Sign in

OttGuy

@gahb13.bsky.social
100 followers 73 following 104 posts

Canadian, Dad, Rugby player, Skier, bicyclists

PostsRepliesMedia
Reposted by OttGuy
Fair Vote Canada 🗳️🍁 @fairvote.ca · 08/10/2026
Great CBC article on how first-past-the-post has distorted Quebec's democracy. The PQ, QS, and PCQ all committed to electoral reform during the election campaign. Now is the time to make that happen. www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...
cbc.ca
Parti Québécois win with record-low vote share revives calls for electoral reform | CBC News
A record-low vote share for Quebec's incoming PQ government has reignited a long-simmering debate over how the province elects its leaders.
37567
Reposted by OttGuy
Justin Ling @justinling.ca · 28/09/2026
NEW DISPATCH: When the going gets tough, legitimate opposition is needed more than ever. www.bugeyedandshameless.com/p/good-leade...
bugeyedandshameless.com
Good Leaders Need Candid Friends
Legitimate opposition spurs innovation, even if it irks
03210
Reposted by OttGuy
Alex Bozikovic @alexbozikovic.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
An elderly couple doesn't like the new housing going up next door. So what? This is not news. They'll suffer minor inconvenience. But no one is forcing them to move. And they have the freedom to sell their big multimillion-dollar house and live comfortably elsewhere.
cbc.ca
Toronto needs more homes. These neighbours say they're paying the price | CBC News
An elderly downtown couple says they’re shocked and upset that the city has approved a duplex next door to their three-story Victorian home that they say will tower metres above their chimney and rend...
610417
Reposted by OttGuy
The New Orleans @theneworleans.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
Allowing small independent shops within residential neighbourhoods can enhance community livability and sustainability. We need to change zoning rules to foster walkable, vibrant communities while addressing potential concerns about noise and traffic.
theneworleans.ca
Walkable Suburbs Aren’t Enough
Allowing small independent shops within residential neighbourhoods can enhance community livability and sustainability. We need to change zoning rules to foster walkable, vibrant communities while addressing potential concerns about noise and traffic.
063
Reposted by OttGuy
Strong Towns Ottawa @strongtownsottawa.ca · 15/08/2026
Amazing stuff. It might not seem like much but this is just as important as transit oriented development, safe cycling infrastructure, good pedestrian connections, and all of that!
151
Reposted by OttGuy
Oh The Urbanity! @ohtheurbanity.bsky.social · 28/07/2026
Blocking housing for not being affordable enough does not make housing more affordable.
39913
Reposted by OttGuy
Janet Bufton 🍁🌻 @janetbufton.ca · 16/07/2026
"We say ‘never again,' but somewhere someone is being tortured right now, and acute fear has again become the most common form of social control." (Judith Shklar, "The Liberalism of Fear")
073
Reposted by OttGuy
Dr. Todd Arrington @btarrington.bsky.social · 28/06/2026
“You can only protect your liberties in this world by protecting the other man’s freedom. You can only be free if I am free.” ~Clarence Darrow. Image: Associated Press.
This black and white photo shows a man—Clarence Darrow—standing and wearing a light suit with a dark tie. He looks directly at the camera.
4537119
Reposted by OttGuy
John Michael McGrath @jm-mcgrath.bsky.social · 26/06/2026
North America (and specifically Ontario) is going to become an island market for gasoline and diesel cars and trucks that's totally defenseless against the EV wave that's coming, and I genuinely don't know what policymakers think is gonna happen.
1010232
OttGuy @gahb13.bsky.social · 23/06/2026
The response should be to improve the reasons to stay, not to try to punish those that decide to leave for whatever reason.
020
Reposted by OttGuy
Sarah McLaughlin @sarahemclaugh.bsky.social · 17/06/2026
You should be able to criticize your government anonymously. And research medical issues. And discuss your sexuality. Or maybe even talk about an abusive partner or family. People have very good reasons to separate their speech from their identity and owe you no explanation or justification.
29721
Reposted by OttGuy
Jason Paris @jasonparis.bsky.social · 07/06/2026
PULL QUOTE: "If density was allowed in more of Toronto, the pressure to develop main streets for new housing would be far less. That’s not Doug Ford’s meddling, that’s Toronto city council doing what the loudest voters and residents groups wanted."
thestar.com
Shawn Micallef: Toronto has nobody to blame but itself with the possible closure of this cultural landmark
A bar like Sneaky Dee's defines a social scene. Now, we could lose it
2559
Reposted by OttGuy
The New Orleans @theneworleans.bsky.social · 06/06/2026
Cassie Smith's Master's thesis examines non-work trips in Ottawa, emphasizing the need for sustainable urban mobility. Using a feminist lens, she highlights the gap between proposed reforms and their execution very clearly. Her findings urge for decisive action to reshape community transport habits
theneworleans.ca
This Master’s Thesis Pinpoints Why Ottawa’s Transportation Policy is “Oops, All Cars!”
Cassie Smith's Master's thesis examines non-work trips in Ottawa, emphasizing the need for sustainable urban mobility. Using a feminist lens, she highlights the gap between proposed reforms and their execution very clearly. Her findings urge for decisive action to reshape community transport habits away from car dependency.
0239
Reposted by OttGuy
It's Jamie @sjamieit.bsky.social · 04/06/2026
I drew a picture.
062
OttGuy @gahb13.bsky.social · 01/06/2026
Jamie doing awesome work again making city data clear to residents. Our infrastructure debt from delayed maintenance is huge and growing.
000
Reposted by OttGuy
UNITED24 Media @united24media.com · 31/05/2026
⚡️Russia is trying to swap stolen Ukrainian children for prisoners of war, a demand Zelenskyy calls illegal and proof of their crimes.
13672253
Reposted by OttGuy
It's Jamie @sjamieit.bsky.social · 01/06/2026
Looks like the city is trying to blame "service enhancements" like complete streets as a reason for why we're so behind on infrastructure renewal - rather than decades of low taxes and maintenance deferrals. That last chart is my own and it shows the year required for road resurfacing, big backlog.
6127
Reposted by OttGuy
Meredith Martin 🇨🇦 @meredithmartin.bsky.social · 01/06/2026
🍌🍌🍌 “…a senior couple earning up to a combined $181,994 can each receive the full benefit, while a couple over 75 earning up to $308,392 can each still receive a partial benefit.” 🍌🍌🍌
theglobeandmail.com
Opinion: As Canada faces crippling debt, it must do the unpopular thing and cut elderly benefits
The government can reduce its spending while better targeting those genuinely in need
021
Reposted by OttGuy
Matt Gurney @mattgurney.bsky.social · 22/05/2026
"Democracy is not a bunch of the most cowardly people on Earth putting an existential vote on the table without demonstrating even the minimum moral integrity to defend that very vote. This isn’t democracy. This is an abuse of process." Jen Gerson on the news from Alberta. She's not a fan!
2308
Reposted by OttGuy
Jeff Kraemer @jeffkraemer.bsky.social · 22/05/2026
Hell yes to this, by @justinling.ca. Canada should do all it can to support Ukraine.
thestar.com
Justin Ling: When the war in Ukraine finally ends, will Canada be able to say it did all it could?
We know good news doesn't always last long in Ukraine. That's why the coalition of the willing needs to capitalize on this momentum shift.
14514
Reposted by OttGuy
Bicycle Seen @frpaul1.bsky.social · 08/05/2026
Kids want to bike to the same places, no matter which generation. Growing up in the 70s and 80s, we rode to school, friends' homes, parks, museum and public pools (there was no admission fee to museums and pools back then). Why do so many adults today don't want kids to have what they had as kids?
043
Reposted by OttGuy
Meredith Martin 🇨🇦 @meredithmartin.bsky.social · 08/05/2026
There's been a lot of discussion over the years about how Canada's population of young people isn't growing fast enough to support the growing number of elderly. A lot of talk about how these young people are going to be financially squeezed. Guess what? It's happening.
144
Reposted by OttGuy
Justin Ling @justinling.ca · 08/05/2026
I continue to be flabbergasted that other (non-insane) governments aren't making similar changes. The Canadian government won't shut up about how important "digital sovereignty" is, and then it pours resources into posting everything to Twitter and Facebook.
14384130
Reposted by OttGuy
Strong Towns Ottawa @strongtownsottawa.ca · 02/04/2026
Please check out the campaign for bikeshare in Ottawa and sign on to their petition! It's a no brainer especially after seeing how successful bikeshare has been around the world. Having easy, reliable, and cheap access to a bike would be a huge quality of life improvement for residents!
1238
Reposted by OttGuy
Bike Ottawa @bikeottawa.bsky.social · 24/03/2026
If our elected officials cared about the safety of people outside of cars, starting with kids, we wouldn’t need crossing guards. Our streets would be safe regardless of human error. But here we are. A crossing guard lost their life on duty. We should all be outraged.1/3 www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...
cbc.ca
Ottawa school crossing guard dies after being hit by truck | CBC News
A school crossing guard has died after being injured in a hit-and-run collision in south Ottawa Monday morning, according to city police.
2449
Reposted by OttGuy
John Michael McGrath @jm-mcgrath.bsky.social · 23/03/2026
zoning rules aren't opaque by accident! cities want the rules to be hard to navigate because they don't want new construction! make the process easier with computers and cities will just make the process even harder!
2144
Reposted by OttGuy
Jim M @hockeyinottawa.bsky.social · 15/03/2026
I want to point out this graph STO is referring to, and take it for a little walk. Because this should be, by all accounts the nail in the coffin of listening to any BIA when they complain about parking ever again @arieltroster.com @shawnmenard.bsky.social @seandevine9.bsky.social @glengower.ca 1/?
2227
Reposted by OttGuy
Strong Towns Ottawa @strongtownsottawa.ca · 18/03/2026
Wow, whoever the Glebe BIA hired for their retail analysis really knows what they're talking about! They directly tell the BIA that the on-street parking on Bank Street is not needed for local businesses, and that there are plenty of available spaces around that are cheaper to use!
A page from the Glebe BIA Retail Market and Gap Analysis Final Report. The highlighted section says "  The analysis concluded that 
even if on-street parking were removed along 
Bank St, there would still be parking available 
on side streets and in the parkades; however, 
the businesses who participated in the study 
perceived there to be an inadequate supply of 
parking. The study posited that the perceived 
lack of parking is likely due to the underutilization 
and lack of awareness about the existing parking 
garages, which cost the same or less than on￾street parking along Bank St."
47327
Reposted by OttGuy
André Picard @picardonhealth @picardonhealth.bsky.social · 18/03/2026
In the MAID debates, the patient’s voice must take precedence over the dogma of anti-choice activists, by @picardonhealth.bsky.social www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/arti... via @theglobeandmail.com
theglobeandmail.com
Opinion: In the MAID debates, the patient’s voice must take precedence
As Canada’s medical assistance in dying regime is expanded, those who want it shouldn’t be silenced
1518
Reposted by OttGuy
Strong Towns Ottawa @strongtownsottawa.ca · 15/03/2026
An amazing member of ours put together this graphic that really encapsulates perfectly the situation on Bank Street. There is only so much space available, and we must use it as efficiently as possible. Parking isn't that. Please sign up to delegate on March 30th in favour of bus lanes!
An OC Transpo #6 bus in a bus lane. Inside of the bus there are multiple people, each with a text showing what they're going to be doing. They say "Grabbing a bite to eat", "Going to Lansdowne", "Getting a haircut", "Bought groceries", and "Can finally fit on the bus". The final one was a user in a wheelchair.

Beside the bus there is a single person in a truck in the regular travel lane. Pointing to him it says "Just driving through". They have a thought bubble coming out from their head saying "That bus lane is going to ruin local business!".
2362103
Reposted by OttGuy
Justin Ling @justinling.ca · 05/03/2026
today, like every day, is a good day to challenge the absurd leaps of logic underpinning the "we don't need more homes, actually" argument
04612
Reposted by OttGuy
André Picard @picardonhealth @picardonhealth.bsky.social · 05/03/2026
We’re blaming our overstuffed ERs, excruciating surgery waits and family doctor deserts on exactly the wrong people. The old “blame the immigrants” narrative has made a comeback, by @drgorfinkel.bsky.social www.thestar.com/opinion/cont... via @thestar.com
thestar.com
Iris Gorfinkel: We’re blaming our overstuffed ERs, excruciating surgery waits and family doctor deserts on exactly the wrong people
As wait times soar and millions struggle without a family doctor, the old “blame the immigrants” narrative has made a comeback in Canadian politics and media. This kind of rhetoric
56027
Reposted by OttGuy
Cara Stern @carastern.bsky.social · 28/02/2026
The City of Toronto approved six-storey units on major roads. But bureaucracy is still killing these projects. I was so mad about this article, I had to rant about it. I can't believe councillors are still fighting for "neighbourhood character" in 2026. www.thestar.com/news...
39524
Reposted by OttGuy
David Noll @david.noll.org · 21/02/2026
Next para: "A regime of secret policing has no place in our society. Here, the Government’s power is derived by the People, and the People must be able to identify the Government when it acts to infringe on their liberty."
42104373
OttGuy @gahb13.bsky.social · 19/02/2026
The housing theory of everything, where rising housing costs are either the root or significant part of so many other societal issues.
000
Reposted by OttGuy
Alex Bozikovic @alexbozikovic.bsky.social · 25/01/2026
The $113-million mess of a community centre I wrote about this week is 100% funded from “development charges.” It is going in a neighbourhood with zero population growth. In part, these charges are a tax on newcomers to subsidize existing wealthy homeowners. globalnews.ca/news/1163476...
globalnews.ca
Toronto may cancel new community centres, libraries if development funding dries up - Toronto | Globalnews.ca
The city's chief financial officer reiterated that roughly $300 million had been deferred as revenue from development charges dries up, adding that some projects may be cancelled.
57620
Reposted by OttGuy
Oh The Urbanity! @ohtheurbanity.bsky.social · 19/01/2026
Housing. The #1 most alienating thing about Canada to young people is the extraordinary cost of housing. As a housing nerd, I know it’s mainly municipal/provincial, not federal. But Poilievre identified a sore spot that the Liberals have long seemed out-of-touch on.
211013
Reposted by OttGuy
Justin Ling @justinling.ca · 14/01/2026
The Economist has conducted a poll of Venezuelans' political mood — they overwhelmingly support the ouster of Nicolas Maduro and almost-universally want a genuine democracy, not a Trump rebrand of the existing autocracy. www.economist.com/graphic-deta...
Poll showing nearly 50% of Venezuelans would vote for Maria Corina Machado or Edmundo Gonzalez in fresh elections, with just 10% supporting Vice President Delcy RoriguezPoll result showing 50%+ agree with the US' capture of Maduro, just 10% oppose
25210
Reposted by OttGuy
Rob Attrell @robattrell.bsky.social · 12/01/2026
I hate to be the one to break it to the suburbs but the only way to truly get denser housing that 'matches the neighbourhood character' is to have built it that way decades ago. Starting today, the only option is to change what you accept as 'neighbourhood character'.
062
Reposted by OttGuy
M. Nolan Gray 🥑 @mnolangray.bsky.social · 31/12/2025
I think the most effectively way to frame this issue is, "Don't you want choice in where you live and how you get around?" When framed this way, multimodal reforms transform from a burden (e.g. "we have to do this because of climate change/sprawl/costs/etc") into an amenity.
511723
Reposted by OttGuy
Allison Gill @muellershewrote.com · 26/12/2025
Can someone please respond to Stephen Miller with this message from Frank Sinatra?
1087205727039
Reposted by OttGuy
Brent Toderian @brenttoderian.bsky.social · 23/12/2025
For those who actually care about evidence-based city-making, there’s a ton of evidence that decongestion pricing has been a massive success in New York City, by every measure of success, and many ways that can’t be measured.
330799
Reposted by OttGuy
Brent Toderian @brenttoderian.bsky.social · 20/12/2025
What does it take to move 1000 people? Smart infrastructure supporting choices that don’t take up so much space (or produce so much emissions/pollution, cost so much public money etc). Mobility in cities is about space. Graphic via @seattlesubway.org based on a Sydney graphic I spread years ago.
Graphic asking “What does it take to move 1000 people? One linked train with four cars, 15 buses, or 625 cars requiring over 5 acres of parking.”
9309124
Reposted by OttGuy
The New Orleans @theneworleans.bsky.social · 18/12/2025
✨New Post✨ It's time to legalize the village. We can’t afford to subsidize low-density, exclusionary sprawl anymore. It’s time to choose municipal sustainability over outdated zoning. 🏘️📉📈 #Ottawa #Zoning #StrongTowns
theneworleans.ca
My Delegation and Comments on Final Draft of Zoning By-laws – December 2025 - The New Orleans
The city has been working for the last several years to finalize a brand-new set of Zoning By-laws to replace the current ones from 2008. December 17 was the last chance to speak publicly with city co...
196
Reposted by OttGuy
Alex Bozikovic @alexbozikovic.bsky.social · 15/12/2025
Ford closed the science centre for no reason, is shrinking it dramatically, and gov’t doesn’t want you to know the truth about this. My column: www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/toron...
theglobeandmail.com
Doug Ford shrinks Ontario Science Centre to fit in temporary home at Toronto Harbourfront
The space is a fraction of the size of the original building in Don Mills, which has been closed since June, 2024
10268136
Reposted by OttGuy
Strong Towns Ottawa @strongtownsottawa.ca · 14/12/2025
This wonderful piece, about new incremental housing going up, written by Sharon Nyangweso was shared in our group. We really think this couldn't have been said better. We cannot lock our neighbourhoods into stasis if we want them to thrive. We need to be adaptable and allow for incremental growth.
The first page of Sharon Nyangweso's article talking about incremental developments in Beechwood, and how it is necessary to not lock our city's in time by opposing incremental change.The second page of Sharon Nyangweso's article talking about incremental developments in Beechwood, and how it is necessary to not lock our city's in time by opposing incremental change.
1133
Reposted by OttGuy
Janet Bufton 🍁🌻 @janetbufton.ca · 14/12/2025
I think there will he an opportunity for non-U.S. jurisdictions to capitalize on backlash to RFK and start fixing that problem, if people can bring themselves to stop handing it to him when it comes to their pet bit of wellness quackery.
021
Reposted by OttGuy
Strong Towns Ottawa @strongtownsottawa.ca · 11/12/2025
Let's get this in Ottawa ASAP! So many more types of housing would be unlocked by this. We need to learn from the rest of the world, rather than being stuck in outdated building practices.
0111
Reposted by OttGuy
Sean Devine @seandevine9.bsky.social · 07/12/2025
It's a perfect example of why denigrating a healthy debate on police reform bothers me. It not only ignores proven solutions to reduce crime rates but bypasses a much-needed opportunity to address the hugely growing cost of policing, a cost that doesn’t always translate into increased safety. 6/
1172
Reposted by OttGuy
Gio Petti @giopetti.bsky.social · 28/11/2025
No longer waiting for a bus, now waiting for a train. Proud to announce the sequel to DUDE, WHERE'S MY BUS?... A TRAIN TO NOWHERE! Releasing January 2026! m.youtube.com/watch?v=RGKe...
m.youtube.com
THE TRAIN TO NOWHERE | Official Teaser Trailer (2026) Documentary
YouTube video by GioTV1
096