Crazies in Canada

Police lay more charges in infant remains case
Tue. Jun. 9 2009 The Canadian Press
LONDON, Ont. -- A woman described as a recluse was back in custody and facing additional charges Tuesday after police discovered that infant remains found in a southern Ontario home were in fact the badly decomposed bodies of three babies who may have died years ago. The grisly find left police with a slew of unanswered questions ahead of an autopsy to be performed Thursday, including the sex of the children, the causes of death, and their relationship to the woman charged.

Last week, I was at a coffee shop in an office building in Burlington, Ontario while I was waiting for a business meeting to start. The coffee shop had a very nice setup which included a self-serve coffee bar, lots of tables and chairs, and two wall-mounted flat-screen tvs showing the news. They were showing the CBC (Canadian Broadcasting Company) news channel. As I sipped my coffee, I alternated between looking over my notes for the meeting, watching the news, and observing the people who passed in and out of the coffee shop. I was half daydreaming when I noticed that everyone in the coffee shop had stopped in place and mid-sentence to watch the story on the tv about the lady from London, Ontario, referenced in the news excerpt above. The reporter was talking about the investigation into how the babies died and whose babies they were.

Two ladies were standing near me, and one asked the other, in horrified disbelief, "Did she have miscarriages or did she just kill some babies?" Her friend replied, "I have no idea. It's just insane."

A guy in his mid-forties who had been making coffee and watching the news as well, turned to them and proclaimed to everyone in the room, "Oh, hey, don't even TRY to follow the US news. Everything is so messed up there!"

An awkward silence ensued that did not allow me enough time to formulate an appropriate response until finally the lady behind the counter said, "Uh, this is the Canadian news. This is in Canada." Everone just stared at the guy as if they couldn't figure out how he missed the big golf-ball-like CBC logo in the lower corner of the screen. Someone else muttered, "Yeah, this is in Canada."

The guy quickly grabbed his coffee and scuttled out of the room. I fought the urge to chase him down, but wondered if he really believed that bad things only happen in the US.

There are crazy people everywhere, and the number of crazy people is likely proportionate to the total population no matter where you go. As Sarah says, "The US has pure numbers on its side."