Tim's redux

So the cute little story on the cover of Nunatsiaq last week about Tim Hortons possibly coming to Iqaluit just went national, with the Globe and Mail giving it prominent coverage on their website. As I write, it's the sixth story from the top of the page, right after stories about Iran, the Toronto garbage strike and Ed McMahon's death.

If it was just the story going national I probably wouldn't have mentioned anything about it here. However, like the good masochist that I am, I delved into the comments section of the story. I recommend you not do this for most Globe and Mail stories for the sake of you sanity. Only trained professionals can do this, so don't try it at home.

Most of the comments were actually benign. The guy who wanted to build a rail or road link to Iqaluit to cut back on costs made me sob and laugh at the same time. Then there was the guy who suggested putting baby seal meat breakfast sandwiches on the menu.

Just so we're clear, that person is a dick. However, just so that I'm clear, seal meat breakfast sandwiches (sans the baby part) on Tim's menu:
A. Would likely be the healthiest thing on their menu.
B. Would absolutely be the most popular item on the menu in Iqaluit. By a mile.

There's been some grumbling around town about given the problems with junk food in the north and the resulting health problems. And I understand that, I really do. And I know this answer is a touch simplistic and that junk food is often cheaper than healthy food. But no one is putting a gun to your head and telling you to buy crap. No one is telling you to go to KFC/Pizza Hut and buy supper.

So if you don't like Tim's and think it's unhealthy, then there's an awfully simple solution - make the personal decision not to go there. Your problem is solved. Ta da.

Finally, there was a comment about the environmental havoc a Tim's would wreck on the local landscape with all those coffee cups. This is actually a legitimate beef and something I suspect many people up here temporarily forgot about during that initial giddy rush. Iqaluit has enough issues when it comes to litter as it is without having an armada of Tim's cups added to the mix. I think most readers of this blog can speak of the urban blight in most southern cities that is the Tim's cup carelessly tossed aside and left to wander on its own until it eventually composts in about 2,000 years.

Adding that to up here is not a good thing. If Tims does come here, I hope somebody asks how they're going to address that issue before giving them the business permit, because it's a legitimate issue.

Last Five
1. Go daddy-o - Big Bad Voodoo Daddy
2. PDA - Interpol
3. A hard rain's a-gonna fall - Bob Dylan
4. Sea of no cares (live) - Great Big Sea
5. Nosferatu - Sean Panting*