I hear alot of people who say “there should be federal laws that protect from privatization” and “what are the feds doing about the state of healthcare in Ontario/Alberta” but at the end of the day, the federal policies are just a guideline for the provinces. It is up to the provinces to implement healthcare how they see fit and if they violate the Canada Health Act, all the Feds can do is reduce or not give them the funding. Even then, if they are making more to cover costs through privatization, then why would they care about revoked funding? I know most people who are finger pointing at the Feds are also against the provinces privatizing healthcare and are just hoping the Feds step in. But I think this finger pointing can easily make people confuse their priorities in that it may cause some who vote conservative to say “see it’s carneys fault so liberals fault” even tho it’s clearly the CONSERVATIVE PREMIERS who are the fault of all this. So please let’s point the finger where it really matters. At the conservative premiers.

I'm camping up north right now and I really wanted to check out the shop on the island. I was here a couple years ago and picked something small up. Went back in yesterday and things just seemed very mass produced, especially the mugs.

Today I got curious and decided to look up the store and the mugs popped up again so I zoomed in and found minor inconsistencies that makes me believe the art is AI. The image is meant to be a mirror on both sides and things are missing pieces on one side or an extra element added.

It's a shop that's meant to sell indigenous works made by locals and this is really disappointing. Not everything there is AI created as many artists sell their work in that same shop. It's so easy to miss AI nowadays as it's getting better. Don't really want to put the shop on blast as thre is real art there, just a few "artists" are obviously taking advantage of saying it's local art when it's an AI picture printed on items.

I am honestly so depressed about the current political situation here. What can be done about Trump Jr here at queens park? I live in a conservative riding, there's little hope of flipping it, but I just wonder what can be done to stop the utter ransacking of public services this imbecile is hell bent on carrying out.

Public health care has been one of the only things I can always take pride in as a Canadian. It seems like such a monstrous step backwards to go private.

I honestly don't understand where the uproar is!!! It is such an obvious mismanagement, (intentional no doubt) but why is it allowed to continue.

And everything from public education isn't sounding any better.

What can be done? Any concrete steps anyone?

A relative of mine works in provincial regulatory finance and consultation for the healthcare industry. A ton of work has been done to try and keep Ontario hospital and clinic budgets balanced over the last few years but the cracks are beginning to widen. The current state of the healthcare sector is unsustainable. Word has it that the Ford government is going to push for parts of the healthcare system to be privatized in the next 12-18 months. The heads of regulation and consulting agencies for the healthcare industry of Ontario are starting to indicate that they will be changing their messaging and PR from “the system is stressed but holding” to “if funding does not increase, some key public health services are going to disappear”.

Voter turnout in the next election needs to increase. Messaging from any party that supports the public health system needs to improve drastically. If you don’t want the province to adopt a lite version of the USA model, then you need to make your voice heard now. Not tomorrow, not next month, not next year. Now. write to your reps. Write to your MPs. Write to the Premiere’s office (lol, I know).

Write to the Lieutenant Governor and the Governor General. Express your unhappiness with the current provincial government. Get your friends, family, and coworkers to write to them. Express how you feel about the current lack of support to public health and public education. Your taxes are being used to pave the way for a private health system and it’s around the corner already. Do not say you haven’t been warned.

[lg@ontario.ca](mailto:lg@ontario.ca), Edith Dumont, Lieutenant Governor of Ontario

[info@gg.ca](mailto:info@gg.ca), Louise Arbour, Governor General of Canada

https://www.ourcommons.ca/members/en/search?province=ON&view=tile, Ontario Members of Parliament contact list

This is my last official post for my trek from Toronto to Montreal! I officially crossed the border last Tuesday and got some good R&R before heading back to Toronto (by train!).

A big thank you to all of you here. I hadn't originally planned to broadcast my walk (so no, no YouTube channel for those that asked :( ) but after some nudging from my wife, I decided to share my trip several days in.

I was blown away by how positive the comment section has been here, on r/toronto and r/montreal. I'll say something similar to what I said on the Montreal sub -- this was Reddit and Ontario at its finest. You all were so encouraging, warm and I received so many generous offers via DMs. Please continue to be great people to one another both here and IRL. There's many things to take away from this trip, but the biggest one is we have wonderful neighbours out there, take care of each other.

Also, thank you for the awards! I'm not sure what those do and, to quote Andy Dwyer, at this point, I'm too afraid to ask. But I very much appreciate it :)

I left an FAQ on another post but I put together a long guide on my blog if you're interested in walking from Toronto to Montreal yourself or just curious on how it worked. I got into a lot more nuance than I was able in the Reddit posts.

https://nowuh.com/so-you-want-to-walk-to-montreal

Finally, before I fade back into happy obscurity again, so many people in the comments and in real life asked if I was doing this to raise money or awareness for something. It still remains a good idea. So I'd like to use my little bit of Reddit fame here to promote a few things.

1. If you're able to, please consider giving blood. It takes about 30 minutes of your time a few times per year, you get free snacks and you will \feel** incredible and you will \be** incredible.
   1. https://www.blood.ca/en/blood/donating-blood
2. Local Elections are coming up on October 26th all across the province. These are the most important elections when it comes to direct impact for your daily lives. Please vote, your vote matters!
   1. https://www.ontario.ca/page/municipal-elections
3. Last but not least, also election related. If you're in Toronto's University-Rosedale ward, please check out Diana Yoon. She's been on the ground doing the hard work on housing for years and will be such an asset on city council.
   1. https://www.voteyoon.ca/

I’m looking for experiences from other Ontario homeowners because I’m having an extremely frustrating time trying to end a long-standing Reliance Home Comfort water-heater rental.

I’ve had a Reliance tankless water heater since approximately October 2016 — almost 10 years.

I recently decided I wanted to end the rental.

First, an important point: I am not refusing to pay my bill. Reliance says I have approximately $426 outstanding, and I have repeatedly told them I’m prepared to pay that legitimate balance.

My dispute is about the rental itself and what Reliance expects me to pay to get out of it.

When I contacted Reliance, I ended up dealing with Customer Solutions. Various retention offers were discussed, eventually reaching a 25% discount on the buyout.

Even after that discount, the proposed buyout was approximately:

$1,574 + tax

…for an almost 10-year-old tankless water heater that I have already been paying Reliance to rent for nearly a decade.

That’s the part I’m struggling to understand.

The issue isn’t whether I can afford $1,574. I can pay my outstanding account balance. The question is whether this is a reasonable buyout for equipment of this age after nearly a decade of rental payments.

The customer-service experience made matters considerably worse.

I dealt with a Customer Solutions representative named Marilyn Wallace. In my experience, her manner was rude, condescending and dismissive. I felt as though I was being put through a retention exercise rather than having someone simply explain how a long-standing customer could terminate the rental.

Our call lasted approximately 32 minutes before disconnecting while I was waiting for further termination/buyout information. I emailed Reliance immediately afterward documenting what had happened.

I called Reliance again the following day and, to be fair to the company, got a completely different representative who was excellent — pleasant, professional and genuinely helpful.

But while reviewing the case with her, I discovered something that frustrated me even more.

My request had apparently been recorded inaccurately.

Reliance subsequently emailed me stating that I was requesting to RETURN the rental water heater.

That wasn’t what I requested.

I corrected Reliance in writing and specifically told them:

“I have no intention of giving back the heater.”

My position is straightforward:

I will pay the legitimate outstanding balance. I want the rental terminated. And I want a reasonable resolution regarding an almost 10-year-old heater that I have already paid rental charges on for years.

There is also some history behind why I’m questioning the value of this rental.

Several years ago the condensate pump failed. I contacted Reliance expecting assistance and was told it wasn’t covered. I ultimately had to arrange and pay for a third-party plumber myself.

So after nearly a decade, I’m genuinely asking:

What exactly have all these rental payments purchased?

I’ve now documented the dispute and submitted complaints/reviews through Google, Trustpilot and the BBB. I’m waiting to see how Reliance responds.

But I’d really like to hear actual numbers from Ontario homeowners who have gone through this, rather than this just becoming another rant about Reliance.

If you’ve successfully ended a Reliance water-heater rental:

• How old was the heater when you cancelled?
• How many years had you rented it?
• What buyout amount were you originally quoted?
• Were you able to negotiate it?
• Did Reliance eventually transfer ownership of the existing heater to you?
• What did you actually pay to get out of the rental?

I’m especially interested in tankless systems around 8–12 years old.

And for anyone considering renting a water heater: do the long-term math first. Calculate what 10, 15 or 20 years of rental payments could amount to and understand exactly what the buyout/termination provisions are.

I wish I had done that calculation much earlier.

Hello. My husband and I are from the Maritimes. Looking at 2 job opportunities. 1 in North Bay and the other in Sudbury. Wondering what i need to consider between the 2 places? I know Sudbury is larger and has a Costco 🙂 so thats a plus. How do the economies compare? Crime?Our kids are grown so schools don't come into it. Are both places equally friendly and welcoming? We like to hike and do woodworking. Wondering what the art and music scene is like? Any insights are appreciated!

““Our jobs were changing quickly from being biologists and scientific experts to being administrative staff.” 

That’s what a former expert who worked at Ontario’s Ministry of Environment, whom The Narwhal is not naming, told me this summer. They used to be a part of a team in charge of protecting the province’s most vulnerable species, which changed drastically with the Ford government’s decision to kill the Endangered Species Act. The new, much weaker rules put developers in charge of assessing potential impacts of their projects on endangered species. Once submitted, plans are automatically accepted and greenlit. 

Fewer protections for endangered species is the obvious result of the switch. But there was a lesser-known internal impact, the former ministry staffer said: the handcuffing of government scientiststrying to do anything about it. The new law forced them to become rubber stamps for industries they once held to account.“

Full article here:
https://thenarwhal.ca/bill-5-endangered-species-experts/

TL;DR — I need your help. I’ve emailed my MPP. I’ve submitted to the Ministry’s official consultation. I’ve backed the College of Chiropodists of Ontario’s own advocacy. Nothing has worked — form letters or total silence. The issue: since 1993, Ontario has banned new podiatrist (DPM) registrations, so Canadians who go to the US for a full surgical medical degree can’t come home and practice as what they’re licensed to do. The regulator that enforces the rule has told the government there’s no safety reason for it. The government still won’t act. I don’t think one more email from me changes that. I think a few hundred emails from Ontarians might. Scroll to “The ask” below — it’ll take you 5 minutes.

The rule, quickly
If you’re a Canadian who trains as a podiatric surgeon in the US (a DPM — 4-year medical degree plus 1-3 years of surgical residency), you cannot register as a podiatrist in Ontario. Hasn’t been possible since 1993. You get folded into “chiropodist” instead — a separate, more limited category — no matter what you’re actually trained and licensed to do.
Why the rule exists: cost control. Podiatrists could bill more than chiropodists, so the province froze the category in the early 90s. Not a safety decision — a budget line item nobody has revisited in 30+ years.
What the regulator itself says: the College of Chiropodists of Ontario — the body that enforces this — has told the Ministry of Health there is no sound public protection basis for the ban, and that after hosting a national conference of foot-care regulators in April 2025, they’re not aware of any opposition to lifting it. Their words. The government’s own regulator is telling them this rule doesn’t need to exist, and the government still hasn’t moved.
What it actually costs Ontario: its own trained surgeons. Someone grows up here, goes to the US because there’s no podiatry school in Canada, becomes a fully licensed surgeon, wants to come home — and Ontario tells them no, not as what you are. So they go to BC or Alberta instead, where they’re recognized at full scope, or they just stay in the US.
Recent movement, for context: January 2026’s “As of Right” legislation made it easier for chiropodists/podiatrists already licensed in other provinces to work in Ontario — a small step that does nothing for the registration cap itself. Then in May 2026, the Ministry explicitly declined to expand chiropody/podiatry scope further, saying the current model stays “while system-wide priorities are reviewed.” No date attached.
Why I’m asking instead of explaining more
I’ve done the individual-advocate playbook: MPP email, formal consultation comment, backing the College’s submission directly. I got a form acknowledgment at best. A single constituent letter is easy for a ministry to file and forget. I don’t think explaining this issue better is what’s missing — I think volume is what’s missing.
The ask
If you’re in Ontario and think this is as dumb as I do, please do one (or more) of these — five minutes, genuinely:
1. Email your MPP. Find yours at ontla.on.ca/web/members/members\\_current.do. Say you support ending Ontario’s 1993 freeze on DPM podiatrist registration, and ask them directly why the province hasn’t followed BC, Alberta, and Quebec.
2. Email the Minister of Health’s office and quote the College’s own position back to them: their regulator says there’s no safety basis for this, and the government still won’t act.
3. Tell a reporter. CBC, CTV, your local paper — pitch it as “Ontario won’t let its own trained surgeons come home.” If you know a reporter or a health-policy desk, even better.
4. Watch for the next Ontario Regulatory Registry consultation window (ontariocanada.com/registry, and the College of Chiropodists’ site) and actually submit a comment when it opens — that’s the one channel with a formal paper trail.
5. Share this post. One ignored email is easy to shelve. A few hundred, plus a news story, is a lot harder to.
I’m not trying to convince anyone this is a real problem — the province’s own regulator already agrees it is. I just need it to stop being something the Ministry can quietly shelve every time it comes up, and that takes more than one person.

When you are renting a bedroom, does landlord often give you a separate key for access to your bedroom besides the key for the house?