Forgive my language, but this city is a paranoid control freak’s wet dream right now. Harper must be ecstatic. Helicopters whap ceaselessly overhead, and the downtown streets are full of cavalcades of cops and private security guys, carrying not only guns but riot control gear and helmets. This morning, I went for a bike ride down to the security fence, to find the inner core of the city is a desert built of fear. Chain link fences set in concrete cordon off many of the streets around the conference centre where the leaders will meet, and at each check point, there are dozens of cops standing around, drinking coffee. In fact, I think that Tim Horton’s is the sponsor of this summit, since its profits must have gone through the roof, as well as the hotels in the vicinity, crammed with out of town police.