The #WeTheNorth Campaign [RAPTORS]

This is Toronto through a basketball-glass darkly. It points toward the future of how the Raptors will project themselves onto the NBA landscape.

Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment took the first real step in its promised rebrand of the team on Wednesday with the release of a campaign entitled We The North.

The first video spot has an old-school Nike-feel - plus fire, snow and wolves. It’s Game of Thrones minus the nudity.

Are You On That WIND Mobile? [TELECOMMUNICATION]

WIND Mobile finally launching. It is just a cell phone carrier after all, right? Kind of. It is a business at the end of the day, and a business hopes to be profitable (they want to make as much money possible), but the reason WIND is so brilliant is because they’re capitalizing on years of pillaging by Canada’s big three mobile providers: Rogers, TELUS and Bell. We’re not going to get into why Canada’s cellular options are so bad and expensive — Canada is a huge country, 90% of the people live within a certain amount of miles to the U.S. border, people expect coverage everywhere, it’s expensive to maintain — because it doesn’t matter. What does matter is how revolutionary WIND is to the average Canadian cellular subscriber and how much money that person will save. Here’s an example of a standard Rogers phone bill for a BlackBerry:

• $45/month for 400 minutes, unlimited calling after 9PM, and a choice of either unlimited Rogers-to-Rogers calling, my5, unlimited SMS, or an extra $100 minutes. Let’s assume you chose unlimited Rogers-to-Rogers calling.
• $25/month for a 500MB data plan for your BlackBerry (BIS not BES)
• $20/mo for unlimited SMS, caller ID and voicemail for a smartphone
• Total with fees of around $93/month (excluding taxes).

Over the life of your cell phone contract of three years (yes, it’s three years in Canada), you’ll have paid approximately $3348 to Rogers, and you’d have a brand new BlackBerry 9700 for which you paid $249.99 for. All in all, $3597 before tax. Here’s a WIND plan:

• $45/month for unlimited minutes, unlimited SMS to U.S. and Canada, voicemail, caller ID, call waiting, call forwarding
• $35/month for unlimited BlackBerry data

We’re at $80/month with unlimited everything, no contract, and no fees to change plans or features.

Sure, a difference of only plus or minus $13/month might not get everyone excited, but think of it this way… you don’t have to pay $500 to cancel your contract, you can elect to pre or post-pay, and never have to ever worry about overages unless you’ve got a lot of pals overseas. The option of unlimited anything is a downright comforting thought for consumers. As long as you can get over the $200 additional entry fee for an unsubsidized but very fairly-priced handset (note: Rogers charges $599.99 for a contract-free Bold 9700 as opposed to WIND’s $450), WIND looks incredibly attractive. Plus, you won’t get tied to the tree and spanked. Metaphorically, of course.

t isn’t all rainbows and ponies, however, as we have to take coverage (when you roam on Rogers, for instance, you’ll only get EDGE as WIND uses the same AWS 3G spectrum T-Mobile uses and is incompatible with Rogers, TELUS, and Bell), customer service, and profitability into consideration. The bet is that WIND makes so much that they can continue to save you money. Funny, isn’t it? Again, they’re a brand, brand new network, but with a boatload of cash behind them, some very smart and attractive pricing, plans, devices, and services, we think they have an amazing shot. They’ve also permanently disrupted the Canadian wireless landscape for the better, and within days or weeks, you’ll start to see better pricing from red, green, and blue. Thus giving our Canadian friends something they’ve long hoped for — competition.

via BGR

Private Compound Is Canada's Most Expensive Property Sale In 2009 [REAL ESTATE]

It's surprising, and not surprising at the same time that this piece of property is located in Calgary...from oil sands, to retail for a few years now it's been more like "Cashgary" over there.

Canada's most expensive residential sale so far this year occurred last month. Falkridge, a luxury retreat in the Calgary region, sold for $13.1 million after being on the market just a few weeks. It was listed for $12.9 million and sold for $13.1 million to an unnamed Calgary oil and gas entrepreneur. It was owned by U. S.-based Haworth Inc., a manufacturing company but was originally built by the Smed family of Calgary. The compound is 27,000 square feet and has a main residence, guest house, gazebo and water tower. The main residence is 15,000 square feet and has seven guest suites, an industrial chef kitchen, dining room, lounge and a media room that accommodates more than 20 people.The 12,000-square-foot guest house has six separate suites,a lounge with fireplace, and a training and conference area.

See more over at Luxist via Sotheby's Canada.

Graph Nobel - Something 2 Die 4 EP [MUSIC]

I'm feeling this Canadian girl...Canadian girl!

I’ve got something very special for y’all today. This is an EP by Canadian singer/songwriter/vocalist Graph Nobel, produced entirely by Malik Worthy. You may know Graph from her work with Idle Warship (along with Talib Kweli and Res), or her songwriting credits alongside The Neptunes, N.E.R.D., Esthero and more. She is currently working with Pharrell on new projects and preparing to tour Europe with Idle Warship. This EP is comprised of five great songs that touch on love, loss, hope, and living life. Just great music. Enjoy!!!!

LISTEN/DOWNLOAD: Graph Nobel - Something 2 Die 4 EP

via Nah Right by way of Tunji

A go&d™ Friday Classic!

Fresh Wes...yuh large!

Your request is being processed... Obese Airline Rights: Canada Court Rules The Obese Have Rights To Two Seats

This is amazing...I am not the "slenderest" but I mean if I did weigh so much that I needed 2 seats I would expect to pay! I side with Quagmire on this one...fat folks need love too...but they have to pay!

In the words of

OTTAWA (Reuters) -- Obese people have the right to two seats for the price of one on flights within Canada, the Supreme Court of Canada ruled on Thursday.

The high court declined to hear an appeal by Canadian airlines of a decision by the Canadian Transportation Agency that people who are "functionally disabled by obesity" deserve to have two seats for one fare.

The airlines had lost an appeal at the Federal Court of Appeal in May and had sought to launch a fresh appeal at the Supreme Court. The court's decision not to hear a new appeal means the one-person-one-fare policy stands.

Read the whole story here.

I'm still a little resentful that I couldn't get a cameo in the Compton to Scarboro but J and Neil hold down the city in a way a city should be held down. Recently back from touring with The Cool Kids and revamped their cut Heaven's Gates & Hell's Flames I call it HOLY FIRE!

LISTEN/DOWNLOAD: The Carps feat The Cool Kids - Heaven’s Gates & Hell’s Flames [REDUX]

Snagged at DCtoBC

Scotiabank projects recession in Canada, U.S.

Lights out bitc*es! If don't know well now you know that stock prices, and credit markets are crumbling. It is happening more so in the US than in Canada presently, but as most people will tell you when the US sneezes Canada catches a cold. This has led experts to believe that a recession is inevitable...no not Jeezy's album (though a solid piece of work)but an actual a significant decline in economic activity spread across real income, employment levels, industrial production, and wholesale-retail sales paints a bleak 2009...

OTTAWA — Economists are gutting their forecasts for Canada's growth next year as the United States slides into recession and pulls the rest of the world down with it.

A Bank of Nova Scotia forecast to be published on Tuesday projects a recession for both Canada and the United States.

And Goldman Sachs is warning that its outlook for Canada, to be released later this week, is going to be significantly weaker as well.

“Although Canada has been somewhat more insulated from the direct impact of the credit crisis, it will not escape the effects of a significant contraction in U.S. consumer spending over the next few quarters,” Goldman Sachs economist Andrew Tilton said in a note to clients late Sunday. “As a result, we will be revising down our estimates for Canadian exports and overall growth.”

Read the rest of the article here.

Brilliant!

I know I've been following American politics pretty strongly, so in full disclosure I'll be voting NDP in the election on October 14th. I urge you all to do so as well.

Read up on the platform HERE.

Canucks are heading to the polls too!

OTTAWA (Reuters) - Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper will as expected this week ask for a dissolution of Parliament and call an election for October 14, the Canadian Press quoted senior government sources as saying late on Monday.

READ MORE