Stephen Weir articles, editorials and popular social media weir postings

Baby Bonus Bought the Beer . Canadian Pension Keepin ’ the Windsor Suds Flowing      "OMG, or however the young people say it these days, time is running out on me. I have got two weeks to figure out what I should wear to the first day of Frosh Week at Windsor U this semester. As an aging part-time student, I feel a real Day One need to blend in with my new classmates, even though most will be 50 years my juniors.     Even though I'm most likely the oldest part-timer here, I am not the only boomer looking in the closet this week for suitable chillin ’ clothes. At Windsor, retirees coming back to school is gaining traction.     I came back three years back, but because of Covid, all of my classes in the first two years, were online, and all my classmates were simply icons on the screen (I was a cartoon of Mick Jagger). Last September 2020, was the first time I stepped inside a Windsor University classroom since the early 70s.     "Will I be able to find my ...

  Violence at Carnival But not at the 2023 Toronto Caribbean Carnival There is a disturbing video currently circulating throughout the British Isles, showing a white reveler attacking an unarmed black man with a machete during last weekend's Notting Hill Carnival. The London two-day festival includes a huge street parade considered to be the largest street festival in Europe and the second-largest carnival parade in the world. According to recent press reports, over 2 million people took part in the parade, but violent riots and vicious attacks plagued the festival, leaving eight people stabbed, with a 29-year-old man remaining in critical condition. There were 275 arrests across the two days of the carnival, with 165 arrests on parade Monday for a range of offenses, including possession of offensive weapons, assaults (including a sexual assault) on police officers, possession of drugs, and sexual offenses. According to the British Independent newspaper, "the Government has an...

  FOR TWO DAYS THE DOWNTOWN DUNDAS SQ WAS TRINI TO THE BONE David Rudder by Anthony Berot The roar from Dundas Square Park on Sunday was so loud that one could hear the noise from a block away. A live soccer game on the big screen? Nope. It was the king. King David, to be specific. Calypso great David Rudder was on the park's outdoor stage, singing many of his songs that have made Trinidad and Tobago the motherlode of Calypso music for almost a century. King David was just one of the headliners of the past weekend's Trinbago Festival. The free outdoor fete was a celebration of the culture, history, and impact of the Trinidad & Tobago diaspora in Canada. The event was staged under the auspices of the Trinidad & Tobago Consulate in Toronto and in support of the Caribbean Scholarship Foundation. Joel Davis Trinidad and Tobago gained its independence from the United Kingdom on August 31, 1962. Last year marked the 60th anniversary, and it was the first time Trinbago was cel...

Turtle Meat and Popcorn. Caribbean Tales Film Festival goes down the Eden River with a paddle It all begins on Wednesday. The Annual Caribbean Tales Film Festival kicks off its 2023 program at Harbourfront, showcasing "Eden River," a creepy, eerie, suspenseful American movie made on a river. It is 1961, and three poachers are paddling along a swampy river in Belize in a boat that has seen better days. They have no food, only a bottle of what looks like homemade hooch. They are illegally hunting for green turtles, hoping to score big by selling poached turtle meat. However, there are no turtles to be found. There is no mosquito repellent, and there is no motor at the stern of the single mast dinghy. Oh yes, and there is no love lost between the three men, even though one of them swears he is the half-brother of one of the other sailors, and the third claims he believes in love, peace and the Bible. Arguments and a man overboard, accompanied by a musical score about Zombies, le...

Hey Roy Cape. Welcome Back.  Toronto has missed you! The long-time Caribana calypso saxophonist from Trinidad, Roy Cape, is making a return to Toronto next month, albeit through film, as part of the annual Caribbean Tales Film Festival (CTFF). During the late 90s and the early 21st century, the arrival of Roy Francis Cape and his All Stars Band marked the beginning of the Carnival season in Toronto. From calypso shows and parties to mas camp mashups and cruises, as well as performances at the Grande Parade, Cape has consistently been the sought-after music maker. However, a battle with cancer in 2014 and a subsequent hip fracture five years later have prevented the 81-year-old man from gracing a Toronto staged of late. On September 9th, the CTFF will host the international premiere of the 2022 film 'Iconography: Roy Cape' at Harbourfront’s Fleck Theatre, followed by a special performance by the Roy Cape All Stars. As for whether Cape will be in Toronto, a spokeswoman for the fi...

  Calypso Returns with a Song And a Laugh Or Two: Kaiso 365 Calypso Monarch of Canada Competition Thrills Audience           Macromere Fifi, the new queen After a seven-year hiatus, the highly anticipated Kaiso 365 Calypso Monarch of Canada Competition made a triumphant comeback last Sunday at the Latvian Canadian Center in North York, Ontario. Organized by the Organization of Calypso Performing Artistes (OCPA), the event drew an electrified crowd that packed the venue to its full capacity. The evening began with a heartfelt tribute, as OCPA honored eight individuals who played pivotal roles in the development of Calypso music in Canada. Among the honourees were Lennox Borel, Glenda Bostic, Ken Bruzual, Dr. Rita Cox, Elsworth James, George Maharaj, Jai Ojah Maharaj, and Selwyn Woods. Their contributions to the genre were acknowledged with deep gratitude, setting the stage for an unforgettable night. The competition itself featured an impressive li...