In My Opinion: Some positive thoughts on both 2025 and 2026
By ALAN SHACKLETON
EDITOR, BEACH METRO COMMUNITY NEWS
Welcome to 2026 Beach Metro Community News readers! Here’s hoping it is indeed a Happy New Year!
As for 2025, I don’t think it was actually that bad of a year. Especially if you like clowns.
Going into last year, we as Canadians were waiting to see what the second term of President of the United States (and winner of the first ever FIFA Peace Prize) Donald Trump would bring us. And now we know. It is the greatest clown show ever seen.
However, Trump and his administration’s hostility towards Canada has brought about a positive wave of national pride and patriotism in this country that has been inspiring to see.
Here in Canada we too often take the greatness of our country and our people for granted, but that certainly was not the case in 2025. We’ve put our Elbows Up to those who would threaten us. We’ve also taken a look around to see who our friends really are and decided that we will stand with those that share our values.
The incredible and fantastic World Series run by the Toronto Blue Jays also helped build Canadian pride last year. Even though we didn’t win it all, the team and its extremely likeable group of hard-working players brought the entire country together towards a shared purpose. For that, I thank the Jays organization and their players.
Sticking with sports, this summer our city is going to host the “greatest” sporting event on the planet when the World Cup arrives in June. There is no single sports event with more impact than the World Cup of soccer.
And not only is the Canadian team in this summer’s World Cup, it will be playing its first game of the tourney right here in Toronto. Now that’s something to get excited about in 2026!
But back to 2025 and what I saw as another positive from the year just ended — the opening of the Finch West LRT.
The line runs 11-kilometres between the Finch West subway station at Keele Street and Humber College’s North Campus near Hwy. 27 and Finch Avenue West. What I like most about this LRT line is that shortly after it officially opened in early December, a person jogging was able to cover the route faster than the train. Imagine if that jogger had been running in clown shoes. Would he still have beaten the LRT?
Still on transit, back in January of 2024 I wrote a column complaining that the Eglinton Crosstown LRT was still not open. Then I wrote a column in January of last year complaining that it was still not open. The rumour is that sometime this year it will open.
We’ll see. But if it does, I’m wondering if a jogger in clown shoes will be able to travel the route faster than the trains do.
But enough about clowns… let’s move on to elections.
The Toronto municipal election is set for this fall, and it promises to bring change in at least one of the wards this newspaper covers.
The Toronto Council seat for Beaches-East York will have a new occupant come this November as Brad Bradford, who has been the Beaches-East York Councillor since 2018, will be running for the mayor’s job in the Oct. 26 city election.
Expect there to be a large number of candidates seeking the Beaches-East York council seat.
Also expect, just like in both the provincial and federal elections last year, that you will be able to count on this newspaper to keep you informed about those candidates and all issues of importance to our community in 2026.
