Iran bans trade with Israel

Press TV - Iran sets ban, fine on trade with Israel

Iran has moved to issue an executive order to clamp sweeping sanctions on all investment activities and trade with Israeli entities.

Following the heavy death toll from the 23-day Israeli assault on Gaza and with international pressure mounting on Tel Aviv, Iran made a decision on Saturday to introduce a bill banning business transactions with Israeli companies -- entities and persons.

The meaning of life - starts with a "b"

cg0505bacon.gif (GIF Image, 780x566 pixels)

9-month old at play

Time-lapse of a 9-month-old at play - Boing Boing <watch me!

York U. admin plays the system against the students and teachers

The ONDP step up when no one else will | rabble.ca <read full story

But a back-to-work legislation is just not the solution to a 12-week long labour dispute that has gone nowhere after much bargaining on CUPE 3903’s part and no budge on York’s part. The university has foully engineered the entire collective bargaining process by riding it out until Premier Dalton McGuinty force the workers back to work.

What does the Federa Budget 2009 mean? Initial Report Card and analysis

Budget | CUPE

Federal Budget 2009: Initial Report Card

January 29, 2009 02:49 PM
How well did the budget deliver on these three key areas of concern?

1. stimulating the economy,
2. protecting the vulnerable, and
3. saving and creating jobs by rebuilding the economy

more »

• Federal Budget 2009 and Water 01/29/09
• Federal Budget 2009 and Early Learning and Child Care 01/29/09
• Federal Budget 2009 and Municipal Infrastructure 01/29/09
• Federal Budget 2009 and Privatization 01/29/09
• Federal Budget 2009 and Health Care 01/29/09
• Federal Budget 2009 and Employment Insurance (EI) 01/29/09
• Federal Budget 2009 and Post-secondary Education 01/28/09
• Federal Budget 2009 and Pensions 01/28/09
• Federal Budget 2009 and the Environment 01/28/09
• Federal Budget 2009 and Aboriginal Issues 01/28/09

» view all items on: Budget

Movies this year, 2009

2009 Movie Preview: 30 Fantastic Movies To Watch (Or Avoid) This Year

Metal trilobite sculpture!

Concept Art: A Trilobite Made of Welded Steel and Time <view me!

Why should I respect these oppressive religions? - Johann Hari, The Independent

Johann Hari: Why should I respect these oppressive religions? - Johann Hari, Commentators - The Independent

Excerpt:

When you demand "respect", you are demanding we lie to you. I have
too much real respect for you as a human being to engage in that charade.

But why are religious sensitivities so much more likely to provoke demands for
censorship than, say, political sensitivities? The answer lies in the nature
of faith. If my views are challenged I can, in the end, check them against
reality. If you deregulate markets, will they collapse? If you increase
carbon dioxide emissions, does the climate become destabilised? If my views
are wrong, I can correct them; if they are right, I am soothed.

But when the religious are challenged, there is no evidence for them to
consult. By definition, if you have faith, you are choosing to believe in
the absence of evidence. Nobody has "faith" that fire hurts, or
Australia exists; they know it, based on proof. But it is psychologically
painful to be confronted with the fact that your core beliefs are based on
thin air, or on the empty shells of revelation or contorted parodies of
reason. It's easier to demand the source of the pesky doubt be silenced.

Liberal caucus gagged by Iggy

Firebrand: Iggy gags caucus III

Well, today comes confirmation that Ignatieff is muzzling his caucus
and is attempting to control the access his MPs have to the media. The Globe and Mail reports that

At his first caucus meeting as leader in December, [Ignatieff] made it clear the caucus speaks with one voice and it is his.

“He
laid down the law at the beginning. You could hear a pin drop,” a
Liberal insider said about the way Mr. Ignatieff outlined the new
one-voice strategy. He said Mr. Ignatieff possesses discipline and
firmness. “You know when you leave the room who the leader is.”

In addition, Ignatieff is banning "Liberal strategists" from appearing on TV panels without approval.

Budget stimulus too timid, tax cuts ineffective

Another Point of View: Harper/Flaherty Budget: Stimulus Too Timid, Tax Cuts Ineffective

Little for jobless, families, elder care or students

Instead, the new budget confirms that equalization improvements already announced will be limited to the growth rate of the economy, meaning that struggling provinces will receive $7 billion less from the federal government than they had been counting on over the next two years. The budget also contained next to nothing to help the unemployed, families struggling with the rising costs of child care and elder care, students with rising debt loads, and seniors struggling with reduced retirement savings.

“Extending Employment Insurance (EI) benefits by five weeks is not nearly enough to help unemployed Canadians,” Clancy says.

“Improving access to EI and increasing benefits would have been far more helpful when it comes to putting money in the hands of those who need it most. But the budget does nothing to address our flawed system, where only 40% of workers qualify for what are now poverty-level benefits."

“Most Canadians were expecting new investments in our social infrastructure but this budget invests nothing in child care, elder care, mental health, post-secondary education or community-based social services,” he adds.

"Furthermore, the budget does nothing to improve public pensions for seniors and nothing to shore up workplace pension plans.”

Canadians deserve better

James Laxer: The Liberals and the Road Not Taken

The Harper-Flaherty budget doesn’t do the job. New spending of about $6
billion this year and again next year, will create about 60,000 jobs.
It won’t make a dent in the rising tide of new joblessness that is
forecast to engulf Canadian communities from coast to coast. The layoff
notices are going out every day. The descent of our economy into
deflation is proceeding. Within a few months, the utter inadequacy of
the government’s policy will be evident to millions of Canadians.

Monument to the shoe thrower

Let Freedom Rain: New statue in Iraq honouring shoe thrower

Globe's "expose" questionable.

RedBedHead: Beyond Craven: The Globe's Gaza "Expose" <read me!

Every article about the school bombing that I could find, names the school al Fakhura - somehow the Globe came up with the name "Ibn Rushd Preparatory School for Boys". One wonders if the reporter was in the wrong place entirely.

More about the budget removal of funding for medical research in Canada

Hell, Upside Down: So Liberals Don't Support Stem Cell Research Eh?

While the Toronto Star regurgitates Liberal marketing saying "Liberals Put Tories on Probation" the headline in the Globe and Mail
today would indicate that the Liberals are either not watching Harper
closely enough or they agree with his anti-science idealogy. If not why
didn't they include funding stem cell research in their amendments:
...
The news spread like a virus through the research community yesterday
as the country's top scientists wondered whether the oversight was a
mistake. Genome Canada supports 33 major research projects in areas
such as genomics, agriculture and cancer stem cells with operating
grants of $10-million a year. The projects employ more than 2,000
people. By comparison, medical research grants from the federally
funded Canadian Institutes of Health Research run in the
$100,000-a-year range.

It also remains unclear how the budget
will affect the funding abilities of Ottawa's three government
research-granting agencies, including the CIHR.

Harper's budget removes medical research funding, thousands of jobs at risk

Peace, order and good government, eh?: Watching them "like hawks"

For the first time in nine years, Genome Canada, a
non-profit non-governmental funding organization, was not mentioned in
the federal budget and saw its annual cash injection from Ottawa -
$140-million last year - disappear.

Putting thousands of jobs at risk doesn't sound like good stimulus. And
pulling the rug out from under "some of the most promising medical
research" doesn't sound like policy calculated to make Canada stronger
coming out of the recession than it was going in.

Google to help fight against bittorrent throttling ISPs

Google Joins Fight Against BitTorrent Throttling ISPs | TorrentFreak

Hundreds of ISPs all over the world limit and restrict BitTorrent traffic on their networks. Unfortunately, most companies are not very open about their network management solutions. With a newly launched website, Google is now helping out by supporting applications that distinguish the good ISPs from the bad.

The Bacon Explosion

Bacon Explosion: The BBQ Sausage Recipe of all Recipes

... containing at least 5,000 calories and 500 grams of fat

Nom nom nom.

No We Can't

Montreal Simon: Ignatieff and the Coalition that Won't Die

Michael Ignatieff had a chance to do the right thing, and stand up for the rights of poor Canadians, women, and children.

But instead he sold us all out. He'll blow Stephen Harper and "swallow hard" for the price of a meaningless amendment
...

He didn't even have the
guts or the decency to ask for changes to Employment Insurance, so many
more Canadians could be eligible for benefits, instead of being driven
into poverty and misery. Now there are two Conservative Parties in Canada: Harper's LibCons, and Ignatieff's ConLibs.

Where Plates Collide

Mega Geophysics: Where Tectonic Plates Meet in a Volcanic Pool

Jack Layton is now the real leader of the Opposition

James Laxer: Jack Layton Is Now The Real Leader of the Opposition: Ignatieff Plays Hamlet

Meanwhile, Jack Layton has become the real leader of the opposition. He showed courage when he reached out to the Liberals to form a progressive coalition that could provide Canadians with the leadership they need to cope with the economic crisis. He tried the option of working with the Liberals. Michael Ignatieff has walked away from that option. Layton has retained his integrity and his clear understanding of what the country needs. Progressives now have one party and one party only available to them: the NDP.

A Designer's Portfolio, 16th Century Style

CR Blog » Blog Archive » A Designer’s Portfolio, 16th Century-Style

Slums of the world

Riveting narrated slideshow of the world's slums: The Places We Live - Boing Boing <view

Zombie Hello Kitty cake

Zombie Hello Kitty cake - Boing Boing <more pics...

Fueling the cycle of hate

Yigal Bronner and Neve Gordon: Fueling the Cycle of Hate < read me

Israeli soccer matches were suspended during the assault on Gaza. When the games resumed last week, the fans had come up with a new chant: "Why have the schools in Gaza been shut down?" sang the crowd. "Because all the children were gunned down!" came the answer.

Feb Budget 2009: Billoins in new housing spending, but not for those who need it most.

Wellesley Institute | Fed budget 2009: Billions in new housing spending, but not for those who need it the most < read the whole post!

LESS HELP FOR THOSE THAT NEED IT THE MOST: The driveways and decks tax credit is up to three times bigger than the entire investment set aside for lower-income Canadians who are suffering the most. An even bigger concern – virtually the entire $2 billion in affordable housing investments will have to be cost-shared with the provinces and territories following negotiations.

Why the Coalition should topple the Cons

Montreal Simon: Why the Coalition Should Topple the Cons < read the whole post.

It spews money in every direction to try to buy votes. It depends too much on shared funding from cash-strapped municipalities, its tax cuts are peanuts that will cost us dearly later on. It does almost nothing to encourage a greener economy. And it continues this foul Con government's war on Canadian women, with nothing for childcare spaces, and an assault on pay equity.

But its most catastrophic
omission is that it it fails to adequately reform the Employment
Insurance system and prepare it to cope with the enormous tide of human
misery that could be coming its way. Because as I pointed out yesterday
EI in Canada these days is completely inadequate.

Cuts
in the early 1990s mean barely half of the country's unemployed today –
and fewer than a quarter in Toronto – are eligible for benefits. Those
lucky enough to qualify often get far less than poverty-level incomes.
And for almost everyone scrambling to find work as the economy
crumbles, benefits run out too soon.

And
if more people don't become eligible, and benefits are increased,
millions of Canadians could be forced into lives of grinding poverty,
welfare rolls could swell, and our whole safety net could collapse.
















But its most catastrophic omission is that it it fails to adequately reform the Employment Insurance system and prepare it to cope with the enormous tide of human misery that could be coming its way. Because as I pointed out yesterday EI in Canada these days is completely inadequate.

Cuts in the early 1990s mean barely half of the country's unemployed today – and fewer than a quarter in Toronto – are eligible for benefits. Those lucky enough to qualify often get far less than poverty-level incomes. And for almost everyone scrambling to find work as the economy crumbles, benefits run out too soon.

And if more people don't become eligible, and benefits are increased, millions of Canadians could be forced into lives of grinding poverty, welfare rolls could swell, and our whole safety net could collapse.

Silent as the Tomb: Another American-Backed Slaughter Ignored

Silent as the Tomb: Another American-Backed Slaughter Ignored | Chris Floyd Online - Empire Burlesque - High Crimes and Low Comedy in the American Imperium < Read the full post.

Before taking office, Barack Obama was chided -- in certain quarters, at least -- for his long silence on the slaughter in Gaza. Of course, as we noted here the other day, the main reason he stayed mum on the subject before his inauguration was that he was in complete accord with George W. Bush's stance on the American-backed massacre of civilians.

However, there is another horrific, American-backed slaughter that Obama has been silent about for even longer -- throughout his entire presidential campaign, in fact, and continuing into his presidency. We speak, of course, of the ghastly Terror War "regime change" operation in Somalia, where American bombs, American weapons, American training, American money -- and American death squads -- aided the military forces of the Ethiopian dictatorship in its brutal invasion and murderous occupation of the long-shattered land. [For more background, see this, especially the links at the bottom.]

Genocide, from the World's Biggest Victim Industry

Smoking Mirrors: Genocide, from the World's Biggest Victim Industry. <read the full post

In present time they are engaged in exterminating a population before the eyes of the world. They forced 700,000 of these people off of their land via the cachet that they garnered according to this highly questionable event. Since then, for sixty years they have been diligently exterminating these people and stealing more and more of their land. This is a fact.



Recently they launched a military strike against these people for political gain. The party in power was losing the support of their own people so they needed to do something that would regain them political support for the upcoming election. They succeeded in this event. They also succeeded in destroying what little was left of the other countries manufacturing capacity. They also destroyed their livestock and food supplies. When concerned people around the world wanted to donate to these people, who are homeless and without food, the BBC decided not to run a public service video because the appeal might be considered as anti-Israel. Yes… the BBC refused to run the appeal for this reason. This is because pro-Zionist Mark Thompson is a director at the BBC. Marcus Agius, a senior independent director at the BBC is married to a Rothschild.



Things are very, very bad in Gaza. Here is a listing of some of the Israeli war criminals with their pictures.



During this vicious act of genocide the Israelis used DIME… depleted uranium …and white phosphorus on women and children and anyone else who happened to be nearby. Now they are blocking an appeal for the survivors of the devastation that they caused.



The argument has been given that the attack was to stop rockets being launched into GAZA. Few, if any rockets were launched into GAZA during the ceasefire which was broken by Israel. Its right there on CNN, go watch it. Israel committed these atrocities to influence an election and because they are psychopaths who enjoy causing human suffering. This is how they entertain themselves.

This budget won't lead Canada out of a recession...

James Laxer: This Budget Won’t Lead Canada Out of Recession: Ignatieff Should Defeat It

Depending on how you interpret the budget, the government is committing itself to direct new spending of about $10 billion to $12 billion, on infrastructure and housing, over the next two years. Some of this depends on matching provincial and municipal funds, which may never materialize. Much of it depends on how much the government actually spends, a crucial matter since the Harper government has left most of the previous infrastructure money it promised in earlier budgets unspent. At most, the new direct spending by the government amounts to about $6 billion a year.

These numbers may sound big. In fact, they are puny. The Canadian Gross Domestic Product totals about $1.5 trillion a year. Six billion dollars a year amounts to just over one half of one per cent of our country’s GDP. Economic announcements and forecasts tell us that Canada is on track to lose hundreds of thousands of jobs over the next six months. The Conservative government’s planned spending would create, at most, about sixty thousand short-term jobs.

The various tax measures in the budget will be equally ineffectual in stimulating the economy.

Video - Gerard Kennedy speaks in suppor of U.S. Iraq war resisters in Canada

Hell, Upside Down: Liberal MP Gerard Kennedy speaks in support of U.S. Iraq war resisters in Canada < watch me!