Saturday, February 14, 2009
Save yourself! Stop eating food!
Our Food is Full of Crap. Also, Rodent Hair, Mildew, and Bugs. - Boing Boing
In the wake of the peanut butter salmonella scare (caused by rats, roaches, and other awfulness inside the factory), an op-ed in today's New York Times examines the government's standards for acceptable levels of gross stuff in food. According to the writer, you likely ingest up to two pounds of "flies, maggots and mites" each year, without being aware.
In the wake of the peanut butter salmonella scare (caused by rats, roaches, and other awfulness inside the factory), an op-ed in today's New York Times examines the government's standards for acceptable levels of gross stuff in food. According to the writer, you likely ingest up to two pounds of "flies, maggots and mites" each year, without being aware.
Thursday, February 12, 2009
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
Conservatives still don't want to budge on following international law
Montreal Simon: The Unbearable Agony of Omar Khadr
The U.S. and Canadian governments are signatories to a United Nations protocol that states fighters under age 18 are to be considered child soldiers and must be released and helped to reintegrate into society.
Monday, February 9, 2009
The Christian Bale rant story continues ... on Cracked.com
The Christian Bale Flip Out According to the Other Guy | Cracked.com
[Note: In my professional opinion, reading this post while listening to this Remix takes the entire experience to the next level.]
This week, audio from the set of Terminator: Salvation took the Internet by storm. Apparently, Christian Bale lost his temper, and said some not-so-nice things to the Director of Photography, Shane Hurlbut. To get a little perspective, we’re bringing you Shane’s version of the events that lead up to those fateful three minutes.
The Right will cause PR
Both Barrels: The Right will cause PR <read full post.
Mark Taylor puts forth an argument showing how a breakup of the Conservative party into at least 2 new (old?) Conservative parties could help bring about Proportional Representation.
I think he could be onto something here.
Mark Taylor puts forth an argument showing how a breakup of the Conservative party into at least 2 new (old?) Conservative parties could help bring about Proportional Representation.
I think he could be onto something here.
Obvious changes needed in electoral rules
Challenging the Commonplace: 626,809 votes prevented due to ID rules <full post
The new voter identification rules in Bills C-31 and C-18 include the
requirement for a street or civic address. But 4.4 percent of
registered electors haven't such an address. These include people
living in rural and northern areas, in which it is common only to have
a rural route number or post office box.
The new voter identification rules in Bills C-31 and C-18 include the
requirement for a street or civic address. But 4.4 percent of
registered electors haven't such an address. These include people
living in rural and northern areas, in which it is common only to have
a rural route number or post office box.
Sunday, February 8, 2009
Chocolate-covered bacon
Chocolate-covered bacon? Yep, the state fair is back in town - St. Petersburg Times
Chocolate-dipped bacon
If, for some strange reason, the thought of pig meat slathered in fudge doesn't give your stomach a tingle, then get with the times, man. In January, Time wrote about the proliferation of bacony delights on dessert menus in fine restaurants nationwide. Bacon ice cream has even popped up on Top Chef. Mark Boggs of Plant City saw chocolate-dipped bacon at another fair up north and tinkered in the kitchen with some recipes. He decided that freshly grilled Hormel applewood-smoked bacon worked best; for $5, you get four slabs with a cup of syrupy chocolate dipping sauce. Don't let the concept scare you — there is no meaty aftertaste, only a salty-meets-sweet flavor delivered via the peerless crisp-yet-chewy texture of bacon. Find it at Mavric's Chocolate Barn near Gate 2.
Best DVR Applications
Hive Five: Six Best DVR Applications
Earlier this week we asked you to share you favorite DVR applications,
and now we're back with the six most popular answers. This week's Hive
Five Call for Contenders was one of our tightest races yet, which is
why we're featuring six popular DVR apps instead of the standard five.
NOTE: If you'd like to roll your own DVR using your
computer, you'll need a TV capture card. If your computer doesn't
already have one installed, don't worry—they're not that expensive
(I've always had good luck with Hauppauge cards), and you can install them on your PC just like you would install any other PCI card (i.e., easily).
Build your own DVR
Hack Attack: Build your own DVR
With all the potential controversy and uncertainty surrounding TiVo firmware upgrades, the time to build your own DVR has never been better. With your own DVR, you can get all the benefits of a TiVo and more without the recurring cost for subscription. This week, I'm going to show you how simple it is to turn your computer into a DVR. After that, I'll show you a few ways that I use my DVR to take it beyond TiVo.
Whether you're using your current PC, repurposing an old one, or going all out on a dedicated DVR to put under your TV, you can get so much more out of your own DVR than you could ever get out of a TiVo.
Use your Wii as a Media Centre
Feature: Use Your Wii as a Media Center
This guide shows you how to set up your Wii as a media centre.
This guide shows you how to set up your Wii as a media centre.
Tweaking your HDTV
Troubleshoot Your HDTV - Popular Mechanics
So you just bought an HDTV. You laid down serious cash for your new set, upgraded your tuner box and hooked it all into your surround-sound system. Then you turned it on and tuned into a whole new era of disappointment. Those HD pictures don't look as good as they should. The image breaks up into little blocks. Fast-moving objects aren't crisp. And standard-definition TV programs look like garbage. Is it your TV? Is it the fault of your cable or satellite company? The truth is that it could be either, or both. HDTV is still an evolving technology and plenty of glitches make it onto the screen. Some problems can be fixed with a simple adjustment, while others should send you back to the store with receipt in hand. And many problems have nothing to do with your set at all. Here's your troubleshooting guide.
Canadian banks - regulations may have saved them
The Galloping Beaver: Mr. Dithers may have saved the Canadian banks
It should come as no surprize then that suddenly the so-called over-regulated Canadian banking system is the envy of the global consumer banking sector and considered one of the most stable in the world. In fact, when Canadian banks have attracted the attention of the editor of Newsweek International, Fareed Zakaria, you might say they're a force to be reckoned with because they're so well regulated.
Canadian banks are well capitalized and poised to take advantage of opportunities that American and European banks cannot seize. The Toronto Dominion Bank, for example, was the 15th-largest bank in North America one year ago. Now it is the fifth-largest. It hasn't grown in size; the others have all shrunk.
Saturday, February 7, 2009
Auto-Tune: Why Pop Music Sounds Perfect
Auto-Tune: Why Pop Music Sounds Perfect - TIME <full story
... Almost immediately, studio engineers adopted it as a trade secret to fix flubbed notes, saving them the expense and hassle of having to redo sessions. The first time common ears heard Auto-Tune was on the immensely irritating 1998 Cher hit "Believe." In the first verse, when Cher sings "I can't break through" as though she's standing behind an electric fan, that's Auto-Tune--but it's not the way Hildebrand meant it to be used. The program's retune speed, which adjusts the singer's voice, can be set from zero to 400. "If you set it to 10, that means that the output pitch will get halfway to the target pitch in 10 milliseconds," says Hildebrand. "But if you let that parameter go to zero, it finds the nearest note and changes the output pitch instantaneously"--eliminating the natural transition between notes and making the singer sound jumpy and automated. "I never figured anyone in their right mind would want to do that," he says. ...
Donnie Darko sequel.
New York Comic Con: Donnie Darko Trades Jake Gyllenhaal For Sexy Mer-Sisters
Could be meat, could be cake...
Could be meat, could be cake...
Friday, February 6, 2009
Christian Bale apologizes
Stargazing <read full story
Following up on the recently released audio of Christian freaking out at the director of photography on the set of Terminator Salvation last year, Christian called in to an L.A. radio station to make an apology live on-air.
Following up on the recently released audio of Christian freaking out at the director of photography on the set of Terminator Salvation last year, Christian called in to an L.A. radio station to make an apology live on-air.
Thursday, February 5, 2009
Conservatives promise money, but don't actually hand it over
78% of Building Canada Fund projects in Conservative ridings: Kennedy | Jerad Gallinger < read full story
In the first year following the launch of the $8.8-billion Building Canada Fund, the Conservative government flowed zero funding to infrastructure projects. Worse, last week officials at Infrastructure Canada admitted that of the $1.5 billion announced in its first two years of budgeted spending, only $80 million has flowed for municipal infrastructure projects across the country.
Conservatives will welcome Gitmo prisoners, just not the CANADIAN one.
A BCer in Toronto: Conservatives will welcome Gitmo prisoners, just not the Canadian one <full post
How messed up is this!...
How messed up is this!...
But while he's looking at helping Gitmo prisoners bypass the immigration process and settle in Canada, perhaps Kenney might heed the pleas of folks like Bob Rae and groups like Amnesty International and see what he can do for the CANADIAN CITIZEN, Omar Khadr, who is also stuck in Gitmo and whom the government has shown little interest in helping. Bring him home and let the Canadian justice system deal with the charges against him.
"Death to Arabs" group and Peter Kent, Conservative MP
Dawg's Blawg: Peter Kent's Facebook friend <full post
As noted in an earlier post,
our new junior foreign minister Peter Kent was in the news again
recently, shrilly demanding that Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez do
something, pronto, about a vicious attack on a Caracas synagogue.
Just who is Peter Kent, again? I have noted before that he's got some rather questionable associations.
And now a Jewish peace activist informs me b/c that Kent has been
palling around with at least one other known extremist. He's got the
screenshots to prove it, too.
Meet Meir Weinstein, aka Meir Halevi, the Canadian Director of the Jewish Defense League. The JDL was founded by Rabbi Meir Kahane.
Weinstein and our junior foreign minister are Facebook friends.
As noted in an earlier post,
our new junior foreign minister Peter Kent was in the news again
recently, shrilly demanding that Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez do
something, pronto, about a vicious attack on a Caracas synagogue.
Just who is Peter Kent, again? I have noted before that he's got some rather questionable associations.
And now a Jewish peace activist informs me b/c that Kent has been
palling around with at least one other known extremist. He's got the
screenshots to prove it, too.
Meet Meir Weinstein, aka Meir Halevi, the Canadian Director of the Jewish Defense League. The JDL was founded by Rabbi Meir Kahane.
Weinstein and our junior foreign minister are Facebook friends.
Olivia Chow's response to our "let them stay" letters
we move to canada: olivia chow's response to our "let them stay" letters <full post
* The Committee recommends that the government immediately implement a program to allow conscientious objectors and their immediate family members (partners and dependents), who have refused or left military service related to a war not sanctioned by the United Nations and do not have a criminal record, to apply for permanent resident status and remain in Canada; and that the government should immediately cease any removal or deportation actions that may have already commenced against such individuals.
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