Toronto News

Shields should be made mandatory in taxis

In the early morning hours of May 2, cab driver Mahmood Bhatti was stabbed several times by a passenger in his vehicle. The 40-year-old was rushed to hospital and died later that night after being taken off life support.

Bhatti was just one of four drivers who were attacked in the GTA within the space of 24 hours. One driver was beaten and robbed of his cab and his attacker is believed to be the same man that stabbed Bhatti a couple of hours before.

The number of attacks on cabbies during a short period of time, together with the brutal killing of Bhatti, raised the issue of making shields mandatory in Toronto taxis. But the discussion seemed to have been laid to rest even before the father of four was. Toronto City Council, usually on the forefront of protecting its citizenry from everything from pesticides to fumes from idling cars, seemed genuinely disinterested in even discussing making shields mandatory to protect those who earn their livelihood by picking up strangers on the street. The boys and girls who think that the $2 billion gun registry is worth the cost if it only manages to save one life, are unwilling to seriously consider mandating shields to protect drivers against the type of violence that took Bhattis life. The reality is that Mayor David Miller and his left leaning council have their heads in the sand when it comes to violent crime and making shields mandatory will give the impression that the city is more violent than it actually is. The life of a Mahmood Bhatti and others like him isnt as important as Torontos image.

There are arguments against the installation of the shields, none of them particularly compelling in a city that is now trying to protect its residents from too much noise on Sundays. Owners are reluctant to spend the $600 plus to install shields in their cars. Another argument is that some drivers may not use them even if they are present (the same argument could be used against seatbelts being mandatory). If every cab was required to have a shield in place, it would lessen the problem that customers could choose a cab with no shield. A further argument is that the shields are not bulletproof. None of these arguments can possibly outweigh protecting drivers from beatings and stabbings. The shield isnt 100% foolproof but nothing in life ever is, one possible exception being the yearly property tax increase under Mayor David Miller. The powers that be seem to think that having cameras in cabs is sufficient; it wont cut down on deaths or serious injuries but well have a nice clear picture of the perp. That is certain to be a comfort to Mrs. Bhatti and other future widows of drivers.

A few days after Bhattis murder, a person wrote a letter to the Toronto Sun suggesting that the situation would be different if the majority of cab drivers were white. The Sun responded, as it always does to letters to the editor by saying, "Playing the race card is out of line".

Its easy in this day and age; especially in a large cosmopolitan city like Toronto to throw allegations of racism around. Making accusations of racism has not only evolved into an industry, but one of the few that is actually growing in socialist Toronto. But then again, it is just as easy to characterize allegations of racism as "playing the race card", a phrase that came into vogue during the trial of O.J. Simpson.

Does anyone actually believe that if graduation from Upper Canada College was a minimum job requirement to drive a cab in this city, that the mayor and the councillors would be so cavalier about vicious attacks on the citys cab drivers? Much like violent crime generally, if the victims travelled in the same social circles as the city elites, they wouldnt pick this particular time to become interested in the costs of doing business. And they certainly wouldnt be content with after-the-fact pictures of the bad guys. The reality is that although the city mothers love to talk about diversity and parade their immigrants before the world, people like Mahmood Bhatti as individuals really arent worth very much to them. The lives of the drivers arent as important as the image that the city is trying to portray.

If Toronto City Council was as concerned about the welfare of the citys cab drivers as they are about the welfare of trees, the drivers would be a lot safer.

Arthur Weinreb is an author, columnist and Associate Editor of Toronto Free Press. His work has appeared on Newsmax.com, Men's News Daily, Drudge Report, Foxnews.com, Glenn Beck and The Rant. Arthur can be reached at: Columns 2006 '05 '04 '03 '02 '01 '00 1999 Media 2006 '05 '04 '03 '02 Toronto 2006 '05 '04