Tuesday, December 9, 2008
Let's hope the coalition continues
Accidental Deliberations: On best-case scenarios
After all, the coalition also reflects the best chance in the near future to demonstrate the viability of cooperative politics.
After all, the coalition also reflects the best chance in the near future to demonstrate the viability of cooperative politics.
The top 50 trips in movies
Drugged! The top 50 trips in movies - Den of Geek
Well, the left out Apocalypse Now, but at least they included The Trip.
Well, the left out Apocalypse Now, but at least they included The Trip.
Lesbian Vampire Killers
Lesbian Vampire Killers: Lesbian Vampire Killers Know The Way To My Heart
How can you go wrong with a movie title like that? Well, yeah. Due to be out March 2009. Could be meat, could be pastry.
How can you go wrong with a movie title like that? Well, yeah. Due to be out March 2009. Could be meat, could be pastry.
Fables tv series
Fables: Exiled Fables Could Find a New Home on Television
In Bill Willngham’s comic book epic Fables, Snow White, the
Big Bad Wolf, Prince Charming, and scores of other characters from
folklore are forced to live together in exile in Manhattan. Now ABC is
offering them all a chance at life on television. The network has
ordered a pilot based on the trials and tribulations of these legendary
characters living in our modern world.
In Bill Willngham’s comic book epic Fables, Snow White, the
Big Bad Wolf, Prince Charming, and scores of other characters from
folklore are forced to live together in exile in Manhattan. Now ABC is
offering them all a chance at life on television. The network has
ordered a pilot based on the trials and tribulations of these legendary
characters living in our modern world.
Monday, December 8, 2008
Harper deconstructed
as we were saying: The man is sick: He must go
R.K. Finch: The truth behind the making of our great leader, our genius in office, our strategic master, is the story of a megalomaniac with malignant narcissism,
a grudge-bearing nerd... an immature and conscienceless man who is
using this country to prove a theory, allowing him to simultaneously
indulge his megalomania while holding fast to his grudges. There is no
story like this, history reminds us, that results in someone who wishes
to do good things for this world.
a grudge-bearing nerd... an immature and conscienceless man who is
using this country to prove a theory, allowing him to simultaneously
indulge his megalomania while holding fast to his grudges. There is no
story like this, history reminds us, that results in someone who wishes
to do good things for this world.
Kelly McParland, National Post:
It's this lack of trust he's generated that has really poisoned the
water on Parliament Hill. You can hear it in the voices of many MPs and
pundits -- they just can't stand the guy. They think he's dishonest,
that he's demeaning the art of politics, diminishing the stature of
Parliament. They take themselves seriously... understand the rules, and
know when he's crossing the line. They don't think he even knows where
the line is.
It's this lack of trust he's generated that has really poisoned the
water on Parliament Hill. You can hear it in the voices of many MPs and
pundits -- they just can't stand the guy. They think he's dishonest,
that he's demeaning the art of politics, diminishing the stature of
Parliament. They take themselves seriously... understand the rules, and
know when he's crossing the line. They don't think he even knows where
the line is.
Photonics breakthrough
Intel claims photonics breakthrough - The INQUIRER
In the paper, Intel scientists report having fabricated a silicon APD with a
'gain bandwidth product' (GBP) of 340GHz, which they said is approximately three
times more powerful than conventional indium phosphide photodetectors. Presently
most other photodetectors have a GBP of only about 120GHz, they said.
In the paper, Intel scientists report having fabricated a silicon APD with a
'gain bandwidth product' (GBP) of 340GHz, which they said is approximately three
times more powerful than conventional indium phosphide photodetectors. Presently
most other photodetectors have a GBP of only about 120GHz, they said.
The gain bandwidth product expresses a photodetector's amplification, or
gain, multiplied by its maximum signal transmission speed, that is, its
bandwidth. Intel said that its APD design can be tuned to trade off gain versus
bandwidth, allowing devices to be built either with higher gain and lower
bandwidth or, conversely, lower gain and higher bandwidth.
Intel said this means that an APD can be designed to either transmit high
data rates over short distances or send lower data rates over longer distances.
The Intel researchers said it looks possible to build low cost optical links
that will be able to run at data rates of 40Gbps or higher.
Ontario - Electric cars to be finally allowed on the streets
BigCityLib Strikes Back: Good News On Electric Vehicles
Low-speed vehicles such as the ZENN electric car are finally going to be allowed on Ontario roads.
Transportation
Minister Jim Bradley said yesterday such city commuter vehicles would
be roadworthy – once equipped with additional safety features.
Low-speed vehicles 'are a new kind of vehicle and it will take a new
set of standards to allow them to be safely driven on Ontario roads,'
he said."
Low-speed vehicles such as the ZENN electric car are finally going to be allowed on Ontario roads.
Transportation
Minister Jim Bradley said yesterday such city commuter vehicles would
be roadworthy – once equipped with additional safety features.
Low-speed vehicles 'are a new kind of vehicle and it will take a new
set of standards to allow them to be safely driven on Ontario roads,'
he said."
Harper bullies his MPs
Buckdog: Former Member Of Conservative Caucus Verifies That Harper Is A Bully To His Own MP's
"I remember one specific time when Mr. Harper come into caucus one day and he said, 'We've
decided to make significant cuts to a lot of programs, some of these
cuts may hurt your ridings but anybody who criticizes the cuts will
suffer severe consequences to their political career as a Conservative
Member of Parliament,' and that's an exact quote, I wrote it down at the time and then he didn't tell us what the cuts were."
"He's really smart, he has a lot of capabilities, but he does not understand that if you keep pushing people, sooner or later, they'll push back. That's what's happening, this is why we're here. This is not just because of the economic statement, this is a culmination of two years of frustration, forced confidence votes and threats. The opposition MPs just met their limit and now they're pushing back."
Those who sow the wind shall reap the whirlwind
Queer Thoughts: Ben-Ami says Harper is Disingenuous
...Mr. Harper’s government was only able to survive for more than 2 ½ years during the previous Parliament because it too had worked out a responsible modus vivendi with the BQ, as any prudent minority government would do. Remember the declaration that Quebec is a nation within Canada? By characterizing the Liberal-NDP willingness to cooperate with the BQ as incitement to treason – which is what sedition is, after all – Mr. Harper and his supporters are not just being insincere; they are engaging in their own brand of incitement. It may serve them well in the short term, but politics has a funny way of exacting revenge on those who practice it with such calculated cynicism. As the Prophet Hosea warned, “Those who sow the wind shall reap the whirlwind.”...
Sunday, December 7, 2008
Maude Barlow: Harper has to go
Canadian Dimension Blog / Maude Barlow: Harper has to go
“For the good of the people of Canada, for the dignity and good and
workings of the House of Commons, he must step down and allow the
coalition to come into power”
“For the good of the people of Canada, for the dignity and good and
workings of the House of Commons, he must step down and allow the
coalition to come into power”
Coalition - grassroots organization
Creekside: Dear leaders of the coalition : Obama-size now
Build
it and the press will come. There's economists and constitutional
experts writing interesting articles about the coalition every day.
Publish them. We need pledge drives for when Steve goes for another
election do-over. We need dates for the coalition townhalls you better
be planning to have in your districts.
It's time you guys put together an official coalition website and Impolitical has your front page image right here.
What we need from you now is an official source for quotes, breaking news and coalition events to counteract the Corporate Television Vehicle™ which will reliably continue to pump out every rumour and screw-up in the coalition because that's what they do.
Yes,
you have your own party websites but Canadians need to be convinced
this is more than party politics as usual. Yes, there's lots of grassroots groups doing this already but we need to see you to stand behind it.
you have your own party websites but Canadians need to be convinced
this is more than party politics as usual. Yes, there's lots of grassroots groups doing this already but we need to see you to stand behind it.
it and the press will come. There's economists and constitutional
experts writing interesting articles about the coalition every day.
Publish them. We need pledge drives for when Steve goes for another
election do-over. We need dates for the coalition townhalls you better
be planning to have in your districts.
Saturday, December 6, 2008
What Harper is really like
Impolitical: In which Harpie's friends speak to the media about what he's really like
Robert Benzie's piece in the Star today is an eye-opener for Conservatives and an interesting read for anyone seeking to understand why the nation has been brought to such a place as it has been this week. It's all about Harpie. While I agree there's not much "news" here in terms of how the PM governs, the report is a worthwhile reminder that the governing style itself is unsettling and has wrought this week's crises. There is another intriguing angle, below.
On why there was no swaying Harper from his disastrous ideological economic update:
In interviews with federal associates of Harper, past and present, a picture emerges of a bright and driven man who does not take dissenting counsel especially well and is prone to profane outbursts.
"The people around him, the stable, has generally been bred for obedience, so that's what you get," says a confrere.
Another insider agrees "there's no question the Prime Minister rules by fear," which is not always productive.
"At some point, you know, you get up every day and you get kicked in the balls and, you know what, you get tired of it. So when people stop fighting back, I'm telling you, that's a most dangerous, dangerous, dangerous day," he says.
It was Harper who insisted that the Nov. 27 economic statement be used as a political weapon to bludgeon the Conservatives' foes. (emphasis added)
Creating an atmosphere where he's unopposed by his staff and colleagues, it's no wonder he's unable to work with the opposition. It doesn't seem to be in the DNA.
Video upgrade on Facebook introduced
Facebook Introduces Embeddable Videos Only Your Friends Can See
The key change, though, is that the videos will now be embeddable on
other sites. This is also something that has been a standard for a long
time at YouTube, MySpace, and practically every other video site. But
Facebook is adding a privacy twist. Just as on Facebook, you can
determine exactly who can see any video you upload. Those privacy
settings will be maintained across the Web. Anyone will be able to see
public videos. But if you set it so that only your friends can see it,
the video won’t play unless those friends are currently logged into
Facebook.
The key change, though, is that the videos will now be embeddable on
other sites. This is also something that has been a standard for a long
time at YouTube, MySpace, and practically every other video site. But
Facebook is adding a privacy twist. Just as on Facebook, you can
determine exactly who can see any video you upload. Those privacy
settings will be maintained across the Web. Anyone will be able to see
public videos. But if you set it so that only your friends can see it,
the video won’t play unless those friends are currently logged into
Facebook.
Conservatives Exposed
A BCer in Toronto: (Video) Don Newman schools John Baird
John Baird has been a member of parilament for years, provincially and federally, and he exposes the fact that he does not know how parliament or our democratic system works. He also contradicts himself in statements about the Bloc (if the Bloc supports the opposition, then the opposition stance is evil and anti-Canadian, but if the Bloc supports the Conservatives, they are Canadian).
John Baird has been a member of parilament for years, provincially and federally, and he exposes the fact that he does not know how parliament or our democratic system works. He also contradicts himself in statements about the Bloc (if the Bloc supports the opposition, then the opposition stance is evil and anti-Canadian, but if the Bloc supports the Conservatives, they are Canadian).
"Coalition government better for environment" - Sierra Club
World Report: "Coalition government better for environment, says Sierra Club," Greenpages.ca, December 3, 2008.
December 3, 2008 - A Liberal-New Democratic Party coalition government would be better for Canada's natural environment, says Sierra Club Canada.
14 steps to fascism - How does the Harper government stack up?
Blogging if necessary but not necessarily blogging: Interactive project on the fourteen steps to fascism, eh?
In 2003, Political Scientist identified fourteen characteristics of fascism. The Old American Century website put together a compendium of ways in which the Bush regime matched these points. I thought it would be interesting to see how well Steven HarProrogue (TM) is doing.
The characteristics are listed below. I will add in a few links that I think demonstrate his adherence to the fascism two step. Feel free to add yours in the comments and I will update this post with them periodically.
Peterborough Politics on the Editorial from the Thunder Bay Chronicle-Journal
Peterborough Politics: I Couldn't Agree More
The fact is that Canadians are suffering, and the Conservatives are looking out for their own cushy cabinet posts. I'm not surprised by the Chronicle-Journal stating that they have received more letters of support for the coalition than against it because Canadians are the kind of people that usually look to work together. And that's precisely what this coalition is about, putting aside differences and working together. But instead of lauding that, the Conservatives tried to turn the good characteristics of cooperating and working together into some kind of deep seeded, anti-Canadian character flaw.
Canada awarded 4 Fossil of the Day awards
Another crisis that Harper is promoting « Verbena-19
OTTAWA—Today, during international climate talks in Poznan, Poland, Canada was given an unprecedented four “Fossil of the Day” awards by the international community.
The awards are given to governments taking positions that stall or block the progress of climate negotiations. At the climate talks, the Canadian delegation has failed to take a constructive approach to negotiations – at the same time as the Harper government prorogued Parliament, shutting down debate until next year.
Tim Burton to make a Dark Shadows movie with Johnny Depp
Dark Shadows: Can Tim Burton Convert Over 1000 Hours of TV into One "Dark Shadows" Movie?
One of the weirdest soaps ever to hit the airwaves is Dark Shadows,
a late-1960s daily story that spent 6 months as a typical gothic
melodrama and then surprised viewers by abruptly introducing ghosts,
ancient gods, a sexy vamp named Barnabas (pictured), time travel, and
parallel universes. Dan Curtis' iconic series aired for 5 years on ABC,
racking up almost 1100 hours of television packed with monstery
goodness. And now Tim Burton is set to make a movie version of it, with
Johnny Depp as Barnabas. Can it really be done?
One of the weirdest soaps ever to hit the airwaves is Dark Shadows,
a late-1960s daily story that spent 6 months as a typical gothic
melodrama and then surprised viewers by abruptly introducing ghosts,
ancient gods, a sexy vamp named Barnabas (pictured), time travel, and
parallel universes. Dan Curtis' iconic series aired for 5 years on ABC,
racking up almost 1100 hours of television packed with monstery
goodness. And now Tim Burton is set to make a movie version of it, with
Johnny Depp as Barnabas. Can it really be done?
Dungeons and Dragons dance music
Music: It's . . . Dungeons & Dragons Dance Music?
Okay, this is funny.
Could it get any cheesier? How about getting David Hasselhoff to cover it and star in the video.
:)
Okay, this is funny.
Could it get any cheesier? How about getting David Hasselhoff to cover it and star in the video.
:)
New Farscape news!!!!
Splash Page » EXCLUSIVE PREVIEW: ‘Farscape’ Creator Rockne O’Bannon Brings Series Back — As A Comic Book
A four-part comic book, and a webisode mini-series will take up where the Peacekeeper Wars mini-series left off.
A four-part comic book, and a webisode mini-series will take up where the Peacekeeper Wars mini-series left off.
Test Tube Meat - more news
Checkout Line: Meet shmeat | Gristmill: The environmental news blog | Grist
Shmeat is grown from a cell culture (hence the in vitro or cultured
prefixes), not from a live animal. These harvested cells are taken from
an animal, such as a pig, and placed in a "nutrient-rich medium" that
mimics blood. Once the cells multiply they are attached to a spongy
scaffold or sheet (sheet + meat = shmeat) that has been soaked with
nutrients and stretched to increase cell size and protein content.
Shmeat is grown from a cell culture (hence the in vitro or cultured
prefixes), not from a live animal. These harvested cells are taken from
an animal, such as a pig, and placed in a "nutrient-rich medium" that
mimics blood. Once the cells multiply they are attached to a spongy
scaffold or sheet (sheet + meat = shmeat) that has been soaked with
nutrients and stretched to increase cell size and protein content.
Repo Man sequel - Repo Chick
Repo Man Sequel Starts Filming Next Month | /Film
Alex Cox’s Repo Man sequel Repo Chick is finally going into production next month (January 2009). Production Weekly reports that David Lynch is producing the project.
Cox has previously said that the follow-up will “unfold against the
background of the credit crunch and the subprime mortgage crisis in the
US, where repossessions of homes, cars and other forms of property is
at a new high. ‘The repo business has expanded to everything from
boats, houses, aeroplanes, small nations…children”.
Alex Cox’s Repo Man sequel Repo Chick is finally going into production next month (January 2009). Production Weekly reports that David Lynch is producing the project.
Cox has previously said that the follow-up will “unfold against the
background of the credit crunch and the subprime mortgage crisis in the
US, where repossessions of homes, cars and other forms of property is
at a new high. ‘The repo business has expanded to everything from
boats, houses, aeroplanes, small nations…children”.
Our democratic rights were taken away, and the corporate media approves
Getting it Right: WSWS: Canada’s “constitutional coup” and the corporate media
Whilst the editorial pages largely avoided commenting on the shutting down of parliament, the dailies did publish many copy-inches of reportage. The common refrain of this reportage was that the governor-general had called a "time out."
The "time out" metaphor has a very definite political significance. It is meant to lull the population to sleep, to foster the notion that little, if anything, of significance has taken place and everything will, in any event, soon go back to normal because parliament has merely been "suspended."
The truth is otherwise. The suspension of parliament and of MPs' right to defeat and replace the sitting government strikes at the most fundamental democratic principle—the right of the people to choose their own government.
If not overturned by a movement from below, Canada's constitution, through the power of precedent, will have been rewritten and the powers of the executive, of both the sitting government and of the governor-general, to ignore parliament and rule by decree will have been significantly increased.
As for the question of "suspension," this is precisely how democratic rights are taken away. Governments moving in an authoritarian direction don't generally outright abolish democratic rights; they "suspend" them, claiming that they need to be temporarily withdrawn so as to confront a purported crisis or emergency.
Working people must take heed: The corporate media's support for the constitutional coup engineered by the Conservatives and the governor-general attests to the fact there is no significant constituency within the ruling class committed to the defence of constitutional principles and democratic rights.
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