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.

Read more.

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.

Read more.

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

Related P.O.V.:

Bev Oda: Are you satisfied with her apology?

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.

Read more.

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.

Read more.

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?

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.

Read more.

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

Miami Heat forward Chris Bosh returns to Toronto to face his former team Wednesday. (Michael Conroy/Associated Press)

Miami Heat all-star Chris Bosh returns to face his former team in Toronto for the first time Wednesday.

The Toronto Raptors drafted Bosh in 2003 and fans watched him blossom from a talented rookie to becoming one of the league's most highly skilled big men. But after seven seasons in Toronto, and only two playoff appearances, Bosh left the NBA's lone Canadian franchise to join superstars Dwyane Wade and LeBron James in Miami during free-agency last summer.

In a city that celebrated the return of Vince Carter by donning No. 15 baby bibs, the Raptors know Chris Bosh's visit to Toronto could get ugly.

"I think it will be real crazy, I think it will be a lot of excitement, I think it will be, phew. . . like The Rock coming back to WWE," Raptors forward Reggie Evans said, laughing.

Toronto fans have been spurned before, watching the likes of Damon Stoudamire, Tracy McGrady and Carter hightail it to other teams.

But the manner of Bosh's departure left fans stinging. He toyed with their hearts, tweeting: "Should I stay or should I go?" He complained that Raptors games weren't on T.V. in the U.S., he griped about Canada's inferior cable T.V. lineup.

Bosh is prepared for the worst, but the 26-year-old said he has no regrets on how his handled things in Toronto.

"Sometimes there's no good way to separate or move on. You have to put the past behind," Bosh told reporters in Indianapolis on Tuesday before Miami's game versus the Pacers. "At no time did I feel I said anything degrading or bad or acted uncivilized. I'm pretty happy with the way things went."

-With files from The Associated Press

Read more.

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

Canadians' consumer debt increased in the final quarter of last year, but there was a surprising drop in the amount borrowed on credit cards, a credit analysis firm says.
    
TransUnion said average total debt per Canadian consumer, excluding mortgages, was $25,709 in the fourth quarter of 2010 -- up 5.6 per cent from $24,346 in the comparable period of 2009.

Only a small portion of the total in either year was drawn on credit cards, which usually charge among the highest rates of interest.

The surprise, according to TransUnion, was that the average credit card debt in the fourth quarter of 2010 dropped by 2.7 per cent from a year earlier to $3,688.

Lines of credit were the biggest form of consumer debt tracked, and increased to nearly $34,000 -- up 8.8 per cent over the year.

Auto loans were the second-biggest form of non-mortgage debt tracked by the report, and TransUnion found the Canadian average rose to nearly $16,200 per borrower in the fourth quarter, up 11 per cent from a year earlier.

How much debt are you carrying on credit cards? Do you move debt from credit cards to lines of credit to avoid the high interest rates? Let us know in the comments.

With files from the Canadian Press
(This survey is not scientific. It is based on readers' responses.)

Related P.O.V.s

• Mortgages: How much do you still have to pay off?
• Credit card fraud: has your account been compromised?
• Credit card surcharges: Should merchants implement them?
• Debit, Credit or Cash: Which do you use most?

Prince William and Kate Middleton, shown at St. James Palace in central London on Nov. 16 when they announced their engagement, are marrying April 29 at Westminster Abbey. (Suzanne Plunkett/Reuters)

CBC News has learned Prince William and Kate Middleton will make their first official trip as a married couple to Canada from the end of June to mid-July.

The tour will run from June 30 to July 8 and will include stops in Alberta, the Northwest Territories, Prince Edward Island and Quebec.

Read more:

William and Kate will spend Canada Day the way the prince's grandmother, the Queen, did last year, in Ottawa.

But what about the rest of the trip?

Give us your pitch. Why should William and Kate come to your town during their first trip abroad? Would you go see the royal couple if they visit your part of the country? Let us know in the comments below.

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

China is ordering Chinese filmmakers and television producers to limit the amount of smoking depicted on-screen in an effort to curb tobacco use.

Plot lines and scenes involving smoking should only be used when necessary for artistic purposes or character development, the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television said on its website Tuesday.

Under the new rules, minors under age 18 cannot be shown smoking or buying cigarettes, and characters may not smoke in public buildings or other places where smoking is banned.

China has been tightening up restrictions on smoking over the past decade, banning tobacco advertising and sponsorships of major sporting events.

That's part of a slow realization of the massive toll heavy tobacco use is taking on an aging, increasingly urbanized population. Tobacco use is linked to the deaths of at least 1 million people every year in China, where 300 million people (or nearly 30 per cent of adults) smoke.

Last August, a group of Canadian doctors called on federal and provincial governments to stop subsidizing movie productions that depict smoking in films aimed at children and teens.

Studies worldwide show smoking in movies is a powerful way to recruit young people to the addiction, said Neil Collishaw, research director of Physicians for a Smoke-Free Canada.

With files from The Associated Press

Read more.

Do you want Canadian film and television producers to limit depictions of smoking on-screen? Do you think it would discourage young people from smoking? Let us know.


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