Gee..! 20

Wow...! My first real 2 day weekend since Easter. Although work is not as hectic as it was, nevertheless this past week hasn't been a walk in the park. I'm still recuperating from this flue like bug and the doggies had an unlikely encounter with porcupines in the woods. Both needed to go to the vet for a careful extraction of the quills left behind by the frightened mammals. I wish I had a photo of the four legged pin cushions but I was at work when it happened.
The big news this week is that the G 20 World Tour Extravaganza is coming to the fair city of Toronto in a couple of weeks. Our glorious leader Stephen Harper and his acolytes have spared no expense it seems to impress this elite club of number crunching over sized wallet managers who will be the opening act for the G8 summit in Huntsville. Not unlike the little brother who invites his elder siblings to a backyard barbecue to show how good he's doing.
Of course security runs high on the agenda ever since the Seattle summit. An estimated 933 million that could easily surpass 1 billion. As Mr. Rogers would put it...'' Can you spell r-e-c-e-s-s-i-o-n '' Mr.Harper. This elite club of global monetary policy makers will again decide what's good for the rest of the countries of the world underhandedly favoring big corporation interests over the good of the people they are claiming to represent.
In light of this, I came up with a few recommendations of my own that would no doubt help their tarnished image in these troubled economic times.

1- Fly economy. Instead of whizzing here on a private jet, save a few bucks. There are some great deals from major airlines available from any local travel agent. Get a window or aisle seat though. You wouldn't want to sitbetween an obese tourist and a mother with a teething 18 month old baby.

2- Lodging can be a problem. Those five star suites can be a burden on the old pocket book. I know the Y in Toronto is close and offers clean linen. Or if you prefer cozier accommodations, there's no shortage of Bed and Breakfasts with private bathrooms and as the name implies, a hearty breakfast is included.

3- Limos are nice but you'll get bogged down in traffic. Use public transportation. It will get you to the convention center in no time and you'll be able to rub shoulders, backsides, elbows and other parts of your body with the little people.

4- Forget the caviar and wine that hasn't seen the light of day since 1787. A ham and cheese sandwich washed down with a light beer will do the job. Or, if you're more vegetarian minded, a nice Greek salad with mineral water will get you through the day.But watch out for black olives with pits.

5- Buy lots of souvenirs. It would only be fitting that after spending this much money to host this glorified boys club that you would put back a little into our regional economy. We have an interesting assortment of Canadian items such as original Inuit carvings made in China and paraphernalia adorned with images of the famed Royal Canadian Mounted Police, courtesy of Disney.

6- Scrap the whole summit. Use Skype and video-conference from the comfort of your palace like ivory towers. I'm sure there's no shortage of worthy causes that would benefit from such a cash flow from the moneys saved. Just give it to us instead of managing it yourselves. After all, you're responsible for this economic mess in the first place...aren't you.

Footnote: The picture I chose comes from the work of Dorothea Lange. Lange and other photographers were hired by the Farm Security Administration (http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/fsahtml/fahome.html) to document the plight of farmers and the harshness of rural living conditions during the Great Depression. Let's just hope that with globalization and the ever increasing number of independent farmers going bankrupt, history does not repeat itself.