The Canadian Radio-television Commission has launched a public consultation on the loudness of TV commercials.

"Loud ads on television can disrupt an otherwise enjoyable program and are a source of significant annoyance for Canadians," CRTC chairman Konrad von Finckenstein said in a news release.

Finckenstein said the CRTC will work with the broadcasting industry to find an acceptable solution.

With a full switch to digital television on the horizon, the regulator is looking for ways to force broadcasters to adhere to a standard of loudness for their signals.

The Advanced Television Systems Committee, an international non-profit group trying to set standards for digital broadcasting, has made recommendations on loudness levels for digital TV.

The CRTC is seeking the public's input on the issue, saying it is looking for a way to effectively control the volume of commercials by cable and satellite providers and broadcasters.

The U.S. has already taken a position on this. Last December, Congress passed the Commercial Advertisement Loudness Mitigation Act, which will require lower volumes for commercials that are usually louder, the New York Times reported.

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Will you participate in the CRTC's public consultation? Do you find commercials too loud? Let us know in the comments below.
(This survey is not scientific. It is based on readers' responses.)

Related P.O.V.: TV commercial volume: Does it need regulation?

Bev Oda rises to answer a question directed her way during Question Period in the House of Commons on Parliament Hill on Thursday. (Adrian Wyld/Canadian Press)

By CBC News

Opposition MPs attempted to link the Prime Minister's Office to controversy over an altered foreign aid document, as they wrapped up a week of attacks against the government.

MPs took up most of question period Friday to focus on the decision to alter a document signed by International Co-operation Minister Bev Oda that denied funding for Canadian foreign aid agency Kairos.

The word "not" was added to a signed agreement that would have provided $7 million to the organization.

Liberal MP Rodger Cuzner accused Prime Minister Stephen Harper of forcing Oda to make the change.

"His [Harper's] DNA is all over this crime scene," Cuzner said.

"The big hand of PMO comes down and it's got a pen in it, and that pen writes across this application 'not'.... Does he put up with this minister because it was he who put her up to it in the first place?"

NDP MP Libby Davies asked whether accountability is meaningless to the government.

Government House leader John Baird took most of the questions directed to Oda, who wasn't in the Commons. He continued to argue Oda's decision was the right one, sidestepping the question of whether she should step down.

"This minister made the right decision to support the most vulnerable people in the world," Baird said.

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(This survey is not scientific. It is based on readers' responses.)

Related P.O.V.:

Bev Oda: Are you satisfied with her apology?

One Winnipeg girl is becoming a YouTube sensation thanks to an endorsement by Lady Gaga.

Maria Aragon, 10, posted a video of herself playing a keyboard and singing the pop superstar's newest song, Born This Way. The video was posted on Feb. 16 and had 3,100 hits prior to being noticed by Gaga.

It saw a massive increase in views when Gaga went to her Twitter page on Thursday to compliment Aragon's rendition.

"Can't stop crying watching this. This is why I make music. She is the future," Gaga's posting stated.

The video had been viewed more than 1.4 million times as of 10 a.m. ET on Friday.
"Gaga sent me here," one person commented, while the majority of those who left posted remarks lauding Maria's voice as "amazing."

The number of viewings could continue to soar, as Lady Gaga has 8.2 million Twitter followers.

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Do you think 10-years-old is too young to be in the spotlight? What do you think will happen to Aragon now that Lady Gaga has noticed her? Let us know in the comments below.

(This survey is not scientific. It is based on readers' responses.)

Toronto shopkeeper David Chen (right) was charged with assault and forcible confinement after tying up a man who had stolen plants from his store in May 2009. (Frank Gunn/Canadian Press)

By CBC News

Prime Minister Stephen Harper announced legislation Thursday intended to expand legal protection for people making citizen's arrests or trying to defend themselves or their property against a criminal act.

Harper announced the new legislation -- which has been expected since late last year -- at a downtown Toronto press conference along with Vaughan, Ont., MP Julian Fantino.

The legislation comes in response to the case of Toronto shopkeeper David Chen, who was charged with assault and forcible confinement after chasing, restraining and tying up a man who had stolen plants from his Lucky Moose Food Mart in May 2009.

As written now, the Criminal Code requires a thief to be caught in the act for a citizen's arrest to be justified. Chen captured the shoplifter one hour after he stole plants from his store.

Bill C-60 would allow citizens to detain a suspect without a warrant not only when the suspect is caught in the act, but also within a reasonable amount of time after the offence if they believe it's not feasible for the police to make an arrest.

The bill would also clarify the law regarding acts of self-defense and defense of property, Harper said.

Myer Siemiatyki, a politics professor at Ryerson University, questions whether the law even needs changing, given that the courts actually upheld the arrest made by Chen.

"Is this the most compelling issue Canada faces today?" Siemiatyki asked. "That a prime minister and two cabinet ministers should come to Toronto, should leave Parliament, to unveil a new sentence to be added to the Criminal Code that is really redundant given court rulings? So I think this is very much about optics."

Nathalie Des Rosiers, general counsel with the Canadian Civil Liberties Association, told the Winnipeg Free Press that the legislation could encourage vigilantism.

"The potential for abuse here is great," Des Rosiers said.

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Do you agree with the proposed new rules on citizen's arrests?  Let us know in the comments below.



(This poll is not scientific. It is based on readers' votes.)

By CBC News

A judge at the Montreal municipal courthouse decided Thursday that the taxi bylaw forbidding personal items does not infringe on a cabbie's rights.

The judge found Arieh Perecowicz guilty of violating the municipal regulation because his dashboard is covered with family pictures, religious items and a Canadian flag.

Perecowicz said he plans to appeal and won't remove the personal decorations from his cab.

The items, including a Remembrance Day poppy and small Jewish prayer scrolls should be allowed under the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, Perecowicz said.

Section 98 of the city's taxi regulations says drivers may not have any objects in the car that aren't related to driving their cab.

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Do you agree with the judge's decision to uphold the fine against the cabbie? Take our survey and share your thoughts below.

(This poll is not scientific. It is based on readers' votes.)

Related:

• Cluttered cab: Would you have a problem riding in a cab full of the driver's personal belongings?
• Taxis: Do you feel drivers have the right to decorate the inside of their vehicles?

William Shatner, posing for photographers in Cannes, France, in April, will host the Genie Awards in March. (Lionel Cironneau/Associated Press)

By CBC News

William Shatner is returning to Canada in March to host the Genie Awards ceremony, which celebrates the best in Canadian film. It will take place in Ottawa this year.

Shatner said he looked forward to coming to Canada and seeing "old friends."

"Unfortunately, most of them are dead of old age," quipped the Montreal-born stage, television and film actor, who has starred in Boston Legal, T.J. Hooker and the original Star Trek. Shatner himself is 79.

He currently stars in the Twitter-inspired CBS sitcom S#*! My Dad Says.

Rachelle Lefevre, known for her roles in the Twilight films and Barney's Version, will also participate in the ceremony as the voice announcer.

Barney's Version, based on Mordecai Richler's final novel, leads the nominations with 11. Denis Villeneuve's family drama Incendies follows with ten nominations. Other titles that earned multiple Genie nominations include Vincenzo Natali's sci-fi thriller Splice, Xavier Dolan's contemporary love story Heartbeats (Les amours imaginaires) and Jacob Tierney's teen comedy The Trotsky.

CBC will broadcast the 31st annual Genie Awards live from the National Arts Centre in Ottawa on March 10.

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Do you think William Shatner is a good choice to host the Genie Awards? Will you watch? Let us know in the comments below.



(This survey is not scientific. It is based on readers' responses.)

Helmets are currently banned in women's lacrosse and many players want to keep it that way, despite calls from safety advocates for head protection, the New York Times reported.

"It's hard to absolutely prove, but what we've seen is that behavior can change when athletes feel more protected, especially when it comes to the head and helmets," said Dr. Margot Putukian, Princeton's director of athletic medicine services and chairwoman of the U.S. Lacrosse safety committee.

"They tend to put their bodies and heads in danger that they wouldn't without the protection. And they aren't as protected as they might think," she told the Times.

Women's lacrosse has many other differences in rules from men's lacrosse, so much so that they're practically different sports, said Amy Bokker, the coach of the Stanford women's lacrosse team.

Among the differences:

• No body checking, and minimal collisions.
• No head contact, or even accidental intrusion with the stick or body into an imaginary sphere around the head, called the halo.
• No shooting at the net when a defender is in line with the goal.

In December, the New York State Public High School Athletic Association voted 9-2 to keep the ban on hard helmets in the women's game. U.S. Lacrosse also supports the ban.

Safety advocates, however, call the ban outdated.

"Somebody's got to stand up and say, What are you doing? This to me is like, come on, you're not serious. This is 2011," said Dr. Jack Ryan of the American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine at a recent meeting of the National Organizing Committee on Standards for Athletic Equipment.

Do you think more protective equipment leads to more risky or violent behaviour in sports? Do you play a sport such as soccer, rugby or women's lacrosse that requires less protective gear? Let us know what you think.  (This survey is not scientific. It is based on readers' responses.)

The WWF has launched a campaign encouraging people to wear sweaters instead of turning up the heat in winter. (iStock)

People across Canada may see a surge in Mister Rogers and Bill Cosby look-alikes on Thursday because of National Sweater Day.

The national campaign, promoted by the World Wildlife Federation, encourages people to lower their thermostats by three degrees and put on a sweater if they get chilly.

If every Canadian turned down their thermostats by that much in the winter, it would save 2.2 megatonnes of carbon dioxide each year -- the equivalent of taking 350,000 cars off the road, according to the WWF.

On Twitter, people paid homage to their favourite sweater-wearing celebrities.

"Happy National Sweater Day everyone," tweeted @kevinfortorcent. "Please pause to give thanks to the patron saint of sweaters, Bill Cosby."

"I will be wearing one--and listening to Weezer," tweeted Industry Minister Tony Clement, who is apparently a fan of the alternative rock band's classic hit Undone (The Sweater Song).

Twitter users also discussed what kind of sweaters they'd be sporting for the event.
 
"In the spirit of National Sweater Day, I will be wearing a wildlife scene sweater," tweeted @kurstmckelv. "The animals include elk, geese, and bobcat."

"I'm going with a heavy magenta cardigan ... how about you?" tweeted jeanninestamand.

Will you be suiting up for National Sweater Day? Send us pics of you in your favourite (or least favourite) sweater. You can upload them here, share them with our Flickr group, or email them to yournews@cbc.ca. You can also tweet us @cbccommunity. 

(This survey is not scientific. It is based on readers' responses.)

A U.S. border officer stands near a security booth.  (Dave Chidley/Canadian Press)

By CBC News

The budget U.S. President Barack Obama submitted to Congress on Monday proposes to slap a $5.50 fee on every visitor from Canada who travels to the U.S. by air or by sea.
    
The fee would not apply to visitors arriving in private vehicles, thus exonerating typical cross-border shoppers.

Currently, visitors from Canada, Mexico and a number of Caribbean countries are exempt from "passenger inspection fees." It's an exemption these countries have enjoyed since 1997.

But Obama's 2012 draft budget includes a legislative proposal to lift those exemptions -- a move that a supporting document from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security estimates would bring in an extra $110 million a year.

Revenue from the charges would be used to support U.S. Customs and Border Protection's inspection functions, the document says.

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Do you think this border fee is reasonable? 
(This survey is not scientific. It is based on readers' responses.)

Scottish deerhound Hickory won the best in show award at the 135th Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show in New York on Tuesday. (Mary Altaffer/Associated Press)

The Westminster Kennel Club awarded its best in show title to a five-year-old Scottish deerhound named Hickory on Tuesday night.

She became the first of her breed to capture the purple-and-gold ribbon and shiny silver bowl.
"I think Hickory could feel my lead that I was excited and went with it," handler Angela Lloyd said.

Judge Paolo Dondina of Italy thanked everyone at New York's Madison Square Garden, then picked Hickory from a best-of-seven final show ring that truly sounded international -- there was a Pekingese, Portuguese water dog, Chinese shar-pei, smooth fox terrier, bearded collie and black cocker spaniel.

A couple of those pooches on the green carpet ring with Hickory were among the country's top-rated show dogs. The 85-pound Hickory wasn't on that list, though she wagged her long tail the most at the end after beating out a total of nearly 2,600 entries.

"The quality of all of the dogs were outstanding," Dondina said. "This animal is like in the heavens. It's not of this world."

-With files from The Associated Press

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Which dog do you think should have won the Westminster Kennel Club best in show award? What's your favourite breed of dog? Let us know in the comments below.

(This survey is not scientific. It is based on readers' responses.)