Uh Oh!

[bjarvis]

It has been announced the G20 summit for 2010 will be hosted in Canada alongside the G10 summit already scheduled for the end of June, 2010, in the Muskoka area of central Ontario.

Ouch.

Yes, I think there's value in having a number of national leaders meet in person to discuss issues, even if all the agreements are pre-negotiated by their staff weeks in advance of the event. Anything mechanism which facilitates or forces communication is a Good Thing, IMHO.

But when I think of the amount of violence and vandalism which follows these conferences wherever they go, I can only pity the residents whose property is going to be damaged or destroyed. The city will have enormous security-related expenses in the weeks prior and following the event and will have the impact of rerouted traffic, blocked roads & airports for the transport of VIPs and much more.

I imagine every mayor of a hosting city upon hearing his/her location has been selected thinks Fantastic!, followed very quickly by OMG!

It's a wonder to me that the G20 leaders don't select a city in the most police-state-like member to host their meetings, just to escape the bother of protesters, anarchists and riots.

Comments

[trawnapanda.livejournal.com]

I remember back in the late 1980s, when the G7 (as it then was) summit was held at Hart House here in Trawna (and they welded shut all the access covers to the sewers between there at Union Station to keep Prez Reagan safe from attack). But since then the Canadian hosted conferences have usually been in isolated venues - Chateau Montebello was one, and the other was ??Lake Louise?? -- NOT in a large Canajun city, but a small one where access can be more easily controlled, and the (genuine) security needs more easily met.

So the protests move to a nearby city - there will of a certainty be stuff happening in Trawna, even though the actual meetings are up in Huntsville.

2010 Pride has been moved back a week to avoid conflict with the G8 (and now G20 as well). These international-summit guyz just have NO sense of priorities!! (huff huff). The last time it was moved was a week for Stonewall 25.

So Toronto Pride next year will be [drumroll] 4 July 2010. Come celebrate Independence Day by being Proud with the Canajun Fruit! (I know you've got the day off)

[bjarvis.livejournal.com]

I was staying at Devonshire House, a residence of the University of Toronto, as a co-op student during the summer that the G7 came to town. I mostly remember the helicoptors sweeping spotlights across the dorm windows all hours of the night for a week prior to the conference, as well as the massive traffic snarls.

It wasn't a fun time.

[trawnapanda.livejournal.com]

I was staying at Devonshire House

You were at DEVO? that explains so much...

mostly remember the helicoptors sweeping spotlights across the dorm windows all hours of the night

boys [in blue] and their toys...

I share your eyerolling recollections

[kent4str.livejournal.com]

I just hope your sister doesn't need to travel between Perry Sound & Toronto, or your mom down from home, during that time - you know the highway will be a parking lot.

Let's start a betting pool as to which relative forgets and tries to drive through it.

This is why you need more than one highway.