According to a new Toronto Star investigation, road tolls and congestion charges will be required to support the upcoming $4 billion Sheppard subway line.

Although the mayor had initially promised that the new subway lines would not cost taxpayers, according to former TTC commission Gordon Chong, who was selected by Rob Ford to oversee the details in the plan, depending on the private sector isn’t a realistic option.

Even though the Star’s poll indicates there is opposition on the part of Toronto’s citizens against the idea of using tolls for the DVP or Gardiner, it also indicates that the opposition is less strong when taking into account that the money will be used towards public transit.

Gordon Chong has been commended by other politicians for speaking out about this issue.

It’s important for us to always try and better ourselves. As such, taking good advice from
others is crucial. At the same time, if you see that someone you know can use your advice,
it’s equally important to help them. However, there is a certain way in which the nasiha
(advice) should be given.

Sincere intention: As with every other action,  your intention before advising
someone should be sincere. If you’re doing it to make yourself look better than the other
person or to simply make the other person look bad, there’s really no point.

Give the nasiha privately: Failure to do so will embarrass the person you’re trying to help.
Furthermore, remember that if you hide the flaws of others, Allah subhana wa ta’ala will
safeguard yours.

Be kind: “Kindness is not to be found in anything but that it adds to its beauty, and it is not
withdrawn from anything but it makes it defective.” [Muslim] If your words are harsh, the
person is more likely to get offended than he or she is to heed the advice.

The most important thing to remember is that you should treat others the way you would want to be
treated—give advice in the same manner that you would want to hear it, and in such a way
that the person understands the point that you’re trying to make and that you mean well.

It’s almost that time of year again. Time to hand in those final assignments and take those last few
tests before we’re hit with exams. This time of year just has a way of creeping up on us. I don’t know about you, but for me it feels as though the term started only a couple of weeks ago. As such, I thought it would be beneficial for us to share tips. I’ll start, and you guys can leave your suggestions in the comments.

Start studying for exams: Yup, I’m serious. I know some of us might be overwhelmed with the sheer number of assignments and papers that we have to do before exams start, but I think we can all agree that no matter how hard you try, you can’t learn months worth of a course in only two days.

Don’t procrastinate: I don’t know about you, but for me it’s far too easy to put something off, especially when that something has to do with school. “That paper that’s due in two weeks? Uh, yeah I’ll get to it… after I catch up with The Office or something.” Yeah, no. It’s crunch time fellas. Time to finish whatever you can ahead of time so that everything isn’t left to the last minute.

Don’t hibernate: Don’t feel the need to lock yourself in your room or the library without a break. Your
brain needs some rest. There are studies that show you can only learn so much; after a while, you stop taking in information.

You’re here to learn: Instead of cramming and memorizing, remember that the most important
thing for you to do at any educational institution is to learn. Understand what’s happening instead of memorizing a definition word-for-word. In the end, it’ll be easier for you to grasp what’s happening. There’s no point of cramming for an exam and forgetting everything the week later; I mean we do take all of these courses for the sake of learning.

In conclusion, I hope we all ace our finals and that we can maybe even have a little fun while doing so insha’Allah.

Does your back ache from shoveling? 
Do you have a huge driveway that never seems to end? 
Is it too cold for you to go outside and clear the snow?
Or maybe you’re just lazy? 

If so, RoboPlow is just what you need! 

RoboPlow is essentially a robot that will do the shoveling for. I haven’t tried it myself, but from what I can see it seems pretty awesome. It was only a matter of time until a machine was built that would do the shoveling for us. 

This just makes my nerdy self anticipatea future technological innovations in winter machinery even more. 

No one would choose temporary gold over permanent silver. The problem with having temporary gold is that someone can snatch it away from you at any time, but permanent silver is always with you. This dunya is temporary, and it is not even silver compared to the permanent gold in the Hereafter. So why trade temporary silver for permanent gold?

Life is short.

Tomorrow is not guaranteed, and neither is our next breath for that matter. We all know this, yet it’s too easy to stray, thinking that we can make up for our shortcomings tomorrow. It’s okay if we do this one bad thing just this one time; we can make up and do taubah later…right? Wrong.

This is a reminder for myself before any of you, but we need to realize that tomorrow may never come. We will be accountable for all of our actions, so let’s make sure that in everything we do, Allah Subhanahu wa Ta'ala is pleased with us.

And let’s make dua for those of us who were here yesterday, but aren’t here today. May Allah Subhanahu wa Ta'ala have mercy on us all, and may we all reach the highest level in Jannah.

It’s been a little over a year since Haiti was hit with a devastating earthquake that claimed nearly a quarter million lives, left over three hundred thousand injured, and took the homes of over a million people.

It was the first time in a long time that the world came together in a relief effort; from volunteers flying down to help in any way they could, to the practically countless fundraisers, to the minute-by-minute updates on major news networks, almost everyone wanted to get involved in one way or another.

However, the problem with our society is that soon after something stops making headlines, we have a tendency to put even the most problematic issues in the backseat.

Yes, billions have been donated in relief funds, and if you take a look at recent pictures, you’ll find that there is some improvement. But there is still a lot of work that needs to be done. 

After the earthquake, Haiti also suffered from a cholera breakout, political protests, and dangerous flooding from Hurricane Tomas. Over a year after the earthquake, there are more than a million people still living in tents.

Let’s not forget about the issues that exist even after headlines cease to cover them. Let’s keep Haiti in our hearts and prayers.

‘Tis the holidays; a time when people go out of their way to be friendly to one another. One such way is the Christmas feasts some prisons have for prisoners. However, this has been met with a lot of cynicism.

On one hand, people are arguing that there is no reason why prisoners should be given a special dinner, since criminals don’t deserve it, especially at the taxpayers’ expense. It should be noted, though, that extra money isn’t spent on the meal; the food is different, but it is made from the same allowance. Some people also feel that wrongdoers shouldn’t be given a treat after committing mistakes that brought them to jail.

On the other hand, there are people who are a lot more sympathetic and feel that this is a great idea. After all, aren’t prisoners people too? Aren’t they suffering enough by being alone during the holiday season, most of them not even visited by family members because partying is considered more important? Also, consider this: imagine you are arrested on a Thursday for a minor crime and although you would have your hearing the next day, the courts are busy. As such, you have to wait until after the weekend to get your point across. What about these people, who haven’t even had a trial?

In case it isn’t already evident, I feel that this is an important initiative. It is human to err, and we all know how many mistakes we make. Is it really fair to judge those who are serving time for their mistakes? It’s not like any of us are perfect.

When I was little and all of my friends were listening to the newest Spice Girls and Backstreet Boys songs on their walkmen, I was listening to Sound Vision. This wasn’t my choice—my dad continuously tried to convince me that Dawud Wharnsby was indeed much cooler than the music everyone else was listening to. How he found out about Wharnsby, I don’t even know, but I’m glad he did.

Let’s fast forward to the present day, where I don’t have to rely on cassettes to hear what I want. Now I can go to Youtube and hear anything I want. Let’s get real though. In my humble opinion there are few things that are better than these old school tracks that I usually end up going back to.

I know a lot of people don’t listen to musical instruments, so rest assured that Wharnsby’s tracks are made of just his voice and the voices of a small choir.

Not only are his tracks pleasant to listen to, but more importantly, each one has a significant meaning. Whether it be a story about a prophet pbuh, or the city of Madina, or being thankful, each of the nasheeds leaves a lasting impression.

Some of my favourites include:

The beautiful story of Yusuf (pbuh)
Full of humility
Madina-tun-Nabi
What did I do today

We are a quarter way through the NHL season. Usually, this time of the year gives a good indication of what’s to come. For the Toronto Maple Leafs, it has been a surprising start.

THE GOOD

Perfect Start:

The Leafs first win of the season was followed with a lot of excitement, because not only did we beat our rivals the Habs, but fans started joking around about how we were undefeated. With our second consecutive win, the laughs turned into excitement as we took down another rival (the Sens) and we were 2-0. Three straight wins and it was time to make room for the bandwagoners. The fourth game went into overtime, but we prevailed and came out on top. At this point we were 4-0. Then are streak ended when we lost 3 in a row and our trip to the playoffs didn’t seem as easy as it did before, but don’t get me wrong—the Leafs are still hanging on.

New Players:

Let’s be honest—no one was overly excited MacArthur starting this year, but man oh man did he surprise us all. So far in 20 games, MacArthur has made 7 goals and 11 assists. 2 of these goals have been game-winning ones.

Kris Versteeg. Few players have gotten as much grief as him. Coming into the Leafs he had a lot of expectations as he helped the Hawks win the Stanley Cup last year. At the beginning of the season, Versteeg’s speed helped him get great opportunities to shoot, but scoring was a problem. Lately though, things have picked up for him and he’s one of the hottest Leafs players on the ice.

The “N” word, that’s right…Nazem Kadri! Don’t get me wrong—I don’t think he’s the magical solution that can single-handedly take the Leafs to the playoffs, but he is a great asset to the team. Although he was initially considered an aggressive offensive player, he is proving himself as a great playmaker as well as he’s always aware of where players are on the ice and taking advantage of this.

Although Keith Aulie’s start in the Leafs was greatly overshadowed by Kadri as they came at the same time, he has proven himself as a great defenseman.

Great Goalies:

We have Giguere who has proven himself as a great goalie over the past years. In 2003, although his team didn’t win the Stanley Cup he was named the most valuable player in the playoffs—an honour given to only 4 other players. He also led the Ducks to a Stanley Cup in 2007. Not only is he a great goalie, he’s also a great leader for the Leafs. When the Leafs screw things up, Giguere is quick to call them out on it.

With Giguere out with a strain, Gustavsson has really proved himself. It’s going to be hard to forget when he was thrown into the Nashville game with only 10 minutes left in the game. The Leafs had a 5-4 lead, and let’s not forget that if there’s one thing the Leafs need to work on, it’s maintaining their lead. The monster blocked all shots and helped the Leafs secure a win. Even in the games the Leafs lose, Gus is still one of the players on the ice. He was 2nd star in our last game against the Habs even though they won.

Although they haven’t had the chance to show their skills in the NHL, Reimer and Rynnas have really proven themselves in the AHL.

THE BAD

Brett Lebda’s luck—self-explanatory.

My problem with standings is that they never show how well a team plays. Even in our losses, more often than not we’ve played great. For instance there was that game against the Capitals were we lost 5-4 in overtime. The Caps are currently one of the best teams in the league, yet we played a strong game, especially our defensemen who managed to hold off one of the most aggressive players in the NHL—Ovechkin.

THE UGLY

Our 8 consecutive losses.

Especially that nasty loss to the Sabres. What started as a 2-0 lead for the Leafs turned into a 3-2 loss. We were one point ahead of the Sabres until there were literally 14 seconds left in the game, when they tied it to go into overtime, where they won. I was practically celebrating and that game-tying goal brought me down. One of the problems the Leafs still have to work on is maintaining a lead.

CAN WE MAKE THE PLAYOFFS?

According to the stats, we only have a 22% chance, but if you ask me our team has proven that it is more than capable of getting there. I’m going to pull a Pierre McGuire and say that we just need to start winning.