A woman from North Dakota is being criticized for her plan to give an obesity reminding letter to the parents of those trick-or-treaters whom she thinks are overweight.

“I just want to send a message to the parents of kids that are really overweight”, claimed by Cheryl who is the letter sender

She also added that: “It’s just these kids, I see them and they are struggling to stay healthy and they want to play with other kids and I think it’s really irresponsible of parents to send them out looking for free candy just ‘cause all the other kids are doing it.”

Last but not least, she believes that she is contributing the society as a whole to address the health problem of child obesity.

Personal opinion: The letter does reflect some honest opinion from the woman, while I wouldn’t criticize this woman with harsh words, I do think it is hurtful to young children who are being judged base on their appearance. A better solution could be sending out low-sugar candies, or prepare other healthier food such as raisins….

Great Toronto Area residents are being urged to shop at Canadian-owned businesses during American “Black Friday”.

Yellow Pages Group launched an initiative named “Shop the Neighbourhood,” on Monday, asking people lived in Great Toronto Area to buy from local stores between the popular American “Black Friday” and “Cyber Monday” events held on Nov. 29 and Dec. 1 this year.

Hundreds of stores participated in this event and urged Canadians to but from local, in order to support local community and economy.

This article indicates that increasing number of Canadian businesses are aware of the fact that supporting from their own country is very important. Economic growth also relies heavily from local supports, that being said, the future of many Canadian owned businesses is in our hand.

Nevertheless, it is known by the public that for the same goods, buying in Canada is usually more expensive than that of the US. As a customer who wants to minimize the cost, there is a significant advantage of shopping in the US. It remains a controversial topic whether to support our local businesses or to save money and shop at our neighbour.

Hi guys, I went to PNE last weekend for the Fright Nights event and I just want to share something I observed during the event that is related to business

1: Residents near PNE make profit from private parking during Fright Nights event. (Since the parking is usually really overloaded, people would stand beside the road and ask you to park at their house for $10 per night, which is cheaper compare to $15 parking fee at PNE parking lot)

2: The Fright Nights ticket is sold as two separate prices. One being twice expensive as the other, and the benefit you get from the more expensive ticket is that you do not have to wait for the line up. (For every haunted house, there is a fast lane and a regular lane. Surprisingly, I saw no one waiting in the fast lane…failed marketing strategy?)

3: A big thumbs down for the Triple O’s at PNE, not only is it more expensive than other places, but they actually charged me $3 for a cup of hot water, I tried to argue with them but they said they don’t supply hot water and I ended up paying the price of a cup of coffee…(I guess the demand is high during Fright Nights so they could be careless of their reputation anyway).

Overall I think it was a great experience, I strongly recommend people to go there!!!

According to a new survey, majority of Canadians feel they are in a better economic position than the 2008 pre-recession period.

The statistic provided by BMO Harris Private Banking indicated that 54% of high-net-worth individuals  feel they are more secured financially. On the other hand, 36% shows their financial status did not change much and only 11% claimed that they are in a worse financial situation.

As for people from U.S: 61% had a positive answer and only 7% said they are in a worse financial situation.

High-net-worth individuals: People with $1-million assets and above

Almost half of Canadians have voted:47% look forward to an improvement in Canada’s economy while 61% expresses their optimism for U.S economy.

On the other hand, 61% Americans believed that Canada will become more prosperous in the future.

“High-net-worth Canadians clearly feel they have bounced back well from the 2008 downturn and are fairly upbeat about what the future has in store for Canada’s economy,” said by Alex Dousmanis-Curtis in a Thursday news release, who is the senior vice-president and head of BMO Private Banking.

Despite the fact that majority of Canadians are feeling better at present, in my opinion, one should still be prepared and observe carefully for any economic fluctuation.

Rogers Communications Inc. is planning to invest $700-million for its local network in the province of Alberta

Rogers found out that on average, Albertans have the highest monthly bill (including voice and date services) than subscribers in any other part of the country, making the province a key battleground as Canadian cellphone carriers try to expand its users in the increasingly fierce cellphone market. Statistics have indicated that the revenue per Albertan is $75.26, which is far greater than the national average of $57.94. In addition, the province also has the highest household income.

On Tuesday, Rogers  claimed that the money would be spent to upgrade its wireless network across the province, add 50 more stores to bring its total to 150 (Telus has more 200+, while Bell will have 150 by the December, 2013), and sponsor the National Hockey League’s Edmonton Oilers.

Despite the fact that Rogers is the largest national wireless carrier, Telus currently owns more than 50% of the market shares in Alberta, with Rogers and Bell sharing the equal amount of the rest. While Rogers is said to invest $700 millions within the next 4 years, Telus will spend the same amount this year alone! (although its spending also includes the infrastructure needed to expand its IPTV television service). It says its network reaches 99 per cent of Alberta’s population, which is where Rogers hopes to be at the end of its four-year investment.

Facing such a strong competitor, Rogers will have a hard time in the future. Will Rogers grab users away from Telus in the future and successfully become the biggest shareholder in Alberta? We shall wait and see.