tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-59514392011-12-14T22:07:59.206-05:00Post No BillsWelcome to the Me Show.dalainoreply@blogger.comBlogger12941100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1117293780414765402005-05-28T11:23:00.000-04:002005-05-28T11:23:00.496-04:00Happy not to live on Internment Avenue
A new "Black Book" has just been released in Moscow identifying 122 communists, members of the secret police, and others whom the Soviets gave a kind of immortality to by putting their names on a variety of places and institutions in the Russian Federation. ... [Some of] those opposed to changing these names ... argue that "this is part of our history and dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1116944370624442382005-05-24T10:19:00.000-04:002005-05-24T10:19:30.706-04:00Ever since discovering PowerPoint a few months ago, I have been marvelling at its various absurdities. Today I discover that John Ralston Saul has been thinking along similar lines:
They appear to provide a clear structure to any presentation. But PowerPoint presentations are designed entirely to discourage thought, questioning and doubt. They are designed to distract the audience from what the dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1116079086663907632005-05-14T09:58:00.000-04:002005-05-14T09:58:06.753-04:00Uzbekistan:
Some said they had seen at least 200 bodies.dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1116023977283673392005-05-13T18:39:00.000-04:002005-05-13T18:39:37.366-04:00Woody Allen:
"It's a distraction. In my regular life, I'm consumed by depression, anxiety and terror. When I'm making a movie I get to live in a fantasy of beautiful women and charming men speaking amusing dialogue. Then when I return to real life, it's a terrible time."dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1115477620765630272005-05-07T10:53:00.000-04:002005-05-07T10:53:41.310-04:00Chile's supreme court has ordered that a cat be executed. Officials are keen to carry out the sentence, but the cat in question, named Luz, has devilishly escaped police custody and is thought to be hiding out in the alleys of Santiago.dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1115205226517158132005-05-04T07:13:00.000-04:002005-05-04T07:13:47.013-04:00Saturn's got twelve new moons.dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1115117558268090572005-05-03T06:52:00.000-04:002005-05-03T06:52:38.266-04:00Killer Squid caught off BC coast.
"I didn't know it was a Humboldt squid," he said. "A man-eater." For the first time in recorded history, a Dosidicus gigas had been captured for study from the temperate waters of the northeastern Pacific. The invertebrate had never been seen this far north until late last year.dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1114963469988948172005-05-01T12:04:00.000-04:002005-05-01T12:07:28.103-04:00"The events you are going to read happened here, in Quebec, during the years 2000 and 2001."Thus writes Judge Michèle Pauzé of Quebec's Human Rights Tribunal regarding Centre Maraîcher Eugène Guinois Jr., one of Canada's largest commercial vegetable farms, located about 40 minutes southwest of Montreal.The four workers testified to conditions on the farm that wouldn't seem out of place in the dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1114427945698285392005-04-25T07:19:00.000-04:002005-04-25T07:19:05.696-04:00Oh, dear.
Putin deplores collapse of USSR
He said the break-up of the USSR in 1991 was "a real drama" which left tens of millions of Russians outside the Russian Federation.
The neighbours get nervous when he says things like that.dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1114292367878975752005-04-23T17:39:00.000-04:002005-04-23T17:39:27.876-04:00Josh Marshall has been presenting some pretty egregious examples of politics at its rock-bottom worst lately, which I feel we all ought to see, if only so that we have a sense of what that looks like.
The first case is just the latest example of modern Orwellianism. The Republicans have discovered that the phrase 'nuclear option', which has been widely used for some time now to describe their dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1114083520188325682005-04-21T07:38:00.000-04:002005-04-21T07:38:40.186-04:00Think before speak.
Speaking about the PM's decision to go live on TV tonight to talk abuot the sponsorship scandal, Peter MacKay expressed his opinion:
This to me is a diversionary tactic." Mr. MacKay said.
Right. If he's talking about the sponsorship scandal, it's not a diversion from the sponsorship scandal. It might be spin. And maybe he will use it as a way to divert public attention todalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1113878769934046622005-04-18T22:46:00.000-04:002005-04-18T22:46:09.933-04:00Russian federalism diminishing.dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1113752013426907642005-04-17T11:33:00.000-04:002005-04-17T11:33:33.426-04:00Tight security: A Vatican spokesman said Saturday that he was confident that jamming devices and other security measures would keep secret the name of John Paul's successor until it's announced publicly.
Joaquin Navarro-Valls of the Vatican said technical specialists on the Vatican's security force had ensured that no leaks would be possible from the chapel.
Guards said devices that block cell dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1113665639632231142005-04-16T11:33:00.000-04:002005-04-16T11:33:59.633-04:00Bt in the EU
The European Union yesterday imposed an emergency ban on imports of US animal feeds unless they are proven to be free of illegal genetically modified maize.
The ban, on corn gluten feed and brewers' grains, followed an admission by Syngenta, a Swiss-based agrochemical firm, that about 1,000 tonnes of US maize derived from its unlicensed Bt10 GM seeds had 'inadvertently' entered the dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1113546190702928292005-04-15T02:23:00.000-04:002005-04-15T02:23:10.703-04:00King of Slime...
Entomologists Quentin Wheeler and Kelly B. Miller, who recently had the task of naming 65 newly discovered species of slime-mold beetles, named three species after the president, vice president and defense secretary. ... Naming the beetles after Bush, Cheney and Rumsfeld was intended to pay homage to them, said Wheeler, who taught at Cornell University for 24 years and now is dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1113492352653174642005-04-14T11:25:00.000-04:002005-04-14T11:25:52.653-04:00So far, I've tried to be sympathetic to Venezuela's President Chavez. It's become a little harder today. He's creating a new reserve military force which he says is meant to deter aggression against Venezuela. The force is starting out with 20,000 troops and is meant to grow to 1.5 - 2 million. He announced the creation of the force last week.
Although the Venezuelan President pointed out dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1113345439872563632005-04-12T18:37:00.000-04:002005-04-12T18:37:19.873-04:00Rumsfeld is in Baku (Azerbaijan) today. This is his third visit since 2003. Officially, he is there to discuss expanding anti-terrorism cooperation, which may include asking Azerbaijan to increase its deployment in Iraq. Another possibility is that he is there to discuss
basing US military units in Azerbaijan.
Azerbaijan, a big oil producer, borders Iran. So a plausible rumour is that the USdalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1113323997018179662005-04-12T12:39:00.000-04:002005-04-12T12:44:57.860-04:00Paul Krugman at the New York Times has sparked a discussion about healthcare in the US. There are a number of interesting points here, but by far the most fun part is the stark contrast between the bizzarro world of US healthcare and socialized systems around the world. The Angry Bear is following up on this with some interesting commentary and statistics. The US is far and away the outlier in dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1113261141913661192005-04-11T19:12:00.000-04:002005-04-11T19:12:21.913-04:00Via Kevin Drum, excellent US liberal blogging on the Sponsorship Scandal and its leakage to the right of the American blogosphere. Highly recommended reading. dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1113173657800877012005-04-10T18:54:00.000-04:002005-04-10T18:54:17.800-04:00Disingenuous doublespeaking dink: 'Liberals may talk about minorities,' Mr. Harper said. 'But undermining the traditional definition of marriage is an assault on the beliefs of all cultural and religious communities who have come to this country.'
Harper keeps on using that word. I do not think it means what he thinks it means. "Minority" does not mean "non-white." Dork.
The Globe also reportsdalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1113156745970991212005-04-10T14:12:00.000-04:002005-04-10T14:12:25.970-04:00Atrios is right. If you're looking for a reason to off yourself today, this music video won't disappoint. Everything that is wrong with the USA wrapped up in one slick package. The best part has got to be the sexy-shadowy angels. Oh, and the rainbow.
And this guy used to work on Star Trek...dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1112827701791816352005-04-06T18:48:00.000-04:002005-04-06T18:48:21.790-04:00Amanda brings us more on sphincter bleaching. This time, it's poetry.dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1112739329723454302005-04-05T18:15:00.000-04:002005-04-05T18:15:29.723-04:00On a personal note, I got a job today. Yay, me!
On a very impersonal note, check out this New York Times report on the plethora of unmanned aerial drones flying around Iraq and Afghanistan. These things are pretty crazy.
"I can watch the rear of a building for a bad guy escaping when troops go in the front, and flash an infrared beam on the guy that our troops can see with their night-vision dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1112683208224137702005-04-05T02:40:00.000-04:002005-04-06T10:17:41.440-04:00The Globe today discusses an American blog, run by one Captain Ed, which is providing Canadians with information on the Gomery inquiry, thereby bypassing the Canadian publication ban. The Globe story doesn't mention the name of Captain Ed's blog, but a Google search quickly turned it up. Apart from Captain Ed's obvious lack of judgement (as demonstrated by his being a Bush supporter), I have nodalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1112673062926144842005-04-04T23:51:00.000-04:002005-04-04T23:51:02.926-04:00Oh Jesus, may I please have some more news about the Pope?
Amanda, Jesse's new partner over at Pandagon, is disturbed by the latest fashion trend, the so-called "new Brazilian," sphincter bleaching.
Yes, ladies, you better make sure the skin around your sphincter muscles is as pearly white and smooth as your eyelids or you run the grave risk of losing your man to the lady down the street who dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1112636746178293512005-04-04T13:45:00.000-04:002005-04-04T13:45:46.176-04:00Arcade Fire was on the cover of TIME's Canadian edition last week.
dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1112630309472246262005-04-04T11:58:00.000-04:002005-04-04T12:07:52.686-04:00Exiled Kyrgyz president, Askar Akayev, has formally resigned after meeting in Moscow with a delegation from Kyrgyzstan's new leaders. New presidential elections are tentatively scheduled for June 26th. The agreement signed in Moscow has some protections for Akayev built in, but there is some concern that forthcoming investigations into state corruption, specifically corruption in the Akayev dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1112505037581170862005-04-03T00:10:00.000-05:002005-04-03T00:10:37.580-05:002 AM, first Sunday in April:
The official spelling is Daylight Saving Time, not Daylight SavingS Time.
Saving is used here as a verbal adjective (a participle). It modifies time and tells us more about its nature; namely, that it is characterized by the activity of saving daylight. It is a saving daylight kind of time. Similar examples would be dog walking time or book reading time. Since dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1112480749140343872005-04-02T17:25:00.000-05:002005-04-02T17:25:49.140-05:00The Pope has died. Here in Montreal, where Quebec's Quiet Revolution of the 1960s transformed this heavily Catholic society into one of North America's most progressive and secular societies, the city marks the death of popes by switching the colour of the lights on the giant metal Cross atop Mount Royal from white to purple.dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1112373139144206382005-04-01T11:32:00.000-05:002005-04-01T11:32:19.143-05:00Here in Montreal, the Smart Car has been taking off, giving the more expensive VW Bug and Austin Mini a run for their money. Globally, though, the brand is apparently not profitable and DaimlerChrysler is cutting its workforce and making other changes to the line.
They are not ending production and I'll wish them luck on the revamp. Although I've heard a rumor that they're unreliable, they dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1112305950913494262005-03-31T16:49:00.000-05:002005-03-31T16:52:30.913-05:00It's confirmed. Wolfowitz will be the next president of the World Bank.The bank's stated mission is to fight poverty and improve the living standards of people in developing countries. It lends about $20-billion (U.S.) a year to developing countries for various projects, including roads, schools and fighting AIDS. ... Mr. Wolfowitz, seeking to quell criticism over his selection, has reached out.dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1112117895753073112005-03-29T12:38:00.000-05:002005-03-29T12:38:15.753-05:00In Kyrgyzstan, things seem to be calming down, at least for now.
The ousted President, Askar Akaev, is hiding in Russia and looks like he may still play some role in legitimating whatever solution eventually develops. The Supreme Court nullified the recent parliamentary election, apparently leaving the old parliament in charge. Now, despite the Supreme Court, the old parliament seems to have dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1111716432705872572005-03-24T21:07:00.000-05:002005-03-24T21:07:12.706-05:00Kyrgyzstan's sure moving fast. The parliament has appointed an interim president.dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1111681357292939622005-03-24T11:22:00.000-05:002005-03-24T12:08:26.673-05:00Kyrgyzstan's government has apparently fallen and President Akayev is rumored to have fled the capital city, if not the country, by helicopter. He may have fled to Russia or to the Russian military base in Kyrgyzstan, according to the rumors. Quite a success for an uncoordinated opposition movement. From the BBC:[E]vents have moved at lightning speed, from a quiet demonstration in the morning dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1111557508421731852005-03-23T00:58:00.000-05:002005-03-23T00:59:21.956-05:00Conspiracies happen all the time, of course. But on the face of things, the decision of Kyrgyzstani president Askar Akayev to label the current protests part of a 'coup' attempt by the drug mafia, look like the typical flailings of a dottering dictator. From the Globe:Mr. Akayev, 60, is prohibited from seeking another term, but the opposition has accused him of manipulating the parliamentary dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1111427508720970522005-03-21T12:51:00.000-05:002005-03-21T12:51:48.720-05:00BBC NEWS | Asia-Pacific | Protests force Kyrgyz poll review:
Kyrgyzstan's President, Askar Akayev, has ordered a review of some parliamentary poll results.... Mr Akayev has warned that [a popular revolution movement such as occurred in Georgia and Ukraine] would risk civil war in Kyrgyzstan.
According to the BBC, there is no central opposition figure around which these disparate protests can dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1111342343186821962005-03-20T13:12:00.000-05:002005-03-20T13:12:23.196-05:00Protests in Kyrgyzstan over an allegedly flawed election.
Protesters also occupied government buildings in other parts of Kyrgyzstan, accusing the government of rigging parliamentary ballots on Feb. 27 and March 13 that gave Mr. Akayev an overwhelming majority and won places for his daughter and son in the legislature. ... Some analysts have suggested Kyrgyzstan is ripe for an outburst of the dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1111042273279330162005-03-17T01:51:00.000-05:002005-03-17T01:51:13.280-05:00It looks like Paul Wolfowitz will be the next President of the World Bank. This has nightmarish economic catastrophe written all over it in very big, very brightly coloured letters. Meanwhile, read this book.dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1110907253441739872005-03-15T12:20:00.000-05:002005-03-15T12:20:53.440-05:00Kosovo's president, Ibrahim Rugova, survived a bomb attack today.dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1110868776590971972005-03-15T01:39:00.000-05:002005-03-15T01:48:51.420-05:00Josh Marshall has a suggestion:Imagine Bush’s “plan” to fix Social Security consisted of building immense gold statues of himself through the country.I've been keeping away from the social security war that's raging across the US blogs because I have nothing to add to it and for the most part prefer to focus on international issues (and Arcade Fire), but I just had to draw that one line to your dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1110586944068534712005-03-11T19:22:00.000-05:002005-03-11T19:22:24.066-05:00I've heard, though I have yet to see, that the Arcade Fire have their name on the cover of this month's Rolling Stone. Here's a few-weeks-old article discussing how they "escaped the cold of Montreal and became the hottest indie band in America."
"There's a certain uninhibited passion in the Arcade Fire's huge, dense recording sound," says Bowie. "They meld everything from early Motown, French dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1110583664407521852005-03-11T18:27:00.000-05:002005-03-11T18:27:44.406-05:00Has the dark side won?
Kevin Drum thinks we've lost the battle over the phrase "begging the question." I beg to differ.dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1110580113695249062005-03-11T17:28:00.000-05:002005-03-11T17:28:33.696-05:00Signs of the Decline:
...Asian central banks have been quietly switching their dollar holdings to regional currencies for at least three years, confirm global banking data. In a further, and so far the biggest, setback for the greenback's status as the undisputed reserve currency, Japan on Thursday said it might diversify its holdings, though monetary chiefs later sought to play down the dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1110246539566424512005-03-07T20:48:00.000-05:002005-03-07T20:48:59.566-05:00If I were in charge of a Canadian political party or a commission on electoral reform, I would give some serious thought to the American Idol format of candidate selection.
The format combines several good features:
-the input of expert judges
-the legitimacy of a public choice
-results informed by a long process of comparison and refinementdalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1110141187461193822005-03-06T15:33:00.000-05:002005-03-06T15:33:07.460-05:00Early results from Moldova's parliamentary election held today indicate the current Communist government will remain in place. That's probably good news. The Moldovan Communists are in favour of Western integration while still being pretty good about appeasing Russia and Moldova's large Russian minority, mainly by opposing unification with Romania. Indeed, many of the headlines today use the dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1110086563828912852005-03-06T00:22:00.000-05:002005-03-06T00:22:43.826-05:00Much of the Canadian press has been making a big deal out of the apparent lack of communication between Ottawa and Washington since the PM announced Canada's non-participation in missile defence. Well, this morning Martin and Bush spoke. Whoopy-doo.
While I support the decision not to participate, I do so only hesitantly because there's been so little discussion of what participating or not dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1109997132276590922005-03-04T23:32:00.000-05:002005-03-04T23:32:12.276-05:00Sign up now for your online course on Canada for Americans.
What makes Canada tick...so similarly yet differently from America?dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1109891987865280992005-03-03T18:19:00.000-05:002005-03-03T18:19:47.866-05:00Am I good or am I good?
A big thanks to Kate for bringing the Gematriculator to our attention.dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1109726418030032782005-03-01T20:20:00.000-05:002005-03-01T20:20:18.030-05:00Today the US Supreme Court ruled 5-4 that executing childen is unconstitutional. That leaves Somalia as the only other country on earth to permit it. Julie Saltman reacts appropriately:
What sort of ass-backwards place is this, that it is (or was until today) one of the last two places on earth to permit the execution of children?
A couple of points: (1) Somalia barely has a government; and (2dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1109725093670967422005-03-01T19:58:00.000-05:002005-03-01T19:58:13.670-05:00An Historic Failure in Latin America:
Today Washington's unqualified, 100 per cent loyal allies to the south of its border with Mexico are no more than one or two - El Salvador and Honduras certainly, but who else? ... Instead, a de facto centre-left bloc is emerging across the continent. ... They may not be necessarily opposed to the US on every issue, but they are no longer beholden to it.
dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1109703953618021612005-03-01T14:05:00.000-05:002005-03-01T14:05:53.620-05:00Juan Cole has posted a brief history of Lebanon and Syria that is well worth a read if, like me, you don't have much background on the region. In terms of the future, these strike me as the most significant of Cole's points:
The Sunnis, the Druze and the Maronites have seldom agreed in history. The last time they all did, it was about the need to end the French Mandate, which they made happen indalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1109701103249638222005-03-01T13:18:00.000-05:002005-03-01T13:18:23.250-05:00Justin Logan makes the case that there are observable efforts by the EU, Russia, and China to balance against the US.dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1109493371278771392005-02-27T03:36:00.000-05:002005-02-27T03:36:11.276-05:00It's looking increasingly likely that life will go on despite all our best efforts to destroy the planet. That's because it's looking increasingly likely that there's life on Mars.dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1109492493221184732005-02-27T03:21:00.000-05:002005-02-27T03:21:33.223-05:00The other global air pollution agreement is coming into force today.
The anti-smoking pact has been signed by 168 countries, and ratified by 57 of them, which will now have to tighten their anti-tobacco laws.
Canada has ratified this agreement. Links.dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1109445363192247672005-02-26T14:16:00.000-05:002005-02-26T14:16:03.193-05:00This is going to encourage the neocons a little. Egypt is taking a step towards democracy:
Egypt's President Hosni Mubarak has asked parliament to change the constitution to allow multiple candidates in presidential polls.
This BBC editorial suggests this is a clever move on Mubarak's part:
In one fell swoop, he has outmanoeuvred the opposition and also managed to go some way towards muting US dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1109378180023926382005-02-25T19:36:00.000-05:002005-02-25T19:36:20.023-05:00In case I don't manage to comment on this, I want to make sure we all pay attention to this:
The American military has successfully shot down a missile in a test of its missile defence system conducted off Hawaii. ... The Pentagon is asking for a 20-per-cent boost in funding for the ballistic missile defence program, from $7.7 billion US this year to more than $9 billion US next year.dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1109237032378765702005-02-24T04:23:00.000-05:002005-02-24T04:23:52.376-05:00So, it's "no" on missile defence, whatever that means.dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1109226321525324642005-02-24T01:25:00.000-05:002005-02-24T01:25:21.526-05:00Kevin Drum catches Bush in a bit of, well, Bushspeak:
This notion that the United States is getting ready to attack Iran is simply ridiculous. Having said that, all options are on the table.
This is, of course, one of Bush's famous zen koans. You can just see the meaning if you squint, turn your head just so, and open your third-eye chakra.
No, actually, as far as I'm concerned, he's being dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1109119564719756972005-02-22T19:46:00.000-05:002005-02-22T19:49:13.700-05:00Bloggers on the Arcade Fire:Matthew YglesiasWill WilkinsonAdriennaMissy...and many more.Like, holy crap. The Cato Institute and all the wonks in Washington and New York seem to have gone gaga for them. Way to go, guys.dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1109003991654393712005-02-21T11:39:00.000-05:002005-02-21T11:39:51.656-05:00Chavez:
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has said he believes the US government is planning to assassinate him.dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1108946763530837742005-02-20T19:43:00.000-05:002005-02-20T19:46:03.530-05:00If you haven't already, read the PM's speech to the House of Commons on Civil Marriage (pdf). It shouldn't be missed. Thanks to Warren Kinsella for putting it online.dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1108935724483036062005-02-20T16:42:00.000-05:002005-02-20T16:42:04.483-05:00It's been a good couple of months for the colour orange. First there was Ukraine's Orange Revolution. Now the colour finds itself being fought over by rival cellphone companies in a British court.dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1108933547376401782005-02-20T16:05:00.000-05:002005-02-20T16:08:12.506-05:00A statement worth thinking about: "When Europe speaks with a single voice, it will be the most powerful in the world."That's from a Spanish voter in today's non-binding Spanish referendum on the EU constitution.The BBC suggests that the 42% turnout is an embarrassment for the pro-Constitution movement, even though most of that 42% was in favour. But I'd say getting 42% of voters to turn out for dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1108921538736624572005-02-20T12:45:00.000-05:002005-02-20T12:45:38.736-05:00Should the American public be concerned that their government is running an advertising campaign appealing to ordinary Pakistanis which makes this claim: "Who can stop the terrorists? Only you."
I'm all for appeals to the Pakistani public. I'm all for getting their help. But doesn't this message sort of suggest that the CIA and all those thousands of American soldiers in Afghanistan, not to dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1108692840643777442005-02-17T21:14:00.000-05:002005-02-17T21:14:00.643-05:00The FATE of D-FAIT
I had intended to comment on this yesterday, but I am compelled to do so today. For some time now, the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade's website has indicated that it is in the process of dividing itself in two. There will be two deparments, the D-FA and the D-IT. So far so good. But for some reason, although this move has been in the works for quite dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1108592598734971682005-02-16T17:23:00.000-05:002005-02-16T17:23:18.733-05:00Some progress in Kashmir.dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1108589572129489242005-02-16T16:32:00.000-05:002005-02-16T16:32:52.130-05:00The enemy of my enemy is my friend:
Iran has vowed to back Syria against 'challenges and threats' as both countries face strong US pressure.
Russia, always the opportunist, is looking more and more like it really is actively trying to thwart US interests:
Earlier, the Russian Defence Ministry confirmed it was discussing the possibility of selling missiles to Syria. Talks are said to be focusing dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1108575840448250322005-02-16T12:44:00.000-05:002005-02-16T12:44:00.446-05:00Kudos:
"Martin said Canada would host a major international meeting this December to start discussing a new long-term agreement to succeed the Kyoto accord when it runs out in 2012.
But this certainly doesn't make up for this:
But Canadian officials acknowledge the country has little chance of meeting its commitments under the Kyoto accord, which came into effect on Wednesday.
Kyoto obliges dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1108538757011532102005-02-16T02:25:00.000-05:002005-02-16T02:25:57.010-05:00Hmm... My site looks terrible in Firefox. Looks like I have a new project.dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1108510447212719512005-02-15T18:34:00.000-05:002005-02-15T18:37:47.793-05:00Kyoto starts tomorrow. Doing damage control, the US State Department pointed out some White House spending programs. They say they are spending $5.8 billion on climate change research and programs. I'd like to see their math.Here at home:...it is generally believed that Canada has no immediate hope of meeting its targets for greenhouse gas emissions.Oh, and happy Flag Day, everyone.dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1108408295092056552005-02-14T14:11:00.000-05:002005-02-14T14:11:35.093-05:00Local Boys Make It Big
A very cool article from this Saturday's Globe and Mail about the burgeoning Montreal, and Canadian, music scene with special focus on an old highschool friend's band, Arcade Fire.
And by the way, for those of you from back home, take a look at the Juno's nominees for Best Alternative Album this year.
Links: Arcade Fire, Jim Guthrie.dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1108405603473711642005-02-14T13:26:00.000-05:002005-02-14T13:26:43.473-05:00Venezuela and Brazil are courting each other. They are looking at cooperation on oil and guns. Specifically, Venezuela may buy fighter jets from Brazil. Chavez says the US has been avoiding shipping him spare parts for his old F-16s. This might make it harder for the US to argue that Chevez is a threat to the region.dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1108361145033796852005-02-14T01:05:00.000-05:002005-02-14T01:05:45.033-05:00What's wrong with this statement:
The surveillance has been conducted as the Bush administration sharpens its anti-Iran rhetoric and the U.S. intelligence community searches for information to support President Bush's assertion that Tehran is trying to build nuclear weapons.
The US has been flying unmanned drones over Iran. They apparently caused a stir in the Iranian media, when sighting of thedalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1108148137687829152005-02-11T13:55:00.000-05:002005-02-11T13:56:47.086-05:00The Uppity Mr. Chavez or I Looked Into His Eyes...China imports oil, Russia exports weapons.The US says it is worried that some of the 100,000 automatic rifles or helicopters might end up in the hands of the FARC, the Colombian rebel organization. Its accusing Venezuela of risking a regional arms race. Venezuela says it's just replacing old weaponry. (Of course, its old weaponry has to go dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1108053695849720242005-02-10T11:41:00.000-05:002005-02-10T11:41:35.850-05:00Slate's Elisabeth Eaves suggests we keep an eye on Farid Ghadry. He's "not Ahmed Chalabi". He's from Syria.dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1108014058011724062005-02-10T00:40:00.000-05:002005-02-10T00:40:58.010-05:00A Saudi-sponsored international anti-terrorism conference has ended with a press release. Greater international cooperation on this sort of thing is always a good idea. Still, any conference which includes the US alongside Iran and Syria is not going to lead to anything very substantial. For the record, Canada was there too. We sent our Assistant Director of Intelligence from CSIS to head up dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1107908857810474982005-02-08T19:27:00.000-05:002005-02-08T19:27:37.810-05:00The New York Times takes an interest in the Montreal music scene. Um, weird.dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1107791443564300222005-02-07T10:50:00.000-05:002005-02-07T10:50:43.563-05:00Look who's been getting uppity:
U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs Roger Noriega says the rhetoric and actions of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez are undermining democracy in the South American nation, and posing a threat to Venezuela's neighbors. ... Mr. Noriega said Washington might seek to invoke the democracy charter of the Organization of American States that dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1107331981824048012005-02-02T03:13:00.000-05:002005-02-02T03:13:01.823-05:00Freelance journalist Dahr Jamail provides a somewhat different picture of the Iraqi vote. Via Urban Fox.dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1107120751302012702005-01-30T16:32:00.000-05:002005-01-30T16:32:31.303-05:00More from Juan Cole on the Iraqi elections, including a nice rundown of recent history.
So if it had been up to Bush, Iraq would have been a soft dictatorship under Chalabi, or would have had stage-managed elections with an electorate consisting of a handful of pro-American notables. It was Sistani and the major Shiite parties that demanded free and open elections and a UNSC resolution. They did dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1107109775057173092005-01-30T13:29:00.000-05:002005-01-30T13:29:35.056-05:00Preliminary assessments of the Iraq vote are mixed, but fairly positive. The interim government and its supporters will now try to play that up, to portray the resulting parliament as a legitimate body. The reports also indicate, however, that many polling stations in Sunni areas were empty or closed or that turnout was "at best a trickle," suggesting that the other side will also be able to dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1106802218943165532005-01-27T01:03:00.000-05:002005-01-27T00:04:45.343-05:00The American sponsorship scandal
I think there's a lot of significance to the fact that the two biggest papers in the US have used such different words to describe Bush's pronouncement on his administration's habit of bribing the talking heads.
Washington Post:Bush Urges End to Contracts With Commentators
New York Times:Bush Bars Use of Paid Commentators
Is he urging it or banning it? Is he in dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1106726260892689392005-01-26T02:57:00.000-05:002005-01-26T02:57:40.893-05:00Extreme Game Design:
Games are collections of rules. By knowing the rules, we know what game we are playing.dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1106604287253139052005-01-24T17:04:00.000-05:002005-01-24T17:04:47.253-05:00New blog to recommend, just discovered via Kevin Drum: ArmsControlWonk.dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1106377257965901832005-01-22T02:00:00.000-05:002005-01-22T02:00:57.966-05:00And I thought in the weather in Montreal sucked.dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1106346256110565802005-01-21T17:24:00.000-05:002005-01-21T17:24:16.110-05:00Indeed, we are living in the end of days.
The Rapture Index is by no means meant to predict the rapture, however, the index is designed to measure the type of activity that could act as a precursor to the rapture.
You could say the Rapture index is a Dow Jones Industrial Average of end time activity, but I think it would be better if you viewed it as prophetic speedometer.dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1106232839095720002005-01-20T09:53:00.000-05:002005-01-20T09:53:59.096-05:00Die, they must die...
...the Panda's must die:
BEIJING (Reuters) - Endangered giant pandas have boosted their numbers in the wild by almost half in just a few years thanks to enlarged habitat and improved ecosystems, Xinhua news agency said on Thursday.
That's good news, but the source makes me pause before I celebrate. Xinhua, established in 1931 as the Red China News Agency, still reports dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1106194769543284122005-01-19T23:19:00.000-05:002005-01-19T23:19:29.543-05:00Cardinal Ambrozic is the Archibishop of Toronto who's making the news for his open letter to the PM urging him to use the notwithstanding clause to block gay marriage. He was just on TV. I support his right to speak his mind, but here's a recommendation. Catholic Bishops should never use the word "burning" to describe their feelings. When they say gay marriage is a "burning issue," it sounds dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1106189008587510412005-01-19T21:43:00.000-05:002005-01-19T21:43:28.586-05:00The BBC has some interesting science news for us: UK dolphins are murding their porpoise cousins; and the cyborgs are here.dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1106186600399073052005-01-19T21:03:00.000-05:002005-01-19T21:03:20.400-05:00Canada news roundup:
I actually read some of the Globe in paper today. What a pain in the ass. I am a big fan of text-based media, but not when the text rubs off on your fingertips. That's icky.
Anyway, today's roundup focusses on three topics: same-sex marriage, Kyoto, and provincial democracy.
The same-sex marriage debate is heating up in this country. Religious groups of various stripesdalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1105996915805052572005-01-17T16:21:00.000-05:002005-01-17T16:21:55.806-05:00The Pentagon criticizes, without denying, Hersh's report.dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1105989969719754512005-01-17T14:26:00.000-05:002005-01-17T14:49:40.546-05:00Highly recommended reading:
Seymour Hersh of the New Yorker has a report today that the US is actively planning to take the war to Iran.
The Administration has been conducting secret reconnaissance missions inside Iran at least since last summer. ... “The civilians in the Pentagon want to go into Iran and destroy as much of the military infrastructure as possible,” the government consultant withdalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1105949731542674812005-01-17T03:15:00.000-05:002005-01-17T03:15:31.543-05:00Wow. Clinton really did want to make straight soldiers turn gay:
American military bosses are said to have sought Pentagon funding for the proposed development of bizarre chemical weapons that would have had unusual effects on its targets - like making them sexually attracted to their fellow same-sex soldiers. ... According to the proposals from the US Air Force Wright Laboratory in Dayton, Ohiodalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1105773470763624522005-01-15T02:17:00.000-05:002005-01-15T02:17:50.763-05:00The Globe and Mail has a bit of an update on the Kyoto debate that's happening in Ottawa. If you're thinking of buying an energy efficient car or major appliance, you might want to wait until the next Federal budget.dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1105772804988376882005-01-15T02:06:00.000-05:002005-01-15T02:06:44.986-05:00This is kind of interesting: sociological maps of Montreal. Unfortunately, the most recent data is only from 1996. Still, kind of neat stuff.dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1105724696845874662005-01-14T12:44:00.000-05:002005-01-14T12:44:56.846-05:00The Sounds of Titan
Huygens, a little flying saucer built by the Europeans and named after the Dutchman who discovered Titan, Saturn's largest moon, floated through the thick Titan atmosphere and landed on the surface today. Titan is believed to be the only moon in our Solar System with an atmosphere. That presence of an atmosphere makes for the presence of sound, which is why Huygens dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1105684738061798982005-01-14T01:38:00.000-05:002005-01-14T01:50:38.516-05:00So, what is a 'death squad'?
From the wikipedia:
Records also show that a special intelligence unit (commonly referred to as a "death squad") of the Honduran armed forces, Battalion 3-16, trained by the CIA and Argentine military, kidnapped, tortured and killed hundreds of people, including US missionaries.
That was in the early 1980s. Now skip forward to last week's Newsweek:
Following that dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1105599710747546702005-01-13T02:01:00.000-05:002005-01-13T02:01:50.746-05:00I guess I just don't get Realists. Here's Justin Logan. I like him a lot because he's a fan of Moldova and an opponent of Bush. But his support for Iraqi Death Squads, even if it's somwhat tepid support, is reprehensible. Especially given how poorly thought out it seems to be.dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1105553358204493232005-01-12T13:09:00.000-05:002005-01-12T13:09:18.203-05:00News Flash: There were no WMD in Iraq before the war, according to the CIA. That's the final assessment. The hunt for Saddam's secret arsenal is officially over.dalainoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5951439.post-1105470463574653112005-01-11T14:07:00.000-05:002005-01-11T14:07:43.573-05:00Canada needs to change course on Global Warming according to a leaked government document. Trying to get greenhouse gas reductions from businesses "voluntarily" hasn't been much of a success, meaning that we're off-target for Kyoto.
The document notes a need "to utilize a full suite of policy instruments." In the language of bureaucrats, that is generally taken to mean taxing those who do not dalainoreply@blogger.com