2 Friday, February 3, 2017 brooklintowncrier.com Less than Half the Picture By Richard Bercuson Highway 412 - Cha-ching! For $2400, I could replace my wonky printer, buy new tires for the SUV, and still afford a weekend in, say, New York City, though we wouldn't be able to afford to eat. Such is the approximate cost for a year of traveling highway 412 from the Baldwin or Thickson exits to the 401, return. Count on a toonie per day more, another $400-plus, if using Simcoe. This to travel one way to the 401, 14.631 km from Baldwin, 16.22 km from Thickson, and a whopping 19.76 km from Simcoe (figures from 407 ETR). Those considering the Thickson entrance/exit ramps will save 47 cents each day if they use Baldwin instead. That's over $200 in annual savings for contributing to turn Winchester Road into a vehicular conga line. Then there's this: If the Whitby tax increase becomes 4.5%, which is council's target, a homeowner with a $6,000 annual bill will pay $270 more. While I had my difficulties with linear algebra in university, this mathematical comparison is pretty simple: $2800 > $270 - by an awful lot. (Editor's note: the word 'awful' should never be used unless something is indeed awful, or if the editor himself writes it.) Last week, Premier Kathleen "Going with the Wind" Wynne informed Toronto Mayor John Tory that the province will not support tolls on the Don Valley Parkway nor Gardiner Expressway. Just last summer, she said she would. Instead, the province will increase its share of the gas tax we pay from $0.02 to $0.04 and funnel the extra funds to municipalities over the next four years. By then, I suspect she'll be job hunting. Here in Durham Region, where over 600,000 residents live on the fringe of the GTA with thousands commuting to the city, we still get to pay tolls, the money from which goes to the province. Toll collections from the two Toronto roads would have gone to Toronto. But it's not hard to see how provincial poobahs could have justified the 412 toll by stating that folks in Toronto would be fleeced, too. Paupered lambs to the same slaughter, I suppose. Well, now they're not. They get to keep their free parking lots. For us, it's cha-ching every blessed day. Don't like it much? Then write directly to Ontario Minister of Transportation Steven Del Luca. His constituency office address is: Unit 3, 5100 Rutherford Road, Woodbridge, ON, L4H 2J2. Email: sdelduca.mpp. co@liberal.ola.org Do you recall the scene near the end of the film Miracle on 34th Street? Bags of mail were dragged into the courtroom and letters poured onto the judge's desk, burying him. Do that. Scrap the email. The stamp will cost you a loonie, or about 3.5 km on the 412. Notes from the Women's March on Washington (Editor's note: Local residents Marissa McTasney and Kristi Honey organized the Canadian caravan of buses that travelled to Washington for the Jan. 21 March. Kristi Honey provided the BTC with this exclusive insider's look at what happened) Jan. 16 - Marissa and I arrive -We worked around the clock - some days we didn't leave the hotel room and ate our first meal at 9:30 at night. A couple of times we got the shakes and had to go downstairs to look for food - There were endless details to finalize, re-finalize, new problems and issues to resolve, and people to inform. We went to the capital, and the African American History museum for a break for a few hours one day. We met with Shyra - a board member for the National Congress of Black Women. Mostly we worked in front of our laptops for 20+ hours a day. Jan. 19 - Marissa emails instructions to participants about baggage requirements, what to do if you want a window seat (see the bus captain) and that March kits and toques are sold out. - We just hit 600 Canadians and now at 8 buses from our contingent from Canada to DC (+3 more buses). - Insane day - worked from 5 am straight thru - reconciling database to spreadsheet, moving people around buses to be with their friends and family - oh, the stories! So powerful. Bev is 70 - flying from Kelowna to Toronto to take our bus. She had a hip replacement 9 weeks ago, and she marched all day long - from 8 AM to late afternoon - not stopping. She fought for equality in the 60s and 70s and said she wouldn't miss the opportunity to be in DC. - Busy with waivers, media, registrations and details - Went to Bodega's for dinner with Ginney - woman in 50s who said she had to be here - her father's American and won 4 Bronze stars and not for Trump. So powerful but absolutely exhausting - Complete strangers hugging us in the streets when they found out we're in town Jan. 20 (Inauguration Day) - Up at 6 am and out the door. We Who will be the next Whitby Idol? The search is on for Whitby's next singing superstar! Whitby youth aged 12 to 18 are invited to showcase their vocal talents in the 13th annual Whitby Idol competition. For the first time in Whitby Idol history, auditions were open to sing- ing groups in addition to solo acts. Aspiring Idols applied online for auditions which will take place on Thursday, February 9, 5:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. at The Music Scene (1916 Dundas Street East). The 15 audition finalists will perform live on stage at the Centen- nial Building Theatre during the Whitby Idol Finale on Thursday, March 2. Whitby Idol finalists will spend time in the studio, recording their hits at The Music Scene. They'll continue to live the pop star dream throughout 2017 as they take the stage and perform their songs at a number of Town events. Whitby Idol is presented by the Whitby Youth Council. The Whitby Council consists of youth and adults from local schools, agencies and organizations who work together to address the needs of Whitby youth. Whitby Youth Council create fun, engaging opportunities for youth to get involved in their community. For further details on Whitby Youth initiatives and events, visit whitby. ca/youth. continued on page 3 "Proud to be a Brooklinite" Founded in 2000 • Published 24 times annually Editor, Richard Bercuson 613-769-8629 • editorofbtc@gmail.com Locally owned and operated. A publication of Appletree Graphic Design Inc. We accept advertising in good faith but do not endorse advertisers nor advertisements. All editorial submissions are subject to editing. For advertising information, contact: Marissa Campbell at 905-243-3655 Email: yeswomanbrooklin@gmail.com Next Issue: Friday, February 17, 2017 Deadline: Friday, February 10, 2017 Free Candlelit Snowshoe Event CLOCA's Candlelit Snowshoe at Enniskillen Conservation Area is Friday, February 17 from 7:00 pm - 9:00 pm. The recommended minimum age is 5 years old. Registration, while free, is required as snowshoes are limited for this self- guided event. In case of poor snow conditions, you can explore the trails without snowshoes. Parking is free. Flashlights are discouraged. Participants can bring their own snowshoes and or walking poles. No pets allowed. For more information, please contact Cathy Grant, at (905) 579- 0411, ext. 108 or email: cgrant@ cloca.com. To see a map to the site or to register for the event visit www.cloca.com.