What is the truth?

By Bill Fox/Columnist

Sometimes, perhaps like you, I wonder what really is the truth behind some stories. Here are some of the things that puzzle me today…and I wonder what is the truth.

1.73 per cent of First Nations’ water systems are at high or medium risk of contamination.
In 2010, the United Nations declared that water and sanitation were basic human rights, acknowledging they are essential to the realization of all other human rights. But if we can build oil lines going through Indigenous land, why can’t we bring water lines to those lands? What is the truth?

2. Some have suggested that there may be more pandemics in our lifetime. In some ways COVID-19 has put the world on pause. 4,000,000 people have died and the count in third world countries, in particular, continues to rise at an astonishing rate.

Haven’t we in Canada been particularly fortunate? We have been told this is a worldwide epidemic and if the “have nations” don’t help the “have not” nations, the pandemic may come back to bite us. What will the “new normal” look like in Canada? What is the truth?

3. The Huawei executive, Meng Wanzhou, was wanted by the United States on fraud charges. Ms. Meng, 48, daughter of Huawei’s founder, Ren Zhengfei, has been held in Canada for more than two years on an extradition request from the United States. Her detention has strained our relationship with China, and her luxurious living conditions have raised concerns about the conditions that two Canadians are living in after being jailed by China as an apparent retaliation. What is taking the extradition so long?What is the truth?

4. Barry and Honey Sherman were murdered in their home nearly four years ago, yet there have been no arrests. Barry’s company,  Apotex, employed over 10,000 people as one of Canada’s largest drug manufacturers, with over 260 products selling in over 115 countries. Revenues were about $1.5 billion annually. The company is one of the largest producers of generic drugs. A generic drug is a pharmaceutical drugthat contains the same chemical substance as a drug that was originally protected by chemical patents.Generic drugs are allowed for sale after the patents on the original drugs expire. I have always suspected that some pharmaceutical interests might have seen their profits severely decline because of the Shermans? What is the truth?

5. Just a guess, but as we have heard two people died when a pontoon boat they were passengers on was hit by a speedboat on Lake Joseph. Apparently it was Kevin O’Leary’s boat and was driven by his wife. Following the crash, Linda O’Leary was charged with careless operation of a vessel under the Canada Shipping Act. If found guilty, she could face a $10,000 fine. The search warrant documents also indicate that Linda O’Leary had alcohol on her breaththe night of the crash. Police administered a breathalyser test and Linda O’Leary registered an alert, resulting in the automatic suspension of her driver’s licence for three days. The Ontario Provincial Police documents say O’Leary claimed she had a drink after the crash.

Regarding the charges and the court case, a sister of one of the people killed said, “Money talks and the privilege walks is how we feel.”

Is it possible that Kevin O’Leary himself was driving his boat? Was a breathalyser ever given to him? The families of two people who died when the pontoon boat they were passengers on collided with a speedboat are suing the owners and drivers of both vessels on Lake Joseph. The O’Leary’s have also filed their own lawsuit claiming more than $3 million in damages against Irv Edwards, the owner of the other boat involved in the crash, and Richard Ruh, the man who was driving, according to documents obtained by CBC News. I think it is the lawyers who will benefit most from these lawsuits. Meanwhile I might be wrong, but will we ever know the truth?

I’m at bdfox@rogers.com and that is the truth…for now!