Sunday, July 3rd: to show up or not to show up

There is no reason to show up. I refuse to show up. I did show up but you wish I hadn’t.

We had an #unwinning weekend with the lotteries. Both the Max on Friday and the 6/49 on Saturday failed to produce winning tickets so both prizes have been rolled over.

Canada’s biggest gay pride parade kicks off in downtown Toronto today around 2pm with over a million people expected to be in attendance. One notable exception will be Rob Ford, the first mayor in 16 years to miss the parade.

William and Kate are in Quebec City today and will have to face a few of those who are dead set against the crown. While some Canadians have taken a stance against Canada’s continued allegiance to the British Crown, there are some especially in Quebec who remain openly hostile to it. The separatist group Réseau de Résistance du Québécois has organized a “William Go Away” demonstration (William dégage!) while reportedly listing grievances going back to the British capture of Quebec City in 1759. The Quebecois have not forgotten the defeat of the French at the hands of the British.

My opinion: Rob Ford

Mr. Ford has publicly stated that his family visiting their cottage on this long weekend is a tradition dating back 30 years. One point for Rob Ford.

However, Mr. Ford was elected by us to represent us and to run our city. He is our mayor. On the one side, we have his family. On the other we have the city of Toronto with a population of over 5 million. We have a public event with attendance expected to be over a million.

What? You’re kidding me Rob, right? Last year when you went to the cottage for your family tradition, you were a private citizen. You are now the mayor of a major North American city. This isn’t Mayberry; this is a world class city. This is an opportunity to support a segment of our population which has suffered a history of discrimination. Even if you secretly don’t support them, this is an tourist event of major proportions.

William and Kate

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge arrived in Quebec City by way of a Canadian naval frigate. The two of them sailed down the St. Lawrence River from Montreal and docked at 9am to start their fourth day of touring the country. At the end of the day, they fly to Prince Edward Island. See below for their complete itinerary.

(CTV, National Post, CTV)

Published on Jul 3, 2011 by AFP

Quebec separatists protest as William and Kate visit

Prince William and his bride Catherine’s first official foreign trip as newlyweds turned grim when Quebec republicans welcomed them to Montreal shouting “down with the monarchy.”

Gay Pride Week: June 24 – July 3

There is plenty going on during the week so check out Pride Toronto.

The Gay Pride Parade

The parade is Sunday, July 3 at 2pm.

The Lotteries

Despite the “unwinning” games, there are some secondary prizes so don’t throw out your tickets! For the Max, six out seven numbers with the bonus number will get you $325,676.40 (where does the forty cents come from!). Nothing to sneeze at. The Encore for the 6/49 is worth a million.

6/49: Wed, Jul 6, 2011: $25 million

Lotto 6/49: One chance in 13,983,816

Lotto Max: Fri Jul 8: $20 million (No MaxMillions)

Lotto Max: One chance in 28,633,528

All the latest winning numbers

You can visit the Lotto web site and check out all the latest winning numbers including Poker, 49, Lottario, Keno, Pick 4, Pick 3 and Payday. Of course, all the Encore numbers can be found there as well.

References

Wikipedia: Réseau de Résistance du Québécois

The Réseau de Résistance du Québécois (RRQ) (English: Québécois Network of Resistance) is a small fringe Quebec nationalist group founded in 2007 that advocates Quebec sovereignty. In 2008, the RRQ claimed a membership of 500 people. The RRQ have released a manifesto, called “Manifeste du Réseau de Résistance du Québécois (RRQ)”.

official web site: Réseau de Résistance du Québécois

Comme son nom l’indique, le RRQ est une organisation de résistance qui considère l’indépendance du Québec comme nécessaire à la survie et au développement de la nation québécoise. Il tire son inspiration de toutes les situations de notre histoire où les Québécois se sont dressés avec courage contre les manœuvres d’anéantissement ou d’assimilation de la part du conquérant britannique de 1760 et de ses collabos canadiens-français.

The Royal Tour

The CBC report William and Kate’s itinerary as follows:

June 30 —Their first official function is laying a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at the National War Memorial. They will then head to Rideau Hall where they will be greeted by Prime Minister Stephen Harper and the Governor General and receive full military honours including a 21-gun salute.There will be a youth barbecue and reception in the garden of Government House.

July 1 — They will attend a citizenship ceremony at the Museum of Civilization and then it’s off to Parliament Hill for Canada Day celebrations, where William will briefly address the crowd.

July 2 — After a tree planting at Rideau Hall and a reception for war veterans and war brides, the couple depart for Montreal. There, they will visit Saint-Justine Hospital, a facility for young cancer patients, and go to the Institut de tourism et d’hotelerie where they will participate in a class of chefs in training. The students will then serve them a private dinner. Amid a fireworks competition in the harbour, the couple board HMCS Montreal for the overnight journey to Quebec City.

July 3 — The couple will meet the Royal 22nd Regiment, the Van Doos, who have just returned from Afghanistan. Expect an inspection of the guard and a walkabout. They then head to the Citadel and after some down time depart for Levi Fort to participate in a fair. They depart by plane to Charlottetown where they will stay at Government House.

July 4 — In the morning, they will tour Province House, and be greeted by the Fathers of Confederation on the steps. There will be a welcome by Premier Robert Ghiz and then a walkabout on George Street. Then they will head to Dalvay by the Sea. After a brief rest, they attend an outdoor reception complete with BBQ, dragon boat race and music. They will be greeted by Anne of Green Gables and do a walkabout. They depart for Summerside by helicopter where they will see a search and rescue demonstration and attend a reception for fishermen rescued by such teams. They leave for Yellowknife.

July 5 — At Somba Ke Civic Plaza, the couple will be welcomed by the premier and aboriginal leaders in a ceremony that includes prayer and drum songs. They will do a walkabout with aboriginal athletic events. At a Territorial Legislature for Youth Parliament event, young people from different ridings will come to the legislature and try to solve a problem of their choosing and report their results to William. The couple then travel by sea plane to Blatchford Lodge to meet with Canadian Rangers. After walking to Dechinta Centre, which tries to recapture the aboriginal language and culture for young people, they return to Yellowknife and retire for the night.

July 6 —The couple depart for Calgary and have the day to themselves in a private location.

July 7 — After visiting Foothills Hospital, they head to the BMO Centre for a reception hosted by Harper and his wife. There will be a gift presentation from the government of Canada to the couple and a speech by Harper.

July 8 — The couple will attend the launch of the Calgary Stampede parade and watch part of the parade. Then they visit ENMAX Conservatory at the Calgary Zoo. Their final stop is Challenger Rotary Park where William will do an inspection of the guard with full military honours.

They depart Calgary airport at 1:40 MT for Los Angeles to start their U.S. tour.

StarPulse reports on the California leg of their North American tour.

July 8: The couple will arrive from Canada and go to the UKTI reception at the Beverly Hilton. They will then head over to the Consular General’s LA home for a high-profile meet-and-greet with politicians and VIPs.

July 9: They will head to Santa Barbara for a polo match benefiting American Friends of the Foundation of Prince William and Prince Harry. William will play polo and they will both be handing out prizes.

That night, they will attend the BAFTA reception at the Belasco Theatre and plan to walk the red carpet at the star-studded event. Prince William is the president of BAFTA and will make a short speech.

July 10: They will visit Inner City Arts in Los Angeles, which is a program that helps homeless and disadvantaged children. Their evening plans include attending a war veterans event at Sony Studios that helps strengthen the bond between UK and US armed forces.

Click HERE to read more from William Belle

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