TORONTO – In a crisis, there is always a reset, a reshuing of the deck (of cards). Covid-19 is the crisis of the day – everywhere and in all aspects of life – government, economy, education, ethics… the list goes on. It is a crisis whose proportions and dimensions are fast approaching the uncontrollable.
In Italy, partners in government prompted by former Premier Matteo Renzi (in the pic on the left), growing increasingly impatient with the direction of a Recovery Plan and a seemingly unfocused Public Health Strategy, pulled the plug on the government of Giuseppe Conte.
The remix produced an Ace of Spades for the office of Prime Minister: internationally respected former Chairman of the BCE (the European Bank), Jesuit trained [Super] Mario Draghi (in the pic on the left). President Mattarella, obviously in agreement with the proposal proffered by Renzi, offered the position to the 73-year-old global, superstar administrator.
In Canada, the challenges are no less demanding, even if the nature of our government is structurally different. The economic problems will only get worse and the immediate public health issues have placed us at the mercy of rapacious pharmaceutical global organizations.
There is no conspiracy theory behind the assessment, the facts speak for themselves: Canada comprises a mere 2% of the global pharmaceutical market; Big Pharma (BP) is showing us what that means to them. Our governments are being squeezed by BP on the “supply” and efficacy of vaccines. The vaccines, such as they are, will benefit from the fact that we are already transitioning from phase two of the viral contagion.
On a provincial basis, lockdown measures being what they are, two issues dominate news cycles and public policy: Long-term Care Homes (and deaths therein) and Schools. The first is a tragedy whose daily fatality count speaks volumes about our social ethic and public health policy. Increasingly, it appears that emerging class action lawsuits will determine their fate.
As elsewhere, school re-openings are key to the reawakening of the Economy. Ontario’s handling of the school issue is far from inspirational. The Minister of Education has carriage of two “public systems”, each with its own funding sources and mechanisms; not to mention Union infrastructures.
In one of them, their partner is the Catholic Church. As in everything, leadership counts. In Toronto, the closing of churches to worshippers has deprived Catholics of access to the traditional leadership in the trilogy of “home – school- church”. No Renzi-like figure has stepped in to fill the void.
The agenda for Thursday’s Toronto Catholic District school Board meeting, for example, is/was consumed with motions about letting non-Catholics sit as student trustees or as parents on school committees, and which “marginalized” groups need the attention of trustees whose declared political ambitions are already elsewhere.
That these problem-makers are confused about their solemn oath to Catholicity is evidenced by the prominence on the list of delegations they accorded a resident to Vaughan.
He proudly tweets that he is “honored to be nominated for the Atheist of the Year Award” (screenshot of the tweet on the right).
No kidding. Either the Chair, the Director and the Cardinal have developed sick sense of humour or Minister Lecce wants to be known as the guy who killed the Catholic school system mandated by the Constitution.
Emails to the Director, the Chair, the Cardinal and Minister Lecce have gone unanswered as at going to print.
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