Toronto posts

Unless you've been living under a rock, you know that both the Toronto Star and the media news and gossip site Gawker have reported that they have seen a portion of a video that allegedly shows Toronto mayor Rob Ford smoking crack cocaine.

You also know that the owners of this video have requested $200,000 in return for a copy of the entire video and that Gawker has been using the crowdfunding website Indiegogo.com to solicit donations from the public for their own "Crackstarter Campaign" in an effort to raise the funds to buy the video and publish it for all to see.

But, then Gawker announced last week that they had lost contact with the owner(s) of the video with the following statement:

"The last time we established contact with the people who are in possession of the video was this past Sunday, and we have not been able to reach them since," wrote Gawker editor John Cook, adding: "If we end up meeting that goal and fail to consummate this transaction, we will-as we promised at the outset-donate the proceeds to a Canadian non-profit that addresses substance abuse issues."

Gawker said they would donate the funds to a Canadian substance abuse charity if the campaign reached it's goal. ($183,450 with 26 hours to go, as I write this) But, who died and made them king? What if Gawker donors don't want to see their money donated to charity and would instead like their money back? Besides, if the money is donated to charity as a plan B, who gets the tax deduction?

These and other questions will be answered after the jump...

With the tax deadline looming and procrastination at an all-time high, a tsunami of tax filers is on the way. Waiting until the last minute means potential delays in getting your refund, not having the resources needed to complete your return, and stress that you just don't need.

Canada's largest cities are the worst offenders when it comes to filing late. Once again, Toronto tops the list of Canada's biggest procrastinators – the number of residents who filed on the last day in 2012, according the TurboTax data.

When the Toronto Blue Jays placed Jose Reyes on the disabled list on Saturday, they not only put a lot of hits and stolen bases on the shelf but a ton of cash as well.

Reyes is the most expensive member of a very pricey roster. The All-Star shortstop acquired in an off-season trade with the Miami Marlins is making an average of $17.7 million (all figures U.S.) on a six-year contract that expires in 2018.

The only other Blue Jays whose salaries average more than $10 million are left-handed starting pitcher Mark Buehrle ($14.5 million) and right-fielder Jose Bautista ($13 million), according to Major League Baseball.

For 2013, Bautista leads the team in salary with $14 million while right-handed starter Josh Johnson, also obtained in the blockbuster deal with the Marlins, is making $13.75 million. Buehrle will earn $13 million this year and Reyes, who was hurt Friday night in Kansas City while sliding awkwardly into second base, will collect $10 million. As a team, the Jays rank 10th in salary for 2013, with the roster making $117,035,100.

Interestingly, outgoing Rogers CEO Nadir Mohamed earns $5.6 million, which would make him only the eighth-highest-paid Blue Jay. Rogers owns the team that entered the 2013 season as one of the favourites to win the World Series.

Don't feel Mohamed is getting a bad deal, though. Last month Rogers released documents that showed Mohamed will receive an $18.5-million package when he retires in 2014.

Click through the gallery to find out what each of the top 10 is making this season:

As Opening Day arrives, the Toronto Blue Jays are in a position they haven't been for two decades: They enter the baseball season as World Series favourites. The addition of three elite starting pitchers - Cy Young Award winner R.A. Dickey, Mark Buehrle and Josh Johnson - as well as All-Star position players Jose Reyes and Melky Cabrera ensure the Blue Jays will be one of the most exciting teams to watch in 2013. The offseason moves have rekindled thoughts of the feats former general manager Pat Gillick pulled off in the early 1990s. Whether this team can bring the glory days of 1992-93 back to Toronto will not be revealed for months. For now, what we do know is the electricity that has been absent during the past 20 years - as the Jays have failed to come within even a warning-track flyball of the postseason - will be back. They are going to be competitive. Game days will be exciting, bars and restaurants will be full, hotels will enjoy a boost with visitors coming in to see the hottest show in town.

If you're going to see a game, here are five tips to save you money and help you get the most out of the Blue Jays' experience:

For those keeping an eye on the news, two of the largest cities in Canada are losing their tourism glow.

Montreal's constant student protests have gone from a regular proclamation against the increase in university tuition fees to a threat against the numerous annual summer festivals hosted in Quebec's largest city.

The upcoming Montreal Grand Prix cancelled one its opening events, fearful that student protestors would prevent race fans from attending.

Meanwhile Canada's largest city just witnessed the bold murder of one of its local citizens, in the food court of the largest downtown shopping mall, the Eaton Centre.

Are you planning a trip to either city?

If you live and drive a car in Ontario, you've no doubt noticed your insurance premiums on the rise year after year. If you live in Toronto in particular, you've probably heard about or experienced that phenomenon in an almost accelerated way. (Our premiums dropped by more than half when we moved out of the city.)

You might assume that population density, the sheer number of cars on the road, is the main reason your premiums are higher. This is true, in part, but the big reason Torontonians pay more? They live in the staged collision capital of Canada.

The high and increasing number of staged collisions taking place in the city not only increases risk for people on the road there, but the fraud cost is passed on to consumers in the form of higher premiums, to some degree, whether you live in the city or not.

Canadian basketball fans are just as caught up in March Madness as those who are crazy about the US college game south of the border. Here are the five cities in this nation where hoops junkies should feel most at home as they prepare for the 2012 NCAA Tournament.

%Gallery-150563%

1. Toronto - Not only is Toronto home to Canada's only NBA team, but it delivers top-flight talent to the NCAA Tournament each year. The city's playgrounds and high schools are filled with emerging stars and exciting pick-up games. Some of the country's best sports bars, including Real Sports Bar & Grill and the Ballroom, are in downtown Toronto, and they will be packed with hoops fans throughout March Madness. Toronto also has lots of basketball-related history, having hosted the first NBA game in 1946.

2. Almonte, Ontario - Before he invented the game in Springfield, Massachusetts, James Naismith acquired his love for sports and competition in his hometown near Ottawa. You can visit the Naismith Museum in the nation's capital and a statue of Naismith in Almonte, which unveiled the attraction on July 23, 2011 - complete with peach basket.

3. Montreal - After leaving Almonte, Naismith went to McGill University and 10 of its students would later participate in the first organized basketball game in Springfield. Montreal remains a hot bed for this nation's basketball talent and many Canadian fans will cheer for Kris Joseph, the star of No. 1-seeded Syracuse and an NBA prospect who hails from Quebec's largest city.

4. Edmonton - We've all heard about the Harlem Globetrotters, but do you know about the Edmonton Commercial Graduates? This team of Canadian women won 147 straight games and had an overall record of 502-20 during their 25-year history early in the 20th century. Theirs is one of the great sports legacies in the City of Champions.

5. Victoria - The British Columbia capital is home to this nation's greatest basketball player, Steve Nash. The two-time NBA MVP, who was born in South Africa, went to university at Santa Clara in California, where he led the Broncos to three NCAA Tournament appearances. In Victoria, Steve Nash Youth Basketball is developing the next generation of hoops players and spreading love of the game on the west coast.

Never has one meal had so much riding on it for Aidan Nulman.

It was December 2010 and the 24-year-old Montreal native was eating dinner in the bowels of MaRs Discovery District in Toronto along with 64 of the best and brightest university students from across the country.

There was Max Bailey, a guy who had been building businesses since he was eight and founded the consumer rewards company Spoonity. There was David Castelino a University of Toronto chemical engineering student with a number of patents in his name, including solar tile, holographic imaging and food labeling systems.

Sales of homes in Canada continue to be strong, despite or perhaps because of, global economic turmoil. While the national average price rose only 5.5 per cent in October, the smallest increase since January, sales continued to be strong throughout Canada with just over half of local markets posting gains. Click through to see where home prices rose the most. Visit our other gallery to see where homes are most affordable - 'Canada's Least Expensive Cities to Buy a Home In.'

Canada Average House Prices
September '11: $352,581
Change from August '11: + 0.8%
Change from September '10: + 6.5%
Number of units sold: 37,760
Source: CREA

Top 10 Most Expensive Cities to Buy a Home in (CLICK ON PHOTO TO LAUNCH GALLERY)



%Gallery-134109%

It turns out we're still a nation of givers: According to Statistics Canada, the amount people gave to charity in 2010 rose 6.9 per cent compared to the previous year.

The total for that year came in at just under $8.3-billion. The number of donors increased too – the Canada Revenue Agency says just over 5.7 million reported charitable donations when filing their tax returns this year.