canadiancomment

The Stink Over Undercover Cops

2007-08-27T10:34:00.000-04:00

The story of the undercover cops during the recent North American summit has caused quite a stink over at The Western Standard.

First off, I haven't watched the video or followed the story much at all but it seems that some folks are in a stink for the simple reason that undercover cops were embedded within the protesters to begin with.

There are a lot of good reasons to embed police within a protest and none of them have anything to do with spying or other such nonsense.

The two primary reasons officers are usually embedded with a protest are:

- To 'lead' the protest on it's route/march. The crowd will simply follow the people in the lead so by doing this the police can have a group of marchers walk around in circles for hours (and stay out of trouble) and no one is any the wiser.

- Similar to the first item, a crowd will not come into close contact with the police (in most cases anyways) unless those in the lead do so first. If the lead protesters stay back from the police so will the crowd.

On Chinese Goods

2007-08-27T10:06:00.000-04:00

As most of you are aware Chinese companies have been having some quality control problems as of late. The fact that some products they are manufacturing have quality issues really isn't terribly surprising on many levels.

What bothers me are the excuses put forward by government officials. China for all intents and purposes is one massive cartel, controlled by a few for the benefit of a few.

Regardless, anyone with common sense knows that a government that doesn't care about it's own people is not going to have a lot of concern to the well-being of foreigners. That being the case, any company that slaps it's name on a product is ultimately responsible for the quality of that product.

And let's be honest with ourselves, it is just as easy to produce crap in Canada as it is in China.

Tweaking The Template

2007-08-24T23:56:00.000-04:00

So I'm sitting here tweaking the Blogger template with the thought I might start blogging a little bit after a very long hiatus. Sweet suffering Google has changed Blogger a lot since I last poked around. The pages are now dynamically generated which creates some opportunities to add a few neat features to the blog. Then again, that would take time which I'm not exactly sure I have much of these days.

Regardless, I'll be updating the right sidebar, removing any dead links and making a few minor adjustments to the template. Nothing major.

Sleep tight.

If I Posted...

2007-01-04T09:18:00.000-05:00

... would anybody notice?

On Automobiles

2006-03-13T20:36:00.000-05:00

Mark Steyn is fisking Michael Adams over at Macleans. Here are two quotes that particularly stick out. The first is a quote from an American about the differences between Canada and the US:

The difference between America and Canada is that Americans don't care what the difference between America and Canada is.

The second concerns a point that Adams is trying to make:

Adams' method was established in Fire and Ice: he notes at one point that in the U.S. SUVs outsell minivans by two-to-one, whereas in Canada it's vice versa. That's a fact. The fancy is in the meaning he appends to it. "This is a stark difference," he writes, "whose roots can be traced directly to the differing values of our two countries." This assertion seems to have no basis other than a casual assumption that Canadians are more environmentally responsible and thus more concerned with "excessive gasoline consumption, pollution and safety violations."

Isn't there a more obvious correlation? Minivans are cheaper than SUVs, and Canadians have less disposable income than Americans. It's easy to be "socially responsible" if you've got no choice in the matter. On the Continent they're driving around in things the size of Arnold Schwarzenegger's cup holder, so presumably they're more "socially responsible" still. In Canada those who can afford SUVs buy them, it's just that their numbers are smaller. Remember Herb Dhaliwal? Well, no, you probably don't. But a couple of years back M. Chrétien made him minister of natural resources, and he certainly got through a lot of them. He drove around like a Hamas warlord in a three-ton Cadillac Escalade. That's bigger than my SUV and I'm in favour of global warming. The difference is that the high living of a Liberal cabinet minister is confined, north of the border, mainly to Liberal cabinet ministers while down south it's more widely available.

Dhaliwal as a Hamas warlord in a three-ton Cadillac Escalade. Mint.

The Grim Endpoint Of Public Healthcare

2006-03-06T16:07:00.000-05:00

Over in Britian we have a story that chills me to my bones:

A baby at the centre of a landmark case over whether life support can be withdrawn has an "intolerable life", the High Court has heard.
Baby MB, who cannot be named, has spinal muscular atrophy - a genetic condition which leads to almost total paralysis - and cannot breathe unaided.
Doctors treating the 17-month-old say it is in his best interests to withdraw ventilation and to let him die.
But his family says he has a reasonable quality of life and should stay alive.
They feel he can recognise and respond to them, and that he gains enjoyment from spending time with his family.

You heard that right. A family has to go to court to prevent a doctor from killing their 17-month old son!

I'm sure it isn't uncommon for a doctor to develope some sort of God complex but this is plain nuts. For a doctor, a fully grown adult I might add, to tell a child's parents that the child wants to die seems to me to be the stuff of some sick horror story.

And to think that the parents have to sit in a courtroom and listen to this is plain sickening.

My Idea: Club His Sorry Ass

2006-03-02T10:06:00.000-05:00

Well it seems Paul McCartney has decided to grace lovely P.E.I. with his wisdom and good looks:

Longtime animal rights activists Paul McCartney and his wife Heather Mills arrived in Prince Edward Island on Wednesday to lend their star power to the campaign to end Canada's seal hunt.
The former Beatles musician hopes to take his wife, a contingent of international media, and animal-rights activists to a barren stretch of ice in the Gulf on Thursday to catch a glimpse of newborn seal pups.

McCartney wants to "highlight the work of two animal protection groups to stop the Canadian seal hunt," according to the Humane Society of the United States.

My advice to any Islanders that may come across his path is to wack him over the head with the largest object within reach.

The poor guy apparently has nightmares at night about the suffering of poor seals in Canada's east coast. He seems to care less about the livelihoods of the people dependent on the seals for their income.

That of course isn't of any interest to Paul because lets be honest... there wouldn't be any photo-ops involved.

Regardless Paul here is my proposition to you... if you want to save the seals then it only seems fair that you should replace the lost income to all the families affected.

Why exactly should they suffer for your ego?

Robbed Again

2006-02-20T14:45:00.000-05:00

It's bad enough when the government manages to burn through our hard-earned tax dollars at an amazing rate but now it's allowing private business to due the same with un-earned dollars:

The CRTC said yesterday that Canadian telephone customers have been overbilled to the tune of $652.7-million over the past few years, but the money will not be going back to them.
The federal regulator ruled instead that telecommunications companies such as Bell Canada and Telus Corp. should use most of the money -- equivalent to about $50 a customer -- to expand offerings in underserved markets, primarily rural and remote communities.

...

CRTC chair Charles Dalfen told reporters yesterday that expanding broadband services, also known as high-speed Internet, is an important social and economic goal.

It has been a federal government priority for at least five years, although Ottawa has yet to allocate enough money to provide access in most rural and remote communities. "We think this is in the broader interests of the consumers," Mr. Dalfen said.

So here we have a government (old Liberal government to be specific) that has a priority to expand broadband access in rural communities but instead of ponying up the cash to do it the CRTC gets private business to do it's dirty work for it.

Could this be any more unbelievable? When exactly did Canadians give $650-million to the CRTC to piss away?

And on a different but related topic, why exactly is broadband access considered an important social goal? Since when did our government decide that online porn and gambling should become national priorities? Is this other one of those Liberal schemes (i.e. handouts) that are supposed to define us as Canadians?

Nothing To See Here

2006-02-18T16:38:00.000-05:00

When the leaders of Muslim countries say things like this you'd expect Europeans to be listening:

In his first public statement after the braking out of the scandal with the cartoons with Prophet Muhammad the Libyan Leader Col. Muammar Gaddafi announced that one day the Islam will disseminate its power over the European countries, the web edition of Libya Today reports.

In his statement Gaddafi calls those who had published the cartoons “slanderers who disseminate religious hatred”. He went on criticizing European schools that teach the children that the Muslim Prophet was not a messenger of Allah but a liar.

According to Gaddafi the riots in the poor suburbs of Paris last year were “only the beginning of the armed struggle of the Muslims against discrimination in Europe”. “Probably one day Europe will be subordinated to the Islam”, Col. Gaddapi claimed, cited by the publication.

My opinion is that many Muslims have a totally different view of what constitutes discrimination than most Europeans do. To many Muslim (primarily in Europe) the fact that they don't dominate in politics and society is all the proof they need that they are being discriminated against.

While Europeans consider discrimination to be based on racial, social, or economic matters, many Muslims view discrimination from a totally different perspective as shown by Gaddapi's (the most recent spelling apparently) remarks.

As Gaddapi says, it's only the beginning...

[Via littlegreenfootballs]

Finally Got Backlinks Working

2006-02-16T15:30:00.000-05:00

If anyone happened to be trolling around here today they may have noticed a bunch of test posts going up and soon later being taken down. I sincerely apologize but I was testing the backlink feature to make sure it didn't break the canadiancomment template.

As far as I can tell everything looks fine.

So going forward consider yourselves warned... if you write about us, we'll know.

And in case I forget, I'ld like to say thanks to Jasper de Vries whose javascript I had to scam to get the backlinks working.

Why it requires additional javascript I'll never know.

BS-Meter On Maximum

2006-02-16T08:29:00.000-05:00

Poor Paul Martin has got his undies in a bunch over the defection of David Emerson:

Former prime minister Paul Martin yesterday spoke out for the first time about David Emerson's defection to the Conservatives, saying the about-face "astonished" him since the ex-Liberal had publicly condemned Stephen Harper only days before switching.

Mr. Martin issued a 365-word statement from Europe, where he is travelling, that amounted to a public excoriation of the man Liberals once called a "dream" candidate.

"As the person who recruited Mr. Emerson to public life, and given the lack of any articulated principle behind his decision, I certainly share the disappointment of so many Canadians in both Mr. Harper and Mr. Emerson," he said.

The former prime minister said Mr. Emerson's switch was "without precedent," in part because the Vancouver MP crossed the floor so quickly after being elected a Liberal last month.

People can have legitimate questions over Emerson's defection but when Paul Martin starts to become all richeous I can't do anything except roll my eyes in disbelief.

This is the same guy who convinced Belinda Stronach to switch parties just before a confidence vote. This is also the same guy who personally ensured that select candidates were dropped into ridings to run for the Liberals even against the wishes of the local party members.

Sad Paul... really... really... sad.

My Own Personal Boycott

2006-02-15T08:51:00.000-05:00

Since Indigo/Chapters have decided that they do not value their Christian customers as much as they do people of other faiths, I have decided that I'll be taking my business elsewhere.

Here is the email I sent to the corporation explaining why:

Due to your decision to not display the upcoming issue of the Western Standard containing the cartoons of Muhammad I have decided that in the future my family and I will not be shopping at your stores.

Since Indigo does not have a problem displaying works that offend Christians I can only conclude that your corporation does not value your Christian patrons as much as you do the others.

My family regularly shopped at your Barrhaven and Kanata locations here in the Ottawa area. Due to this decision you can be sure that we won't be returning.

If you think it is worthwhile you can email Indigo/Chapters here.

And You Want Me To Pay For This?

2006-02-14T09:32:00.000-05:00

So some of you out there think I should help pay for institutionalized daycare. I don't bloody well think so:

It was a beautiful winter day to spend outdoors for the children at Le Petit Bourg daycare centre. For most of them, it probably felt a lot warmer than the -2 recorded that day in Quebec City, even with the slight breeze that grazed their faces.

But the decision to leave 13-month-old Ludovick outdoors to nap for almost four hours has called into question the judgment of the daycare workers who thought it best to let the boy sleep, cuddled in a plastic car seat, rather than awaken him to take him indoors.

And how did the daycare respond to the parents concerns:

He and the baby's mother, Claire Ferland, immediately demanded a meeting with the daycare's administrator. Ms. Ferland told Le Soleil newspaper that she couldn't believe the explanations she was given as justification for letting her son nap outdoors in winter for so long.

"We were told things like: 'He has the warmest boots of everyone in the group,' or 'He breathes better outdoors.' They trivialized the incident and wouldn't even offer an apology," she said.

The parents filed a complaint with the province's child-protection authorities when it became obvious that the daycare found nothing abnormal about the incident.

The only comment I have to make on this story is that in case any of you didn't know... Quebec already has institutionalized daycare.

So for all you pro-government-daycare folks, sleep well at night and don't let fear for little Sally's life affect your productivity while at work.

That after all would be bad for the economy... and we can't have that.

Crossing The Floor

2006-02-13T11:01:00.000-05:00

Since I'm trying to get myself back into a habit of writing I figure one of the first topics I should touch on is that of an MP switching parties in the manner of Belinda Stronack and David Emerson.

Andrew Coyne touches on the subject. He concludes:

And that's as it should be. Integrity in those we elect is not an issue like the rest, to be weighed against their positions on health care or fiscal policy. It is, or should be, a basic condition of office, a prerequisite. If at any time that comes into doubt, the doubt must be resolved immediately.

So I'm certainly comfortable with a law requiring MPs who cross from opposition to cabinet, or who are elevated to cabinet within x number of months of having crossed, to first obtain the voters' approval (that used to be the requirement, remember, for all cabinet appointees). Whether the same stricture should apply more broadly I leave open.

Now, I'm not going to pick on Andrew since many people have similar opinions. The only reason I quote Andrew here is because his position is quite common and because I just happened to read it five minutes ago and it's fresh in my mind.

The problem I have with Andrew's opinion is twofold. First, he is openly admitting that for the most part, an MP is elected due to his party affiliation and not due to personal abilities or beliefs. Second, and most importantly, Andrew is essentially of the opinion that our government and our laws should be used to prevent people from voting their conscience.

In making that last statement I am in no way claiming that people who switch party allegiences are doing so out of some sort of moral conviction.

The problem in Andrew's approach though is that he wants to create a mess of laws dictating when an MP can vote against his party or switch party allegiances, and the consequences of doing so. Andrew... the last thing we need in this country are laws dictating how an MP should vote.

If an MP breaks his trust with his constituents then it is the constituents and them alone who are responsible in determining if the MPs actions were justifiable. How should the MPs constituents do this? Should we allow an MP to be recalled? Perhaps, I'm somewhat neutral on the subject.

In short, just because some people are justifiably upset when an MP switches parties, we have to be careful that we don't go to far in addresses these peoples anger. We have to be careful that the cure isn't worse than the disease and in this case, Andrew's cure is simply a poison pill.

Way To Go Jack

2006-02-12T09:52:00.000-05:00

Rarely do I have anything good to say about Jack Layton and his NDP party but today is one of those days. During the past federal election I was baffled when the NDP did not respond more forcefully to Liberal requests that NDP supporters should abandon their party in order to prevent a Conservative victory.

Well it seems today that the NDP have grown themselves a backbone:

The NDP has expelled Buzz Hargrove, the country's most prominent labour leader, for actively promoting strategic voting and Liberal candidates in last month's federal election.

The Ontario NDP provincial executive voted yesterday to pull the membership of Hargrove, president of the Canadian Auto Workers, for violating the party's constitution regarding provisions against endorsing other candidates. It also automatically revokes his membership in the federal party.

The NDP certainly made the right, as well as the principled, decision on this one. Though Hargrove is a huge financial and stategic contributor to the NDP they gave him the boot since he promoted the idea that the NDP should never be a governing party.

Don't get me wrong, I'ld be horrified to see the NDP heading up our government but we must give them credit where credit is due.

Way to go Jack!

crossposted to The Shotgun

To Blog Or Not To Blog...

2006-02-10T10:12:00.000-05:00

... that is the question.

How I'd Spend my Twelve Hundred

2005-12-12T21:45:00.000-05:00

It seems that some of the higher ups in the Liberal party don't trust Canadians to spend their own money. Hey, maybe they're right. Today I was thinking what I'd do if I got a twelve hundred dollar rebate from the government. I might not buy beer and popcorn with it, seeing as I don't like popcorn, but I could see myself going to a strip club and wasting the whole thing parting with strippers. I really love those Polish strippers that the Liberals bring into the country, they're so hot! So maybe I'd be better off with some guidance after all.

On a more serious note, maybe these Liberals are onto something here. Come on think about it, Liberals are the closest things to gods we have on this earth, they're very smart, honest and extremely generous. They would be much better at spending our money than we could ever hope to be. They would not only be in charge of our healthcare and daycare, but every aspect of our lives, from what we buy to eat, right down to our entertainment. Did I mention I love Polish strippers?

Every pay day we'd pass over our whole cheque, not just a third, to our Liberal overlords in Ottawa and they'd look after our every need. Wouldn't life be grand? No worries at all, the government would get the most out of our money, they wouldn't be wasteful like us mere humans. Who ever heard of a government wasting money anyway? Excuse me for a second while I go and puke, this type of crap tends to do that to me.

What's you IQ?

2005-12-05T11:26:00.000-05:00

A man enters a bar and orders a drink. The bar has a robot bartender. The robot serves him a perfectly prepared cocktail, and then asks him, "What's your IQ?." The man replies "150" and the robot proceeds to make conversation about global warming factors, quantum physics and spirituality, biomimicry, environmental interconnectedness, string theory, nano-technology, and sexual proclivities.

The customer is very impressed and thinks, "This is really cool." He decides to test the robot. He walks out of the bar, turns around, and comes back in for another drink. Again, the robot serves him the perfectly prepared drink and asks him, "What's your IQ?." The man responds, "about a 100." Immediately the robot starts talking, but this time, about football, NASCAR, baseball, supermodels, favourite fast foods, guns, and women's breasts.

Really impressed, the man leaves the bar and decides to give the robot one more test. He heads out and returns, the robot serves him and asks, "What's your IQ?." The man replies, "Er, 50, I think." And the robot says... real slowly... "So............... ya gonna vote for the Liberals again?"

I know it's a lame joke, but I did make me laugh and that's all that matters. Is it not?

The Deceptions Never End

2005-10-28T16:07:00.000-04:00

Some men are better than others:

Obviously if you are reading this then I have died in Iraq. I kind of predicted this, that is why I'm writing this in November. A third time just seemed like I'm pushing my chances. I don't regret going, everybody dies but few get to do it for something as important as freedom. It may seem confusing why we are in Iraq, it's not to me. I'm here helping these people, so that they can live the way we live. Not have to worry about tyrants or vicious dictators. To do what they want with their lives. To me that is why I died. Others have died for my freedom, now this is my mark.

Cpl. Jeffrey B. Starr died on April 30th, several months after he wrote the passage quoted above in a letter to his girlfriend.

It would seem hard to do but check out how the NY Times used the passage to slander the memory of a fallen soldier.

Any man who would give his life in the service of others deserves our everlasting gratitude. Any man who would insult the other's memory... what he deserves I'll leave up to you.

[Via Tim Blair]

crossposted to The Shotgun

Showing Us The Big Picture

2005-10-25T13:41:00.000-04:00

At around 1:30pm today I saw that Iraqi voters had passed the draft constitution with about 80% voting in favour of it's passage. Naturally I wanted to check out the reports and the following screenshots are what I saw...

CBC
The Globe And Mail
BBC
CNN

Considering that all of these media outlets claim that they provide their viewers with the "big picture" it seems odd that this story isn't given the prominance it deserves. Don't these same media outlets give prominance to nearly every negative event that occurs in Iraq?

Sadly even if Iraq turns out to be a successful democracy, most people will never know how sad and pathetic the coverage of events there have been.

crossposted to The Shotgun

Are The Nobels Still Relevant?

2005-10-14T09:06:00.000-04:00

It really is a simple question isn't it? My own opinion is that the various scientific and economic Nobels still do a good job of recognizing significant achievements in their fields.

Oh the other hand, the Nobels for peace and literature are nothing but a complete shambles and an insult to legacy of the awards. Yesterday, Harry Pinter was honoured with the Nobel prize in literature. As The Globe says:

The 75-year-old British playwright, poet, screenwriter, actor and, in the words of one biographer, "permanent public nuisance" made his presence felt on the English stage in the late 1950s and early 60s in a series of plays in which characters are permanently at a loss for words and where communication failure is endemic.

And what has Pinter done lately? Well nothing unless you count:

Even though Mr. Pinter was diagnosed with cancer of the esophagus in 2002, he remained an active opponent of the Tony Blair-George W. Bush alliance after the 9/11 attacks.

In an interview with The Globe and Mail in October of 2001, he said that what happened on 9/11 "didn't come of the blue. It was an act of retaliation against a background of a whole tapestry of U.S. power and manipulation of power throughout the world for many years."

His anti-war, anti-Bush views increased in volume and vitriol with the war in Iraq in March of 2003. In accepting an honorary doctorate from Turin University in Italy, Mr. Pinter compared his "personal nightmare" of cancer with "the infinitely more pervasive public nightmare -- the nightmare of American hysteria, ignorance, arrogance, stupidity and belligerence . . ."

I see...

So now the Nobel Prize in literature is given based on how much you opposed the war in Iraq and not based on any type of recent literary achievement?

I'm not even going to bother complaining about the Nobel Peace prize.

crossposted to The Shotgun

Hating America

2005-10-06T12:46:00.000-04:00

The distinguished editors here at canadiancomment insist that you read this article by Bruce Bawer.

Now go!

Update @ 1:31pm

[Via Zacht Ei]

Dhimmis In Britain

2005-10-05T08:58:00.000-04:00

First poor Piglet gets banned from an office in Britain and now some bonehead is telling us that the English flag is offensive to Muslims:

British prison officers who wore a St. George's Cross tie-pin have been ticked off by the jails watchdog over concerns about the symbol's racist connotations.

The pins showing the English flag -- which has often raised hackles due to its connection with the Crusades of the 11th, 12th and 13th centuries -- could be "misconstrued," Chief Inspector of Prisons Anne Owers said in a section on race in a report on a jail in the northern English city of Wakefield.

...

Chris Doyle, director of the Council for the Advancement of Arab-British Understanding, said Tuesday the red cross was an insensitive reminder of the Crusades.

"A lot of Muslims and Arabs view the Crusades as a bloody episode in our history," he told CNN. "They see those campaigns as Christendom launching a brutal holy war against Islam.

"Muslim or Arab prisoners could take umbrage if staff wore a red cross badge. It's also got associations with the far-right. Prison officers should be seen to be neutral."

Doyle added that it was now time for England to find a new flag and a patron saint who is "not associated with our bloody past and one we can all identify with."

Oh my freaking God!

Is there no end to this foolishness? Aren't Muslims supposed to accept the laws and customs of the places they visit and settle?

How about this for Mr. Doyle... before anyone even considers scrapping the English flag Muslims must first:

1) remove the cresent from all of their national flags,
2) reinterpret all aspects of their faith that encourages/minimizes/justifies the conquering of people of other faiths,
3) apologize for the 400 years of conquest and slaughter that preceded the crusades, and
4) return all formerly Christian (i.e. right-wing and/or neo-con if you will) lands conquored by Muslims.

What's fair is fair.

Once you take care of that, get back to us.

Media Bashing - Fun For The Whole Family

2005-10-03T09:39:00.000-04:00

Media bashing is one of my favourite hobbies these days and who can really blame me. On Friday we were treated to Walter Cronkite telling us how he is much more intelligent than the general public and a few days later we were treated to Dan Rather telling us how great the Hurricane Katrina coverage was.

Mark Steyn sums up Dan Rather's and his cohorts stupidity best:

Yet Hurricane Dan professed himself delighted with his successors. "They took us there to the hurricane," he told Larry. "They put the facts in front of us and, very important, they sucked up their guts and talked truth to power."

Er, no. The facts they put in front of us were wrong, and they didn't talk truth to power. They talked to goofs in power, like New Orleans' Mayor Nagin and Police Chief Compass, and uncritically fell for every nutso yarn they were peddled. The media swallowed more bilge than if they'd been lying down with their mouths open as the levee collapsed. Ten thousand dead! Widespread rape and murder! A 7-year-old gang-raped and then throat-slashed! It was great stuff -- and none of it happened. No gang-raped 7-year-olds. None.

Most of the media are still in Dan mode, sucking up their guts and congratulating themselves about what a swell job they did during Katrina. CNN producers were advising their guests to "be angry," and there was so much to get angry about, not least the fact that no matter how angry you got on air Anderson Cooper was always much better at it. And Mayor Nagin as well. To show he was angry, he said "frickin'" all the frickin' time so that by the end of a typical Nagin soundbite you felt as if you'd been gang-fricked. "That frickin' Superdome," he raged. "Five days watching dead bodies, watching hooligans killing people, raping people."

But nobody got killed by a hooligan in the Superdome. The problem wasn't rape and murder, but the rather more prosaic lack of bathroom facilities. As Ben Stein put it, it was the media that rioted. They grabbed every lurid rumor and took it for a wild joyride across prime time. There was a real story in there -- big hurricane, people dead -- but it wasn't enough, and certainly not for damaging President Bush.

Think about that: Hurricane week was in large part a week of drivel, mostly the bizarre fantasies of New Orleans' incompetent police chief but amplified hugely by a gullible media. Given everything we now know they got wrong in Louisiana, where they speak the language, how likely is it that the great blundering herd are getting it any more accurate in Iraq?

Four years ago, you'll recall, we were bogged down in "the brutal Afghan winter." By "we," I don't mean the military but the media. The line on Afghanistan was that it was the white man's grave. Actually, it was the grave that was white; the man was more of a blueish color thanks to temperatures "so cold that eyelids crust and saliva turns to sludge in the mouth," according to Knight-Ridder's Tom Ifield. "Realistically," reported New York's Daily News, "U.S. forces have a window of two or three weeks before the brutal Afghan winter begins to foreclose options."

Er, no. "Realistically," U.S. forces turned out to have a window of four years, which is how long they've been waiting for the "fast, fast approaching" (ABC's ''Nightline'') brutal Afghan winter to show up. It's Knight-Ridder's news reports that turn to sludge on your lips. The "brutal Afghan winter" is a media fiction.

Sadly, we here in Canada will again be treated to our daily dose of media stupidity with the return of the CBC news crews.

Oh heaven help us.

By the way, since the CBC was basically off the air for the last several weeks will I be getting a tax refund for the money the network didn't spend? Here's hoping against hope.

Stinking Comment Spam

2005-10-03T08:56:00.000-04:00

Well it seems that the comment spammers have started to strike again. We've gotten over twenty comment spams in the last two days.

We were doing pretty good for the last several months but after this last barage I've decided to include the 'word verification' feature that is available through Blogger comments to eliminate the spam.

I hope this isn't too much of an annoyance.

Loving The Internet

2005-09-27T19:13:00.000-04:00

A simple lesson is how the media distorts language and photos to convey a message can be seen here.

Another classic can be found here.

And the media wonders why people hardly trust a word they say or write. Sad.

[Via littlegreenfootballs]

Must... Stop... Laughing...

2005-09-26T23:08:00.000-04:00

For tonight's dose of humour I present the latest rantings of Abu Musad Al-Zarqawi:

What's crackalackin', y'all? I know it's been long-time-no-post, but I gotta tell you it's a little hard to keep up with the blogging when you're getting a daily enema from infidel Tomahawks. I knew that war is supposed to be hell, but dude -- this one is starting to totally fucking suck. Bigtime.

Case in point: after taking in the nards in Tel Afar last week, let's just say the martyr recruiting has gone a little slow. And speaking of 'a little slow,' can we talk about this latest busload of asswipes from Damascus? Jeez, I thought the Saudis were stupid, but these Syrians take the fucking baclava. Send one of these choads on a simple martydom operation against a Bagdhad collaborator elementary school, and they're like, "Durrrr, a thousand pardons effendi, I got lost! Doyyyy, can I have a martyrdom car with OnStar?" Then you end up having to print out MapQuest directions for them, which totally chews up printer cartridges, and they end up smeared along some desert freeway because they mistook the detonator button for cruise control.

Just between us, it was almost a relief when Team Satan and their Iraqi puppets greased a couple hundred of my lovable losers last week. 'Thinning the herd,' if you know what I mean, and I suppose it probably raised our average insurgent IQ ten points. To 67, maybe. Still, word-of-mouth about this kind of missile strike crap gets around, and it has really screwed our recruiting. Even with the dipshit teenage mosque-rats in Damascus and Riyadh. It's gotten so bad, in fact, that we had to open up a recruiting office in France. I shit you not: reduced to recruiting Le. fucking. Fron-say.

...

Go check out Iowahawk. I would suggest starting in the archives around February 2004 and working your way to the present.

Canadians: Economic Nitwits?

2005-09-23T09:15:00.000-04:00

I'ld like to think that the average Canadian has a reasonable understanding of economics. Perhaps that has always been wishful thinking but today's poll at The Globe And Mail proves me wrong.

According to the poll, over 60% of respondents thought that the government should regulate the price of gas.

Oh really.

So if the government regulates the price of gas below market cost who exactly do these people think is going to sell them the gas they need?

Or put another way, would you continue to run a business where you were forced to charge consumers less for your product than the price you paid for it? If you answered yes to this question I'd suggest you submit your name to all the banks so that you can be placed on the "don't ever give this idiot a business loan" list.

South Africa Going The Way Of Zimbabwe

2005-09-23T09:03:00.000-04:00

It seems that the South African government is caving into pressure and will be taking the first tentative steps of forcing land reform on unwilling landowners:

South Africa says it will for the first time force a white farmer to sell his land under a redistribution plan.

The decision was announced by the Commission on Restitution of Land Rights, set up to return to black people land lost under apartheid.

An official said talks to agree on a price for the farm had failed and the farmer has vowed to challenge the move.

South Africa's government says it wants to hand over about a third of white-owned farm land by 2014.

Now I'm not debating whether some type of land reform is necessary. Any country where 80% of usable farmland is owned by 10% of the population is not structured for good social relations.

But... have we not seem what this leads to in Zimbabwe? Zimbabwe was once a net food exporter. Today, the country is a basketcase.

So why does the future look grim for South Africa. Well just listen to the politicians:

But Deputy President Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka says the pace of reform should be speeded up - as in neighbouring Zimbabwe, where most white-owned land has been seized by the state.

"There needs to be a bit of oomph. That's why we may need the skills of Zimbabwe to help us," she said.

Nothing more needs to be said.

The Globe And Mail Becomes More Like A Blog

2005-09-21T14:04:00.000-04:00

Rarely do I have something good to say about The Globe And Mail but surprisingly today is one of those days.

I noticed today that the G&M now provides a means to leave comments on all of it's stories. They may have been allowing this for weeks for all I know but I like how the comments are included with the main page of the article like you'd see on a blog. See here for an example.

They even provide a means to link directly to the comment. Very smart.

Of course as a media outlet they screen the messages before posting them which given legal reasons is probably a good idea. It will be interesting to see if any bias can be detected in how they screen the comments.

All-in-all a very smart move.

Canada's Game

2005-09-19T11:40:00.000-04:00

People will believe anything these days. Check out this video clip:

Three guys decided to go to New Orleans for a College football game. One of their fathers works for Roots Canada and gave them each a Canadian Winter Olympic jacket to wear. So with that said, they decided that when people ask them about the jacket they would tell them they represent Canada's Hide and Seek team. Well, they b.s.'d enough to get interviewed live during the game on ESPN.

Suckers.

Blame The Environmentalists

2005-09-16T15:24:00.000-04:00

Via Best of the Web Today we have another example of how the loony-left doesn't accept blame for their stupid policies and instead try to blame others.

As R. Emmett Tyrrell explains regarding Hurrican Katrina:

So where did Al choose to deliver this critical compendium of misjudgments, hyperbole, and error? In San Francisco, of course, where on September 9 he said, "The warnings about global warming have been extremely clear for a long time. We are facing a global climate crisis. It is deepening. We are entering a period of consequences." And he urged that "the leaders of our country be held accountable" for the flooding of New Orleans. Unfortunately he was addressing the Sierra Club, which was not the best place to bring up the flooding of New Orleans.

The very day he spoke a congressional task force reported that the levees that failed in New Orleans would have been raised higher and strengthened in 1996 by the Army Corps of Engineers were it not for a lawsuit filed by environmentalists led by who else but the Sierra Club. Among those "leaders of our country" to "be held accountable" for the flooding of New Orleans, would Al include the Sierra Club? How about the Save the Wetlands stalwarts? According to a recent report in the Los Angeles Times, a 1977 lawsuit filed by Save the Wetlands stopped a congressionally funded plan to protect New Orleans with a "massive hurricane barrier." A judge found that New Orleans' hurricane barrier would have to wait until the Army Corps of Engineers filed a better environmental-impact statement.

So there you have it. The next time some blockhead blames G.W. Bush for the levies failing just point out that it was actually the Sierra Club that must accept responsibility.

And being the clueless bunch of twits that they are the Sierra Club now has a Gulf Coast Environmental Restoration Project in place. Fitting since they're basically responsible for most of the mess.

And as a slight deviation here, why is the Sierra Club wasting it's time trying to clean up the environment along the Gulf Coast. You'd think they would take pride in Mother Nature's handiwork.

Asshats.

Please Tell Me It Isn't So

2005-09-16T09:55:00.000-04:00

I know that in general a nation's politicians are not an accurate reflection of it's people. But after seeing this, someone please tell me that the German people are not the same worthless pieces of shit that their politicians are?

Are German's in particular, and continental Europeans in general, so obsessed about the United States that crap like that actually wins votes? How pathetic have you people become that you fall for this foolishness?

Your countries have enough of their own problems to worry about but instead of dealing with them you allow your politicians to distract you from their incompetence by such childish tricks.

Pathetic.

Interviewing Dalrymple

2005-09-15T10:28:00.000-04:00

Via No Pasaran I came across this interview with Theodore Dalrymple. Dalrymple never fails to provide a wealth of interesting subjects and concepts and is always a pleasure to read.

A few select quotes:

FP: Your observation about humans’ thrill for danger and how this interrelates with humans’ pattern of self destruction and the voluntary choosing of misery is very profound. Could you share your thoughts with us about this?

Dalrymple: It is clear to me that people often want incompatible things. They want danger and excitement on the one hand, and safety and security on the other, and often simultaneously. Contradictory desires mean that life can never be wholly satisfying or without frustration.

I think it was Dostoyevsky who said that, even if the government were 100 per cent benevolent and arranged everything for our own good, as judged by rational criteria, we should still want to exercise our freedom by going against its dispensations.

One reason for the epidemic of self-destructiveness that has struck British, if not the whole of Western, society, is the avoidance of boredom. For people who have no transcendent purpose to their lives and cannot invent one through contributing to a cultural tradition (for example), in other words who have no religious belief and no intellectual interests to stimulate them, self-destruction and the creation of crises in their life is one way of warding off meaninglessness. I have noticed, for example, that women who frequent bad men - that is to say men who are obviously unreliable, drunken, drug-addicted, criminal, or violent, or all of them together, have often had experience of decent men who treat them well, with respect, and so forth: they are the ones with whom their relationships lasted the shortest time, because they were bored by decency. Without religion or culture (and here I mean high, or high-ish, culture) evil is very attractive. It is not boring.

...

FP: You make the shrewd observation of how political correctness engenders evil because of “the violence that it does to people’s souls by forcing them to say or imply what they do not believe, but must not question.” Can you talk about this a bit?

Dalrymple: Political correctness is communist propaganda writ small. In my study of communist societies, I came to the conclusion that the purpose of communist propaganda was not to persuade or convince, nor to inform, but to humiliate; and therefore, the less it corresponded to reality the better. When people are forced to remain silent when they are being told the most obvious lies, or even worse when they are forced to repeat the lies themselves, they lose once and for all their sense of probity. To assent to obvious lies is to co-operate with evil, and in some small way to become evil oneself. One's standing to resist anything is thus eroded, and even destroyed. A society of emasculated liars is easy to control. I think if you examine political correctness, it has the same effect and is intended to.

...

FP: Islamists and leftists have many things in common. One of them is that they are miserable, hate life and see cheer and joy as a dangerous enemy. You make the comment that “the acceptance of the inherent limitations of existence that is essential to happiness.” Can you illuminate this a bit about life in general and also connect it to the toxic nature of Islamism and leftism?

Dalrymple: I take it as given that man, having contradictory desires, is always subject to frustration, even when happy. For example, we want both adventure and safety, and when we have the one we long for the other. All forms of human happiness contain within themselves the seeds of their own decomposition.

Modern man particularly - or so it seems to me - is particularly bad at recognising that much of his unhappiness or discontent stems from this inevitable source. Rather, he blames the structure of society and thinks that a perfection that will resolve all contradictions and eliminate all frustrations can be achieved, if only we abolished private property or followed the example of the 7th century followers of Mohammed. The attempt to force people to do so gives meaning to their existence, and of course a lot of sadistic pleasure into the bargain.

Go read the whole thing.

Hitchens/Galloway Debate

2005-09-14T21:07:00.000-04:00

I'm sitting here listening to the Christopher Hitchens and George Galloway debate and I must say that I'm totally enjoying watching the ass-whooping Galloway is taking.

The poor fool is pretty good at throwing insults and diverting people's attention but man, is he a tool. He doesn't answer any of the questions asked of him without trying to bring up unrelated historical events as a means of avoiding what and who he supports now.

One of the more amusing parts of listening to the debate was listening to the pre-debate show put on by the lefty wack-jobs hosting the event. Man... are these people nuts.

Looking For Something To Do?

2005-09-12T21:14:00.000-04:00

If you've got a few minutes to kill go and take the Great Canadian Blog Survey.

Survival Of The Fittest Indeed - Fire This Idiot

2005-09-12T09:50:00.000-04:00

Rarely do I read something so utterly stupid that I find it worth commentating on. Well folks, that time has come thanks to the twisted thoughts of Harold Evans at the BBC.

Harold has decided that his finely tuned senses can predict the political fallout from Hurricane Katrina. The fact that his knowledge of history, both American and European, consists of what he has seen on and written for the BBC doesn't seem to detract him.

The fun begins with the first sentence:

It takes a lot to shake America to the core - 9/11 did it four years ago this weekend; the war in Iraq still has not.

I'm not exactly sure how to interpret this statement. I'm not sure what planet I'm on but for a BBC reporter his memory of the last three years of newsprint is pretty bad. If my memory serves me correctly I remember non-stop coverage of the Iraq war. I also remember non-stop reporting on every half-wit who had an opinion on it.

I can only interpret it to mean that since the American people haven't demanded the course of action he prefers regarding Iraq, that they simply could not have given it as much thought and reflection as he has.

Harold then goes on to give us a refresher in Social Darwinism and how the United States took it just a tad to far:

Social Darwinism never infiltrated politics as much in Britain as it did in America where it was brilliantly propagated by a Yale polemicist named William Graham Sumner.

Interventions by government to regulate housing, public health, factories, and so on, were wrong, he argued, because they impeded individual enterprise that alone created wealth. My mind, said the steelmaster Andrew Carnegie, was illuminated in a flash by Sumner's theorem that mankind progresses through the "ceaseless devouring of the weak by the strong".

Politicians of all colours agreed. It was a Democratic president - Grover Cleveland - who epitomized the philosophy in a memorable decision in 1877. Asked to release $10,000 of surplus seed for drought-stricken farmers in Texas, he declared: "I do not believe that the power and duty of the General Government ought to be extended to the relief of individual suffering... The lesson should constantly be enforced that though the people support the Government, the Government should not support the people."

The attitude has never entirely disappeared and probably never will. Its appeal is not only to the economically powerful with a central faith in the sanctity of the marketplace, but also to the romantic ideals of Jeffersonian individualism.

The entire point of this bit is to reinforce the European image of a United States where the winner takes all. This of course is a pile of baloney. The entire principle of Social Darwinism is meant to apply to groups of people, not individuals. Europe, contrary to what Harold Evans remembers, has been the only region of the planet where the idea of Social Darwinism was put into practise.

The concept of Social Darwinism was widely discussed in many parts of the Western world at the turn of the 20th century but only the Nazi's and their collaborators (mostly Europeans I would point out) put it into practise. Social Darwinism has never been put into practise as a model for society in the United States. It has been in Europe.

Harold also implies here that a government that fails to regulate housing, public health, and factories, is failing to do it's job. Once again, I wonder if Harold has cared to read the volumes of government regulations relating to these matters? Probably not considering it would probably take him the better part of a year to do it. Since he hasn't bothered to read up on these government regulations we can only assume that he simply doesn't like the way the US government deals with these areas of government policy.

After the sociology lesson he then takes a stab at American history:

So why then is Hoover almost a dirty word in the history books? It is because faced with a bigger challenge than the floods - the Great Depression with 13 million out of work - he refused to recognise the responsibility of government to relieve individual suffering.

He believed that economic depressions, like natural disasters, were acts of God that must run their course. He expected voluntary acts of compassion by business and good neighbours would be enough, as they mostly had been in his humanitarian work in World War I. But the Depression affected so many millions it was too big and complex for that.

So slow was Hoover to respond that the shanty towns of the unemployed became known as Hoovervilles. He refused to believe that anyone was starving.

Of the men selling apples in the streets, the symbol of the depression, he said, "many persons left their jobs for the more profitable one of selling apples." It was not a joke. He had a tin ear, rather like George Bush.

Harold like so many of his ilk is trying to find a parallel in history that will back up his underlying theme. He implies here that government can solve all problems if only the right man (a progressive by the way) is in charge. He thinks that if only the American government "cared" enough most if not all of the suffering during the Great Depression could have been avoided. How this would be possible he doesn't care to inform us. The entire global economy was affected by the Great Depression and all manner of approaches were taken by different countries to deal with it. Perhaps Harold would have preferred the United States had taken the approach of European Nazis or Facists? Perhaps he would recommend the Communists approach?

The entire quote seems to be nothing more than an attempt to find someone who believed in God, note their failures, and then take a shot at G.W. Bush.

Moving on, Harold ends with:

And Bush, like Hoover, has found it hard to confront reality. He has said nobody expected the levees to break - thereby flying in the fact of scores of predictions in official reports, science journals and newspapers.

Back in the 30s, clinging to the log of Social Darwinism did not save Hoover. He was swept away by a riptide of anger and fear like that which may threaten the Republican ascendancy today.

In 1932 Hoover lost both his reputation and the presidency in a landslide to his Democratic challenger Franklin Roosevelt. The New Deal FDR ushered in - signing 15 bills in his first 100 days - almost drove a stake through the heart of Social Darwinism. Never before had government so directly shored up the lives of individual Americans at every social level and class.

It was the foundation of a welfare state - a ringing reaffirmation of America's commitment to huddled masses yearning to share in the great American Dream.

Here he tries to blame G.W. Bush for the lack of an evacuation but fails to mention that in the United States local governments are responsible for such things. Contrary to what Harold may think the mayor of New Orleans is responsible to make such a decision. On top of that, the governor of Louisiana is responsible for threats to the state. That is why elections are held. To vote into position people to make those decisions.

George Bush is not an expert of the status of the levees in New Orleans and if you somehow expect him to be then you're an idiot. Harold takes the time to point out that George Bush didn't think the levees would break but doesn't care to mention the million or so other people who live in and around the city who thought the same thing.

He closes with a couple of statements about how a stake was nearly driven through the heart of Social Darwinism and that the United States is a welfare state. This seems to be totally contradictory to the theme of this article since the whole point is how uncaring the American government is.

This entire piece is nothing but a sad attempt at twisting history to fit one's perceptions of the world. Instead of recommending that the people of New Orleans vote for a mayor that isn't an asshat he instead suggests that the entire American social model should be reworked to be in line with some of the wonderful examples that Europe provides.

Since a more "progressive" social model would have lessened the impact of Hurricane Katrina I wonder how a European country would have dealt with a disaster of such magnitude? How about France where over ten thousand died a few years ago due to a heat wave? Is that the social model American should emulate? How about Germany where flooding a few years back brought the country to a halt? Is that the model Harold is recommending?

I guess we'll never know since Harold is suggesting nothing constructive. Harold thinks a progressive social model is better and hence he naturally thinks it would have dealt with this situation better. As I said he doesn't bother to go into the details of how that might be since he naturally assumes his reader agrees with him.

Getting Your Video Fix

2005-09-11T23:34:00.000-04:00

Enjoy this spoof (registration may be required) of a news report out of Iraq.

Question of the Day

2005-09-08T11:32:00.000-04:00

Do we really need the CBC? Please discuss freely.

To Good To Pass Up

2005-09-06T15:02:00.000-04:00

Nothing brightens my day more then watching my favourite "useful idiot" make a fool of himself:

Mr Penn had planned to rescue children waylaid by Katrina's flood waters, but apparently forgot to plug a hole in the bottom of the vessel, which began taking water within seconds of its launch.

The actor, known for his political activism, was seen wearing what appeared to be a white flak jacket and frantically bailing water out of the sinking vessel with a red plastic cup.

When the boat's motor failed to start, those aboard were forced to use paddles to propel themselves down the flooded New Orleans street.

Asked what he had hoped to achieve in the waterlogged city, the actor replied: "Whatever I can do to help."

With the boat loaded with members of Penn's entourage, including a personal photographer, one bystander taunted the actor: "How are you going to get any people in that thing?"

Nothing better than watching the Sean Penn Ego Tour go bust.

What an ass.

The Trudeau Family - Supporting Murderers And Tyrants Since 1973

2005-09-06T09:46:00.000-04:00

Unfortunately Hassan Almrei ended his hunger strike this past Saturday:

Seventy-three days into a hunger strike that had him fearing for his life, Hassan Almrei ended his protest Saturday because of the hope he says he's been given by Canadians.

The 31-year-old Syrian national, one of five people being held on a national security certificate as a threat to Canada, had been subsisting on three glasses of orange juice a day and some water in an attempt to gain the same rights as a federal inmate.

This may seem quite innoculous if not for this:

Alexandre Trudeau, son of the late prime minister Pierre Trudeau, was among those in attendance.

“We're here because of the hunger strike, and this is sort of a fine point of this issue,” said the filmmaker, who has been an outspoken advocate for Mr. Almrei and Moroccan detainee Adil Charkaoui, whom Canadian authorities have accused of being an al-Qaeda sleeper agent.

“This campaign has to go on, we have to be aware of this and really come to understand whether this is something we want in this country or not — which I personally do not.”

Mr. Almrei is fighting Canada's attempts to deport him to Syria, where he says he will be tortured.

He has admitted to lying about his past to get into Canada and training in Afghanistan, but denies any ties to al-Qaeda or Osama bin Laden.

What in bleeding hell is Alexandre Trudeau doing supporting such a maggot! Almrei has admittedly broken Canadian law and spent time training in Afganistan. Has anyone cared to ask Alexandre what Almrei was training for while in Afganistan. Multi-cultural ambassador perhaps? Gourmet chef? Human rights activist?

And not only does Almrei have Alexandre's support he kicked us in the nuts with this classic:

“I am sad that the Ontario government will not give me my basic human rights,” Mr. Almrei said in a written statement read to the hundreds of protesters gathered outside the Metro West Detention Centre in Toronto.

Not give you your basic human rights? Oh the humanity! This coming from a man who spent a couple of summers training to kill infidels.

Why oh why don't any of this so called jihadists and martyrs have any self-respect?

The Sheep And Those Who Protect Them

2005-09-05T20:16:00.000-04:00

Bill Wittle has written another classic discussing the differences between two types of people:

So, on one hand, we have a very blue city – New York – confronted, out of the clear morning of a perfect fall day, with no warning – with a terror attack, and they march toward the sounds of screams and falling bodies and die by the hundreds. One the other hand, we have New Orleans law enforcement – also blue – whining about wet shoes and helping themselves to the happy period of lawlessness that followed an event that had been expected for no less than seventy-two hours.

In New York, we had a governor who got every available resource on the ground as fast as it could get there, and in Louisiana we have a governor who...cried. Governor, your job is to not cry. Your job is to be strong. We have plenty of civilians crying. You want to cry, cry in the car on the way home like everybody else did four years ago. Crying Governors, race-baiting mayors and looting police do not a Finest Hour make.

In New Orleans we have a mayor who left some 400-500 buses sitting fueled and underwater in the Ray Nagin Memorial Motor Pool saying that evil white conservative America was selling out his people within 24 hours of the catastrophe, from a safe and dry and adequately toileted location, while four years ago we had a Mayor who ran to the site of the disaster so quickly it is a full-blown miracle he was not killed when a building collapsed literally on top of his magnificent, combed-over head.

Now, much has been made of the fact that Ray Nagin is an incompetent, race-baiting black man, and Rudy Giuliani, who was neither, is white. Also, feminists are upset that people dare attack Governor Blanco because she is incompetent, weak, indecisive, and also a woman. And no doubt there are salivating long-haired, short-cortexed idiots just waiting for this to be over so they can sail into the comments section and tell me what a racist and misogynist I am.

Bravo!

The Aftermath of Katrina

2005-09-02T09:42:00.000-04:00

Nothing amuses me more than reading how all the lefty moonbats are blaming G.W. Bush for the situation in Louisiana.

In response to such stupidy I came across this simple and eloquent statement:

They aren't stranded because of politics, SUVs or climate change. They are stranded because a planet that graces us with sunshine and warmth also makes storms.

Indeed. Mother Nature is a bitch.

Turning The Bad Guys Into Another Victim

2005-09-01T08:35:00.000-04:00

One has to wonder about the gaul or the ignorance required to twist a situation into something it is not.

While checking out the BBC this morning I came across this classic where Jonah Fisher wastes my precious time by telling me that the Sudanese Arabs are victims of the genocide taking place in Sudan:

It has been a difficult couple of years for the nomads. One man we spoke to has 12 wives. He inherited 10 of them when six of his brothers were killed in a rebel attack.

Nomad on camel with loads of possessions
Nomads are continually on the move to find new grazing

After this meeting, we travelled north to meet another group of nomads.

Strictly speaking they are ex-nomads.

A year-and-a-half ago they were attacked by rebels, lost most of their animals and stopped travelling.

"Everything was taken in attacks by the rebels in 2004. We had large herds of camels, cows, sheep, goat and even donkeys," the group's religious leader Khatir Idriss said.

"We are now three different nomad tribes come here to live together and provide ourselves with some safety."

I asked him if they were armed.

"Some of us who still have some animals have guns so we can protect ourselves," he replied.

And this is the essence of these ex-nomads problems: an Arab on camel or horseback sporting a Kalashnikov has become the symbol of Darfur's evil - the Janjaweed, blamed for driving people from their villages.

If these ex-nomads tried to go to an organised camp they would be seen as the enemy.

Conflict between nomads and farmers has long existed in Darfur. But this war has destroyed any sense of normality for both communities.

Seen as the enemy in an organized camp? Is he serious? Did he ever consider that whenever the Arab nomads get near a refugee camp that they are often riding under the cover of military aircraft?

The conflict in Sudan is so straight-forward that I'm stunned that much of the media is trying to do their best to blur people's perceptions of it. In a nutshell, the Sudanese government is supplying and funding Arab nomads to drive off the Africans. It is basically a small part of a general strategy by African Arabs to drive black Africans further south.

Simple enough, but why is it that not only do you rarely if ever read a story about how the government funds these murderers, but instead we are treated to a story telling us how sorry we should feel for them? Disgusting.

I Just Don't See It Happening

2005-08-23T16:26:00.000-04:00

It seems that after 4 years the Liberals have finally gotten their panties in a bunch over the Canada-US softwood lumber dispute:

The federal government hinted at an escalating trade war today as two senior cabinet ministers warned of potential tariffs on American exports in retaliation for U.S. policies on softwood lumber.

Trade Minister Jim Peterson is identifying areas where Canadian tariffs could put maximum pressure on the U.S. economy with minimal damage domestically, two of his cabinet colleagues said.

Now don't get me wrong, I think Canada should have a strong international trade policy. Unfortunately, slapping around the US Congress isn't going to accomplish anything. First of all, no members of the US Congress have any constituents in Canada. Second of all, I would bet you that they have plenty of constituents that could make a few quick bucks off of an Canada-US trade war. It's a non-starter I'm afraid.

I guess I find the entire softwood lumber dispute somewhat amusing because of the fierce emotions Canadians bring to the fight. Sure the US is shafting us regarding softwood lumber but considering the amount of goods and services that cross our border everyday, the trade relationship between us is undoubtably the best between any two countries in the world.

Another thought that should be considered is that with any type of representative government legislators are going to pull a few cheap shots now and again for political gain. In short, if you want to avoid any surprises regarding or international trade relations I'd suggest that we start trading exclusively with Cuba and North Korea.

More loose Screws

2005-08-18T23:20:00.000-04:00

If the previous story made you wonder about the type of people that inhabit this fine planet, then no doubt this one from Lahore will also do the same.

"A man killed his wife over a domestic dispute in Hadyara police jurisdiction. Muhammad Azam and Janat got married five months ago. The couple visited Azam’s aunt on Thursday. Janat demanded to meet her relatives on which the couple scuffled.

After an exchange of harsh words, Azam attacked his wife with a shovel and she was killed instantly. The body was sent for an autopsy and the police registered a case on the complaint of Azam’s aunt Suriya."

Man visits his aunt, wife wants to visit hers, man doesn't think that's a good idea, man kills wife with a shovel. Its beyond me that this type of thing goes on anywhere in the world. You would think people had more sense.

Rabbits?

2005-08-18T22:45:00.000-04:00

If you haven't read a news story in the last day or two that made you ask, "what the hell is wrong with some people." Then give this story from Sydney, Australia a read and I'll bet you a couple bucks that it will make you ask that very question. Pardon the pet store humour, but what a sick puppy this meathead is.

CBC staff locked out!

2005-08-18T18:35:00.000-04:00

The CBC has locked out about 5,500 of its employees as of Monday, if this lockout lasts for a prolonged period of time, that means the CBC is going to be spending a lot less money than normal... what happens to its budget? If it falls dramatically will we, the taxpayers, get a tax cut or a cheque in the mail?

Or better yet, what if a group of citizens take the CBC to court and sue their asses for damages because we humble and noble Canadians no longer know how to think without the CBC telling us what we should concern ourselves with on a daily basis. I have two words for the judge, emotional distress.

What would he say about us?

2005-08-16T18:48:00.000-04:00

For some strange season the following quote from Alexis De Tocqueville made me think about modern day Canada and the ruling Liberal Party.

"The American Republic will endure until the day Congress discovers that it can bribe the public with the public's money."

Can bribe the public with the public's money... sounds very familiar. I wonder what De Tocqueville would have to say about the current situation here in Canada?

crossposted to The Shotgun

Maybe we're Next

2005-08-15T19:02:00.000-04:00

Today the Canadian Taxpayers Federation slammed Conservative leader Stephen Harper for being "silent" on gas taxes, the federal surplus, day care and smaller government. Well that got me to thinking, maybe Dana and I are next on their shit list... we've been pretty quite lately too.

On second thoughts, they probably don't even know who we are, so I guess the embarrassment of us being called out in the media will probably not happen this week. But just to cover our asses, I want smaller government, a tax cut and no stinking government daycare. There, that should keep the folks at the Canadian Taxpayers Federation happy for a while.

Martin's legacy so far

2005-06-30T17:06:00.000-04:00

Take a look at the following quote from Roman historian Tacitus, in which he comments on the legacy of one of Rome's emperors.

"If only he had not become the emperor, everyone would have said what an excellent emperor he would have made."

If Tacitus were alive today and living in modern day Canada, I'm pretty sure he would make a similar comment about our current leader, and it might go something like this.

"If only Paul Martin had not become Prime Minister, everyone would have said what an excellent Prime Minister he would have made."

In my opinion, that short statement sums up our Prime Minister's legacy pretty accurately so far. Does anybody else have an opinion?

crossposted to The Shotgun

Movie attendance in Canada down

2005-06-29T11:27:00.000-04:00

It appears that movie attendance in Canada is down, the biggest reason for that in my opinion, is piss poor movies! I'd like to go to the movies more, but I have been finding it very hard to find any decent movies to go see. There is nothing new and exciting coming out at all, all remakes and crap. Full story here

No Room in Canada for War Criminals

2005-06-29T00:23:00.000-04:00

After a ten year battle, the Supreme Court of Canada has restored a deportation order issued to a Rwandan, Leon Mugesera, who was accused of helping spark the genocide that killed 800,000 people. Full story here

Ten years was a little too long in my books to get this case wrapped up, but justice has been served. In my opinion there is no room in Canada for the likes of Mr. Mugesera. How does that likes of Leon Mugesera get in the country in the first place? Is there no screening process?

The Newest Member Of The Family

2005-06-26T17:16:00.000-04:00

Nazis Camps

2005-06-24T17:59:00.000-04:00

The following is a brief statement about what actually happened at war camps under the Nazis.

"In those days, to be a Jew in Nazi-occupied Europe meant that a man would be dragged from his home, put into a train with thousands of others, deported to a distant camp with or without his wife and children, beaten, starved and humiliated for a few days or weeks of forced labor, after which his emaciated, wrecked and shambling body would be scientifically asphyxiated, his hair shaven off to make mattresses, his bones crushed and melted down to make soap. The gold fillings from his teeth would be assembled to sustain the declining German war effort. His wife and children would be submitted to similar agonies, tortures and murders in specially constructed camps. Particularly unbelievable but patently true was the fact that a million Jewish children were being flung into furnaces and burned to death."

Let me get this straight, in Nazis camps men, women and children were turned into slaves, tortured and murdered, and then their remains were turned into mattresses and soap. Very gruesome indeed, yet some people like to compare what the Nazis did at their camps, to what is currently happening at Gitmo under the Americans. For the life of me, I fail to see how that is a realistic comparison.

Ignorance was Bliss

2005-06-21T18:18:00.000-04:00

Came across the following quote today, which got me to thinking. About what you ask? Well, read the quote first then I'll tell you.

"I came to realize that there was no such thing as a monolithic government always striving to do the right thing, even if it did sometimes make mistakes. I understood all too well that a government was made up of many people with different, and sometimes venal, agendas. And sometimes those kinds of people hold high office and wield enormous power, simply to further their own ends. Many times in the years to come, I would wish for the earlier, simpler days of my blissful ignorance."

The above quote got me to thinking about the good old days, when I was totally ignorant about politics and the inner workings of government, and how wonderful it was to be that way. Ignorance was indeed bliss. Anybody else feel the same when they got through reading the quote?

The Prime Minister is Right !!!

2005-06-20T06:46:00.000-04:00

Canadian Prime Minister Paul Martin has finally come out and said yesterday that he thinks it is unacceptable for Iran to be moving towards developing nuclear weapons and becoming a nuclear armed nation.

"I do not believe that the world can simply stand by and watch the possibility of Iran going from step-to-step towards the creation of making itself a nuclear power,"

"It is simply unacceptable in a world in which we all want to limit the threat of nuclear proliferation that the world is unable to come to a satisfactory agreement with Iran."

I think that most people would have to agree with Mr. Martin on this issue, but the question remains what is he going to do about it? Words and letters are simply not going to be enough to deter the Iranians from continuing down the path they currently are taking, its gonna take more than that.

Do you get a Free Lunch Too?

2005-06-19T11:06:00.000-04:00

CTV is reporting that our MPs eat about $382,000 worth of free lunches a year, paid for by us, the taxpayers of Canada. Apparently we are not paying our MPs enough money, it seems that some of them think that the free lunches they get are deserved.

"I don't think its wrong to provide something for MPs. I know myself, often there isn't time to go to the cafeteria sometimes you miss lunch." - Ontario Liberal MP Susan Kadis

Sometimes you miss lunch, you poor thing! Are MPs the only people in Canada that sometimes miss their lunch break, I don't think so? The next time you miss your lunch break, try calling your local MP and see if they will bring you down a nice healthy meal, paid out of their salary, and see how far you get.

[ Via Neale News ]

Stupidity that gets you Killed

2005-06-15T23:56:00.000-04:00

If you are already afraid of flying, then don't read this story about a couple of knuckleheads that just happen to be airline pilots.

The Jackson Trial

2005-06-14T16:32:00.000-04:00

I only have one thing to say about the whole Micheal Jackson affair and I'm gonna make it short. If anybody ever leaves their children in the care of Jackson at his house again, the parents should be jailed and have their children taken from them on the spot, no questions asked.

Boom Goes The Dynamite!

2005-06-13T08:46:00.000-04:00

This sports roundup is one of the funniest things I've ever seen.

I gave him an E for effort.

More On Healthcare

2005-06-09T15:26:00.000-04:00

This afternoon Paul Martin blessed us by spouting off about the Supreme Court decision allowing private healthcare services in Quebec:

Prime Minister Paul Martin vowed Thursday that Canada's public healthcare system would remain intact, despite a Supreme Court of Canada ruling opening the door for private care in Quebec.

"We're not going to have a two-tier healthcare system in this country," he told reporters following Thursday's ruling.

"Nobody wants that."

Pauly? Come on... get your head out of your ass. It seems that only Paul Martin is important enough to receive his healthcare from a private clinic. I guess us rubes will just have to learn to enjoy the scraps that our national elite throw us.

Anyways, Paul Martin even had the nerve to praise his past work in fixing the healthcare system:

Mr. Martin said the government's objective has been to have the "best public, accessible, universal healthcare system we can."

"That is why we invested over $41-billion over ten years, and that is why, together with the provinces, we implemented a whole strategy to reduce waiting times," he said.

I'd like to ask how exactly $41 billion dollars is going to fix waiting lines? I'll tell you this, 4 years from now waiting lists will be just as long as they are now. Most of the $41 billion will get eaten up by the healthcare bureaucracy before much of it ever makes it's way to a clinic or operating room.

Sweet Suffering! - Redux

2005-06-09T10:49:00.000-04:00

First the Ontario provincial government goes out of its way to do something based on common sense and now the Supreme Court is doing the same:

The Supreme Court of Canada ruled Thursday that a prohibition on private health insurance in Quebec contravenes the constitutional rights of people in that province.

The lengthy and complex ruling was a year in the making and was closely watched by people on both sides of the healthcare issue because of its implications for public and private care in Canada.

In a decision handed down Thursday, the country's highest court contravenes Quebec's charter of rights.

"In sum, the prohibition on obtaining private health insurance is not constitutional where the public system fails to deliver reasonable services," the court found.

The devil must be wearing a parka at this very moment.

It will be interesting to see how the Liberals deal with this. Will they just brush their hands with this court ruling, as they have done concerning gay-marriage, and claim that there is nothing they can do? Or will they fight it tooth and nail?

Oh, the linguistic gymnastics will be entertaining.

Let's just pray that this victory for free choice will eventually be applied to all provinces and territories.

crossposted to The Shotgun

Chretien feels Betrayed

2005-06-08T21:40:00.000-04:00

Former prime minister Jean Chretien says he feels betrayed by current and former members of the Liberal party, because they are placing the blame of the sponsorship scandal squarely on his shoulders.

"Of course some people betrayed us. They betrayed the government, they betrayed me and they betrayed the nation, but they will pay the price,"

The more I hear Chretien talk, the more I would like to see him land in jail over this whole affair. I know that it's not going to happen, but I guy can dream can't he?

[ Via Neale News ]

Does Democracy have Weaknesses?

2005-06-08T20:21:00.000-04:00

Seeing as Hizbullah has had a successful showing in southern Lebanon during the recent election, I have decided to reread a book I own about the politics of the group. The book is written by Amal Saad-Ghorayeb and in the book, she says that there are three features of democracy that make it inferior to an Islamic government. Here are the three features,

"First is the oppression implicit in the much vaunted principle of majority rule. The tyranny of the majority is even more pronounced when the minority in question repudiates not just the majority's opinion, but the social contract as such. The failure of the democrats to adequately resolve this predicament is considered a significant flaw in democracy."

"Second is the tendency of democratic systems to be dominated by the will of the majority. The existence of certain social, economic, political and religious elites in society often culminates in the manipulation of the system. The vast capabilities at the disposal of this majority, either by buying votes or distorting public opinion, thereby negating the very purpose of democracy."

"Third is the defectiveness and injustice of a system that only claims to represent the current generation of the voting age and completely disregards the rights and interests of those who are currently under age and of future generations. In the first place, the present population cannot designate itself as the representative of future generations without their consent. In the second place, it cannot assume the future generations can later change law to their advantage simply by constituting a majority, when the damage inflicted by many of these laws is irrevocable. The very weakness of democracy lies in its investiture of sovereignty in the 'people', whose 'ignorant' and 'capricious' nature hinders their ability to know where their true interests lie, let alone the interests of future generations."

In my opinion, no government system is perfect, but democracy is the closest thing we have. People that hold utopian views of any government system, whether it be democratic, Islamic, communist or a dictatorship are not being realistic and are cheating themselves by thinking that any system can be perfect.

The being said, it never hurts to discuss ways to improve on the system we have in Canada, so would anyone like to comment on these supposed weaknesses of democracy? Or perhaps you might have a suggestion on how to strengthen democracy as we know it here in the western world, if in fact you think that Saad-Ghorayeb has made a valid point or two. Please discuss.

crossposted to The Shotgun

Is Paul Koring An Ass?

2005-06-08T10:44:00.000-04:00

Sometimes I read an article and the stupidity of it just floors me. Today's example is Bush gives morsels to Blair's Africa aid program written by Paul Koring. This article is supposed to fall under the 'news' catagory at the G&M but with all the obsurd languange it feels like an editorial:

Seeking billions in debt relief for Africa, newly re-elected British Prime Minister Tony Blair had to settle yesterday for extravagantly wrapped morsels of food aid and vague promises of more to come from U.S. President George W. Bush.

...

Both men gushed about their close relationship, but a clear and yawning gap remained in their positions over both aid to Africa and global warming. Mr. Blair wants massive action on both now; Mr. Bush remains unconvinced.

...

Less progress was evident on the vexing issue of global warming.

...

Despite the chumminess as the two men stood shoulder to shoulder behind twin lecterns in the East Room of the White House, Mr. Bush was not willing to echo his British colleague's comments about global warming.

The bolded text is my doing.

Like what the hell is all that? Is this how the news is written these days?

I did a search for Koring's articles at the G&M and though I am too cheap to get archive access, just reading the article titles makes your head spin. Some of my favourites:

U.S. fixates on shadowy terrorist in Iraq
Abbas collects verbal bouquets in the Rose Garden
Time frays resolve to reach Palestine

Why does it seem that everything at the G&M becomes more of a joke with each passing day?

George Galloway at it Again

2005-06-08T01:11:00.000-04:00

British MP George Galloway appeared on Al-Jazeera and had few things to say about all the evil that takes place in the world, here are a few of the highlights.

"Bush, and Blair, and the prime minister of Japan, and Berlusconi, these people are criminals, and they are responsible for mass murder in the world, for the war, and for the occupation, through their support for Israel, and through their support for a globalized capitalist economic system, which is the biggest killer the world has ever known. It has killed far more people than Adolph Hitler. It has killed far more people than George Bush. The economic system which these people support, which leaves most of the people in the world hungry, and without clean water to drink. So we're going to put them on trial, the leaders, when they come. They think they're coming for a holiday in a beautiful country called Scotland; in fact, they're coming to their trial."

"There are elections and elections, there are many Arab presidents who are elected with 99.9, 94.7, 87.4 percent of the vote in elections but nobody believes these elections. They're not real elections and the election that's going to be held in Iraq in January, if it is held at all - and there is a big question mark over that – will not be a real election. How can you have a real election with hundreds of thousands of Crusader soldiers occupying the country, drawing up the electoral law, deciding who is allowed to take part in the elections, and utterly dominating the political life of the country?"

"Falluaja is a Stalingrad, and Iraq is in flames as a result of the actions of these criminals. Not the resistance, not anybody else but these criminals who invaded and fell like wolves upon the people of Iraq. And by the way, those Arab regimes which helped them to do it will burn in the same hell-fires."

There are quite a few people in the world that hold views close to George Galloway's, but most are not elected officials in a democratic government. Makes you wonder how on earth this guy managed to get elected.

crossposted to The Shotgun

Ghiz should Resign as Leader

2005-06-08T00:18:00.000-04:00

A new set of Poll numbers has been released here on Prince Edward Island, and Liberal leader Robert Ghiz's personnel popularity continues to lag behind that of his party. For the last few polls, Mr. Ghiz's personnel numbers have trailed that of his Liberal party, and the bad news is that the gap between his party's popularity and his own is getting wider.

Today's polls show that the Liberal party is supported by 43% of the Island's population, while Mr. Ghiz numbers come in 16 points lower than that of his party at 27%. Take into account that the Conservatives trail in the polls at 38%, but their leader Pat Binns personnel support is at 39%, 12 points ahead of Ghiz. I don't know about you, but that says something to me.

By taking in to account today's poll numbers, combined with past polls, and what I'm hearing on the street, I would say that Ghiz's short term as party leader has been a failure. His party has gained ground, mostly due to Conservative screwups, but how much further could it have gone if Mr. Ghiz had done a better job of leading his party? Probably a lot better. So my advice to Robert Ghiz, resign as party leader now and give your replacement time to prepare for next election.

Mr. Ghiz, now that Islanders have gotten to know you a little better, they are starting to come to the conclusion that all you have going for you is your famous father's (Joe Ghiz) last name, and not much else. Nobody likes a whiner Mr. Ghiz and now, rightly or wrongly, most Islanders think you are nothing more than that.

In one sentence you are complaining and whining about PEI's budget deficit, in the very next sentence you complain about all the government's cuts aimed at reducing that very deficit. But you offer no solutions, you either reduce the budget by reducing services or the deficit remains where it is currently at. Mr. Ghiz, you may have heard this one but I'll repeat it anyway, you can't have your cake and eat it too.

Take away the support of diehard Liberal supporters, who most Islanders would agree is about 20-25% of the population, and Mr. Ghiz your support among average Islanders would be in the 2-7% range. Pretty low for someone that fancies himself as being the next Premier of PEI don't you think?

The Conservative party has given Island Liberals a great opportunity to regain power in the province through mismanagement and stupidity, but what can the Liberals do with this chance with Mr. Ghiz at the leadership position, who knows how it will turn out. Only time will tell, that is of course, unless Mr. Ghiz comes to his senses and steps down as Liberal party leader.

Sweet Suffering!

2005-06-07T15:26:00.000-04:00

The Ontario government is actually considering legislation that may actually be useful:

Employees in Ontario could choose when they want to leave the work force under long-awaited legislation that would ban mandatory retirement at age 65.

The Ontario government unveiled the proposed legislation Tuesday while pledging to protect workers' existing rights to pension, early retirement and benefit plans.

Ending mandatory retirement would allow workers to choose when they want to retire, based on their lifestyles, circumstances and priorities, and allow those who wish to continue to work past age 65 to do so, Labour Minister Chris Bentley said.

The only change or addition I would make to this legislation is that the mandatory retirement age should be increased slowly to at least 67 or 68 years of age. Heck, when Frederick the Great introduced paid retirement hardly anyone lived to the ripe old age of 65.

As our lives are extended, it is only a matter of time before the retirement age of 65 will have to be adjusted.

Quotes Dana would Enjoy

2005-06-06T18:06:00.000-04:00

Anybody that reads this blog on a consistent basis would probably have come to the conclusion that Europeans and their smug attitudes drive my co-blogger Dana absolutely crazy. So for Dana's entertainment I have found a few quotes that he would be probably enjoy.

"Too many Europeans still cherish the belief that they are close to an end to war, hunger, want, and meanness, ideals inseparable from a light work week, cradle to grave care, protection by an uncouth American military, and a steady supply of fertile, darker, unassimilated peoples to take out their trash and clean their toilets."

"In Europe's lack of capacity to airlift divisions to Afghanistan, bomb Irag from carrier taskforces, or present wayward regimes like Pakistan with ultimatums, frustrated Europeans put their faith, mistakenly or not, in international bodies like the United Nations and the International Criminal Court, while pretending not to notice that American power alone is what has permitted them to dream that they inhabit a global fairyland of reasonable people."

"American power made it possible for Europeans to believe that power was no longer important. And now, in the final irony, the fact that US military power has solved the European problem, especially the 'German problem', allows Europeans today, and Germans in particular, to believe that American military power, and the 'strategic culture' that has created and sustained it, is outdated and dangerous."

"Because Europe has neither the will nor the ability to guard its own paradise and keep it from being overun, spiritually as well as physically, by a world that has yet to accept the rule of 'moral consiousness', it has become dependant on America's willingness to use its military might to deter those around the world who still believe in power politics."

If anybody else has to good quote along these lines, you can leave it in the comments section and I'm sure that Dana and I will give them a read.

The Shortest Open Letter Ever

2005-06-06T13:51:00.000-04:00

Dear Mr. Martin:

Now that your election pandering is in low gear I suggest that you take the time to read this article.

Your pathetic attempt to gain support by pledging money to the Sudanese government (a government directly responsible for the crimes discussed in the article) was one of the lowest points in recent Canadian politics.

Considering that you now have a bit more spare time on your hands, why don't you redeem yourself by actually doing something that might ease these people's suffering.

Regards,

Dana.

Update @ 1:57pm

I would just like to add a few European countries to the list of people the above letter is addressed to based on this response to the article:

After reading Nicholas Kristof's piece on the Sudanese government's "systematic campaign of rape" in Darfur, I have a question for Europe:
Where the hell are you?
Are you waiting for the U.S. to take action? We're rather busy in Iraq and Afghanistan at present. So why don't you do something? France, Germany, Belgium: For years you've claimed moral superiority to us. Prove it now.

Though I totally agree, the odds that Europe will do something constructive to address the situation is very slim indeed. Europe sadly is all talk and no action. Somehow Europeans have convinced themselves that their pacifism makes them better than others though the poor women in the article would probably disagree.

[Via Instapundit]

Quote Of The Day

2005-06-06T12:56:00.000-04:00

From an article about EU/US relations:

Europe is clearly not as important as it thinks it is: that would be impossible.

Rimshot!

Drivers Wanted!

2005-06-04T11:39:00.000-04:00

What do you think a Saudi Arabian legislator would have to do to get most of the males of his country mad at him, get himself kicked out the Kingdom's Consultative Council and even be threatened to have his citizenship stripped from him? It would appear not very much by western standards.

All Mohammad al-Zulfa did was ask his council members if they thought it was a good idea if a few of the country's women should be allowed to drive. Can you imagine? But why do some Saudi Arabian men not want women driving?

"Driving by women leads to evil, can you imagine what it would be like if her car broke down? She would have to seek help from men."

"Many believe women should be shielded from strange men, say women in the driver's seat will be free to leave home alone and go when and where they please; to unduly expose their eyes while driving; to interact with strange men such as traffic cops and mechanics."

This just doesn't include Saudi women, but all women, including foreigners that are in the Saudi Kingdom. Without written permission from a male, Saudi women can't travel, work, get an education, leave the home or talk to men. I can't believe this crap still goes on, talk about backwards. In my opinion this type of thinking needs to be eradicated. Anyone else agree?

Paul Martin goes CIA

2005-06-03T17:48:00.000-04:00

I wonder if Canada's Prime Minister, Paul Martin, has been taking some training from the CIA down on the farm in Langley? Because he seems to be putting the motto of the CIA's operations officers to use a lot lately. Here's the saying,

"Admit nothing, deny everything, and make counteraccusations."

Mr. Martin seems to be sticking to that motto very closely with his dealings on everything from Adscam to the Grewal tapes. His handlers would be proud of him.

Another in Assassination Lebanon

2005-06-02T19:19:00.000-04:00

The well known anti-Syrian journalist, Samir Kassir, was assassinated Thursday in Beirut. First the former premier of Lebanon, Rafiq Hariri, gets assassinated in a deadly roadside car bomb and now the most prominent journalist opposed to the Syrian occupation gets killed when his own car exploded. Full story here

"Kassir, 45, was a founding member of the Democratic Left movement, a main force behind the popular upheaval triggered by Hariri's killing."

"His body was found in the front seat of white Alfa Romeo car parked in front of his house in the Ashrafiyeh neighborhood, which was immediately sealed off by the army and internal security forces."

The Syrians are already walking on thin ice with the international community over the Hariri killing, could they be stupid enough to carry out another hit this soon afterword? Or do they even care now that they have been forced from Lebanon by public sentiment? Or could this be a plot to unite the opposition to try and force Sryian backed President Emile Lahoud out of power? In Lebanon, anything is possible.

How Useless Is Canadian Media?

2005-06-02T11:44:00.000-04:00

With the identity of "Deep Throat" recently made public, I got to thinking about scandals that have been broken by Canadian media over the last few years.

After thinking about it long and hard, I figure that at least since the early 90's, our media hasn't broken anything of any significance. Now I don't necessarily expect the media to break a story like Watergate every couple of years. What I am getting at, is the breaking of a story particularly damaging on the political stage.

Sure, our media is capable of producing useless headlines with stories like this but that is far from breaking a story. Is this the best that our media is capable of?

Given all the scandals, or potential scandals, concerning Adscam or the recent vote of confidence in Parliament, you would think that at least one Canadian journalist could produce something that would fall under the category of investigative journalism.

Is our media capable of anything other than being the microphone for those with something to say? Watching (particularly reading) American media gives the impression that their journalists are much more likely to be out there trying to come up with an original story. Sadly, I can't say the same about the media up here in Canada.

Since my political memory only goes back to my days in high school (which was in the early 90s), I can only conclude that either our media is totally incompetent, or that they are biased when covering stories on the national stage. As an example, when the Walkerton tragedy occurred in Ontario it seemed that the media made all kinds of original revelations concerning the story. Of course, Mike Harris was often the target of these allegations and reports.

Why does nothing similar happen when it concerns Liberal or NDP politicians?

Using Adscam as an example, has the Canadian media broken any details of the story? Anything? Considering all the people involved you would think that at least one enterprising individual could come up with something.

Does our media put away it's investigative hat when liberal or left-of-center politicians are concerned? It certainly seems that way to me.

crossposted to The Shotgun

More Stupidity From Our Global Betters

2005-06-02T11:00:00.000-04:00

How stupid do these smucks think we are?

Amnesty USA has been relentless in it's criticism of US policies regarding the Guantanamo Bay prisoner camp and now it turns out that the leaders of Amnesty USA have financially supported members of the Democratic Party:

The top leadership of Amnesty International USA, which unleashed a blistering attack last week on the Bush administration's handling of war detainees, contributed the maximum $2,000 to Sen. John Kerry's presidential campaign.

Federal Election Commission records show that William F. Schulz, executive director of Amnesty USA, contributed $2,000 to Mr. Kerry's campaign last year. Mr. Schulz also has contributed $1,000 to the 2006 campaign of Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, Massachusetts Democrat.

There was a time when I respected most international organizations by default but that time is now long gone.

For Amnesty USA to refer to the camp at Guantanamo Bay as a "gulag" is not only insulting to us today but it is particularly insulting to those who have died or suffered in the gulags of the old Soviet Union. The vast majority of the prisoners in Cuba in no way qualify for protections under the Geneva Convention. That is a fact.

A person can of course state that keeping the prisoners in Guantanamo may not be in the best interests of U.S. goals but to claim that U.S. actions there are against international law is absurd.

And as an amusing experiment, I wonder if any leaders of Amnesty USA or Amnesty International has made any public statements encouraging world leaders to charge members of the Taliban with war crimes? Have they done anything similar regarding Saddam Hussein?

[Via Nealenews]

More Sleaze At The Top

2005-06-01T16:05:00.000-04:00

So how low will the Liberals go? From appearances, it seems that if you dug a hole half-way to China some Liberal stooge would be right behind you asking what the hold-up is.

The latest bit of Liberal corruption is of course the recorded offers made to Germant Grewal:

A close look at the full four hours of Grewal's tapes may give the public a better idea of who, if anyone, was guilty of criminal corruption.

We don't need a courtroom trial, however, to feel indignation and disgust at what transpired.

The tapes reveal clearly that Murphy was actively discussing voting strategy with Grewal in the context of as-yet undefined future benefits.

Was this a negotiation? Murphy is caught on tape suggesting that if Grewall and his wife miss several confidence votes this spring then "We'll have much more detailed ... discussions after that with some freedom."

Murphy now insists that "No offer was made to Gurmant Grewal," which may be technically true -- that will be a matter for Crown prosecutors to decide -- but leaves open some important questions. Was Murphy attempting to induce in Grewal, with a kind of "nudge, nudge, wink, wink," the belief that there would be a handsome payoff later, if the vote went as planned?

When Grewal offered (or pretended to offer) to sell his vote to the Liberals for a lucrative government appointment, why did Murphy and Dosanjh not denounce Grewal to his face?

The tapes sound, frankly, as if Murphy was speaking in the kind of code employed by conspirators who want to maintain plausible deniability in case the police are wire-tapping their exchange: "If anybody asks the question, 'Was there a deal?,' and we say 'no', we want that to be the truth,' " Murphy says. Some truth.

And this ladies and gentlemen is the problem. We've had to listen to the Prime Weasel tell us that no offer was ever made to Grewal. Now of course the Liberals are twisting the story claiming that pieces of the recordings are missing and other such foolishness. As Arthur Schafer says, why did the Dosanjh, Murphy, and Martin go along with Grewal if it was in fact Grewal who initiated the discussions? Hasn't Martin been repeated telling us how he was going to clean up corruption in our government? Hey Paul! That was your opportunity and you blew it.

Anyways, I can't blame Liberals for being jackasses. Heck, they've been given free reign for so long they believe they can get away with anything.

Saddly though, with every new case of Liberal corruption, it is my faith in the Canadian people that seems to be hurt most. Liberals are corrupt, they have been for a long time so none of their actions surprise me.

Unfortunately, polls consistently show that the Liberals still enjoy 30%-35% support.

That ladies and gentlemen is the much more disturbing that Liberal corruption.

It Ain't Easy Being Tasty

2005-05-31T16:40:00.000-04:00

A friend sent me this story about a KFC being torched in Pakistan:

Six employees of American fast-food franchise KFC were burned to death in Karachi during a riot that followed a suicide attack on a mosque in the southern Pakistani city, rescue workers said on Tuesday.

Angry Shi'ites set fire to the restaurant after the mosque attack in which five people died on Monday night, but the bodies of those burned were only found on Tuesday morning, said Rizwan Edhi of the Edhi Foundation, a private emergency service.

To paraphrase my friend, in order to protest Musharraf's support for America, Sunnis blow up a Shi'ite mosque. Then, to retaliate, the Shi'ites burn down a Kentucky Fried Chicken outlet because it is a symbol of America.

Excuse me, but I'm confused...

Light Reading Anyone?

2005-05-31T13:42:00.000-04:00

Below is a list of articles I that I had every intention of commenting on but I just couldn't find the time. Enjoy:

In Defense Of Certainty
UK 'crippling Africa healthcare'
Pressure Points
Our Spoiled and Unhappy Global Elites
What Left-wing PBS Bias?
European, Not Christian
Thoughts On Poverty

Torture Allegations by Al-Qaeda

2005-05-31T10:26:00.000-04:00

A teaching manual for Al-Qaeda terrorists has been found in Manchester, England, during a raid on a terror cell. The manual says that members of the organization should claim that they were tortured by authorities if they are ever captured. For more about this article, check out Daimnation!

The Grewal Tapes

2005-05-31T10:06:00.000-04:00

If you were wondering what is going on with the Gurmant Grewal tapes, then you should check out blogs like Andrew Coyne, Angry in the Great White North and Political Staples, which are all keeping things up to date with this progressing news story.

I don't know about you, but I wish this thing would hurry up and play itself out, I'm getting tired of all the he said, she said crap. I can't believe it has taken this long to get to the bottom of what was actually said on those tapes.

Runaway Groom

2005-05-31T08:27:00.000-04:00

If you thought that American Jennifer 'The Runaway Bride' Wilbanks was a little on the wacky side, then you should check out this story about Hasmawi Hassan, a Malaysian man who called off his wedding because he says he was a victim of black magic.

Man falls in Meat Grinder

2005-05-31T08:09:00.000-04:00

There is always going to be gruesome work place injuries and deaths, but I would say what happened to a 36 year old Western Australian man has to be one of the worst workplace deaths that I have heard of in the past few years. I don't envy his co-workers or the emergency staff that had to deal with this terrible accident at all.

A Proud Member of the Human Rights Commission

2005-05-30T22:47:00.000-04:00

How serious can the United Nations be about human rights when they have countries such as Zimbabwe on the Human Rights Commission? Check out how the government of Zimbabwe, as reported by South Africa's Mail & Guardian, starts what it calls an 'urban renewal campaign'.

"Police in Zimbabwe continued demolishing thousands of shacks and vendors' kiosks in opposition strongholds on Monday, burning a 10km-long line of curio stalls along the road near Victoria Falls."

"Trudi Stevenson said in the preceding 24 hours, police had 'at gunpoint' forced 2000 more people in Hatcliffe township in northern Harare to destroy their houses and leave. On Friday and Saturday, 7000 were evicted, although they had lease agreements issued by Mugabe's government."

"Thousands of street traders have been arrested and their wares seized or destroyed since the May 19 start of the crackdown, which the government has described as an urban renewal campaign. Police using torches, sledgehammers and bulldozers have also burned and demolished the homes of the urban poor in informal settlements around the country."

The government of Zimbabwe is even arresting reporters that are trying to report the misdeeds of the government,

"In the eastern city of Mutare, police said they arrested an American, identified as Howard Smith Gilman, under media laws for allegedly covering the destruction of 9000 illegal structures there."

Burning the homes and businesses of the citizens of your country, forcing many others to leave their homes at gunpoint, and arresting journalists that are trying to cover the event, and that's just in the last week. So what would a country have to do to not be considered for a position on the Human Rights Commission, or is it even possible to be a big enough abuser of human rights that you may not even qualify? I was just wondering.

crossposted to The Shotgun

Foreign Aid to China

2005-05-30T19:05:00.000-04:00

Canada is providing China with millions and millions of dollars in foreign aid, this fact has been reported by a few different news agencies, but in my opinion not enough of them, this should be a bigger story. If more people knew about this and were presented with the facts, I think a lot of them would question why our government is providing China with any money at all.

China has one of the fastest growing economies in the entire world, is undertaking a huge expansion of their military, they spent $67.49 billion on its military in 2004, has their very own space program, has a GDP of $7.262 trillion, GDP growth rate of 9.1%, and has exports of $583.1 billion. Also, China is not a democratic country, with a long history of violating human rights.

Add all those facts together and its a pretty strong case against giving China any foreign aid at all. Is the Canadian government attempting to buy a slice of the growing Chinese economy, and is that slice of the economy worth aiding a communist regime that oppresses its people?

How about Pansies?

2005-05-29T23:46:00.000-04:00

Some politicians just have too much time on their hands, take for example State Assemblyman Craig Stanley for instance. Mr. Stanley wants to change the name of the New Jersey Devils to something nicer and less satanic. Full story here

“I’ve always cringed when people say they’re going to see the Devils, the merchandise, the paraphernalia is based on the actual demonic devil. Personally, it causes a little bit of an issue with me.”

My good buddy Joe Floyd, a life long Devils fan, would not be impressed with Mr. Stanley's actions at all. He may even tell Mr. Stanley, a Baptist deacon, to go straight to Hell, and I agree. Pansies might be a better suited team name for the actual hockey team, but Devils is a good name. It's menacing, strong and says bad ass, just the sort of thing you want from a hockey team.

People that take team names this serious need to relax, the poor children that grow up cheering for the Devils aren't going to turn into satanic goons, intent on destroying all that's good in the world. If everyone took team names this serious, half of the team names in all of sports would have to be renamed. I say leave em, how about you?

[ Via Neale News ]

Election Reform Plan

2005-05-28T09:16:00.000-04:00

For the past little while the government of Prince Edward Island has been trying to come up with some ideas on how to reform elections here on the Island. Yesterday they announced the plan that they came up with and here it is.

"Under the plan, 10 of the province's 27 seats in the legislature would be filled from party lists on the basis of the popular vote each party received."

"The other 17 would be filled the old fashioned way – victory would go to the candidate getting the most votes in a given district. The number of districts would shrink to 17 from 27."

Voters will get a chance to vote on whether we should adopt these reforms in the fall. I agree that reforms are needed on PEI seeing as the popular vote is often much different than the actual number of seats parties win.

"For example, the Liberals got 43 per cent of the vote in the last P.E.I election but won only four of the 27 seats."

The one thing that I think the government is over looking is the actual number of seats on PEI, we have a population of roughly 140 000 and in my opinion don't need 27 MLAs. I think the total number of seats should be dropped from the current 27 to about 12 to 17 range.

I'm sure making the new districts would be extremely difficult, and cause much angry amongst certain parts of the population, but who ever said electoral reform would be easy. In the long run having less MLAs would not harm the overall performance of the government and would save the province a lot of money. Sometimes less is more.

Our Spoiled Elites

2005-05-27T11:31:00.000-04:00

Well today we are blessed with another classic from Victor Davis Hanson. Hanson points out the hipocrisy exhibited by global elites:

The anti-Americanism that we frequently see and hear, then, is often a plaything of the international elite — a corporate grandee, a leisured athlete, or a refined novelist who flies in and out of the West, counts on its globalizing appendages for wealth, and then mocks those who make it all possible — but never to the point that their own actions would logically follow their rhetoric and thus cost them so dearly.

We might expect that a chagrined Ms. Nooyi would resign from Pepsi since it is the glossy fingernail of the American middle finger that apparently so bothers her. We pray that Mr. Khan will stay among the mobs and rioters of the madrassas and mosques he stirred up. Perhaps novelist Roy can write in an indigenous Indian language, peddle her books at home, and thereby disinvest from this hegemonic system that drives her to fury.

Then there is the director of anti-American films from Denmark, Lars von Trier, who whined, “Mr. Bush is an a**hole. So much in Denmark is American. . . America fills about 60 per cent of my brain. So, in fact, I am American. But I can't go there to vote and I can't change anything, because I am from a small country. So that is why I make films about America.”

Memo to poor head-pounding Mr. von Trier: There is no compelling reason to have anything American in your country — except in the past to expel German invaders you either could not or would not keep out. Simply stop buying American. Don’t watch American movies. Admonish not us, but your own leaders to get out of NATO, pronto — the faster the better. Deny entry to all American troops — and tourists. Embrace the EU. It’s bigger and more populous than the U.S. Create an all-EU defense force. Go for it all!

...

In other words, Khan, Roy, and Nooyi are, by their own volition, knee-deep in the supposed greed of the West in a way that most ordinary Americans surely are not. Maligned Americans on the tractor in Kansas or walking the beat in the Bronx have not a clue about the privileges that a Roy or Nooyi enjoy — and they are not whining, complaining, or biting the hand that feeds them far less well.

No, these ungracious operators all seem to gravitate to, profit from, and then spite the paradigm that created rich global business, media, publishing, and entertainment conglomerates — and themselves.

As Hanson points out, it is always quite amusing to watch the spoiled elite of the world whine and complain about the systems that provide their cushy lifestyles. As he says, normal folks who work 9 to 5 don't seem to be so obsessed about the 'evils of capitalism'.

I guess that is why I always find it amusing when some celebrity takes time out of their busy schedules to lecture us about what a terrible world we all live in.

Now I should point out that none of this really surprises me since the rich and spoiled have always been disconnected from the real concerns of the people around them. This has been true since the times of ancient Rome, medieval Europe, or ancient China, and it will be true a hundred years from now.

No matter how much things change, some things always remain the same.

Doing The Weather Forecast

2005-05-27T09:17:00.000-04:00

This is what you get when Bob starts working for Environment Canada.

It contains some foul language so consider yourself warned.

Somebody call PETA

2005-05-26T23:33:00.000-04:00

Someone should call the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) on the 'Iraqi insurgents' (terrorists, Jihadists or as the MSM calls them, rebels). Its seems that in a new twist to the ever popular road side bomb, the terrorists are now strapping explosives to dogs and detonating them when a military convoy passes by. The good news is that the attacks have had little or no effect so far.

But rumor has it that some on the anti-war Left are very excited about this news. Now they can claim that even the dogs in Iraq are taking up arms against the evil Anglo-Israeli plot to control their country and the world's oil supplies. When dogs start taking up arms against Capitalism, it surely has to be on its last legs.

Showering Iran with Love

2005-05-26T07:12:00.000-04:00

It was bad enough when the Canadian government were doing nothing to hold Iran accountable for the death of photojournalist Zahra Kazemi, but now this.

I didn't think that our government could get any dumber, two days after Iran warns us to stay out of their internal business, Canada goes and puts the MEK on our terrorist list. A move that makes us look like spineless jellyfish, at a time when we should be showing some backbone.

The MEK is based in Iraq and have cooperated with American and Iraqi forces since the invasion. They do not target civilians and are only concerned with getting rid of the ayatollahs from Iran, not a bad idea if you ask me. Iran has been trying for years, with little success, to get Western countries to put the MEK on their terrorist lists. Why did we do Iran the favor of doing that just now? Is there a deal in place?

Kim Jong-Il in Platform Shoes?

2005-05-25T21:02:00.000-04:00

A South Korean newspaper reported on Wednesday that Kim Jong-Il, the wacko little leader of North Korea, wears platform shoes to increase his height.

"North Korean leader Kim Jong-Il wears a pair of platform shoes to boost his height, Kim uses the platform shoes to increase his height when he meets foreign leaders."

Poor little fella, thinks he's too short, just add it to the long list of Kim's problems. He should hire Verne Troyer (Mini Me) to hand around with him. It would be great for Kim, word is it that he's a big movie fan and Troyer would make him look like a giant. Plus, I imagine Verne could use the work after "The Surreal Life" is over. It would be a win win situation.

It's a Sad Day for Sellouts

2005-05-25T20:39:00.000-04:00

It is a sad day for Conservative MPs that had their eyes on a position in the Liberal cabinet, now that Paul Martin seems to be bringing Caroline Parrish back into the fold. Add in the Liberal win in the by-election in Newfoundland, and I just don't see Paul Martin needing a vote bad enough in the near future to offer up a Belinda Stronach type deal up to any would be floor crossers. It would seem that those days are over for now.

Canadian Values

2005-05-25T11:33:00.000-04:00

Well it seems that those terrible Americans are writing hate speech again. OK, I'm joking about the hate speech, because out there somewhere I'm sure there is some twit who considers the article just that.

Anyways, Clifford Krauss has some harsh words for us Canadians:

The recent spectacle of scandal and tawdry politics has some Canadians now wondering if all the self-congratulatory virtue is not mixed with some old-fashioned hypocrisy, or what Robert Fulford, a leading literary journalist and columnist characterizes as "a fable" expounded by generations of Liberal leaders.

"During recent decades our politicians have told us a sweet bedtime story about Canada being an exceptionally compassionate country, a world leader in multiculturalism and wonderfully generous to the poor countries," Mr. Fulford said. "All of this expresses something called 'Canadian values.' All lies."

Most Canadians would probably consider that assessment harsh.

...

While Canada signed and ratified the Kyoto accord, making a commitment to cut greenhouse gas emissions 6 percent below 1990 levels from 2008 to 2012, emissions have risen to 24 percent above 1990 levels. The powerful domestic oil industry has lobbied effectively to guarantee that the development of oil sands - a noxious source of carbon dioxide - will go on expanding.

In fact, Canada, where logging, mining and oil interests are extremely powerful, has a less than sterling environmental record. According to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, Canada produces more nuclear waste per capita than any other member country and ranks as the fourth per capita emitter of carbon dioxide, following the United States, Australia and Luxembourg. Environmental activists say that only Finland and Sweden log more forest land per capita among industrialized countries.

When European governments sought to ban the import of Canadian asbestos for its toxicity in recent years, Ottawa complained to the World Trade Organization that such an action would violate free trade.

"Canada for years has fought against international controls on asbestos because of the importance of that industry to Quebec," noted Michael Bliss, a leading historian at the University of Toronto. Mr. Bliss, for his part, dismisses as "posturing" the idea that "Canada is some kind of moral superpower."

Canadian officials constantly lecture Europe and the United States on the need to level the playing field in agriculture for third world producers. But at the same time Canada runs monopolistic dairy product marketing boards that raise tariffs of 200 percent and more to protect its own producers of milk, eggs and butter.

Darn those Americans are mean. See, we'ld never say such things here in Canada. It's in bad taste damnit!

Now of course, when it comes to Americans, the Canadian media throws this stuff around every day. Canadians, it seems, don't want to think about ourselves. We just busy ourselves with the faults of others.

Canadians love to criticize others but we get into a huff everytime someone does that to us. We pretend that we are some sort of model for other countries, all the while, never caring to ask ourselves how or why this would be the case.

As Krausse says, the Liberals have managed to create a bizarre myth about themselves and the country they so effectively mismanage.

[Via Nealenews]

Harper Liberals?

2005-05-24T23:16:00.000-04:00

It appears that some liberals are off the koolaid.

My one problem with Star Wars

2005-05-24T22:09:00.000-04:00

My sister and I went to see Star Wars on the holiday weekend here in good old PEI. Overall I thought Revenge of the Sith was one of the better Star Wars movies, better than the two newest editions for sure. Probably even better that Return of the Jedi in my opinion.

But I did have one major problem with the movie, but it was no fault of George Lucas. Every time that Senator Palpatine and Anakin Skywalker were involved in a scene talking to one another, all I could picture was Paul Martin having a similar conversation with Belinda Stronach. In my mind I would substitute Palpatine's face with Paul's and Belinda's with Anakin's. Paul even looks a little like Palpatine.

As Palpatine was trying to turn Skywalker to the dark side, he carried on about how the Jedi don't trust you, how the Jedi are trying to steal my power, how the Jedi are lying to you, how the Jedi don't appreciate you like I do, and how he was the only one who could help him reach his vast potential, not the Jedi.

It was hard not to think that the conversation between Paul and Belinda was very different from the one between Palpatine and Skywalker, if you just substitute Conservatives for Jedi, I bet it would have a very familiar ring to it. Don't you think?

Zarqawi Injured

2005-05-24T21:26:00.000-04:00

Reports say that scumbag terrorist Abu Musab al-Zarqawi has been wounded in Iraq. I just hope Zarqawi wasn't over doing it on the Aspirin lately, it would be a shame if he ended up bleeding to death in some dark hole.