Head scratchers!

I'll readily admit that life in post-retirement times is definitely less complicated with a perceived significant reduction in the number of required daily issues, but I'd like to go on the record that although the number has decreased, the complexity of each has generally increased, leaving me scratching my noggin in pure perplexity.

Head Scratcher Numero Uno surrounds my first-person experience of my brother's medical treatments. Joyce and I recently joined my SIL in a trip down to the Big Smoke to visit him at Sunnybrook because he's been in the ICU for a few days thanks to the complications his treatments have had on his health. He's dealing with a host of issues right now that are causing a pause on the final stages of his treatments, issues that individually are serious, but combined could lead to dire outcomes. Fully admitting that I am on the outside of the Health System looking in, it would seem to me that the various Doc's involved are prescribing treatments only for their part and they don't seem to be communicating, causing a profound amount of head scratching for my brother, his immediate family, and our extended family. 

If you've ever had the pleasure of meeting my brother, you'll already be astutely aware of his acerbic wit, razor-sharp sarcastic tongue, and devilishly wicked sense of humour. If not, well let's just say you've no idea of what you're missing out on. The ramifications of his treatments have resulted in an extreme amount of discomfort in things you and I take for granted, and the only way to effectively deal with them is medication. Unfortunately, that results in a fogginess that makes the confusing assortment of treatments all the more frustrating and irritating. The nurses, God love them, are bearing the blight of said confusion and even they don't seem to be hitched to the same cart. 

All of this makes our extended family anxious and concerned, brows fully furrowed, eyes squinting, cheeks raised, a look like someone is holding a small turd under our nose. Despite the noticeable, albeit gradual, improvements over the stay in hospital, we yearn for the veil to be lifted from our eyes that we might understand my brother's near future. I'll fully admit that my knowledge of the health system is very limited, and despite my profound appreciation for the compassion and empathy they have extended to my brother, I'm still perplexed.

As my mother remarked in conversation the other day, "It's incredible how much damage they inflict in an effort to save you."

Head Scratcher Numero Dos was a situation I became aware of the other day while supplying for a friend who was dealing with a death in the family. With November looming, those in the education system ... and those recently departed from ... are keenly aware that report card time is nigh, the deadline for submission only days away. For a number of years, teachers were forced to use a particular software for composing and submitting those reports to the office staff so that the report cards cold be printed for distribution. It turns out that someone higher up the "Food Chain" decided to change that software just last week, without inservice or documentation on dealing with a significantly different tool. 

Seriously? How does that happen? And why now? Perplexed only sort of explains how I feel!

My heart goes out to my education friends that are afflicted with this ridiculous scenario!

Head Scratcher Numero Tres comes from the curious minds of Ford Nation, most specifically, Stephen Lecce, our Minister of Education, and surrounds the absolute disdain he continues to show for education workers and the value they hold for the people of Ontario. Even during his first term in office, the privately educated Lecce demonstrated an apparent lack of understanding surrounding the actual goings-on in publicly funded classrooms, taking every opportunity through carefully worded misinformation and warped statistics in an effort to vilify education workers in the minds of Ontario voters, all the while deftly altering the funding model to squeeze more and more out of the education budget.

A few weeks ago, Lecce added to his already incredulous contempt by announcing $365 million dollars to fund "Catch Up" payments for children under 18, whether mainstream or special needs, payments he urges to be used to offset the damages caused by the pandemic. I say he urges because this handout has "no strings attached" and can be used for any purpose. 

"These relief payments are part of a $365 million Plan to Catch Up, which the government first announced during the throne speech in August. However, at the time, details about how this lump sum of money would be divided were sparse. This is not the first time parents have received payouts from the Ford government. Last year, parents received $400 per child aged 0 to Grade 12 while parents with children who have special needs under the age of 21 received $500." (Link here)

While on the surface this looks like well intentioned empathy for Ontario's children, it becomes an intensely perplexing head scratcher when viewed through a full-picture lens that includes knowledge that the PC's are in negotiations with Education workers, most specifically CUPE, the federation whose members include custodial staff in the SCDSB. CUPE members have been subjected to over a decade of imposed frozen or 1% contract raises that have lagged well behind the rising cost of living. The present strife between the province and CUPE will reach a crescendo this week thanks to Ford Nation ramming through new legislation the force CUPE back to work despite being in a legal strike position, thanks largely to Lecce's cronies walking away from negotiations. 

This is a slippery, slimy slope here folks.

The $365 million just given away would have more than covered the $260 million that CUPE was asking for, but to walk away from negotiations knowing that you'll simply legislate the workers back by again using the "notwithstanding" clause borders on tyranny. It's easy for those not involved to sneer in derision at the requests of education workers for better working conditions, but if the PC's can treat a well oiled machine like CUPE with such disdain, it's not really a leap of faith to see them doing the same with the Health Care workers, Emergency Services, or any other organized group. They're warping the law to suit their needs so any one can be caught in the crosshairs.

As an informed, interested voter, I find this choice of action alarming.

Look, I'm not writing and posting this to garner support for personal causes or opinions, but rather to shed light on issues that I find perplexing in hopes that anyone who chooses to read this might find it interesting enough to do some digging of their own. My hope is that if we are better informed, we can hold whichever group more accountable to act in a more common sense, compassionate manner.

Lord knows we need a little more compassion these days.