Latest news with #Sager
Hamilton Spectator
30-07-2025
- Climate
- Hamilton Spectator
Should city buses be free during heat waves?
Miriam Sager took the bus to escape the heat as she headed to Hamilton city hall during a day that felt like 40 C with the humidex. 'I am fortunate enough to be able to pay the fare,' Sager said. 'I am also fortunate enough to have a cooling system in my home, which I know not everybody has.' It's the Hamiltonians who can't escape extreme temperatures that Sager wanted the city's board of health to have top of mind during the heat warning this week, as temperatures climbed to a high of 32 C. 'Cooling centres and cooling kits are great but … low-income people can't afford to get there,' Sager told the board. 'They might need to walk through the overheated streets, which is not a safe thing to do.' For the second year in a row, Sager, on behalf of the Hamilton 350 Committee , is asking the city to make bus fares optional on days with heat warnings. Last year, 2,000 free bus tickets were given out instead to vulnerable residents, but Sager said that is not the 'barrier-free solution that is needed.' It also doesn't come close to addressing the need, considering Sager says 44 per cent of Hamilton tenants don't have adequate cooling in their homes. In addition, Hamilton has a homeless population that hovers at about 1,600 people, including 150 living outside. 'We have well over 300 mobile cooling centres, called buses, that run all over the city most hours of every day,' said Don McLean, who also delegated on behalf of the committee. 'Surely, we can take the step of making those available for those who cannot afford them when they need them.' McLean pointed out that buses run seven days a week and for longer hours than many places designated as cooling centres, such as libraries and recreation centres. While an exact cost was not provided, the climate action group suggested it would be low. 'HSR is already operating throughout the city during the hottest hours, and the drivers are already working anyway,' said committee delegate Joanna Sargent. 'Since fares would be optional rather than free, summer revenue should still be expected, although perhaps at a lower level.' The delegates also suggested the costs need to be considered in the context of a fundamental health issue that is only getting worse with climate change. 'It's much like providing vaccines during a pandemic,' Sargent said. 'While it is reasonable to ask about this cost, the answer must weigh that number against the cost of not providing more emergency heat relief such as this.' A Spectator story on July 24 showed the danger of extreme temperatures with Hamilton urgent care and emergency department visits for symptoms of heat-related illnesses 'dramatically higher' than past summers. 'The impacts of extreme heat are more severe for these people who are most vulnerable — this would include people who cannot pay bus fare,' Sargent said. 'Their suffering breaks my heart, as I'm sure it bothers you as well.' In total, four delegates from the committee were looking for the board to endorse optional bus fares on days with heat warnings before the matter goes to the general issues committee (GIC) of city council. The proposal already has the support of ACORN Hamilton, Environment Hamilton, the Hamilton and District Labour Council, the Hamilton Council of Canadians, Hamilton Centre for Civic Inclusion and the Hamilton Community Benefits Network. 'It's a looming public health crisis, and none of us want to sit and wait until we have unnecessary deaths, preventable deaths happen here,' Sager said. 'We need your support … to get this implemented in a timely way, an urgent way before we have to assess the damage in hindsight.' The board did not endorse the proposal, mainly because it would take too long to go through the process and might not get to the GIC in time. Instead, the board directed public health to collaborate with city staff on the report that will go to the GIC regarding the feasibility of using city buses as cooling places or to provide free transport during heat warnings. 'It absolute conveys the urgency of this crisis that is impacting our city and its most vulnerable,' board member Sarah Adjekum said while thanking the delegates. Error! Sorry, there was an error processing your request. There was a problem with the recaptcha. Please try again. You may unsubscribe at any time. By signing up, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy . This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google privacy policy and terms of service apply. Want more of the latest from us? Sign up for more at our newsletter page .
New York Times
05-07-2025
- Entertainment
- New York Times
Revenge, Murder and Zombies in 3 New Horror Novels
With a Vengeance Sager's WITH A VENGEANCE (Dutton, 382 pp., $30) is many things at once: a fast-paced thriller, a locked-room mystery and a violent tale of revenge. Back in 1942, during World War II, Anna Matheson's brother died when a train transporting American troops preparing to ship abroad exploded. It wasn't an accident. The train's engine was intentionally constructed with shoddy materials to turn it into a deadly bomb. Anna's beloved father, a train mogul, was blamed for the incident, convicted and later murdered in prison. The events devastated Anna's family, especially because Anna is certain her father was framed. Twelve years later, Anna has gathered the six people she believes are responsible for destroying her family, using personal notes with targeted messages to get them to join her for a 13-hour nonstop luxury train ride from Philadelphia to Chicago. She wants to watch them squirm and make them confess to their crimes, and then, at the end of the trip, the F.B.I. will be waiting to arrest them. But someone else on the train has a different plan, and it involves killing everyone before they reach Chicago. 'With a Vengeance' doesn't tread new ground — it is very clearly inspired by Agatha Christie — but it dances around this known territory with grace and aplomb, in large part because of Sager's impeccable pacing and signature twists. Some characters are thin and there's a love triangle that occupies too much space, but Sager holds it all together with interesting deaths, buckets of tension, a few surprises and plenty of speed. Strange Houses Uketsu's STRANGE HOUSES (HarperVia, 203 pp., paperback, $17.99) follows a writer who starts investigating a peculiar home for sale in Tokyo. A friend, an architect named Kurihara, helps him scrutinize the building's floor plans. As the men probe, they discover bizarre details and architectural incongruities, which convince them they're looking at a house designed for murdering people — a 'hired killer workshop,' as they call it. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
Hamilton Spectator
30-05-2025
- Health
- Hamilton Spectator
How Hiding and Seeking saved Randi Sager's life
(ANNews) – The spiritual teaching of the diamond willow tree is embedded in understanding that the tree needs to survive and thrive in its natural environment for 50 years before the fruiting bodies of the plant can share its medicine with us – the diamond willow fungus. During the time of restoration, along with the process of learning and growing, the medicine that the diamond willow tree produces continues to gift us medicine of understanding that all parts of ourselves are gifts, and it is okay to hide until a person is ready to share their gifts with the world. This spiritual understanding is similar to what Randi Sager experienced so far in her learning journey. 'I was born with no identity,' Sager, an Indigenous psychologist, shared. 'I didn't know who I was because my father never grew up with his culture. I was born knowing that I was native but never knew what that meant. My upbringing wasn't the greatest because we moved around a lot and I felt very lost. I had no idea who I was. In 2010 I got my status. I was officially recognized as an Indian, but what did that mean? All I knew was that I could get cheap gas and cigarettes. I floated for a long time. My 20s were quite lost. I had a lot going on mental health wise. Previously, I developed an eating disorder in my early teens as a result of the trauma that I experienced. I didn't know I had an eating disorder. I just knew that whenever stress happened, it would show up. For 20 years I had that. And when I say I didn't know I had it, I was really good at lying to myself when I didn't think I had something.' It wasn't until Sager's last year in her undergraduate studies while she was preparing for grad school in Counselling Psychology that she decided she had to help herself first if she wanted to help others. 'When I acknowledged and identified that I had an eating disorder, I started day-treatment. I went to the only place I knew at the time. It was both one of the worst and most profound experiences of my life because it led me to where I am today. During that time, I didn't engage in any culture. As I was in treatment and the way I was being treated, it felt like my eating disorder was being demonized. I really felt like I was being punished. I was viewed as being resistant when I would question things,' Sager said. 'I remember I was at home and heard a voice say: it is time,' Sager shared and she started to have a very strong pull to go to the Indigenous student center at the University of Calgary. 'I had identified as being Indigenous when I enrolled, but I never went because I was afraid of going, that I wouldn't be accepted because I didn't look native enough, and thought I was going to be rejected. I was welcomed with loving arms. That is when I experienced my first ceremony, it was a Grandmother's Cree tea ceremony. It felt like home. It was like my ancestors were going, 'finally.' When I sat in that circle, I felt like this is what has been missing in my life.' As Sager listened to a story being shared about somebody who had schizophrenia and telling those voices that they can stay – but to stay in the stadium seats, not in the field where the person was, 'it was so powerful that I had a conversation with my eating disorder, I call him ED. I let him know that I didn't need him anymore. He could go to sleep. It was after that that my behaviour stopped.' It was the Elder from the Indigenous centre that taught Sager her relationship with her eating disorder through storytelling. The Elder taught her 'what was missing was my cultural identity and understanding that ED saved my life. That ED had a purpose, but he was no longer a purpose in my life, that he was harming me, but understanding and allowing that relationship with him allowed him to go to sleep.' In that moment, Sager didn't know she was going to become an Indigenous psychologist. she knew she wanted to become a psychologist. She just didn't know what or how to go about it. 'In that experience with the Elder, I wondered why this was not available. I tried the western ways, but it just wasn't helping. That's when I decided I was going to be an Indigenous psychologist. I had no idea what it meant or what it looked like. That is just what I was going to do.' 'Creator was like… 'here you go.' He cleared that path. Everything was really fast and life changing. I had to let go of my old life and really embrace it. [During] my last year of grad school, I would describe my life like my forest burnt down. I was devastated; I had to start new,' Sager said and she trusted Creator that this was where she was supposed to be. 'I went into grad school. I had to indigenize all my courses, I had to do all the extra work, meaning I went out into community, ceremony – that's scary when you are not from here. I had to put myself out there and start creating community. My dad was so nervous for me because he was afraid that I was going to experience what he experienced. I have in a systemic way, but not the way he has. I have experienced the systemic racism, the covert racism, where he experiences overt racism.' At one point early on in Sager's career, she was accused of practicing shamanism by a co-worker who was unaware of Indigenous cultural practices. 'My instinct was to hide, that I needed to shut down. I realized that in that moment it wasn't me that was wanting to hide, it was my grandmothers – that is what they did to survive. I stood in my power, I didn't hide. I pushed forward. That was the biggest teaching I got from those experiences – to accept who I was – Indigenous and also Scottish and German.' Working from spirit is embedded into Sager's practice as an Indigenous Registered Psychologist. 'I stand in both worlds,' she shared. 'The western world taught me how to navigate that world so I can advocate for my clients. I avoided the helper role for many years. I was afraid of the gifts that I have – those gifts that were given to me. When I wasn't using my gifts, I was getting sick. I learned this when I was doing my research with my participants who gave me these teachings that I still use today. The teachings that I received from my co-researchers and continue to carry in my medicine bag are community, clients, culture identity, spirituality, and empowerment. These are the powerful teachings that are in my practice that are in my daily life and the teachings that I share with clients.'
Yahoo
29-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Child dead, 2 women hurt after being hit by bus in West Vancouver near Horseshoe Bay ferry terminal
BREAKING UPDATE: Police have confirmed a four-year-old boy has died and two women were injured after being hit by a bus in West have confirmed one person is dead and another was injured after a bus collision involving pedestrians near the Horseshoe Bay ferry terminal in West Vancouver. B.C. Emergency Health Services told CBC News it received a call at 3:29 p.m. PT about a motor vehicle incident in the 6700 block of Keith Road. "Paramedics provided emergency medical treatment to two patients," it said in the statement. "One patient was transported to hospital in critical condition. The other patient was transported to hospital in stable condition." Police say they will release more information as it becomes available. Car access in the area is blocked. Crews are in the area of Keith Road and Bay Street, according to DriveBC. West Vancouver Mayor Mark Sager told CBC News he understands there has been a "very tragic accident" involving a Coast Mountain bus. "It's a tragic situation, and I just want to express on behalf of my entire council our profound sadness," Sager said. "Our hearts go out to everybody impacted by this tragic event." B.C. Ferries has confirmed ferry service is not affected, but the company is asking customers to plan with the incident in mind. TransLink says Route No. 257 is currently being detoured but still serving customers near the Horseshoe Bay bus loop. Due to the event, the scheduled event, Taste of the Bay has been cancelled.
IOL News
20-05-2025
- Business
- IOL News
Small increases in defaults: what it means for property repayments and mortgages
For the Human Settlements Sector to achieve its housing delivery mandate, there is a need for all relevant stakeholders to integrate their infrastructure plans leveraging the Intergovernmental Relations (IGR). Image: Simphiwe Mbokazi Data from the credit bureau shows that defaults, however small, have increased in property repayments and mortgages in recent years. Benay Sager, Chairperson of the National Debt Counsellors' Association, told Independent Media Property that while it was still a very small increase, it has risen compared to a few years ago, driven largely by the pressure that homeowners are under. 'The movements are driven mainly by changes in the interest rates, and if you look at interest rates five years ago, they were very low in the midst of Covid. "This created a bit of an artificial boom, and since then, the property sector has really slowed down in terms of new purchases. Similarly, in terms of servicing debt in the property sector, things have become a little bit harder,' Sager said. He added that it is not so much debt levels but interest rates that really impact potential considerations when buying or investing in a property. The NDCA said interest rates really drive property ownership, and they were already seeing the slowdown here. It said that unless the interest rates drop significantly, which is unlikely to happen, they did not see this make-up changing much in terms of who can buy property and the other big dynamics happening there. 'Some parts of the country are becoming more unaffordable, like Cape Town, which probably means other parts that are more affordable will benefit.' Sager said that while the property sector is an open market, and that has to be seen playing itself out, rates are a big consideration from a government perspective. 'Rates have been continuing to increase above inflation over the last several years, so perhaps that should be curbed, as we see a significant portion of consumers' expenses going towards paying rates and electricity and other regulated factors. "If these increases can be curbed, and the entities that provide these services can become more efficient, it will definitely benefit consumers,' Sager said. Commenting on the release of the DebtBusters' Q1 2025, Sager said over the past nine years, electricity tariffs have increased by 135%, the price of petrol has risen by 88%, and the compound effect of inflation is 52%. He said as a result, consumers who applied for debt counselling in Q1 2025, on average, needed 69% of their take-home pay to service debt. This was a significant increase compared to previous quarters and the highest since 2017. The most vulnerable consumers, taking home R5 000 or less per month, use 76% of their income to repay debt. Those earning R35 000 or more spend 77% servicing debt. The ratios for these income groups are the highest since DebtBusters started analysing the data in 2016. Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Advertisement Next Stay Close ✕ Speaking at the DEVAC Infrastructure Summit last week, Thembi Simelane, Minister of the Department of Human Settlement (DHS), indicated that the they were advancing legislative amendments to ensure fair access to home loans and eliminate discriminatory lending patterns, prevent illegal land invasions and fast-track formal township development and develop the Human Settlements Bill to reinforce a spatially just housing delivery system. Simelane said to improve efficiency across the sector, the department is currently expediting the process of developing the Digital Human Settlements 11 Management System (DHSMS), as part of the broader digital transformation strategy of the government, thereby addressing issues of inefficient beneficiary management and unreliable project data. The DHS minister also said that through their various funding sources and key deliverables, the human settlements sector was able to gazette 50 catalytic projects that are to yield 696 280 housing opportunities of mixed typologies such as RDP Walk-Ups, Free Standing BNGs, Social Housing Units, Affordable Rental Stock, Community Residential Units (CRUs) and Serviced Sites. She said typical examples of these projects include projects like Lufhereng in City of Johannesburg, Vista Park in Mangaung, Greater Cornubia in eThekwini, Matlosana N12 in North West and the N2 Gateway in the City of Cape Town. With these projects, the human settlements sector said it aims to accelerate the implementation of the spatial transformation of cities that is aligned with the Spatial Land Use Management Act 16 of 2013, whilst considering that there are limited land parcels that are located closer to work opportunities. Independent Media Property
