I have to say that I am a big fan of talk radio when politics or fascinating social phenomena are being discussed. In the hands of consummate artists like John Oakley, Charles Adler or even the galling John Moore, the topics are kept on course and listeners are spared the meanderings of myriad stuttering windbags. That being said I have noticed of late that there is an ever increasing demand by normally reasonable callers for government regulation to mend the salient issues of the day. A hot topic in Toronto this week is the strange increase is pedestrian deaths; we have had fourteen deaths in fourteen days. Without falling into the weather is not the climate argument – I tend to think of this as a run of bad luck rather than a new cause for MADD Canada.
Most people of good will hate to see people get killed even by their own carelessness, so the kneejerk reaction is to demand that government do something and fast. This is music to the ears of agenda driven politicians who can then craft a solution that taps into the angst of the moment to support their ingenious schemes. Already cash strapped pols are proposing that the speed limits in Toronto should be reduced - for safety reasons of course, but if revenue from speeding tickets were to go up, all the better. Perhaps unbearably slow speeds will finally cause the exasperation level to peak and drivers will flock to the TTC.
My point is lets not give them the ammo to blow a hole in our last vestiges of self-respect. Walking carelessly through traffic in a great metropolitan neighbourhood carries a hefty disincentive, namely death. So I think we should tell the politicians to stay out of this talking point and be more careful when they cross the street. I might not see them in time!
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