Angel >> A16 protesters Despite superior police tactics, rainy weather, and a lower than expected turnout, more the 10,000 demonstrators fought the good fight on the streets of Washington D.C., protesting against mega-projects and harsh loan conditions for people in countries most will never go to. The World Bank's promise last Monday to spend "unlimited money" to fight HIV in the developing world is the kind of policy shift that shows that protests like this do make a difference.

Insect >> Medication premium increases When Quebec introduced a $175 annual medication premium in 1996, a Sun Youth survey of 500 seniors showed that 83 per cent had to cut back their spending on food and medication. Now, Lucien Bouchard announced that premiums will rise again, and could go as high as $550 per year. The idea has been discussed for some time as a solution for the medication plan's $189 million deficit. Fiscally sound, perhaps, but should the burden of deficit reduction really be put on the backs of elderly people living near the poverty line?