Scarborough MP ‘rammed’ in hit-and-run

Parliament of Canada photo.

A member of Parliament who was “rammed” by an apparently intoxicated hit-and-run driver Friday night is using the incident to speak out against impaired driving.

Rathika Sitsabaiesan, NDP MP for Scarborough-Rouge River, said she suffered a minor back injury while leaving her Scarborough home in the passenger seat of her friend’s car.

See my report in the Toronto Star.

72-hour delays leave Air India passengers frustrated, fuming

Anil Chawla came to Pearson airport Friday at 8:30 a.m. with the aim of flying off to visit relatives in India over Christmas. He left the airport some 12 hours later, unsure when he’d be taking off.

Air India passengers were left frustrated and fuming after Flight 188 to New Delhi was grounded for a second day on Sunday. It was to have departed at around noon on Friday, but has now been rescheduled twice. The current departure is scheduled 72 hours after the original.

See my report in the Toronto Star.

Licence to chill

Man gets house arrest after breaking driving probation

I filed this story for a court-reporting assignment. It's a minor case that normally wouldn't be reported on.

Gonzalo Juarez, 26, was found Tuesday  driving a
Lincoln Navigator in violation of probation arrangements.
Photo from rmroofing.com

A Toronto metal worker has been sentenced to six months of house arrest after once again breaching a court order to not drive.

Gonzalo Juarez, 26, pled guilty Thursday morning to charges of failing to comply with probation and breaching a peace bond.

The father of two appeared at Old City Hall’s provincial courtroom in a green sweater and work jeans. His mother sat in the audience, speaking in hushed Spanish to her son’s lawyer.

The original probation was issued earlier this year after Juarez faced a charge of obstructing a police officer. Issued June 2, the one-year order instructed Juarez not to operate any motorized vehicle or be in a driver's seat without a valid licence. Juarez has since been found driving illegally twice.

His attorney said Juarez uses a pickup truck to transport supplies for his work as a roofer.

“He's hired an employee to drive him around,” Juarez’s lawyer Jeffry House said. “But the last two occasions he was driving were late at night.”

“That is not an exemption,” Justice Melvin Green sighed in response.

Police took Juarez into custody after they found him driving northbound on Dufferin St. Tuesday night in a Lincoln Navigator. During Thursday’s trial, the court noted a number of Highway Traffic Act offences in Juarez’s record, including driving without insurance and driving with a suspended licence.

“The only thing he's done improperly is not paying his fines,” House said, explaining that Juarez could not afford a $5,000 automotive insurance bill but kept driving to support his business.

House told the court his client has a family and a mortgage but no equity on his house. Juarez, father to a 4-year-old and an infant, is listed as owner of R.M. Roofing & Disposal Services.

“This is persistent bad behaviour. It doesn't inspire a lot of confidence,” Green said. “That being said, Mr. Juarez is supportive of his family and is serious about the employment he pursues.”

Green issued Juarez six months of house arrest. For the first three months, Juarez can only leave the house for work, appointments, religious services and medical emergencies. For the remaining three months, he cannot leave his house between the hours of 10 p.m. and 6 a.m.

The judge also applied a condition that if caught driving again, Juarez would face Green and receive the maximum applicable sentence.

Juarez kept silent during the proceedings, except when asked by Green if he wanted to speak.

“I will do my best to follow these conditions. Thank you,” he mumbled.

Juarez met his mother and lawyer outside the courtroom. House explained the probation conditions in Spanish before the two signed a court order and were free to leave.

Juarez left the courthouse in linked arms with his mother, who was holding a pair of car keys.

Toronto City Council opposes Brunswick House expansion

Neighbours say the Brunswick House,
known as "the Brunny," is a roaring
club that brings in vomiting 905ers.
Dylan C. Robertson photo

Toronto councillors voted Tuesday to oppose an Annex night club's expansion plans after numerous complaints from residents.

Earlier this month, Ye Olde Brunswick House applied for a liquor licence to increase its capacity from 502 patrons to 600. Community groups have mobilized against the proposal, complaining about noise, decency and safety concerns.

With billiard tables, concrete floors and large wooden booths, the 18th-century building at 481 Bloor St. W. was originally a student pub located steps from the University of Toronto's main campus. The Brunny, as it is commonly called by students, now only opens its doors Thursday to Saturday, from 10 p.m. to 2:30 a.m.

The club offers cheap drinks and advertises to young people across the GTA, with many coming in from outside the downtown core.

“It's a fun place that everyone knows about,” said Michael Bridge, a fourth-year French student at U of T Scarborough. “Students get a lot of stress; we need that place to relax, some kind of outlet.

Christopher Castillo, a third-year biotechnology student at Durham College in Oshawa, agrees. He visited the bar on weekends this summer and says it's a favourite spot he's willing to travel to.

“It's a great atmosphere; good prices. The music's good and the girls are crazy,” he said.

But Castillo admits the bar can be packed “like a crowded subway station” with lines of 50 people out the front door on weekends. It's because of this overflow that he supports an expansion.

“It's to the advantage of the businesses there,” said Castillo. “You could always not allow them to have more seats, but the customers are there anyways.”

But the Brunswick House has previously been charged with licensing and noise infractions. Local residents say there's little to gain from allowing more people into the club.

“You know when it's Thursday night. Your windows are shaking,” said Balvis Rubess, who has lived on Brunswick St. for 25 years and opposes any expansion of the club.

“We have enough noise and filth,” he said. “I don't think (the club) attracts a respectful clientele and the last thing we need is even more people.”

It's a story echoed by many who live nearby.

“We're totally appalled,” said Peter, a Brunswick St. resident who was uncomfortable giving a last name. “Kids are throwing up on our property every weekend. The whole neighbourhood's trying to get it all to stop.”

Peter said it's “more than just noise and puke” bothering local residents, citing the July 2009 murder of a 23-year-old man who was shot in the alley behind the bar.

Tuesday's motion, brought forth from a Toronto and East York Community Council meeting four weeks ago, was brought forth by Ward 20 councillor Adam Vaughan.

The motion requests the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario turn down the application, pointing to numerous complaints about “public drunkenness, public urination, vandalism, theft, noise and trespassing.” Incidents of public defecation have also been reported.

“Residents in the area are concerned for their safety because of what they perceive to be an increase in violence and vandalism,” the motion reads. It also asks that the city be made part of any licence appeal proceedings.

Not all patrons of the Brunswick House have witnessed the behaviour residents have complained about.

“I understand the concerns of the residents. My girlfriend lives downtown and gets a lot of noise pollution. So it's double-sided,” Bridge said.

“But it's not my crowd. I hear about (such incidents) later on from friends, but I don't see it with the people I go with,” he said.

The AGCO has yet to make a decision on the application, but condemnation from municipal authorities is often enough to thwart an application.

Brunswick House owner Abbis Mahmoud did not respond to a hand-delivered interview request.

The 18th-century building at 481 Bloor St. W. used to be a student pub, but is now a night club.

The Brunswick House has a posted a copy of its liquor licence application to add 25 per cent more seating.

Residents of the area say the club brings out-of-towners with no interest in the community. Complaints have ranged from vomiting to trespassing and public defecation.

Many residents of Brunswick St. have erected shrubs and gates to prevent intoxicated youth from trespassing. A man was shot to death in the alley behind the club in July 2009.

Police mourn ‘devastating’ loss of two service dogs

Photo courtesy of Toronto Police Service

They’re some of the city’s grittiest crime investigators, sniffing out narcotics, looking for clues at shooting scenes and helping to find missing children.

They are often the unsung heroes of the Toronto Police Service, but they have earned the respect of some of the toughest officers on the force.

Toronto police are mourning two service dogs who died from illness last week.

See my report in the Toronto Star.

Peanut butter to jump by a third in January

Devin Bird grabs a jar of peanut butter while shopping at the Food Basics discount grocery store on Pape Ave.

“It's a good amount of what I need,” says Bird, an out-of-work vegan. “It's got protein. But most of all, it's cheap.”

But it won't be as affordable next year. Like many common foods, peanut butter is on the rise due to rising fuel costs and changes in weather.

With a colder, more humid climate, Canada imports 80 per cent of its peanuts from the U.S. Recent droughts in the country's south have raised peanut prices dramatically. Last month, Canadian peanut butter producers warned customers to expect a 35-40 per cent price jump around January.

It's these kind of price fluctuations that make the job of Toronto's largest food bank even harder.

“It’s a pretty challenging situation,” says executive director Gail Nyberg, of Daily Bread Food Bank.

As cost-effective protein with a long shelf life, peanut butter is listed among the group’s 10 most-needed items.

A jump in its price is a triple threat for her organization. The food bank predicts higher demand from customers and fewer donations from the public, but also less value when its uses from its funds.

When Daily Bread doesn't get enough donations, it purchases food to-the-need at wholesale prices.

Peanut butter cost $14.50 a case last October. The group's current rate is $16.95 and they've been told to expect $19 early next year.

Nyberg says price jumps have become part of running a food bank. Tuna and rice, also among Daily Bread's most-needed foods, have fluctuated drastically in the past two years.

“We’re entering our holiday drive with some pretty lofty goals,” Nyberg says. “We didn’t reach them at Thanksgiving. But we'll try our best.”

The work year's almost over for Joy Carter, spokesperson for the Georgia Peanut Commission.

It's a month after the state's peanut season and Smucker's has just announced its commodity costs have peaked. After raising the price of Jif peanut butter by a third earlier this month, the company predicts no more price hikes.

“This drought started back in the spring and really hurt production,” Carter says. “But this is the reality of farming. You adjust when you see something coming.”

Farmers contract their land around February and often rotate peanut crops with corn and cotton. Like any small business owners, they are granted loans at rates determined by how stable banks deem their investments.

“This year, the corn and cotton crops were given a much higher per-acre loan,” says Leslie Wagner, executive director of Southern Peanut Growers. “This encouraged farmers to have fewer peanut crops”

Higher interest rates, coupled with a drought and rising fuel costs, meant a 13-per-cent drop in peanut production and a boom in sale prices. In the past three decades, the price of peanuts has only reached this year's rate twice.

Though farmers are protected by charging more for cost-intensive crops, such price jumps are a risk for Georgia's $2-billion industry. Universities in the largest peanut-producing state are researching drought-resistant seeds and cost-reduction methods like better irrigation.

Climatologists have linked this summer's drought to the annual La Niña pattern, which has been exacerbated in recent years by exceptionally hot temperatures.

The U.S. drought is part of a series of weather events affecting global food prices, though a comparatively trivial one. Last summer, Russian faced its hottest summer on record. Forests fires engulfed one-third of its grain crop, leading to an 11-month grain export suspension that drove up food prices in countries like Indonesia, where 45 per cent of household income goes to food.

In Canada, consumers only spend about 12 per cent of their income on food. Though the rise in price for peanut butter and other foods will hit those with limited income, Canadians have a variety of sources of protein.And, at least in East York, consumers seem up for the challenge.

“What can you do? Peanut butter's like everything; the cost goes up and up,” says Sonia Alce, eyeing a peanut butter sale poster. “If you love it, you're going to have to stock up.”

“Oil's gone up; everything's gone up,” says Janet Coker, a grandmother on a fixed income. “But you make do. Wages rise too, but not as quickly. You just have to budget and be smart about it.”

Before leaving Food Basics, Bird grabs another jar of peanut butter, on sale at a 75-cent discount.

“I'd normally wait for half-price, but this could be it,” he says. “It's time to stock up.”

How to talk to grieving families

I wrote a post for the Toronto Star intern blog about how to speak with grieving families (and why).

It's a tough part of being a reporter, but it adds a lot of value to your story. It also makes someone more than a name and cause of death.

See my post here.

Murray Brewster speaks to Centennial journalism students

'We knew that Afghanistan was a failed state'
Murray Brewster, CP's senior defence correspondent, came to Centennial to speak with us about journalism. In our question period (j-school, so a scrum) I asked him about the detainee document scandal. He was both thorough and kind enough to reply to my email pestering afterwards. I finally had a chance to sit down with his book and recommend it to anyone interested in Canadian political journalism. It will inform you, give you context and make you angry.


The story took a while to go through editing; it's dated October 15, 2011.



Canadian Press journalist Murray Brewster says a recent UN report corroborates his findings of severe mismanagement of Afghan detainees by Canadian bureaucracy.

Brewster, a journalist for 27 years, visited Centennial College on Wednesday to discuss his experience as a Canadian Press correspondent in Afghanistan.

“What you write could potentially get people killed, and that is a very, very sobering notion,” Brewster said. “Disagreements in that part of the world are often settled with a gun.”

He added that despite the dangers of reporting, it is essential to have independent journalists cover the wars their country fights.

“It is important for us to bear witness to those events because those events are happening in our name,” Brewster said.

His talk came two days after a UN report found “a compelling pattern and practice of systematic torture and ill-treatment” in Afghan detainee centres, with 46 per cent of randomly selected respondents reporting torture.

As senior defence correspondent with The Canadian Press, Brewster broke the late 2009 story of whistleblower Richard Colvin’s allegations that some Afghan detainees who Canadian soldiers had turned over to Afghanistan prisons were then tortured.

“That particular story came out of a healthy sense of outrage,” Brewster said. “What I was watching was a man who wanted to testify but the government wanted to silence him, and it just snowballed.”

The detainee scandal lead to a high-profile inquiry, thousands of released but redacted documents and unanswered questions about whether Canada violated international humanitarian law in a war it entered 10 years ago last week.

Last Monday's UN report is just one of ongoing developments surrounding the issue, one that Brewster says reinforces his findings, but is “not much different than the many U.S. State Department warnings over the years.”

In his talk, Brewster often touched on what he calls the federal government's “tight hold on information” around the war in Afghanistan.

“There was what I consider to be a burden that went with covering the story,” Brewster said. “A burden of responsibility to cut through a lot of the B.S. that we were being fed.”

His book, The Savage War: The Untold Battles of Afghanistan, was released this month. In one chapter, Brewster details the detainee document fiasco and subsequent document dumps.

In March 2010, the parliamentary committee examining the allegations released 2,628 pages of partially redacted documents, followed by 4,000 more this June.

“There was nothing in those documents that would have been considered a smoking gun; you wouldn’t expect it to be there,” he said. “Because government has become much more savvy about what it puts on paper.”

Brewster cited an internal 2007 memo released in June that warned the foreign affairs minister about Afghanistan-related documents released in an NGO-lead Federal Court case.

“A challenge will be managing the suggestion that the content of material released is inconsistent with government of Canada messaging,” reads the memo, originally classified as secret.

“The documents leave one with the impression of (redacted) flawed Afghan judicial system and of detention facilities that fall (sic) well below UN standards. The assembled material may seem to suggest that government of Canada messaging on the detainees issues for the last 12 months has been out of sync with reporting from the field.”

The memo then suggests that such material would “present significant political and communications challenges,” leaving the impression that the government should have known “there was the potential for mistreatment of detainees.”

Brewster said the memo “speaks volumes” about both a lack of transparency and bureaucratic failures in managing information. He stressed that the scandal does not concern the conduct of Canadian troops, but rather how Canada and NATO presided over detainees.

“I think the question revolves around whether they should have been handed over to Afghans,” he said. “We knew that Afghanistan was a failed state.”

Liang Chen remains positive after Scarborough-Agincourt loss

Here's a story I filed for our news reporting course. We were each assigned to follow a candidate in October's provincial election.

Liang Chen has had a long career, but was a first-time politician. Though she wasn’t elected, she’s taken a lot from her provincial election run.

The Progressive Conservative candidate for Scarborough-Agincourt lost to Liberal Soo Wong Thursday. Wong, a longtime school trustee, replaces incumbent Gerry Phillips, the area’s Liberal MPP since 1987.

Photo courtesy  of Ontario PC Party

“In the beginning I heard people criticize me, that I don’t have any experience and I have so many young people in my campaign,” Chen said in an interview last week. “I think they really underestimated the creativity that we have.”

Long familiar with education, Chen earned a bachelor of arts in English language and literature from Soochow University in Taiwan. She went on to complete a master of science in education at the University of Pennsylvania. Chen taught at a school for gifted children in Buffalo, N.Y., before moving to Toronto to complete an MBA from U of T.

Chen worked in accounting before teaching the discipline at Humber College for seven years. In 2005, she switched to UTSC. She then completed a doctorate of philosophy from OISE, focusing on higher education and internationalization. Since then, she’s devised courses, reviewed faculty, restructured whole programs, written a textbook and trained some of the university’s top students.

Last September, she was appointed as associate dean in charge of making the Scarborough campus more attractive to students and increasing international ties. A year after the promotion, she took a leave of absence to run for office. Many of her students helped the campaign through planning, office work and publicity.

It was through a student-led fundraising concert that Chen raised enough money to lease her campaign office.  She said she pursued provincial politics because education is a provincial jurisdiction.

Scarborough-Agincourt has a high level of immigration, especially from China, Hong Kong and Taiwan. Chen, a Taipei native, became a Canadian citizen in the late ’90s, and often talked about the contributions immigrants make to Canadian society.

In May’s federal election, the Conservative party descended on the long-standing Liberal fortress of Toronto by targeting immigrant communities in the GTA. Though the federal Conservatives failed to shift the riding to the right, the provincial PCs hoped for better odds.

Locally, Chen focused on her riding’s precarious public transit.

“We don’t actually have a transit system, just two lines,” said Chen, who favours a subway extension on the Sheppard line. She thinks it’s an issue that’s often rushed.

“We need people with long-term vision instead of just wanting short-term gains,” she said. Chen had similar thoughts about the Liberal proposal to give a $10,000 tax credit to employers who hire highly skilled immigrants.

“There’s a large group of qualified people who don’t match that criteria,” she said. “Why help some and not other people?

“The issue is employing people, rather than just buying power (by attracting votes).”

Chen often thinks in numbers. She advocated for small business owners and focused her platform on how to fix Ontario’s economy. It’s one of many throwbacks to her experience in finance.

She says it was as a board member for the Certified General Accountants Association of Ontario that she learned how to affect change in her community.

“You don’t get angry,” Chen said. “You make things happen.”

Chen celebrated her campaign with family, friends and supporters at Sogo Bar near Kennedy Rd. & Sheppard Ave E. About 30 core campaigners sipped their drinks while staring at TV screens as CP24 apologized for a delay in poll figures.

“We worked as much as we could,” Chen said. “Now we’ll just wait and see.”

The group cheered as the first round of polls put Chen ahead by 20 per cent. But subsequent polls put her chances lower and lower.

The number of visitors at the pub swelled to one hundred. Guests enjoyed dim sum finger food and socialized, still watching the television for poll results, but not reacting to them.

In the end, Woo beat Liang 14,903 to 10,216 votes with a 15 per cent lead.

“Win or lose, that’s not the primary focus,” Chen said. “The experience is more important. It was precious to have a strong team behind me. We were passionate about campaigning.”

Chen’s husband, Louis Lawrence, thanked campaigners and spoke about his wife’s experience.

“She stepped out of her comfort zone and comfortable, happy career,” he said. “A lot of people said she must be crazy; it’s a thankless task.

“But we feel we contributed to the democratic process. And who knows, we might be back to fight another battle.”

Chen is a new brand of provincial politician. Since Ontario approved fixed election dates in 2004, leaders with successful careers have been able to plan a campaign years ahead, instead of hoping the writ drops at an opportune moment.

Chen, who is in her 40s but keeps her exact age to herself, took a six-month sabbatical to run as a candidate. In a few weeks, she’ll return to her role as associate dean. She’s dipped her feet in politics. Will she run again?

“We’ll see,” she replied. “I’m taking things one day at a time.”

Snakes are popping out of toilets

I had some fun with this one.


Look before you sit; a snake popped out of a toilet last night.

Police from 12 Division are reporting two incidents of a snake sliding into Woolner Ave. apartments near Jane St. and St. Clair Ave. W.

My blog post for the Toronto Star.

Sports story: Leafs shatter Jets, camera lens

My journalism program emphasizes versatility. Because of the changing media landscape, journalists not only has to work on multiple platforms, they have to be able to report on even the most unfamiliar topics.
For me this is sports. As a political junkie who didn't know the definition of "powerplay," it took a while but I've learned the fundamentals of sports writing. Below is a story I wrote going off of just the published sports stats (they're a bit cryptic) and a quote I took from a newscast.

Matt Frattin scored in the shootout to give the Toronto Maple Leafs a 4-3 victory over the Winnipeg Jets Wednesday night at the Air Canada Centre.

The win moves the Leafs to 4-0-1 in the new season as the Jets dive to 1-3-1.

The tiebreaker ended a turbulent game that featured a puck bouncing off a defenceman for a goal, a player’s first NHL goal and two shots scored within less than 30 seconds.

Toronto’s Joffrey Lupul scored twice, with Phil Kessel adding a shot. Winnipeg’s three goals came from Tobias Enstrom, Alexander Burmistrov and Mark Scheifele.

The Jets fired off the scoring at 9:49 of the first period on a power play as Enstrom blasted a shot from the blue line.

Two minutes later, Lupul tied the score 1-1, taking Kessel’s pass, firing it by Ondrej Pavelec and shattering the TV camera.

“There goes our Christmas party!” screamed a TSN commentator. “Thanks, Lupul!”

Refusing to nosedive, the Jets rocked the second period a goal from Burmistrov and Scheifele’s first NHL shot, which pulled fans right off their seats.

The Leafs entered the third period 3-1 with the daunting prospect of their first loss of regulation, but rebounded with two power plays to tie the match in a 27-second flurry.

Lupul made a pass that deflected off Enstrom, bouncing into the net at 7:28. Kessel then seized an open net, tying the game 3-3.

After a quiet overtime period, both teams entered a three-round shootout, with Lupul and Frattin bringing the lackluster Jets to a quick landing.

The Jets hit another runway after their first visit to Toronto in 15 years, facing the Ottawa Senators Friday. The Leafs also hit the road Friday, attempting another win at Boston.

Paleolithic eaters find community at breakfast

The Gazette photo.

This article was published in The Gazette on October 15, 2011. It is no longer available online.

Joshua Layton teaches martial arts, drinks espresso and uses Facebook. He also eats like a caveman.

The Paleolithic diet was pioneered in the '70s as a way of replicating the diet of hunter-gatherer societies. More of a lifestyle than a strict regimen, those who eat paleo centre their diet on meat, fish, root vegetables, fruit and nuts. Dieters focus on rich food, avoiding grains, dairy, salt and any processed food.

"It's not about acting like a caveman or re-enacting some kind of prehistoric lifestyle," said Layton. "It's about getting ideas about what's really healthy for us through getting ideas from our evolutionary history."

Emulating early humans who sought wholesome meats, boiled vegetables and anything easy to forage, Paleo-eaters don't snack and avoid oils.

Many adherents say the diet has boosted their energy, mood and body composition.

"This is the best-quality food I can have for my money right now," says Mathieu Dumontet, who has followed the diet for two years. "Instead of buying empty food and wanting something, I'm always full."

Michael Bisson, associate professor of anthropology at McGill University, says the diet is close to what humans ate in Paleolithic times.

"Diet is entirely contextual, in terms of the environment and technical surrounding of a particular people," said Bisson. "What they appear to be doing is replicating a diet from very late in the Paleolithic, and there's nothing wrong with that."

Bisson described humans living in the Epipaleolithic era 15,000 years ago as "the pinnacle of the hunter-gatherer adaptation" who got the most of their environment right before the dawn of agriculture.

In January, Laval fitness consultant Melanie Halpert took up a 30-day Paleo challenge, seeking energy and relief from cravings.

"My mom was like 'You're crazy, what are you doing? You can't eat this way!' " said Halpert. "I sent her some research and told her to sleep on it. And she said she had stayed up all night reading about it, and was really interested and wanted to do it."

Eight months later, Halpert says "it doesn't even cross my mind" to return to the typical North American diet - though she does admit getting a reaction from friends.

"Sometimes they scrunch up their face and they're like 'What, like dinosaurs?' " Halpert laughed.

"People are like 'oh you're doing that caveman diet thing' and maybe they make a joke about how come I'm wearing shoes, or how come I'm not wearing animal skin or something," said Layton, who's been eating paleo for three years.

"Outside of paleo, it's sometimes very hard for people (because of) social pressure if you're not strong-minded," said Dumontet. "At first you're answering tons of questions when you just want to enjoy your meal."

It's because of that pressure that paleo-eaters seek community.

Layton started the Facebook group Eating Paleo in Montreal a year ago. Roughly one hundred local dieters, from professional athletes to firsttimers, exchange recipes, review restaurants and list grocery store finds. They also organize monthly breakfasts.

"A lot of people go to a store and just find a book, but it's nice to do some meetings in the real world," said Layton. "It's providing an outlet for people to get together and share what they know and their enthusiasm for this experiment."

While all three say they allow some leeway - a glass of wine, a scoop of ice cream - they stress that they don't have any cravings.

"Paleo has changed my relationship to food, and especially sugar," said Halpert. Layton agrees. "It's about food quality rather than quantity," he said.

Bisson says he believes the diet is a good idea.

Life expectancy in the Paleolithic Era was around 30 years. By following this ancient way of eating, dieters may find a way of prolonging their own lives.

"There are lots of things that are unhealthy in modern diets that it looks like they're avoiding," said Bisson. "I suppose they're living longer than the average life span. More power to them!"

Raw milk advocate enters hunger strike

Toronto Star photo

After armed raids and thousands of dollars in legal fees, dairy farmer Michael Schmidt is on a hunger strike after his fight to legalize the sale of raw milk hit another hurdle.

Schmidt was informed Wednesday afternoon that he’d been convicted of 15 provincial offences relating to the sale of unpasteurized milk. He could face hundreds of thousands of dollars in fines, including $5,000 for each day he continues to distribute his milk.

See my report in the Toronto Star.