Margaret Shkimba
@margaretshkimba.bsky.social
📤 2670
📥 1298
📝 195
Writer. Grandma. Hamilton, Ontario Contributing columnist, Hamilton Spectator.
pinned post!
The grift from the Ford government keeps on giving. Failure to act decisively on Greenbelt grifting signalled lax intentions by the Ford govt for any ethics breach. Ethics? What ethics? This is government! Any grift is a good grift!
open.substack.com/pub/margaret...
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Ford Nation: Of Scofflaws and Sycophants
Yet another scandal has hit the Ford government with revelations that the Skills Development Fund was inappropriately apportioned among Ford-friendlies. How many is that now? My head is spinning.
https://open.substack.com/pub/margaretshkimba/p/ford-nation-of-scofflaws-and-sycophants?r=dw1pr&utm_medium=ios
about 2 months ago
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“If you’re not talking to your kids about socialism…” 🤪 JC these people are looney tunes.
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about 1 month ago
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Hafsa Halawa
about 1 month ago
What is happening in Darfur is utterly devastating, made more painful by how we all saw it coming. You can’t really say you didn’t know, but if you didn’t, read this: An atrocity foretold: How the RSF siege of El Fasher turned into genocidal slaughter
www.thenewhumanitarian.org/analysis/202...
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An atrocity foretold: How the RSF siege of El Fasher turned into genocidal slaughter
Communication networks are down but a deluge of shocking videos point to mass killings on a devastating scale.
https://www.thenewhumanitarian.org/analysis/2025/10/30/atrocity-foretold-how-rsf-siege-el-fasher-turned-genocidal-slaughter
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paulpro
about 1 month ago
@deadder.bsky.social
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“Who benefits from this legislation? And — this is really important — who is paying for these tax breaks? What programs will suffer so the wealthy can continue to put their thumb on the scale of Ontario politics?”
www.thespec.com/opinion/colu...
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Doug Ford government’s proposed changes make Ontario’s electoral process worse
Was anyone complaining about not being able to donate more money to politicians?
https://www.thespec.com/opinion/columnists/doug-ford-governments-proposed-changes-make-ontarios-electoral-process-worse/article_3a69d868-b4b4-5ba6-b207-5d6fc90e20c5.html
about 1 month ago
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“This is so problematic it’s tough to know where to begin. On one hand, yay women! On the other, low-scoring? Less than? What? How does it advance women for them to be linked with low-scoring programs?”
open.substack.com/pub/margaret...
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Piccini DEI-Washes Accusations of Skills Development Fund Corruption
It’s been a rough week for Minister of Labour David Piccini, hiding behind women workers as calls for his resignation resonates through the Ontario legislature.
https://open.substack.com/pub/margaretshkimba/p/piccini-dei-washes-accusations-of?r=dw1pr&utm_medium=ios
about 1 month ago
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Awww. Canada… ❤️❤️❤️❤️
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about 2 months ago
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Margaret Shkimba
Harry Rasmussen 🇨🇦
about 2 months ago
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It’s the only motivating factor, across history. Economic crises leads to population revolts. Fed people don’t revolt.
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about 2 months ago
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AI is the invasion of the body snatchers.
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about 2 months ago
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We’re running out of places to look. The fish rots from the head. Resignations are in order. Beginning with Doug Ford.
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about 2 months ago
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“Look up, it’s the Greenbelt, look down, it’s Ontario Place, look right, it’s fast-tracking alcohol sales, look left, it’s speed cameras and municipal outcry, look behind, and it’s the Skills Development Fund. Look ahead and it’s just more of the same.”
www.thespec.com/opinion/colu...
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Another day, another Conservative scandal
How Ford continues to slide through the gross incompetence of his government is disturbing.
https://www.thespec.com/opinion/columnists/another-day-another-conservative-scandal/article_eaf98767-e950-53e2-b9c3-717b3cbebdf8.html
about 2 months ago
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Margaret Shkimba
Melissa Bowman
about 2 months ago
“The results are clear: when drivers know that automated speed enforcement cameras are in place, they slow down,” the letter read. “This means fewer tickets, lower costs, and safer roads for everyone."
www.thestar.com/news/gta/for...
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Former Ontario police leaders urge Doug Ford government to ditch plan to ban speed cameras
The Ford government is expected to table legislation banning automated speed cameras in Ontario.
https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/former-ontario-police-leaders-urge-doug-ford-government-to-ditch-plan-to-ban-speed-cameras/article_878b37e6-166d-4cfd-b1d6-45d64e5798fc.html
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Watching Question Period today, the Ford government sidestepping accountability for their botched Skills Development Fund. Piccini has no credibility. Liberals call for resignation.
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about 2 months ago
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Imbroglior
about 2 months ago
"This is very clearly anti-parent legislation because speed cameras are primarily used in school zones to keep children safe. It is baffling that our premier has chosen to attack a road safety measure that primarily is targeted to help little kids."
www.thestar.com/news/gta/wit...
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With legislation to ban speed cameras in Ontario looming, grassroots opposition grows and local governments explore options
Municipalities are casting around for options as parent groups organize grassroots opposition to a ban on speed cameras that could come as this week.
https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/with-legislation-to-ban-speed-cameras-in-ontario-looming-grassroots-opposition-grows-and-local-governments/article_f9d137b1-6bd3-4faa-909f-e02ec58ddbe1.html?utm_medium=social&utm_source=copy-link&utm_campaign=user-share
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The grift from the Ford government keeps on giving. Failure to act decisively on Greenbelt grifting signalled lax intentions by the Ford govt for any ethics breach. Ethics? What ethics? This is government! Any grift is a good grift!
open.substack.com/pub/margaret...
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Ford Nation: Of Scofflaws and Sycophants
Yet another scandal has hit the Ford government with revelations that the Skills Development Fund was inappropriately apportioned among Ford-friendlies. How many is that now? My head is spinning.
https://open.substack.com/pub/margaretshkimba/p/ford-nation-of-scofflaws-and-sycophants?r=dw1pr&utm_medium=ios
about 2 months ago
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Margaret Shkimba
paulpro
about 2 months ago
Suck up, Vance.
@lartist.bsky.social
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Margaret Shkimba
Theo Moudakis
about 2 months ago
Please enjoy my cartoon in today's Toronto Star
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Mike Luckovich
about 2 months ago
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DrMacLeodCartoons
about 2 months ago
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Marisa Kabas
2 months ago
reading this book in october on a beach day in new york city really drives (pun intended) the point of this book home. congrats
@brooklynspoke.bsky.social
@thewaroncars.bsky.social
!
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Leopards ate my face 🐆
2 months ago
Build the wall
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Margaret Shkimba
onion person
2 months ago
look ai is completely destroying the world with massive pollution and is using up water at a concerning rate but at least you get to use technology that lies to you and is the primary propaganda mechanism by fascists
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🍁 Left of Woke Warrior
2 months ago
Concerned about press freedom when criticism of Israel's government is often condemned as antisemitic? One of the more vocal & aggressive pro-Israel groups in Canada often intimidating media is the ironically-named HonestReporting Canada. Help by asking CRA to audit them!
bsky.app/profile/marg...
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JeffTrnka
3 months ago
youtu.be/gZWtGLj3rUw?...
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IHIP News: Karoline Leavitt Has TOTAL MELTDOWN During MOST INSANE Presser Yet!!
YouTube video by I've Had It
https://youtu.be/gZWtGLj3rUw?si=vN6RmZSTaeEz0LOn
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Are you ok with Israeli meddling in Canadian newsrooms? Ok with the harassing of journalists? Justice Peace Advocates and Writers Against the War on Gaza Toronto have launched a campaign to urge CRA to audit HRC activities. Find out more:
open.substack.com/pub/margaret...
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Biased? Guilty as Charged.
At the end of August, I wrote a column in favour of opening up Gaza to the international press. HonestReporting Canada initiated an email campaign against me. My response below, plus a Call to Action.
https://open.substack.com/pub/margaretshkimba/p/biased-guilty-as-charged?r=dw1pr&utm_medium=ios
3 months ago
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Margaret Shkimba
🍁 Left of Woke Warrior
3 months ago
Excellent & comprehensive post about this mess. I encourage you to read it in full. But I'm asking myself how we define the term 'political violence' denounced by many (yet put into daily practice by the US admin), and how/why Cdn politicians decide hateful US extremists are worthy of condolences.
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Susan Kiddie 🍉
3 months ago
The Canadian government's complicity in Israeli genocide is deplorable.
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'I'm trying to give him hope,' Ontario man says of injured brother in Gaza and attempts to get him to Canada | CBC News
A Palestinian-Canadian man in Brantford, Ont., is calling for urgent help from the Canadian government so his older brother can get out of Gaza to get medical aid.
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/hamilton/brantford-man-brother-injured-in-gaza-1.7632866
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The killing of Charlie Kirk was wrong and there is no excuse for it. There is only trying to understand it. He didn’t deserve to die, he deserved to be exposed.
open.substack.com/pub/margaret...
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Charlie Kirk: Live by the Gun, Die by the Gun
Right-wing gun supporter Charlie Kirk was assassinated at Utah Valley University during a debate event while answering a question on the frequency of gun violence.
https://open.substack.com/pub/margaretshkimba/p/charlie-kirk-live-by-the-gun-die?r=dw1pr&utm_medium=ios
3 months ago
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Ford has no backbone when it comes to standing up to the demands of drivers. None whatsoever. … It’s been nothing but wah, wah, wah against the “war on the car.” Like a baby.
margaretshkimba.substack.com/p/speeding-c...
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Speeding Cameras? Ford Says “Get rid of ‘em”
Doug Ford’s latest tough-guy threat to remove speed cameras is just what you’d expect from Ontario’s Trump-Lite politician
https://margaretshkimba.substack.com/p/speeding-cameras-ford-says-get-rid
3 months ago
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“These are the front-line workers who we expect as a society to fix the problems we see on the streets driven by poverty and drug addiction, and to protect the vulnerable from neglect and exploitation.” Pay them.
www.thespec.com/opinion/colu...
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These workers are the heart and soul of our communities
Why is the work of care providers not valued? Is it because caring is “women’s work?”
https://www.thespec.com/opinion/columnists/these-workers-are-the-heart-and-soul-of-our-communities/article_934bf445-713e-5d68-8bf8-43883d4eb1d7.html
3 months ago
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Catching up on unfinished work. It’s been a summer of starts and stops. This one catches up with Epstein and the Alberta book ban
open.substack.com/pub/margaret...
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Catching up on Chaos, Part 1: Epstein and Book Bans
Since Trump’s election, chaos rules on the political stage and in the social arena. I’m catching up on chaos after a summer of head-spinning attacks on good orderly direction and democracy. Pt. 1
https://open.substack.com/pub/margaretshkimba/p/catching-up-on-chaos-part-1-epstein?r=dw1pr&utm_medium=ios
3 months ago
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Margaret Shkimba
Matthew J (is) Tired
3 months ago
In an international effort "organised by Reporters Without Borders (RSF)..., more than 250 news outlets from over 70 countries will simultaneously black out their front pages..., and interrupt their broadcasting [today] to condemn the murder of journalists by the Israeli army in the Gaza Strip."
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In a world first, over 250 media black out their front pages and broadcasting programmes to protest the killing of journalists in Gaza
In an unprecedented international operation organised by Reporters Without Borders (RSF) and the global campaigning movement Avaaz, more than 250 news outlets from over 70 countries will simultaneousl...
https://rsf.org/en/world-first-over-250-media-black-out-their-front-pages-and-broadcasting-programmes-protest-killing
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I did not know Air Canada flight attendants volunteered their services to Air Canada. What else can you call it when you work for free? How about wage theft?
open.substack.com/pub/margaret...
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Flying Air Canada? Don’t Forget to Tip the Flight Attendants
Air Canada flight attendants were locked out after contract negotiations broke down over compensation claims regarding wages and unpaid labour. The Liberal government responded with s. 107
https://open.substack.com/pub/margaretshkimba/p/flying-air-canada-dont-forget-to?r=dw1pr
4 months ago
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Meanwhile, a picture in a locked attic room decays and degrades daily.
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4 months ago
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Bottom line is that we shouldn’t have to be told. And when told, we should see the logic of it because we’re serious people.
open.substack.com/pub/margaret...
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When Common Sense Isn’t Enough: Fire Bans and the Performative Ego.
Canada is in the midst of a tinder dry spell. Governments are responding with forest access restrictions and burn bans. Right on cue, the usual suspects are using it as an opportunity to divide us.
https://open.substack.com/pub/margaretshkimba/p/when-common-sense-isnt-enough-fire?r=dw1pr
4 months ago
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Barb Hymanyk
4 months ago
"We have to engage in continuous quality improvement, not just in arms and strategy but in the professional competencies of honour and integrity. Especially honour and integrity. Otherwise, they are just goons." And they need to be demonstrated, right from the top.
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Is it enough to help turn the culture around, keep out the riff raff?
open.substack.com/pub/margaret...
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CAF Pay Increases Long Overdue But is it Enough?
The Liberal government announced a $2B increase in military pay and benefits. It’s long overdue but is it enough to turn the tide on recruitment and retention or repair a tarnished image?
https://open.substack.com/pub/margaretshkimba/p/caf-pay-increases-long-overdue-but?r=dw1pr&utm_medium=ios
4 months ago
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derek guy
4 months ago
really feels like housing affordability is one of the most important political issues of our time, affecting nearly every aspect of our lives, and everyday our mainstream political discourse is about whether sour cream is woke or not
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It’s not enough, but it’s a start.
open.substack.com/pub/margaret...
4 months ago
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🍁 Left of Woke Warrior
4 months ago
And I can see why! Hamilton Spectator columnist
@margaretshkimba.bsky.social
had an excellent essay back in June on this distressing topic as well, including the role of the Ontario Hockey League:
margaretshkimba.substack.com/p/hockey-can...
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Hockey Canada Scandal: Early, Ongoing and On-site Training Needed
It’s vitally important to address the rape culture that continues to draw its power from celebrity and pop culture. In Canada, it’s hockey players. In the US, it’s hip hop moguls.
https://margaretshkimba.substack.com/p/hockey-canada-scandal-early-ongoing
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“If these young men believed themselves innocent of the charges before them, that what they did that night was typical for a night on the town with the team, they could have taken the stand and said so.”
www.thespec.com/opinion/colu...
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In sexual assault cases, ‘presumed innocent’ is rarely proven guilty
Too often the victim’s word is not enough. Physical proof is not enough. Eye witnesses are not enough. Nothing is enough.
https://www.thespec.com/opinion/columnists/in-sexual-assault-cases-presumed-innocent-is-rarely-proven-guilty/article_74b24266-d9e0-50e9-8855-33a3cb93bd4a.html
4 months ago
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NiCHE Canada
4 months ago
Today on our site,
@drlorileeoates.bsky.social
shares a special issue of Atlantis Journal that she co-edited with
@sritamabarna.bsky.social
on Gender & Climate Justice. The issue is open-access.
niche-canada.org/2025/07/30/g...
#envhist
#climatejustice
#gender
#openaccess
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Gender and Climate Justice - A Special Section of Atlantis Journal
A special issue on Gender and Climate Justice exposes how colonialism, patriarchy, and racism shape unequal climate impacts and responses globally.
https://niche-canada.org/2025/07/30/gender-and-climate-justice-a-special-section-of-atlantis-journal/
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Truthout
4 months ago
The impunity of the ultra-wealthy is a grim reality, and the public’s awareness that such crimes have occurred, and that perpetrators have been shielded from accountability, has helped fuel wild conspiracy theories.
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The Epstein Case Is Not a Distraction. It Shows How Elite Impunity is Sustained.
The sustained attention around the Epstein files lets us shine a light on the bipartisan architecture of impunity.
https://buff.ly/2llZcg8
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Ecojustice
5 months ago
“My name’s Dwight and I’m a rural landowner in Alberta. 12 years ago, I was forced to host a gas well on my land on the condition that the industry close and clean it up when the well stopped producing. 🚨That never happened.🚨”
#MAS
#OrphanWells
#abpoli
Credit: CTV’s W5; Amber Bracken / The Narwhal
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paulpro
5 months ago
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Trump is losing his base over the “Epstein Hoax”. What would it take to scratch Doug’s Teflon surface? RCMP investigation? ❌ Ontario Place? ❌ Science Centre? ❌ Expedited Booze buyout? ❌ Pissed off First Nations? ❌ What? 🤷🏻♀️
open.substack.com/pub/margaret...
5 months ago
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A/C, David Suzuki, Climate Nihilism and the urban boundary. Summer living.
open.substack.com/pub/margaret...
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Summer Living: So, is it hot enough for you?
That’s not even a bad joke anymore. Temperatures these past couple of weeks have soared into the 25-35 degrees Celsius range, with the “feels like” temperature 5 -10 degrees higher.
https://open.substack.com/pub/margaretshkimba/p/summer-living-so-is-it-hot-enough?r=dw1pr
5 months ago
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Graeme MacKay
6 months ago
Margaret
@margaretshkimba.bsky.social
captures the essence of how satire can effectively highlight important issues while engaging the audience in meaningful conversations about politics:
www.thespec.com/opinion/colu...
#supportsatire
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Editorial cartoons are a keystone of democracy
We are more likely to accept a hard truth if it comes with a laugh.
https://www.thespec.com/opinion/columnists/editorial-cartoons-are-a-keystone-of-democracy/article_9eb6d7ad-e882-5997-9436-fde5bb517f1b.html#tncms-source=opinion-rail
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People are outraged at the cost of the Barton-Tiffany shelter coming in almost 3x over budget But is it a true accounting of how much it costs to house the homeless? What else are we hiding in these costs?
open.substack.com/pub/margaret...
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Barton-Tiffany Redux: Reflections on Paying the Bill
The Barton-Tiffany project has come in $5 million over its $2 million budget. People are outraged. But is it a real reflection of how much providing shelter costs?
https://open.substack.com/pub/margaretshkimba/p/barton-tiffany-redux-reflections?r=dw1pr
6 months ago
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Ann Douglas
7 months ago
“There’s a cognitive dissonance between what I believe to be humanity, how I was raised with compassion and empathy for my fellow humans, and the reality of what I see. I’m forced to live in this state because the government is failing in its purpose. So, yeah, it makes me angry.” 💯
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