of The Mary Tyler Moore Show (showing my age here). Lou Grant was losing on football bets with his bookie. Then, he began winning using Ted Baxter’s system but it wasn’t any fun anymore.

Lou then bet his entire  bankroll on the Super Bowl, even though Ted’s system did not allow for any bet on the Super Bowl. Lou lost but was happy. It was fun again.
What part of human nature is this? Is it just a guy thing, because my aunt did not have it?
Cameron

A Cameron, let’s talk about your aunt first. Her attitude is, “Money is good, it makes my life more secure, and listening to Cameron is way easier than laying bricks for a living.” She doesn’t care if she is betting on the guy with the hot hand or betting on a guy smarter than the rest. She just wants the money. We would call her a realist.

Then there are your cousin and your best friend. We have a general comment about them. When you realize people usually act from their most base nature, it becomes easier to understand their behavior. Your cousin wants a sense of mastery. He wants to control something. Investing successfully will give him that feeling, the feeling of a do-it-yourself project done well.
He’s also troubled by FOMO, the fear of missing out.  “Cameron had fantastic success betting on a Canadian marijuana stock. How hard can it be? The sector is booming. I don’t need due diligence. I simply need to throw my hat in the ring so I don’t miss out.  “But I want my own pick, so when I get my big win, it isn’t due to Cameron.”

     In addition, if he felt you were bragging, he feels envy (he wants to possess what you possess), threatened (my mastery is in doubt), and competition (I’ll show that smarty pants Cameron). Then there’s your best friend; money burns a hole in his pocket. That sounds like the itch of the gambler. It’s the excitement! Your friend and his wife “have a good feeling” about an industry, the way some people have a good feeling about “sectors” in a casino. They prefer poker to blackjack or craps to slots. Much of their preference is simply good, old-fashioned greed. They want to take advantage of your advice, but they still want more. However, your best friend and his wife haven’t made any money yet. Their chips are still on the table. It won’t be money until they cash out.   
  And honestly, if you examine your own motives, you feel possessive about their winnings, as if they are losing your winnings. What would you like? You’d like your little ducklings to follow you and thank you for their success.
     People are funny about money. Some are more likely to tell you about their sexual life than about how much money they make. When it involves money…money often doesn’t have a bonding effect on relationships, it has a breaking the bond effect.

     What’s in it for others in giving you credit? For most people, the answer is nothing. Your guidance becomes their savvy decision to invest their money.

     That goes back to our first premise. When you realize people usually act from their most base nature, it becomes easier to understand human behavior.
Wayne & Tamara                                             write:  Directanswers@WayneAndTamara.com

Addressing Your Cover Letter to the Right Person Is Vital

 

Addressing Your Cover Letter to the
Right Person Is Vital
By Nick Kossovan
    A well-written cover letter, which is non-negotiable if you're a serious job hunter, starts with your header and a greeting an actual person.
Most job postings don't indicate a name to whom you send your resume. Application instructions are usually along the lines of clicking on an 'Apply Now' button or a website link. Ever-increasingly rare: "Please email your resume and cover letter to Gia at hr@tonyspizza.ca."
Personally, I think employers purposefully omit the hiring manager's name/contact information. They want to see which candidates have the hunger and ingenuity to find the hiring manager or department head's name, office address and contact information. With the Internet, especially LinkedIn, you don't require Sherlock Holmes investigative abilities to locate such information. Therefore, not doing so shows laziness and is an easy way to have applicants self-select themselves.
A clear signal of an employer wanting to have candidates self-select is when the posting mentions to whom the role reports to (Reporting to Chief Revenue Officer). This is an indicator to see which applicants will make the effort to find the person's name/contact information and reach out to who may be their future boss.
Look at hiring from the employer's view. Say a nation-wide furniture retailer posts on LinkedIn, Indeed and Glassdoor a Merchandise Planner position. The posting instructs applicants to apply on the company's website. Conservatively, given today's job market, this posting will attract between 400 to 600 applicants. What percentage of applicants do you figure will include a well-written cover letter, even if instructed to do so?  
Sadly, lazy job searching is common and what clogs up employers hiring pipelines.
As I've mentioned in previous columns, but worth repeating, you need to maximize your job-hunting activities by making sure you're stacking the odds of getting a "yes" to move forward in the hiring process in your favour.
There have been times when I posted a job online, instructing to apply through the company's website, and received around 400 applicants. Those applicants who reached out to me got my attention, and I gave their resumes a serious read. Unless detrimentally unqualified, those who reached out to me got an interview invitation - they'd demonstrated initiative, which I value in an employee. I wouldn't be hazarding a guess if I stated, "Employers like to see initiative."
With the above, the head-scratcher is I always mention my name and job title in my job postings, yet still few contact me directly which makes my which applicants to invite for an interview decision much more manageable.
NOTE: Always follow the employer's application instructions. After having applied accordingly, then reach out to the hiring manager. In your cover letter, indicate you've applied (I applied to the Principal Technical Analyst position posted on Glassdoor. This role speaks directly to my skill set and experience. I hope to be part of the hiring process, thus why I'm reaching out to you directly.) and then move into your cover letter.
You want your cover letter's heading/greeting to be:
Ms. Betty Cooper
Vice President Marketing
Gringotts Wizarding Bank
4305 Pine Street
Breton, AB T0C 0P0
Re: Customer Service Representative Opening [Ref. ID: CS300-Breton]
Dear Ms. Cooper:
Finding the hiring manager or department head's name, office address, and contact information is usually simply a matter of entering the company name and some keywords (Acme Inc., head of operations, sales) into the search bar of LinkedIn (start here). Then, after you've tried Google, try various search engines such as Yahoo, Bing, DuckDuckGo and Ask.com. Respective search engines use different search algorithms; therefore, a search of "Adrian Dobrow, Director of Finance, MomCorp" on Yahoo will yield different results than Ask.com.
TIP: When emailing your resume, your cover letter needs to be in the body of your email, not as an attachment. The purpose of your cover letter is to get the reader to read your resume. Having your cover letter in your email body will significantly increase the odds that your cover letter being read and giving it a chance to do its job.
Next week I move onto how to craft the first paragraph (introduction) of your cover letter by grabbing the reader's attention with 2 - 3 of your top achievements.
Nick Kossovan, a well-seasoned veteran of the corporate landscape, offers advice on searching for a job. You can send him your questions at artoffindingwork@gmail.com.

REMEMBER WHEN

 

REMEMBER WHEN

By Joe Ingino

Editor/Publisher

“I live a dream in a nightmare world”

Remember when national pride stood for something? Today national pride may have you label with some sort of neurosis according to the over opinionated politico/socio correct entities in society.

Remember when you could drive in a gas station and up to two attendants would come over to service your car. One would put in the gas, the other check your oil and offer you coffee or tea. In many cases they be wearing overalls and a tie. They took pride in their work. To be a gas station attendant had some prestige. How about the days when you would go from gas station to gas station collecting the many free glasses and mugs they would offer with a fill up in the 60’s and 70’s.

What has happened that in today’s modern society. We have to pre-pay a person hiding behind a bullet proof plastic box.

Remember the days when water was free, or we thought as the cost would come out of your property tax. Until someone decided came up with the bright idea that in order to save money we should amalgamate with the region. The region turns around and cries wolf. This creating another sub tax for citizens to pay in the name of convenience and long term savings.... in reality. The Region was the seed that grew an out of control cash monster.

Look at what you pay for property taxes on your property. Then ad up all your regional bills. Water and sewage. You are paying two hefty taxes across Durham region.

The biggest mistake Oshawa has committed due to incompetent municipal elect is join Durham Region. Oshawa always the hated municipality due to it’s ignorance over the fact that they thought they could rule other municipalities out of sheer size. Smaller municipalities had no choice but to abide by whatever Oshawa wanted. Oshawa had the biggest industry. The bigger tax pool and the only City.

Well slowly inch by inch the neighboring municipalities brought Oshawa down to size by slowly imposing further and further charges.This was due to Oshawa constant surrendering of it’s essential services. Municipal elect time and time again kept getting and are still getting suckered into the thought that the region is good for Oshawa. To me the region is chocking Oshawa. Oshawa no longer has GM. The new folk moving into the area have no clue. Today the region has control over Oshawa. For Oshawa to pull away from the region it would be costly at first. A political nightmare for anyone attempting it. As it stand we have no real municipal representation. Those elected do not have the aptitude to make the changes needed. Let me ask you this. What has really changed since the last election. Our downtown is worst then it ever was. We still have no real good paying jobs. I wish I could remember when. As back in those days. We had national pride. We had true leadership. Can you remember when...

Canada Day 2021

 Canada Day 2021
    by Maj (ret'd) CORNELIU E. CHISU, CD, PMSC,
FEC, CET, P. Eng.
Former Member of Parliament
Pickering-Scarborough East

    This year is the 154rd anniversary of a country still called Canada. Mired by the dark shadows of history and still in the mist of the Covid-19 generated pandemic we need to remember that we are still Canadians and be proud of it. As we reflect on past events from the beginning of the year, we hope that this year Canada Day will finally bring the nation a glimmer of hope and a better half for the remainder of 2021.

Let's take a moment to consider the incredible contributions made by Canadians throughout our history. Their efforts have helped to make the country what it is today; a country of vibrant cities and strong rural communities. Canada is a place where cultural freedom still flourishes, and Canadians from all backgrounds are still free to express themselves and help our country prosper despite recent tendencies to deny that.

Successive waves of immigrants from France, Ireland, Germany, the United Kingdom and other countries together with Indigenous people have helped to forge our nation's unique character. Through their efforts, our communities have become a distinct part of the Canadian identity which we need to preserve rather than deny. We should honour this legacy while we also recognize that we can do better in the future. Let's be proud of our combined anglophone and francophone heritage and seek a strong and constructive cooperation with our Indigenous people for a better Canada.

Canada was not born of bloody conflict.  It emerged from a lengthy process of brainstorming about practical matters, of negotiations, proposals, and legislative ratifications.

On July 1, 1867, the Confederation of four Canadian provinces created our country and with the inclusion of Lower Canada - now Quebec - it ensured from the outset that Canada would be a blend of two nations, two cultures and two languages. The acceptance of both civil and common law systems is a factor that still makes Canada a helpful player on the international scene.  And from the outset, religious tolerance was Canada's only option.

The enactment of the British North America Act, 1867 (today called the Constitution Act, 1867), which confederated Canada, was celebrated on July 1, 1867, with the ringing of the bells at the Cathedral Church of St. James in Toronto and "bonfires, fireworks and illuminations, excursions, military displays and musical and other entertainments", as described in contemporary accounts.

On June 20 of the following year, Governor General the Viscount Monck issued a royal proclamation asking for Canadians to celebrate the anniversary of Confederation.  However, the holiday was not established  statutorily until May 15, 1879, when it was designated as Dominion Day, alluding to the reference in the British North America Act to the country as a dominion.

The holiday was initially not dominant in the national calendar; any celebrations were mounted by local communities and the Governor General hosted a party at Rideau Hall.  No larger celebrations were held until 1917 and then none again for a further decade-the gold and diamond anniversaries of Confederation, respectively.

Canada's centennial in 1967 is often seen as an important milestone in the history of Canadian nationalism and in Canada's maturing as a distinct, independent country, after which Dominion Day became more popular with average Canadians.

Some Canadians were, by the early 1980s, informally referring to the holiday as Canada Day, a practice that caused some controversy. However, with the granting of Royal Assent, the holiday's name was officially changed to Canada Day on October 27, 1982. Canada Day coincides with Memorial Day in Newfoundland and Labrador, with memorials typically held in the morning of July 1.

As the anniversary of Confederation, Dominion Day, and later Canada Day, was the date set to commemorate a number of important events.

It was the first national radio network hookup by the Canadian National Railway (1927).

It was the inauguration of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation's cross-country television broadcast, with Governor General Vincent Massey's Dominion Day speech from Parliament Hill (1958) and the flooding of the Saint Lawrence Seaway (1958);

It was the first colour television transmission in Canada (1966); the inauguration of the Order of Canada (1967); and the establishment of "O Canada" as the country's national anthem (1980).

Other events fell on the same day coincidentally, such as the first day of the Battle of the Somme in 1916, shortly after which Newfoundland
recognized July 1 as Memorial Day to commemorate the Newfoundland Regiment's heavy losses during the battle.
.
Our nation is facing great challenges today, as never before. These include the coronavirus pandemic, the issues related to a dark spot on our history related to the infamous and ill-conceived residential schools, an economic downturn, high unemployment and social unrest. Let us again show that we support each other. This community spirit is one of the most admirable characteristics of being Canadian.

On July the 1st let's celebrate our country's achievements and use them, not our failings, as a foundation to build a better and a brighter future together.

Let's celebrate our unity and our treasured country.

Happy somber Canada Day!

Eat Healthy Without Breaking the Bank

  

Eat Healthy Without Breaking the Bank

 W. Gifford-Jones, M.D. and Diana Gifford-Jones
 How would you like to have a cart full of healthy foods and still save money? Anyone who does the grocery shopping will tell you, it is more expensive to buy the ingredients for a healthy diet like vegetables, nuts, fruit and fish than the refined grains, processed prepared foods and meats of an unhealthy diet. Is there a way to buy healthy and keep costs down?

Dr. Dariush Mozaffarian, Professor of Nutrition at the Tufts Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy, emphasizes that it is worth spending the time to spend your grocery dollars wisely. “We have seen again and again that people who eat more fruits and vegetables have a lower risk of heart disease, diabetes, cancers and other chronic diseases.”
His colleague, Dr. Jeffrey Blumberg, notes that planning makes a big difference in the food budget. He says, decide what you need for a week’s meals and buy only those items. Try to incorporate healthy meals that advantage of store deals. Build meals around items you already have in your pantry, and plan menus that are suitable for cooking extra portions that can be easily reheated for another meal.
Blumberg adds, look into the refrigerator to make good use of the things you already have. For items that have a long shelf life, buy bulk. Remember, when buying perishable foods consider what you will use promptly and freeze the rest.
Avoid purchasing ready-made meals. They are invariably more expensive than buying the ingredients.
There’s also a myth that organic selections are more nutritious than conventional counterparts. Dr Alice H. Lichtenstein, professor of nutrition and science policy, also at Tufts, says all fruits and vegetables (whether fresh, frozen, cooked or raw, organic or conventional) are health promoting choices from a nutritional standpoint.
Another misconception is that gluten-free foods are better for health than those that contain gluten. But Dr. Mozaffarian says replacing refined wheat products with refined rice and corn products may have some health gains but also possible harms. Gluten-free diets, according to studies at Tufts, were significantly lower in protein, magnesium, vitamin E, dietary fiber and higher in calories that most people do not need.
The point is that unless you are in the one percent of the population that suffers from celiac disease or the six percent that are thought to have non-celiac gluten sensitivity, there is no need for gluten-free foods. Save your money.

A few years ago, researchers showed that, on average, it cost $1.50 a day more to choose healthy foods when shopping in a supermarket. They also wisely suggested that you could save that much by saying “no” to coffee, dessert or some other goodie. These savings translate to better health for individuals and tremendous savings for families and governments in terms of health care expenditures down the road.
Finally, consider the impact of smarter shopping in terms of food wastage and environmental concerns. It is estimated that 30 to 40 percent of the North American food supply goes unconsumed every year. That is a matter of disgraceful waste and economic inefficiency. But the amount of food and food packaging that terminates unused in landfills is also an environmental problem that industry, governments and consumers all share. As consumers, when you shop, make a point of refusing to buy products in excessive or nonrecyclable packaging.
While there are still big challenges around easy and equitable access to nutritious and affordable food, you can take steps toward smarter shopping. In this uncertain world, remember this sage advice: a dollar saved is also a dollar earned.
Sign-up at www.docgiff.com to receive our weekly e-newsletter. For comments, contact-us@docgiff.com. Follow us Instagram @docgiff and @diana_gifford_jones

Don't Underestimate What Your Cover Letter Can Do

  Don't Underestimate What Your Cover Letter Can Do
By Nick Kossovan
Hopefully, you've been reading this column religiously. If you've been implementing my suggestions, you'll now have a stellar resume and LinkedIn profile. Congratulations, you're almost ready to conduct a serious job search. Yes, I said "almost."
With fingers-crossed, hoping the answer will be "No," every job seeker asks: Is a cover letter necessary?
Do hiring managers read cover letters in 2021? Not all of them, but many, such as I, still do.
Whether the hiring manager reads your cover letter shouldn't be your focus. Your focus should be, why take a chance? In previous columns, I've mentioned there's no universal hiring methodology; thus, there's no hard rule a cover letter is essential; however, why wouldn't you want to give yourself every competitive advantage possible?
A cover letter will never be held against you by a hiring manager who doesn't read them, but for those who do, not having a cover letter can mean your resume will not be read. As much as possible, throughout your job search, you want to stack the odds in your favour of getting a "yes" to move forward in the hiring process.

A cover letter is non-negotiable if:
- the job posting instructs applicants to include a cover letter with their resume (Many job seekers will still apply without a cover letter.),
- if you're applying directly to a particular person whose name you know, or
- if someone has referred you for the position.
Cover letters have one job-to get the reader to read your resume. Suppose your resume's recipient doesn't know you (a likely case). Why should they read your resume over the hundreds of other resumes they receive, many accompanied with a cover letter?
I read cover letters to assess your writing skills, a skill I value highly, and how well you can sell yourself-it's a critical component of my decision-making process. Call me old school, but I view not having a professionally written cover letter accompanying your resume as being lazy. I don't hire lazy, and I don't know any hiring manager who does.
The power of a cover letter is such that it's worth noting there've been several times where I've granted an interview based on the candidate's cover letter, even though their resume was far from impressive. Yes, a cover letter can make up for flaws in your resume.
Most importantly, use your cover letter to tell me something that isn't on your resume that'll help me decide you're worth my time to interview-convince me!
How do you make your cover letter convince the reader to call you in for the interview? First, grab them at "Hello." Next, draw them into your professional story, making sure you're coming across as a solid "Yes" to each of these questions:
- Can this person do the job?
- Will this person be liked?
- Will this person fit in? (Are they "one of us"?)
Your cover letter is your first opportunity to explain your value proposition (What you're able to bring to the employer.) and therefore stand out from the many other candidates just as qualified as you. It's also your chance to explain the reason(s) for any gaps in your employment and what you've been doing during the gap(s).

There are 5 parts to a cover letter:
1.Header (your contact information)
2.Greeting the hiring manager
3.First paragraph (introduction) - Grab the reader's attention with 2 - 3 of your top achievements.
4.    Second paragraph (sales pitch) - Persuade why you're the right candidate for the job.
5.    Third paragraph (closing, call to action)
TIP: When writing your cover letter, get into a headspace of writing to provide the reader with a sense of who you're going to be should they meet you (presuming you're invited in for an interview). Don't be afraid to convey your personality; it's your most straightforward high yielding approach to standing out from your competition.
Next week I'll be covering the first two parts (header, greeting the hiring manager) of crafting a cover letter that'll get the reader to read your resume. In subsequent columns, I'll discuss how to write the first, second and third paragraphs. Yes, there'll be plenty of examples.
Nick Kossovan, a well-seasoned veteran of the corporate landscape, offers advice on searching for a job. You can send him your questions at artoffindingwork@gmail.com.

PAY, PAY, PAY OR WE CUT YOU OFF

 

PAY, PAY, PAY OR WE CUT YOU OFF
By Joe Ingino
Editor/Publisher

“I live a dream in a nightmare world”   

    In an age of anti bullying, fairness, equality and the championing of rights and freedoms.    We surely have become ignorant of our realities.   For the longest time we have been paying through our nose for things like convenience, customer service and many more things that are presented as good for us the consumers when in reality they are in the best interest of the supplier.
When was the last time you took a look at one of your utility bills?  Have you noticed all the extra charges... and for what.?
Look at this natural gas bill for example:
Customer Charge $21.48 - CUSTOMER CHARGE!!!  WHAT IS THIS CHARGE FOR?  BEING A CUSTOMER.  SHOULD THIS CHARGE BE ON OUR BILL?
Delivery to You $33.25  DELIVERY TO (YOU) REALLY... IT COSTS $33.25 TO SEND ME YOUR PRODUCT OVER A PIPE THAT HAS BEEN IN THE GROUND FOR THE PAST 100 YEARS.   HOW DO THEY CALCULATE THIS DELIVERY COST?  THIS IN MY OPINION IS NOTHING BUT A MONEY GRAB.
Transportation to Enbridge $13.96  TO AD INSULT TO INJURY THE GAS COMPANY HAS THE BALLS TO CHARGE  YOU A TRANSPORTATION FEE TO ENBRIDGE.... LIKE REALLY... WE PAY TWO DELIVERY FEES FOR THE USE OF THE SAME PIPE.
Federal Carbon Charge $20.02  WOW... $20.02 FOR A GHOST TAX.  WE PAY MORE FOR THE CARBON TAX THAN THE ACTUAL USAGE OF THE GAS.
Gas Supply Charges $35.87  TECHNICALLY THIS IS THE ONLY AMOUNT THE CONSUMER SHOULD BE PAYING.... ALL THE OTHERS ARE NOTHING BUT LEGALIZED THEFT.
Cost Adjustment ($4.15)  GOD ONLY KNOWS WHAT THE ADJUSTMENT IS FOR.
Charges for Natural Gas $120.43    ON A $35.87 ACTUAL USAGE YOU PAY $100 MORE FOR ADDITIONAL CHARGES.
HST $15.66Total Charges for Natural Gas $136.09   REALLY.... IT SEEMS THAT EVERYONE GETS A PIECE OF THE PIE.
No wonder these companies make billions a year.   No wonder they have staff and new vehicles every other year.  No wonder they can look down at the ratepayers and threaten them with disconnection.  The utility companies hold you hostage with your own money.
   In this modern society we are raising people to follow and not to question.  Conformity is the norm.  You oppose you loose.  Companies are taking advantage of this and making millions in charges that they have no right to charge consumers.  Consumers have no choice but to pay.  How can we ever achieve equality when within our social systems so much goes unnoticed.  So many injustices, justified and so much wrong allowed?

Victimizing Canadian Retirees and Citizens living and working abroad

 

Victimizing Canadian Retirees and Citizens living and
working abroad
    by Maj (ret'd) CORNELIU E. CHISU, CD, PMSC,
FEC, CET, P. Eng.
Former Member of Parliament
Pickering-Scarborough East
   After mismanaging the Covid-19 pandemic so disastrously the Federal Government is still using the pandemic as an excuse to subject Canadians to medieval disease management strategies by locking down our borders for most international travel since February of this year.
Locking down when the rest of the developed world is getting the pandemic under control and is opening up, demonstrates just how ineffectively our leaders have managed. Closing the barn door when the horses have already left the barn is the saying that seems most appropriate.
The Federal Government, supported and advised by government scientist(?) - more like political lapdogs than independent and incorruptible thinkers - labelled as racist, any suggestion to close the border at the beginning of the crisis, when the pandemic was brewing in China.
After the virus arrived on our shores and was spreading rapidly in Canadian communities, excuse after excuse was made, spinning public fear and uncertainty round and round. Then came the brilliant suggestion that closing the border for non essential travel and discouraging Canadians from travelling abroad would keep out the infection that had already been allowed to penetrate and fester.
Defining non essential travel very loosely and allowing numerous exceptions resulted in roughly 40 per cent of arrivals from abroad entering Canada without screening or the requirement to enter quarantine. Is it any wonder that more variants appeared and the number of infections increased drastically?  Someone finally woke up in a woke culture sort of way and decided that now was the time to clamp down on border rules. They then started forcing returning Canadians to stay in Government designated hotels, paying excessive amounts of money for a purported three day stay in prison-like conditions, even if their COVID tests come back negative after one day and they go home to complete their unnecessary quarantine.
The people hardest hit by these draconian rules were Canadian retirees. The snow birds who, after a lifetime of working to build Canada, were finally taking the time to enjoy the sun during the harsh Canadian winter months, mostly in the United States, in Florida.
As the United States accelerated Covid-19 vaccinations, fully vaccinating a high percentage of their people as well as many Canadians, Canada fell drastically behind.  Canada's pace of vaccinations was erratic and slow, both due to lack of supply and dysfunctionality in administration by the provinces.  Furthermore, the Canadian Government has behaved irrationally in refusing to recognize that fully vaccinated returning Canadians pose no danger to the local population.  In other parts of the world, fully vaccinated individuals don't even have to wear masks. Oblivious to all, they continue to apply their draconian rules when the World around Canada is opening at an accelerated pace.
Never mind that while they ruminate in their ivory towers their delusional views are destroying the economy of this country.  The tourist industry has particularly suffered, now being held in a strangle hold for the second summer in a row.  At this rate it will take years to recover from the early grave the industry has been relegated to.
Some among the thousands of affected retirees are expressing frustration over having to undergo the federally mandated hotel quarantine - even after getting fully vaccinated with one of the Health Canada approved COVID-19 vaccines.  Is this a ploy by the Federal government to attempt to rescue the struggling hotel industry? The quarantine measures, which went into effect in late February, include additional PCR tests for those flying back once they arrive.  Remember, they already tested negative to be allowed to board the plane. And then there is the $2,000 per person surcharge, paid out of pocket, for the pleasure of being herded to an undisclosed location where you are confined to your room with limited access to food and water, and no ability to communicate with the outside world until released. The reason for the restrictions - at least according to Health Canada and several self-appointed immunology experts - is that while vaccines are effective at preventing severe illness in those who have contracted the disease, it still isn't clear whether being vaccinated prevents a person from spreading the virus.
Dithering over their initial failures to act in a timely fashion, these same ineffectual policy makers now stick to their mediaeval solutions, generating furor at the federal government's mandate among Canadians returning from popular warm destinations.
"All of us snowbirds returning to Canada will be fully vaccinated, thanks to the U.S. giving us the vaccine. And yet you still want us to hotel quarantine when we could more safely quarantine at home," wrote one snowbird.
In previous interviews with Global News, Canadian snowbirds also expressed frustration over the strict measures, saying that they shouldn't be forced into hotel quarantine with other incoming non vaccinated travelers.  
Since people were able to get the vaccine abroad, they should at least be able to quarantine at home instead of having to pay for three super expensive days at a hotel.
Ignoring the vaccination status of returning Canadians also results in incorrect statistics when reporting the number of vaccinated Canadians.  Doesn't that bother anyone who might be in a position to change the rules?  Perhaps not.  After all, as Churchill once said, 'there are lies, there are damned lies, and then there are statistics'.
The Canadian Snowbirds Association (CSA) voiced discontent over the forced hotel quarantine measures as well. "To force Canadian citizens to pay over $2,000 for three nights of accommodation in a government-approved hotel is unreasonable and will be a financial hardship for many," wrote CSA President Karen Huestis in Feb. 1 letter to Transportation Minister Omar Alghabra. While the CSA is supportive of point of entry testing for COVID-19 at all Canadian airports and land crossings, they are firmly opposed to the mandatory hotel quarantine measure imposed by the federal government.
This action from the Federal Government is a clear affront to the seniors of Canada who are responsible people. They have demonstrated that by their lifetime achievements, and they should be entitled to enjoy their well deserved retirement.
Some of them went to the United States and were vaccinated in the prescribed time, unlike fellow Canadians who stayed home and are forced to wait for months to receive their second dose of a vaccine, not even sure that they will receive the same brand, or even that the vaccine they receive has not expired. These foreign vaccinated citizens are not a burden on the Canadian health system and they feel they are being treated like criminals by both the federal and provincial governments. They deserve better.
Let's not allow the limited outlook and ability of our current leaders to cast such a giant blight over their enjoyment of a well deserved retirement.

Heading Nowhere

 Direct Answers
from Wayne & Tamara

Heading Nowhere
  Q About 16 years ago, I fell in love with an elegant, well-educated, good-looking woman. We were madly in love and became a couple. I had just stepped out of a bad separation, but her divorce was even worse.
     Our relationship soon got disturbed by strange events on her side, mostly when alcohol was involved—extreme jealousy, silence, and a domineering attitude.  Sometimes she sent me away; other times I left the scene because I could not cope.  On one Christmas Eve holiday she left me at the dinner table, took a plane, and went home.
     My attempts to get her back were amazing; I even painted messages on the walls on the way to her house.  A couple of times I tried to forget her with another relationship, but after some months I missed her so much I went back.  She always received me with open arms, and we started all over again.
     Strangely, during our separations she never tried to contact me or explain her attitude.  Last year I gave it one last try, and she coldly asked me to leave.  I left heartbroken and burned my bridges, even sending her a nasty e-mail for the first time.  Since then she haunts my mind; she was the love of my life.  How can I get over this without hurting myself any longer?
Alex

A Alex, you were in an on-again, off-again relationship for 16 years. You want to focus on the on-again part, but that is not where your attention should be. You should focus on what was wrong. You should focus on the part that wasn’t there.
     In 16 years a child could go from the first day in school to a university degree.  In that same period you could have had a 16 year marriage to the right person.  But you kept going back to something which was not working, and now, because you have not found another to be with, you focus on the good times with her.
     She was with you because of her personality quirks and perhaps her alcoholism.  Without those quirks and that habit, would she have been with you at all?  If she were sober now, would she want you in her life as a reminder of her befuddled past?
     Some people can only quit a bad habit when it goes to an extreme.  They won’t watch their weight until they need to inject insulin.  They won’t quit chewing tobacco until they’ve lost part of their cheek or gum.  They are always behind, always in arrears.  Their books are always overdue.
     If you are going to have someone for the rest of your life, be open to it now.  Life never goes backwards.  It goes forward.

Wayne & Tamara                                             write:  Directanswers@WayneAndTamara.com

OPUC LOVE LETTER

 

OPUC LOVE LETTER
By Joe Ingino
Editor/Publisher

“I live a dream in a nightmare world”   

       I remember the days of Gordon Burnette.  The longest standing OPUC voted chair.   During his reign at the OPUC.  The OPUC was the pride of Oshawa.  No one went without power and the man was a true  gentleman.
  Gordon was the type of person that believed in helping those he represented.  Many would come up to him and explain their financial situation and Gordon would make sure these folk would not get turned off.  He understood the value of a dollar and most importantly hardships.
Gordon and honest man to a fault.   The OPUC never ran on a deficit and every penny was accounted for.   He did not take a penny of reenumeration as any benefits he would donate back to the community.   Today’s OPUC is nothing short of sham.  A huge cash cow for the City... And yes we the people of Oshawa own the OPUC.    Under the  Diamond era... in her hate for Gordon.  She had vowed to destroy the OPUC.   Gordon and Diamond never agreed on much as Diamond was very selfish in her ways as if you did not agree with her.  You had a enemy for life.  I remember on one occasion Nancy calling Gord and old goat and Gord turn around calling her and old cow.  This sparked the first MMA type of fight half way thru a OPUC meeting.
I remember stepping in between them as Nancy at 6.5, 300lb and Gord at 5.1 barely 150lb was not going to turn out well for Gord.
When the government passed the resolution to abolish PUBLIC - part of the Utility.  The utility incorporated.  The City kept control of the utility but now had to hire outsiders to run the daily business.  
Since then the utility has operated as a run away train. Accountable to no one and hire men like  Ivanno Labricciosa.   An outsider with a questionable history.    The current management run business with an iron boot.   All they seem to care about is preserving their jobs and keeping what they make a secret.
Just recently people have been calling me to verify if the letters they are getting in the mail are valid.   Apparently our good community minded managers at the OPUC  are mailing out disconnection notices with a warning of service cancellation.  This leaving many consumers fuming.    In the middle of covid and they have the balls to send out these notices... Wow...  yet this Labricciosa sits on the Mayor’s useless economic recovery task force.  What the hell does he know about recovery.. and helping those that need it.   This same man use to sit in the BIA.  Really, who is this masked man.   I should not be so hard on him as he is proof of all that is wrong in the city.   People with little or no experience in the real needs of those on the front line on one hand giving themselves false importance by showing up at brown nose committees and tasks forces only to turn around and under his watch send out threats and harassment to his customers during Covid.  I call for his resignation.  We need leaders not hypocrites.   The OPUC needs to be accountable to the people that pay their wages.